The Focke-Wulf Ta 152 was designed by Kurt Tank and manufactured by Focke-Wulf as a German high-altitude fighter and interceptor aircraft during the mid-1940s. It was developed from the Fw 190 fighter and was targeted to be built in at least three variants; the high-altitude type or Ta 152H, the medium-altitude type or Ta 152C, and the fighter-reconnaissance type or the Ta 152E.
In 1944, the German Air Ministry came to a decision that new fighter aircraft designations should have the name of the chief designer, therefore giving the prefix “Ta” from Kurt Tank. In the same year, the Focke Wulf Ta 152 took to the air for the first time. In January 1945, the first high-altitude version known as Ta 152H entered service. The aircraft was retired in May 1945 and has a total number of 69 Ta 152s built.
The Ta 152H can carry a single crew member and has an external length of 10.82 meters, an external height of 3.36 meters, and a fuselage diameter of 1.1 meters. It has a tail height of 4 meters and a wheelbase of 7.6 meters. The wingspan is 14.44 meters and the wing area is 23.5 square meters. It has an empty weight of 4,031 kg, a gross weight of 4,727 kg, a maximum takeoff weight of 5,217 kg, and a fuel tank capacity of 262 US gal.
The aircraft is powered by a single Junkers Jumo 213E or Junkers Jumo 213E-1 engine. It is a twelve-cylinder supercharged liquid-cooled inverted Vee piston engine with three valves per cylinder, a two-stage three-speed centrifugal-type supercharger with MW50 injection into the intake and an aftercooler, and a pressurized water cooling system. It produces a maximum takeoff thrust of 2,050 hp with MW-50 water/methanol injection and 1,260 hp at 35,100 feet with GM-1 Nitrous Oxide injection and drives a three-bladed Junkers VS-9 constant-speed propeller.
The maximum speed is 310 knots at sea level with MW-50 boost and 410 knots at 41,000 feet with GM-1 boost. It has a travel range of 1,100 nautical miles. It can fly up to 49,500 feet with GM-1 boost and can climb at a rate of 3,900 feet per minute at a maximum weight of 5,217 kg.
The aircraft is armed with a single 30 mm MK 108 cannon with 85 rounds per gun and two 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons with 350 rounds per gun.
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