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Luftwaffe X-Planes - German Experimental Aircraft of World War II

From jet planes and high altitude aircraft to radar-equipped fighters configured to deliver chemical weapons, numerous Luftwaffe planes were designed and reached prototype stage but never made it into mass production or battle. Luftwaffe X Planes is a definitive, revelatory guide to the remarkable range of secret planes that the Third Reich failed to complete.

Despite the Allied authorities' ban on research, countless aircraft were designed and tested by the Luftwaffe and German manufacturers before World War II. The research went ahead at secret evaluation sites in Germany, Switzerland, Sweden and the USSR.
After the outbreak of the war this work continued. Many projects remained on the drawing board or at prototype stage because either they were deemed unsuitable or, as is the case with most of those in this selection, the developers simply ran out of time and the projects never went into production.

Renowned aviation expert Manfred Griehl has painstakingly assembled a valuable selection of images which shows the remarkable range of projects dreamed up by the German designers. Had these innovative projects ever been realised the course of the World War II could have been dramatically different.

X-Planes : German Luftwaffe Prototypes 1930-1945 (paperback)

In this superb illustrated guide, renowned German aviation specialist Manfred Griehl has collected a unique and valuable selection of photographs of Luftwaffe projects that never made it into battle. They remained on the drawing board or at prototype stage either because they were deemed unsuitable or the developers simply ran out of time and the projects never went into production.

There are examples of Fw190s developed for the delivery of chemical and toxic weapons, the high altitude Junkers EF 61, the early prototype WNF 342 helicopter as well as numerous examples of developmental jet fighters that could very well have been realised had it not been for the effectiveness of the Allied bombing campaign in restricting the supply of necessary materials.

Much of this development work went on to have an important influence on aircraft design in both the East and the West after the Second World War, making this book an essential source not just for those interested in Hitler's Luftwaffe but also in the history of military aviation in general.

The Ultimate Flying Wings of the Luftwaffe

It might have happened. With the Allied forces pushing into Germany, a desperate Hitler launched the next breed of German aircraft. Imagine a strange triangular bomber that could not be detected by radar or intercepted by fighters launches an inextinguishable ball of fire over London which destroys the city and its surroundings up to the sea.
Or perhaps a black boomerang of sixty meters drops two tons of anthrax over Washington and New York, making them uninhabitable for fifty years. A bombing raid experiences massive casualties, savaged by an armada of new German fighters, a like that the Allied gunners had never seen before.
They are dart shaped, too fast for the gunners to take aim, so the new Nazi flying wings and triangles decimate the bombers with their cannon fire and missiles that were automatically activated by photo-electric cells.

These things never happened. However, the construction of secret flying wings had commenced at the start of 1945 and one extraordinary new fighter took to the skies on its only test flight. If these radical fighters of the Luftwaffe had been pressed into service earlier, they may well have changed the outcome of the Second World War.

Profusely illustrated with technical drawings and fascinating data and information on the Luftwaffe's most radical fighter and bomber projects, "The Ultimate Flying Wings of the Luftwaffe" chronicles these revolutionary designs.
A fascinating book for the military historian, enthusiastic modelers and those interested in the more extreme side of World War 2 aviation, this book shows how advanced German scientists were towards the end of the Second World War and how close Hitler may have come in winning after all.

X-Planes - German Luftwaffe Prototypes 1930-1945 (hard cover)

Renowned German aviation specialist Manfred Griehl has collected a unique and valuable selection of photographs of Luftwaffe projects that never made it into battle. They remained on the drawing board or at prototype stage either because they were deemed unsuitable or the developers simply ran out of time and the projects never went into production.
Most photographs come from the development sites and testing grounds of the major manufacturers of Nazi Germany: companies such as Dornier, Junkers, Focke-Wulf and Heinkel all received funding from the government to develop bigger and faster aircraft. A huge amount of private testing went on with major organisations such as Daimler-Benz, BMW and Siemens investing huge amounts in new engine systems and other advances such as radar.

This book also details the innumerable alterations that were made to existing service aircraft to equip them for new roles. There are examples of Fw190s developed for the delivery of chemical and toxic weapons, the high altitude Junkers EF 61, the early prototype WNF 342 helicopter as well as numerous examples of developmental jet fighters that could very well have been realised had it not been for the effectiveness of the Allied bombing campaign in restricting the supply of necessary materials.

Geheimprojekte der Luftwaffe 1939-1945

Das Dritte Reich brachte eine Vielzahl von technischen Meisterleistungen hervor, die oftmals im Geheimen in gigantischen unterirdischen Bunkersystemen entwickelt und getestet wurden.
Nach Ende des Zweiten Weltkrieges waren die Siegermächte überwältigt von den Leistungen der deutschen Forscher und Konstrukteure und viele Entwicklungen wurden sofort übernommen, z.B. in der Flugzeugtechnik und beginnenden Raumfahrt.

In dieser aktualisierten und überarbeiteten Neuauflage beleuchten die Autoren diesen spannenden Themenkomplex mit erstklassigem Bildmaterial, das sie in vielen Jahren zusammengetragen und teils selbst fotografiert haben.