By the end of World War II, Nazi Germany was pursuing a diverse array of Wunderwaffen (wonder weapons.) EMW A6. Earlier in 1938, Goering had stated: “I completely lack the bombers capable of round-trip flights to New York with a 4.5-tonne bomb load. Soviet R-7 Sputnik, 1/72. It took hundreds of American strategic bombers based relatively nearby in the United Kingdom flying thousands of costly raids to put any sort of dent in the Germany war economy—and indeed, economic minister Albert Speer still managed to increase the output of German factories by the end of the war despite the enormous bombloads disgorged by Allied bombers. The Ho XVIII A was to be built mainly of wood and held together with a special carbon based glue. The unbuilt H.XVIII represented, in many respects, a scaled-up version of the Horten … The Horten H.XVIII was just an effort to satisfy the Germans wishes to manufacture an aircraft that could reach the United States. However, given the abilities of the allies to decode Enigma machine messages, it is questionable whether such a mission could be planned or launched without their knowledge. This bomber was to … While prototypes of the Me 264 and Ju-390 were flown, none entered large-scale production. The Horten H.XVIII is a jet long-range bomber proposed design from Reimar Horten, based on the Horten Ho 229 Jet Fighter/Bomber, the H.XVIII used many of the same techniques. Horten H.XVIII: Gliders Horten H.XIII A: Unknown Role Horten H.I • Horten H.II • Horten H.III • Horten H.IV • Horten H.V • Horten H.VI • Horten H.VII • Horten H.VIII • Horten H.XI • Horten H.XIV • Horten H.XV • Horten H.XVa • Horten H.XVc • Horten H.XVI • Horten Ho 251 • Horten Ho 253 • Horten … So how could a handful of raids by Nazi bombers meaningfully damage the huge U.S. war economy? Horten Ho XVIII A. Annoyed to have his concept watered down, Reimar Horten independently sketched a whole new thirty-five-ton flying wing jet bomber dubbed the Ho XVIIIB. Like the Ho 229, it would have possessed similar stealth characteristics, as well as a large fuel capacity for transatlantic missions. Its six jet engines were buried deep in the wing and the exhausts centered on the trailing end. [1][unreliable source?] Originally to have had a span of 80m, it was to have been powered by six 448kW BMW pusher engines; range was estimated to be 6000km at a cruising speed of between 300 and 350km/h. Would anyone else like to see this as a German bomber? I would be extremely happy to possess such a bomber, which would at last stuff the mouth of arrogance across the sea.”. Horten were told to work with the Junkers and Messerschmitt engineers. Horten proposed six jet-engines Ho.XVIII flying-wing bomber that was the scaled-up Ho.IX design. © Copyright 2021 Center for the National Interest All Rights Reserved, fastest piston-engine U.S. fighters of the time. Media in category "Horten H.XVIII" This category contains only the following file. The Horten H.XIII was an experimental flying wing aircraft designed by the Horten brothers during World War II. It was eventually rejected by the Horten brothers, as it was not a major improvement over the Ho XVIIIA. Artist's conception of the Horten Ho XVIII A. It had an MG 151 turret set in the middle rear of the wing and with six BMW 003 turbojets slung under the wings; this was designed by Messerschmitt and Junkers engineers. Zoukei-Mura managed to combine many ideas into one scale model kit as well: Engines and their internals, transparent parts, aicraft airframe and internals – quite a mix of ideas. There’s only one, chilling scenario in which the Amerika bomber would have had an impact: if Nazi Germany had completed development of its own nuclear weapons. To purchase Dr Myhra's Ebooks, please visit "http://www.luftwaffeaviationhistory.net/". 2013 | Changed parts + Actions Stash . The Hortens were told to make a presentation for their Amerika Bomber design on Febuary 25, 1945 in Berlin. HORTEN IIIf. The YB-49 spanned fifty-two meters wide and were powered by six turbojet engines embedded in the rear wings. Articles lacking reliable references from March 2014, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, Abandoned military aircraft projects of Germany, "Trivia: Captain America: The First Avenger (2011).". Category: Aircraft - Jets Aircraft - Jets: Also known as: Used from: No range: Used by: Manufacturer: Horten: Model: Ho XVIII: Hot kits . Nonetheless, Horten proposed installing two belly-mounted thirty-millimeter autocannons for self-defense. As a result, the huge flying wing should go largely undetected by radar. It is uncertain if this overall design was directly dev… Fernbomber Horten XVIIIa "Amerikabomber" Sharkit 1:72 7271 . Though aerodynamically unstable due to their lack of tail stabilizers, flying wings produce very little drag, thus allowing for higher speeds. The combination of speed and reduced radar detection range would have made the Horten Amerika bomber very difficult to intercept. Expelled from the venture, the Horten Brothers were working with the Horten H.XVIII, which was also known as the Amerika Bomber. Soviet R-12b-Horten XVIIIa Fernbomber-A model of Exeption ! The A model of the H.XVIII was a long, smooth blended wing. Horten, Reimar; Peter F. Selinger (1985) (in German). But its bigger sister – Horten XVIII (essentially, a scaled-up version of Ho 229) – could. In the final month of the war, for example, a Nazi submarine sortie aimed at diverting pressure to the U.S. East Coast triggered a massive U.S. counter-blockade called Operation Teardrop—without slowing down the U.S. advance into Germany to the slightest degree. Resembling the Horten The B model of the H.XVIIIB was generally the same as the A model, except the four (down from six) engines and four-wheel retractable landing gear were now housed in underwing pods, and the three-man crew housed under a bubble … The aircraft was first proposed for the Amerika Bomber project and was personally reviewed by Hermann Göring, after review, the Horten brothers (with deep dissatisfaction) were forced to share design and construction of the aircraft with Junkers and Messerschmitt engineers, who wanted to add a single rudder fin as well as suggesting underwing pods to house the engines and landing gear. The diversion of valuable production resources to so many experimental technologies reflected an almost megalomaniacal tendency to believe science could compensate for Nazi Germany’s materially untenable position combatting the combined might of the Soviet Union, the United State and the United Kingdom. Sébastien Roblin holds a master’s degree in conflict resolution from Georgetown University and served as a university instructor for the Peace Corps in China. After being dissatisfied with the committee designed Ho XVIII A, Reimar Horten redesigned the flying wing Amerika Bomber. The Hortens were told to make a presentation for their Amerika Bomber design on Febuary 25, 1945 in Berlin. The Horten H.XVIII was a proposed German World War II intercontinental bomber, designed by the Horten brothers with pioneering features such as a flying wing configuration, turbojet engines and stealth characteristics. EMW A9 and EMW A10. While there’s no written evidence showing the Nazis realized the Ho.229’s stealth potential during the war, testing has shown that Horten designs did have a modestly reduced radar cross section which would have decreased radar detection range. The A model of the H.XVIII was a long, smooth blended wing body. Perhaps Goering hoped a few raids would cause the U.S. to redirect force away from Europe, or motivate the supposedly ‘soft’ democratic citizenry to demand U.S. withdrawal. Though aerodynamically unstable due to … Ho XVIII was a true intercontinental bomber to be powered by six Jumo 109-004 jet engines and could carry 4,000 kg of bombs at a cruise speed of 750 km/h (maximum speed was 820 km/h) at 15,000 m and hit targets located 11,000 km away on a one-way, practically suicidal mission. The Horten H.XVIII existed as a proposed jet-powered bomber for the German Luftwaffe during World War 2. He currently writes on security and military history for War Is Boring. Germany - Horten Aircraft Horten Ho XVIII B2 The B model of the H.XVIIIB was generally the same as the A model, except the four (down from six) engines and four-wheel retractable landing gear were now housed in underwing pods, and the three-man crew housed under a bubble canopy. Like the Ho 229, it would have possessed similar stealth characteristics, as well as a large fuel capacity for transatlantic missions. [attachment=99704:Horten H.XVIII.jpeg] In 1944 the RLM issued a requirement for an aircraft with a range of 11000 km (6835 miles) and a bomb load of 4000 kg (8818 lbs). Even as American troops poured over the Ludendorff Bridge at Remagen into Nazi Germany, Goering still wanted his Amerika bomber and approved the design in February 1945—but he wanted the brothers to build the jet by committee with engineers from Junkers and Messerschmitt. Once that happened, simple countermeasures (such as high altitude Combat Air Patrol (CAP) over United States targets, or better radar, or bombing during construction) might reduce the ability of the Horten H.XVIII to achieve its objectives. In that event, even one or two bombers could inflict apocalyptic damage East Coast cities. Lippish LP-12 Entwurf IV. Variants H.XVIIIA. NOVA pre-Saturn design. Nazi scientists also began developing intercontinental ballistic missiles, a manned suborbital rocketship called the Silbervogel, and piggy-back aircraft to execute inter-continental strikes without much to show for it. Fortunately for the world, Nazi nuclear weapon research proved as unfocused as other Wunderwaffe projects, and Germany suffered a severe shortage of qualified physicists due to its racist policies and politicization of academia. The Horten X was based upon the ongoing development of the Ho 229 flying wing and borrowed many of her inherent concepts including the lack of vertical tail surfaces, use of a pressurized cockpit and a jet-powered propulsion system. After other German firms failed to offer viable design concepts, in December 1944 the Horten brothers proposed their own novel idea: a flying wing powered by six Jumo 004B turbojets embedded on the back of its fuselage pod. Like the Ho 229, it would have possessed similar stealth characteristics, as well as a large fuel capacity for transatlantic missions. Then many designs followed, based on Horten Brother’s ideas. Horten Ho XVIII “Amerika Bomber.” Unique German aircraft that used the flying-wing concept. It had an MG 151 turret set in the middle rear of the wing and with six BMW 003turbojets slung under the wings; this was designed by Messerschmitt and Junkers engineers. Perhaps the Nazis mistakenly counted on a political effect. All you need to know about Horten Ho XVIII from a scale modeler perspective. The proposed Ho XVIII B had a three man crew which sat upright in a bubble-type canopy near the apex of the wing. This one had a three-person crew housed under a huge bubble canopy. The Ho VIII was by far the largest of the Horten flying wings, and was designed as a commercial aircraft with accommodation for about 60 passengers. Horten H.XVIII - Wikipedia. Two large non-retractable underwing landing gear fixtures each slung two HeS 011 turbojets. The fact that Berlin was making new plans to manufacture sophisticated intercontinental jet bombers even while columns of Allied tanks were advancing deep into Germany highlights how Nazism was not only an abhorrent ideology, but instilled a remarkable capacity for self-delusion. In fact, we know the flying jet bomber concept was viable because two years later, U.S. company Northrop test flew several prototype YB-49 flying wings with a range of nine thousand miles. The Horten H.XVIII existed as a proposed jet-powered bomber for the German Luftwaffe during World War 2. Bomber. The Horten H.XVIII was a proposed German World War II intercontinental bomber, designed by the Horten brothers. These were derived from the same engines then being used on German Me-262 jet fighters. It was the first flying wing to be powered by jet engines. The Horten XVIIIA was in effect a spinoff of the Horten brother’s wooden Ho.229 flying-wing jet fighter. The decentralized nature of German military research led to money being funneled into numerous competing projects instead of being efficiently prioritized for faster and more concrete results. The C model of the H.XVIII was based on the airframe of the H.XVIIIA with a huge tail. German engineers Walter, Reimar, and Wolfram Horten were designers and builders of flying-wing aircraft, beginning with gliders, from the end of the 1920s to the late 1940s. Info. As a result, the huge flying wing should go largely undetected by radar. Horten Ho XVIII (Amerika Bomber) History. In early 1945, Ho.XVIII was approved to build in Junkers plant. In 1942, German air force chief Hermann Goering sketched out the requirement for the Amerika bomber—a strategic bomber capable of making 7,200-mile round-trip across the Atlantic. The Horten HoXVIII was a proposed German World War II intercontinental bomber that would have been based upon the Horten Ho 229 design. But this not only incorrectly assessed American determination, but failed to appreciate the vast surplus capacity the United States had to build up its home defenses as well as wages war overseas. Just like Horten Ho-229 was in real life. In the third book of British novel series Tunnels, by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams, the H.XVIII as seen by part of New Germany Air Forces. The Ho XVIII A was to be built mainly of wood and held together with a special carbon based glue. RuhrstahlKramer X4. H.XVIII's design is the source for the design of HYDRA's futuristic bomber aircraft in the movie Captain America: The First Avenger.[3]. But Nazi Germany instead surrendered early in May. Thus it’s no surprise that the megalomaniacal villain of the film Captain America flies an apparent look-alike of the Horten jet bomber—on a mission to bomb New York City, of course. There were two fixed main landing gear assemblies with two He S 011 turbojets mounted to each side. Saved by Théophile. The Horten H.XVIII was a proposed German World War II intercontinental bomber that would have been based upon the Horten Ho 229 design. The A model of the H.XVIII was a long, smooth blended wing. Armament was considered unnecessary due to the expected high performance.[1]. Though the YB-49 didn’t enter service, it may have informed Northrop’s later development of the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber serving the U.S. Air Force today. After the war, Reimar Horten claimed he had intentionally designed the Ho 229 using radar-absorbent plywood as a stealth aircraft. Resembling the Horten Ho 229 flying wing fighter there were many odd features that distinguished this aircraft; the jettisonable landing gear and the wing made of wood and carbon based glue, are but two. In 1944, the air ministry issued a revised requirement for bomber with 6,800-mile-long range with 8,800-pound bombload. Its theoretical maximum speed of 528 miles per hour and service ceiling of 52,000 feet would have allowed it to fly higher and faster than the fastest piston-engine U.S. fighters of the time. The Horten H.XVIII was a proposed German World War II intercontinental bomber that would have been based upon the Horten Ho 229 design. Based on data from the 229 design, experts at Northrop Grumman who built a replica 229 from the original plans in order to test its stealth capability have estimated the H.XVIII would have been able to (in ideal conditions) evade radar detection until it was within eight minutes of the east coast of the United States, making allied interception prior to payload delivery highly unlikely.