What about this attack aircraft ? Opinions here please.
Interesting video, antitank variant Ju-87g using his guns in Hungary.
Clik on the link and then download it.
A good clip. First time that i have seen one using its cannon in that roll.
In the air against fighters it was useless.
As a ground attack aircraft it was efficient especially when their was no returning fire.
On the other hand it definately had a reputation that people speak about to this day, so i suppose that also needs to stand for something.
As you might have read is commonly accepted that the Ju-87 was complete retired from the operations inn the western front after 1941, however it played a important role as later 1943 when the attacking Stukas D were vital to the german recapture of the Rodas and Leros islands.
Ju87g Cannon.
Nice pictures, I am wondering if the first was actually in a dive…or simply going down.
Yeah. Good question.
Probably it was shoot down…but i cannot see real damage to the aircraft:
another video Stukas atacking the Kuban russian brigdehead.
Im sure you could take the size of the plane and compare it to the size of what im assuming is a 2-story house…maybe 3 … and determine its going down.
BTW I think Hans Rudel proved in the right hands this was an awesome plane. Even when outdated.
Good point General.
I can’t remember, but I thought I read somewhere that the Stuka automatically pulled the pilot out of a dive if he blacked out. True?
Btw, love the Stuka. Just looks like an evil plane. There are no full scale versions flying today, right?
Both good questions I myself would like to know the answer to!
[QUOTE=ww2admin;91853]I can’t remember, but I thought I read somewhere that the Stuka automatically pulled the pilot out of a dive if he blacked out. True?
I have heard something similar too.
I have heard something similar too. Would be great if anyone has the answer.
The automatic pull out was connected to the bomb drop mech, so when the bomb left the pull out was engaged, I’m pretty sure this happened always, even if the pilot was still conscious.
As for my opinion, I think it was great in both the anti-armour and anti-troop roles(not really in high numbers of troops killed, but the fear factor breaking moral).
A big disadvantage was the short range with a heavy payload, meaning you had to have a operational airfield not far from the frontline. However the JU-87 G-2 with its Flak 18 37 millimetre antitank gun was an excellent use of this weapons platform, and was a success much in the same way the modern day A-10 is.
Remember also the effect these aircraft had on the enemy troops, breaking the moral of troops can be an effective weapon often overlooked when deciding whether an aircraft is effective in combat. Having a Stuka screaming down on your postion must have been pretty frightening!
Thanx for the info.
You are right regarding the fear factor. Having a Stuka screaming down on you must have been frightening, even for the most hardened troops.
IMO: It was a lethal aircraft because of it’s accuracy, but it was just too vulnerable to enemy aircrafts to be used “freely”.
“Perhaps the prime example of its vulnerability to fighters was the shooting down of five Stukas in the space of a few minutes, by the Australian ace Clive Caldwell in a P-40 Tomahawk on December 5, 1941, over Libya.”
- from wikipedia
“The Ju87 was used with tremendous success in the Blitzkrieg attacks on Norway, Poland, Belgium, France, Holland, Yugoslavia, and Greece. Virtually unchallenged in the air during these Blitzkriegs the Stukas took a devastating toll on Allied ground and mechanized forces. Shipping was also vulnerable to the pinpoint attacks of the Stuka, and the Ju87 destroyed more Allied shipping than all other German aircraft put together during WW II.”
I remember once reading some sort of comparison about accuracy of WWII bombers, and being impressed by Ju-87.
_
Thanx for the info.
Their are some cool pic’s on that website link you gave.