Blohm und Voss BV.138 S-1

The Blohm & Voss BV 138 Seedrache (Sea Dragon), but nicknamed Der Fliegende Holzschuh ("flying clog", from the side-view shape of its fuselage) was a World War II German trimotor flying boat that served as the Luftwaffe's main seaborne long-range maritime patrol and naval reconnaissance aircraft.
A total of 297 BV 138s were built between 1938 and 1943.

The appearance of the BV 138 was unique, in its combination of unusual design features, such as: twin boom tail unit, trimotor configuration, and fuselage slung beneath the wings. One nickname, "the Flying Clog" was derived from the shape of the slab-sided hull unit. These features together produced the aircraft's ungainly appearance, but inspired a certain affection among its crew and mechanics.

Three piston engines were used. The central engine was mounted above the wing, driving a four-blade propeller, while the wing engines were lower, with three-blade propellers. The pre-production prototypes and the BV 138 A-01 to BV 138 A-06, were powered by various makes of engines ranging from 485–746 kW (650–1,000 hp). The first standardized version, BV 138 B-1, was powered by three 880 PS (868 hp, 647 kW) Junkers Jumo 205D two-stroke, opposed-piston aircraft diesel engines. 

The engine cowlings also had an atypical appearance, due to the unique nature of the vertical orientation of the six-cylinder opposed-piston Jumo 205 diesel engines, and resembled the cowlings of 4 or 6-cylinder inverted inline engines found on smaller civil and utility aircraft from the Jumo 205's propshaft placement, emerging forward at the uppermost front end of the powerplant.

The booms of the twin tail unit, much like the smaller Focke-Wulf Fw 189 twin-engined reconnaissance monoplane, extended horizontally from the rear of the outer engine nacelles.
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Blohm & Voss BV 138 oli saksalainen kolmimoottorinen meritiedustelutehtäviin suunniteltu lentovene. Konetyypin kehityshistorian alku oli melko kivinen, ja se kävi läpi useita uudelleensuunnitteluvaiheita ennen lopullista, 227 kappaletta valmistettua sarjatuotantoversiota. BV 138 -koneet osallistuivat Saksan Luftwaffen kalustona toiseen maailmansotaan, missä ne lensivät muun muassa taisteluissa Norjasta ja Ranskasta sekä Pohjois-Atlantin laivasaattueita vastaan tehdyissä sotilasoperaatioissa.

Blohm & Voss BV 138
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General characteristics
Crew: 6, pilot, navigator, radio operator, nose gunner, rear gunner, upper rear gunner + up to 10 passengers
Length: 19.85 m 
Wingspan: 26.94 m 
Height: 5.90 m 
Wing area: 112 m² 
Empty weight: 11,770 kg 
Loaded weight: 14,500 kg 
Max. takeoff weight: 17,500 kg 
Powerplant: 3 × Junkers Jumo 205D opposed piston diesel engine with 12 pistons in 6 cylinders, 647 kW (868 hp) 880 PS each

Maximum speed: 285 km/h @ 6,000 m 
Cruise speed: 200 km/h 
Range: 4,300 km 
Service ceiling: 5,000 m 
Rate of climb: 220 m/min 
Wing loading: 114.2 kg/m² 
Power/mass: 0.106 kW/kg 
Armament: 2 × 20 mm MG 151 cannon, one in a nose turret and one in the rear fuselage covering upper rear area
1 × 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine gun in open position behind the central engine, covering the top rear area
1-3 × 7.92 mm MG 15 machine guns (optional)

up to 6 x 50kg bombs or 4 x 150kg depth charges under starboard wing root only (optional)

  

For hydrodynamic reasons, the hull featured a distinct "turn-down", or "beak" at the stern.

Two enclosed, powered gun turrets, each mounting a single MG 151/20 autocannon, were located prominently at the bow and stern. A third, fully open Scarff ring-like emplacement, behind the central engine and both above and forward of the rear turret, mounted a 13 mm MG 131 heavy machine gun covered fields of fire obstructed from the other turrets by the horizontal stabilizer.

In all, 227 examples of standard service variants of the BV 138 were built. The first such variant, BV 138 C-1, began service in March 1941. While non-standard variants carried a variety of armament, the standard variant featured two 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons, one in a power-operated bow turret and one in a power-operated stern turret, up to three 7.92 mm MG 15 machine guns, and a 13 mm MG 131 machine gun in the aft center engine nacelle. It could carry up to 500 kg of bombs or depth charges (under the starboard wing root only) or, in place of these, up to 10 passengers.

Both the B-1/U1 and C-1/U1 variants had racks under both wings to double the offensive load.

Some examples of the BV 138 were adapted to specialized roles. The Bv 138 was tested with the oft-used Walter HWK 109-500 Starthilfe RATO jettisonable rocket pod, used in pairs, for shorter takeoff performance. One anti-shipping variant carried FuG 200 Hohentwiel low-UHF band maritime search radar. The BV 138 MS variant was converted for minesweeping, and carried magnetic field-generating degaussing equipment, including a hoop antenna with a diameter equal to the length of the fuselage, which encircled the hull and wings, which was also used on certain models of the Ju 52/3m trimotor transport used for the same duty.

Count Francesco Baracca

Count Francesco Baracca (9 May 1888 – 19 June 1918) was Italy's top fighter ace of World War I. He was credited with 34 aerial victories. The emblem he wore side by side on his plane of a black horse prancing on its two rear feet inspired that of Ferrari.

During the months between the outbreak of World War I and Italy's entry into the war, there was intense political controversy in Italy between pro-war and pro-peace factions. Baracca remained aloofly neutral, but ready to serve his nation. After Italy's entry into the war on the Entente side in May 1915, he was sent to Paris to convert to Nieuport two-seaters. Upon his return in July, he was assigned to the 8a Squadriglia Nieuport.

The Nieuport 10s that equipped this squadron were almost useless against Austro-Hungarian raids; they were too slow, with too slow a rate of climb, to bring the intruders to battle with any regularity. The frustrated Italian pilots even resorted to leaving their observers ground-bound in attempts to improve performance, to little avail. On those rare occasions when battle was joined, the Nieuports' guns usually jammed. Renaming the unit to 1a Squadriglia Caccia on 1 December 1915 did nothing to solve the problems.

The Nieuport 11 single-seat fighter with Lewis guns entered service in April 1916, and on 7 April, flying this new fighter, Baracca scored his first victory, holing the fuel tank of an Austrian Hansa-Brandenburg C.I and wounding its two-man crew. This was also Italy's first aerial victory in the war. This first victory featured his favorite manoeuvre, which was to zoom in unseen behind and below an enemy and fire his machine gun from pistol range.

It was around this time that Baracca adopted as a personal emblem a black prancing horse on his Nieuport 17, in tribute to his former cavalry regiment. This prompted some to call him, "The Cavalier of the Skies". Flying the Nieuport 17 and then, from March 1917, the SPAD VII, he scored both individually, and in combination with other Italian aces.

Baracca's second victory was an Austrian Lohner over Gorizia on 23 April 1916. After his third victory, he transferred to 70a Squadriglia. Promoted to Capitano, Baracca remained with the unit until, with 9 victories, he transferred to the newly formed 91st Squadriglia, known as the "Squadron of the Aces", on 1 May 1917. By that time, his ever-increasing list of victories had made him nationally famous. While he initially dodged the responsibilities and paperwork that went with command, he finally settled into heading the squadron.

Baracca's friend Fulco Ruffo di Calabria nearly ended Baracca's career-and life-in June 1917. Ruffo di Calabria burst out of a cloud firing in a head-on pass at an enemy airplane, and barely missed Baracca. Later, on the ground, Baracca assured his companion, "Dear Fulco, next time, if you want to shoot me down, aim a couple of meters to the right. Now let's go for a drink and not talk of it any more!"

Baracca temporarily upgraded to a Spad XIII in October 1917, using it to achieve a couple of victories on the 22nd, and on a win scored on a joint sortie with Pier Piccio on the 25th. That night he wrote: "I had my SPAD shot up and its longeron broken into pieces by enemy machine gun fire in an aerial dogfight." As a result, Baracca returned to the more manoeuvrable Spad VII, remarking, "It doesn't matter if the VII is equipped with a single gun. Provided you are a good fighter, a single gun is just enough." Nevertheless, after repair, he sometimes returned to the Spad XIII.

A dedicated fighter pilot, Baracca found life away from the front unbearable and remained as much as possible with the 91st Squadriglia, even after being promoted to Maggiore in November 1917.  Baracca remained a modest, sensitive man conscious of his duty and compassionate to both his squadron comrades and to his defeated enemies. He would try to visit his victims in hospital afterwards, to pay his respects, or he would place a wreath on the grave of those he killed. He had raised his score to 30 by the end of 1917.

Soon afterwards, Baracca, Piccio, and Ruffo di Calabria were tasked with evaluating the new Ansaldo A.1 Balilla fighter. Baracca was personally decorated by King Victor Emmanuel III at La Scala at this time. It was March 1918 before Baracca convinced his superiors that he belonged back at the front. He was not long back before he found himself in a situation similar to the previous late October: his squadron was forced to withdraw by enemy advances on 27 April. It was about this time that he adopted the griffin as an insignia for the planes in his unit. Most of his pilots adopted it, though some still flaunted the prancing stallion as a gesture of respect for their commander.

Buchón HA-1112-M1L

The Spanish government in 1942 arranged a manufacturing licence with Messerschmitt AG to build the Bf 109G-2, with DB605A engines, propellers, instruments, and weapons to be supplied from Germany. This proved impossible, as Germany was incapable of meeting her own needs, let alone Spain's; in the event, only twenty-five airframes (minus their tails) and not even half the necessary drawings were delivered.

As a result, Hispano substituted the 1,300 hp Hispano-Suiza 12Z-89 engine, which flew at Barcelona in 1944, while the first HA-1109-J1L made its maiden flight 2 March 1945 at Seville, using a VDM prop and lash-up engine mounting. The other twenty-four airframes were flown during 1947-9 with Escher-Wyss props, but never became operational.

A developed version, with an improved installation for the Hispano-Suiza 12Z-17 engine, appeared in May 1951 as the HA-1112-K1L. Fitted with a three bladed de Havilland Hydromatic propeller, it was nicknamed Tripala ("three blades"). Its armament consisted of one or two 12.7mm Breda machineguns and Pilatus eight-packs of 80mm rockets.

It first flew in 1951, and although 200 units were planned, only 65 were ever built. The Hispano engine was an upright V12 in contrast to the inverted V12 Daimler-Benz DB 601 & 605 engines used in the Bf 109. Being of compact design, it fitted the airframe of the Bf 109 well, representing it in the German 1957 film Der Stern von Afrika (The Star of Africa) about Luftwaffe ace Hans-Joachim Marseille. In the original design, an asymmetric vertical fin with an airfoiled profile had been introduced starting with the Bf 109F to produce a slight left movement of the tail, which counteracted the left-side torque reaction from the Daimler-Benz engine's counterclockwise rotation. Since this was left unchanged in the Buchón, and the Hispano V12 powered a clockwise-turning propeller instead, the combination of the airfoiled fin and the clockwise-turning propeller created a hard-to-counteract right swing on takeoff, since the fin and the propeller essentially worked in the same direction.

A second version, the HA-1110-K1L, was a two-place tandem trainer model.

HA-1112-M1L
The "Rote Sieben" (Red-7), a privately owned Hispano HA-1112-M1L Buchon rebuilt as a Bf 109G in Germany
The final variant was the HA-1112-M1L Buchón (Pouter), which is a male dove in Spanish. It first flew 29 March 1954. 

The 1112-M1L was equipped with the 1,600 hp Rolls-Royce Merlin 500-45 engine and Rotol propeller, both purchased as surplus from the UK. This engine had a chin intake, that altered the lines of the Bf 109's airframe visually. As such, this plane was an improvised assembly of outdated components for the specific purpose of controlling Spanish colonial territories in Africa where a higher level of technology was unnecessary, and moreover not available in isolated Spain at the time. Its armament consisted of two 20 mm Hispano-Suiza 404/408 cannons and two Oerlikon or Pilatus eight-packs of 80 mm rockets. It remained in service until 27 December 1965.

HA-1112-M1Ls remained in flying condition until the mid-1960s. This made them available for theatrical use, masquerading as Bf 109Es and Gs in movies like Battle of Britain, Der Stern von Afrika, Memphis Belle, Dunkirk and The Tuskegee Airmen. Remarkably, Buchons also played the Bf 109's opposition, the Hawker Hurricane, in one scene in Battle of Britain.

The HA-1112 have also flown in the film Battle of Britain alongside the CASA 2.111 bombers which were a Spanish-built version of the Heinkel He 111 German bomber. They had the same engines, the Rolls Royce Merlin 500.

Brewster 239 F2A1

Finland

Finnish company Nokia donated sufficient funds for the FAF to purchase a B-239. In return, the word NOKA was inscribed on BW-355. Operated by No. 24 Squadron, it was destroyed on 24 October 1944. Future ace Paavo Mellin shot down an I-16 and shared in the destruction of a MiG-3 whilst flying this aircraft.

In April 1939, the Finnish government contacted the Roosevelt administration to acquire modern combat aircraft for its air force as quickly as possible. On 17 October 1939, the Finnish Embassy in Washington, DC, received a telegram clearing the purchase of fighter aircraft. Prompt availability and compatibility with 87-octane fuel were the only requirements stipulated by the Finns. The U.S. Navy and State Department arranged to divert remaining F2A-1 fighter aircraft, in exchange for its order of F2A-2 Buffalos scheduled to be delivered later.

Consequently, on 16 December, the Finns signed a contract to purchase 44 Model 239 fighters. The total agreed price was U.S. $3.4 million, and the deal included spare parts, ten replacement engines and 20 Hamilton Standard propellers. The Buffalos sent to Finland were de-navalized; all the naval equipment, such as tailhooks and life-raft containers were removed, resulting in a lighter aircraft. The Finnish F2A-1s also lacked self-sealing fuel tanks and cockpit armor.

These F2A-1 Buffalos, given the export number Model B-239, were equipped with an export-approved Wright R-1820-G5 nine-cylinder radial engine of 950 hp. After their delivery to Finland, the Finnish Air Force added armored backrests, metric flight instruments, the Finnish Väisälä T.h.m.40 gunsight, and four .50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns. The top speed of the Finnish B-239s, as modified, was 478 km/h at 4,750 m, and their loaded weight was 2,640 kg.

Built and shipped in four batches, the Finnish B-239s were shipped to Bergen, in Norway, in January and February 1940 from New York City. The crated fighters were then sent by railway to Sweden and assembled by SAAB at Trollhättan, northeast of Gothenburg.

In February 1940, Finnish Air Force pilot Lieutenant Jorma "Joppe" Karhunen flight tested the first B-239. Unfamiliar with the aircraft, he burned out the engine while flying very low at high speed; crashing on a snow-covered field, damaging the propeller and some belly panels. Initially unimpressed, the Finns later witnessed a demonstration by a Brewster test pilot, who was able to stay on the tail of a Finnish Fiat G.50 Freccia fighter from Italy; although the Fiat fighter was faster in level flight,the Brewster could out-turn it.

Of the six Buffalo B-239 fighters delivered to Finland before the end of the Winter War of 1939–1940, five of them became combat-ready, but they did not enter combat before the war ended.

The Brewster B-239E fighter aircraft was never referred to as the "Buffalo" in Finland; it was known simply as the "Brewster" or sometimes by the nicknames Taivaan helmi ("Sky Pearl") or Pohjoisten taivaiden helmi ("Pearl of the Northern Skies"). Other nicknames were Pylly-Valtteri, Amerikanrauta ("Butt-Walter" and "American hardware" or "American car", respectively) and Lentävä kaljapullo ("flying beer-bottle"). The 44 Buffalo Model B-239 (export) fighters used by the FAF received serial numbers BW-351 to BW-394.

Finnish Air Force's Brewster B-239 formation during the Continuation War

In Finnish Air Force service, the B-239s were regarded as being easy to fly, a "gentleman's travelling plane." The Buffalo was also popular within the FAF because of its relatively long range and also because of a good maintenance record. This was in part due to the efforts of the Finnish mechanics, who solved a problem that plagued the Wright Cyclone engine by inverting one of the piston rings in each cylinder, which had a positive effect on reliability. The cooler weather of Finland also helped, because the engine was prone to overheating as noted in tropical Pacific use. The Brewster Buffalo earned a reputation in Finnish Air Force service as one of their more successful fighter aircraft, with the Fiat G.50, that scored an unprecedented kill/loss ratio of 33/1.

In service from 1941 to 1945, Buffalos of Lentolaivue 24 (Fighter Squadron 24) claimed 477 Soviet Air Force warplanes destroyed, with the combat loss of just 19 Buffalos, an outstanding victory ratio of 26:1.

During the Continuation War, Lentolaivue 24 (Fighter Squadron 24) was equipped with the B-239s until May 1944, when the Buffalos were transferred to Hävittäjälentolaivue 26 (Fighter Squadron 26). Most of the pilots of Lentolaivue 24 were Winter War combat veterans. This squadron claimed a total of 459 Soviet aircraft with B-239s, while losing 15 Buffalos in combat.

The Brewsters had their baptism by fire in Finland on 25 June 1941, when a pair of Buffalos from 2/LLv24 intercepted 27 Soviet Tupolev SBs from 201st SBAP over Turku. Five SBs were claimed as downed. Subsequent attacks were repelled by LLv24 pilots who, by dusk, had flown 77 missions.

Many Finnish pilots racked up enormous scores by using basic tactics against Soviet aircraft. The default tactic was the four-plane "parvi" (swarm), with a pair flying lower as bait, and a higher pair to dive on enemy interceptors. The Soviet Air Force was never able to counteract this tactic. The top-scoring B-239 pilot was Hans Wind, with 39 kills.Lt Hans Wind, with six other Buffalos of LeLv 24, intercepted some 60 Soviet aircraft near Kronstad. Two Soviet Pe-2 bombers, one Soviet Hawker Hurricane fighter, and 12 I-16s were claimed for the loss of just one B-239 (BW-378).After evaluation of claims against actual Soviet losses, aircraft BW-364 was found to have been used to achieve 42½ kills in total by all pilots operating it, possibly making it the highest-scoring fighter airframe in the history of air warfare.[citation needed] The top scoring Finnish ace, Ilmari Juutilainen, scored 34 of his 94½ kills in B-239s, including 28 in BW-364.

During the Continuation War, a lack of replacements led the Finns to develop a copy of the Buffalo built from non-strategic materials such as plywood, however the Humu, as they called it, was already obsolete and only a single prototype was built. By late 1943, the lack of spares, wear-and-tear, and better Soviet fighters and training greatly reduced the effectiveness of Finnish B-239s, though LeLv 26 pilots would still claim some 35 victories against Soviet aircraft in mid-1944. The last victory by a Buffalo against Soviet aircraft was claimed over the Karelian Isthmus on 17 June 1944.

From 1943, Finland's air force received Messerschmitt Bf 109Gs from Germany, and this much-superior fighter re-equipped most Finnish Air Force fighter squadrons.

After Finland signed an armistice with the Soviet Union in September, 1944, they had to drive Finland's former ally, Nazi Germany out of the country during the "Lapland War". The only clash with the Luftwaffe took place on 3 October 1944 when HLeLV 26 intercepted Junkers Ju 87s, claiming two, the last victories to be made by Brewster pilots in World War II. By the end of the war in Lapland, only eight B-239s were left.

Five B-239s continued to fly until 1948, with last flights of Brewsters by the Finnish Air Force on 14 September 1948, when they were stored until scrapped in 1953

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Jatkosota

Välirauhan aikana LeLv 24 varustettiin Brewster-kalustolla. Jatkosodan alussa Brewsterit muodostivat hävittäjäkaluston rungon ennen Messerschmitt Bf 109:n hankkimista. Jatkosodan ensimmäisinä vuosina Brewsterit osoittautuivat erinomaisiksi hävittäjäkoneiksi Neuvostoliiton ilmavoimia vastaan LeLv 24:n ollessa menestyksekkäin hävittäjäyksikkö. 

Brewster saavuttaa ennätykselliset 460 ilmavoittoa. Neuvostoliiton I-153 Tsaika- ja I-16 Rat (El Rata) hävittäjät olivat jatkosodan alussa täysin alakynnessä verrattuna suorituskykyiset ja raskaasti aseistetut Brewsterit, jota käytettiin oikein ketteriä konetyyppejä vastaan.

Katso myös: Luettelo Lentolaivue 24:n ilmavoitoista ja sotatoimitappioista

Toukokuussa 1944 BW-kalusto luovutettiin LeLv 26:lle, joka sekin saavutti silloin jo vanhentuneella kalustollaan 17 ilmavoittoa.

Lapin sota

Lapin sodassa HLeLv 26 pudotti mahdollisesti vielä kaksi saksalaista Junkers Ju 87 -konetta. Nämä kaksi pudotusta on kyseenalaistettu myöhemmin, koska laajoista tutkimuksista huolimatta koneiden hylkyjä ei ole löydetty.

2./LeLv 24:n Brewster-hävittäjä Selänpään lentokentällä kesäkuussa 1941.

Brewsterillä eniten ilmavoittoja saavuttivat kapteeni Hans Wind, joka sai Brewsterillä 39 (kaiken kaikkiaan 75) ilmavoittoa, ja lentomestari Ilmari Juutilainen, joka sai Brewsterillä 36 (kaiken kaikkiaan 96) ilmavoittoa.

Eniten ilmavoittoja keränneenä koneyksilönä on pidetty BW-393:a (Windin nimikko), jolla saavutettiin 41 ilmavoittoa. Venäjän arkistojen auettua ja ilmavoittojen ristiintarkistuksen myötä on käynyt ilmi, että BW-364:llä (Juutilaisen nimikko) on saavutettu 42 ½ ilmavoittoa.

Sodan jälkeen

Sodan jälkeen Brewstereillä lennettiin lähinnä yhteyslentoja vuonna 1948 tapahtuneeseen poistoon asti. Viimeisen lennon konetyypillä Suomen ilmavoimissa suorittivat koneyksilöt BW-377 ja BW-382 14. syyskuuta 1948.

1941 - 1942 winter

Fiat G50 1941 -1942

The G.50 saw its longest and most successful service in the two Finnish wars against the Soviet Union, the Winter War of 1939-1940 and the Continuation War of 1941-1944. At the end of 1939, before the outbreak of hostilities, Finland ordered 35 Fiat G.50s. The first 10 aircraft were to be delivered before February 1940. 

Propeller attachments

                                                       Propeller lubrication

A group of Finnish pilots attended a 10-hour training course at Guidonia airport and later at Fiat Aviazione in Turin. On a training flight, during a dive from 3,500 m (11,500 ft), Lieutenant Tapani Harmaja reached an estimated speed of 780 km/h (480 mph), which was considered excessive for the structural integrity of the aircraft. The windscreen was damaged.

Germany hindered the transit of the aircraft, so they were dismantled and embarked in La Spezia on the Norwegian ship Braga, which set sail for Turku, Finland, on 20 January. Because of this delay, the first G.50s did not reach No. 26 Squadron, Finnish Air Force (HLeLv 26) at Utti until February 1940.

                                                Air pressure compressor test and startup

Fills the Air Pressure Start

                                                        Fuel refueling

The G.50s were numbered from FA-1 to FA-35, but it seems that only 33 were delivered. Squadron No 26 received from material command G.50 fighters according to the table below. A day before the truce after the Winter War, they had received 30 Fiat G.50s of the 35 purchased and 33 not damaged during the procurement.

Fiat G.50 FA-8 was destroyed during take-off when the pilot, a Hungarian volunteer, second lieutenant lieutenant Wilhelm Bekasy, in bad flying weather, lost contact with his countryman, lieutenant Matias Pirity, who turned back. The next day sergeant Asser Wallenius took-off with FA-7, having forgotten to switch on the fuel pump of the main tank and as the extra fuel tanks emptied, FA-7 crashed and was damaged. Wallenius survived but he was injured. Because of technical problems in the Finnish airforce itself, only 33 of the 35 Fiat G.50s were delivered to Finland.

                                                              Cartridge supplement 12,7 mm

                                                              add cartridges

The Italian fighters had arrived too late to affect the course of that year's winter battles, however, most of them were soon sent to the front. The Fiat pilots found themselves involved in the heavy fighting over the bay of Vyborg in late February and early March. According to some sources, the first kill was achieved on 26 February.The following day, Second Lieutenant Malmivuo became the first Finnish pilot to be killed in a G.50, when his fighter FA.12 crashed after a battle with Soviet aircraft. And on 11 March, the Italian volunteer Sergente Dario Manzocchi crashed to his death while returning from a combat sortie.

The Fiat bases were under constant attack. The Utti airfield was bombed by the Soviet airforce. Consequently, the Fiats were transferred two kilometres to the north of Utti proper, onto the ice at Haukkajärvi (Falcon lake). As Haukkajärvi become bombed and attacked by fighters, another lake-side base was established near the city of Lahti, Hollola, also on the ice of Vesijärvi near Pyhäniemi manor. Overall, HLeLv 26 achieved 11 kills, against one loss in combat and another in an accident.

Watering truck (at the airport)

                                                  Rautu airfield
The Finnish G.50 y were taken from the 235 built by CMSA, both Serie I and Serie II, but all but seven had the open cockpit of the Serie II, a feature that Finnish pilots disliked, especially in winter. There were some attempts to improve the aircraft – one was tested with an enclosed cockpit, another with a D.XXI ski-undercarriage – but none of the modifications were put into service. Better protection for the propeller, which had problems at extremely low temperatures, and a few other changes were introduced. The speed of the Finnish G.50s was around 430–450 km/h (270–280 mph), much lower than the standard series could achieve. At this stage, Finnish pilots preferred the Hawker Hurricane, the French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 and the Brewster Buffalo to the G.50.

                                                Fiat G-50 be on call, 31.8.1942

The first demonstration of the Finnish Air Force's effectiveness came on 25 June 1941, when the G.50s from HLeLv 26 shot down 13 out of 15 Soviet SB bombers.[50] Thirteen aerial victories were achieved altogether.

During the Continuation War, the G.50s were most successful during the Finnish offensive of 1941, after which they became ever less impressive.In 1941, HLeLv 26 claimed 52 victories for the loss of only two fighters. The Soviets brought better, newer types of fighter

Waiting for a start permit

Waiting for a start permit

                                                     Back from home

B-17 / model 299

On 8 August 1934, the US Army Air Corps (USAAC) tendered a proposal for a multi-engine bomber to replace the Martin B-10. The Air Corps was looking for a bomber capable of reinforcing the air forces in Hawaii, Panama, and Alaska. Requirements were that it would carry a "useful bombload" at an altitude of 3000 m for ten hours with a top speed of at least 320 km/h. 

They also desired, but did not require, a range of 3,200 km and a speed of 400 km/h. The competition for the air corps contract would be decided by a "fly-off" between Boeing's design, the Douglas DB-1, and the Martin Model 146 at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio.

The prototype B-17, with the Boeing factory designation of Model 299, was designed by a team of engineers led by E. Gifford Emery and Edward Curtis Wells , and was built at Boeing's own expense. It combined features of the company's experimental XB-15 bomber and 247 transport. The B-17's armament consisted of five 7.62 mm machine guns , with a payload of up to 2,200 kg of bombs on two racks in the bomb bay behind the cockpit. The aircraft was powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-1690Hornet radial engines , each producing 750 hp (600 kW) 2,100 m. 

The first flight of the Model 299 was on 28 July 1935 with Boeing chief test pilot Leslie Tower at the controls. Richard Williams, a reporter for the Seattle Times , coined the name "Flying Fortress" with his comment, "Why, it's a flying fortress!" when the Model 299 was rolled out bristling with multiple machine guns. The most unusual mount in the nose, which allowed the single machine gun to be fired toward almost any frontal angle. 

Boeing was quick to see the value of the name and had it trademarked for use. Boeing also claimed in some of the early press releases that Model 299 was the first combat aircraft that could continue its mission if one of its four engines failed. On 20 August 1935 , the prototype flew from Seattle to Wright Field in nine hours and three minutes at an average cruising speed of 252 miles per hour (406 km/h), much faster than the competition.

At the fly-off, the four-engine Boeing's performance was superior to those of the twin-engine DB-1 and Model 146. Major General Frank Maxwell Andrews of the GHQ Air Forcebelieved that the long-range capabilities of four-engine large aircraft were more effective than shorter-ranged, twin-engine aircraft, and that the B-17 was better suited to new, emerging USAAC doctrine. His opinions were shared by the air corps procurement officers, and even before the competition had finished they suggested buying 65 B-17s. 

Development continued on the Boeing Model 299, and on 30 October 1935, Army Air Corps test-pilot Major Ployer Peter Hill and Boeing employee Les Tower took the Model 299 on a second evaluation flight. The crew forgot to disengage the "gust locks", a system of devices integral to the design that held the bomber's movable control surfaces in place while the aircraft was parked on the ground. After takeoff, due to the failure to manually disengage all of the gust locks, the aircraft entered a steep climb, stalled, nosed over, and crashed, killing Hill and Tower (other observers survived with injuries). 

The crashed Model 299 could not finish the evaluation and, while the air corps was still enthusiastic about the aircraft's potential, army officials were daunted by the much greater expense per aircraft (Douglas quoted a unit price of $58,200 based on a production order of 220 aircraft, compared with a price of $99,620 from Boeing), and as the competition could not be completed Boeing was legally disqualified from consideration for the contract. Army Chief of Staff Malin Craig cancelled the order for 65 YB-17s, and ordered 133 of the twin-engine Douglas B-18 Bolo instead. 

The loss was not total... but Boeing's hopes for a substantial bomber contract were dashed.

— Peter Bowers, 1976