Military Wiki
Military Wiki
He 45
Heinkel he 45 san diego air and space museum
Heinkel He 45
Role Bomber
Manufacturer Heinkel
First flight 1931
Primary user Luftwaffe
Number built 512

The Heinkel He 45 was a light bomber produced in Germany in the early 1930s, one of the first aircraft adopted by the newly formed Luftwaffe. Its appearance was that of a conventional biplane and included seating for pilot and gunner in tandem, open cockpits. Developed in parallel with the He 46, it appeared in 1931 as a general-purpose biplane and was employed mainly as a trainer, but was also used by the Luftwaffe for reconnaissance and light bombing duties. Production of this plane totalled 512 aircraft, including those built under licence by Gotha, Focke-Wulf, and BFW.

Variants[]

He 45a
First prototype, powered by a BMW VI 7,3Z piston engine.
He 45b
Second protoype, fitted with four-blade propeller.
He 45c
Third prototype, armed with one 7.92 mm (.312 in) forward-firing MG 17 machine gun, and one 7.92 mm MG 15 machine gun in the rear cockpit.
He 45A
Initial production version.
He 45A-1
Training version.
He 45A-2
Reconnaissance version.
He 45B
Improved production version.
He 45B-1
Reconnaissance version, armed with a 7.92 mm (0.312 in) machine gun.
He 45B-2
Able to carry a 100 kg (220 lb) bombload.
He 45C
Production version of the He 45c.
He 45D
Slightly improved version. Similar to the He 45C.
He 61
Reconnaissance version of He 45C for China, powered by a 492 kW (660 hp) BMW VI piston engine.

Operators[]

Flag of Bulgaria Bulgaria
Flag of the Republic of China Republic of China (1912–1949)
Flag of German Reich (1935–1945) Germany
Flag of Hungary 1940 Hungary
Flag of Spain 1945 1977 Spanish State

Specifications (He 45C)[]

Data from Warplanes of the Third Reich[2]

General characteristics

  • Crew: Two
  • Length: 10.60 m (34 ft 9⅓ in)
  • Wingspan: 11.50 m (37 ft 8¾ in)
  • Height: 3.60 m (11 ft 9¾ in)
  • Wing area: 34.60 m² (372.32 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 2,110 kg (4,641 lb)
  • Loaded weight: 2,751 kg (6,052 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × BMW VI 7,3 water-cooled V12 engine, 560 kW (750 hp)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 290 km/h (157 knots, 180 mph) at sea level
  • Cruise speed: 221 km/h (119 knots, 137 mph) at sea level
  • Range: 1,200 km (649 nmi, 746 mi)
  • Service ceiling: 5,500 m (18,045 ft)
  • Climb to 1,000 m (3,280 ft): 2.4 min

Armament

See also[]

References[]

Notes
  1. Green 1972, p. 261.
  2. Green 1972, pp. 260–261.
Bibliography
  • Green, William (1972). Warplanes of the Third Reich. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-05782-2. 
  • Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 499. 
  • World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing. File 896 Sheet 24. 
All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Heinkel He 45 and the edit history here.