The Luftwaffe's Forgotten B-29 Killer - Blohm & Voss BV 155

[@aviationdeepdive]

ATTENTION: I never said B-29s operated over Europe, if you watch the video I only state that the Germans THOUGHT they were going to be used, hence the urgent call for an interceptor. Please refrain from leaving comments on this. Feel free to join our Discord community! - discord.gg/WCevgcufwJ Consider supporting us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/AviationDeepDive Donate to the channel! www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=U3F6D98ZXY48N

[@bfmcarparts]

The B-29 actually did operate during WW2 in Europe. This subject has been covered in one of KZbin's Histoy Guy or Mark Felton sites. At one point, the USAAF sent 3-4 B-29s to the UK ( an early prototype and a few YB-29s) as a PROPAGANDA ploy to make the Germans THINK the B-29 was coming into the European theatre. They flew a few 'easy' missions and returned to the US. The B-29s did not return until the late 1940s/early 1950s when the RAF operated a squadron of B-29 'Washingtons'. The B-29 was/is a very complex aircraft to support. The UK bases struggled with Lancasters and Lincolns .There wasn't enough technicians to maitain the pressurization system, remote gun controls etc in two theatres As for unreliable powerplants, lets say the CAF were very proficient with operating a 3-engine B-29.until they upgraded to newer model powerplants about 10 years ago How did the German military behave to this B-29 threat? Just look squandered resources of design time ,bickering aircraft companies, models that did not 'do'.. The USAAF got thei money's worth with this propagand.

[@williamzk9083]

- Excellent video. I'd just like to add that History of the German night fighter force, 1917-1945 by Aders, Gebhard mentions that the British also tried to mislead the Germans into thinking that they would be bombing from the stratosphere at night in order to misdirect German efforts. The night fighter that resulted from that was probably the Ju 388J1 with BMW 8101TJ-1, TJ-2 or TQ engines. Service ceiling about 44,000ft. There was also the Ju 88J3 with Jumo 222E/F (back on the production program) with a speed of over 430-444 (depending on radar) but at slightly lower service ceiling. The Ju 88G7 due to its two stage supercharged Jumo 213E engines also had capability. -In regard to the The Me 109 ground looping problem you mentioned. It was solved in early-mid 1944 when aircraft with extended tail yokes began to appear. In the 3 point sitting attitude of 13.5 degrees propeller circulation caused and p-factor caused one wing to stall ahead of the other causing ground looping. The extended yoke changed the angle to about 12 degrees. It appeared in retractoable form on the Me 109K4 but was common in Me 109G10, G14 and even G6 since it was interchangeable. -With the BV.155 service ceiling of 55,565ft the B-29A, B36A were all within the interception envelope. The B-29 operated its first missions in June 4 1944 so the only thing the Germans had in service at that time was the Me 109G6ASM and Me 109G14AS with increased size super chargers. These had the performance needed to intercept a B-29 but it was still hard. -The Ta 152H could intercept the B-29 easily but it was a Feb 1945 aircraft. Me 262 as well.

[@mycosys]

dont sweat the haters, all engagement is good engagement as far as the algorithm is concerned.

[@RJM1011]

I think your choice of words could have been better at the start of the video. Most people only watch the first 30 seconds and start bitching ! Watching the whole video it makes sense. Thank you.

[@steveshoemaker6347]

EXCELLENT look at B-29 Killer.....Thanks from an very Old fighter pilot....Shoe

[@Curious-Minds]

Blohm & Voss never fail to amaze me with their insane designs.

[@gratefulguy4130]

Somebody was sabotaging the war effort.. there's no way they were serious.

[@dallesamllhals9161]

..keep studying, kind...

[@Charlesputnam-bn9zy]

But their seaplanes were amazing.

[@benstark2065]

Factssss

[@beyondrecall9446]

Whenever I see a B&V design, I just say "Yesss" and don't try to bother to ask.. Just kidding, love the designs

[@sidsod1616]

The graff spee was what was known as a pocket battle ship which was scuttled near Montevideo after being hunted down by the Royal navy and not an aircraft carrier, the graff zeppelin was the intended aircraft carrier which was partially completed when the project was scrapped , it later fell into Russian hands, towed out to sea and used for target practice.

[@tombarilich4800]

That's what I was thinking too. Your comment beat me to it.

[@jamesellis2784]

Bikini island . ….. a nice place too …

[@SA-qm3bp]

Let’s not forget the cretinous pronunciation of “Spee”

[@petersoerent2554]

Messing up one Graf (count) with another Graf.... 😅

[@A.G.798]

Die Admiral Graf Spee, ein Panzerschiff hat sich auf Befehl ihres Kommandanten Kapitän zur See Hans Langsdorff selbst Versenkt.

[@lomax343]

You've got to hand it to Blohm & Voss. Sometimes they thought outside the box, sometimes they couldn't even FIND the box.

[@feathermerchant]

Blohm & Voss is apparently german for Stranger & Weirder.

[@The_Curious_Cat]

And after finding the weirdest box possible, they say they need to redesign the box because the previous one doesn't work.

[@jakobquick6875]

Typical..they built ships..so..like britains tanks designed by locomotive bolt and rivet heavy-handed engineers, u get crazy bat shit crazy, looney toon idea, most times, but what a child would imagine ideas😂blohm and Voss musta let the children play while the adults meth’d away considering their looney ideas near 44/45 trying to avoid the front, I wudda thought bat shit too😊

[@steveturner2763]

The Ta 152 was actually the high altitude fighter that was made for B-29 attacks.The plane had a service ceiling of 48,550 feet and was very manueverable at high altitudes. It was assigned to the Gruppe III of JG 301 although only approximately 35 were delivered due to destruction of storage sites. The P47 N and M versions were its contemporary allied aircraft, but had lower service ceilings.

[@williamzk9083]

The Ta 152 H0 and H1 used the Jumo 213E1 engine and the Fw 190D12/13 used the Jumo 213F engine which was the same engine apart from the lack of inter-cooler and he need to use higher octane C3 fuel. the Jumo 213EB had intercooling and could be fitted to both the Ta 152H and Fw 190D12/13. With this engine the Fw 190D12/D13 EB was expected to achieved 488mph and the Ta 152H EB 472mph but without needing GM-1 nitrous oxide.

[@laurencek.1580]

Not to mention the 152 had a 30 mm cannon with two 20 mm. The Smithsonian Air and Space museum has a Ta 152 on display.

[@robertbruce1887]

The Ta 152 , with its high speed & high altitude capability could have been a serious contender against Allied planes, but as usual for the Luftwaffe at this stage of the war, came out too late & in too small a numbers.

[@barfuss2007]

furthermore the Bf 109 H. 14.000 meters.

[@manofchaitea6904]

@@laurencek.1580 its not on display now.

[@PistonDriven]

Having just recently come across your channel, I find myself absolutely spellbound by your content. Your attention to technical details and animation is just great. What sets you apart, in my view, is your attention to language. Whether it be pronunciation of names or radio-communication, you really put a lot of effort into it. If no one else appreciate it, I'll have you know, that I certainly do..! But, I'm sure I'm not the only one.. Thank you.

[@aviationdeepdive]

That really means a lot, I appreciate that!

[@Lokroi]

I agree with those compliments! Good pronunciation, clear speech, good tempo. Very easy to understand, even for a Swede like me. Interesting subject, too ! One comment: To the best of my knowledge, V in German is pronounced like F in English. 15:56 15:56

[@elcapitan560]

Blohm & Voss has been Germany's leading shipyard, not surprisingly also the birthplace of the "Bismarck". The yard still excels with great products; world's largest superyacht ("Eclipse") was built there. I worked with B+V as a Class Surveyor and I keep lots of nice memories.

[@mikearakelian6368]

Still has armor plates in yard for Bismark

[@Augenstreifschuss]

The carrier was the Graf Zeppelin. Graf Spee was a Panzerschiff (CAish)

[@dallesamllhals9161]

AHA! So JUST an amored boat Graf Spee was.... Naaah...do better - pølsetysker 😛 NB There was no carrier!

[@Augenstreifschuss]

…right, Graf Zeppelin was not completed. Not sure what your comment regarding Graf Spee means.. Panzerschiff is the German designation for the class

[@dallesamllhals9161]

@@pegamini7582 Why - Thank you :-) Was it: "Pølsetysker" you didn't get?

[@EllieMaes-Grandad]

Makes you wonder what else the narrator got wrong . . .

[@aviationdeepdive]

If you pay attention very carefully, when I mistakenly say Graf Spee an enormous text comes on screen saying *Graf Zeppelin.

[@xrayexplorer]

This was a great video on a plane I did not even know existed. Hopefully some day you can do one on the Ta-152.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Definitely, I'll pop the 152 on the list!

[@dannynye1731]

The BV155 is in storage at the Smith Air and Space

[@clouddog2393]

Bloom und Voss's weird and wonderful aircraft designs are fascinating . The BV 155 is such a sleek and beautiful design that still looks dangerous and imposing . Their WW2 jet prototypes were just as interesting

[@BoopSnoot]

Technology aside though, can you imagine emotionally the burden put on German interceptor pilots? They knew they were massively outnumbered, but since those bombers were almost always going after civilian rather than military targets, every bomber that you let through is going to be dropping bombs on women and children down below. It must have been nerve wracking as there really was no way to "win" as even one bomber that makes it through is one too many. :(

[@catsooey]

@@BoopSnoot I know, as far as nations go, there were no “good guys” in WW2. All sides participated in horrific and inhuman military campaigns and if the war had gone the other way, the Allies would have been charged as war criminals. I don’t want to think about what the world would have looked like had the Axis powers won, but there was more than enough blood on everybody’s hands to go around. Of course if Trump is able to jerrymander his way into office again (with the help of the sickest and most comically corrupt Supreme Court this country has ever seen - just recently they rolled back “protected” status on our nations wetlands, which are already endangered) with an electoral win/popular loss we may see what that world might have looked like. Only with him and Putin instead of Hitler and Mussolini.

[@kevanhubbard9673]

I don't think that B 29's were ever used in Europe but perhaps they might have been had the War dragged on?The ranges covered were far less than that needed to attack Japan since they only had to fly from England which is almost next door to Germany so I don't think that the USAAF would have committed B 29's when B 17's, Liberators, Lancaster's, Halifax's and Stirling's were more than adequate.

[@ronaldtillberry3253]

You are right!! The B 29s were only used over Japan during the war. That's why I stopped watching at 0:26.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Look at the pinned comment, or my response to other 10 comments say this. I never NEVER said that B-29s were used in Europe, only that the Germans THOUGHT they would be. Please actually watch the video before making such comments.@@ronaldtillberry3253

[@stevekolarik2857]

Actually, there were four in England, showing the high commands. B-29 was technically going to replaced the B-17 but B-17 was showing better results in bombing missions. Interesting, while these B-29s at one air field, a German aero photo reconnaissance photo capture the B-29 by accident. Germany had no idea what they were looking but knew that B-29 where huge.

[@aviationdeepdive]

The B-29s in England in 1944 were put there to make the Germans think they were about to be used in Europe. This was not the event that introduced the B-29 to the Germans, they had known about it since late 1942, as well as some rough performance estimates. Regardless, this information was important, and therefore many people in the Luftwaffe would not have been aware of it. The reconnaissance pilot who photographed them likely didn't know what they were.@@stevekolarik2857

[@gwaithwyr]

I believe some B-29s were sent to Europe a couple of years after the war, maybe at the time of the Berlin blockade.

[@ThreenaddiesRexMegistus]

Great work on bringing us this video! B&V were certainly fantastic innovators if nothing else. This could have been a potent aircraft but for the tendency to over-engineer everything. Navalised Stukas and the Me-155 could have been a nightmare in some situations, where air power could have been projected practically anywhere. With hindsight we know that carriers were vulnerable though.

[@EneTheGene]

A situation similiar to Bismarck may have occured, where the ship could have achieved some decent feat only to be destroyed by an overwhelming response.

[@williamzk9083]

- I'd just like to add that History of the German night fighter force, 1917-1945 by Aders, Gebhard mentions that the British also tried to mislead the Germans into thinking that they would be bombing from the stratosphere at night in order to misdirect German efforts. The night fighter that resulted from that was probably the Ju 388J1 with BMW 8101TJ-1, TJ-2 or TQ engines. Service ceiling about 44,000ft. There was also the Ju 88J3 with Jumo 222E/F (back on the production program) with a speed of over 430-444 (depending on radar) but at slightly lower service ceiling. The Ju 88G7 due to its two stage supercharged Jumo 213E engines also had capability. -In regard to the The Me 109 ground looping problem you mentioned. It was solved in early-mid 1944 when aircraft with extended tail yokes began to appear. In the 3 point sitting attitude of 13.5 degrees propeller circulation caused and p-factor caused one wing to stall ahead of the other causing ground looping. The extended yoke changed the angle to about 12 degrees. It appeared in retractoable form on the Me 109K4 but was common in Me 109G10, G14 and even G6 since it was interchangeable. -With the BV.155 service ceiling of 55,565ft the B-29A, B36A were all within the interception envelope. The B-29 operated its first missions in June 4 1944 so the only thing the Germans had in service at that time was the Me 109G6ASM and Me 109G14AS with increased size super chargers. These had the performance needed to intercept a B-29 but it was still hard. -The Ta 152H could intercept the B-29 easily but it was a Feb 1945 aircraft. Me 262 as well.

[@thomaswayneward]

The amazing thing about Germany in WWII is the innovation and wonderful machines that were designed and built under the worst conditions. The war output of Germany was at its greatest at the end of the war, amazing.

[@JohnsJohnson-ns5xm]

Couldn’t agree more let’s keep them rich,fat and happy. Works out best for everyone.

[@damianousley8833]

One of the merriad of designs, many of which prototypes were cancelled even before construction. Goering also did not want the Kriegsmarine to get aircraft. The problem with the designs being updated so often was to slow production to implement the design changes.

[@gkossatzgmxde]

Regarding the simulator pictures: German airfields during WW2 did not have dedicated runways. they mostly where square field of gras so the taildraggers could take off from any direction against the prevailing winds.

[@robertbruce1887]

I doubt if the airfields were any where near the width they are depicted in the simulator videos.

[@The_Plastic_Ape]

Great video as always. Well researched. Looking forward to more videos.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thankyou!

[@robertmatch6550]

Well done presentation about innovative aircraft. The Luftwaffe might also have considered that turbojets can attain and work in high altitudes.

[@paulflocken2730]

0:31 Turbochargers are not mechanically driven. Superchargers are. Turbochargers are exhaust-gas driven. Turbo-superchargers are a compound system with both a mechanical supercharger element and an exhaust turbocharger element.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Sorry for the mistake, thanks for the clarification.

[@JasonMcCord-qk3yb]

If it’s mechanically driven, then isn’t it a supercharger? These distinctions have always bothered me.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Yes you're right, silly technical error on my part.

[@allangibson8494]

Unless you’re Napier - who coupled the turbocharger turbine to the crankshaft to extract more power to drive the propeller…

[@fantabuloussnuffaluffagus]

​@@allangibson8494 Wright did that as well on the R-3350. It was called a Power Recovery Turbine.

[@allangibson8494]

@@fantabuloussnuffaluffagus The Napier Nomad didn’t have a gear between the compressor and the power turbine (it was basically a single shaft axial flow turboprop engine with the combustor replaced with a piston engine) but the concept was similar.

[@martinricardo4503]

Supercharging is simply the effect of increasing airflow to the engine to boost performance at altitude. A supercharger can be mechanically driven or by a turbo or any combination thereof.

[@tron.44]

Awesome German voice-over, really authentic!

[@cosmoray9750]

Unfortunately the narrator has difficulty differentiate between the number Zero and the letter o. 1o9 or 109 ? Sounds like he has been watching one too many Hollywood movies.

[@volkergluth3428]

The Aircraftcarrier was named GRAF ZEPPELIN not GRAF SPEE. The GRAF SPEE is in the area of the port of Montevideo sunk by her own Crew.

[@rayslockish5047]

Perhaps all u ppl talkn about details shud start ur own site m spew correct details every time u post an article

[@stefanrath664]

Und war ein Schlachtschiff.

[@volkergluth3428]

Panzerkreuzer oder schwerer Kreuzer@@stefanrath664

[@justaplayer94]

@@stefanrath664 Panzerschiff.

[@bernardedwards8461]

The B17 was used in great numbers over Germany, but the B29 was only used against Japan. The Ju87 had a fixed and spatted undercarriage, totally unsuitable for a fighter.

[@comentedonakeyboard]

Blohm&Voss made something symetric??????

[@makinganoise6028]

I've seen Software Projects like that, feature creep and engineers losing sight of the objective, rather than delivering realistic completed work, when importantly, it is needed most!

[@magnashield8604]

Service Ceiling of a B-29 31,850 ft Service Ceiling of me262 38,000 ft. I know what b-29 killer I would rather have been in

[@jenniferkelly6931]

Good data.

[@onenote6619]

Yeah, but the Me262 engines generally fell apart somewhere between 10 and 50 hours from being built. If you throttled them hard, that number dropped drastically. And 'fell apart' sometimes got rather explosive.

[@ravenstorm1203]

Nice work with the war-thunder filming! :3

[@jimwarning3682]

Only a couple B29's were sent to the European Theater for evaluation and to confuse the Germans. They were then withdrawn.

[@jamespmullin21753]

He 100 and He112 were rare fighters.

[@ozzy7763]

Yes B29s were sent to Europe, they were even painted OD green but it was only 4 and , I don’t think that they ever performed a combat mission.

[@knoll9812]

Smoke and mirrors

[@rodrigorincongarcia771]

Funny thing is, even if B-29s had fought in Europe, their service ceiling was actually lower than B-17's and not much of a problem for the already available Bf-109 or the expected FW-190D.

[@darrellborland119]

You may have mislabeled this video. The Germans realized by 1944 that the B-29 was well on it's way to fight the Japanese. Germans even showed a photo in paper of a decoy B-29 being sent to England. No German "B-29 killer ever attacked a B-29", as I recollect. The Japanese had a limited number of capable fighters, of German design, that struggled to 30K feet in hopes of intercepting B-29's. Of course, as B-29 fans can attest to, the real killer of the B-29 were those Wright R-3350 engines. Number 17 cylinder, under tropical conditions, would break valve stem off, and raw fuel would torch the cylinder, and spread to the vulnerable wing. Thanks for an informative video. Subscribed.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks for the comment. The Germans didn't realise that the B-29 was not bound for Europe until the project was very, very far in development, and even then they presumed that if the war kept on going the B-29 would eventually make it's way to Europe. The vide is called a B-29 killer because the BV 155 was specifically designed to shoot down B-29s.

[@oxcart4172]

That radiator looks like it inspired the intake of the X-32

[@stevebohlin7245]

I think the carrier was the Graf Zeppelin; Graf Spee was a pocket battleship that was scuttled off Argentina.

[@Brightsideofmilitary]

Great video

[@robertmiller2173]

The Ta 152, Do 335, were perfect Piston Engine Aircraft to take on the B-29. And then add the Me 262, and then the Ta 1011

[@raymondyee2008]

Damn that’s one very forgotten warbird.

[@tauncfester3022]

You know that's not a "warbird" It's a joke, it never saw any operational service, It wouldn't even exist in War Thnuder if it wasn't for Ito Kazunori's series of Luft '46 models in MSFS2004. These oddities, which like most of these one off's, static models and paper designs, will only fly in hyperbole sims.

[@marklelohe3754]

Similar thinking going on in Britain to counter German HAA bombers. Westland Welkin as one example. Interestingly, the B & V company was merged with M to become MBB.

[@radomircita9420]

I thought Admiral Graf Spee was a pocket battleship and the planned aircraft carrier was Graf Zeppelin

[@aviationdeepdive]

It is, hence the huge letters *Graf Zeppelin on screen when I mistakenly said Graf Spee

[@channelsixtyeight068_]

That's it .... I knew there was something wrong with this Blohm & Voss plane. It has a symmetrical design.

[@Picasso_305]

B-29s were used only in the Pacific war due to the great flying distances needed to bomb Japan. In Europe this distances were much the B=17 and B=24 Liberator were used In addition the B-29 dod not come out for Nass production until late 1943.

[@alfonsfalkhayn8950]

Richard Vogt was the man at B&V !! Many a unique designs from his hand...

[@cultureshock5000]

the german ac was called graf zeppelin graf spee sank at the river plate

[@benstark2065]

Now this plane goes hard.

[@JM-nm3bg]

Har, har, har, that’s a snorter but it’s plane to see hart was in the right place. 😂

[@thomasschreiber9559]

B-29's were used in the Pacific against the Japanese.

[@stug41]

You make entertaining videos with nice production. You would benefit greatly from citations to back up things that sound sensational, like the potential threat of b29s over europe, and the accurate use of established technical terminology. I look forward to your future videos.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Ok, we really need to clear things up. The US never planned to use B-29s over Europe, and I never said as such. People are misinterpreting the video, what I said is that the Germans THOUGHT that it was to be used over Europe, hence why they felt the need to urgently develop a modern interceptor. I do have citations, in the description, which back up this point. The reason the 155 was developed was because the Luftwaffe thought the B-29 was going to be used to bomb Germany. In terms of saying a turbocharger was mechanically drive, this was a mistake on my part. Thanks for the comment and support.

[@mbryson2899]

​@@aviationdeepdiveYou are likely to find wartime and just-post wartime sources using the term "supercharger" in reference to both exhaust driven and mechanically driven units. Throw in translation errors or preferences and you can only get so accurate. Thank you for sharing your video, I found it to be clear and informative.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thankyou, I appreciate that @@mbryson2899

[@Mishn0]

@@aviationdeepdive The US actually sent a B-29 to England with the express purpose of scaring the Germans into thinking it was going to be used in Europe in the hope that they'd waste money and precious development hours working on a defense against that. This occurred on March 11, 1944 at Glatton.

[@TheLateBird7]

Wonderful video! I'm a bit biased of course ;-) The Messerschmitt design proposals that were precursors to the BV 155 I saw for the first time here, very interesting. My favourite though is the BV 155 C with that terrific shark mouth!

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thank you very much, your voice lines add a lot to the video! I agree, the 155C is quite interesting - some people online have actually made models of it which you can find, I think it looks quite cool - albeit very unusual. But of course being a 155 it'd be remiss if it didn't :)

[@torsten811]

A very interesting video with a lot of information. Warm greetings from Germany. Torsten

[@Mishn0]

How did work on the Me-155 affect or was affected by the work on the Bf-109H? Why would Messerschmidt work on two high altitude versions of the 109? Good video, by the way.

[@A.G.798]

Die B&V 155 , sieht wie eine modifizierte Version der Stuka Ju 87 aus,nur ohne Knickflügel und einziebaren Fahrwerk !

[@lukasz.adamski]

Wow! Something from Blohm & Voss that doesn't look crazy or like the designer didn't overuse the drugs. Really unconventional design compared to others from B&V.

[@Mr.McWatson]

"we need a high altitude interceptor in service right now, here BV, produce this ready-made design" BV: "ok, Messerschmitt is dumb so we're going to start development on an entirely new airframe" "...what"

[@marseldagistani1989]

Blohm wnd Voss were right and I think Willy unintentional sabotaged Germany's war effort

[@Mr.McWatson]

@@marseldagistani1989 Nothing they dreamt up seems right lol

[@johnd296]

Super interesting! Well done

[@draconian6692]

Blohm and voss are my fav aircraft designers

[@switchedon6530]

Mate the GRAF SPEE was a pocket battleship, the GRAF ZEPPELIN was a never finished aircraft carrier 1938

[@Garfield.Farkle]

It's forgotten as a B-29 killer because it didn't kill any B-29s. The Sopwith Camel is also forgotten as a B-29 killer.

[@sirfrancis9619]

The camel was never designed as a B-29 killer...unlike the BV155

[@verstappen9937]

🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓

[@ukulelemikeleii]

One wonders why Messerschmitt didn't employ the improved undercarriage design that they had done for the aircraft carrier aircraft? Might have prevented a lot of landing and take-off accidents due to the narrow undercarriage of the me 109...

[@perrydowd9285]

Did anyone ever think to mention to Blohm and Voss that there was a war on?

[@davidfindlay5014]

There was one B-29 raid on Germany that landed in Russia, with the intent to refuel and continue to the CBI theatre to fight against Japan. The Russians, however, were so impressed with the aircraft that they were impounded and copied, rivet for rivet, to produce the TU-4 'Bull'!

[@robmclaughjr]

That B-29 was bombing Japan and landed on Sakhalen island USSR

[@oscgra9416]

Perfectly timed Discord notification 13:29

[@aviationdeepdive]

No idea how that one got past me... 😆

[@scootergeorge7089]

What about the Ta 152?

[@zillsburyy1]

all those 30mm cannons would have been a bomber killer for sure.

[@BerndFelsche]

Muzzle velocity too low. Had to get very close and risk fire from the bombers. Less of a problem for the Me262 which'd whoosh past, but with just a few seconds to aim and fire. Me262 had many shortcomings... lack of speed brakes understandably unforeseen until first combats. And the engines were immature, not really reliable (actually dangerous) until the Jumo004B. But the 155 was a waste of engineering effort. Not just because the B29 wasn't a thing for Europe. Turbojets would outpace, not just in speed but also in terms of manufacture, being far less complex... and not demanding such high quality fuels.

[@artificialhorizon9945]

Another masterpiece! Great video. Congrats!

[@kennethcrowther2277]

Correction. Their carrier was the Graf Zeppelin. The Graf Spee was the pocket battleship sunk at the Battle of River Plate.

[@jenniferkelly6931]

Not "sunk at the battle"...her crew SCUTTLED it...!

[@kennethcrowther2277]

@jenniferkelly6931 yes that's right. It was still sunk.

[@masterofreality.o0o.535]

Excellent commentary. I love this aircraft. Wish the Smithsonian would do a restoration/ rebuild.

[@JasonMcCord-qk3yb]

At least a cosmetic rebuild. It’ll never be safe to fly ever again, but a 1 of 1 , 80 year old prototype really shouldn’t be flown anyway…

[@masterofreality.o0o.535]

Absolutely, just want to see it in all its glory, not tucked away gathering dust!!! Rather like the Ta152....Another absolute favourite. Just do the cosmetic and show it's grace and elegance. I'm sure some people would say no to a rebuild but what purpose do they serve rotting away unseen?

[@masterofreality.o0o.535]

I'd really rather not!!!!

[@VinceVilmosToth-bb6rg]

Me-155 insert just gave a essence to this documentary movie.

[@paulbartels6585]

Didn’t matter what they made at that point All their experienced pilots were dead or captured

[@brittakriep2938]

Voss is in german language spoken Foss, not Woss.

[@legogabrielgamerf2351]

Saludos desde Argentina. excelente video. No conocia nada de este avion. Es de agradecer, y mucho , los subtitulos en castellano.

[@mikegarner8011]

Um…the B29 never saw the sky’s above Germany in WW2,

[@davefellhoelter1343]

I did NOT Know of this! Good Job!

[@stevesloan7132]

But I thought we only briefly sent a few B-29s to Europe and that they didn't see combat there.

[@jorannielsen4213]

Did the B29 ever fly over Germany???

[@adamwright9741]

A very excellent video and I have just subscribed!

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks and welcome!

[@robbertbroere1427]

A beautifull aircraft. However the ME 262 was already flying in 1941. With 4 30mm cannons she was lethal against any allied bomber. Developing that further for higher altitudes would have been a more logical solution.

[@mycosys]

FWIW mate, turbochargers are not mechanically driven, by definition. Thats a mechanical supercharger, turbo means driven by a turbine. If its both its a compound setup.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks, I had realised this mistake after - will have to make a note of that one

[@mycosys]

@@aviationdeepdive if it makes you feel any better at all, im an engineer, did formula SAE at uni, i still find it confusing XD. Theyre all superchargers tho, lol.

[@mycosys]

if you really wanna huurt your brain - turbo-compound engines @@aviationdeepdive . They actually did both. The exhaust turbine was connected to the crank, along with the supercharger. Turns out pulling a vacuum on the exhaust when you first rev isnt a great idea, they were so unreliable they were known as parts recovery turbines on the Super-Connie XD

[@SP3NTT]

Appreciate the content!

[@kennethquinnies6023]

LOL and if germany could have made enough of them then they might have made a small dent in the bomber force AFTER it got past the waves of escorting P51's

[@barfuss2007]

The Bf 109 H and the Ta 152 would have also been able to climb at B 29 altitudes

[@rorycraft5453]

That is what I was also thinking.

[@papalegba6796]

Looks a right dog's dinner, can't see why the Me 262 couldn't do the same job better.

[@michaeldavid6284]

It's the "forgotten B-29 killer" because it didn't kill any B-29s.

[@steveperreira5850]

I wish the video producers would be somewhat honest and more careful with the production of their videos

[@opmdevil]

Oh look, it's yet again one of those "have to head back to" or "get back to the beginning" kind of videos.

[@aviationdeepdive]

You're right, instead of actually understanding the politics or situation of what created this aircraft, it should be a 30 second clip saying "They flew it a few times and it failed"

[@Fer-De-Lance]

Thank you for sharing.

[@jwrappuhn71]

Excellent.

[@stevekolarik2857]

They got reports about the B-29? You mean four B-29 were accidentally captured on a photo reconnaissance in Britain air based. They had no idea what they were looking at. As soon as they figure out the size, they start looking into more what they might see flying over Germany.

[@aviationdeepdive]

The B-29s sent to Europe in March 1944 were meant to trick the Germans that they were about to be employed. This was NOT the event that caused the Germans to be aware of the B-29s existence. They had known the B-29 existed since late 1942, and had some rough performance estimates about it that scared them enough to prompt development of the interceptor. It's important to remember the Luftwaffe knew about the B-29 when they saw it in 1944, the purpose of that stunt was to make them think they were about to be used.

[@petereberl1598]

The USAAF never planned to make use of the B 29 in the european theatre. The Luftwaffe struggled to develop a capable "Höhenjäger", an aircraft able to outclimb american fighters and especially to intercept british mosquitos. The B 29 was never a reason to develop such german fighters, as General Galland pointed out after the war had ended.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Yep, as I said in the video: "Of course, what the Germans didn’t know is that the B-29 was envisaged far more as a bomber for the Pacific theatre than for the European theatre, but nevertheless Messerschmitt was given the requirement to urgently develop a high altitude bomber interceptor." However, the Germans of course had no way to know this so they were somewhat forced to develop a pre-emptive counter anyway.

[@jenniferkelly6931]

The Brit Mosquito found the German answer in the Ta-152.

[@puppetguy8726]

Vogt had such a beautiful mind

[@cmdrflake]

The only circumstance where B29’s would have been assigned to the European Theater of Operations from bases in Iceland. This was only possible if British bases were unsuitable due to enemy attacks. This didn’t happen.

[@k75romeofive]

I cannot document this, but Some where I saw or read the the US intentionally sent at least one B29 to England to get the Germans to spent time ,effort, money, material on just such a fighter as is discussed here.

[@aviationdeepdive]

I have lost count of the comments that have made this point so I'm copy and pasting this response to all of them: I never said the B-29 was used over Europe, I said the Germans THOUGHT that it would be used over Europe, and it was developed to counter the B-29 bombing raids that they THOUGHT were coming. 4:34 , 11:57

[@phil4986]

The egos at Blohm and Voss saved many B17 pilots lives. Had this high altitude plane with a significantly more powerful engine as well as heavier guns been quickly modified from the BF109 plane lineage and put into service, it may well have been a real curse on the lives of B17 pilots and their crew. Thankfully, the ass draggers at Blohm and Voss never let that happen.

[@Xubor]

Vogt should have made it asymmetrical ☝️😯

[@stevetwede9901]

Brings to mind the Pershing, M-46, M-47, M-48 tank debacle.

[@TheSaturnV]

Patton-Patton-Patton 🤪

[@stevetwede9901]

The Pershing is the Pershing@@TheSaturnV

[@stevetwede9901]

@@TheSaturnV Pershing Pershing Pershing !

[@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe]

Was this to be a wood burning aircraft?

[@duke6321]

I can't really imagine that the Germans have dealt with a potential threat from the B29 in advance, because why should one develop countermeasures in the war against non-existent threats. The daily danger from B17, Lancaster, Wellington and other bombers was the challenge to overcome. There was simply no time and no potential left to think about unlaid eggs and develop countermeasures. The video is therefore extremely hypothetical and dedicated to one's own imagination rather than reality. The high-altitude fighters were intended as a defense against the Mosquito reconnaissance and high-flying bomber formations operating at high altitudes, but not as pre-answer against the B29.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Well I don't believe it's anyones problem except yours if you can't "imagine it". This is the simple reality. The Me 155 was developed as a direct response to the B-29, which was of a different generation to the B-17 and could fly higher and faster. If you want to go to the archives and disprove multiple corroborating sources be my guest - but this video is not 'hypothetical', and there is no 'speculation' on my part. This is black and white, once the Germans heard of the B-29 in late 1942 they began developing a counter, which culminated in the BV 155.

[@duke6321]

@@aviationdeepdive This is simply wrong, what you want to convey here. The B&V 155 is not an answer to the B29, the concept of the high-altitude fighter has not been limited as a replica to a specific type. The B29 was not the reason for the development of this project. This should be easy to find out with good research. Therefore, it is not useful if you now try to discredit my statements as untrue individual opinions. But if you're so sure you're right, then you can certainly cite the sources of your claims. Because that's what they are: assertions, not truth.

[@aviationdeepdive]

@@duke6321 X-Planes: German Luftwaffe Prototypes 1930-1945 - Page 224: "BV 155 V1 was the prototype of an extreme high-altitude fighter aircraft which. was designed as a defence against the eventuality of American B-29 Superfortress strategic bombers ..." German and Italian Aircraft Carriers of World War II, "BV 155, it was redesigned as a high-altitude interceptor to combat the USAAF's Boeing B-29 Superfortress" Aircraft of the Luftwaffe, 1935-1945: An Illustrated Guide - Page 228 "The Blohm & Voss Bv 155 was a high- altitude interceptor aircraft intended to be used by the Luftwaffe against raids by the USAF when the performance estimates of the B-29 Superfortress first started reaching German command" Like I said, my sources are cited, this is not 'opinion', this is fact.

[@michaelinsc9724]

New subscriber! Like what you're doing here and looking forward to catching up. What flight Sim are you using?

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks! I have used War Thunder so far, but will also use IL2

[@jimmiller5600]

Why did the program continue after it was apparent that the B-29 threat wasn't real? Because if they weren't working on an active program a transfer to the Eastern Front was looming.

[@paladin0654]

Since the international convention for commercial aircraft today is FEET, please state distances in meters as well as feet. You can't otherwise convert .

[@douglasmiller8607]

Yes, rather insane with the Me(Bf) 262 becoming operational.

[@420JackG]

Me 262 ain't fighting at 16,000 meters.

[@weirdshibainu]

The 262 was brilliant but suffered from a lot of issues and would have been difficult to scale, particularly late in the war.

[@RockinRedRover]

"rather insane" sums up the whole German approach to the war - makes you wonder how people renowned for good organisation etc got so screwed - but hang-on, Hitler was "in charge"... oops

[@krisztianpapp6604]

13:29 discord notification is on the BV155 is a standard feature

[@bobmarley1686]

Extreme Design to Overcome Extreme Design 😅

[@knoll9812]

Not sure what was bizarre about this design. Amazed thT b&v got this in the air a year after getting contract. Appears to me that they were an underused resource.

[@soundknight]

8:47 wow, what's all those 190s doing in that warehouse? We're they taking parts from them to service their remaining fleet?