Henschel Hs 293

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Henschel Hs 293 (Deutsches Museum Munich)

The Henschel Hs 293 was a World War II German anti-shipping guided missile: a radio-controlled glide bomb with a rocket engine slung underneath it.

1 History
2 Variants
3 Inventory
4 Combat Performance
5 Characteristics
6 See also

[edit] History

The Hs 293 project was started in 1940, based on the "Gustav Schwartz Propellerwerke" pure glide bomb that was designed in 1939. The Schwartz design did not have a terminal guidance system - it used an autopilot to maintain a straight course. The intention was that it could be launched from a bomber at sufficient distance to be out of range of anti-aircraft fire. Henschel developed it the following year by adding a rocket motor underneath it to allow it to be used from lower altitude and to increase the range.

Although designed for use against ships, it was also used in Normandy in early August 1944 to attack bridges over the River See and River Selume. Only one bridge was slightly damaged but six aircraft were lost[1].

[edit] Variants

Hs 293A (later Hs 293A-1), the original version.

Hs 293B was wire-guided to prevent jamming; it was never put into production, because jamming was never serious enough to prevent the radio-guided version from being effective.

Hs 293C (production version designated Hs 293A-2) had a detachable warhead.

Hs 293D was television-guided. Twenty were built and tested, but it was never used operationally as the television equipment was unreliable.

Hs 293E, an experimental model to test spoiler controls as a replacement to ailerons; never put into series production. This modification was put into the final version of the Hs 293A-2 but by then the Luftwaffe had no aircraft available for anti-shipping operations and it was never deployed.

Hs 293F, a tailless variant; never got further than the design phase.

Hs 293H, an experimental variant designed to be launched from one aircraft and controlled from another. Abandoned because allied air superiority had reached the point where it was felt that the second aircraft would be unable to remain in the vicinity of the ship for long enough.

Hs 293V6 designed for launching from the Arado Ar 234 jet bomber at 720 km/h. The main change was reducing the wing span of the missile to allow it to be carried within the aircraft. The missile did not proceed past the design stage.

[edit] Inventory

Over 1000 were built, from 1942 onwards.

[edit] Combat Performance

The Hs 293 was intended to destroy unarmoured ships. (Compare with the Fritz X, intended for use against armoured targets).

One drawback of the Hs 293 was that, after the missile was launched, the bomber had to fly in a straight and level path, and thus could not manoeuvre to evade anti-aircraft guns.

On August 27, 1943, an Hs 293 was used in the first successful attack by a guided missile, sinking the British sloop HMS Egret. On November 26, 1943 an Hs 293 caused the sinking of the HMT Rohna.

[edit] Characteristics

Primary Function:
Contractor: Henschel
Power Plant: liquid-propellant rocket motor, 5.9 kN thrust for 10 s; subsequently glided to target

Length: 3.82 m
Diameter: 47 cm
Wing Span: 3.1 m
Horizontal stabilizer span: 1.14 m
Fuselage diameter: 0.47 m
Underslung rocket diameter: 0.33 m
Launch Weight: 1045 kg
Wing area: 2.4 square metres
Wing loading: 441 kg/m² at launch, 390 kg/m² at target

Speed: maximum 260 m/s, average 230 m/s
Warhead: 295 kg explosive
Range: at 2.2 km altitude 4.0 km; at 4.0 km altitude 5.5 km; at 5.0 km altitude 8.5 km;
Fuzes:
Guidance system: Kehl-Strassburg FuG 203/230; MCLOS using a Joystick