Henschel Hs P.87 (Schnellbomber)

History of Henschel Hs p. 87 (Fast Bomber)

As the air combat of World War II evolved, so did the wartime demands. Eventually, the German concept of the Schnellbomber or "fast bomber" came into being, with the main objective of attacking ground targets with conventional air-dropped explosives and evading air defenses with sheer speed.

This requires a streamlined profile and enough power to carry the war load and outrun any incoming interceptor.

The German company Henschel developed Hs P. 87 in this direction. A unique design form was developed, placing the tail in front of the main plane of the wing to improve control. The circular fuselage was used as a focal point and accommodated several crew members. The crew will be stationed at the front, with the engines, avionics and fuel depots at the rear. The engine will drive one or two propeller units at the stern in a "propeller" fashion.

The leading and trailing edges of the main plane of the wing are swept back and should carry vertical fins at their tips. Weapons will also be mounted on the nose, with a wheeled retractable tricycle landing gear.

In an emergency, the crew compartment is to be jettisoned as a whole to allow all personnel to clear the trailing supports.

The proposed engine configuration is a single 2,200 hp Daimler-Benz DB610, which will be used to drive a multi-blade propeller unit or a pair of propeller units in counter-rotation. The DB610 is nothing more than a pair of two DB605 series engines driving a single shaft - as was the case with the P.87.

The P.87 looked impressive on paper, but there were concerns that the wings would be inefficient due to a tail-first approach - drag boosts lift, but drag goes against the notion of a high-speed bomber. Due to the considerable development time required to justify the design (and German pilots with little experience flying propulsion aircraft), the P.87 was abandoned as conflict-torn Germany had a higher priority until dealing with this a little.

As a result, the P.87 project ended with nothing.

Some estimated specs have survived, including an overall length of 39.9 feet and a top speed of 466 mph. Weapons are likely to be centered on the cannon, and the bombs will be carried under the wings or in a modest bomb bay in the fuselage.

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