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The Heinkel He 162 (“Volksjäger”, “Salamander” or “Spatz”) was a German single-engine, jet-powered fighter used by the Luftwaffe in World War II. Fighter was designed by engineer Siegfried Günther. Spatz was Heinkel’s response to an RLM demand for a single-seat, powered by a single BMW003 engine, cheap and expendable jet fighter, fast and good armed to deal with the impact of Allied bombing of German industries.

General Description

• Type: Single-seat jet-propelled fighter.

Wings

• Configuration: Shoulder-wing cantilever monoplane with a 3° dihedral and an aspect ratio of 4.65.
• Structure:
  • All-wood structure, one-piece design attached to the fuselage with four bolts.
  • Features a straight leading-edge, blunt detachable metal tips, and a pronounced sweep forward on the trailing edge.
  • Main and auxiliary T-section spars with plywood covering (5 mm thick between spars on the upper surface and 4 mm elsewhere).
  • Space between spars serves as a fuel tank.
  • Hydraulically-controlled metal flaps between fuselage and ailerons, with a maximum depression of 45°. Ailerons move 18° either way.

Fuselage

• Construction:
  • Semi-monocoque structure with flush-riveted duralumin, and a plywood nose.
  • Contains steel fittings and inspection covers made of duralumin or wood.
  • Aerodynamically clean design, with an oval nose section, pear-shaped central portion, and circular rear section.
  • Tail cone adjustable in flight to modify tailplane incidence from +3° to -2°.

Tail Unit

• Type: Cantilever monoplane with mixed construction.
• Structure:
  • Tailplane, elevators, and rudders are of duralumin construction with steel fittings. Wooden fins bolted to the extremities of the tailplane.
  • Tailplane set at a moderate dihedral and has constant chord.
  • Elevators feature fixed tabs at their inner ends; rudders are fully mass-balanced, have fixed tabs above the tailplane, and can move 25° either way.

Landing Gear

• Type: Retractable tricycle type.
• Main Wheels: Similar to Me 109, retract into fuselage. Features hydraulic retraction and spring lowering. Openings covered by mechanically-operated plywood doors.
• Nose Wheel: Retracts backward into fuselage nose, has slight castor action, and an anti-shimmy device.

Power Plant

• Engine: One BMW 003 E-1 turbo-jet unit centrally mounted on top of the fuselage.
• Alternatives: Could include BMW 003 E-2, Junkers Jumo 004, or Heinkel-Hirth 011.
• Fuel: Uses J-2 diesel fuel with a maximum capacity of 168 Imperial gallons in the fuselage and 40 gallons in the wings.

Accommodation

• Cockpit: Pilot’s cockpit located in the nose, forward of wings. Entry and exit through a canopy that opens rearwards and can be jettisoned.
• Special Features: Pilot-ejecting seat actuated by an explosive cartridge. Plywood instrument panel.

Armament

• Options:
  • Either two 30 mm MK 108 cannons with 50 rounds per gun.
  • Or two 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons with 120 rounds per gun.
• Mounting: Armament mounted low in the fuselage sides.

Dimensions

• Span: 23 ft. 7.5 in. (7.2 m)
• Length: 29 ft. 8.5 in. (9 m)
• Wing Chord (Root): 6 ft. 8.5 in. (2.06 m)
• Tailplane Span: 7 ft. 5.5 in. (2.3 m)
• Tailplane Chord: 2 ft. 8.5 in. (0.84 m)

Weights

• Normal Loaded Weight: 5,480 lbs. (2,490 kg)
• Maximum Fuel Loaded Weight: 5,940 lbs. (2,700 kg)
• Landing Weight: 4,820 lbs. (2,190 kg) with 20% fuel
• Wing Loading at Landing: 40 lbs./sq. ft. (18.2 kg./sq. m)

Performance

• Maximum Speeds:
  • 490 mph (784 km/h) at sea level
  • 522 mph (835 km/h) at 19,680 ft. (6,000 m)
  • 485 mph (776 km/h) at 36,000 ft. (10,980 m)
• Climb Rates:
  • 4,200 ft./min (1,280 m/min) at sea level
  • 2,460 ft./min (750 m/min) at 19,680 ft. (6,000 m)
  • 690 ft./min (210 m/min) at 36,000 ft. (10,980 m)
• Time to Altitudes:
  • 6.6 min to 19,680 ft. (6,000 m)
  • 20 min to 36,000 ft. (10,980 m)
• Full-throttle Ranges:
  • Normal fuel: 136 miles (220 km) at sea level, 267 miles (430 km) at 19,680 ft., 410 miles (656 km) at 36,000 ft., 434 miles (695 km) at 38,400 ft.
  • Maximum fuel: 242 miles (390 km) at sea level, 620 miles (1,000 km) at 36,000 ft.
• Full-throttle Endurances:
  • Normal fuel: 20 min at sea level, 33 min at 19,680 ft., 67 min at 36,000 ft.
  • Maximum fuel: 30 min at sea level, 85 min at 36,000 ft.
• Ceiling: 39,400 ft. (12,020 m)
• Take-off Run:
  • Normal fuel: 710 yards (650 m) or 350 yards (320 m) with auxiliary take-off units
  • Maximum fuel: 875 yards (800 m) or 415 yards (380 m) with auxiliary take-off units
• Landing Speed: 102 mph (163 km/h)

Bibliography

• Peter W. Cohausz:- Deutsche Flugzeugcockpits und Instrumentenbretter Teil 6. Zweiter Weltkrieg Heinkel – Junkers, Cockpit Profile 6
• J. Richard Smith, William Conway: The Heinkel He 162, Aircraft Profile Number 203
• Robert Forsyth, Jim Laurier: He 162 Volksjäger Units, Osprey Combat Aircraft 118
• Heinz J. Nowarra: Der “Volksjäger” He 162, Waffen-Arsenal 85
• Heinz J. Nowarra: Heinkel He 162  “Volksjäger” He 162, Schiffer Military History
• Janusz Ledwoch: He 162 Volksjäger, Wydawnictwo Militaria 44 (polish)
• Miroslav Bily, Miroslav Balous: Heinkel He 162 Spatz (Volksjäger), MBI (czech)
• Robert Forsyth: Heinkel He 162 – From Drawing Board to Destruction: The Volksjager Spatz
• Flugzeug Profile 35: Heinkel He 162
• Ernst Heinkel Flugzeugwerke 1933-1945
• Manfred Griehl: Heinkel Combat Aircraft, Arms & Armour Press
• Heinkel: Chronik und Typenblatter der Firma Heinkel-Flugzeugbau
• Volker Koos: Heinkel  Raketen- und Strahlflugzeuge (german)
• Manfred Griehl: German Jets 1944-1945, Luftwaffe at War 10
• Manfred Griehl: German Jets of World War Two (Warbirds Illustrated No.52)
• German Jets in W.W.II  – Model Art Modeling Magazine 348 (Japanese)
• Brett Green: Modelling Luftwaffe Jets and Wonder Weapons – Osprey Modelling  Masterclass
• J. Richard Smith, Eddie J. Creek: Jagdwaffe – Jet Fighters and Rocket Interceptors 1944-1945, Luftwaffe Colours – Volume Five Section 4
• Jean-Denis G. G. Lepage:  Aircraft of the Luftwaffe, 1935-1945 An Illustrated Guide
• Peter Müller: Heinkel HE 162 “Volksjäger” Last Ditch Effort by the Luftwaffe
• Dan Sharp: The Hated Volksjäger: Histories of the Heinkel He 162
• Manfred Griehl: The Luftwaffe Profile Series No.16 – Heinkel He 162 ,Schiffer Military History Book
• Shigeru Nohara, Masatsugu Shiwaku: Messerschmitt Me 163 & Heinkel He 162 – Aero Detail 10 (japan)
• Wolfgang Wollenweber: Thunder Over the Reich: Flying the Luftwaffe’s He 162 Jet Fighter
• Maciej Goralczyk, Jacek Pasieczny, Simon Schatz, Arkadiusz Wrobel: Last Hope of the Luftwaffe: Me 163, He 162, Me 262, Kagero Mini Topcolors 37
• J. Richard Smith, Eddie J. Creek: Monogram Close-Up 11 – Heinkel He 162 Volksjager
• Wolfgang Peter-Michel: Flugerfahrungen mit der Heinkel He 162 (german)
• David Myhra: Heinkel He 162 – X Planes of the Third Reich Series