Germany's Other 'Stuka' - The Eastern Front Menace

The Junkers 87 Stuka is immensely famous, but the Germans also operated a biplane dive bomber throughout the war that was legendary for its ruggedness and effectiveness as a ground attack plane - the Henschel Hs. 123, the 'other' Stuka.

Help support my channel:

Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Mark Felton Productions. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Mark Felton Productions does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.

Credits: The National Archives; Library of Congress; Jim Sheach; Alan Wilson; Airwolfhound

[benjaminbrockway]

I will never not find it wild how WWII opened with biplanes and ended with the advent of jets.

[jimmiller]

Open cockpit. Eastern Front. Winter. Three phrases a pilot didn't want to hear together.

[oldesertguy]

The 30's biplanes were, in my eye, some of the most beautiful planes ever made. They just seemed "right." The compactness and the look of the engine fairings just looks good.

[ericscottstevens]

My Grandfather stated the Hs123 was the original aircraft for the inception of the Sturzkampfgeschwader model as well as the He70 Blitz while he was with I./St.G.165 in Kitzingen in 1936. The He70 Blitz was quickly dropped out of service due to performance was not up to par with the tactical needs which were probably the steep dives.
He felt Hubertus Hitschold who pioneered several facets of the dives and tactical assembly used the Hs123 as the test platform.
It may even been Hitschold who was commanding St.G 2 by 1939 that had my Grandfather transferred from St.G 77 to St.G2 for a few weeks during the invasion of Poland.

[x-x]

I always love seeing biplanes at airshows. Thanks for this enlightening piece on their continued use in ww2. I'd never heard of the Hs123.

[douglasstrother]

"Old designs still prove useful": the B-52.

Never heard of the Hs 123: yet another Dr. Felton gem.

[jerryjeromehawkins]

The Henschel 123 is a gorgeous craft indeed.
Thank you Dr Felton!

[johnfisk]

The Ju87 and Hs123 were for different roles. Akin to artillery and mortars. The Ju87 would be tasked for missions against specific targets by a higher level whilst the Hs123 was locally tasked by regimental level units for individual small targets. When properly used the two complemented each other. The key to Ju87 success was Intelligence derived targeting whilst the Hs123 key was ground troop marking and wanted ground air radio contact. The HS123 was less of an interim dive bomber but rather came in as an examination of the ground attack role on the Great War schlact model. The Ju87 was vulnerable in the dive and had to begin quite high up to do it’s accurate task whilst the Hs 123 relied upon keeping at low level to reduce the warning and time for the enemy to react. At ground level a difficult target to notice and acquire. In effect the Stuka was the counterpart to modern mobile heavy artillery in striking accurately at a distance whilst the Hs123 was the period attack helicopter. Not entirely unlike the way the Swordfish was the counterpart to the modern ASW Helicopter.

[herschelmayo]

Stuka pilots called the radiator the "bullet magnet" One pilot told me that the Soviet tactic of mass infantry fire was always going to get the radiator. He was always hoping that after he got a hole in his radiator, that he was close enough to German lines to get home before the engine seized.

[chaptermasterpedrokantor]

The Swordfish wasn't used for so long because it was that good, but because the RN just didn't have anything else. It's initial replacements didn't even offer anything better in performance because the Fleet Air Arm was bottom last in priorities in getting new aircraft. Luckily for the RN the USN was not dead last in priorities and the new Corsairs, Avengers and Hellcats saw extensive service with the RN in the latter half of the war. The Swordfish low landing speed did make it very useful for small escort carriers in the battle of the Atlantic.

[roelantverhoeven]

the Fiat Falco also had an impressive record in Belgian service, non lost to air combat against 7 kills, including 2BF109's!

[BasicModelling]

Being a scale modeller I knew of the aircraft (Airfix has an old, but still reasonably good kit in 1/72 scale) but I didn't know it was such a good and rugged aircraft. Great video, very informative.. :) As for other biplanes shown in this video, the Swedish Air Force also operated the Fiat CR.42 Falco, between 1940 - 1945, designating it the J11. The Italians were one of very few willing to supply aircraft to Sweden during WWII, when others refused. Hence Swedens decision to develop it's own fighters post war, resulting in some of the best jet fighters made (J29 Tunnan, J35 Draken, J37 Viggen) and continuing even today with the JAS-39 Gripen.

[normantas_bataitis]

I never thought that German biplanes were flying on the Eastern Front battlefields. Mark, it would be interesting to research and make a video about pre-dreadnought and dreadnought ship's service in WW2.

[KeithPrince-cpme]

North Korea used Polikarpov biplanes during the war of 1950-53 and being mainly cloth and wood radar waves went through them and they couldn't be detected, in a way an early "stealth" plane. High performance US planes had trouble flying slow enough to engage them without stalling. In 1967 two North Vietnamese Soviet made biplanes were shot down by US Navy Phantom jets of squadron VF114 operating from the USS Kitty Hawk, aircraft carrier, in what must have been the most unusual air combat of the 20th century.

[ColinH]

Fascinating little known anecdote of history. Thank you.

[towgod]

1, 400 views IN 8 MINUTES! Dr Felton's viewers are FIERCE.

[Roscoe_B]

I've always been fascinated by the exploits of Hans Ulrich Rudel, who would not give up on the ''obsolete'' JU87 and repurposed it as a ground attack aircraft with legendary results.

[brucewarren]

Another example of Mark Felton’s superb research and presentation! A subject so obscure that when revealed almost seems like an alternative history of WWII is being presented. So well done! ❤

[greeneyesms]

Thanks! (My signet ring from my Master's degree program is still stinging from the "pour" spelling last week.) ☺

[johngaller]

Thank you for all of your great content all these years. Always the highest quality, informative and entertaining.
In the 60s, I had many models of aeroplanes from history dangling from my bedroom ceiling. I even made a Hindenburg model with my own materials.