User manual

The trials confirmed what was already known as far as the comparison to the Spit Mk Vb
goes but also revealed the weaknesses of the BMW 801 engine. The engine would lose
performance rapidly above 25.000ft.
Beside that, it was obviously de-rated and didn’t deliver it’s full power of 1.42 ata. In fact, by
that time the D-2 was not considered 100% reliable by the RLM and manifold pressure was
locked at 1.32 ata.
As an immediate answer, guidelines for combat with the Fw190 where filed, basically to
the extent that combat had to be avoided when the Spitfire Mk V pilot didn’t have an initial
advantage in altitude and speed.
Diving had to be avoided under any circumstances as the Spit wouldn’t have a chance to
escape. Instead a shallow descent at full throttle towards the homeland was advised so
that the attacking enemy would be forced to leave the combat area if he wanted to follow.
Production of the improved Spitfire Mk IX would be at full steam by June and would almost
bring the RAF pilots back to equals as the engine performance of the Mk IX was
comparable to that of the Fw190A. Yet the Fw190 would hold the edge in manoeuvrability.
The capture of Armin Faber’s Fw 190 is commonly marked as the end of the Luftwaffe’s
one-year supremacy over the channel front.
Whether the results of the trials where such a surprise might be debatable since the
improved Spit Mk IX was already well underway. However, the propaganda effect can’t be
under-estimated as it restored the RAF pilot’s faith in their own abilities. The Mk IX did not
surpass the Fw190’s performance but it helped to level the field and successfully ended the
Luftwaffe’s un-shadowed days of victory over the channel.
Armin Faber’s Werknummer 313 remained the only Fw 190 A in pure fighter configuration
to be captured intact by the allies for the duration of the war. All other captured aircraft
were either of the long range bomber or fighter bomber configuration.
Fw 190 A-4
The implementation of the new VHF radio FuG 16 eventually led to the new variant Fw 190
A-4 which was produced between June 1942 and August 1943 in approximately 974
samples.
The FuG 16 used a “T” shaped antenna which required a re-design of the vertical tail,
recognizable by a vertical “sting” on top of the fin.
The fixed cooling slots where replaced by adjustable flaps at some point during the
production run and were operated by a crank located at the cockpit’s lower forward panel.
The armoured headrest saw replacement with a larger type.
Even though all sort of conversions had already been tested and used operational in small
numbers on previous versions, it wasn’t before the A-4 that bombs became more
commonly carried on the Fw 190. This were usually unnamed modifications. The bombs
were carried on an underbelly ETC 501 rack and electrically fused by an apparatus right
under the forward panel.
Dedicated fighter bomber and long range fighter bomber versions have been developed
and tested under various U (Umbau = rebuild) designations but became available on a
broad scale, only after the A-5 entered service.
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