Günter brothers
Encyclopedia
Dr. Siegfried Günter and Walter Günter (8 December 1899 - 21 September 1937) were German twin brothers and pioneering aircraft designers. Walter was responsible for the world's first rocket-powered and turbojet airframes, projects funded by Nazi Germany
. Siegfried was the father of the "thrust modulation theory", the MiG 15, and MiG 19, the latter projects funded by the Soviet Union
.
. Avid flight enthusiasts, at 16 they had developed their own propeller theories. Both served in the First World War, where they were captured by the British Army
and each became a prisoner of war
.
The brothers would be educated in mechancial engineering at the Institute of Technology Hannover, specializing in aircraft design and aerodynamics. It was there that Siegfried designed his first aircraft with fellow students Walter Mertens and Werner Meyer-Cassel, the glider H 6. Their talents were first recognised by Paul Bäumer
who was impressed by the performance of the H 6 when he saw it being flown at Wasserkuppe
. Bäumer offered the brothers, Mertens, and Meyer-Cassel jobs with his company Bäumer Aero in Berlin
. There they began designing motor glider
s and then increasingly fast sports planes, including one in which Bäumer himself was killed in a crash in 1928. By 1925 Siegfried had designed first "Buzzing Wind" airplane for the Deutscher Rundflug 1925 competition, which featured the first elliptic design based on Prandtl's 1918 theory.
recruited the Siegfried Günter to work for his Heinkel
company in Rostock
, and Walter joined the company on 31 July 1931, where he was in charge of developing low and high-speed wind tunnels. There they were to design some of the most important and famous designs associated with the company, including the Heinkel He 51
, He 70
, He 112
, He 100
, and the He 111
. Walter designed the first retractable landing gear ever in Germany on the He 70, which Siegfried designed mainly.
Through their introduction of the elliptical wing-plan form, their designs set officially recognized speed records. Lufthansa purchased He 70 planes, nicknaming it the Heinkel-Blitz, and instituted "blitz" air-routes between Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, and Frankfurt comparable to today's travel time for the same routes.
During this time Walter submitted airframe designs for what would become the He 178 turbojet plane, and the He 176 rocket plane, in coordination with Dr. Hans von Ohain
.
As chief project designer by 1937, Siegfried and his team introduced the He 113
on May 25, 1937.
Siegfried would later contribute to the design of the He 219, as well as other prototypes, including the He 177
and He 162
.
by U.S.S.R. agents where he worked on Russian aircraft designs.
There he would become the father of the Soviet MiG-15 and MiG-19 fighter aircraft.
, where he again joined the Heinkel works. He was involved in the construction of the EWR VJ 101
, the world's first supersonic V/STOL
-aircraft and the V/STOL
transportation aircraft VC 400. Both designs ended up as prototypes and never saw serial production.
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. Siegfried was the father of the "thrust modulation theory", the MiG 15, and MiG 19, the latter projects funded by the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Early life
Siegfried and Walter Günter were born December 8, 1899 in ThuringiaThuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
. Avid flight enthusiasts, at 16 they had developed their own propeller theories. Both served in the First World War, where they were captured by the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
and each became a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
.
The brothers would be educated in mechancial engineering at the Institute of Technology Hannover, specializing in aircraft design and aerodynamics. It was there that Siegfried designed his first aircraft with fellow students Walter Mertens and Werner Meyer-Cassel, the glider H 6. Their talents were first recognised by Paul Bäumer
Paul Bäumer
Paul Wilhelm Bäumer was a German fighter ace in World War I.-Involvement in World War 1:Bäumer learned to fly before the war but joined the infantry and was wounded in the leg in 1915. He transferred to the air service as a dental assistant before being accepted for military pilot training...
who was impressed by the performance of the H 6 when he saw it being flown at Wasserkuppe
Wasserkuppe
The Wasserkuppe is a high plateau , the highest peak in the Rhön Mountains within the German state of Hessen. Between the first and second World Wars, during the era of the so-called Golden Age of Aviation, great advances in sailplane development were made there.Remark: The German wording takes its...
. Bäumer offered the brothers, Mertens, and Meyer-Cassel jobs with his company Bäumer Aero in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. There they began designing motor glider
Motor glider
A motor glider is a fixed-wing aircraft that can be flown with or without engine power. The FAI Gliding Commission Sporting Code definition is: A fixed wing aerodyne equipped with a means of propulsion ,...
s and then increasingly fast sports planes, including one in which Bäumer himself was killed in a crash in 1928. By 1925 Siegfried had designed first "Buzzing Wind" airplane for the Deutscher Rundflug 1925 competition, which featured the first elliptic design based on Prandtl's 1918 theory.
Heinkel Flugzeugwerke
On 16 January 1931, Ernst HeinkelErnst Heinkel
Dr. Ernst Heinkel was a German aircraft designer, manufacturer, Wehrwirtschaftführer in the Third Reich, and member of the Nazi party. His company Heinkel Flugzeugwerke produced the Heinkel He 178, the world's first turbojet aircraft and jet plane, and the Heinkel He 176, the first rocket aircraft...
recruited the Siegfried Günter to work for his Heinkel
Heinkel
Heinkel Flugzeugwerke was a German aircraft manufacturing company founded by and named after Ernst Heinkel. It is noted for producing bomber aircraft for the Luftwaffe in World War II and for important contributions to high-speed flight.-History:...
company in Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
, and Walter joined the company on 31 July 1931, where he was in charge of developing low and high-speed wind tunnels. There they were to design some of the most important and famous designs associated with the company, including the Heinkel He 51
Heinkel He 51
-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Donald, David, ed. Warplanes of the Luftwaffe. London: Aerospace, 1994. ISBN 1-874023-56-5.* Green, William and Gordon Swanborough. "The Cadre Creator...Heinkel's Last Fighting Biplane". Air Enthusiast No. 36, May-August 1988. pp. 11–24. ISSN 0143-5450.*...
, He 70
Heinkel He 70
The Heinkel He 70 was a German mail plane and fast passenger aircraft of the 1930s, that also saw use in auxiliary bomber and reconnaissance roles. It had a relatively brief commercial career before it was replaced by types which could carry more passengers...
, He 112
Heinkel He 112
The Heinkel He 112 was a fighter aircraft designed by Walter and Siegfried Günter. It was one of four aircraft designed to compete for the Luftwaffes 1933 fighter contract, which was eventually won by the Messerschmitt Bf 109...
, He 100
Heinkel He 100
The Heinkel He 100 was a German pre-World War II fighter aircraft design from Heinkel. Although it proved to be one of the fastest fighter aircraft in the world at the time of its development, the design was not ordered into series production. Approximately 19 prototypes and pre-production machines...
, and the He 111
Heinkel He 111
The Heinkel He 111 was a German aircraft designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter in the early 1930s in violation of the Treaty of Versailles. Often described as a "Wolf in sheep's clothing", it masqueraded as a transport aircraft, but its purpose was to provide the Luftwaffe with a fast medium...
. Walter designed the first retractable landing gear ever in Germany on the He 70, which Siegfried designed mainly.
Through their introduction of the elliptical wing-plan form, their designs set officially recognized speed records. Lufthansa purchased He 70 planes, nicknaming it the Heinkel-Blitz, and instituted "blitz" air-routes between Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, and Frankfurt comparable to today's travel time for the same routes.
During this time Walter submitted airframe designs for what would become the He 178 turbojet plane, and the He 176 rocket plane, in coordination with Dr. Hans von Ohain
Hans von Ohain
Hans Joachim Pabst von Ohain was a German engineer, one of the inventors of jet propulsion.Frank Whittle, who patented in 1930 in the United Kingdom, and Hans von Ohain, who patented in 1936 in Germany, developed the concept independently during the late 1930s...
.
As chief project designer by 1937, Siegfried and his team introduced the He 113
Heinkel He 113
The Heinkel He 113 was a supposed Luftwaffe fighter aircraft of World War II, but which existed only as a propaganda and/or disinformation strategy....
on May 25, 1937.
Siegfried would later contribute to the design of the He 219, as well as other prototypes, including the He 177
Heinkel He 177
The Heinkel He 177 Greif was the only operational long-range bomber to be operated by the Luftwaffe. Starting its existence as Germany's first purpose-built heavy bomber just before the war, and built in large numbers during World War II, it was also mistakenly tasked, right from its beginnings,...
and He 162
Heinkel He 162
The Heinkel He 162 Volksjäger was a German single-engine, jet-powered fighter aircraft fielded by the Luftwaffe in World War II. Designed and built quickly, and made primarily of wood as metals were in very short supply and prioritised for other aircraft, the He 162 was nevertheless the fastest of...
.
Soviet Union
After the Second World War Siegfried worked in Berlin in the car shop of his father-in-law. He approached the Allies offering his expertise, which was refused along with his request for asylum, forcing him to return to the Soviet sector. In 1948 he was taken to the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
by U.S.S.R. agents where he worked on Russian aircraft designs.
There he would become the father of the Soviet MiG-15 and MiG-19 fighter aircraft.
West Germany
In 1957 he went to West GermanyWest Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, where he again joined the Heinkel works. He was involved in the construction of the EWR VJ 101
EWR VJ 101
-See also:-Bibliography:* Rogers, Mike. VTOL: Military Research Aircraft. New York: Orion Books, 1989. ISBN 0-517-57684-8.* Winchester, Jim. "EWR-Sud VJ 101C ". X-Planes and Prototypes. London: Amber Books Ltd., 2005. ISBN 1-904687-40-7....
, the world's first supersonic V/STOL
V/STOL
Vertical and/or short take-off and landing is a term used to describe aircraft that are able to take-off or land vertically or on short runways. Vertical takeoff and landing describes craft which do not require runways at all...
-aircraft and the V/STOL
V/STOL
Vertical and/or short take-off and landing is a term used to describe aircraft that are able to take-off or land vertically or on short runways. Vertical takeoff and landing describes craft which do not require runways at all...
transportation aircraft VC 400. Both designs ended up as prototypes and never saw serial production.
Sources
- Regnat, Karl-Heinz. Black Cross Volume 4: Heinkel He 111. Midland publishers. 2004. ISBN 978-1-85780-184-2