Heinkel He 177 Greif

The Heinkel He 177 Greif was Germany’s only four‑engine heavy bomber to enter operational service during World War II. Conceived in 1937 as a long‑range strategic aircraft, the He 177 was meant to replace smaller Luftwaffe bombers and to strike distant targets such as Soviet oil fields and Allied naval convoys. Its first prototype flew in November 1939, but production was delayed by a series of technical problems, most notably the decision to mount two engines in each twin nacelle. This “coupled‑engine” arrangement produced severe overheating and a notorious tendency to catch fire, earning the aircraft the nickname “the flying incendiary.” Despite these flaws, the He 177 incorporated several advanced features: a pressurised crew compartment, remote‑controlled defensive turrets, a powerful 2 000 hp Daimler‑Benz DB 605 powerplant per engine, and a capacity of up to 7 000 kg of bombs. By 1944 the Luftwaffe had delivered roughly 1 300 airframes, and the type saw limited action in anti‑shipping, strategic bombing, and later as a glider tug. Though it never matched Allied heavy bombers, the He 177’s ambitious design and the lessons learned from its coupled‑engine concept influenced post‑war aircraft engineering, marking it as a noteworthy, if troubled, milestone in aviation history.

Heinkel

Heinkel He 177 Greif

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Design & Classification