Wikipedia

CASA 2.111

The CASA 2.111 is a medium bomber derived from the Heinkel He 111 and produced in Spain under licence by Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA). The 2.111 models differed significantly in details from Heinkel's wartime He 111H design while using essentially the same airframe in appearance, featuring heavier armament and eventually Rolls-Royce Merlin engines.[2]

CASA 2.111
CASA 2.111B
General information
TypeMedium bomber
ManufacturerCASA
Primary userSpanish Air Force
Number built236
History
Manufactured1945–1956[1]
First flight23 May 1945
Retired1973
Developed fromHeinkel He 111

Design and development

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In 1937, during the Spanish Civil War, the Spanish Nationalist Air Force received a number of He 111Bs from Germany, which had begun to receive the improved He 111D model, receiving He 111Es following the end of the war. There was a need for more modern aircraft, however, so in 1940, CASA negotiated a contract with Heinkel to produce 200 examples of the newer He 111 H-16 in Seville.[2] Setting up production was slow, with relatively little support received from Germany as World War II continued. Spain managed to locate a store of Jumo 211F-2 engines in France, and this allowed completion of 130 Jumo powered examples (although only 117 were delivered owing to the need to cannibalise engines).[3] These were in three versions: the 2.111A, a medium bomber; the 2.111C, a reconnaissance bomber; and the 2.111F, a dual-control trainer.[4]

Operational history

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The first Spanish-built aircraft flew on 23 May 1945.[5] Following the end of the war, access to new German-built Junkers engines and parts became impossible, and CASA found an alternative with the Rolls-Royce Merlin 500. In April 1956, 173 Merlin engines were ordered and installed on the aircraft[6] in a "power plant" nacelle of a type originally developed by Rolls-Royce for the Beaufighter II and later used on the Avro Lancaster.[7] The newly Merlin-powered bombers and reconnaissance bombers became the 2.111B and 2.111D, respectively; some were re-engined, while others were built new. A nine-passenger transport, the 2.111T8, was also developed and produced.[4] Spanish 2.111s served into the late 1960s and, in the case of the transports, early 1970s. Many of the aircraft retired in the 1960s.

The CASA 2.111 was used in combat in the close air support role during the Ifni War in 1957–1958.[8]

In film

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Due to their close resemblance to the He 111s they were developed from, CASA 2.111s were sometimes used to represent their German counterparts in films. They were used in this way in films such as Battle of Britain and Patton. Often accompanying it in these films were Hispano Aviación HA-1112 fighters, which represented the Messerschmitt Bf 109.

Variants

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2.111A
Licensed He 111H-16 with Junkers Jumo 211 engines
2.111B
Engines replaced by Rolls-Royce Merlin Series 500-29 engines
2.111C
Reconnaissance variant
2.111D
Reconnaissance variant with Merlin engines
2.111E
Transport variant
2.111F
Trainer aircraft

Accidents and incidents

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One modified Spanish 2.111D served as a transport for Spanish VIPs, including General Francisco Franco, before being purchased in England by the Confederate Air Force in 1977. It remained the last He 111 in flyable condition until 10 July 2003, when it was destroyed in a fatal crash landing. The aircraft was attempting a landing at the Cheyenne Municipal Airport, near Cheyenne, Wyoming, while en route from Midland, Texas to an air show in Missoula, Montana. Eyewitness reports indicate the aircraft lost power to one engine on final approach and ploughed through a chain link fence before colliding with a building under construction. Killed were CAF pilot Neil R. Stamp and co-pilot Charles S. Bates.[9]

Surviving aircraft

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CASA 2.111B Cockpit at the Deutsches Museum Flugwerft Schleissheim
 
CASA 2.111B at the Technik Museum Sinsheim

Specifications (2.111B)

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General characteristics

  • Crew: 5
  • Length: 16.4 m (53 ft 10 in)
  • Wingspan: 22.5 m (73 ft 10 in)
  • Height: 3.9 m (12 ft 10 in)
  • Wing area: 86.5 m2 (931 sq ft)
  • Max takeoff weight: 14,000 kg (30,865 lb)
  • Powerplant: 2 × Rolls-Royce Merlin 500-29 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engines, 1,176 kW (1,577 hp) each

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 440 km/h (270 mph, 240 kn)
  • Range: 1,950 km (1,210 mi, 1,050 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 7,800 m (25,600 ft)

Armament

  • Guns: 1 x 12.7mm Breda SAFAT & 2 x 7.92mm MG-15
  • Bombs: 8 x 250 kg or 32 x 8 kg or 28 x 10 kg

See also

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Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

References

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Notes

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  1. ^ "He 111." Deutsches Museum. Retrieved: 13 January 2007.
  2. ^ a b "Heinkel He 111."[permanent dead link‍] EADS N.V. Retrieved: 17 January 2007.
  3. ^ Cruz 2000, pp. 49–50.
  4. ^ a b Wilson, Randy. "It's a Heinkel: the Luftwaffe's workhorse Heinkel 111 bomber." Archived 2006-09-28 at the Wayback Machine The Dispatch, Volume 12, Number 4, Winter 1996. Retrieved: 25 February 2007.
  5. ^ Cruz 2000, pp. 48–49.
  6. ^ Wilson, Randy (Winter 1996). "It's a Heinkel: the Luftwaffe's workhorse Heinkel 111 bomber". The Dispatch. Vol. 12, no. 4. Archived from the original on 28 September 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2009 – via rwebs.net.
  7. ^ "Archived copy". www.flightglobal.com. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. ^ Domínguez, Ismael López (January 2016). "Guerra y armas en Ifni-Sáhara (1957-1958)" [War and arms in Ifni-Sahara] (PDF). Descubrir la Historia (in Spanish). No. 4. pp. 32–33.
  9. ^ "Two Killed in Cheyenne, Wyo. Crash of Vintage World War II Bomber." Associated Press via ''stelzriede.com, 10 July 2003. Retrieved: 12 April 2012.
  10. ^ "Aircraft". Cavanaugh Flight Museum. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  11. ^ Sullivan, Cole (1 January 2024). "Historic Addison flight museum announces closure". WFAA. Dallas, Texas. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  12. ^ "CASA 2.111H (Spanish HE-111H)". National Museum of the United States Air Force. 5 June 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Goodall, Geoffrey (26 June 2017). "HEINKEL" (PDF). Geoff Goodall's Aviation History Site. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  14. ^ "FAA REGISTRY [N11105]". Federal Aviation Administration. U.S. Department of Transportation. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  15. ^ "Heinkel He 111 H-16 (CASA 2.111 B)". Deutsches Museum. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  16. ^ "History of the aircraft Casa 2.111B". Deutsches Museum. Retrieved 19 May 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  17. ^ "Heinkel He-111". Technik Museum Sinsheim. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  18. ^ "Hangar 1 del Museo de Aeronáutica y Astronáutica". Ejército del Aire (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 18 January 2018. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  19. ^ "The Heinkel Project". Kent Battle of Britain Museum Trust. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  20. ^ "'Pedro' and replica Whirlwind for Hawkinge". PressReader. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  21. ^ "Casa C-2.111B – a large-scale object of the Museum of Military History (MHM) in Berlin-Gatow as part of the "De Aanval, May 1940" exhibition in Rotterdam". Militärhistorisches Museum Flugplatz Berlin-Gatow. Archived from the original on 8 March 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  22. ^ "[Homepage]". Flugausstellung (in German). Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  23. ^ "Casa C-2.111D BR.21 Pedro Heinkel He 111H-16". Musée Air + Espace (in French). Retrieved 20 May 2020.

Bibliography

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  • Cruz, Gonzalo Avila. "Homegrown 'Pedros': Spanish-Built Heinkel He 111s: Part One-Jumo Variants". Air Enthusiast, No. 90, November/December 2000, pp. 48–53. Stamford, UK:Key Publishing. ISSN 0143-5450.
  • Cruz, Gonzalo Avila. "Homegrown 'Pedros': Spanish-Built Heinkel He 111s: Part Two-Merlin Variants". Air Enthusiast, No. 91, January/February 2001, pp. 8–18. Stamford, UK:Key Publishing. ISSN 0143-5450.
  • Lambert, C.M. "Handling the Spanish Heinkel 111". Flight, 17 August 1956, pp. 247–248.
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