The Fieseler Fi 167A-0 | Germany's unnecessary Torpedo Bomber

PenguinRed · September 24, 2024, 5:06pm

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Possibly one of the last Biplanes to be shot down in Anger during the Second World War, the Fieseler Fi 167A-0 is one of Germany’s few Torpedo bombers with only at most 14 of them being produced. After the cancellation of the Graf Zeppelin Aircraft carrier, the planes were requisitioned by the Luftwaffe and later on sold to Croatia, where it had its last stance. None have survived the war.

History

Spoiler

As the Kriegsmarine was building its first aircraft carrier, the Graf Zeppelin, the Reichsluftfahrsministerium (RLM) commissioned two Aircraft Manufacturers to build prototypes intended for Torpedo Bomber Operations, Fieseler and Arado.
The RLM demanded an all-metal biplane with a max. speed of at least 300 km/h, a 1.000km range and the possibility to be used in both a Divebomber and Torpedo Bomber role.
In the Summer of 1938, the Fieseler Design proved to be outstanding in comparison to the Arado Ar 195, which was already considered Outdated by 1937. As it became more and more clear that the Graf Zeppelin would grind to a halt, the Fi 167 became less of a priority and eventually ended up in an evaluation unit (the Erprobungsstaffel 167) for coastal trials along the Dutch Coast.

The fate of the Fieseler was eventually sealed, as construction on the Graf Zeppelin briefly resumed in 1942. At this point in time, the Fi 167 no longer fulfilled the updated requirements and was scrapped from the plans for the Carrier, being replaced with the Ju 87C’s, which itself had even less impact on the war. In early 1943, construction on the Graf Zeppelin ended for good and the RLM’s need for Torpedo Bombers as dedicated purpose-built combat aircraft faded. About 12 Fi 167A-0’s would be sent to the Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia in late 1944, where they would see usage as small transport aircraft for supplying besieged Croatian garrisions. Due to their low numbers and Allied Air superiority, they didn’t make a large impact on the war.

On 10 October 1944, Croatian fighter pilot Bozidar Bartulovic and his gunner Mate Jurkovic went on a mission near Sisak in their Fi 167. During their mission they were attacked by 5 Mustang Mk 3’s of the No. 213 Squadron RAF over the village of Martinska Ves. In this engagement Bozidar was shot in the head and his Gunner Mate was able to shoot down one Mustang before bailing out. According to British reports, this was the last time a Biplane was shot down during the War.

The remaining Fi 167´s that were not sent to Croatia ended up in Budweis, Czechoslovakia, for testing of various landing gear configurations.
Due to the large wing area and low landing speeds, landings became quite difficult for the pilots which forced a removal of the outer lower wings right next to the landing gears, essentially turning it into a Monoplane. There are some claims that the planes ended up in Romania, but photographic evidence indicates that their final deployment was, in fact, in Croatia.

No airframes are believed to have survived the war. Some sources claim that the last models were used as spare parts within the Yugoslavian Air Force.

Specifications

Spoiler