He 112 B-0

He 112 B-0

Fw 190 A-1

He 112 B-0

Fw 190 A-1

Germany

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.3	2.0	2.3

Class:

Fighter

Research:7 900

Purchase:10 000

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Description

The He 112 B-0 is a Rank I German fighter with a battle rating of 2.3 (AB/SB) and 2.0 (RB). It was in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.29.

The He 112 B-0 representing the most advanced He 112 variant in game (after He 112 V-5 and cannon-armed He 112 A-0). Given all advantages and disadvantages, He 112 B-0 is best played as a universal fighter. If encountering highly agile biplanes, use the He 112's speed to outrun them. If encountering fast, but less agile monoplanes, use agility to out turn them. And if faced with bombers, nothing shall hold the He 112 back, as the firepower can finish any bomber quickly. That said, He 112 B-0 can be a quite enjoyable fighter to play, and will serve as a trainer for its successor in the German research tree – the Bf 109 B-1/L, the first version of the legendary Bf 109 fighter.

As jack of all trades. It is reasonably fast for a rank one aircraft, while not faster than the Russian LaGG-3 and Yak fighters, or the American Buffalos and Hawks – all of them common adversaries of the B-0. It is also quite agile for a monoplane, but will always be out-turned by biplanes or light Japanese fighters such as the A5M4 or Ki-27. Its climb rate is not exactly stellar, but He 112 B-0 can handle surprisingly high speeds – a red line of 690 kph is not bad for rank I fighter. While mediocre in maneuverability and performance, the strongest trait of this plane is clearly the armament, which is the same as on the Bf 109 E-3 fighter.

General info

Flight Performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 2,800 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
478	466	8,000	20.4	20.9	9.5	11.0	250
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 2,800 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
523	502	8,000	17.7	19.0	19.9	13.8	250

Details

Features
Combat flap	Take-off flap	Landing flap	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flap (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
650	450	???	~23	~23

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 298	< 320	< 360	> 250

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
1,900 m	647 hp	?,??? hp

Survivability and armour

• No armour plating
• No armour glazing
• Critical components located at front of aircraft (fuel, pilot, engine, controls)
• More fuel tanks located in wings near fuselage

Armaments

Offensive armament

The He 112 B-0 is armed with:

• 2 x 20 mm MG FF cannon (60 rpg = 120 total)
• 2 x 7.92 mm MG 17 machine gun (500 rpg = 1000 total)

The two machine guns with one on each side of the forward fuselage. The two 20 mm cannons are mounted in the wings.

Usage in the battles

The offensive weapons are equal to the Bf 109E-3 with one exception: The nose mounted machine guns have double the ammo. While this seems to be a drawback for the He 112, it really is not. With 500 rounds per gun the Heinkel will not run out of ammo any time soon and their effectiveness against Battle of Britain aircraft is limited.

The MG 17s major advantage comes in handy for adjusting shots on long range. The 7.92 mm bullet has a better bullet ballistics than the 20 mm MG FF, but they can still be used for predicting the bullet drop of the 20 mm cannon shells. Keep in mind that the MG 17s successor, the 13 mm MG 131, has the same ballistics as the MG 17. A decision made in real life to allow pilots to immediately use the new MG without having to adjust for a change bullet behaviour.

On paper, the He 112 B-0 appears to be quite well armed, having two machine guns and two MG FF cannons. However, the cannons are quite underwhelming, especially with the air targets belt. Many of the belts rounds seem to explode on the surface of enemy aircraft, damaging external features such as control surfaces, but doing very little internal damage. Sometimes, multiple hits can be placed on an aircraft with little or no effect. It is best to aim for flaps, particularly ailerons and elevators. This means that if an aircraft can't be knocked out of the sky, it can be forced to crash due to loss of control.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Not controllable	Not controllable	Not controllable	Separate	Not ontrollable	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage Repair, Radiator		Offensive 7 mm
II	Compressor	Airframe	New 7 mm MGs
III	Wing Repair, Engine		Offensive 20 mm
IV	Engine Injection	Cover	New 20 mm Cannons

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good firepower
• Good speed
• Good stability
• Small size
• Plenty of machine gun ammo, decent back-up after cannon ammunition runs out
• Quite maneuverable
• Decent roll rate
• Has WEP unlike previous He 112s

Cons:

• Mediocre sustained turn rate
• Low cannon ammunition count
• MG FF cannons don't provide the punch as expected of the calibre
• Ineffective against large bombers
• No armour or protection whatsoever
• Ineffective at ground attack
• Does not contend well against Spitfires and Hurricanes, which are common at the rank
• Poor handling at high speeds

History

In 1934, Heinkel Flugzeugwerke company started work on a fighter to participate in the competition created by German Reichsluftministerium (RLM) in order to find a modern fighter aircraft for future needs. Largest portion of inspiration was drawn from the Heinkel He-70 “Blitz”, a passenger and postal plane. This plane designed by the Günther brothers and introduced in 1933 was quite modern for its time, as it featured an all-metal monocoque fuselage, retractable landing gear and elliptical wings with a reversed gull wing shape.

The He-70 Blitz could reach speeds up to 360 kph (224 mph) and indeed the name meas “Lightning” in German, so it was close to the minimum speed demanded by RLM on it’s own. This made the He 70 a great basis for a new fighter, and designers thus proceeded with modifying the He 70. The resulting design, called the He 112, was basically a down-scaled He 70, as it shared the all-metal construction, inverted gull wings and retractable landing gear. The first prototype, fitted with a British Rolls-Royce Kestrel Mk.IIS inline engine and designated He 112 V1, was completed in September 1935, followed by the He 112 V-2 powered by a Jumo 210C engine and incorporating some structural changes such as clipped wings and a three-bladed propeller, and finally by the He 112 V3, featuring a fully enclosed cockpit.

After the aircraft of Arado and Focke-Wulf were disqualified from the contest due to unsatisfactory performance, the competition had to be settled between the He 112 and Messerschmitt's Bf 109, designed by Willy Messerschmitt. Unfortunately for Heinkel, the Bf 109 emerged victorious. The He 112 was more agile, but the Bf 109 was faster, had a better roll rate, and was cheaper and easier to manufacture. However, the development of the He 112 continued despite this defeat, and the plane was offered for export. Prototypes and small-scale production models were further developed up until its final and most advanced variant, the He 112 B.

The first version of the B-series and topic of this article, was designated He 112 B-0. It featured a reworked fuselage, a new design of rudder and vertical stabilizer, and a bubble canopy, which was a very modern solution for its time. It offered superb visibility compared to „greenhouse“ framed designs common in that time. The engine used was a Jumo 210C, producing 631 horsepower. Regarding armament, the He 112 B-0 was armed by two 7.92 mm MG 17 machine guns, mounted on the sides of engine cowling, and two 20 mm drum-fed MG FF cannons, housed in the wings.

First customer was the Empire of Japan, ordering of 30 He 112 B in 1938. The aircraft were however not used in combat due to their insufficient agility (compared to Japanese fighters) and ended their short career as trainers. Twelve He 112 B’s were sent to Spain, where they were used operationally in small numbers during the last weeks of the Spanish Civil War, and remained in service after the war ended. Notable usage past the Civil War in Span was from the 3rd of March 1943, when a single He 112 B managed to damage an American Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter. Spain eventually used its He 112’s up until the 1950s. The two largest operators of He 112 were Hungary and Romania – He 112 B-1/U-2 and He 112 B-2/U-2 both in their respective markings of the two countries are available in War Thunder as premium planes. Hungarian He 112’s saw limited service and probably all of them were destroyed during the Allied bombing raid in 1944, while Romanian Heinkels saw some limited air combat in the opening stages of Operation Barbarossa, where they were used for ground attack missions and ended their career as training planes.

Media

• [Vehicle Profile] Heinkel He 112 B-0 [Decal Included]

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