Ju 188 A-2

Ju 188 A-2

Do 217 M-1

He 177 A-5

Ju 188 A-2

Do 217 M-1

He 177 A-5

Germany

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.3	5.3	5.3

Class:

Bomber

Frontline bomber

Research:54 000

Purchase:185 000

Show in game

Description

The Ju 188 A-2 is a rank IV German bomber with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.97 "Viking Fury".

General info

Flight performance

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 6,000 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	496	478	11200	33.3	34.4	5.4	5.4	750
Upgraded	___	___		__._	__._	__._	__._

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	310	480	480	280	~11	~8

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 370	< 360	< 450	> 290

Survivability and armour

Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

Armaments

Suspended armament

The Ju 188 A-2 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• 10 x 50 kg SC50JA bombs (500 kg total)
• 6 x 250 kg SC250JA bombs (1,500 kg total)
• 6 x 250 kg SC250JA bombs + 10 x 50 kg SC50JA bombs (2,000 kg total)
• 2 x 500 kg SC500K bombs (1,000 kg total)
• 2 x 500 kg SC500K bombs + 10 x 50 kg SC50JA bombs (1,500 kg total)
• 2 x 500 kg SC500K bombs + 2 x 250 kg SC250JA bombs + 10 x 50 kg SC50JA bombs (2,000 kg total)
• 2 x 1,000 kg SC1000L2 bombs (2,000 kg total)
• 2 x 1,000 kg SC1000L2 bombs + 2 x 250 kg SC250JA bombs + 10 x 50 kg SC50JA bombs (3,000 kg total)
• 1 x 1,800 kg SC1800B bomb + 1 x 1,000 kg SC1000L2 bomb (2,800 kg total)
• 1 x 1,800 kg SC1800B bomb + 3 x 250 kg SC250JA bombs (2,550 kg total)

Defensive armament

The Ju 188 A-2 is defended by:

• 1 x 20 mm MG 151 cannon, nose turret (250 rpg)
• 1 x 20 mm MG 151 cannon, top dorsal turret (250 rpg)
• 1 x 13 mm MG 131 machine gun, lower dorsal turret (500 rpg)
• 2 x 7.92 mm MG 81 machine guns, ventral turret (500 rpg = 1,000 total)

Usage in battles

While utilising a stock version of the aircraft, choosing the option to use the 50SC x 10 payload performs best for when rushing ground troops, of course, when possible, drop them more on one target. As son as you have better payload options, you also have the opportunity to go for bases.

At the beginning of the match, you should always go into a shallow dive to maximise your speed, and by that the chance to get to your target before anybody else, and to cover the underside of the plane by simply flying close to the ground. Your 20 mm cannon on top of the the canopy is deadly, and as soon as you have the universal belt unlocked, you can shoot down multiple enemy fighters before going down yourself. However, try to avoid headons because of your glass cockpit and mind that your 20mm can't fire directly behind the plane because the rudder blocks it.

If you have all loadouts unlocked, the one with the 2x1000kg, 2x250kg and 10x50kg is the best for destroying bases. The 2x250kg drop at the same time from your wingtips and with one 1000kg bomb, they are enough to destroy one base. The other 11 bombs are enough for a second base. This is also the loadout with the most payload so you should use it for AFs as well. Concerning ground targets, you can use the loadout you prefer, just make sure you have 3 bomb drops before you get to the 50kg bombs in the bomb bay.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Not auto controlled	Separate	Not controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Turret 7 mm		ETC 250/IV
II		Compressor	Airframe	New 7 mm MGs (turret)	Turret 20 mm	ETC 500/II
III	Wings repair	Engine		Turret 13 mm		ETC 1000/I
IV		Engine injection	Cover	New 13 mm MGs (turret)	New 20 mm cannons (turret)	ETC 1800

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Fast, faster than the Do 217 series
• Maneuverable, even better with empty payload when returning to base
• Versatile payload options
• Defensive armament is an upgrade from the Do 217 series
• Durable, can survive hits that might down other bombers of similar size
• 3000 kgs of maximum payload tonnage
• Rear gunners are protected by several armor platings
• Top 20mm turret has a full circle traverse
• Powerful engines

Cons:

• Doesn't have the ability to dive bomb accurately
• Doesn't have airbrake
• No armor from the front
• Abysmal stock payload

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.

Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke Aktiengesellschaft)
Fighters	Ju 88 C-6 · Ju 388 J
Strike Aircraft
Ju 87	Ju 87 G-1 · Ju 87 G-2
Bombers	Ju 88 A-1 · Ju 88 A-4 · Ju 188 A-2 · Ju 288 C
Ju 87	Ju 87 B-2 · Ju 87 D-3 · Ju 87 D-5 · Ju 87 R-2 · Ju 87 R-2 Libya
Export	▄Ju 87 D-3 · ▄Ju 87 R-2 · ▄Ju 88 A-4