The Henschel Hs 129 “Fliegender Büchsenöffner” was a World War II ground-attack plane fielded by the Luftwaffe. The aircraft saw combat in North Africa and on the Eastern Front. Also used in combat by military aviation of Romania and Hungary.

General Description

• Type: Single-seat ground attack monoplane.

Wings

• Configuration: Low-wing cantilever monoplane with a centre-section integrating two engine nacelles and two tapering outer sections.
• Design:
  • Leading-edge: Straight.
  • Trailing-edge: Swept forward from roots to tips.
  • Construction: Two-spar all-metal with stressed skin covering.
  • Control Surfaces: Entire trailing-edge is hinged; outer sections function as slotted ailerons, and inner sections as slotted flaps.

Fuselage

• Structure: Triangular cross-section with the wing center-section incorporated into the base.
• Material: Nose section is spot-welded with 6-12 mm armor plate; the remainder is a light metal stressed-skin construction.
• Nose Armor Weight: 2,370 lbs (1,080 kg).

Tail Unit

• Type: Cantilever monoplane.
• Material: All-metal structure.
• Adjustment: Tailplane incidence adjustable on the ground.

Landing Gear

• Type: Retractable main gear, with non-retractable tail-wheel.
• Main Gear: Single-leg units retract hydraulically backward into engine nacelles, with a portion of the wheels slightly protruding.

Power Plant

• Engines: Two Gnome-Rhone 14M 04/05 fourteen-cylinder radial air-cooled engines.
• Propellers: Three-blade Ratier electrically-operated constant-speed airscrews.
• Protection: Lower halves of engine nacelles protected by 5 mm armor plate.
• Fuel Tanks: Self-sealing, with a total capacity of 134 Imperial gallons distributed as follows:
  • Two wing tanks: 45 Imp. gallons each.
  • Fuselage tank: 44 Imp. gallons.

Accommodation

• Pilot: Located in the armored nose, with a bullet-resistant windscreen (75 mm thick glass in a 6 mm armored frame).

Armament

• Primary Armament:
  • One 15 mm MG 151 or 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon and one 7.9 mm MG 17 machine gun on each side of the fuselage nose.
  • One 30 mm MK 101 or 103 cannon mounted under the fuselage.
• Alternative Armament:
  • Option for a battery of four 7.9 mm MG 17 machine guns or carriers for up to 770 lbs (350 kg) of bombs.

Dimensions

• Span: 44 ft 6 in (13.5 m).
• Length: 33 ft 3 in (10.1 m).
• Wing Area: 305 sq. ft. (28.3 sq. m).

Weights

• Empty Weight: 8,770 lbs (3,970 kg).
• Loaded Weight: 11,000 to 11,250 lbs (5,000 to 5,110 kg), depending on equipment.

Performance

• Maximum Speed: 265 mph (408 km/h) at 12,500 ft (3,810 m).
• Climb to 10,000 ft (3,050 m): 7 minutes.
• Service Ceiling: 29,520 ft (9,000 m).
• Range: 350 miles (560 km).