Junkers Ju-87G-2 Stuka

From The Air Combat Wiki

Contents 1 Fighter Ace Screenshots 2 Fighter Ace Ratings 3 Fighter Ace Performance 4 Historical Statistics 5 Strengths 6 Weaknesses 7 History 8 Sources 9 See Also

Fighter Ace Screenshots

Screenshot by JG51 Nevermiss	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ
Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ

Fighter Ace Ratings

Durability: 6

Speed: 4

Maneuverability: 6

Firepower: 5

Climb Rate: 1

Ground Attack: 4

Fighter Ace Performance

Top Speeds						Climb Rates
	Sea Level	4921' 1500m	9843' 3000m	19685' 6000m	Best Speed	Best IAS	to 1000m	to 3000m	to 6000m
mph	221	236	242	232	249@ 13123'	146 mph	3:01	8:34	15:49
kph	356	379	389	374	400@ 4000m	235 kph

Historical Statistics

Service Date: February 1943

Primary Guns: 1x MG17 7.92mm machine gun with 900 rpg in wing

Secondary Guns: 2x Bord Kannon 3.7 cm cannon with 16 rpg under wings

Defensive Guns: 2x MG81Z 7.92mm machine guns with 1000 rpg in dorsal position

Ordnance: 1x 551 lb (250 kg) or 1x 1103 lb (500 kg) bomb under fuselage.

Engine(s): 1x Junkers Jumo 211 J-2 in-line rated for 1,400 hp at sea level

Int Fuel Capacity: 1,236 lbs (560 kg)

Ext Fuel Capacity: none

Maximum Speeds: 248 mph (399 kph) at 12,782 ft (3,896 m)

Ceiling: 23,905 ft (7,286 m)

Loaded Weight: 12,880 lbs (5,842 kg)

Wing Area: 362.6 sq ft (33.7 sq m)

Wing Loading: 35.5 lbs/sq ft (173.4 kg/sq m)

Strengths

Anti-Tank Guns: Just two hits from its 37mm cannon can take out any tank in the game.

Weaknesses

Speed: With an unloaded top speed of only 255 mph at altitude, the Stuka needs skies clear of enemy fighters to make it to the target and back.

History

Facing ever-increasing numbers of Russian tanks, the RLM considered using airborne, large bore, anti-tank cannons. One of the planes considered for use in this role was the Ju-87 and so a production D-3 was fitted with two 600 lb., 37mm Bk-37 cannons in streamlined pods under the wings. Equipped with a pair of 6-round clips held in trays on each side of the weapon, the 3 lb. shells used either Wolfram Core armor-piercing rounds or blunt-nosed High-Explosive shells for soft targets. To compensate for the increased weight of the plane without bombs, one of the wing machine guns was removed with the other being retained for aiming purposes.

Tests were successful and production began by converting finished D-3s to this role, the result being dubbed the Ju-87G-1.

While the G-1 was a conversion, the G-2 was made on the production line using the basic D-5 airframe and extended wings. The major difference, other than the wing, was that the wing bulge and fairing for the removed wing machine gun were themselves removed for a slight reduction in drag.

By the end of 42 the G-1 Panzerjäger became operational. The first unit (1./St.G.2 under Rudel) was extremely successful, and after Oct 43 a Ju 87 G-Staffel was added to each of the newly formed Schlachtgeschwader. Rudel himself was eventually credited with 519 tank kills while flying the G-1. However, since the spring of 1943, the decimated and overworked Schlachtgeschwader were encountering ever-increasing Soviet fighter opposition which forced them to restrict themselves largely to nocturnal operations or areas over which the Luftwaffe still retained air superiority. Consequently for daytime operations the Fw 190 F was replacing the Stukas, the Ju 87s being transformed to the Nachtschlachtgruppen, and by the autumn of 1944 only one Gruppe, Rudel’s III/SG 2, was still on daylight operations with Ju 87 Ds and Gs.

Sources

Filley, Brian; Ju-87 Stuka In Action; Squadron/Signal Publications, Carrollton, TX; 1986.

Green, William; Warplanes of the Third Reich; Doubleday and Company, Garden City, NY; 1970.

See Also

Fighter Ace Planes Inventory

Junkers Flugzeug und Motorwerke, A.G.

Aircraft Manufacturers During World War II