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Henschel of the Eastern Front

History of the Henschel

The last biplane to serve in the German air force, the Henschel Hs. 123 was also the Luftwaffe's first dive bomber.  Appearing in 1935, between the two world wars, the Henschel was actually out of date when World War II broke out.  Even so, it saw extensive action during the early months of the war.  After several prototypes, and the loss of two due to wing structural problems, the Hs. 123A-1 became the first production series and came with a powerful BMW 132 radial engine.  The Hs. 123A-1 was delivered to units beginning in the middle of 1936.  The Hs. 123 was soon put to the test in December of 1936 when five aircraft were sent to Spain as part of the Condor Legion.  The Henschel began flying missions in early 1937 and it was quickly discovered that the aircraft excelled in the ground support role, working in cooperation with land forces instead of the dive bomber role it was designed for.  The appearance of the Ju. 87 Stuka began to close out the career of the Hs. 123.  Production ceased in 1938 despite the intention to produce the 123B and 123C.  At the outbreak of World War II, all Hs. 123s were relegated to training or secondary roles except for one that remained in front line action.  The first ground attack of World War II was carried out by the Hs. 123 on September 1, 1939 in Poland.  The Hs. 123 remained in service, in a tactical support role, up to the conclusion of the French campaign and were used on increasingly rare occasions up to the summer of 1944.  Here's a chart of the Hs123s characteristics: