Horten brothers: Difference between revisions

'''Walter Horten''' (born 13 November 1913 in [[Bonn]]; died 9 December 1998 in [[Baden-Baden]], [[Germany]]) and '''Reimar Horten''' (born 12 March 1915 in [[Bonn]]; died 14 March 1994 in [[Villa General Belgrano]], [[Argentina]]), sometimes credited as the '''Horten Brothers''', were [[Germany|German]] aircraft pilots. andWalter enthusiasts.was Althougha theyfighter hadpilot little,on the [[Western Front (World War ifII)|Western anyFront]], formalflying traininga in[[Messerschmitt aeronauticsBf or109|Bf related109]] fields,for [[Jagdgeschwader 26]] in the Hortensfirst designedsix somemonths of [[World War II]]; he eventually became the mostunit's revolutionarytechnical aircraftofficer. ofReimar was also trained as a Messerschmitt Bf 109 pilot; however, later in August 1940, he was transferred to the 1940sglider pilot school in Braunschweig. He earned his PhD in mathematics from the University of Göttingen, includinghaving resumed his studies in 1946 with help from Ludwig Prandtl. The Hortens designed the world's first jet-powered [[flying wing]], the [[Horten Ho 229]].

Between the [[Interwar period|World Wars]], the [[Treaty of Versailles]] limited the construction of German military airplanes. In response, German military flying became semi-clandestine, taking the form of civil "clubs" where students trained on gliders under the supervision of decommissioned ex-[[World War I]] veterans. As teenagers, the Horten brothers becamewere involved in suchthese flying clubs.

This back-to-the-basics education, and an admiration of German avant-aircraft designer [[Alexander Lippisch]], led the Hortens away from the dominant design trends of the 1920s and 1930s, and toward experimenting with alternative airframes — building models and then filling their parents' house with full-sized wooden sailplanes. The first Horten glider flew in 1933, by which time both brothers were members of the [[Hitler Youth]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160304023401/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/galleries/episode-hitlers-stealth-fighter/ "Hitler's Stealth Fighter"], Michael Jorgensen. National Geographic. Retrieved February 25, 2016.</ref>

[[File:Horten H.IV.jpg|thumb|left|[[Horten H.IV|Horten Ho IV]] flying wing sailplane recumbent glider at the [[Deutsches Museum Flugwerft Schleissheim|Deutsches Museum]]]]

In 1937, the Hortens began using motorized airplanes, with the debut of the twin-engined [[Pusher configuration|pusher]]-prop airplane H.VII (an earlier glider had a mule engine{{Clarify|reason=what is a "mule engine"?|date=August 2024}}). The Luftwaffe, however, did not actually use many of the Hortens' designs until 1942, but gave enthusiastic support to a twin-[[turbojet]]-powered [[fighter aircraft|fighter]]/bomber design, designated under wartimeLuftwaffe protocols as the [[Horten Ho 229|Horten H.IX]].<ref>[http://www.century-of-flight.net/new%20site/frames/horten%20frame.htm which won the 1000x1000x1000 contest, flying at 1000 km/ h with 1000 kg bombs with a 1000 km range. "German flying wings during World War Two"], E.T. Woolridge. Century of flight. Retrieved March 16, 2010.</ref> For their completion of the three Ho 229 prototypes (V1, V2, V3), the Horten brothers were awarded 500,000 ReichmarksReichsmark (approximately US$2–3 million in 2021 terms).<ref name=UI>[http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/episode/hitler-s-stealth-fighter-3942/facts "Under the radar inventions"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090622043120/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/episode/hitler-s-stealth-fighter-3942/facts |date=2009-06-22 }}, [[National Geographic Channel|National Geographic]]. Retrieved March 16, 2010.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Historical Currency Converter|url=https://www.historicalstatistics.org/Currencyconverter.html|access-date=2021-08-14|website=www.historicalstatistics.org}}</ref>

[[File:Horten H.IX line drawing.svg|thumb|right|200px|The [[Horten Ho 229]], the world's first jet-powered flying wing]]

Although the turbojet-equipped Ho 229 V2 nearly reached a then-astonishing {{convertcvt|800|km/h|abbr=on}} in trials, the production of the third prototype ''V3'' was given over to the coachbuilder [[Gothaer Waggonfabrik]], subsequently called Gotha Go 229. The Go 229 was captured by the [[U.S. Army]] at the end of World War 2, in whichand the completed butnearly unflowncomplete ''V3'' third prototype aircraft was shipped to the US to be studied. It is presently housedstored at the [[Smithsonian Institution]] in [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref name=TB>[http://aerostories.free.fr/constructeurs/horten/page2.html "Two brothers, one wing"], Philippe Ballarini. Aerostories. Retrieved March 16, 2010.</ref> The Drone [[Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel]] retakes the basic structure of Ho-IX{{cn}}.

The Ho 229 had potential, but it was simply developed too late to see service. The Horten brothers also worked on the [[Horten H.XVIII]], an intercontinental bomber that was part of the ''[[Amerikabomber]]'' project, and a prototype for a smaller version was ordered for the 1000 x 1000 x 1000 contest, for a bomber capable of flying at {{cvt|1000|km/h}} with {{cvt|1000|kg}} bombs with a {{cvt|1000|km}} range.

Among other advanced Horten designs of the 1940s was the supersonic delta-wing H.X, designed as a hybrid turbojet/rocket fighter with a top speed of Mach 1.4, but testedit was only tested in glider form (as the Horten H.XIII).

As the war ended, Reimar Horten emigrated to [[Argentina]] after failed negotiations with the United Kingdom and China,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=MSa7B9oovacC&pg=PA216&dq=reimar+horten,%2C+argentina&cdpg=7#v=onepage&q=reimar%20horten%2C%20argentina&f=falsePA216 "Revisiting the National Socialist legacy"], Oliver Rathkolb. Aldine Transaction, 2004. {{ISBN|0-7658-0596-0}}, {{ISBN|978-0-7658-0596-6}}. Retrieved March 16, 2010.</ref> where he continued designing and building gliders, including one experimental supersonic delta-wing aircraft and the four-engined flying wing [[DINFIAFMA IAI.Ae 38 Naranjero]], intended to carry oranges from producers to Buenos Aires. Walter remained in Germany after the war and became an officer in the post-war German Air Force. Reimar died on his ranch in Argentina in 1994, while Walter died in Germany in 1998.

In the late 1940s, the personnel of [[Project Sign]], the [[U.S. Air Force]]'s [[flying saucer]] investigation, seriously considered the possibility that UFOs might have been secret aircraft manufactured by the [[U.S.S.R.]] based on the Hortens' designs.<ref>{{cite book |first=Michael D. |last=Swords |chapter=UFOs, the Military, and the Early Cold War |pages=[https://archive.org/details/ufosabductions00davi/page/82 82–122] |title=UFOs and Abductions: Challenging the Borders of Knowledge |editor-first=David M. |editor-last=Jacobs |publisher=University Press of Kansas |year=2000 |location=Lawrence |isbn=0-7006-1032-4 |chapter-url-access=registration |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/ufosabductions00davi/page/82 }}</ref>

==See also==Post-war====

*[[AmerikabomberHorten Ho 33]]

*[[Northrop YBPUL-3510]]

*[[DINFIAFMA IAI.Ae 38|I.Ae. 38 Naranjero]]

[[Category:AviationGerman aviation pioneers]]

[[Category:SiblingMilitary duospersonnel from Bonn]]

[[Category:People20th-century fromGerman Bonninventors]]