Focke Wulf FW-190D-9 – the German fighter

The intensification of Allied bomber activity in mid-1941 made the German Luftwaffe interested in high-altitude fighters. The beginning of mass bombing of industrial facilities and cities in January 1942 forced the Germans to look for new fighters to fight high-flying bombers, because the available fighters did not fly that high. Experiments with the B and C versions of the FW-190 did not give the desired result. Only after the installation of the Jumo 213 engine in the FW-190 V17 aircraft, which later became the prototype of the FW-190D-0 series, gave hope for the creation of a high-altitude fighter. The rear part of the aircraft has been extended by 50 cm, the construction of the rear wheel has been strengthened, and a hermetic high-altitude cabin has been installed. It is possible to install a wing with a larger bearing area. But the FW-190D-0 version did not go into production, like the later FW-190D-1 and D-2. Only the D-9 version with the Jumo 213A engine, with the unchanged FW-190A wing and armed with two MG-131s, mounted above the engine, and two MG 151/20s, mounted in the wing root, reached series production. In August 1944, serial production of this version began and on September 7 the first serial plane of this version took off. The pilots did not like the new plane at first, but after training, they changed their minds about it and appreciated the fighter's qualities. The FW-190D-9 is recognized as the best German mass-produced fighter, but too late start of serial production meant, that these fighters had almost no impact on the course of the war.

A complex, well-designed and richly detailed model for intermediate and advanced modelers only. But with no cockpit interior, an opaque cabin canopy and retracted landing gear, and under the supervision of a more experienced colleague, this model can be assembled together perfectly even by advanced beginner modelers.