A radical project was suggested during early January 1945. It was the so
called super long range reconnaissance project "Führungsmaschine".
The Mistel concept was used here consisting of the long range destroyer
Ju 88 H-4 and a Fw 190 A-8 fighter on top of it.
The Ju 88 H-4 was a development of the H-1 long range reconnaissance aircraft
and the H-2, a destroyer aircraft that were to have been both used in the
Battle of the Bay of Biscay during 1943-44. The H-2 had much in common with
the Ju 88 G-1 as for instance the BMW 801D power plants, six MG 151 -20
cannons and external fuel tanks to give it a range of 5000 km and with a
speed of 550km/h at 6000m. In addition the aircraft carried the FuG 200
Hohentwiel radar in the nose. The aircraft was ideally suited to protect
returning U-boats. In June 1943, 20 aircraft were ordered in addition to
the prototype under construction.
On November 2. the first H-1 prototype flew and at the end of March 1944
five H-1’s flew with 3. (F)/123. Three were held in reserve. By July
only two were left. Only one H-2 was completed by Junkers in Merseburg.
The Ju 88 H-3 was to become a reconnaissance aircraft equipped with a FuG
200 radar. The aircraft never went beyond the design stage. The Mistel 3B
was to consist of Fw 190 A-6 or A-8 and a Ju 88H-4. The H-4 was to receive
a SHI 3500D warhead with a "Splittereinlage" (fragmentation liner).
130 of the Mistel 3B were ordered but there were difficulties with warhead
production. There were also problems with the long range requirements for
"Operation Eisenhammer".
The Führungsmaschine “Pathfinder” which was needed for
"Operation Eisenhammer" and other long range operations was a
further development of the Mistel 3B. The Ju 88 H-4 retained its three man
crew and the ETC 504 for two 900 l disposable fuel tanks. One MG 131 was
in the rear turret. One Telefunken FuG 240 Berlin radar was installed in
the long, bulbous nose of the aircraft. KG 200 ordered 50 of these combinations
during February of 1945. In this combination the fighter flew protection
for the long range reconnaissance aircraft, and was not used as a trigger
to explode a warhead.
The
Model
In 1/48 scale there has only been Paragon design that has devoted themselves
to this unusual project. Unfortunately this firm does not exist anymore.
Certainly there are modelers who are against displaying anything that did
not fly or at least flew only in the prototype stage. They also believe
why bother with the so called Luftwaffe 46 projects, that only reached the
blueprint stage. This argument cannot be entirely applied to the Mistel
3B project. The Fw 190 with the "Doppelreiter" wing tanks was
built and actually flew. The project was in an advanced state of completion
but was never really finished. The construction of the model was really
not very difficult since the Paragon conversion set does not contain many
parts. There are the crooked nose, two parts to lengthen the fuselage and
the third landing gear and wheel and a few parts for the cockpit.
A good basis for the conversion would be the Ju-88 G6 by Dragon. In front
and behind the wing the fuselage has to be carefully separated. Then the
two resin parts are fitted. As A reference I would recommend Classic Publications
"Mistel- German Composite Aircraft and Operations 1942-45".
The Fw 190 gets a couple of fuel tanks. Since 2006 there is a version of
this aircraft available with "Doppelreitertanks" from Dragon.
The rest was routine just like building a normal kit out of the box. The
camouflage was representative of the time. . The call letters of the Mistel
3B could not be determined, and that is why I concentrated on Fw 190 because
there a photo of the test version is available. The one with the yellow
ring on the nose.
Conclusion
The Mistels were something special, even though only a few of them were
actually built. As models they all look good. Dragon continues to issue
many of these in kit form and in 1/48 scale. It would be great if models
of actual operational Mistels would appear. This up to this point could
only be done with conversions and kit bashing.
Mistel 3B - Die Führungsmaschine ...
Model built by Christian Jakl, photos taken
by Wolfram Bradac
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
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Image 8
(click the images to
enlarge - the images are shown on a new page)
Books / References:
MISTEL - German Composite Aircraft and
Operations 1942-1945
by Robert Forsyth , Eddie J. Creek , Stephen Ransom
Classic Publications has been selling this book
titled "Mistel- German Composite Aircraft and
Operations 1942-45" for a while now. In the
288 pages you will find all the information necessary
to build an accurate model of a Mistel. Countless
original photos, projects, color profiles, technical
drawings, eyewitness accounts and background information
allow the reader always to discover something new.
I can say with certainty that this is the best book
on the Mistel ever published. The authors have assembled
a complete record of the Mistel and the reader does
get the feeling that nothing has been left out.
published by Classic Publications, ISBN: 1-90322309-1
meet the modeler
Christian Jakl
I live with my charming wife and daughter on the outskirts of Vienna. I was born in 1971 and studied to be a typographical engineer. Since childhood I have always been interested in modeling. From model ships and cars I have gradually shifted to aircraft models of WW II. with a heavy emphasis on the German Luftwaffe. My real interest however is in the creation of dioramas in 1/48 scale. I enjoy the scratch building and can let my creative energies come to the fore. I have devoted my time to thedeveloping of new techniques; to enhance model kits with added accessories and above all to try out new tools to get better results.
The learning curve is constant. I am never satisfied and am constantly trying to make models as lifelike as possible. The only problem is the time factor. There is never enough of it as you all well know. I hope you enjoy these webpages and I would like to have you critique my work in a constructive manner.
This page: GALLERY: Mistel 3B - Die Führungsmaschine
(1:48) - built by Christian Jakl
was last modified on: Oct 22, 2006
The URL of the page is: http://www.rlm.at/cont/gal08_e.htm
Translation into English by Werner
Stocker (Ft. Myers, FL USA).
Terms of use: All material within this site is protected under copyright
and may only be reproduced for personal use. You must contact the Author(s)
and/or Editor for permission to use any material on this site for any purpose
other than private use!
The
Model
christian.jakl@oeamtc.at
