Hermann W. Goering was born in Rosenheim,
a small town near Munich, in 1893. He received an appointment to a
military school, and became a flyer during WW I. He attained an
excellent combat and leadership record, and was the last individual
to command the famed Richthofen's Flying Circus. Following the War he
studied history, married, but was drifting aimlessly until he met
Adolf Hitler. When Hitler came to power Goering was made economic
czar, and authorized to implement a four year plan which would
prepare the German economy for war. Goering's greatest personal
interest was in the Luftwaffe, and ultimately Field Marshal Goering
was made Chief of the Luftwaffe. The Luftwaffe performed admirably
in the blitzkrieg attacks on Poland and the Benelux countries.
However, Goering feared Britain's entry into the War, and personally
worked diplomatic channels to keep Britain out of the conflict. The
Luftwaffe’s first defeat was in the Battle of Britain, where it was
unable to rest control of the sky from the Royal Air Force. As the
War progressed, Goering supported Hitler, even though it appears he
felt that the War was lost. In 1943 and 1944 Germany was devastated
by massive Allied bombing attacks. Not enough resources were
committed to the defense of Germany's cities, as Hitler became
preoccupied with the struggle against the Soviet Union, and his
desire to develop terror weapons to defeat Britain. Despite its
strategic errors, the Luftwaffe developed some of the most advanced
aircraft of the War including the Me-262 jet and the tail-less,
rocket-powered Me-163 Comet, probably the most technically advanced
aircraft of the War. Out of necessity, German aircraft designers
compressed decades of development time into years or often months.
Although it did not play a significant role in combat, the 163
represented a radical departure from conventional aircraft design.
With a length of only 19 feet, the diminutive 163 was powered by a
liquid fuel rocket engine. The production models of the Comet were
fueled with a mixture of C-Stoff (a mixture of 57% methyl alcohol,
13% hydrazine hydrate, and 13% water) and T-Stoff which was 80%
hydrogen peroxide. Almost 5000 pounds of fuel were carried, but the
Comet’s engine had a burn time of only a few minutes. Many
technological breakthroughs were required for the Comet program to
succeed. Because space and weight were so critical, use of a
conventional landing gear was not possible. Instead the 163 utilized
a simple dolly consisting of an axle and two wheels which was
jettisoned upon takeoff. For landing the 163 utilized a sturdy
retractable skid with hydraulic shock absorbers. The Comet was also
not particularly effective in combat despite its 596-MPH top speed
and twin canon. The aircraft had only about 150 seconds of power
once it reached altitude. Thereafter it became a very fast glider.
Allied pilots learned to exploit the 163’s vulnerability during
landing. Rudolf Opitz, the Chief Test Pilot on the 163, was a
central figure in the development and testing of the 163. Rudy met
Herman Goering once at a special air show for high ranking military
and government officials. The few remaining 163s to survive the War
are due to the efforts of Rudy to preserve this unique aircraft for
aviation posterity.
Overall Print Size: 16" x 11 1/2"
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Collector Sized Lithograph:
$40
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Signature Series
Lithograph: $125
Co-signed by RUDY
OPTIZ Chief Test Pilot of the Me-163.
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