00:20This aircraft, though it was not fast, well-armed or extremely advanced, was still an important part of the German
00:26war machine in World War II.
00:29Despite being less famous than other military aircraft of the time, it's still recognizable for many as an iconic German
00:35design.
00:39This was the Henschel Hs-126, the primary short-range reconnaissance aircraft of the German army in the first years
00:45of the war.
00:47So let's see the history of this aircraft today.
00:58Reconnaissance and artillery spotter planes were used since the First World War, but the ones designed for these roles never
01:05had to be very agile or fast.
01:07Their most important features were rugged and light construction, so they could be stationed on makeshift airfields close to the
01:14front lines.
01:14But this all changed in the interwar period, as the aviation technologies started to evolve rapidly, especially during the 1930s.
01:24In 1930, the RLM asked manufacturers for new short-range reconnaissance aircraft to replace the older designs.
01:32The Heinkel company's answer for these requirements was the Hage E46 type, which made its maiden flight in late 1931.
01:40Their design was ordered into production, but in 1933, even before it entered service, the ministry already issued new specifications
01:48for its replacement.
01:50The new requirements specifically emphasized the landing and take-off performance and low-speed handling characteristics for the new designs.
01:59Heinkel offered the new Hage S-122 design as a replacement for the aging Hage E46.
02:06This was an all-metal single-engine parasol-wing two-seater aircraft, armed with one fixed and one flexible defensive
02:13machine gun, and built around the Siemens S-H-22B radial engine.
02:18However, the first flying prototype, which was finished in 1935, used the Rolls-Royce Kestrel engine, and only the following
02:25V3 and V4 prototypes used the C-1.
02:29The new aircraft started in late 1935, and though the design showed very good handling, it was barely faster than
02:36the Hage E46.
02:38The specifications actually did not ask for higher speed, but the small performance upgrade the new Hage S-122 design
02:44offered over the Heinkel model was not enough to justify a production order from the ministry.
02:49So in 1936, Hage S-122 set out to redesign their Hage S-122 into a more advanced aircraft.
02:55The first experimental model was modified from the V4 variant of the Hage S-122.
03:01This new model featured a slightly longer fuselage, redesigned wings, landing gear and a semi-enclosed cockpit, and its engine
03:08was planned to be the Brahmo 323 type.
03:11These changes made the new aircraft so different from the original design, that it received a new designation as Hage
03:17S-126.
03:18The first flying prototype of the new design, modified from the Hage S-122 V4 model was finished in late
03:241936, but because the Brahmo engines were not yet available, it used a YUMO 210 power plant.
03:31The following V2 and V3 models arrived in spring 1937, and these variants were now equipped with the Brahmo engines.
03:39They also featured a redesigned tail, and on the V3 version a redesigned landing gear as well.
03:45The flight tests of the prototypes lasted until the end of summer, and the new aircraft was found to be
03:50stable with no major problems, and it showed its ability to take off and land at very small airfields.
03:56It was found to be a rugged and easy to manufacture construction, and though it was still not a requirement,
04:02but now the new Henshell design was about 100 km an hour faster than the old Hage S-46 type,
04:08or its predecessor, the Hage S-122 model.
04:13Henshell actually started working on a small pre-production batch of Hage S-126 A0 models, while the prototypes were
04:19still in the testing phase.
04:21This pre-production batch was finished in late 1937, and several of these planes were sent to Luftwaffe units for
04:27field testing.
04:29Thanks to this early testing, the first production Hage S-126 A1 models already started to roll out from the
04:35factory in early 1938.
04:38These initial production variants differed from the prototypes, as they used the BMW 132 D engine because of the shortage
04:45of Bramow power plants, which only returned later on the following B model of the aircraft.
04:51And if we are talking about different models, let us now take a look at the variants of the type.
05:02The V1 variant was the first prototype, modified from the Hage S-122 V4 model, featuring the YUMO 210 engine.
05:10The following V2 and V3 models featured the Bramow 323 engine and redesigned tail surfaces, and the V3 model also
05:18had a redesigned landing gear.
05:21The first production models were the Hage S-126 A1 variants, built with the BMW 132 D engines, and now
05:28featuring the intended armament.
05:31The updated Hage S-126 B1 models entered production in 1939, and these finally featured the Bramow engines, which gave
05:39these variants better performance and better short-field landing and take-off abilities.
05:51The Hage S-126 was 10.9 meters long, with a wingspan of 14.5 meters.
05:58It had an empty weight of 2,030 kg, and a maximum take-off weight of 3,090 kg.
06:06The plane was powered by a single Bramow 323 radial engine, producing 850 horsepower.
06:13With this engine, it could reach a top speed of 356 km an hour, and it had a range of
06:19998 km, and a service ceiling of 8,530 meters.
06:26The light reconnaissance plane still featured an armament of one 7.92 mm forward-firing machine gun, and another flexible
06:347.92 mm defensive machine gun, used by the Reed Observer.
06:39The plane could also carry up to 150 kg of bombs.
06:56The Hage S-126 entered service with the Luftwaffe in 1938, and started to replace the old Heinkel Hage E
07:03-45 and Hage E-46 types.
07:07The new aircraft first saw action in late 1938 during the Spanish Civil War, when 6 of these planes were
07:13issued to the Condor region.
07:15The surviving planes were later transferred to the Spanish Air Force.
07:20In early 1939, Greece also ordered 16 units from the type, which were later used against the invading Italian forces.
07:28When World War II broke out, the Luftwaffe already had 275 Hage S-126 models in service.
07:35And they proved themselves during the invasion of Poland, flying day and night reconnaissance missions.
07:41Because of the weak resistance from the Polish Air Force, the type even carried out some ground attack missions as
07:46well, supporting the German troops.
07:49They also participated in the Battle of France in 1940, flying photo reconnaissance missions.
07:54But here meeting with the French and British fighters, the Hage S-126 suffered much heavier losses, as a slow
08:01and light aircraft was an easy prey for the Allied pilots.
08:05But the obsolescence of the slow, weakly armed reconnaissance planes was not a surprise to the German officials.
08:10By this time the production of the type was already coming to an end, and in the same year their
08:15successor, the Focke-Wulf FW-189 already entered service.
08:21I have already made a separate video on that type, so if you're interested in its history, check it out!
08:29Even though more advanced types entered service, the Hage S-126 remained in frontline duty, and flew missions again on
08:36the Eastern Front during the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.
08:41Here the light reconnaissance planes suffered heavy losses, many were shut down by Soviet fighters or by anti-aircraft batteries.
08:49The Hage S-126 was also used in North Africa, but only in small numbers.
08:55From 1942, the remaining and now hopelessly obsolete Hage S-126s were withdrawn from the front, and used as training
09:03aircraft and as towing vehicles for the DFS-230 gliders.
09:09The Hage S-126, though it was designed well before WWII, and became obsolete during the conflict, still stands as
09:16a great design which fulfilled its purpose and served in many different roles.
09:22Hope you guys enjoyed this video.
09:24Please leave a like, subscribe to my channel, and in the comments let me know if there's any interesting events
09:29or vehicles you'd like to see.
09:36Thanks a lot.
