Fieseler Fi 156

Storch in flight at Flying Legends (July 2012)

Source

The **Fieseler Fi 156 *Storch*** (English: *Stork*) was a small German liaison aircraft built by Fieseler before and during World War II. Production continued in other countries into the 1950s for the private market. It remains famous for its excellent STOL performance and low stall speed of 31 mph (50 km/h); French-built later variants often appear at air shows.

## Design and development

### Conception and production

In 1935, the RLM (*Reichsluftfahrtministerium*, Reich Aviation Ministry) invited several aviation companies to submit design proposals that would compete for the production contract for a new *Luftwaffe* aircraft design suitable for liaison, army co-operation (today called forward air control), and medical evacuation. This resulted in the Messerschmitt Bf 163 and Siebel Si 201 competing against the Fieseler firm's entry. Conceived by chief designer Reinhold Mewes and technical director Erich Bachem, Fieseler's design had a far better short take off and landing ("STOL") performance. A fixed slat ran along the entire length of the leading edge of the long wings, while a hinged and slotted set of control surfaces ran along the entire length of trailing edge. This was inspired by earlier 1930s Junkers *Doppelflügel*, "double-wing" aircraft wing control surface design concepts. For the Fi 156, this setup along each wing panel's trailing edge was split nearly 50/50 between the inboard-located flaps and outboard-located ailerons, which, in turn, included trim tab devices over half of each aileron's trailing edge length.

A design feature rare for land-based aircraft enabled the wings on the *Storch* to be folded back along the fuselage in a manner similar to the wings of the Royal Navy's Fairey Swordfish torpedo bomber. This allowed the aircraft to be carried on a trailer or even towed slowly behind a vehicle. The primary hinge for the folding wing was located in the wing root, where the rear wing spar met the cabin. The long legs of the main landing gear contained oil-and-spring shock absorbers that had a travel of 40 cm (15-3/4 inches), allowing the aircraft to land on comparatively rough and uneven surfaces; this was combined with a "pre-travel" distance of 20 cm, before the oleos began damping the landing gear shock. In flight, the main landing gear legs hung down, giving the aircraft the appearance of a long-legged, big-winged bird, hence its nickname, *Storch*. With its very low landing speed, the *Storch* often appeared to land vertically, or even backwards in strong winds from directly ahead.

Starting with the C-2 variant, the Fi 156 was fitted with a raised, fully-glazed position for a flexible rear-firing MG 15 7.92mm machine gun for self-defense.

***Further information can be found on the Wikipedia entry***

## Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

* Aero L-60 Brigadýr
* Dornier Do 27
* Helio Courier-postwar (1949) American light STOL aircraft
* Henschel Hs 126
* Ikarus Kurir
* Kobeseiko Te-Go
* Kokusai Ki-76 "Stella"
* Repülőgépgyár Levente II
* Meridionali Ro.63
* Messerschmitt Bf 163
* Miles Messenger
* Piper L-4
* Polikarpov Po-2
* Ryan YO-51 Dragonfly
* Siebel Si 201
* Vultee L-1A Vigilant
* Westland Lysander

## Notes

1. ↑ The Carlson Criquet, Pazmany PL-9 Stork, RagWing RW19 Stork, Slepcev Storch and Criquet Storch are three-quarter scale copies, with all except the Criquet Storch intended for homebuilders

## Sources

1. ↑ http://www.flugzeuginfo.net/acdata\_php/acdata\_fi156\_en.php
2. ↑ Sengfelder, Günther (1993). *German Aircraft Landing Gear*. Atglen, PA USA: Schiffer Publishing. p. 84. ISBN 0-88740-470-7. "(Photo caption) The long shock absorber leg of the Fi 156 with its streamlined fairing. 200 mm of idle stroke was available in addition to the 400 mm stroke of the shock absorber."
3. ↑ Fieseler Fi 156 - Overview.