![Henschel & Sohn 1920](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Henschel_%26_Sohn_1920.JPG)
Henschel & Son (german: Henschel und Sohn) was a German company, located in
Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment, including
locomotives,
truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...
s,
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
es and
trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...
es, and
armoured fighting vehicle
An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, ...
s and
weapon
A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, ...
s.
Georg Christian Carl Henschel founded the factory in 1810 at Kassel. His son Carl Anton Henschel founded another factory in 1837. In 1848, the company began manufacturing locomotives. The factory became the largest locomotive manufacturer in Germany by the 20th century. Henschel built 10 articulated steam trucks, using
Doble steam designs, for
Deutsche Reichsbahn
The ''Deutsche Reichsbahn'', also known as the German National Railway, the German State Railway, German Reich Railway, and the German Imperial Railway, was the German national railway system created after the end of World War I from the regiona ...
railways as delivery trucks. Several cars were built as well, one of which became
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...
's staff car. In 1935 Henschel was able to upgrade its various steam locomotives to a high-speed
Streamliner type with a maximum speeds of up to by the addition of a removable shell over the old steam locomotive. In 1918, Henschel began the production of gearboxes at the Kassel plant. In January 1925, Henschel & Son began building trucks and buses.
World War II
![German locomotive plate, German Museum of Technology, Berlin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/German_locomotive_plate%2C_German_Museum_of_Technology%2C_Berlin.jpg)
Early in 1935, Henschel began manufacturing
Panzer I
The Panzer I was a light tank produced in Nazi Germany in the 1930s. Its name is short for ( German for " armored fighting vehicle mark I"), abbreviated as . The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was '' Sd.Kfz. 10 ...
tank
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engi ...
s. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, the firm was responsible for license production of the
Dornier Do 17
The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a '' Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing a ...
Z medium bomber, and in 1939–1940 it began large-scale production of the
Panzer III
The ''Panzerkampfwagen III'', commonly known as the Panzer III, was a medium tank developed in the 1930s by Germany, and was used extensively in World War II. The official German ordnance designation was Sd.Kfz. 141. It was intended to fight ot ...
. Henschel was the sole manufacturer of the
Tiger I
The Tiger I () was a German heavy tank of World War II that operated beginning in 1942 in Africa and in the Soviet Union, usually in independent heavy tank battalions. It gave the German Army its first armoured fighting vehicle that mounted ...
, and alongside Porsche the
Tiger II
The Tiger II is a German heavy tank of the Second World War. The final official German designation was ''Panzerkampfwagen'' Tiger ''Ausf''. B,''Panzerkampfwagen'' – abbr: ''Pz.'' or ''Pz.Kfw.'' (English: " armoured fighting vehicle"), ''Ausf.' ...
. In 1945, the company had 8,000 workers working in two shifts each of 12 hours, and
forced labour was used extensively. The company's factories, which also manufactured
narrow-gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
locomotives, were among the most important Allied bomber targets and were nearly completely destroyed.
Aviation
Henschel Flugzeugwerke aircraft and missiles included:
*
Henschel Hs 117
The Henschel Hs 117 ''Schmetterling'' (German for ''Butterfly'') was a radio-guided German surface-to-air missile project developed during World War II. There was also an air-to-air version, the Hs 117H.
The operators used a telescopic sight and ...
''Schmetterling'' (Butterfly),
rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
-engined surface-to-air missile
*
Henschel Hs 121
The Henschel Hs 121 was the first aircraft built by the German Henschel company. It was a high-wing monoplane with an inline engine, fixed undercarriage and single, open cockpit, designed as an advanced trainer. Only one aircraft was produced, i ...
, fighter and trainer (prototype)
*
Henschel Hs 122,
army co-operation
In military tactics, close air support (CAS) is defined as air action such as air strikes by fixed or rotary-winged aircraft against hostile targets near friendly forces and require detailed integration of each air mission with fire and movement ...
/reconnaissance
*
Henschel Hs 123
The Henschel Hs 123 was a single-seat biplane dive bomber and close-support attack aircraft flown by the German ''Luftwaffe'' during the Spanish Civil War and the early to midpoint of World War II. It proved to be robust, durable and effective e ...
, ground-attack (biplane)
*
Henschel Hs 124, heavy fighter and bomber (prototype)
*
Henschel Hs 125
The Henschel Hs 125 was a German advanced training aircraft prototype featuring a single engine and low wing, designed by Henschel & Son and tested by the Luftwaffe
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehr ...
, fighter and trainer (prototype)
*
Henschel Hs 126
The Henschel Hs 126 was a German two-seat reconnaissance and observation aircraft of World War II that was derived from the Henschel Hs 122. The pilot was seated in a protected cockpit under the parasol wing and the gunner in an open rear cockp ...
, reconnaissance
*
Henschel Hs 127, fast medium bomber (''Schnellbomber'' prototype)
*
Henschel Hs 128, high-altitude reconnaissance and bomber (prototypes)
*
Henschel Hs 129
The Henschel Hs 129 was a World War II ground-attack aircraft fielded by the German ''Luftwaffe''. The aircraft saw combat in Tunisia and on the Eastern Front.
A key requirement of the original specification was that the aircraft be powered b ...
, ground-attack
*
Henschel Hs 130, high altitude reconnaissance and bomber (prototypes)
*
Henschel Hs 132,
jet-engine
A jet engine is a type of reaction engine discharging a fast-moving jet (fluid), jet of heated gas (usually air) that generates thrust by jet propulsion. While this broad definition can include Rocket engine, rocket, Pump-jet, water jet, and ...
d dive bomber (prototype)
*
Henschel Hs 135
Henschel & Son (german: Henschel und Sohn) was a German company, located in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment, including locomotives, trucks, buses and trolleybuses, and armoured fighting vehicl ...
,
delta wing
*
Henschel Hs 293,
rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...
-boosted
glide bomb
A glide bomb or stand-off bomb is a standoff weapon with flight control surfaces to give it a flatter, gliding flight path than that of a conventional bomb without such surfaces. This allows it to be released at a distance from the target r ...
*
Henschel Hs 294
The Henschel Hs 294 was a guided Anti-surface warfare, air-to-sea missile developed by Henschel & Son, Henschel Flugzeug-Werke AG in Nazi Germany, Germany during World War II.
Design
The Hs 294 was a further development of the Henschel Hs 293, b ...
, rocket-powered anti-shipping glide bomb
*
Henschel Hs 295
*
Henschel Hs 296
*
Henschel Hs 297
The Henschel Hs 297 Föhn or 7.3 cm Raketen Sprenggranate was a small German surface-to-air rocket of the Second World War. The associated multiple rocket launcher was known as the 7.3 cm Föhn-Gerät.
Design
The Henschel Hs 297 Föhn (The Fo ...
''Föhn'', 73mm anti-aircraft rocket-launcher
*
Henschel Hs 298, rocket-powered
air-to-air missile
*
Henschel Hs P.75
Henschel & Son (german: Henschel und Sohn) was a German company, located in Kassel, best known during the 20th century as a maker of transportation equipment, including locomotives, trucks, buses and trolleybuses, and armoured fighting vehicle ...
, a 1941 design with slightly swept-back wings placed at the rear, swept-back
canards at the front, and double
pusher propellers at the rear.
*
Henschel Hs P.87, a
Schnellbomber
A ''Schnellbomber'' (German; literally "fast bomber") is a bomber that relies upon speed to avoid enemy fighters, rather than relying on defensive armament and armor.
Concept
The concept developed in the 1930s when it was believed that a ver ...
design similar to the Hs P.75, except that the canards in the front are straight and the wing is curved.
*
Henschel 'Zitterrochen' (Torpedofish),
air-to-surface missile (pre-production only)
Post-war business
![Henschel & Son 1951 engine](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Henschel_%26_Son_1951_engine.JPG)
Manufacturing began again in 1948. In 1964, the company took over Rheinische Stahlwerke and became Rheinstahl Henschel AG (
Hanomag
Hanomag (Hannoversche Maschinenbau AG, ) was a German producer of steam locomotives, tractors, trucks and military vehicles in Hanover. Hanomag first achieved international fame by delivering numerous steam locomotives to Finland, Romania and ...
). The truck production of Henschel was merged with that of Hanomag that spun off to form Hanomag-Henschel in 1969, this later went to Daimler-Benz, which discontinued the brand name Hanomag-Henschel in 1974. The production was switched to commercial vehicle axles, in this area it is the largest factory in Europe. In 1976
Thyssen-Henschel
Thyssen Henschel was a German industrial firm and defense contractor.
One part of the company '' Henschel Wehrtechnik'' was acquired by Rheinmetall in 1999 and was integrated into ''Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH'' in 2000.
Products
* TAM medium ...
, and 1990 ABB Henschel AG. In 1996, the company became
ABB Daimler Benz Transportation Adtranz. The company was subsequently acquired by
Bombardier (Canada) around 2002. The Kassel facility still exists and is one of the world's largest manufacturers of locomotives (Henschel Antriebstechnik).
Locomotives
Private, mining and industry railways
;Generation 1
*
Henschel DH 110
*
Henschel DH 200
*
Henschel DH 360
*
Henschel DH 550
;Generation 2
*
Henschel DH 240
*
Henschel DH 360
*
Henschel DH 390
*
Henschel DH 440
*
Henschel DH 630
*
Henschel DH 875
*
Henschel DHG 630
*
Henschel DH 500
*
Henschel DH 500
;Generation 3
*
Henschel DH 120 B
*
Henschel DH 180 B
*
Henschel DH 240 B
*
Henschel DH 360 B
*
Henschel DH 500 B
*
Henschel DH 120 B
*
Henschel DH 120 B
*
Henschel DH 120 B
*
Henschel DH 120 B
*
Henschel DH 360 Ca
*
Henschel DH 440 Ca
*
Henschel DH 500 Ca
*
Henschel DH 600 Ca
*
Henschel DH 700 Ci
*
Henschel DH 360 D
*
Henschel DH 700 D
*
Henschel DH 850 D
![Henschel Nameplate On M6 Locomotive](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Henschel_Nameplate_On_M6_Locomotive.jpg)
;Generation 4
*
Henschel DHG 500 C
*
Henschel DHG 700 C
*
Henschel DHG 1000 BB
*
Henschel DHG 1200 BB
;Generation 5
*
Henschel DHG 300 B
*
Henschel DHG 700 C
*
Henschel DHG 700 C-F
*
Henschel DHG 800 BB
*
Henschel DHG 1200 BB
;Generation 6
*
Henschel DHG 300 B
*
Henschel DE 500 C
;Esslinger
*
Henschel DHG 160 B
*
Henschel DHG 200 B
*
Henschel DHG 240 B
*
Henschel DHG 275 B
*
Henschel DHG 330 C
;Bundesbahn
*
Henschel-BBC DE2500
The DB Class 202, also commonly referred to under its manufacturers' designation Henschel- BBC DE2500, since it was only in experimental use and never purchased by the DB, is a class of diesel-electric locomotives designed for use on main and s ...
;Export
* ''Henschel DHG 625 C'' as
SJ-Series V 4 und
SJ-Series V 5
*
Henschel DH 600 C for Export to Ghana and Sudan
*
Henschel NY5 for the Chinese Railways
*
Henschel NY6 for the Chinese Railways
*
Henschel NY7 for the Chinese Railways
* Henschel DHG 2500 BB for
Indian Railways
Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tota ...
as
WDM-3
The Indian locomotive class WDM-3 is a class of Diesel–hydraulic locomotive that was developed in 1962 by Henschel for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Diesel (D), Mixed traffic (M) engine, 3rd generation (3). They ...
- 8 built 1970
*
Henschel DHG 1000 BB for Perusahaan Djawatan Kereta Api/PJKA (now PT.Kereta Api Indonesia or Indonesian Railway) as BB 302 01 - BB 302 06 (built 1970) and BB 303 01 - BB 303 57 (built 1973, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1980 and 1984).
*
Henschel DHG 800 BB for PJKA as BB 306 01 - BB 306 22 (built 1984 to 1986).
*
Henschel AA221 for ENR (built 1978 to 1988).
*
DSB Class EA
The DSB Class EA was the first electric locomotive in Denmark, introduced in 1984. Twenty-two were built for DSB, about half were acquired by Deutsche Bahn in 2001 when it took over the freight business of DSB.
Between 2007 and 2010 some bega ...
for the
Danish State Railways
Notable employees
*Chief Designer
Erwin Aders
*Dr. Herbert A. Wagner (see
Henschel Hs 117
The Henschel Hs 117 ''Schmetterling'' (German for ''Butterfly'') was a radio-guided German surface-to-air missile project developed during World War II. There was also an air-to-air version, the Hs 117H.
The operators used a telescopic sight and ...
,
Henschel Hs 293,
Henschel Hs 294
The Henschel Hs 294 was a guided Anti-surface warfare, air-to-sea missile developed by Henschel & Son, Henschel Flugzeug-Werke AG in Nazi Germany, Germany during World War II.
Design
The Hs 294 was a further development of the Henschel Hs 293, b ...
,
Supercavitation
Supercavitation is the use of a cavitation bubble to reduce skin friction drag on a submerged object and enable high speeds. Applications include torpedoes and propellers, but in theory, the technique could be extended to an entire underwater v ...
,
Operation Paperclip
Operation Paperclip was a secret United States intelligence program in which more than 1,600 German scientists, engineers, and technicians were taken from the former Nazi Germany to the U.S. for government employment after the end of World War ...
)
*
Konrad Zuse
Konrad Ernst Otto Zuse (; 22 June 1910 – 18 December 1995) was a German civil engineer, pioneering computer scientist, inventor and businessman. His greatest achievement was the world's first programmable computer; the functional program ...
See also
*
List of RLM aircraft designations
This is a list of aircraft type numbers allocated by an institution under the direction of ''Heereswaffenamt'' (before May 1933) and the Reich Air Ministry (RLM) between 1933 and 1945 for German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related ...
References
*
External links
Henschel's Mittelfeld Werkes Tiger tank factory
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henschel and Son
Defunct aircraft manufacturers of Germany
Rolling stock manufacturers of Germany
Locomotive manufacturers of Germany
Defunct bus manufacturers
Truck manufacturers of Germany
Companies based in Kassel
German brands
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of Germany
Trolleybus manufacturers
Bus manufacturers of Germany
Electric vehicle manufacturers of Germany
Henschel & Son