German aircraft engine developed by BMW during World War II
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BMW 801
BMW 801D on display at the Imperial War Museum Duxford
Type
Piston radial aircraft engine
National origin
Germany
Manufacturer
BMW
First run
1939
Major applications
Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Junkers Ju 88
Number built
more than 61,000
Developed into
BMW 802 BMW 803
The BMW 801 was a powerful German 41.8-litre (2,550 cu in) air-cooled 14-cylinder-radial aircraft engine built by BMW and used in a number of German Luftwaffe aircraft of World War II. Production versions of the twin-row engine generated between 1,560 and 2,000 PS (1,540–1,970 hp, or 1,150–1,470 kW). It was the most produced radial engine of Germany in World War II with more than 61,000 built.
The 801 was originally intended to replace existing radial types in German transport and utility aircraft. At the time, it was widely agreed among European designers[citation needed] that an inline engine was a requirement for high performance designs due to its smaller frontal area and resulting lower drag. Kurt Tank successfully fitted a BMW 801 to a new fighter design he was working on, and as a result the 801 became best known as the power plant for the famous Focke-Wulf Fw 190. The BMW 801 radial also pioneered the use of what would today be designated an engine control unit: its Kommandogerät engine management system took over the operation of several aviation engine management control parameters of the era, allowing proper operation of the engine with just one throttle lever.[1]
The BMW801 was a powerful German 41.8-litre (2,550 cu in) air-cooled 14-cylinder-radial aircraft engine built by BMW and used in a number of German Luftwaffe...
The BMW 803 was a German aircraft engine, an attempt by BMW to build a high-output aircraft engine by coupling two BMW801 engines back-to-back, driving...
produce what was essentially an 18-cylinder version of the 14-cylinder BMW801. Although promising at first, development dragged on and the project was...
workforce at BMW AG consisted of prisoners from concentration camps. Among its successful World War II engine designs were the BMW 132 and BMW801 air-cooled...
(1159 hp, 864 kW) for take off. The Jumo 211, Bramo 329 and BMW 139 (forerunner to the BMW801) were also considered. Whichever of the power plants was selected...
be BMW's main products until World War II. During the war, BMW concentrated on the BMW801 aircraft engine using as many as 40,000 slave laborers. These...
powered by unitized BMW801 radial engines. The R-1 had 1,147 kW (1,539 hp) BMW 801L engines and the R-2 had 1,250 kW (1,677 hp) BMW801 G-2 engines. One...
Motorenwerke GmbH (BMW) Using this system, the famous BMW engine used in the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 would be known as the 9-801 (Piston(9)-BMW(8)Number(01)). However...
BMW has been producing engines for automobiles, motorcycles and aircraft since 1917, when the company began production of an inline-six aircraft engine...
with the BMW 139 radial. This engine was cancelled only a few weeks later and all designs based on it moved to the newer and more powerful BMW801. The prototype...
its primary allocation for the He 162A. The BMW 003 proved cheaper in materials than the company's own 801 radial, 12,000 ℛ︁ℳ︁ to 40,000 ℛ︁ℳ︁, and cheaper...
to power their prototypes with the BMW801 radial engine, although with 900 hp less per engine and with the BMW801 radials themselves barely out of initial...
Over 28,000 of the German 42-litre displacement, 14-cylinder, two-row BMW801, with between 1,560 and 2,000 PS (1,540-1,970 hp, or 1,150-1,470 kW), powered...
The BMW 132 was a nine-cylinder radial aircraft engine produced by BMW starting in 1933. BMW took over a license for manufacturing air-cooled radial engines...
control functions simultaneously was the created by BMW in 1939 Kommandogerät system used by the BMW801 14-cylinder radial engine which powered the Focke-Wulf...
The -1 would mount the 1,331 kW (1,810 PS) output BMW 801J, a turbocharged version of the basic BMW801 air cooled radial, each engine installed as a unitized...
charge cooling effect, boosting performance by about 100 hp (75 kW) on the BMW801 and DB 605. However, the MW 50 also allowed the supercharger to be run...
the plant was expanded significantly to start large-scale production of BMW801 aircraft engines, which powered the Focke-Wulfe FW 190 fighter aircraft...
contemporary BMW801 and Daimler-Benz DB 605, the 222 was a huge leap in performance. It had only slightly larger displacement than the 801's 41.8 L (2...
BMW IIIa was an inline six-cylinder SOHC valvetrain, water-cooled aircraft engine, the first-ever engine produced by Bayerische Flugzeugwerke AG, who...
then underway in the Third Reich – meant the first prototypes flew with BMW801 radial engines, instead. The first flight-quality 222s did not arrive until...
(including manufacture, assembly, and shipping), compared to 1,400 for the BMW801. Production and maintenance of the 004 was done at the Junkers works at...
prototypes, V1, V2, and V3 were built, with V1 and V2 were powered by BMW801 radials, and V3, featuring full armament, was powered with a pair of Germany's...
turbojet powered flights in 1939 Germany and 1941 England. 1939 – The BMW company's BMW801 aviation radial engine pioneers the use of an early form of an engine...
aircraft, evolved to be an Amerikabomber candidate, to be powered with four BMW801 radial engines and up to 11,000 km range. Junkers Ju 390 – an Amerikabomber...
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