Heinkel gave the new He 111 project - under the guise of a high-speed passenger aircraft - to the Günter brothers who spent 200,000 man-hours designing it.

But even in secret, there was consideration at Heinkel that the He 70 could be designed with the ulterior motive of becoming a fast light bomber or reconnaissance and courier aircraft.

These two aircraft were instrumental in advancing aircraft design, paving the way for jets as the fighter aircraft of the future, and soon, even more advanced jet fighters were produced.

The He 111 was a medium bomber designed by Heinkel engineers Siegfried and Walter Gunter that was significantly involved in the Battle of France, the Battle of Britain, and the Blitz.

The bomber made a much bigger contribution during the Battle of France (May-June 1940) and, as with the He 111, garnered its greatest degree of notoriety during the Battle of Britain.

The Heinkel He 51 was soon replaced in Spain with early Messerschmitt Bf- 109 models; the one shown here is a “C” model. The Bf-109s carried a “6” on the fuselage indicating aircraft type.

A breathtaking flyover of nearly every United States Air Force fighter and bomber jet soared during a Florida air show Saturday, stunning footage of the historic aerial display showed.

It was built by Heinkel Flugzeugwerke, the German aircraft manufacturer best known for building the He-111 heavy bomber that had made life miserable for Londoners during the Battle of Britain.

World War I also demonstrated the bomber’s vulnerability to a new enemy: the fighter, a smaller, faster aircraft optimized for air-to-air combat.

Records suggest this aircraft was used for some in-cockpit filming sequences. The airframe is a Heinkel He 111H-20/R1 from 1944, configured as a paradrop aircraft.

The history of aviation is littered with aircraft that failed to live up to expectations. Here are some of the most serious aviation failures.

The turbojet-powered Heinkel He 178, the world’s first jet aircraft, took its first flight on August 27, 1939. It was flown by German test pilot Erich Warsitz. The Heinkel He 178 was a private venture ...