This aircraft was the backbone of GermanyÆs Luftwaffe with some 400 of them being operational at the start of the war. It was easily identifiable due to its large elliptical wings and cigar-shaped fuselage with its blended and heavily-framed glass nose. Almost as fast as the Dornier, the He 111 could carry twice the Do 17's bombload for twice the distance, but was not as maneuverable. Defensively, it carried six machine guns but this was soon found to be inadequate against the RAF's eight-gunned Hurricanes and Spitfires since typically only one of the defensive guns could be brought to bear against an attacker at a time. Nevertheless, while the Do 17 was quickly replaced by the more powerful Do 217 in service, the He 111 continued to serve on all fronts for the duration of the war. Later production models could carry even more bombs and defensive guns.
DEFENSIVE GUNS: The He 111 is armed with six 7.92mm defensive guns. The bombardier fires one to the front. The radioman fires a dorsal gun to the rear, partly blocked by the airplane's tail. A gunner has a 7.92 firing to the left-rear and another to the right-rear, but can operate only one at a time. A second gunner has two separate ventral guns, one firing to the rear-low, and one firing almost directly downward. He can operate only one at a time. In sum, the He 111 can fire only four light machineguns at once, and bring only one or two to bear on a single target. It is the best-defended German bomber in the Battle of Britain but, like the other German bombers, the He 111 is vulnerable to fighter attacks unless escorted by friendly fighters.
