Blohm & Voss BV P.193

This fighter-bomber was designed by Dr. Vogt of Blohm und Voss in 1932, designer of the BV 141 and other asymmetric designs. Although the BV P.170 was of a symmetrical design, it was still unorthodox in appearance. Although finished at the same time as the seemingly similar Curtiss-Wright Warhawk, there is no indication of collaboration, imitation or spying. Of the two designs, the BV P.193 is the more extreme, and it has also aged faster than the Warhawk; once fast enough to evade all pursuit to deliver it's impressive bombload, the BV P.193 can now be intercepted by a range of new, fast planes such as the Valiant and Bloodhawk. The BV P.170 is still a superior high-flyer, but fuel consumption cuts sharply into range at extreme altitudes.

The wing is of constant chord, and contain the ailerons and landing flaps, which are constructed of wood or a light metal. Three BMW 801D radial engines (rated at 800 horsepower each) provided the power; each drives a three-bladed 3.5 m (11' 5") propeller. One engine is located on the front of the main fuselage, while the other two are mounted on wingtip gondolas, each with a single vertical fin and rudder located at the rear. Each engine gondola (including the center fuselage) contains a 1000 liter (264 gallon) fuel tank, which can only feed the engine ahead of it. The two outside engines rotate in opposite directions, to help cancel out excessive torque.

The two man crew (pilot and radio operator/ observer/ bombardier) sit in a cockpit located in the extreme rear of the center fuselage. Visibility is excellent in the air; on the ground, the wings and engine housings serve to block visibility. The aircraft is designed to drop bombs in level flight, while this reduces the accuracy of the bombs, it also increases the survivability of the plane. The bombardier/radio operator lies down inside the fuselage to use the bomb sights, as shown in the illustration.

A normal "tail-dragger" undercarriage is fitted, with the exception of there being three main landing gear legs (1015 x 380 mm wheels fitted to each leg), one located just aft of each engine. Each main landing gear leg retracted to the rear into the engine nacelle or main fuselage.

The project's speed was thought to preclude interception, thus no defensive armament was to be fitted in the original design. Later designs have remedied this, but at the cost of reduced payload. The current model mounts 3 50 caliber machine-guns, one in each spinner. Pilots complain that still leaves the BV P.170 undergunned; strategists complain about the reduced bombload.

The BV P.170 has seen extensive use in Russia and Poland, and is manufactured under license both in Munich, Minsk and Lwow. Although forbidden to the Luftwaffe by treaty, a number of aircraft have been sold to private individuals, militias and to the Reich. A number of BV P.170s are in the hands of White Russians in Alaska.

Special Rules: 1800 kg (4000 lb.) of bombs can be carried in the current version. This means that each pylon has four times the normal capacity, and can carry up to 500 lb. of bombs or four hardpoints worth of rockets. You can still only mount two rockets on each hardpoint, but that could be two Aerial Torpedoes! The most common load is eight 500 lb bombs or four 1000 lb bombs. Sometimes, some bombs are replaced with nonlethal rockets, but the poor tradeoff (500 lb of bombs for two rockets) makes this unusual. It is considered a necessary evil when the BV P.170 is unescorted.

Note: While Luft '46 is a historical site, and some of this information comes from there, this description is fictional. Facts from Luft '46 have been altered and new ideas added to fit this design into the Crimson Skies pulp universe. For historical information, check out the source at Luft '46.   

	Base Complexity		13
	Multiple Engines (3)		+1
	Accurate Bomber		+1
	Ground Clumsy		-1
	Poor Maneouverability		-3
	High Flight Ceiling		+2
	High Dive Speed		+1
	Expensive		-1
	Superior Engines		+2
	Total		15
	Cost	$10.375

Included here is l as a list of the relevant Special Characteristics of the plane, a design complexity, and a price calculated from these values.