Gotha Go 145

Go 145

Role	Trainer
Manufacturer	Gotha
Designer	Albert Kalkert
First flight	February, 1934
Introduction	1935
Retired	1945^[1]
Primary user	Luftwaffe
Number built	1,182 (German production)

The Gotha Go 145 was a German World War II-era biplane of wood and fabric construction used by Luftwaffe training units. Although obsolete by the start of World War II, the Go 145 remained in operational service until the end of the War in Europe as a night harassment bomber.

Background

On 2 October 1933 the Gotha aircraft company was re-established. The first aircraft manufactured was the Gotha Go 145,^[2] a two-seat biplane designed by Albert Kalkert made out of wood with a fabric covering. The Go 145 featured fixed landing gear and was powered by an Argus As 10C inverted V8 air-cooled engine fitted with a two-blade fixed-pitch propeller. The first prototype took to the air in February 1934, and was followed by a production model, the Gotha Go 145A, with controls in both cockpits for trainee and instructor.

Operational service

In 1935, the Go 145 started service with Luftwaffe training units. The aircraft proved a successful design and production of the Go 145 was taken up by other companies, including AGO, Focke-Wulf and BFW. Licensed versions were also manufactured in Spain and Turkey. The Spanish version, called the CASA 1145-L actually remained in service until long after World War II.^[2]

Ignoring prototypes, 1,182 Go 145s were built in Germany for Luftwaffe service. An unknown number of license-produced Go 145s were also built. Further development of the aircraft was done. The Gotha Go 145B was fitted with an enclosed cockpit and wheel spats (an aerodynamic wheel housing on fixed-gear). The Go 145C was developed for gunnery training and was fitted with a single 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 15 machine gun in the rear cockpit, requiring removal of that cockpit's flight controls.

By 1942, the Russians began using obsolete aircraft such as the Polikarpov Po-2 to conduct night harassment missions against the Germans. Noting the success of the raids, the Germans began conducting their own night harassment missions with obsolete aircraft on the Eastern Front. In December 1942, the first Störkampfstaffel (harassment squadron) was established and equipped with Gotha Go 145 and Arado Ar 66. The night harassment units were successful and by October 1943 there were six night harassment squadrons equipped with Gotha Go 145.

Also in October 1943, the Störkampfstaffeln were brought together into larger Nachtschlachtgruppe (NSGr) (night ground attack group, literally night battle group) units of either three or four squadrons each. In March 1945 Nachtschlachtgruppe 5 had 69 Gotha Go 145’s on strength of which 52 were serviceable ^[3] while Nachtschlachtgruppe 3 in the Courland Pocket had 18 Gotha Go 145’s on strength of which 16 were serviceable.^[4] When the war in Europe ended on 8 May 1945 the Gotha Go 145 equipped the majority of the Nachtschlachtgruppen.

Operators

Austria: Austrian Air Force - 12 aircraft delivered in 1937^[5]
Czechoslovakia: Czechoslovakian Air Force (Postwar)
Germany: Luftwaffe
Romania: Royal Romanian Air Force
Slovakia: Slovak Air Force (1939-1945)
Spain: Spanish Air Force
Turkey: Turkish Air Force

Surviving aircraft

Gotha Go 145A - Museum für Verkehr und Technik. Berlin, Germany.
Gotha Go 145A - Norsk Luftfartssenter. Bodø, Norway.

Both examples are badly damaged and are in storage.

Specifications (Go 145A)

Data from Kay & Smith, p. 116.

General characteristics

Crew: 2 (pilot, instructor)
Length: 8.7 m (28 ft 6½ in)
Wingspan: 9 m (29 ft 6⅓ in)
Height: 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in)
Wing area: 21.75 m² (234.10 ft²)
Empty weight: 800 kg (1,940 lb)
Loaded weight: 1,380 kg (3,043 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Argus As 10 inline, 179 kw (240 hp)

Performance

Maximum speed: 212 km/h (132 mph)
Range: 630 km (391 mi)
Service ceiling: 3,700 m (12,139 ft)

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gotha aircraft.

Notes

↑ The Spanish CASA 1145-L licensed version saw post-World War II service as a trainer.
1 2 Kay and Smith, p.115
↑ Bishop, p.182
↑ Bishop, p.183
↑ Haubner, F. Die Flugzeuge der Österreichischen Luftstreitkräfte vor 1938. H Weishaupt Verlag, Graz, 1982

Bibliography

Bishop, C. Luftwaffe Squadrons, 1939–1945. Amber Books, 2006.
Donald, D. (ed.) Warplanes of the Luftwaffe: Combat aircraft of Hitler’s Luftwaffe, 1933 -1945. Aerospace Publishing, 2001.
Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. London: Macdonald and Jane's Publishers Ltd., 1970 (fourth impression 1979). ISBN 0-356-02382-6.
Nowarra, Heinz J. Die Deutsche Luftrüstung 1933-1945 (in German). Koblenz, Germany: Bernard & Graeffe Verlag, 1993. ISBN 3-7637-5464-4.
Smith, J. Richard and Kay, Anthony L. German Aircraft of the Second World War. Annapolis, MD: US Naval Institute Press, 2002. ISBN 1-55750-010-X.
Wood, Tony and Gunston, Bill. Hitler's Luftwaffe: A pictorial history and technical encyclopedia of Hitler's air power in World War II. London: Salamander Books Ltd., 1977. ISBN 0-86101-005-1.

Aircraft produced by Gothaer Waggonfabrik

Company designations pre-1918

LD.1 LD.2 LD.3 LD.4 LD.5 LD.6 LD.7

LE.1 LE.2 LE.3

WD.1 WD.2 WD.3 WD.4 WD.5 WD.7 WD.8 WD.9 WD.11 WD.12 WD.13 WD.14 WD.15 WD.20 WD.22 WD.27

Idflieg designations 1914-1918

Reichsluftfahrtministerium designations 1933-1945

Reich Air Ministry aircraft designations

1 to 100	B 9 Gö 9 Do 10 Do 11 Wn 11 Do 12 Do 13 Do 14 Do 15 Wn 15 Do 16 Wn 16 Do 17 Do 18 Do 19 Do 20 Do 22 Do 23 Do 24 Kl 25 Do 26 Kl 26 M 27 Do 29 Kl 31 Kl 32 W 33 L 33 W 34 Kl 35 Kl 36 HD 37 HD 38 G 38 DFS 39 BV 40 DFS 40 A 40 Fw 42 He 42 Fw 43 HD 43 Fw 44 He 45 He 46 Ju 46 Fw 47 Ju 47 K 47 A 48 He 49 Ju 49 He 50 A 50 He 51 K 51 Ju 52 K 53 NR 54 Fw 55 NR 55 Fw 56 Fw 57 Fw 58 He 58 He 59 He 60 Ju 60 Fw 61 He 61 Fw 62 He 62 He 63 Ar 64 He 64 Ar 65 He 65 Ar 66 He 66 Ar 67 Ar 68 Ar 69 He 70 He 71 He 72 He 74 Ar 76 Ar 77 Ar 79 Ar 80 Ar 81 Ju 85 Ju 86 Ju 87 Ju 88 Ju 89 Ju 90 Ar 95 Ar 96 Fi 97 Fi 98 Fi 99 He 100

101 to 200	Al 101 Al 102 Al 103 Fi 103 Fh 104 Kl 105 Kl 106 Kl 107 Bf 108 Bf 109 Bf 110 He 111 He 112 He 113 He 114 He 115 He 116 Hs 117 He 118 He 119 He 120 Hs 121 Hs 122 Hs 123 Hs 124 Hs 125 Hs 126 Hs 127 Hs 128 Hs 129 Hs 130 Bü 131 Hs 132 Bü 133 Bü 134 Ha 135 Ha 136 Hü 136 Ha 137 BV 138 Ha 139 Ha 140 BV 141 BV 142 BV 143 BV 144 Go 145 Go 146 Go 147 Ju 147 Go 149 Go 150 Kl 151 Ta 152 Kl 152 Ta 153 Ta 154 BV 155 Fi 156 Fi 157 Fi 158 Fw 159 Ju 160 Bf 161 He 162 Bf 162 Bf 163 Me 163 Me 164 Fi 166 FK 166 Fi 167 Fi 168 He 170 He 172 He 176 He 177 He 178 Bü 180 Bü 181 Bü 182 Ta 183 Fl 184 Fl 185 Fw 186 Ju 186 Fw 187 Ju 187 Ju 188 Fw 189 Fw 190 Fw 191 Ao 192 DFS 193 DFS 194 Ar 195 Ar 196 Ar 197 Ar 198 Ar 199 Fw 200

201 to 300	Si 201 Si 202 DFS 203 Si 204 Fw 206 Me 208 Me 209 Me 209 (1943) Me 210 Hü 211 Do 212 Do 214 Do 215 Do 216 Do 217 Hs 217 He 219 He 220 BV 222 Fa 223 Fa 224 Ao 225 Fa 225 BV 226 Ho 226 FGP 227 DFS 228 Ho 229 DFS 230 Ar 231 Ar 232 Ar 233 Ar 234 Do 235 BV 237 BV 238 Fw 238 Ar 239 Ar 240 Go 241 Go 242 Go 244 BV 246 Ju 248 BV 250 Fw 250 Ho 250 Ho 251 Ho 252 Ju 252 Fi 253 Ho 253 Ta 254 Ho 254 Fi 256 Sk 257 Fw 261 Me 261 Me 262 Me 263 Me 264 Fl 265 Me 265 Fa 266 Ho 267 Ju 268 Fa 269 He 270 We 271 Fw 272 He 274 He 275 He 277 He 278 He 280 Fl 282 Fa 283 Ta 283 Fa 284 Fl 285 Ju 286 Ju 287 Ju 288 Ju 290 Me 290 As 292 Hs 293 Hs 294 Hs 295 Ar 296 Hs 296 Hs 297 Hs 298 Fw 300

301-	Me 309 Me 310 Do 317 Do 318 He 319 Me 321 Ju 322 Me 323 Me 328 Me 329 Fa 330 DFS 331 DFS 332 Fi 333 Me 334 Do 335 Fa 336 Fl 339 E.340 WNF 342 He 343 Rk 344 So 344 Go 345 DFS 346 Rk 347 Ba 349 Ju 352 Me 362 Me 364 Ju 388 Ju 390 Fw 391 Ar 396 Ta 400 Me 409 Me 410 Do 417 He 419 ZMe 423 Ar 430 Ka 430 Ar 432 Do 435 Ar 440 Ju 452 Me 462 Ju 488 Fw 491 Me 509 Me 510 He 519 ZSO 523 Ar 532 Do 535 E.555 Me 609 Ar 632 Do 635

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