Uffz. Fritz Hanusch, 8./JG54, 6./JG26

[Jean-Yves Lorant]

Gentlemen
First of all, thank you very much for your comments concerning my chronicle of the JG 300, I remind you that the research work of my friend Richard Goyat was determining for the serious analysis of the aerial combats. I cannot thank him enough.
Let's go back to the parachute jump of a Fw 190 pilot. We have to compare what is really comparable and please forget the F-5 and and F-106 which are jets without the parasitic effects of single-engined propeller planes. Before using their ejection seat, the jet pilots carefully adjust their elevator trims. The fact that some have been able to hit with the ground without serious damage does not really surprise me, even if they are rare exceptions.
During the night “Blitz” at least two Luftwaffe bombers - whose crew members had bailed out - were able to fly more than fifty or hundred kilometers before landing without damage in England. The elevator trims were well adjusted so that the pilot could evacuate in good conditions.
At the end of the war, the Fw 190 pilots used a well-known bail-out procedure: They reduced power, released laryngophone and seat belts, detonated the explosive charge to jettison the canopy and then thrust the stick with a hard forward. The aircraft plunged to the ground with a strong negative acceleration and the pilot was torn from his seat. The plane was often spinning because of the engine's gyroscopic torque and other complex effects that I do not have the time or the words to describe here. It is out of question that a Fw 190 D-9 in this flight configuration may be able to return to horizontal flight without any “human help”. All the stories of parachute jumps gathered from the many interviews of german pilots confirm this fact.


In my mind Fritz Hanusch’s Dora-9 was really piloted until the end of the landing, which was certainly hard because one of the fuselage frames broke. I do not have the slightest idea of ​​the severity of the injuries sustained by this pilot during the fight. It is also possible that they are consecutive to this violent landing. Perhaps Fritz Hanusch's daughter could enlighten us on this point and I thank the initiator of this conversation very much in advance if he agrees to send her this request.
Sorry for my very bad English and best regards.


Dear Adriano, we are now in contact again!


Jean-Yves Lorant