The Aircraft of World War 2

WALT

Today we’re carrying on with our WW2 topic and we’re going to learn about the fighter planes of the RAF and the Luftwaffe.

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WILF

I am looking for you to show that you can compare the different planes from the 2 countries. I am expecting you to use your knowledge and your investigation skills to find things out.

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TIBS

It is important that you can find out information from images and use this knowledge to help you to understand what it must have been like in WW2.

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The British

The Royal Air Force

Every day more planes, Every day more pilots,

What does that mean?Why are they called the Royal Air Force?

What is this poster about?

The Spitfire

The Spitfire

The Spitfire was a very fast fighter plane with one engine and a propeller with 2 blades.

It had two cannons and four fast firing machine guns.

It could also drop bombs.It carried one pilot.

The Lancaster Bomber

The Lancaster BomberThe Lancaster Bomber was the most effective heavy bomber of WW2.It was well-liked by pilots, having four powerful and reliable engines.

By the end of the war Lancasters were able to drop a 10 ton bomb on precision targets such as bridges, viaducts and battleships.

It had a crew of seven (Pilot, Navigator, Flight Engineer, Wireless Operator, Bomb Aimer, Mid-Upper and Rear Gunner).

The Royal Air Force Insignia

The Germans

The Luftwaffe Insignia

The Messerschmitt

The Messerschmitt A lightweight fast fighter with one engine.

It carried one pilot.

Hitler thought that bombing was more important than dog fighting in the sky and manned the planes with bomber pilots rather than fighter pilots. This was not a good idea as they couldn’t escape the British fighters.

It had 2 guns and cannons and it also carried two 500lb bombs but it was generally inefficient as a bomber.

The Junkers

The Junkers

The Junkers was a night time bomber plane.

It had 3 machine guns and could drop bombs.

It could hold a crew of three or four, the pilot, the gunner and the radio/radar operator.

Pilots and what they wore

Which are the British and which are the Germans?

Can you compare the planes?

What do you notice? Colours, insignia, engines, size, propellers, crew members, guns, bombs, speed, their purpose.

Look at the images of the British and the German planes. Can you compare them?

WW2 Planes

Lancaster Bomber Spitfire

J unkers Messerschmitt

You will have a sheet with two or four plane images to compare

Look closely at the photographs of the World War 2 planes. Can you compare the differences and look for things that are similar?

Make notes in your book and then turn them into sentences. (Remember to use interesting adjectives, connectives and super handwriting.)

Look at the photographs. Here are some ideas that you can think about.

What is the same? What is different?

How many propellers? How many blades on the propeller? How many engines?

Look at the colours of the plane. Why is it painted that colour? Is there an insignia? What is it like? What country does this plane come from?

Is it a big plane? Is it a fast plane? Does it have machine guns? Can it drop bombs? How many people can go in this plane? Who were they?