Focke-Wulf Fw 62

The Focke-Wulf Fw 62 was a reconnaissance floatplane designed and built by Focke-Wulf for the German Kriegsmarine, and only four were built. In 1936 the Air Ministry asked for a light shipboard seaplane to replace the Heinkel He 114, with a maximum weight of 2.5 tonnes, a crew of one or two and suitability for catapult launching. Focke-Wulf answered with a conventional biplane of mixed construction, with folding equal-span wings braced by N-type struts and a tightly cowled 945 horsepower BMW 132K radial engine driving a two-bladed propeller. The V1 flew on twin floats on 23 October 1937 and the V2 had a large central float. Test pilots liked it, but the more modern Arado Ar 196 monoplane was chosen for production instead.