Heinkel He 116

The Heinkel He 116 was an extremely long-range mail plane built by Heinkel in the second half of the 1930s at the request of the German flag carrier Deutsche Luft Hansa, which wanted an aircraft to carry airmail between Germany and Japan, including over the Pamir Mountains in Afghanistan. It was derived from the He 70 Blitz, with an all-new semi-monocoque duralumin fuselage and four newly developed Hirth HM 508C V8 inverted piston engines. The prototype made its maiden flight on 9 December 1936. Eight He 116A mail planes were built. Two He 116B aircraft were adapted for long-range reconnaissance and bomber missions with a glazed nose like that of the He 111, and a single He 116R with an enlarged wing and more fuel flew an unrefueled record distance of 10,000 km at an average 214 km/h on 30 June 1938.