Heinkel He 74

The Heinkel He 74 was a light fighter aircraft developed in Germany in the early 1930s. It was a conventional single-bay biplane with staggered, unequal-span wings braced by an I-type interplane strut, an open cockpit for the pilot and a fixed tailskid undercarriage. It was designed in response to a Reich Air Ministry requirement for a Heimatschutzjaeger, a light fighter for purely defensive duties that would double as an advanced trainer for fighter pilots. Firms were urged, though not required, to use a monoplane layout. In trials in 1934 the He 74 outperformed its competitors, but the ministry placed it third behind the Focke-Wulf Fw 56 and Arado Ar 76, believing a monoplane was essential for an advanced trainer. Its Argus As 10C engine gave 180 kilowatts and a top speed of 280 kilometres per hour.