Although this Focke-Wulf project was designated 261, it was not the official
RLM designation, only an internal Focke-Wulf number. It was designed
as a bomber, and also a maritime reconnaissance and U-Boat support
aircraft, much as the Focke-Wulf 200 was. Superficially resembling
the Arado E.340, it was nevertheless independently designed. The wings
were shoulder mounted, and featured tapered outer wing panels. Power was
supplied by four BMW 801D radial engines (1600 horsepower each) which were
mounted on the wing leading edge and drove four-bladed propellers of 3.5
meter (11' 6") diameter. The outer two engine nacelles extended to the
rear and contained a tail plane and fin and rudder. In order to keep the
rear turret's field of fire clear, the tail planes did not connect the
two tail booms. The central fuselage contained the fuel supply and a bomb
bay which could hold 3000 kg (6600 lbs) of bombs. A tricycle landing gear
arrangement was chosen, with a single nose wheel beneath the cockpit and
double main wheels which retracted into the outer engine nacelles, although
some drawings show a single wheel below each engine nacelle. A crew of
seven to nine men manned the Fw 261, with a total flight endurance of more
than 22 hours. The armament consisted of two twin MK 108 30mm cannon in
remote controlled turrets below the cockpit, two HD 151 Z remote controlled
turrets, one each above and below the fuselage ahead of the wings, and
four MK 108 30mm cannon in the tail.
| Span | Length | Height | Wing Area |
| 40 m
131' 3" |
26.78 m
87' 10" |
6.35 m
20' 10" |
187 m²
2013 ft² |
| Empty Weight | Crew | Ammunition | Fuel | Lubricant | Bomb load | Flying Weight |
| 26760 kg
58995 lbs |
600 kg
1323 lbs |
830 kg
1830 lbs |
17600 kg
38800 lbs |
1100 kg
2425 lbs |
3000 kg
6614 lbs |
50000 kg
110230 lbs |
| Max. Speed
altitude - speed |
Climbing Time
without bombs |
Ceiling | Take Off Distance | Landing Speed | Range | ||||||||||||
|
|
9600 m
31496' |
1670 m
5479' |
144 km/h
89 mph |
9000 km @ 380 km/h
5593 miles @ 236 mph |
An original Focke-Wulf cutaway drawing of the Projekt
0310225 (Fw 261).....