Heinkel
Corporate brand
UnclaimedGerman aircraft manufacturer associated with Luftwaffe bombers, pioneering rocket and jet aircraft, and postwar scooters and microcars.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
Heinkel, formally Heinkel Flugzeugwerke, was a German aircraft manufacturer founded by aircraft designer Ernst Heinkel at Warnemünde in 1922. The company became one of Germany’s most prominent aviation firms during the interwar period and the Second World War. Its early reputation rested on fast, streamlined all-metal aircraft, including the Heinkel He 70 Blitz mail plane and airliner, while its He 111 became one of the Luftwaffe’s principal medium bombers. Heinkel also developed the He 177, Germany’s only heavy bomber to enter wartime service, although the type suffered from serious technical and operational problems. The company was important not only as a producer of military aircraft but also as a technology developer. In 1939, Heinkel test pilot Erich Warsitz flew the He 176, generally recognized as the first aircraft designed for liquid-fuel rocket propulsion, and the He 178, the world’s first aircraft to fly under turbojet power. Heinkel subsequently produced the He 280, an early jet-fighter prototype, and the He 162 Spatz, a late-war lightweight jet fighter. The He 219 Uhu night fighter introduced several notable features, including retractable tricycle landing gear and an operational aircraft application of ejection seats. Many Heinkel projects were nevertheless constrained by German armaments policy, political competition within the Reich Air Ministry, shortages, and the priority given to established bomber programs. During the Nazi period, Heinkel was deeply integrated into Germany’s armaments economy. Its aircraft, particularly the He 111 and He 177, supported the Luftwaffe’s bombing campaign. The company also used forced labor from Sachsenhausen concentration camp; historical accounts cited in reference material state that approximately 6,000 to 8,000 prisoners were employed in Heinkel production. This history is an essential part of the brand’s record and cannot be separated from its wartime technological achievements. After Germany’s defeat, the company was prohibited from manufacturing aircraft for a period. Heinkel diversified into bicycles, motor scooters, and the Kabine bubble car. The Heinkel Tourist scooter became known for durability and touring comfort, while the Kabine, introduced in 1956, competed with the BMW Isetta and Messerschmitt KR200. Kabine production ended at Heinkel in 1958 but continued under license in Ireland and the United Kingdom until 1966. Heinkel returned to aviation manufacturing in the 1950s by participating in licensed production of Lockheed F-104 Starfighters for the West German Luftwaffe. In 1965, it was absorbed into Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke, which later became part of Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm and ultimately the Airbus industrial lineage. Heinkel therefore survives primarily as a historical aerospace and mobility name rather than as an independent operating brand.
History
Ernst Heinkel established his own aircraft company at Warnemünde in 1922 after postwar restrictions on German aviation had eased. Heinkel’s early work included aircraft and aviation equipment for civil and military customers. By 1929, the company was supplying compressed-air catapults used to launch mail aircraft from the ocean liners SS Bremen and SS Europa, demonstrating an interest in practical systems as well as airframes. A major commercial breakthrough came with the He 70 Blitz, an all-metal single-engine aircraft designed for high speed and used by Deutsche Luft Hansa as a mail plane and airliner. Its aerodynamic performance helped establish Heinkel as an advanced German aircraft manufacturer. The twin-engine He 111 followed and became one of the Luftwaffe’s most important bombers during the Second World War. The company also developed reconnaissance aircraft, seaplanes, trainers, fighters, and bombers. Its principal designers included the Günter brothers, Siegfried and Walter, and Heinrich Hertel. Heinkel’s main complex was at Rostock-Marienehe, later associated with the Heinkel-Nord works. After the annexation of Austria in 1938, the company also operated the Heinkel-Süd engineering and production facility at Schwechat. During the Nazi period, Heinkel was closely tied to state rearmament and the Luftwaffe. The He 111 was widely deployed, while the He 177 Greif was intended to provide a long-range heavy-bomber capability. The He 177’s paired-engine installation and demanding dive-bombing requirement contributed to repeated engine fires and reliability problems, and the aircraft never achieved the intended operational importance. The company’s wartime history also includes significant propulsion and aircraft-design experimentation. In 1939, the He 176 became a pioneering liquid-fueled rocket aircraft and the He 178 achieved the first turbojet-powered flight. The He 280 was an early jet-fighter prototype and the first Heinkel design to fly with retractable tricycle landing gear. It did not enter production, in part because the Reich Air Ministry directed Heinkel toward bomber work and favored the competing Messerschmitt Me 262 program. Late in the war, the He 162 Spatz entered the German jet-fighter program, but it arrived too late to have a meaningful effect. The He 219 Uhu night fighter incorporated retractable tricycle landing gear and ejection seats among its notable features. Heinkel’s wartime production was inseparable from forced labor. The company was a major user of prisoners from Sachsenhausen concentration camp, with reference accounts describing thousands of camp prisoners working in its production system. This exploitation, together with the use of the company’s aircraft in Nazi Germany’s war effort, remains a central ethical and historical issue in assessments of Heinkel. Following the Second World War, Allied restrictions prevented Heinkel from immediately returning to aircraft production. The company shifted to bicycles, scooters, and small cars. The Heinkel Tourist scooter was a substantial touring machine with a fully enclosed body and a reputation for reliability. The Kabine bubble car, launched in 1956, competed in the expanding European microcar market. Heinkel ended its own Kabine production in 1958, after which licensed manufacture continued through Dundalk Engineering Company in Ireland and Trojan Cars in the United Kingdom until 1966. In the mid-1950s Heinkel resumed aviation-related manufacturing through licensed production of Lockheed F-104 Starfighters for the West German Luftwaffe. The independent company’s existence ended in 1965 when it was absorbed by Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke. VFW was later absorbed by Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm in 1980, and that corporate lineage subsequently became part of Airbus. Heinkel is consequently remembered as a defunct German aerospace and mobility manufacturer whose legacy combines significant advances in propulsion and aircraft configuration with extensive involvement in Nazi wartime production.
- 1980
VFW absorbed by Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm
[7]The successor organization is absorbed into MBB, later contributing to the corporate lineage of Airbus.
- 1965
Independent company absorbed
[1]Heinkel becomes part of Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke.
- 1956
Kabine microcar launched
[5]Heinkel introduces its bubble car in the postwar small-vehicle market.
- 1944
He 162 enters late-war development and production
[6]The He 162 Spatz is developed as a mass-production jet fighter, but reaches service only near the end of the war.
- 1941
Heinkel-Hirth merger
[1]Heinkel combines with engine maker Hirth, gaining expanded powerplant manufacturing capability.
- 1939
Rocket and turbojet milestones
[1]The He 176 and He 178 make pioneering rocket-powered and turbojet-powered flights.
- 1932
He 70 Blitz introduced
[2]The high-speed all-metal He 70 becomes a major civil aviation success and sets speed records in its class.
- 1929
Catapult systems enter ocean-liner service
[1]Heinkel compressed-air catapults are used on the SS Bremen and SS Europa to launch mail aircraft.
- 1922
Heinkel company founded
[1]Ernst Heinkel establishes his aircraft company at Warnemünde in Germany.
Products and positioning
Engineering-led German aircraft and mobility manufacturer, recognized for aerodynamic innovation, experimental propulsion, wartime aircraft production, and postwar small vehicles.
Civil aircraft · 1932
Heinkel He 70 Blitz
A fast, single-engine, all-metal aircraft introduced in 1932 for mail and passenger operations. The He 70’s streamlined design produced notable speed performance and helped establish Heinkel’s reputation for advanced aerodynamics. Military derivatives and export versions were also developed, although the type is chiefly remembered as an important interwar civil aircraft and as the basis for later Heinkel design work.
Medium bomber and airliner · 1935
Heinkel He 111
A twin-engine aircraft that began with civil-airliner roots and became one of the Luftwaffe’s principal medium bombers. It was used extensively during the Second World War and became the aircraft most strongly associated with Heinkel’s wartime production. Its variants served in bombing, reconnaissance, transport, and other roles.
Rocket aircraft prototype · 1939
Heinkel He 176
An experimental aircraft designed around liquid-fuel rocket propulsion. Flown by Erich Warsitz in 1939, it was an important early demonstration of rocket-powered flight, although it did not enter production or operational service.
Jet aircraft prototype · 1939
Heinkel He 178
The He 178 was a compact experimental aircraft powered by a turbojet engine. Its 1939 flight is widely recognized as the first flight by a turbojet-powered aircraft, giving Heinkel a foundational place in the history of jet aviation.
Night fighter · 1943
Heinkel He 219 Uhu
A German night-fighter design developed for Luftwaffe service. The He 219 incorporated advanced features for its era, including retractable tricycle landing gear and ejection seats. Production and operational use were limited by wartime constraints and institutional conflict, but the aircraft remains one of Heinkel’s most technically distinctive military designs.
Jet fighter · 1945
Heinkel He 162 Spatz
A lightweight, single-engine jet fighter developed late in the Second World War under Germany’s emergency fighter program. It used retractable tricycle landing gear, a turbojet from its first flight, and an ejection seat. The aircraft entered service only shortly before Germany’s surrender and had little opportunity to affect the war.
Motor scooter
Heinkel Tourist
A large postwar touring scooter marketed for reliability, comfort, and weather protection. Its full fairing and relatively substantial construction distinguished it from lighter urban scooters, making it one of Heinkel’s best-known postwar mobility products.
Microcar · 1956
Heinkel Kabine
A small bubble car introduced in 1956 with a unit body and a four-stroke single-cylinder engine. It competed with the BMW Isetta and Messerschmitt KR200. Heinkel production ended in 1958, but licensed production continued in Ireland and later through Trojan Cars in the United Kingdom until 1966.
Military aircraft manufacturing
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter licensed production
After postwar restrictions eased, Heinkel participated in licensed production of Lockheed F-104 Starfighters for the West German Luftwaffe. This work marked the company’s return to aircraft manufacturing before its absorption into Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke.
Controversies
1941
Forced labor from Sachsenhausen concentration camp
During the Second World War, Heinkel was a major user of forced labor from Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Reference accounts state that approximately 6,000 to 8,000 prisoners were employed in Heinkel production. The use of concentration-camp labor is a central issue in the company’s historical record and reflects its integration into the Nazi armaments economy.
Brand decisions
1965
Accept absorption into Vereinigte Flugtechnische WerkeM&ABackground
The postwar German aircraft industry was consolidated into larger aerospace groupings.
Action taken
Heinkel was absorbed by Vereinigte Flugtechnische Werke.
Aftermath
The Heinkel identity ceased to represent an independent aircraft manufacturer; the successor chain later led through MBB toward Airbus.
1956
Enter the microcar market with KabineProduct launchBackground
Postwar restrictions on aircraft manufacturing encouraged Heinkel to diversify into small personal-transport products.
Action taken
Heinkel launched the Kabine bubble car to compete with the BMW Isetta and Messerschmitt KR200.
Aftermath
Heinkel ended production in 1958, while licensed manufacture continued in Ireland and the United Kingdom until 1966.
1942
Concentrate resources on bomber productionStrategyBackground
German aviation authorities prioritized bomber output and did not support Heinkel’s He 280 jet fighter for production against the competing Messerschmitt program.
Action taken
Heinkel was directed toward bomber work while the Me 262 received priority as Germany’s principal jet-fighter program.
Aftermath
The He 280 remained a prototype, and Heinkel’s jet-fighter effort reached operational service only much later with the He 162.
1939
Proceed with experimental rocket and jet aircraftProduct launchBackground
Heinkel pursued experimental propulsion at a time when aviation was moving beyond conventional piston engines.
Action taken
The company developed and flew the He 176 liquid-fueled rocket aircraft and He 178 turbojet aircraft.
Aftermath
The flights established major aviation milestones, although neither prototype became a production aircraft.
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