Henschel Hs 129 gun camera footage over the Eastern Front

The Henschel Hs 129 was a purpose-designed ground attack aircraft that served with the German Luftwaffe during WWII in North Africa as well as on the Eastern Front.

A key requirement of the original specification was that the aircraft be powered by engines that were not in demand for other designs. The first prototypes fitted with German Argus As 410 inline engines failed to meet performance specifications but a more powerful replacement was found in the French Gnome-Rhône 14M radial and it was with this powerplant that the first B models saw action.

The design was relatively effective when it was first introduced, and saw service on the Eastern Front in a variety of front-line roles. As the war continued and anti-tank support became the main goal, the aircraft was continually up-gunned, fitted with 30mm and 37mm cannon and ultimately mounting a 75 mm anti-tank gun. Only a small number of these B-3 models were produced shortly before the end of WWII in Europe and they had little effect on the battlefield.

0:00 This footage was filmed from early Hs 129 variants with the gun camera mounted in the starboard wing and the aircraft armed only with its internal pairs of 7.92mm machine guns and 20mm cannon and shows various vehicles being shot up, as well as what might have been horses or livestock.

0:34 A final strafing run causes what was likely a vehicle carrying ammunition to detonate.

0:40 This later footage is likely filmed from Hs 129 B-2/R3 variants mounting a 37mm Bordkanone 3,7 autocannon that was the same as fitted to the Junkers Ju 87 G but with a larger magazine capacity.

The first clip shows two runs on what appears to be a British or Canadian-made Valentine tank of which over 3000 were supplied to the Soviet Union. Both the 37mm and 20mm cannon are fired.

0:53 Another Valentine, this time on the move and four 37mm shots are fired of which three strike the target.

Unfortunately the impacts more or less coincide with the cannon firing its next shot, which shakes the camera obscuring the view of the target. In the last frame where the tracer from the first shot is visible, it appears to be heading into the lower turret. After the impact smoke appears to come from the inside of the turret suggesting a successful perforation of the armor. The last frame where the second shot is visible indicates it hit the hull through the tracks, but the actual impact is again obscured by vibration from the third shot. This latter projectile almost clears the vehicle but it manages to strike the auxiliary fuel tank carried on the rear of the tank which bursts into flames. The final shot goes wide as the Hs 129 is already pulling out of its dive.

The Valentine was fairly well armored with 60mm thickness on the turret sides and depending on the variant up to 60mm on the hull sides, however for its tank-hunting role the Hs 129's 37mm cannon was typically loaded with "Hartkernmunition" rounds with a tungsten alloy core. These projectiles were capable of penetrating over 100mm of armor at 100 meters range when struck at 90 degrees so they would have defeated the Valentine's side armor with ease.

1:00 This last run is targeting what appears to be an open-topped self-propelled gun. The only such Soviet vehicle to fit this description used in significant numbers was the SU-76 however it does not match the profile. It is possible that this is in fact a German made Sd.Kfz. 165 "Hummel", captured examples of which were pressed into service by the Red Army.