09/28/2025
Kurt Waldemar Tank (1898–1983), chief designer at the German aircraft manufacturer Focke-Wulf.
Seen here with the engine of a Focke-Wulf Fw 58 Weihe, Tank was one of Germany’s most prominent aeronautical engineers of the 20th century.
A graduate of the Technical University of Berlin, Tank joined Focke-Wulf in 1931 and became head of design by the mid-1930s. His most famous creation was the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, one of the Luftwaffe’s most successful fighter aircraft, which complemented and in some roles surpassed the Messerschmitt Bf 109.
He also oversaw the development of the Fw 200 Condor long-range bomber/reconnaissance aircraft, the Fw 58 Weihe advanced trainer and transport (pictured here), and later experimental jet and high-performance projects, including the Ta 152 high-altitude fighter.
After the Second World War, Tank continued his career abroad. He worked in Argentina on the IAe Pulqui II jet fighter, then in India, where he helped establish the Hindustan Aeronautics HF-24 Marut, the first indigenous Indian jet fighter.
Kurt Tank died in Munich in 1983, remembered as one of the most versatile and influential aircraft designers of his era.
