The DB 601 was basically an improved DB 600 with direct fuel injection. Fuel injection required power to be taken off the drive shaft, but in return, improved low-RPM performance significantly and provided aerobatic performance in maneuvers where early versions of carburated engines like the British Rolls-Royce Merlin would lose power when the carburetor float bowl ran dry.
The 601's fuel injection provided a significant boost in performance which its competitor, the Junkers Jumo 210, did not match for some time. By the time the fuel-injected 211 arrived, the 601 had already cemented its place as the engine for high-performance designs like fighters, high-speed bombers, and similar roles. The 211 would be relegated to bombers and transport aircraft. In this respect, the 601 was the counterpart to the Merlin engine of roughly the same size and power.
The DB 601Aa was licence-built in Japan by Aichi as the Atsuta, by Kawasaki as the Ha40, and in Italy by Alfa Romeo as the R.A.1000 R.C.41-I Monsone.
Based on the guidelines laid down by the German "Reichverkehrsministerium" (Reich Ministry of Transport),[1] in 1930 Daimler-Benz began development of a new aero engine of the 30 L (1,800 cu in) displacement class: a liquid-cooled inverted-vee 12-cylinder piston engine.[2] This was designated F4, and by 1931 two prototypes were running on the test bench.[2] These were followed by the improved F4B, which became the prototype for the DB 600.[2]
In 1933, Daimler-Benz finally received a contract to develop its new engine and to build six examples of the DB 600.[2] For the year after, the DB 600 was the only German aero engine in the 30-litre class.[2] In total, 2,281 DB 600s were built.[2]
The DB 601A-1 was a development of the DB 600 with mechanical direct fuel injection. Like all DB 601s, it had a 33.9 litre displacement.[2] The first DB 601A-1 prototype, designated as F4E, was test run in 1935, and an order for 150 engines was placed in February 1937.[2]
Serial production began in November 1937, and ended in 1943, after 19,000 examples of all types were produced.[2]
Up to 1,100 PS (809 kW; 1,085 hp) at sea level with 2,400 rpm, up to 1,020 PS (750 kW; 1,006 hp) at 2,400 rpm and 4,500 m (14,800 ft) altitude, B4 fuel
DB 601 Aa
Up to 1,175 PS (864 kW; 1,159 hp) at sea level with 2,500 rpm, up to 1,100 PS (809 kW; 1,085 hp) at 2,400 rpm and 3,700 m (12,100 ft) altitude, B4 fuel
DB 601 B-1
Same as DB601 A-1 for use in Messerschmitt Bf 110 and/or bomber aircraft (different prop/engine ratio, 1:1.88 instead of 1:1.55)
DB 601 Ba
Similar to Aa for use in Messerschmitt Bf 110 and/or bomber aircraft (different prop/engine ratio, 1:1.88 instead of 1:1.55)
DB 601 M
For use in the Heinkel He 100D 1,175 PS (864.2 kW; 1,158.9 hp)
DB 601 N
Up to 1,175 PS (864 kW; 1,159 hp) at sea level and at 4,900 m (16,100 ft) altitude with 2,600 rpm, C3 fuel
Up to 1,270 PS (934 kW; 1,253 hp) at 2,100 m (6,900 ft) altitude with 2,600 rpm
DB 601 P
Same as DB 601 N for use in Messerschmitt Bf 110 and/or bomber aircraft (different prop/engine ratio, 1:1.88 instead of 1:1.55)
DB 601 E
Up to 1,350 PS (993 kW; 1,332 hp) at sea level with 2,700 rpm, up to 1,320 PS (970 kW; 1,300 hp) with 2.700 rpm at 4,800 m (15,700 ft) altitude, B4 fuel
Up to 1,450 PS (1,066 kW; 1,430 hp) at 2,100 m (6,900 ft) altitude with 2,700 rpm
DB 601 F/G
Same as DB 601 E for use in Messerschmitt Bf 110, Messerschmitt Me 210 and/or bomber aircraft (different prop/engine ratio,1:1.875 (601F), 1:2.06 (601G) instead of 1:1.685)
DB 606 A/B
Project initiated in February 1937, to "twin-up" two DB 601As or Es coupled to work on a single propeller shaft with all-up weight of some 1.5 tonnes;[3] for use in Heinkel He 119 (one DB 606) and Messerschmitt Me 261 (twin DB 606) designs, where they worked well in their prototype airframes; saw first combat use with early Heinkel He 177As - 2,700 PS (1,986 kW) at sea level with a mirror-imaged starboard component engine supercharger. Derided as "welded-together engines"byReichsmarschallHermann Göring in August 1942, from the problems they caused with engine fires in the He 177A during service from their inadequate installation design.[3]
^Schneider, Helmut (Dipl.Ing.) (1944). Flugzeug-Typenbuch. Handbuch der deutschen Luftfahrt- und Zubehör-Industrie 1944 (in German) (Facsimile reprint 1986 ed.). Leipzig: Herm. Beyer Verlag. p. 388. ISBN381120484X.
Bingham, Victor (1998). Major Piston Aero Engines of World War II. Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing. ISBN1-84037-012-2.
Christopher, John (2013). The Race for Hitler's X-Planes: Britain's 1945 Mission to Capture Secret Luftwaffe Technology. Stroud, UK: History Press. ISBN978-0-7524-6457-2.
Gunston, Bill (2006). World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines: From the Pioneers to the Present Day (5th ed.). Stroud, UK: Sutton. ISBN0-7509-4479-X.
Mankau, Heinz and Peter Petrick. Messerschmitt Bf 110, Me 210, Me 410. Raumfahrt, Germany: Aviatic Verlag, 2001. ISBN3-925505-62-8.
Neil Gregor Daimler-Benz in the Third Reich. Yale University Press, 1998
