Flyhistorisk Museum Sola · Other exhibits
Funkmessortungsgerät FuMo 214 «Würzburg-Riese»
Würzburg-Riese radar was developed just before World War II. It allowed the Germans to track aircraft up to 70 km away. The radar was too large and bulky to be mobile, but it was still a remarkable innovation. Inside the control booth, four men sat and watched the screens.
The radars were part of the extensive fortifications along the coasts of Norway and Europe. When German fighter aircraft went out to attack enemy bombers, the radars often worked in pairs: one tracked friendly aircraft, the other tracked the enemy.
Earlier German radars were smaller and of much lower signal quality. The first Würzburg radars arrived in Rogaland in April 1940. The first unit had a range of about 40 km and was intended to detect enemy aircraft approaching Sola. Later, a radar station was built at Nærbø with three Würzburg radars. The station was part of the Atlantic Wall, a defense system designed to protect German-occupied Europe from a seaborne invasion. The Atlantic Wall stretched from Southern France to Kirkenes in Northern Norway. Along the coast, a large number of Würzburg radars were installed, probably well over 20 just in Norway.
THE MUSEUM’S AIRCRAFT
The museum’s radar originally stood at Vigra near Ålesund. After the war, it was moved to the Northern Lights Observatory in Tromsø, where it was modified. Later, it was dismantled and transported to Gardermoen, where it remained in storage for many years. In 1997, the museum received it as a donation from the Norwegian Armed Forces Museum. It was a major undertaking to restore the radar, which was completed in 2011. In preparation for the construction of the museum’s new buildings, the radar was dismantled and will later be installed elsewhere on the site.
The museum’s version is a FuMo 214 Würzburg-Riese. This model was put into service in Berlin in the autumn of 1941 and around 1500 units were produced.
Specifications
- Introduced
- 1940
- Production
- 1500
- Range
- 70 km
- Accuracy
- ±15 m
- Diameter
- 7,5 m
- Rotation
- 360°
- Elevation
- 0–90°
- Museum number
- FMSG2025.007.01
- Project manager
- Rasmus Svihus, Torkild Jørgensen
- Volunteer hours
- 5530
