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80-488: The MÁVAG Héja (" Hawk ") was a Hungarian fighter aircraft of World War II based on the Italian Reggiane Re.2000 . The 70 Re.2000s delivered from Italy were converted into MÁVAG Héja Is by being fitted with Hungarian-built Weiss Manfréd WM K-14 engines, armor for the pilot, an additional fuel tank, and being modified in various other ways. The MÁVAG Héja II was an entirely Hungarian-made fighter developed from

160-564: A constitutional monarchy . However, it was obvious that the Allies would not accept any return of the Habsburgs . Earlier, Archduke Joseph August had declared himself regent , but he stood down after two weeks when the Allies refused to recognize him. It was thus decided to choose a regent to represent the monarchy until a settlement could be reached. Miklós Horthy , the last commanding admiral of

240-416: A Hungarian fighter based on the Italian Reggiane Re.2000 Falco I . During his 25th operational sortie , soon after takeoff from an airfield near Ilovskoye , the other pilot flying with him asked Horthy to increase his altitude. István pulled up rapidly. His aircraft (which had become much more prone to stalls after a steel plate was added behind the cockpit of all Héja Is to protect pilots, but shifting

320-552: A Soviet-backed government under Béla Miklós was nominally left in control of the entire country. A High National Council was appointed in January to assume the regency, and included members of the Hungarian Communist Party , like Ernő Gerő , and later Mátyás Rákosi and László Rajk . Upon the kingdom's establishment soon after World War I, the country suffered from economic decline, budget deficits, and high inflation as

400-626: A bad opinion of the Hungarian aviators, expressing this view in early 1942 when Hungary issued another request for German-built fighters. "They would not use the single-seaters against the enemy but just for pleasure flights!... What the Hungarians have achieved in the aviation field to date is more than paltry. If I am going to give some aircraft, then rather to the Croats, who have proved they have an offensive spirit. To date, we have experienced only fiascos with

480-724: A conflict with Romania. However, conflict was avoided, and the Héja Is were used on the Eastern Front in the war against the Soviet Union . The first seven MÁVAG Héja Is were sent to the Eastern Front on an experimental basis during the summer/autumn of 1941. Flying alongside the Fiat CR.32s of 1/3 Fighter Company, the Héja I pilots claimed eight kills for one loss during three months of combat against

560-506: A couple of Messerschmitt Me 210 Ca-1s from the Experimental Air Force Institute (Repülő Kísérleti Intézet, RKI). The Hungarian pilots claimed 11 American aircraft downed, of which six were confirmed, while American pilots claimed 27 Hungarian aircraft shot down. However, later records showed only two Hungarian pilots were killed. On 13 April 1944, Budapest was attacked by 15th Air Force bombers, accompanied by P-38s from

640-629: A few will be alive. [...]" István Horthy died in a much-publicized flying accident in Russia on 20 August 1942 (18 August, according to other authors), He was then serving in the Royal Hungarian Air Force ( Magyar Királyi Honvéd Légierő ), MKHL, with the rank of 1/Lt, as a fighter pilot. His unit, 1/3 Fighter Squadron, was supporting the Hungarian Second Army against Soviet forces. He was flying his MÁVAG Héja I (" Hawk I"), V.421 ,

720-535: A new Nazi-backed government , effectively turning Hungary into a German-occupied puppet state . After World War II, the country fell within the Soviet Union 's sphere of influence. It changed its name to the Hungarian State ( Hungarian : Magyar Állam ) and the Second Hungarian Republic was soon thereafter proclaimed in 1946, succeeded by the communist Hungarian People's Republic in 1949. Upon

800-694: A new conflict in Central Europe; both countries were facing strong diplomatic pressures to avoid any military operations. Finally both parties accepted the arbitration of Germany and Italy, known as the Second Vienna Award , and as a result Northern Transylvania was assigned to Hungary. Shortly afterward, the Kingdom of Hungary joined the Axis powers . Hitler demanded that the Hungarian government follow Germany's military and racial agenda to avoid potential conflict in

880-536: A number of professions. Later it scapegoated the Jews for the country's failing economy. In March 1944, responding to the advancing Soviet forces, Prime Minister Miklós Kállay , with Horthy's backing, established contacts with the Allies in order to open negotiations and switch sides; however, this became known to the Germans, who proceeded to invade Hungary and quickly overran the country, meeting only limited resistance. With

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960-430: A pilot flying above asked István Horthy to increase his altitude, he pulled up too suddenly, stalled and crashed. According to other sources, his aircraft entered a flat spin after he made a turn at low speed to fly in close formation with a He 46 reconnaissance aircraft. Some were convinced that the Germans had sabotaged his aircraft. Nevertheless, the determined Hungarian pilots kept on flying combat missions with

1040-537: A quote from one of his letters, which he sent to his father from Kyiv , Soviet Ukraine : "[...] Yet another sad topic: the Jewish companies, as I hear, -there 20 or 30,000 [men]-, are at the mercy of the sadist's passions, in every regard; the stomach of man gets ache [looking at this]; it is abhorrent, that in the 20th century, it happens at us, too... [...] I fear, we will pay for this very dearly once. (Is it possible to take them home to work there?) Otherwise, in spring, only

1120-517: A result of the loss of economically important territories under the Treaty of Trianon , including to Czechoslovakia , Romania , and Yugoslavia . The land losses of the Treaty of Trianon in 1920 caused Hungary to lose agricultural and industrial areas, making it dependent on exporting products from what agricultural land it had left to maintain its economy. Prime Minister István Bethlen 's government dealt with

1200-508: Is a gas-operated , engine-driven heavy machine gun chambered for 12.7×81mmSR [ it ] as used by the Italian 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT heavy machine gun. Synchronized with the propeller, it is installed in pairs in the upper cowling . These guns had a fast rate of fire of 1,000 rounds per minute each. The 1940.M GKM has a muzzle velocity of 800 m/s and is belt fed with 600 rounds for the two guns, giving it 300 rounds per gun (rpg). This machine gun

1280-464: Is engine-driven; the crankshaft of the aircraft's engine rotates a number of gears inside the machine gun with the assistance of a crank . The bolt is connected to another crankshaft, which rotates when a locking lever is depressed when the gun fires. The Kingdom of Hungary was an ally of Nazi Germany during World War II , with at least one Hungarian squadron flying the MÁVAG Héja I in combat on

1360-508: Is unclear; at any rate, István was killed in an airplane crash in August that year, and a new Deputy Regent was not appointed. During his first ten years, Horthy led increased repression of Hungarian minorities. In 1920, the numerus clausus law formally placed limits on the number of minority students at university, and legalized corporal punishment for adults in criminal cases. Although the law seemingly applied in equal measure to all minorities,

1440-464: The 1st Fighter Group , led by Lieutenant Alford. Pilots of the P-38s reported the downing of two Re.2001s to the west of Lake Balaton , which were actually MÁVAG Héja IIs. The Americans only damaged one of them. As the situation for the Axis worsened, American and British bombing raids on Hungarian factories and infrastructure became common and many unfinished Héja IIs were destroyed, having never left

1520-625: The Austro-Hungarian Navy , was chosen for this position on 1 March. Sándor Simonyi-Semadam was the first prime minister of Horthy's regency. In 1921 Charles returned in Hungary and tried to retake its throne , even trying to march on Budapest with some rebel troops in October 1921; however, his attempts failed as much of the Royal Hungarian Army remained loyal to Horthy and thus Charles

1600-470: The Eastern Front . MÁVAG Héja IIs were not used on the Eastern Front; instead, Héja IIs operated inside Hungary in an air defense role , intercepting bombers or as advanced trainers . When introduced, the modern Héja was an upgrade over the fighters that Hungary was operating , but eventually, it was replaced by the Bf 109 ( F-4 and G variants) when Germany gave Hungary access to them. From October 1942 until

1680-550: The First Vienna Award reassigned the southern parts of Czechoslovakia to Hungary, and shortly after Czechoslovakia was abolished Hungary occupied and annexed the remainder of the Carpatho-Ukraine . After the successful revision policy Hungary sought further solutions to the remainder of its former territories and demanded the concession of Transylvanian territory from Romania. The Axis powers were not interested in opening

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1760-674: The Ford factory in Detroit , Michigan . Returning to the Kingdom of Hungary , he worked in MÁVAG 's locomotive factory in this occupation. On the forefront of the designer team, he took part in the development of many great projects, such as the Class 424 . Between 1934 and 1938, Horthy was director of the company and after 1938 he became its general manager. In 1940, he married Countess Ilona Edelsheim-Gyulai . István

1840-618: The Hungarian prime minister . The succession after Horthy's death or resignation was never officially established; presumably the Hungarian Parliament would have selected a new regent, or possibly attempted to restore the Habsburgs under Crown Prince Otto . In January 1942, Parliament appointed Horthy's eldest son István as Deputy Regent and expected successor. Whether this represents an attempt to gradually re-establish monarchy in Hungary

1920-774: The Red Army had already reached Budapest and a long siege started , while Szálasi fled the capital. On 21 December 1944, a Hungarian "Interim Assembly" met in Debrecen , with the approval of the Soviet Union. This assembly elected an interim counter-government headed by Béla Miklós , the former commander of the Hungarian First Army . Budapest capitulated in February 1945 and the so-called Government of National Unity, now in exile in Munich ,

2000-415: The Red Army rapidly approaching Ilovskoye airfield, and with no time to heat the engines' frozen oil, mechanics were forced to blow up the last unserviceable Héja Is. The surviving Héjas were kept in Hungary for home defense. Production of Héja IIs in Hungary continued until August 1944: 98 were completed in 1943 and 72 in 1944, although the aircraft was regarded as no longer suitable for combat against

2080-579: The Soviet Air Force . In the summer of 1942, the Hungarian Air Force contributed with its 1st Repülőcsoport (aviation detachment) to the German offensive Fall Blau . 1/1 Fighter Group (1./I Vadász Osztály ), equipped with 13 Héja Is, reached its first front base near Kursk on 2 July. By 3 August, 2/1 FS joined the other Hungarian fighter unit that had moved to Ilovskoye airfield. The task of 2/1

2160-508: The Soviet Union . Fearing a potential turn of support to the Romanians, the Hungarian government sent armed forces to support the German war effort during Operation Barbarossa . This support cost the Hungarians dearly. Almost the entire Second Army Group of the Royal Hungarian Army was lost during the Battle of Stalingrad . By early 1944, with Soviet forces fast advancing from the east, Hungary

2240-490: The Treaty of Trianon on 4 June 1920, thereby reducing Hungary's size substantially: the whole of Transylvania was taken by Romania; much of Upper Hungary became part of Czechoslovakia; Vojvodina was assigned to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (known after 1929 as Yugoslavia); and the Free State of Fiume was created. With a succession of increasingly nationalist prime ministers, Hungary steadily came to resent

2320-710: The Wehrmacht into her territory, thus supporting Germany and Italy in the invasion of Yugoslavia . After the Independent State of Croatia was proclaimed, Hungary joined the military operations and was allowed to annex the Bačka (Bácska) region in Vojvodina , which had a majority of Hungarians, as well as the region of Muraköz (present-day Prekmurje and Medjimurje ), which had large Slovenian and Croatian minorities, respectively. On 27 June 1941, László Bárdossy declared war on

2400-606: The dissolution of Austria-Hungary after World War I, the Hungarian Democratic Republic and then the Hungarian Soviet Republic were briefly proclaimed in 1918 and 1919, respectively. The short-lived communist government of Béla Kun launched what was known as the " Red Terror ", involving Hungary in an ill-fated war with Romania . In 1920, the country fell into a period of civil conflict, with Hungarian anti-communists and monarchists violently purging

2480-497: The 24 Héja Is had suffered accidents (minor and major) within a month of combat deployment. Landing and takeoff accidents were common on the rudimentary Soviet airfields due to the Héja I's unchanged landing gear inherited from the Re.2000 . The Re.2000's landing gear was not as rugged and sturdy as the CR.32 's gear. After a steel plate was added behind the cockpit for the protection of the pilots,

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2560-409: The Eastern Front, Horthy was finally able to remove him in August 1944 and replaced him with the more balanced Géza Lakatos . By October of the same year, the Hungarians were again caught trying to quit the war, and the Germans launched Operation Panzerfaust . They replaced Horthy with Arrow Cross leader Ferenc Szálasi . The Government of National Unity was proclaimed, and it continued the war on

2640-527: The Hungarian state of the 1930s and '40s can be classified as fascist. According to Richard Griffiths , the regime's increasing economic dependence on Germany, its passage of antisemitic legislation and its participation in exterminating local Jews all place it within the realm of international fascism. 47°29′54″N 19°02′25″E  /  47.49833°N 19.04028°E  / 47.49833; 19.04028 Istv%C3%A1n Horthy Vitéz István Horthy de Nagybánya (9 December 1904 – 20 August 1942)

2720-774: The Hungarians." So, the Hungarian Air Force (MKHL) obtained much of their aircraft from Italy instead. This would change in October 1942, from which point the Germans would give the Hungarians modern German aircraft and their licenses. On 27 December 1939, seventy Reggiane Re.2000 fighters were purchased from Italy. These were delivered to the Magyar Királyi Állami Vas-, Acél- és Gépgyárak , ("Royal Hungarian State Iron, Steel and Machine Works"), where they were modified into MÁVAG Héja I (" Hawk I ") fighters. The original Italian Piaggio P.XI engines were replaced by Hungarian Weiss Manfréd WM K-14 engines driving Hamilton Standard three-bladed, constant-speed propellers instead. The WM K-14

2800-470: The Héja I and scoring a number of kills against Soviet aircraft . When they managed to force their Soviet opponents into a dogfight , thanks to the great maneuverability of the Héja, the Hungarian pilots were often successful. The Héja Is flew their last sorties on the Soviet front on 14 and 15 January 1943, when they took off for uneventful patrols and reconnaissance missions . Between 16 and 19 January, with

2880-460: The Héja I in Hungary. This new aircraft became the MÁVAG Héja II (" Hawk II" ). The Héja II was entirely Hungarian with locally produced airframes , engines and armament, which was changed to twin 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Gebauer 1940.M GKM (Gebauer Motorgéppuska 1940.Minta GKM) engine-driven machine guns in the upper cowling with 300 rounds per gun (rpg). These were significantly better than

2960-399: The Héja I, but with even more changes, including replacing the Italian machine guns with better Hungarian ones and installing a more powerful Hungarian engine. 204 Héja IIs were built by MÁVAG for the Royal Hungarian Air Force (Magyar Királyi Honvéd Légierő, MKHL). Héjas were used in operations against the Soviet Union alongside German units and in the defense of Hungary. Even before

3040-773: The MKHL still deployed four Héja IIs in 1/1 Fighter squadron and four Héja IIs in 1/2, all of them based in Szolnok for home defense duties, along with about 40 Bf 109s and Messerschmitt Me 210s . On 2 April 1944, 180 bombers from the USAAF 15th Air Force , escorted by 170 fighters, bombed the Danube Aircraft Works and other targets in Budapest . The Hungarian Fighter Control Center on Gellért hill , near Budapest, scrambled one wing of Héjas from 1/1 Fighter squadron, along with 12 Bf 109 Gs and

3120-453: The Nazis, became the new Hungarian prime minister . Sztójay governed with the aid of a Nazi military governor, Edmund Veesenmayer : he legalized the antisemitic and pro-Nazi Arrow Cross Party , started to deport Hungarian Jews en masse to Germany and initiated a violent crackdown on liberal and leftist opposition. Increasingly appalled by Sztójay's methods and alarmed by the imminent collapse of

3200-693: The Re.2000. The first production MÁVAG Héja II took to the air on 30 October 1942. A further 203 Héja IIs were built by MÁVAG for the Royal Hungarian Air Force, with the last aircraft being completed on 1 August 1944. According to other sources, between 170 and 203 Héja IIs were constructed. The Gebauer machine guns are very complicated but advanced vehicle mounted Hungarian machine guns, usually with very high rates of fire . The Gebauer machine guns were designed by Ferenc Gebauer and produced by Danuvia Engineering Industries Rt . The 12.7 mm Gebauer 1940.M GKM

3280-467: The Re.2000s received by Hungary were poorly sealed, with many of them leaking. When these Re.2000s were modified into Héja Is, the wing fuel tanks were left unchanged, so this issue remained, and many flew with constantly leaking fuel tanks. On the Héja II, the larger (often leaking) fuel tanks in the wings were replaced with 22 smaller 20-25 L ones, therefore increasing the manufacturing complexity and weight of

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3360-451: The Treaty of Trianon, and aligned itself with Europe's two fascist states, Germany and Italy, which both opposed the changes to national borders in Europe at the end of World War I. The Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini sought closer ties with Hungary, beginning with the signing of a treaty of friendship between Hungary and Italy on 5 April 1927. Gyula Gömbös was an open admirer of

3440-588: The Treaty of Trianon, which it mostly did in early 1941 after the First and Second Vienna Awards and after joining the German invasion of Yugoslavia . By 1944, following heavy setbacks for the Axis, Horthy's government negotiated secretly with the Allies, and also considered leaving the war. Because of this Hungary was occupied by Germany and Horthy was deposed . The extremist Arrow Cross Party 's leader Ferenc Szálasi established

3520-410: The aircraft. Surprisingly, the fuel tank changes noticeably improved the fighter's stability by reducing fuel sloshing in the tank. Yaw stability was poor and the Héja I's predisposition to sideslip was very dangerous at low altitude (killing István Horthy ), moreover the subsequent mass increase of the Héja II worsened this issue. A decision was soon made to produce an improved, domestic version of

3600-485: The border territories outside the new borders of the kingdom, in the Kingdom of Romania and the newly created states of Czechoslovakia and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (in greatly enlarged Romania there also remained a significant Hungarian population in Székely Land ). Republican Austria , the successor of the former other half of the dual monarchy also received some minor territory from Hungary. Thus

3680-486: The changes to the electoral system were reversed. Social conditions in the kingdom did not improve as time passed, as a very small proportion of the population continued to control much of the country's wealth. Jews were continually pressured to assimilate into Hungarian mainstream culture. The desperate situation forced the Regent, Horthy, to accept the far-right politician Gyula Gömbös as prime minister. He pledged to retain

3760-506: The communists, leftist intellectuals, and others whom they felt threatened by, especially Jews. This period was known as the " White Terror ". In 1920, after the pullout of the last of the Romanian occupation forces, the Kingdom of Hungary was restored. After the collapse of the short-lived Communist regime, according to historian István Deák : On 29 February 1920, a coalition of right-wing political forces united and returned Hungary to being

3840-462: The country now under German occupation, Horthy was forced to remove Kállay from his position and appoint pro-Nazi politician Döme Sztójay as the new prime minister. Sztójay legalized the antisemitic and pro-Nazi Arrow Cross Party , deported large numbers of Hungarian Jews to Germany and initiated a violent crackdown on liberal and leftist opposition. As the months went by, Horthy became increasingly appalled by Sztójay's brutal methods and alarmed by

3920-491: The country, especially in part due to the economic effects of the failure of the Österreichische Creditanstalt bank in Vienna , Austria. From the mid-1930s to the 1940s, after relations improved with Germany, Hungary's economy benefited from trade. The Hungarian economy became dependent on that of Germany. Initially, despite a move towards nationalism , the new state under Horthy, in an effort to prevent further conflicts, signed

4000-465: The economic crisis by seeking large foreign loans, which allowed the country to achieve monetary stabilization in the early 1920s. He introduced a new currency in 1927, the pengő . Industrial and farm production rose rapidly, and the country benefited from flourishing foreign trade during most of the 1920s. Following the start of the Great Depression in 1929, the prosperity rapidly collapsed in

4080-451: The electoral system was changed to reintroduce an open vote system outside Budapest and its vicinity and cities with county municipal rights. Bethlen's political party, the Party of Unity , won repeated elections. Bethlen pushed for revision of the Treaty of Trianon . After the collapse of the Hungarian economy from 1929 to 1931, national turmoil pushed Bethlen to resign as prime minister. In 1938

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4160-414: The end of the war, Hungarian pilots flew Bf 109s – both those supplied by Germany and those that were license produced in Hungary. The Bf 109 became Hungary's main fighter and bore the brunt of the fighting, while Héjas remained as reserves and trainers. MÁVAG Héja Is were first sent to Debrecen to strengthen home defenses, as there was a danger that the growing crisis over Transylvania could lead to

4240-449: The ethnicity quota system was never fully introduced and the law acted largely to conceal anti-Jewish action from foreign observers. Limitations were relaxed in 1928. Racial criteria in admitting new students were removed and replaced by social criteria. Five categories were set up: civil servants, war veterans and army officers, small landowners and artisans, industrialists, and the merchant classes. Under István Bethlen as Prime Minister

4320-435: The existing political system. Gömbös agreed to abandon his extreme antisemitism and allow some Jews into the government. In power, Gömbös moved Hungary towards a one-party government like those of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany . Pressure by Nazi Germany for extreme antisemitism forced Gömbös out and Hungary pursued antisemitism under its "Jewish Laws". Initially, the government passed laws restricting Jews to 20 percent in

4400-415: The factory. Material shortages also hit Hungary hard, causing many complete Héja IIs to be grounded. A lack of spare parts also meant that many Héja IIs would just have to idly wait for these instead of being used in combat. During the last months of 1944, the 101/6 Training Squadron of the famous 101st Home Air Defence Fighter Wing "Pumas" had six flying Héja IIs. The last official report mentioning Héja IIs

4480-399: The fascist leaders. Gömbös attempted to forge a closer trilateral unity between Germany, Italy and Hungary by acting as an intermediary between Germany and Italy, whose two fascist regimes had nearly come to conflict in 1934 over the issue of Austrian independence. Gömbös eventually persuaded Mussolini to accept Hitler's annexation of Austria in the late 1930s. Gömbös is said to have coined

4560-552: The future. Antisemitism was already an established political cause by the far right in Hungary. In 1944, after the ousting of Horthy by Hitler and before the installation of the National-Socialist Arrow Cross Party, the Hungarian government readily aided Nazi Germany in the deportation of hundreds of thousands of Jews to concentration camps during the Holocaust , where most of them died. In April 1941, Hungary let

4640-465: The latest Soviet fighters and was mostly used as a fighter trainer. Hungary requested that an additional 50–100 Re.2000 airframes be manufactured in Italy, as suitable engines and armament could be locally manufactured; additionally, other countries expressed interest, including Finland (100 examples), Portugal (50), Spain, Switzerland and Yugoslavia. However, no airframes were available by then. By April 1944,

4720-464: The monarchy as a form of government, and Hungarian newspapers continued to refer to the country as the Kingdom of Hungary ( Magyar Királyság ), although Magyarország (Hungary) was used as an alternative. From May to June 1944, Hungarian authorities rapidly rounded up and transported hundreds of thousands of Hungarian Jews to Nazi concentration camps, where most died. After the fall of the Szálasi regime,

4800-483: The original Italian 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns , as they had a higher rate of fire, a higher muzzle velocity, and were more reliable. The MÁVAG Héja II retained some of the changes from the Héja I and also had a newer, more powerful (1085 hp) Hungarian engine – the WM K-14B, a redesigned cowling , 22 smaller fuel tanks, a larger Hungarian-made Weiss Manfréd propeller, and more changes further differentiating it from

4880-569: The phrase "axis", which he applied to his intention to create an alliance with Germany and Italy; those two countries used it to term their alliance as the Rome–Berlin axis . Just prior to the Second World War, Hungary benefited from its close ties with Germany and Italy when the Munich Agreement obliged Czechoslovakia and Hungary to settle their territorial disputes by negotiation. Finally,

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4960-400: The plane's center of gravity ) stalled and crashed. According to other sources, his aircraft entered a flat spin after he made a turn at low speed to fly in close formation with a He 46 reconnaissance aircraft. Some were convinced that the Germans had sabotaged his aircraft. His only son, Sharif István Horthy , is a physicist and architect. Hungary honoured István Horthy by issuing

5040-492: The post-1918 kingdom can be described as a rump state . Hungary's interwar politics were dominated by a focus on the territorial losses suffered from this treaty, with the resentment continuing until the present. Nazi Germany 's influence in Hungary has led some historians to conclude that the country increasingly became a client state after 1938. The Kingdom of Hungary was an Axis power during World War II, intent on regaining Hungarian-majority territory that had been lost in

5120-517: The rapidly collapsing Eastern Front . In August 1944, he deposed the pro-German prime minister and installed a more balanced government led by Géza Lakatos , in an effort to engage with the Allies and avoid occupation by the Soviet Union. This did not sit well with Hitler and, in October, German forces overthrew Horthy and Lakatos and installed a puppet regime led by Ferenc Szálasi of the Arrow Cross Party. The Arrow Cross Party never abolished

5200-410: The shift in the aircraft's center of gravity led to more frequent accidents. On 20 August 1942, tragedy struck the Hungarian Regent Miklós Horthy , when 37-year-old István Horthy , Horthy's eldest son, Deputy Regent of Hungary and a Flight Lieutenant in the reserves, was killed in a crash while flying Héja I V.421 with 1/3 Fighter Squadron of the Royal Hungarian Air Force near Ilovskoye . István

5280-429: The side of the Axis . Szálasi did not replace Horthy as regent, but was appointed as the "Leader of the Nation" (" Nemzetvezető" ) and prime minister of the new "Hungarist state". Antisemitic persecution and pogroms increased during Szálasi's regime and his militias were singularly responsible of the murder of 10,000-15,000 Hungarian Jews. The new Quisling regime, however, was to be short-lived, for in November 1944

5360-512: The village of Davidovka, 16 Ilyushin Il-2s and a similar number of LaGG-3s were intercepted by four Héja Is. The Hungarians downed four LaGGs, suffering the loss of the Héja I of Lt Takács, who crash-landed behind his own lines, wounded. However, the Héja I's flight characteristics were markedly different from the Fiat CR.32, from which Hungarian pilots frequently converted. The Héja I was much more prone to handling difficulties, especially stalls and spins , as well as reliability issues. All of

5440-405: The war started, German leaders were reluctant to supply German aircraft to the Royal Hungarian Air Force ( Magyar Királyi Honvéd Légierő , MKHL), which was seen to be focused on home defense and the possibility of conflict with neighboring Romania . Furthermore, the deliveries of German aircraft went primarily to front-line formations rather than to home defense units. Moreover, Adolf Hitler held

5520-442: Was Hungarian regent Admiral Miklós Horthy 's eldest son, a politician, and, during World War II , a fighter pilot. In his youth, István Horthy and his younger brother Miklós Jr. were active members of a Catholic Scout troop of the Magyar Cserkészszövetség ( Hungarian Scout Association ), even though he was a Protestant. Horthy graduated as a mechanical engineer in 1928. He went to the United States for one year and worked in

5600-410: Was a licensed derivative of the French Gnome-Rhône 14K engine that necessitated a 1-foot 3-inch (~40 cm) lengthening of the Héja's forward fuselage to restore the center of gravity to a safe position. The Héja I also had armor for the pilot, an additional 100 L fuel tank (in the fuselage, self-sealing ), a radio, and other changes differentiating it from the Re.2000. The Piaggio P.XI engine itself

5680-432: Was also a derivative of the Gnome-Rhône 14K, but it was less reliable than the original. However, the aircraft also suffered from a number of drawbacks. The Re.2000s received by Hungary had faulty throttles , machine guns that often jammed or were misaligned, canopy panels that fell out during flight, and wing skin damage. These issues led to one aircraft being lost but were eventually corrected. The wing fuel tanks of

5760-592: Was arrested and exiled to Madeira . On 6 November 1921 the Diet of Hungary passed a law nullifying the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 , dethroning Charles IV and abolishing the House of Habsburg's rights to the throne of Hungary. Hungary was a kingdom without royalty. With civil unrest too great to select a new king, it was decided to confirm Horthy as Regent of Hungary. He remained in that powerful president -like status until he

5840-603: Was caught attempting to contact the British and the Americans to secretly escape the war and establish an armistice with the Allies. On 19 March 1944, the Germans responded by invading Hungary in Operation Margarethe . German forces occupied key locations to ensure Hungarian loyalty. They placed Horthy under house arrest and replaced Prime Minister Miklós Kállay with a more pliable successor. Döme Sztójay , an avid supporter of

5920-418: Was characterized by its conservative , nationalist , and fiercely anti-communist character. The government was based on an unstable alliance of conservatives and right-wingers. Foreign policy was characterized by revisionism — the total or partial revision of the Treaty of Trianon , which had seen Hungary lose over 70% of its historic territory along with over three million Hungarians , who mostly lived in

6000-402: Was dated 22 February 1945. It concerned a Héja II that crashed during a training flight. Data from The Complete Book of Fighters and Reggiane Fighters in action General characteristics Performance Armament Related development Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Related lists Kingdom of Hungary (1920%E2%80%931946) Hungary under Horthy

6080-516: Was disbanded at the end of March 1945. Under Soviet occupation , the fate of the Kingdom of Hungary was already determined. A High National Council was appointed as the country's collective head of state until the monarchy was formally abolished on 1 February 1946. The regency was replaced by the Second Hungarian Republic . It was quickly followed by the creation of the Hungarian People's Republic . There has been some debate as to what extent

6160-587: Was overthrown in 1944. Horthy's rule as Regent possessed characteristics such that it could be construed a dictatorship . As a counterpoint, his powers were a continuation of the constitutional powers of the King of Hungary , adopted earlier during the federation with the Austrian Empire . As Regent, Horthy had the power to adjourn or dissolve the Hungarian Diet (parliament) at his own discretion; he appointed

6240-413: Was pro- Western , and he strenuously confronted Nazism , often making his criticism public, despite Hungary being a part of the Axis . In January 1942, he had been elected Deputy Regent, and for some time, the "small regent" enjoyed massive popularity in Hungary. Shortly thereafter, István was sent to the Eastern Front . His humanity, and his disagreement in the " Jewish question " appears even here, too –

6320-493: Was to escort short-range reconnaissance aircraft , while 1/1 would support bombing missions. Combat performance against the Soviet Air Force was satisfactory. On 4 August, the Hungarians claimed their first kills, when Ens Vajda shot down two enemy aircraft. The first Hungarian ace of the war, 2/Lt Imre Pánczél, claimed his first air victories while flying the Héja I, three of them in one sortie, in 1942. The Héja Is had their most successful day on 9 August 1942. That day, near

6400-413: Was very popular in Hungary, was pro-Western , was opposed to the Holocaust and often publicly criticized Nazism , despite Hungary being a part of the Axis . In a highly publicized accident, 1/Lt István Horthy , serving as a fighter pilot with the Hungarian Second Army , died flying his Héja I on 20 (on 18, according to other authors) August 1942, on his 25th operational sortie. Shortly after takeoff,

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