Heinkel studied at the Technical Academy of Stuttgart,[1] where he initially became interested in aviation through a fascination with Zeppelins, and in 1909 attended an international airshow in Frankfurt am Main.

He decided that flight was the future of transportation, and the following year he built his first aircraft, working from a set of plans by Henri Farman.

[1] After leaving Albatros, Heinkel designed several land- and seaplanes for the Hansa-Brandenburg company starting in 1914.

[4] After Adolf Hitler came to power, designs by Heinkel's firm formed a vital part of the Luftwaffe's growing strength in the years leading up to the Second World War.

Heinkel was passionate about high-speed flight, and was keen on exploring alternative forms of aircraft propulsion.

Heinkel moved to Vienna and started a new design bureau and corporate offices in Vienna's Schwechat suburb, establishing manufacturing facilities in Zwölfaxing and Floridsdorf as the Heinkel-Sud complex for his firm, the original Rostock-"Marienehe" plant (today's Rostock-Schmarl neighborhood) becoming the Heinkel-Nord facility.

With Germany forbidden from manufacturing aircraft by the Allies, Heinkel used his company's facilities to build private transportation.

In 1959, Heinkel's company was sued by Edmund Bartl for being enriched by slave labour during World War II; however, the German Supreme Court dismissed his claims for filing too late, and ordered Bartl to pay court costs and attorney's fees.