The Messerschmitt Bf 109, sometimes incorrectly called the Me 109 (most often by Allied pilots and aircrew)*, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid-1930s. It was one of the first truly modern fighters of the era, including such features as all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, a retractable landing gear, and was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. The Bf 109 first saw operational service during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the dawn of the jet age at the end of World War II, during which time it was the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force.
Development
In late March 1933 the RLM published the tactical requirements for a single-seat fighter in the document L.A. 1432/33 to replace the Arado Ar 64 and Heinkel He 51 biplanes then in service.. The fighter needed to have a top speed of 400 km/h (250 mph) at 6,000 m (19,690 ft), to be maintained for 20 minutes, while having a total flight duration of 90 minutes. The critical altitude of 6,000 metres was to be reached in no more than 17 minutes, and the fighter was to have an operational ceiling of 10,000 metres. Along with this came engine specifications and armaments requirements were also included. The performance was to be evaluated based on the fighter's level speed, rate of climb, and manoeuvrability, in that order.
The designers of the Bf 109, Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser, had previously developed the Bf 108 "Taifun" (Typhoon) as a sports and touring aircraft. The type featured all-metal stressed skin construction, an enclosed crew cabin with seating for four, a wholly-retractable undercarriage and low-set monoplane wings. It first flew in 1934 and was introduced in 1935 and went on to set several air records for endurance. Within time, it also went on to serve the German Luftwaffe in the liaison role as well as a personal transport for staff. Some 885 examples would ultimately be produced. The design fundamentals went into the design of the Messerschmitt Bf 109.
Design work on Messerschmitt Project Number P.1034 began in March 1934, just three weeks after the development contract was awarded. The basic mock-up was completed by May, and a more detailed design mock-up was ready by January 1935. The RLM designated the design as type "Bf 109," the next available from a block of numbers assigned to BFW. The Commission ultimately ruled in favour of the Bf 109 because of the Messerschmitt test pilot's demonstration of the 109's capabilities during a series of spins, dives, flick rolls and tight turns, throughout which the pilot was in complete control of the aircraft. In March 1936, the RLM received news that the British Supermarine Spitfire had been ordered into production. It was felt that a quick decision was needed in order to get the winning design into production as soon as possible, so on 12 March the RLM announced the results of the competition in a document entitled Bf 109 Priority Procurement, which ordered the Bf 109 into production.
The Messerschmitt 109 made its public debut during the 1936 Berlin Olympics, when the V1 prototype was flown.
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Variants
The Bf 109A designation served primarily as a pre-production version. This provided the route for the first formal production model to emerge in February of 1937 - the Bf 109B 'Bertha'. Still with an underpowered 670-700 PS (660-690 HP) Junkers Jumo 210 series engines the expected performance of the Bf 109 had not been fully realised. In that summer, the German government sent several pre-series(Bf 109B's) examples to fight in the Spanish Civil War under the German Luftwaffe "Condor Legion" banner on the side of the Nationalists. Fighter pilots such as Adolf Galland and Werner Molders developed new fighter tactics for use in the Luftwaffe. Also, this was an excellent testing area for testing other equipment such as the Ju87 'Stuka' and the He 111 bombers against opponents flying planes like the Soviet I-16.
Following the C-model, the Bf 109D 'Dora' arrived with a new Daimler-Benz DB 600A series inline engine. While operational for small time, they performed well in Spain and Poland, however, after the drubbing of 8 from the 30 Bf 109D's of JGr.102 (4 shot down, 4 severely damaged) who encountered nine French Hawk 75's (1 crash landed) escorting a Potez 63 on the 6th of November, 1939 and suffered 25% casualities and were quickly withdrawn from front line service. From the next variant on, it would be commonly referred to as the 'Me 109' mainly by the Allies, as opposed to the German use of 'Bf 109'*.
The Bf 109E 'Emil' was fitted with the Daimler-Benz DB 601 series inline piston engine of 1,050 horsepower. The Bf 109E-1 production model was given 2 x 7.92mm machine guns in the engine cowling with 2 x 7.92mm machine guns in the wings. The E-3 wing armament varied with the installation of 2 x 20mm cannons with 60 rpg as the troublesome 20mm nose cannon was still being rectified. It was used from operationally from late 1939 through the Battle of Britain and for a while till the newer F variants became operational. Other countries such as Romania continued to use the 'E' variants well into 1942.
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Prior to the war the Kriegsmarine had the idea of building an aircraft carrier(KGM 'Graf Zeppelin'). Borrowing ideas from the British and Japanese, they started the construction of the Graf Zeppelin as part of the rebuilding of the navy. The air group for the carrier was settled on Messerschmitt Bf 109T fighters and Ju87C dive bombers. The suffix 'T' denotes Träger (carrier) in German use, though it's pilots nicknamed it Toni. 70 Bf 109E frames using the DB601N engines, along with adding a tail-hook, catapult fittings and increasing the wingspan to 11.08 m (36.35 ft) were ordered. The ailerons were increased in span, as were the slats, and flap travel was increased. Since the Graf Zeppelin was being designed to use existing Bf 109 fighters, its elevators were wide enough for the increased wingspan of the Bf 109T. After seven T-1s were built, the carrier project was cancelled. The remaining 63 of 70 T-1s were built as T-2s without carrier equipment and were initially assigned to 1./JG.77, deployed in Norway on landing strips which were both short and subject to frequent, powerful cross-winds. Eventually they were reassigned to Jagdstaffel Helgoland as part of 2./JG11 and were activated on the 7th of April 1943, commanded by Oberleunant Herman Hintzen as part of the Defence of the Reich, guarding the North Sea.
An improved form - though initially available in October of 1940 - was delayed in quantitative production until the spring of 1941 was the Bf 109F 'Friedrich'. A new more powerful inline piston engine (Daimler-Benz DB 601E/N) was fitted and aerodynamic refinements were introduced all about the fuselage to help streamline the design for the better. The tail wheel was now fully retractable which improved airflow under the empennage and a new large spinner was added as a cap over the three-bladed propeller assembly. Though one of the best designs of the Bf 109's, it lacked the heavy firepower capable of bringing down the new 4-engined bombers unless the pilot was good or lucky.
Later in the war, an unusual combination was the Ju88 'Mistel' (eng:mistletoe) and a Bf 109F. The first conversion combined the Ju 88A-4 and a Bf 109F4, which proved sufficiently successful for Junkers to be contracted to convert 15 Ju88A airframes to the Mistel. The lower component was stripped of nonessential equipment but retained a two-crew layout for training. The nose section could be completely removed by quick-release bolts and an 8,378 lbs (3800 kg) warhead attached.
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Gustav Version
The next evolution in the German series brought about the Bf 109G 'Gustav' in late 1942. Nicknamed by Luftwaffe personnel as Die Beule ("the bump/bulge") because of the cowling's characteristic, bulging covers for the breeches of the 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine guns it was largely appreciated by its pilots and marked by students of the war as the most prolific of the series as a whole. This mark introduced the Daimler-Benz DB 605 series inline piston engine of 1,475 horsepower. The powerplant brought along with it increased performance specifications which, therefore, allowed for a more potent armaments loadout. The Bf 109G-1 mark was completed with a pressurized cockpit and supercharged engine for high-altitude work. The Bf 109G-2 brought along the same impressive performance and armament but with a loss of the complex pressurization system. They were fitted with the Daimler-Benz DB 605 A-1 series engines of 1,475 horsepower and an armament of 1 x 20mm cannon in the nose with 150rpg and 2 x 7.9mm MG17 fuselage mounted machine guns with 500 rpg. The Bf 109G-5 was given an 1,800 horsepower engine with emergency fuel injection system for short bursts of power at altitude. The Bf 109G-6 utilized a lethal armament loadout of 1 x 30mm cannon in the propeller hub, 2 x 20mm cannons under the wings (Kannonboote) and 2 x 13mm MG131 machine guns in the nose. This form could be used as a fighter-bomber with a 1,102lb loadout as well. It was the G-6 mark that went on to become the definitive Bf 109G sub-variant mark.
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Two other major variants of the 'G' were the G-10 and the G-14. Unusually, the G-14 entered service before the G-10. The only immediate differences between the nose of a Regensburg's "late" G-14/AS and a WNF's G-10 or a K-4 were the two access hatches already mentioned, that on the G-10/K-4 were in a higher position due to the larger annular (50 lt.) oil tank and the higher "cold weather starting device". Another major difference between the G-14/AS and a G-10 was however hidden under the "chin bulges" of the lower cowl: in fact, once open, it was clearly visible that on a "late" G-14/AS the oil return tubing was running inside the forward lower panel outline, while on the DB 605 D-equipped versions, the same tubing had a deeper route, necessitating a "slit" cut out in the same lower panel and thus requesting the bulge. In early 1943, Messerschmitt started working on an improved 109, the K. The K was essentially a refined G6 with emphasis on improving the aerodynamics, flight controls and cockpit ergonomics. There was no engine limitation and as with the G, a wide selection of versions powered with the DB605A & D families were forecast. Implementation differed from design, however, and in the spring 1944, the G6 was still the only Bf 109 mass produced. It had evolved a bit from the first G6 produced, having seen the following changes :
- Erla Haube('Galland Hood')
- Glass head armor
- DB605AS
- DB605AM
- Tall metal or wood tail & Rudder
- Tall tail wheel
- MW-50 Water-methanol overboost
- MK108 axial canon
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Most of these above became standard as production continued. Because of these delays and other new high performance fighters entering mass production (Ta152, Fw 190D, Me 262), the conversion of all existing factory lines to the K production was meaningless. Having developed the type for some time, Messerschmitt was however allowed to switch from the G6 to the K4 as soon as possible. Sometime during June 44, a new interim version of the G was planned. It was supposed to incorporate the latest equipments found on the G6 and K4 (Erla Haube, tall tail, tall tail wheel, Fug 16ZY & MW-50) and to be powered by the same DB605D. The version number was the first available for unpressurized planes : The Bf 109 G-10 was developed. The aim of this new version was to provide a K4-level fighter without retooling existing production lines and to use up the massive stock of G6 components. Externally, the G10 airframe was identical to the G6-MW50 . It had the Erla canopy, the tall tail wheel, the extra hatch on the right side to refill the MW50, the Morane antenna and the 'battery box' behind the head armor. However, because factories switched to the G10 production at different times, big differences existed.
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The final operational Bf 109 model became the Bf 109K 'Kurfurst' and this version was based on the Bf 109G series G14 and G-10 improvements with further aerodynamic improvements. The initial K-model production mark appeared in September of 1944 and these were identified by their larger propeller spinners, revised fuselages, increased vertical tail fin area and new cockpit canopy with improved all-around vision ('Galland Hood'). It also had the retractable tailwheel reintroduced and the only model to have retractable wheel flaps. The engine of choice became the Daimler-Benz DB 605 ASCM series which promised 2,000 horsepower output in extreme circumstances. The initial production variant was the Bf 109K-2 appearing in November of 1944. The K-2 mark was joined by the Bf 109K-4 which brought along a cockpit pressurization system. The K-4 was armed with 1 x 30mm MK108 engine mounted cannon(which was prone to jamming after only a few rounds) in the nose and 2 x 13mm MG131 nose mounted machine guns and could reach and altitude of 41,000 feet. The Bf 109K-6 was developed as a bomber interceptor and appropriately armed for the role with 1 x 30mm cannon in the nose, 2 x cannon pods under the wings and 2 x 13mm MG131 machine guns in the nose. The Bf 109K-14 was given a Daimler-Benz DB 605L series inline piston engine of 1,700 horsepower and intended for high-altitude fighting. Some 700 K variants were delivered to units before the end of the war.
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In Service
The Bf 109 first saw operational service during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the dawn of the jet age at the end of World War II, during which time it was the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. Originally conceived as an interceptor, later models were developed to fulfill multiple tasks, serving as bomber escort, fighter-bomber, day-, night-, all-weather fighter, ground-attack aircraft, and as reconnaissance aircraft. It was supplied to and operated by several Axis Partners, including Switzerland during World War II, and served with several countries for many years after the war. From the end of 1941, it began to be partially replaced in Western Europe by a new German fighter, the Focke Wulf Fw190, but it continued to serve in a multitude of roles on the Eastern Front and in the Defense of the Reich, as well as in the Mediterranean Theatre of Operations and with Erwin Rommel's Afrikakorps. It was also supplied to several of Germany's allies, including Finland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Slovakia. Despite mixed results over Britain, with the introduction of the improved Bf 109F in early 1941, the type again proved to be an effective fighter during the Invasion of Yugoslavia (where it was used by both sides), the Battle of Crete, Operation Barbarossa (the invasion of the USSR) and the Siege of Malta. Later in the war, when Allied victories began to bring the fight closer, and then in German territory, bombing raids supplied plenty of targets for the Luftwaffe. This unique combination of events - until a major change in American fighter tactics occurred very early in 1944 (Operation 'Big Week'), that steadily gave the Allies daylight air supremacy over the Reich - led to the highest-ever individual pilot victory scores.
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Fighter flown by Aces
More aerial kills were made with the Bf 109 than any other aircraft of World War II. Many of the aerial victories were accomplished against poorly trained and badly organized Soviet forces in 1941 during Operation Barbarossa. The Soviets lost 21,200 aircraft at this time, about half to combat. If shot down, the Luftwaffe pilots might land or parachute to friendly territory and return to fight again. The Bf 109 was flown by the three top-scoring German fighter aces of World War II, who claimed 928 victories among them while flying with Jagdgeschwader 52, mainly on the Eastern Front, as well as by Hans-Joachim Marseille, the highest scoring German ace in the North African Campaign(158 kills). It was also flown by several other aces from Germany's allies, notably Finn Ilmari Juutilainen, the highest scoring non-German ace on the type with 58 victories flying the Bf109G, and pilots from Italy, Romania, Croatia, Bulgaria and Hungary. One hundred and five Bf 109 pilots were each credited with the destruction of 100 or more enemy aircraft. Thirteen of these men scored more than 200 kills, while two scored more than 300 (Erich Hartmann - 351 kills and Gerhard Barkhorn - 301 kills). Altogether, this group of pilots were credited with a total of nearly 15,000 kills. More aerial kills were made with the Bf 109 than any other aircraft of World War II.
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Post War
Through constant development, the Bf109 remained competitive with the latest Allied fighter aircraft until the end of the war. Final development of the Bf 109 was the Czechslovakian Avia S-199. It was constructed with parts and plans left over from Luftwaffe aircraft production that had taken place under the country's German occupation during the war. Married between the Bf 109 airframe and the Junkers Jumo radial engine(there were no Daimler Benz engines available) and it was not a good combination, causing it to pull sharply to the left, even when idling. Despite the aircraft's numerous problems and unpopularity with its pilots, it achieved fame as the first fighter obtained by the Israeli Air Force, for use during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Czechoslovak pilots nicknamed it 'Mezek' ('Mule'), while in Israel it was officially known as the 'Sakeen' ('knife' in Hebrew). In practice, the aircraft was more often called Messerschmitt or 'Messer' (which also means 'knife', in German and Yiddish).
Bf 109s remained in foreign service for many years after World War II. The Swiss used their Bf 109Gs well into the 1950s. The Finnish Air Force did not retire their Bf 109Gs until March 1954. Romania used its Bf 109s until 1955. The Spanish Bf 109s Hispanos flew even longer and were used in the making of the movie "Battle of Britain" in 1969. The Bf 109 was the most produced fighter aircraft in the Luftwaffe, with a total of 33,984 airframes produced from 1936 up to April 1945.
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*Bf 109 was the official Reichsluftfahrtministerium designation, since the design was sent in by the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke company. The company was renamed Messerschmitt after Willy Messerschmitt acquired it in 1938, but only some late-war aircraft actually carried the Me 109 designation stamped onto their aircraft type plates(those built in Leipzig). Me 109 was the name used officially by the Luftwaffe propaganda publications as well as by the Messerschmitt company and the Luftwaffe personnel, who pronounced it 'may hundred-nine'. Me 109 (pronounced 'emm ee one-oh-nine') was the contemporary English interpretation of the designation. However, in both wartime and contemporary literature, both the "Bf" and "Me" prefixes are used, and both are considered valid and accurate.
*Source: Wikipedia
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