Messerschmitt is a famous German aircraft manufacturer, known primarily for their World War II fighter aircraft, notably the Bf 109 and Me 262. The company survived in the post-war era, undergoing a number of mergers and evolving into Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm before being bought by DASA in 1989. An aircraft is any machine capable of atmospheric flight. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for attacking other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed to attack ground targets, primarily by dropping bombs. ... (Bf 109 was the official Reichsluftfahrtministerium designation, though some late_war aircraft actually carried the Me 109 designation stamped onto their aircraft type plates. ... The Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (Swallow) was the first operational jet powered aircraft. ... Luftwaffe Tornado ECR Deutsche Aerospace AG Daimler-Benz Aerospace AG DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG Founded May 19, 1989 as Deutsche Aerospace AG, bundling space and aeronautic elements of Daimler-Benz (including Dornier Luftfahrt), Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (MBB), MTU München, and Telefunken Systemtechnik (TST) In 1992, the helicopter division was...

Background

The Messerschmitt story begins with Professor Willy Messerschmitt joining the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke in 1927 and forming a design team. He promoted a concept he called "light weight construction" in which many typically separate load-bearing parts were merged into a single re-enforced firewall, thereby saving weight and improving performance. The first true test of the concept was in the Bf 108 Taifun sports-plane, which would soon be setting all sorts of records. Based on this performance the company was invited to submit a design for the Luftwaffe's 1935 fighter contest, winning it with the Bf 109 based on the same construction methods. Wilhelm Emil Messerschmitt (June 26, 1898 – September 15, 1978) (known as Willi or Willy) was a German aircraft designer and manufacturer. ... 1927 was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun was a single-engined sports and touring aircraft developed by Bayerische Flugzeugwerke. ... The Luftwaffe (literally, air weapon, pronounced looft-vaaf-feh) is the air force of Germany. ... (Bf 109 was the official Reichsluftfahrtministerium designation, though some late-war aircraft actually carried the Me 109 designation stamped onto their aircraft type plates. ...

From this point on Messerschmitt became a favourite of the Nazi party, as much for his designs as his political abilities and the factory location in southern Germany away from the "clumping" of aviation firms on the northern coast. Messerschmitt AG was incorporated as a separate company on July 11, 1938, with Willy Messerschmitt as chairman and managing director. The renaming of Bayerische Flugzeugwerke to Messerschmitt AG on that date, resulted in the all future types being designated Me instead of Bf. Existing types, such as 109 and 110, retained their earlier designation in official documents, although sometimes the newer designations was used as well. The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... July 11 is the 192nd day (193rd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 173 days remaining. ... 1938 was a common year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Wartime activity

During the war Messerschmitt became a major design supplier, their Bf 109 and Bf 110 forming the vast majority of fighter strength for the first half of the war. Several other designs were also ordered, incluing the enormous Me 321 Gigant transport glider, and its six-engined follow on, the Me 323. However for the second half of the war, Messerschmitt turned almost entirely to jet-powered designs, producing the first operational jet fighter, the Me 262 Schwalbe. They also produced the DFS-designed Me 163 Komet, the first, and only, rocket-powered design to enter service. The Messerschmitt Bf110 (later Me110) was a twin-engine heavy fighter in the service of the Luftwaffe during World War II. History Based around the concept of the long-range Zerstörer or Destroyer Fighter the Bf110 enjoyed some success in the Polish and French campaigns. ... Messerschmitt Me 321 Function: Transport Glider First Flight: March 7, 1941 Service Delivery: June 1941 Final Delivery: April 1942 Dimensions: Wing span: 55m (1805. ... The Messerschmitt Me 323 Gigant was a German transport aircraft of the Second World War. ... See also: Jet (disambiguation) A jet is a stream of fluid produced by discharge through an orifice into free space. ... The Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (Swallow) was the first operational jet powered aircraft. ... The Deutsche Forschungsanstalt für Segelflug, or DFS (German Research Institute for Sailplane Flight) was formed in 1933 to centralise all gliding activity in Germany. ... The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet was the only operational rocket fighter aircraft. ... A Redstone rocket, part of the Mercury program A rocket is a vehicle, missile or aircraft which obtains thrust by the reaction to the ejection of fast moving exhaust gas from within a rocket engine. ...

Messerschmitt had its share of poor designs as well; the Me 210, designed as a follow-on to the 110, was a disaster that almost led to the forced dissolution of the company. The design problems were eventually addressed in the Me 410 Hornisse, but only small numbers were built before all attention turned to the 262. Late in the war, Messerschmitt also worked on a heavy "Amerikabomber" design, the Me 264, which flew in prototype form but was too late to see combat. The Messerschmitt Me 210 was a heavy fighter designed before the start of World War II to replace the Bf 110 in that role. ... The Messerschmitt Me 410 Hornisse (Hornet) was a Luftwaffe heavy fighter of World War II developed from the badly flawed Me 210. ... Categories: Stub | German bomber aircraft 1940-1949 | World War II German heavy bombers | World War II German experimental aircraft ...

Post-war

After WW2 the company wasn't allowed to produce aircraft. One alternative the company came up with was the three wheeled motorcycle/bubble car KR200. According to an urban legend, it's made with old aeroplane parts. This wasn't true, but as it was designed by aircraft engineers, it's probably no coincidence it looks somewhat like an aeroplane. A well known appearance of this car is in Terry Gilliam's Brazil, to great effect. German soldiers at the Battle of Stalingrad World War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the worlds nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. ... A motorcycle (or motorbike) is a two-wheeled vehicle powered by an engine. ... A microcar is a particularly and extremely small automobile. ... Urban legends are a kind of folklore consisting of stories often thought to be factual by those circulating them. ... Terry Gilliam Terence Vance Gilliam (born November 22, 1940 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) is a film director. ...

Return to aviation

In 1968 Messerschmitt AG merged with Bölkow, and one year later the aviation department of Blohm + Voss was added. The company then changed their name to Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm. In 1989 it was taken over by Daimler Benz Aerospace AG 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Bölkow was a German aircraft manufacturer based in Stuttgart. ... On April 5, 1877, Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss founded the Blohm & Voss Schiffswerft und Maschinenfabrik shipbuilding and engineering works as a general partnership. ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Luftwaffe Tornado ECR Deutsche Aerospace AG Daimler-Benz Aerospace AG DaimlerChrysler Aerospace AG Founded May 19, 1989 as Deutsche Aerospace AG, bundling space and aeronautic elements of Daimler-Benz (including Dornier Luftfahrt), Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm (MBB), MTU München, and Telefunken Systemtechnik (TST) In 1992, the helicopter division was...

Messerschmitt aircraft:

• Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun (Typhoon), trainer + transport
• Messerschmitt Bf 109, fighter (later versions designated as Me 109)
• Messerschmitt Bf 110, heavy fighter + night-fighter
• Messeschmitt Bf 161, heavy fighter prototype
• Messerschmitt Bf 162, "Jaguar" bomber (prototype)
• Messerschmitt Bf 163 STOL reconnaissance aircraft (prototypes only) Built by Weserflug AG.
• Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet (Comet), interceptor (rocket-engined)
• Messerschmitt Me 209, fighter + speed-record aircraft (prototype)
• Messerschmitt Me 209-II, fighter (prototype - completely different to Me 209)
• Messerschmitt Me 210, heavy fighter + reconnaissance
• Messerschmitt Me 261, "Adolfine" long-range reconnaissance and record-breaker
• Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (Swallow), fighter + attack (jet-engined)
• Messerschmitt Me 263, interceptor (rocket-engined)
• Messerschmitt Me 264 Amerika (America), long-range bomber (prototype)
• Messerschmitt Me 265 attack aircraft project
• Messerschmitt Me 290, maritime patrol + bomber + reconnaissance
• Messerschmitt Me 309, fighter (prototype)
• Messerschmitt Me 321 Gigant (Giant), transport glider
• Messerschmitt Me 323 Gigant (Giant), transport
• Messerschmitt Me 328 pulsejet parasite fighter
• Messerschmitt Me 329 heavy fighter project, glider prototype said to have test flown at Rechlin in 1945
• Messerschmitt Me 409 heavy fighter, (Me 209 derivative) (project), 1944
• Messerschmitt Me 410 Hornisse (Hornet), heavy fighter + reconnaissance
• Messerschmitt Me 510 twin-engine fighter-bomber (Me 410 derivative) (project)
• Messerschmitt Me 600 "Bussard", rare,provisional designation for project Arthur Sack A.S.7V-1
• Messerschmitt Me 609 heavy fighter + bomber (project)
• Messerschmitt P.1101 prototype jet interceptor with variable-sweep wing, inspiration for Bell X-5
• Messerschmitt-Bolkow-Blohm "Lampyridae" stealth fighter project, 1981

The Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun was a single-engined sports and touring aircraft developed by Bayerische Flugzeugwerke. ... (Bf 109 was the official Reichsluftfahrtministerium designation, though some late-war aircraft actually carried the Me 109 designation stamped onto their aircraft type plates. ... The Messerschmitt Bf110 (later Me110) was a twin-engine heavy fighter in the service of the Luftwaffe during World War II. History Based around the concept of the long-range Zerstörer or Destroyer Fighter the Bf110 enjoyed some success in the Polish and French campaigns. ... The Messerschmitt Bf 162 was a light bomber aircraft designed in Germany prior to World War II that only flew in prototype form. ... The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet was the only operational rocket fighter aircraft. ... Messerschmitts designation Me 209 was actually used for two separate projects during World War II. The first, described below, was a record-setting single-engined race plane for which little or no consideration was given to adaptation for combat. ... Messerschmitts designation Me 209 was actually used for two separate projects during World War II. The first Me 209 was a record-setting single-engined race plane for which little or no consideration was given to adaptation for combat. ... The Messerschmitt Me 210 was a heavy fighter designed before the start of World War II to replace the Bf 110 in that role. ... The Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwalbe (Swallow) was the first operational jet powered aircraft. ... The Messerschmitt Me 263 was a rocket-powered fighter aircraft developed from the Messerschmitt Me 163 towards the end of World War II. Only two airframes were ever completed, and the type seems never to have actually flown under power. ... Categories: Stub | German bomber aircraft 1940-1949 | World War II German heavy bombers | World War II German experimental aircraft ... The Messerschmitt Me 309 was a prototype German fighter designed in the early years of World War II to replace the Messerschmitt Bf 109. ... Messerschmitt Me 321 Function: Transport Glider First Flight: March 7, 1941 Service Delivery: June 1941 Final Delivery: April 1942 Dimensions: Wing span: 55m (1805. ... The Messerschmitt Me 323 Gigant was a German transport aircraft of the Second World War. ... The Messerschmitt Me 328 was originally designed as a parasite fighter to protect Luftwaffe bomber formations during World War II. During its protracted development, a wide variety of other roles were suggested for it. ... The Messerschmitt Me 410 Hornisse (Hornet) was a Luftwaffe heavy fighter of World War II developed from the badly flawed Me 210. ... The Messerschmitt Me 609 was a short-lived project which joined two fuselages of the Me 309 fighter prototype together to form a heavy fighter. ...

External links

• http://www.military.cz/.../lampyridae/Lampyridae.htm
• http://forums.xplanefreeware.net/lofiversion/index.php/t2431.html