Germany's Messerschmitt Me 262 Fighter "Schwalbe" (Swallow)1
Design
In 1938 design work first began and the first tailwheeled prototype flew on April 4, 1941.1 It had a nose mounted Junkers Jumo 210 piston engine.1
On November 25, 1941, the first jet aircraft with BMW 003 turbojets that produced 1,000 lbs of thrust.1 The piston engine was still installed and was needed on the 1st flight as the jets failed just before liftoff.1
After the 3rd prototype the BMW engines were replaced by a Junkers Jumo 004 (1,850 lbs of thrust) and resulted in the M3 262's all jet powered flight on July 18, 1942.1
In addition to Hitler's insistence on making the Me 262 into a fighter-bomber there were problems with the engines.1
Production
There were 13 preproduction Me 262A-0s constructed by October 1943.1
The first Me 262A-1a, production model, entered service in June 1944.1
There were 1,433 of all models produced.1 Of these about 500 were lost to bombing.1 Out of the rest there were about 200 that became operational.1
Variants
- A: first production version.1
- A-1a/U1: night fighter.1
- A-1a/U2: reconnaissance version.1
- A-1b: 24 air to air rockets under the wings.1
- A-2a: "Sturmvogel" (Stormbird) was a fighter bomber.1
- A-2a/U1: dive bomber.1
- B: 2 seats for training.1
- B-1a: night fighter.1 First flew in April 1944.1
- B-1a/U1: trainers converted into night fighters with radar.1
- B-2a: night fighter with radar and increased fuel.1
- C: experimental with a bi-fuel BMW 718 rocket motor in the tail.1
Usage
The Me 262s were responsible for about the destruction of 100 allied aircraft.1
Used by Germany.1
| Me 262 A | Me 262 B | Me 262 C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Fighter-bomber1 | Trainer and Night Fighter1 | |
| Crew | 11 | 21 | |
| Engine (Type) | A-1: Junkers Jumo 004B-1 OR -2 OR -3 1 | ||
| Cylinders | |||
| Cooling | |||
| Thrust | 1,980 lb1 | ||
| Dimensions | |||
| Span | 40' 11.5"1 12.48 m1 |
40' 11.5"1 12.48 m1 |
|
| Length | 34' 9.5"1 10.6 m1 |
38' 7"1 | 34' 9.5"1 10.6 m1 |
| Height | 12' 7"1 3.83 m1 |
12' 7" 3.83 m1 |
|
| Weight | |||
| Empty | A-1: 9,742 lb1 A-1: 4,419 kg1 |
||
| Loaded | A-1: 14,101 lb1 A-1: 6,396 kg1 |
||
| Performance | |||
| Speed @ sea level | A-1: 500 mph1 A-1: 805 kph1 |
||
| Speed @ 19,685' / 6,000 m | A-1: 540 mph1 A-1: 869 kph1 |
||
| Climb | A-1: 3,937'/min1 A-1: 1,200 m/min1 |
||
| Service ceiling | A-1: 37,565'1 A-1: 11,450 m1 |
||
| Range on internal fuel | A-1: 526 - 652 miles1 A-1: 846 - 1,049 km1 |
||
| Armament | |||
| Nose | A-1a: 4: 30 mm1 A-1a/U1: 4: 30 mm and 2: 20 mm1 A-2a: 4: 30 mm1 |
||
| Rounds | |||
| Wings | A-1b: Rockets1 | ||
| Rounds | A-1b: 241 | ||
| Propeller hub | |||
| Rounds | |||
| Bombs | A-2a: 1,102 lb1 A-2a: 500 kg1 |
||
| Quantity | |||
| Production |
Sources:
- Aircraft of WWII, Stewart Wilson, 1998
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