The General Electric GAU-13/A is a 30 mm electric Gatling-type rotary cannon derived from the GAU-8 Avenger cannon.
88-481: The GAU-13 was developed in the late 1970s for use in gun pod applications for fighter aircraft and attack aircraft use, primarily for air-to-ground and anti-tank attacks. The GAU-13/A is a four-barreled rotary cannon based on the mechanism of the larger GAU-8, sharing the same massive 30 mm ammunition. Like the Avenger, it has a double-ended feed system with reverse clearing to remove unfired rounds. Unlike
176-435: A ram-air turbine . Gun pods increase a vehicle's firepower without occupying internal volume. When not required for a specific mission they can be omitted to save weight. On some vehicles they isolate delicate internal components such as radar from the weapon's recoil and gases, and for jet aircraft allow the weapons to be mounted away from the intakes of the engines, reducing problems of gun-gas ingestion, which may cause
264-484: A 1,230 kW (1,672 PS; 1,649 hp) DB 601R racing engine, set a new world air speed record for landplanes with piston engines of 610.95 km/h (379.63 mph), winning the title for Germany for the first time. Converted from a Bf 109D, the V13 had been fitted with a special racing DB 601R engine that could deliver 1,230 kW (1,672 PS; 1,649 hp) for short periods. Heinkel , having had
352-494: A 20 mm MG FF/M autocannon, the "/M" suffix indicating the capability of firing thin-walled 20mm mine shells , installed internally in each wing. In place of internal wing armament, additional firepower was provided through a pair of 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons installed in conformal gun pods under the wings. The conformal gun pods, exclusive of ammunition, weighed 135 kg (298 lb); and 135 to 145 rounds were provided per gun. The total weight, including ammunition,
440-566: A cut-off system: if one radiator leaked you could fly on the second or close both down and fly at least five minutes more. The pilot was protected by armour-plate from the back, and the fuel tank was also behind armour. Our planes had fuel tanks in the centre of their wings: that's why our pilot got burnt. What else did I like about the Messer? It was highly automatic and thus easy to fly. It also employed an electrical pitch regulator, which our planes didn't have. Our propeller system, with variable pitch
528-447: A disadvantage for a light fighter, decreasing the aircraft's rate of roll and manoeuvrability. As a result, the He 112 V4 which was used for the trials had new wings, spanning 11.5 m (37 ft 8.75 in) with an area of 21.6 m (232.5 ft ). However, the improvements had not been fully tested and the He 112 V4 could not be demonstrated in accordance with the rules laid down by
616-409: A large extent. From the inception of the design, priority was given to easy access to the powerplant, fuselage weapons and other systems while the aircraft was operating from forward airfields . To this end, the entire engine cowling was made up of large, easily removable panels which were secured by large toggle latches. A large panel under the wing centre section could be removed to gain access to
704-499: A novel, complex retractable main undercarriage which proved to be unreliable. Initially, the Bf 109 was regarded with disfavour by E-Stelle test pilots because of its steep ground angle, which resulted in poor forward visibility when taxiing; the sideways-hinged cockpit canopy, which could not be opened in flight (but could be dropped by the emergency arm). They were also concerned about the high wing loading. The Heinkel He 112 , based on
792-456: A piston-engined aircraft was to stand until 1969, when Darryl Greenamyer 's modified Grumman F8F Bearcat , Conquest I , broke it with a 777 km/h (483 mph) record speed. When the Bf ;109 was designed in 1934, by a team led by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser , its primary role was that of a high-speed, short-range interceptor. It used the most advanced aerodynamics of
880-682: A potential weapon to provide suppressive fire for landing forces. The pod was mounted on a standard MAU-12 bomb rack, itself mounted in a standard cargo container. It was believed that four such containers could then be carried on the LCAC. The resulting combination was referenced as the Gun Platform Air Cushion (GPAC). By 1997, the Marines had reportedly acquired the USAF's entire stock of GAU-13/A cannons and GPU-5 pods as surplus. Besides
968-468: A problem with inexperienced pilots, especially during the later stages of the war when pilots received less training before being sent to operational units. At least 10% of all Bf 109s were lost in takeoff and landing accidents, 1,500 of which occurred between 1939 and 1941. The installation of a fixed "tall" tailwheel on some of the late G-10s and −14s and the K-series helped alleviate the problem to
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#17327868652561056-537: A scaled-down Blitz , was the favourite of the Luftwaffe leaders. Compared with the Bf 109, it was also cheaper. Positive aspects of the He ;112 included the wide track and robustness of the undercarriage (this opened outwards from mid wing, as opposed to the 109s which opened from the wing root ), considerably better visibility from the cockpit and a lower wing loading that made for easier landings. In addition,
1144-655: A solution by attaching rotary cannons in a cut-out fuel drop tank, creating an impromptu gun pod suitable for attacking ground targets. Since the Vietnam War, United States Air Force policy has been that the use of multimillion-dollar aircraft for strafing is not economically justified, but the Soviet Union , and subsequently Russia, have remained proponents of strafing, and have continued to develop systems for this purpose. Soviet experience in Afghanistan in
1232-449: A top speed of 400 km/h (250 mph) at 6,000 m (20,000 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 m (33,000 ft). Power was to be provided by the new Junkers Jumo 210 engine of about 522 kW (710 PS; 700 hp). It
1320-636: Is 600 kg (1,300 lb) empty and 841 kg (1,854 lb) fully loaded. The pod is completely self-contained. The GPU-5/A was intended for carriage on a wide range of U.S. tactical aircraft, including the F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon . In the mid-1980s the USAF considered a specialized variant of the F-16 for the close air support (CAS) mission, using the GPU-5, as a substitute to or adjunct for
1408-688: Is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 , the backbone of the Luftwaffe 's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War . It was still in service at the end of World War II in 1945. It was one of the most advanced fighters when it first appeared, with an all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, and retractable landing gear. A liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine powered it. It
1496-580: Is particularly acute with more powerful cannons like the 30mm GPU-5 gun pod . Both hardpoint-mounted and conformal-mount gun pods also cause substantial drag on fast-moving vehicles such as fighter aircraft . Gun pods are commonly carried on military helicopters , and are often fitted to light aircraft to equip them for counter-insurgency operations. Some air arms use gun pods for fighter bombers for use in strafing attacks. [REDACTED] Media related to Aircraft gun pods at Wikimedia Commons Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109
1584-487: The A-10 Thunderbolt II . The GPU-5 pod, however, proved unsatisfactory in service. It was briefly tried on some Air National Guard F-16 Fighting Falcons during the 1991 Gulf War , but was removed from service after barely a day of combat use because of its very poor accuracy. Despite the cannon's impressive ballistic characteristics, the pylon mounting was not sufficiently rigid to prevent deflection, and
1672-669: The Eastern Front . The highest-scoring, Erich Hartmann , was credited with 352 victories. The aircraft was also flown by Hans-Joachim Marseille , the highest-scoring ace in the North African campaign , who shot down 158 enemy aircraft (in about a third of the time). It was also flown by many aces from other countries fighting with Germany, notably the Finn Ilmari Juutilainen , the highest-scoring non-German ace. He scored 58 of his 94 confirmed victories with
1760-582: The Heinkel He 51 , they were very critical of the Bf 109 at first. However, it soon became one of the frontrunners in the contest, as the Arado and Focke-Wulf entries, which were intended as "backup" programmes to safeguard against failure of the two favourites, proved to be completely outclassed. The Arado Ar 80, with its gull wing (replaced with a straight, tapered wing on the V3) and fixed, spatted undercarriage
1848-603: The Me 209 V1 , set a new record of 755.14 km/h (469.22 mph). For propaganda purposes, the Me ;209 V1 aircraft (possibly from its post-July 1938 first flight date) was given the designation Me 109R , with the later prefix , never used for wartime Bf 109 fighters. The Me 209 V1 was powered by the DB 601ARJ, producing 1,156 kW (1,550 hp), but capable of reaching 1,715 kW (2,300 hp). This world record for
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#17327868652561936-596: The North African campaign armed with two 40 mm (1.57 in) Vickers S gun with 15 rounds mounted in gondola-style pods, one under each wing. Lessons learned during the Vietnam War showed the effectiveness of guns. Then expensive fighter jets such as the F-4 didn't even carry an internal cannon. Missiles (thought to be superior) -- in particular radar-guided missiles—had notoriously poor combat track records in air-to-air combat. Engineers and air crews quickly created
2024-496: The Royal Air Force was a night fighter conversion of the twin engine light bomber equipped with airborne interception radar and armed with four .303 in (7.7 mm) Browning machine gun in a special gun pack under the fuselage. The Mk.IVF was a long range fighter version armed with the same gun pack. The RAF Hawker Hurricane Mk.IID of 1942 was an early and extremely successful example of tank busting aircraft of
2112-409: The 1,350 PS (993 kW; 1,332 hp) DB 601E (F-3, F-4). Considered by many as the high-water mark of Bf 109 development, the F series abandoned the wing cannon and concentrated all armament in the forward fuselage with a pair of synchronized machine guns above and a single 15 or 20 mm Motorkanone -mount cannon behind the engine, the latter firing between the cylinder banks and through
2200-423: The 109F-series onwards, guns were no longer carried inside the wings. Instead, the Bf 109F had a 20 mm gun firing through the propeller shaft. The change was disliked by leading fighter pilots such as Adolf Galland and Walter Oesau , but others such as Werner Mölders considered the single nose-mounted gun to compensate well for the loss of the two wing guns. Galland had his Bf 109F-2 field-modified with
2288-530: The 1980s led to an unusual innovation in the form of the SPPU series of gun pods, which have traversable barrels allowing them to continue to fire on a fixed target as the aircraft passes overhead. A gun pod typically contains one or more guns, a supply of ammunition, and, if necessary, a power source. Electrically powered cannon, such as the M61 Vulcan , may be powered from the aircraft's electrical system or by
2376-465: The 449 kW (610 PS; 602 hp) Jumo 210A engine. V3 followed, the first to be mounted with guns, but it did not fly until May 1936 due to a delay in procuring another Jumo 210 engine. After Luftwaffe acceptance trials were completed at their headquarters Erprobungsstelle ( E-Stelle ) military aviation test and development facility at Rechlin , the prototypes were moved to the subordinate E-Stelle Baltic seacoast facility at Travemünde for
2464-583: The Acceptance Commission, placing it at a distinct disadvantage. Because of its smaller, lighter airframe , the Bf 109 was 30 km/h (20 mph) faster than the He 112 in level flight, and superior in climbing and diving. 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
2552-494: The Bf 109 "the skinny one" (худо́й, khudoy ), for its sleek appearance compared, for example, to the more robust Fw 190. The names "Anton", "Berta", "Caesar", "Dora", "Emil", "Friedrich", "Gustav", and "Kurfürst" were derived from the variant's official letter designation (e.g. Bf 109G – "Gustav"), based on the German spelling alphabet of World War II, a practice that was also used for other German aircraft designs. The G-6 variant
2640-546: The Bf 109 into production. At the same time, Heinkel was instructed to radically redesign the He 112. The Messerschmitt 109 made its public debut during the 1936 Berlin Olympics when the V1 prototype was flown. As with the earlier Bf 108, the new design was based on Messerschmitt's "lightweight construction" principle, which aimed to minimise the number of separate parts in the aircraft. Examples of this could be found in
2728-567: The Bf 109. Pilots from Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovakia and Italy also flew the fighter. Through constant development, the Bf 109 remained competitive with the latest Allied fighter aircraft until the end of the war. During 1933, the Technisches Amt (C-Amt), the technical department of the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM) ("Reich Aviation Ministry"), concluded a series of research projects into
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2816-475: The Bf 109 was the K series or Kurfürst , introduced in late 1944, powered by the DB 605D engine with up to 2,000 PS (1,471 kW; 1,973 hp). Though externally akin to the late production Bf 109G series, a large number of internal changes and aerodynamic improvements were incorporated that improved its effectiveness and remedied flaws, keeping it competitive with the latest Allied and Soviet fighters. The Bf 109's outstanding rate of climb
2904-566: The Bf 109F replaced it in the pure fighter role. (Eight Bf 109Es were assembled in Switzerland in 1946 by the Dornier-Werke, using licence-built airframes; a ninth airframe was assembled using spare parts.) The second big redesign during 1939–40 gave birth to the F series . The Friedrich had new wings, cooling system and fuselage aerodynamics, with the 1,175 PS (864 kW; 1,159 hp) DB 601N (F-1, F-2) or
2992-461: The E series had a fuselage ordnance rack for fighter-bomber operations or provision for a long-range, standardized 300 litres (79 US gallons) drop-tank and used the DB ;601N engine of higher power output. The Bf 109E first saw service with the " Condor Legion " during the last phase of the Spanish Civil War and was the main variant from the beginning of World War II until mid-1941 when
3080-550: The Flugmeeting airshow in Zürich under the command of Major Seidemann. They won in several categories: First prize in a speed race over a 202 km course, first prize in the class A category in the international Alpenrundflug for military aircraft, and victory in the international Patrouillenflug category. On 11 November 1937, the Bf 109 V13, D-IPKY flown by Messerschmitt's chief pilot Dr. Hermann Wurster, powered by
3168-665: The French Dewoitine D.520 , or the American Bell P-39 Airacobra , and dated back to World War I 's small run of SPAD S.XII moteur-canon , 37 mm cannon-armed fighters in France. When it was discovered in 1937 that the RAF was planning eight-gun batteries for its new Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire fighters, it was decided that the Bf 109 should be more heavily armed. The problem
3256-495: The GAU-8, however, it is pneumatically driven, giving it a rate of fire of 2,400 rounds per minute. Minimum time between stoppages is estimated at 32,000 rounds, making it a very reliable weapon. The GAU-13/A uses the same range of PGU-13 High Explosive Incendiary (HEI) and PGU-14 Armor-Piercing Incendiary (API) rounds (which contain a depleted uranium penetrator) as the Avenger. Despite its somewhat lower rate of fire compared to
3344-961: The GPAC, the GAU-13/A was also touted as possible armament on ships and ground vehicles such as the LAV-25 . Gun pod A gun pod is a detachable pod or pack containing machine guns , autocannons , revolver cannons , or rotary cannons and ancillaries, mounted externally on a vehicle such as a military aircraft which may or may not also have its own guns. In World War II the Third Reich's Luftwaffe made use of many different, and most often rigidly mounted, conformal and suspended-mount gun pod systems usually called Waffenbehälter (prefix of WB , literally 'weapon container') or Waffenträger (prefix of WT , literally 'weapon carrier'), and carrying anything from rifle caliber MG 81 machine guns , all
3432-506: The He 112 rejected in the design competition of 1936, designed and built the He 100 . On 6 June 1938, the He 100 V3, flown by Ernst Udet , captured the record with a speed of 634.7 km/h (394.4 mph). On 30 March 1939, test pilot Hans Dieterle surpassed that record, reaching 746.61 km/h (463.92 mph) with the He 100 V8. Messerschmitt, however, soon regained the lead when, on 26 April 1939, Flugkapitän Fritz Wendel , flying
3520-621: The Junkers Jumo 210 powered most of the pre-war variants. The most-produced Bf 109 model was the Bf 109G series (more than a third of all 109s built were the G-6 series, 12,000 units being manufactured from March 1943 until the end of the war). The initial production models of the A, B, C and D series were powered by the relatively low-powered, 670–700 PS (493–515 kW; 661–690 hp) Junkers Jumo 210 series engines. A few prototypes of these early aircraft were converted to use
3608-460: The L-shaped main fuel tank , which was sited partly under the cockpit floor and partly behind the rear cockpit bulkhead. Other, smaller panels gave easy access to the cooling system and electrical equipment. The engine was held in two large, forged, Elektron magnesium alloy Y-shaped legs, one per side straddling the engine block, which were cantilevered from the firewall. Each of the legs
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3696-448: The V4 had a single-piece, clear-view, sliding cockpit canopy and a more powerful Jumo 210Da engine with a modified exhaust system. However, the He 112 was also structurally complicated, being 18% heavier than the Bf 109, and it soon became clear that the thick wing, which spanned 12.6 m (41 ft 4 in) with an area of 23.2 m (249.7 ft ) on the first prototype (V1), was
3784-425: The addition of MW-50 water injection boost and high-performance superchargers , boosting engine output to 1,800–2,000 PS (1,324–1,471 kW; 1,775–1,973 hp). From early 1944, some G-2s, G-3s, G-4s and G-6s were converted to two-seat trainers, known as G-12s. An instructor's cockpit was added behind the original cockpit and both were covered by an elongated, glazed canopy. The final production version of
3872-451: The additional armament increased the fighter's potency as a bomber destroyer, it had an adverse effect on the handling qualities, reducing its performance in fighter-versus-fighter combat and accentuating the tendency of the fighter to swing pendulum-fashion in flight. Some of the projected 109K-series models, such as the K-6, were designed to carry 30 mm (1.18 in) MK 108 cannons in
3960-594: The airfield located in the southernmost Augsburg neighborhood of Haunstetten , piloted by Hans-Dietrich "Bubi" Knoetzsch. After four months of flight testing, the aircraft was delivered in September to the Luftwaffe's central test centre at the Erprobungsstelle Rechlin to take part in the design competition. In 1935, the first Jumo engines became available, so V2 was completed in October using
4048-410: The cannon to be fitted with the ammunition feed forward of the spar, while the breech block projected rearward through the spar. A 60-round ammunition drum was placed in a space closer to the wing root causing a bulge in the underside. A small hatch was incorporated in the bulge to allow access for changing the drum. The entire weapon could be removed for servicing by removing a leading edge panel. From
4136-516: The case, as all three competing companies—Arado, Heinkel and BFW—received the development contract for the L.A. 1432/33 requirements at the same time in February 1934. A fourth company, Focke-Wulf, received a copy of the development contract only in September 1934. The powerplant was to be the new Junkers Jumo 210, but the proviso was made that it would be interchangeable with the more powerful, but less developed Daimler-Benz DB 600 powerplant. Each
4224-480: The company. All Messerschmitt aircraft that originated after that date, such as the Me 210 , were to carry the "Me" designation. Despite regulations by the RLM, wartime documents from Messerschmitt AG, RLM and Luftwaffe loss and strength reports continued to use both designations, sometimes even on the same page. All extant airframes bear the official "Bf 109" designation on their identification plates, including
4312-407: The engine to stall. When designed to be suspension-mounted on a hardpoint on a typical post-WW II aircraft, gun pods are inherently less accurate than integral guns, or the type of "conformal" gun pods that are faired smoothly into or onto the nearby surfaces of an aircraft, because the "hardpoint" mounting is necessarily less rigid, so that the weapon's recoil produces more deflection. This problem
4400-423: The engines available, a fighter would end up being slower than the bombers it was tasked with catching. A fighter was designed primarily for high-speed flight. A smaller wing area was optimal for achieving high speed, but low-speed flight would suffer, as the smaller wing would require more airflow to generate enough lift to maintain flight. To compensate for this, the Bf 109 included advanced high-lift devices on
4488-628: The final K-4 models. The aircraft was often referred to by the folk-designation, 'Me 109', particularly by the Allies. The aircraft was often nicknamed Messer by its operators and opponents alike; the name was not only an abbreviation of the manufacturer but also the German word for "knife". In Finland, the Bf 109 was known as Mersu , although this was originally (and still is) the Finnish nickname for Mercedes-Benz cars. Soviet aviators nicknamed
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#17327868652564576-447: The fuselage. It also allowed simplification of the wing structure, since it did not have to bear the loads imposed during takeoff or landing. The one major drawback of this landing gear arrangement was its narrow wheel track , making the aircraft unstable while on the ground. To increase stability, the legs were splayed outward somewhat, creating another problem in that the loads imposed during takeoff and landing were transferred up through
4664-457: The future of air combat. The result of the studies was four broad outlines for future aircraft: Rüstungsflugzeug III was intended to be a short range interceptor, replacing the Arado Ar 64 and Heinkel He 51 biplanes then in service. In late March 1933, the RLM published the tactical requirements for a single-seat fighter in the document L.A. 1432/33. The projected fighter needed to have
4752-446: The head-to-head portion of the competition. The aircraft participating in the trials were the Arado Ar 80 V3, the Focke-Wulf Fw 159 V3, the Heinkel He 112 V4 and the Bf 109 V2. The He 112 arrived first, in early February 1936, followed by the rest of the prototypes by the end of the month. Because most fighter pilots of the Luftwaffe were used to biplanes with open cockpits , low wing loading, light g-forces and easy handling like
4840-467: The legs at an angle. The small rudder of the Bf 109 was relatively ineffective at controlling the strong swing created by the powerful slipstream of the propeller during the early portion of the takeoff roll, and this sideways drift created disproportionate loads on the wheel opposite to the swing. If the forces imposed were large enough, the pivot point broke and the landing gear leg would collapse outward into its bay. Experienced pilots reported that
4928-445: The loads being distributed through the structure via a series of strong-points. By concentrating the loads in the firewall, the structure of the Bf 109 could be made relatively light and uncomplicated. An advantage of this design was that the main landing gear, which retracted through an 85-degree angle, was attached to the fuselage , making it possible to completely remove the wings for servicing without additional equipment to support
5016-420: The lower radiator flap operated as part of the flap system), thereby increasing the effective flap area. When deployed, these devices effectively increased the wings' coefficient of lift. Fighters with liquid-cooled engines were vulnerable to hits in the cooling system. For this reason, on later Bf 109 F, G and K models, the two coolant radiators were equipped with a cut-off system. If one radiator leaked, it
5104-549: The more powerful DB 600. The first redesign came with the E series , including the naval variant, the Bf 109T (T standing for Träger , carrier ). The Bf 109E ( Emil ) introduced structural changes to accommodate the heavier and more powerful 1,100 PS (809 kW; 1,085 hp) Daimler-Benz DB 601 engine, heavier armament and increased fuel capacity. Partly due to its limited 300 kilometres (190 miles) combat radius on internal fuel alone, resulting from its 660 km (410 mi) range limit, later variants of
5192-488: The pilot was in complete control of the aircraft. In March, the RLM received news that the British Supermarine Spitfire had been ordered into production. It was felt that a quick decision was needed 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
5280-534: The propeller hub, itself covered by a more streamlined, half-elliptical shaped spinner that better matched the streamlining of the reshaped cowling, abandoning the smaller, conical spinner of the Emil subtype. The F-type also omitted the earlier stabilizer lift strut on either side of the tail. The improved aerodynamics were used by all later variants. Some Bf 109Fs were used late in the Battle of Britain in 1940 but
5368-505: The rear spar. The wing profile was the NACA 2R1 14.2 at the root and NACA 2R1 11.35 at the tip, with a thickness to chord ratio of 14.2% at the root and 11.35% at the tip. Another major difference from competing designs was the higher wing-loading. While the R-IV contract called for a wing-loading of less than 100 kg/m , Messerschmitt felt this was unreasonable. With a low wing-loading and
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#17327868652565456-532: The seven-barreled Avenger, it is an immensely powerful weapon. The principal application for the GAU-13/A was the GPU-5/A gun pod (originally marketed as the GEPOD 30 ). The pod is 4.3 metres (14 feet 1 inch) long and can be mounted on any standard NATO 762 mm (30.0 in) suspension lugs. It holds 353 rounds of ammunition, enough for approximately nine seconds of continuous fire. The GPU-5/A weight
5544-460: The spar and the leading edge. The tube channeled cooling air around the barrel and breech, exhausting from a slot at the rear of the wing. The installation was so cramped that parts of the MG 17's breech mechanism extended into an opening created in the flap structure. The much longer and heavier MG FF had to be mounted farther along the wing in an outer bay. A large hole was cut through the spar allowing
5632-407: The swing was easy to control, but some of the less-experienced pilots lost fighters on takeoff. Because of the large ground angle caused by the long legs, forward visibility while on the ground was very poor, a problem exacerbated by the sideways-opening canopy. This meant that pilots had to taxi in a sinuous fashion which also imposed stresses on the splayed undercarriage legs. Ground accidents were
5720-527: The time and embodied advanced structural design which was ahead of its contemporaries. In the early years of the war, the Bf 109 was the only single-engined fighter operated by the Luftwaffe, until the appearance of the Fw 190 . The Bf 109 remained in production from 1937 through 1945 in many different variants and sub-variants. The primary engines used were the Daimler-Benz DB 601 and DB 605 , though
5808-415: The use of two large, complex brackets which were fitted to the firewall. These brackets incorporated the lower engine mounts and landing gear pivot point into one unit. A large forging attached to the firewall housed the main spar pick-up points and carried most of the wing loads. Contemporary design practice was usually to have these main load-bearing structures mounted on different parts of the airframe, with
5896-608: The variant came into common use only in the first half of 1941. The G series , or Gustav , was introduced in mid-1942. Its initial variants (G-1 through G-4) differed only in minor details from the Bf 109F, most notably in the more powerful 1,475 PS (1,085 kW; 1,455 hp) DB 605 engine. Odd-numbered variants were built as high-altitude fighters with a pressurized cockpit and GM-1 boost, while even-numbered variants were un-pressurized, air superiority fighters and fighter-bombers. Long-range photo-reconnaissance variants also existed. The later G series (G-5 through G-14)
5984-458: The war years. Another example of the Bf 109's advanced design was the use of a single, I-beam main spar in the wing, positioned more aft than usual (to give enough room for the retracted wheel), thus forming a stiff D-shaped torsion box. Most aircraft of the era used two spars, near the front and rear edges of the wings, but the D-box was much stiffer torsionally , and eliminated the need for
6072-537: The way up to the enormous Bordkanone anti-tank cannon based ordnance weapon series, ranging from 37 to 75mm in caliber, though the usual underwing conformal gun pods fitted to Bf 109 and Fw 190 single engined fighters used either the MG 151/20 or MK 108 in gun pod mounts. Other countries also used gun pods on their aircraft; the U.S. SBD Dauntless could be equipped with two gun pods on each wing, each with two M2 Browning machine guns . The Bristol Blenheim Mk.1F of
6160-514: The weapon's heavy recoil exacerbated the problem by causing pylon misalignment. Further, the GPU-5 was not integrated into the F-16's sighting system. The GPU-5 is no longer in U.S. service, although some Thai F-5E Tiger II aircraft still carry the weapon; it was also tested on the F-20 Tigershark . In mid/late 1995, the U.S. Marine Corps conducted a trial of the GPU-5 on the LCAC -66, as
6248-432: The wing to accommodate large ammunition boxes and access hatches, an unusual ammunition feed was devised whereby a continuous belt holding 500 rounds was fed along chutes out to the wing tip, around a roller, and then back along the wing, forward and beneath the gun breech, to the wing root, where it coursed around another roller and back to the weapon. The gun barrel was placed in a long, large-diameter tube located between
6336-445: The wings very thin and light. Two synchronized machine guns were mounted in the cowling, firing over the top of the engine and through the propeller arc. An alternative arrangement was also designed, consisting of a single autocannon firing through a blast tube between the cylinder banks of the engine, known as a Motorkanone mount in German. This was also the choice of armament layout on some contemporary monoplane fighters, such as
6424-483: The wings, including automatically opening leading edge slats , and fairly large camber-changing flaps on the trailing edge . The slats increased the lift of the wing considerably when deployed, greatly improving the horizontal maneuverability of the aircraft, as several Luftwaffe veterans, such as Erwin Leykauf, attest. Messerschmitt also included ailerons that "drooped" when the flaps were lowered (F series and later
6512-485: The wings. Originally the aircraft was designated as Bf 109 by the RLM, since the design was submitted by the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (literally "Bavarian Aircraft Works", meaning "Bavarian Aircraft Factory"; sometimes abbreviated B.F.W., akin to BMW ) during 1935. The company was renamed Messerschmitt AG after 11 July 1938 when Erhard Milch finally allowed Willy Messerschmitt to acquire
6600-468: Was 215 kg. Installation of the under-wing gun pods was a simple task that could be quickly performed by the unit's armourers, and the gun pods imposed a reduction of speed of only 8 km/h (5.0 mph). By comparison, the installed weight of a similar armament of two 20 mm MG 151/20 cannon inside the wings of the Fw ;190A-4/U8 was 130 kg (287 lb), without ammunition. Although
6688-565: Was asked to deliver three prototypes for head-to-head testing in late 1934. 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 first prototype ( Versuchsflugzeug 1 or V1 ), with civilian registration D-IABI ,
6776-518: Was called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces, even though this was not the official German designation. The plane was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser , who worked at Bayerische Flugzeugwerke during the early to mid-1930s. It was conceived as an interceptor . However, later models were developed to fulfill multiple tasks, serving as bomber escort , fighter-bomber , day -, night-, all-weather fighter , ground-attack aircraft , and aerial reconnaissance aircraft. It
6864-470: Was completed by May 1935, but the new German engines were not yet ready. To get the "R III" designs into the air, the RLM acquired four Rolls-Royce Kestrel VI engines by trading Rolls-Royce a Heinkel He 70 Blitz for use as an engine test-bed. Messerschmitt received two of these engines and adapted the engine mounts of V1 to take the V-12 engine upright. V1 made its maiden flight at the end of May 1935 at
6952-405: Was hydraulic, making it impossible to change pitch without engine running. If, God forbid, you turned off the engine at high pitch, it was impossible to turn the propeller and was very hard to start the engine again. Finally, the German ammo counter was also a great thing. Reflecting Messerschmitt's belief in low-weight, low-drag, simple monoplanes, the armament was placed in the fuselage. This kept
7040-477: Was 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 , with the separate Beule covers eliminated by the time of the G-10 model's introduction of a subtly reshaped upper cowling. In July 1937, not long after the public debut of the new fighter, three Bf 109Bs took part in
7128-479: Was overweight and underpowered, and the design was abandoned after three prototypes had been built. The parasol winged Fw 159, potentially inspired by the same firm's earlier Focke-Wulf Fw 56 , was always considered by the E-Stelle Travemünde facility's staff to be a compromise between a biplane and an aerodynamically more efficient, low-wing monoplane. Although it had some advanced features, it used
7216-512: Was possible to fly on the second or to fly for at least five minutes with both closed. In 1943, Oberfeldwebel Edmund Roßmann got lost and landed behind Soviet lines. He agreed to show the Soviets how to service the plane. Soviet machine gun technician Viktor M. Sinaisky recalled: The Messer was a very well designed plane. First, it had an engine of an inverted type, so it could not be knocked out from below. It also had two water radiators with
7304-500: Was produced in a multitude of variants, with uprated armament and provision for kits of packaged, generally factory-installed parts known as Umrüst-Bausätze ("conversion kits", usually contracted to Umbau ) and adding a "/U" suffix to the aircraft designation when installed. Field kits known as Rüstsätze were also available for the G-series but those did not change the aircraft title. By early 1944, tactical requirements resulted in
7392-480: Was secured by two quick-release screw fittings on the firewall. All of the main pipe connections were colour-coded and grouped in one place, where possible, and electrical equipment plugged into junction boxes mounted on the firewall. The entire powerplant could be removed or replaced as a unit in a matter of minutes, a potential step to the eventual adoption of the unitized-powerplant Kraftei engine mounting concept used by many German combat aircraft designs, later in
7480-562: Was supplied to several states during World War II and served with several countries for many years after the war. The Bf 109 is the most produced fighter aircraft in history, with a total of 34,248 airframes produced from 1936 to April 1945. Some of the Bf 109 production took place in Nazi concentration camps through slave labor . The Bf 109 was flown by the three top-scoring fighter aces of all time, who claimed 928 victories among them while flying with Jagdgeschwader 52 , mainly on
7568-458: Was that the only place available to mount additional guns was in the wings. Only one spot was available in each wing, between the wheel well and slats, with room for only one gun, either a 7.92 mm MG 17 machine gun , a 20 mm MG FF or a 20 mm MG FF/M cannon. The first version of the Bf 109 to have wing guns was the C-1, which had one MG 17 in each wing. To avoid redesigning
7656-453: Was to be armed with either a single 20 mm MG C/30 engine-mounted cannon firing through the propeller hub as a Motorkanone , or two synchronized , engine cowl-mounted 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 17 machine guns , or one lightweight engine-mounted 20 mm MG FF cannon with two 7.92 mm MG 17s. The MG C/30 was an airborne adaption of the 2 cm FlaK 30 anti-aircraft gun, which fired very powerful "Long Solothurn" ammunition, but
7744-560: Was very heavy and had a low rate of fire. It was also specified that the wing loading should be kept below 100 kg/m . The performance was to be evaluated based on the fighter's level speed, rate of climb , and maneuverability, in that order. It has been suggested that Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW) was originally not invited to participate in the competition due to personal animosity between Willy Messerschmitt and RLM director Erhard Milch ; however, recent research by Willy Radinger and Walter Shick indicates that this may not have been
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