Messerschmitt’s P.1065 design had originated as early as 1938 when the Reichsluftfahrtministerium had requested the company to design a twin-engined fighter able to utilise the new turbojet engines being developed in Germany. After inspection of the mock-up, three prototypes were ordered on 1 June 1940.

Messerschmitt Me 262 Article

It was initially designed around the Axial Flow BMW003 turbojet. In the axial flow turbojet air is compressed after entering the front of the engine by a series of compressor stages or fans, in the middle of the engine fuel is added and the mixture ignites, the rapidly expanding gases then pass through a turbine connected to the forward compressor stages before exiting the jet pipe. The design has the advantage of having a much smaller cross-section although it does suffer much more if debris are ingested into the engine.

There was a great deal of doubt over how much power the BMW engine would produce, estimates of less than 2,000lbs of thrust forced the designers to a twin-engine configuration as the only way to produce an aircraft capable of sufficient performance while carrying a useful warload. The smaller diameter of the engine however made it possible to suspend the engines below the wings without requiring excessively long main undercarriage legs to achieve ground clearance.

The construction of the first prototype ME262 V1 began in January 1941 and it was ready for flight long before its turbojet engines, early bench tests of these were very disappointing at just 570lbs of thrust, far too low for practical use. This led to the first prototype V1 being fitted with a conventional 750hp Jumo 210A in the nose driving a wooden propellor in order to flight test the airframe. It was ready for taxi trials on the 17th April 1941 and flew for the first time on the 18th April fitted with a tail wheel rather than the tricycle undercarriage that would be a feature of the later design.

The aircraft flew a total of 23 times on piston engine power up until 8th May 1941 when it finally received its pre-production BMW003 engines. The engines were rated at 1085lbs but the first flight was a disaster with both units failing, it was only saved from total loss by the by its piston engine and propeller which allowed a safe landing. The ME262 would not fly again with BMW engines until October 1943 when it was fitted with redesigned BMW003a engines. A small reciprocating engine is used for starting.

Of conventional all-metal stressed-skin construction, the wing had moderate sweepback, long-span ailerons, trailing-edge flaps, and full-span automatic leading-edge slots. The engines were mounted beneath the wing to preclude a complex wing-spar structure and the landing gear was of retractable tailwheel type. The fifth prototype introduced a non-retractable nosewheel unit and the sixth was the first to have a fully retractable tricycle-type landing gear necessitating the main undercarriage to be moved back 3ft in the wing.

Standard fuel for the Jumo jet is a brown coal oil known as J-2 and distinguished by a particularly disagreeable odor. Diesel oil and aviation gasoline may also be used but the latter is not considered practicable due to an extremely high rate of consumption.

The second and third prototypes V2 & V3 were modified to take the Jumo 004, this required a nacelle 10% larger in diameter and 16% longer. To counteract this the horizontal stabilizer was enlarged and the wings were swept back. V3 was the first to fly on the 18th July 1942 (piloted by Fritz Wendel) at Leipheim near Günzburg, Germany, with Jumo 004AA0 engines of 1,850 lbs thrust, V2 was completed in July 1941 but did not fly until 1st October 1942. The development program was expanded during this time to include two further prototypes and fifteen pre-production aircraft. The last two prototypes V4 & V5 flew on the 15th May 1943 & 26th June respectively.

In April 1941, Willy Messerschmitt actually proposed to fit a 35° swept wing (Pfeilflügel II) to the Me 262. Though this suggestion wasn’t implemented, he continued this line of thought with the projected HG II and HG III high-speed derivatives of the Me 262 in 1944, which were designed with a 35° and 45° wing sweep respectively.

ME262 V1 first flew again on jet power alone on the 20th March 1943 with Jumo 004A-0 engines, the piston engine had been removed and replaced with 3 x 30mm cannon and a partially pressurized cockpit added. It completed 65 flights up until the 7th July 1944 when it suffered a catastrophic engine failure; it was damaged beyond repair in the subsequent forced landing.

Junkers Jumo 109-004 Article

Five of the fifteen pre-production aircraft were allocated versuchs numbers to replace prototypes that had been lost or damaged and to expand the test program. The first of these 130001 V1+AA flew on the 17th October 1943 powered by Jumo 004B-0 engines. These weighed 220lbs less than the 004A while still delivering 1,980 lbs thrust. The aircraft also included fully retractable tricycle undercarriage. The aircraft completed a total of 28 flights until it crashed on the 9th March 1944 in a fatal accident.

The most significant impact on the development of the ME262 was the inability of Junkers (and BMW before them) to produce state of the art engines without the proper materials. This is demonstrated when considering the combustion chambers of the Jumo 004 which were made of ordinary steel sprayed with aluminium for heat resistance which led to frequent engine failures. The compression flow was also unstable at moderate speeds in addition to issues with fuel flow regulation which limited the effectiveness of the aircraft and resulted in an average engine life of around 20 hours.

Armament for the 262 was to have consisted of two 55-mm cannon, but these, though designed, were not yet in production. Hitler then favored the installation of 50-mm tank guns but Goering countered with a reminder that the barrels would extend six feet beyond the nose, thus impairing the plane’s stability and performance. Eventually, four MK 108s (30-mm cannon) were selected as standard armament for the A-1 fighter version and two cannon of like caliber for the A-2 bomber. Synchronized to converge at between 400 and 500 yards, the guns were generally fired at about 800 yards in order to compensate for the plane’s high speed. Reflector gun sights were first installed, later to be replaced by newer gyroscopic sights. Reportedly, a few Me-262s carried six guns and there is evidence of a plan to install two batteries of twelve R4M rockets under each wing. These would have been launched at Allied bomber formations at more than a mile’s distance.

Armor protection consists of 16-mm head and shoulder plates and a forward cockpit bulkhead of the same thickness. Absence of armor and proximity of a fuel tank to the rear of the pilot is apparently discounted due to the plane’s high speed. German pilots interrogated on this point were confident that nothing in the air could match them.

The Me-262’s high performance is due not only to the power generated by its two big Jumo turbines but to an airframe that is fundamentally sound, aerodynamically clean. The horizontal stabilizers are situated well out of the slipstream and so there is no flutter at high speeds. Extremely thin wings minimize the factor of compressibility.

Test flights continued over the next year but the engines continued to be unreliable. Although airframe modifications were completed by 1942, production never began until 1944 when the production engines — which due to the shortage of strategic materials like tungsten had to be completely redesigned to employ alloys of inferior temperature resistance — finally started to work.

Production plans in August 1944 called for 500 in December, 600 in January and February, 800 in March, but by war’s end no more than 1,400 had been produced. Of these, half were destroyed in training accidents and by Allied attacks on German airfields. Most of the remaining 700 were either shot down or crashed due to failure of jet units. Others were destroyed by retreating Germans and only a handful remained to enlighten Allied Technical Air Intelligence squads.

The first delivery (A-0 to Rechlin) was in May 1944.

First major version was the Me 262A-1a Schwalbe (Swallow) interceptor (first flown June 7 1944), armed with four 30mm MK 108 cannon mounted in the nose. It was powered by two 8.825kN Junkers Jumo 109-004B-1 eight-stage axial-flow turbo-jets. A number of variants were built with differing armament. The other major version was the Me 262A-2a Sturmvogel (Stormbird) bomber. This was produced at the insistence of Adolf Hitler – a decision which caused considerable overall production delays. It carried, in addition to the standard MK 108 armament, one 1,000kg, two 500kg or two 250kg bombs. As with the Schwalbe, there were a number of variants, mainly for armed or unarmed reconnaissance.

The first experimental combat unit (EK 262) was formed on June 30, 1944, entered operational service, at Juvincourt, France on 10 July 1944, and the first regular combat (8/ZG26) in September 1944.

The Me 262A 1a Schwalbe (Swallow) became operational with the Kommando Nowotny on 3 October 1944 and was used, initially, against USAAF Bombers. There were many problems but with a speed advantage of some 70 mph over the fastest Allied escort fighter and its heavy armament of four 30mm cannons, it was a formidable new fighter.

With 522 gallons of fuel, 360 rounds of ammunition, the A-1 takes off at 15,550 pounds. The A-2 with its two guns, 160 rounds of ammunition, and one 500-kg or two 250-kg bombs, weighs 15,400 pounds.

Without bomb load or auxiliary fuel tank the Me-262 requires from 900 to 1,100 yards for take-off on concrete and from 1,100 to 1,400 yards on a grass field. The normal required take-off run of 1,100 yards is reduced to 650 by means of two A.T.O. rockets having a total thrust of 1,000 kg. As few German airfields were equipped with concrete runways, Autobahns were frequently used for operations.

At full throttle, a straight and level speed of 830 kph (515 mph) can be maintained for ten or fifteen minutes. Cruising speed is approximately 465 mph and speeds of 650 mph in dives were not uncommon. Willi Messerschmitt quotes a maximum speed of 560 mph in level flight and at any altitude. That American test pilots were able to get no more than 525 mph out of the plane under favorable conditions he attributes to consid¬erable variance in individual jet units. Messerschmitt also admits to inferior construction due to inadequate materials and lack of skilled labour.

Endurance of the Me-262 ranges from 45 to 90 minutes. Stall characteristics are good, ailerons respond well and it is capable of all combat manoeuvres. Spoilers fitted along the leading edge project automatically at about 300 kph (186 mph) when the plane is in a gliding anile and at about 450 kph (279 mph) when in a climbing position. Turns are not attempted at speeds of less than 350 kph. If throttle is advanced too quickly at less than 7,000 rpm, engines are likely to fail, a characteristic which has resulted in a number of take-off accidents.

The standard approach against bomber formations, which were travelling along at cruise speed, called for the Me 262 to approach the bombers from the rear at a higher altiude, diving in below the bombers to get additional speed before zooming up again to their level and opening fire with its four 30 mm cannon at 600 m range.

Reportedly, Allied bomber gunner were finding that their electric gun turrets had problems tracking the jets. However, due to the jets’ straight line approach, traverse rates were actually not as important as target acquisition itself, which was difficult because the jets closed into firing range very quickly and had to remain in firing position only very briefly using their standard attack profile.

On 3 October 1944, the German Lechfeld Aerial Test Unit was set up under Major Nowotny. The test unit was made up of two squadrons stationed at Achmer and Hesepe airfields near Osnabrück, a total of 40 Me 262s.
On 4 October, four Me 262s took off from Achmer for the first time. Two were shot down over the take off field, and a third was shot down while landing, by Canadian Spitfires of 401 Sqn.
The Lechfield Unit managed to shoot down 25 four-engined bombers in a month, but at a cost of 35 jets.

The Me 262A-2 night fighter is a radar-equipped two-seater, and has external tanks for additional range, a lengthened cockpit, and radar antenna.

In February 1945 the German 7th Fighter Wing under Col. Steinhoff, the only Luftwaffe wing armed with Me 262, reported that it was ready for deployment. Squadrons of the 3rd Fighter Wing assumed the task of protecting the jet fighters during take-off and landing. There was one other umit of Me 262 fighters, the 44h Fighter Group, whose commanders included General Galland – the fighter general removed from office by Goring – and several other fighter officers who had fallen into disfavour.

In March 1945 three Me 262A airframes were taken from the assembly line and converted as two seaters by substituting an 88-gallon fuel tank for the aft 198-gallon tank and using the created space for the observer’s seat. To compensate for the reduction of fuel, two 66-gallon drop tanks were attached under the fuselage and an FuGe 218 radar array was fitted in the nose. The standard four 30 mm MK108 armament was retained and it was proposed to tow a 198-gallon auxiliary tank to increase patrol endurance. This aircraft was designated Me 262B-2a; the first prototype crashed during flight trials, killing the observer.

The Me 262B-1a/U1 was used for trials of the Lichtenstein SN-2 (FuG 220) interception radar and Hirschgeweih antennae, equipped with twin under fuselage auxiliary fuel tanks.

Tactics against the Me 262 developed quickly to find ways of defeating it despite its insurmountable speed. Allied bomber escort fighters (specifically P-51s) would fly high above the bombers to gain extra speed in a dive down to protect the bombers, thus reduce the speed advantage of the Me262. The Me262 was less manoeuvrable than the P-51 and trained allied pilots could catch up to a turning Me262; but the only reliable way of dealing with the jets was to attack them in the take-off and landing phase of their flight, and on the ground. Accordingly, Luftwaffe air fields that were recognized as jet bases were frequently bombed by medium bombers, and Allied fighters patrolled over the fields to attack jets that were trying to land on their bases. The Luftwaffe countered these moves by installing Flak alleys along the approach lines in order to protect the Me 262s from the ground, and providing top cover with conventional fighters during the take-off and landing phase.

A Hawker Tempest Mk.V was the first Allied plane to shoot down a Me262, and won number of victories over these jet fighters, while the Lavochkin was the only Soviet fighter to encounter a German jet, with La-7 ace Ivan Nikitovich Kozhedub fighting and downing one Me262 jet on February 15, 1945 over eastern Germany. Kozhedub apparently later said that his success was mainly due to the Me262 pilot attempting to out-turn his more manoeuvrable plane.

In the end, the overwhelming numbers of allied planes meant that the jets had no overall effect on the war. On March 18, 1945, 37 Me 262s intercepted a force of 1,221 bombers and 632 escorting fighters. They managed to shoot down 12 bombers and one fighter for the loss of three Me 262s. Although a four to one ratio was exactly what the Luftwaffe was dreaming about, it represented only one per cent of the attacking force — more were lost to mechanical problems.

Although the Me 262 had a negligible impact on the course of the war—shooting down an estimated 150 Allied aircraft for the loss of 100 Me 262s, the majority of aircraft grounded for lack of fuel.

Only 1,433 Me 262s were built, 500 of those destroyed during Allied bombings, leaving less than 300 jets to enter into the final days of combat.

Willy Messerschmitt regarded the Me 262 as it went into production only as an interim type. His interest in high-speed flight that had led him to initiate work on swept wings starting in 1940 is evident from the advanced developments he had on his drawing board in 1944. While the Me 262 HG I (Hochgeschwindigkeit – high speed) that was actually flight-tested in 1944 had only small changes compared to combat aircraft, most notably a low-profiled canopy to reduce drag, the HG II and HG III designs were far more radical. The projected HG II variant combined the low-drag canopy with a 35 degrees wing sweep and a butterfly tail. The HG III aircraft had a conventional tail, but a 45° wing sweep and the jet turbines embedded in the wing root.

Messerschmitt also conducted a series of carefully controlled flight tests with the series production Me 262. In these dive tests, it was established that the Me 262 was out of control in a dive at Mach 0.86, and that higher Mach numbers would lead to a nose-down trim that could not be countered by the pilot. The resulting steepening of the dive would lead to even higher speeds and disintegration of the airframe due to excessive negative g loads.

The HG series of Me 262 derivatives was estimated to be capable of reaching trans-sonic Mach numbers in level flight, with the top speed of the HG III being projected as Mach 0.96 at 6 km altitude. Despite the necessity to gain experience in high-speed flight for the HG II and III designs, Messerschmitt undertook no attempts to exceed the Mach 0.86 limit for the Me 262.

After the war, the Royal Aircraft Establishment — at that time one of the leading institutions in high-speed research — re-tested the Me 262 to help with the British attempts at breaking the sound barrier. The RAE achieved speeds of up to Mach 0.84 and confirmed the results from the Messerschmitt dive tests as accurate. No attempts were made to exceed the Mach limit established by Messerschmitt.

Me 262 Pilot notes

After Willy Messerschmitt’s death, the former Me 262 pilot Hans Guido Mutke claimed to be the first person to break the sound barrier on April 9, 1945 in a Me 262. This claim is only based on Mutke’s memory of the airspeed indicator reading and is disputed.

During the war the Germans set up a number of assembly plants in Czechoslovakia for the production of the Messerschmitt Me 262. After the war the manufacturing infrastructure remained intact, so production could start up again for the new owners.

Messerschmitt Me 262A-1 White 25 Restoration 2025

All jigs, tools and components for the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter in Czechoslovakia at the time of the German surrender were seized by the Soviet forces and then handed over to the newly restored Czechoslovak government by Marshal Ivan Konev. Forward fuselages and other components of the Me 262 had been manufactured at Letnany, some components had been produced in converted railway tunnels, and the CKD and Walter works had built the Junkers Jumo 004 turbojet, assembly of the fighters having been undertaken at Cheb, near the German border. Sufficient components were recovered for Avia to build 17 single- and two-seat Me 262s, the first single-seater flying as the S 92.1 on 27 August 1946.

The first Avia S 92.1 was assembled at Letnany Research Institute in 1945 (PL-01), with the airframe coming from Avia and the engines from the repair works in Malesice (the Junkers Jumo 004 now called the M-04). The S 92’s first flight was with Avia’s chief pilot Antonin Kraus in control. Tested pilots included RAF veteran Major Jiri Manak.

On 5 September, this aircraft was lost in an accident, a second, S 92.2, flying on 24 October, and what was referred to as the first series aircraft, a two seater (CS 92.3), following on 10 December. Dubbed the Turbina (Turbine), the S 92 was demonstrated to a Yugoslav delegation which placed an order with Avia for two examples, although, in the event, these were not delivered. The seventh aircraft, CS 92.7, was experimentally fitted with BMW 003 turbojets, the thrust of which had been boosted to 950kg, but flight testing was not entirely successful and the aircraft was re-engined to take the standard Jumo 004 turbojets. The eleventh and twelfth aircraft, S 92.11 and S 92.12 were completed during 1949.

Czech production included Avia S-92 code V-34(cn 51104), the fourth Czech-built. The fourth aircraft was first example armed with a pair of 30mm Rheimettal MK 108 cannon.

Delivery of the first S 92 to the Czech air force was in June 1948. In October 1950, with twelve being made in all (nine S 92 and three CS 92) equipping the 5th Fighter Flight at Mlada-Milovice airport, until they were grounded for use as instructional airframes in 1951. One of them is on display at the Prague Aero museum.

By the time Yugoslavia showed interest in buying the S 92, Avia was looking at closing down the production line to make way for new up to date aircraft and when Avia were given a licensed to make the Mig 15 (they were all ready making the Yak 23 as the S 101) the S 92 facilities were broken up.

Gallery

Replicas
Texas Aircraft Factory Me 262

Specifications:

Me 262 A1 Schwal
Engines: 2 x Jumo 004 B-1, 8829 N
Length: 34.777 ft / 10.6 m
Height: 12.598 ft / 3.84 m
Wingspan: 40.945 ft / 12.48 m
Wing area: 233.579 sq.ft / 21.7 sq.m
Max take off weight: 14103.2 lb / 6396.0 kg
Weight empty: 8379.0 lb / 3800.0 kg
Max. speed: 469 kt / 869 km/h
Service ceiling: 37566 ft / 11450 m
Wing loading: 60.48 lb/sq.ft / 295.0 kg/sq.m
Range: 567 nm / 1050 km
Crew: 1
Armament: 4x MK108 30mm

Me 262A-1a
Type: single-seat fighter
Engines: 2 x Junkers Jumo 004B-1/-2/-3 turbojets , 1,980lb (900kg)
Span: 12.5m / 40 ft 11.5 in
Length: 10.6m / 34 ft 9.5 in
Height: 3.83m / 12 ft 6.75 in
Wing area: 21.7 sq.m / 233.58 sq ft
Ceiling: 11450 m / 37550 ft
Empty weight: 4000kg
Loaded weight: 7045kg
Maximum speed: 540mph (870km/h)
Climb rate: 1200m/min
Ceiling: 11,500m
Range on internal fuel: 1050km (650 Miles)
Armament: 4 x 30mm MK 108 cannon / Two with 100 rounds each, two with 80

Me 262A-1a/U1
Engines: 2 x Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets , 1,980lb (900kg)
Span: 12.5m
Length: 10.6m
Height: 3.8m
Wing area: 21.7 sq.m / 233.58 sq ft
Ceiling: 11450 m / 37550 ft
Empty weight: 4000kg
Loaded weight: 7045kg
Climb rate: 1200m/min
Ceiling: 11,500m
Range on internal fuel: 1050km (650 Miles)
Armament: 2 x 30mm MK 103, 2 x 30mm MK 108 cannon, 2 x 20mm MG 151/20

Me 262A-1b
Engines: 2 x Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets ,1,980lb (900kg)
Span: 12.5m
Length: 10.6m
Height: 3.8m
Wing area: 21.7 sq.m / 233.58 sq ft
Ceiling: 11450 m / 37550 ft
Empty weight: 4000kg
Loaded weight: 7045kg
Climb rate: 1200m/min
Ceiling: 11,500m
Range on internal fuel: 1050km (650 Miles)
Armament: 4 x 30mm MK 108 cannon / Two with 100 rounds each, two with 80, 24 spin-stabilised R4/M 55mm rockets

Me 262A-2a
Type: single-seat bomber
Engines: 2 x Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets ,1,980lb (900kg)
Span: 12.5m
Length: 10.6m
Height: 3.8m
Wing area: 21.7 sq.m / 233.58 sq ft
Ceiling: 11450 m / 37550 ft
Empty weight: 4000kg
Loaded weight: 7045kg
Maximum speed: 470 mph (755km/h)
Climb rate: 1200m/min
Ceiling: 11,500m
Range on internal fuel: 1050km (650 Miles)
Armament: 4 x 30mm MK 108 cannon / Two with 100 rounds each, two with 80
Bomb load: 2 x 500kg

Me 262B-1a
Type: two-seat night fighter
Engines: 2 x Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets ,1,980lb (900kg)
Span: 12.5m
Length excluding radar aerials: 11.8m
Height: 3.8m
Wing area: 21.7 sq.m / 233.58 sq ft
Ceiling: 11450 m / 37550 ft
Empty weight: 4000kg (B-1a 4400kg)
Loaded weight: 7045kg (B-1a 6400kg)
Maximum speed: 497 mph (800km/h)
Climb rate: 1200m/min
Ceiling: 11,500m
Range on internal fuel: 1050km (650 Miles)
Armament: 4 x 30mm MK 108 cannon / Two with 100 rounds each, two with 80

Me 262B-2a
Engines: 2 x Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets ,1,980lb (900kg)
Span: 12.5m
Length: 10.6m
Height: 3.8m
Wing area: 21.7 sq.m / 233.58 sq ft
Ceiling: 11450 m / 37550 ft
Empty weight: 4000kg
Loaded weight: 7045kg
Climb rate: 1200m/min
Ceiling: 11,500m
Range on internal fuel: 1050km (650 Miles)
Armament: 4 x 30mm MK 108 cannon / Two with 100 rounds each, two with 80, 2 x inclined MK 108 behind the cockpit in Schrage Musik installation
(D) SG 500 Jagdfaust with 12 rifled mortar barrels inclined in nose
(E) 50mm MK 114 gun or 48 R4/M rockets

Avia S.92 Turbina
Engine: 2x Malesice M-04B (Jumo 004) turbojets
Wing Span: 12.5 m / 41 ft 0 in
Length: 10.58 m / 35 ft 9 in
Height: 3.83 m / 13 ft 7 in
Wing area: 21.80 sq.m / 234.65 sq ft
Weight: Empty 4,000 kg / 8819 lb
MTOW: 7,045 kg / 15532 lb
Maximum Speed: 870 km/h / 541 mph
Rate of climb: 1220 m/min / 4000 ft/min
Ceiling: 11,450 m / 37550 ft
Range: 1,050 km / 652 miles
Crew: 1
Armament: 4x 30 mm cannon

Avia CS.92
Engine: 2 x Malesice M-04B (Jumo 004) turbojets
Wing Span: 12.5 m
Length: 10.58 m
Height: 3.83 m
Weight: Empty 4,000 kg / Loaded 7,045 kg
Maximum Speed: 870 km/h
Ceiling: 11,450 m
Range: 1,050 km
Crew: 1
Armament: 4x 30 mm cannon