Messerschmitt Bf 109 Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Bf 109

A Hispano Aviación HA-1112, a license-built Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2, rebuilt by the EADS/Messerschmitt Foundation, Germany with a Daimler-Benz DB 605 engine as a G-6. The paint scheme is missing the Swastika, due to German law.
Role	Fighter
Manufacturer	Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW) Messerschmitt AG
Designer	Willy Messerschmitt, Robert Lusser
First flight	29 May 1935
Introduction	February 1937
Retired	9 May 1945, Luftwaffe 27 December 1965, Spanish Air Force
Primary users	Luftwaffe Hungarian Air Force Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana Royal Romanian Air Force
Number built	33,984 +239 HA-1112 +603 Avia S-199
Variants	Avia S-99/S-199 Hispano Aviacion Ha 1112

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 was a fighter aircraft usually called the Me 109. It was a German World War II aircraft.

Made by Messerschmitt, it first flew in 1935, and was used by the Luftwaffe during the Spanish Civil War and throughout World War II. It was one of the first modern fighters of the time. It had an all-metal construction, a closed cockpit, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine.

There were many variations designed for special purposes. Overall, the Me 109 was the most produced fighter aircraft in history, with a total of 33,984 airframes produced from 1936 up to April 1945.

The design of the plane caused some problems on the ground, and with take-off and landing. At least 10% of all Bf 109s were lost in takeoff and landing accidents, 1,500 of which occurred between 1939 and 1941. A new fixed tailwheel helped correct the problem.

Bf 109 was used by Luftwaffe together with FW 190. The Messerschmitt had two machine guns and one cannon while FW 190 had two machine guns and four cannons. Bf 109 was much lighter than FW 190, by 1500 kg. Despite that Bf 109 was almost as fast as FW 190 (Fw 190 A-8 was only 16kph faster than Bf 109 G-6) and climbed at 17 m/s, 2 m/s faster than FW 190.

Images for kids

Messerschmitt Bf 109 V1
A drawing of the V1 prototype
Prototype V3
JG 53 Bf 109E-3, c. 1939/1940
A Bf 109E at the Royal Air Force Museum London with its wings temporarily removed, 2016
Freely moving, automatic leading edge slats on a Bf 109E. By using high-lift devices, the handling qualities of the Bf 109 were considerably enhanced.
A Bf 109E-3 of JG 51 ‘Mölders’ showing the 20 mm MG FF installations in the wing.
Luftwaffe ground-crew positioning a Bf 109G-6 equipped with the Rüstsatz VI underwing gondola cannon kit. Note the slat on the leading edge of the port wing. JG 2, France, late 1943.
Bf 109E-3 in flight, 1940
Bf 109F-4 of JG 3 near Reims, France
Bf 109 Gustav cockpit
Assembly of Bf 109G-6s in a German aircraft factory.
Bf 109A from the Condor Legion during Spanish Civil War (1936–1939)
Finnish Messerschmitt Bf 109G-2s during the Continuation War
Romanian Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 at Stalingrad
S-199 782358 IAFM
Hispano Aviación HA-1112 Buchon, the second and last Spanish version built by Hispano Aviación
A Bf 109E-3 of the Swiss Air Force at the Flieger-Flab-Museum
Bf 109G-2 14792 Yugoslavian Aviation Museum
Bf 109E-7 of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force in November 1941
3-view drawing of Bf 109G-6.

Messerschmitt Bf 109 facts for kids

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