Messerschmitt Me 329

Me 329
General information
TypeZerstorer
ManufacturerMesserschmitt
StatusMock up only[citation needed]
Primary userLuftwaffe
Number built0
History
Developed fromMesserschmitt Me 265

The Messerschmitt Me 329 was a design project for a heavy fighter and ground-attack aircraft, developed towards the end of World War II. It was a competitor and possible successor to the Me 410. Like the Me 265, the Me 329 used an advanced flying wing design. Other advanced features included the pilot and navigator sitting side by side in a broad bubble canopy, and a remote-controlled rear gun in the tail. In spite of the futuristic design, the improvement in performance over the Me 410 was marginal. Development received a low priority, and while a full-scale glider was tested at Rechlin in the winter of 1944/5,[1] work on the project was cancelled shortly after.

Specifications (estimated)

Data from Luftwaffe secret projects: ground attack & special purpose aircraft [1]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 7.715 m (25 ft 4 in)
  • Wingspan: 17.5 m (57 ft 5 in)
  • Height: 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in)
  • Wing area: 55 m2 (590 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 6,950 kg (15,322 lb)
  • Gross weight: 12,150 kg (26,786 lb)
  • Powerplant: 2 × Daimler-Benz DB 603G V-12 inverted liquid-cooled piston engines 1,745 PS (1,721 hp; 1,283 kW)
  • Propellers: 3-bladed constant-speed pusher propellers

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 685 km/h (426 mph, 370 kn) at 7,000 m (23,000 ft)
  • Range: 2,520 km (1,570 mi, 1,360 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 12,500 m (41,000 ft)

Armament

  • Guns:
  • Bombs:
  • internal bomb load of up to 1,000 kg (2,205 lb)

See also

Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References

  1. ^ a b Herwig, Dieter; Rode, Heinz (2003). Luftwaffe secret projects : ground attack & special purpose aircraft. Leicester: Midland. pp. 126–127. ISBN 978-1857801507.

Further reading

  • Nowarra, Heinz J. (1993). Die Deutsche Luftrüstung 1933–1945 Vol.3 – Flugzeugtypen Henschel-Messerschmitt (in German). Koblenz: Bernard & Graefe Verlag. pp. 266–267. ISBN 978-3-7637-5467-0.
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