Messerschmitt Me 410A-1/U1: 2. Staffel (Fern)/Aufklärungsgruppe 122

(Author's Collection)

     In August 1943, a Messerschmitt Me 410A-1/U1 carrying the identification code of 'F6+WK' on the fuselage was captured intact by the British in Trapani, Sicily. The aircraft belonged to the 2nd. Staffel (Fern) of Aufklärungsgruppe 122 (2.(F)/Aufkl.Gr.122; 2nd. Squadron (Remote), Reconnaissance Group 122) that had been based at Trapani from January 1942 to June 1943. 2./Aufkl.Gr.122 was stood up on January 4, 1936 and conducted reconnaissance missions against the British Isles in 1939 flying Dornier Do 17 and Heinkel He 111 aircraft. During the 1940 campaigns against France and the Low Lands, the squadron had transitioned to the Junkers Ju 88 and the Messerschmitt Me 110 and as the war shifted to the Eastern Front, the squadron was exclusively flying the Ju 88. Starting in May 1943, the squadron received a number of Me 410A-1/U1 aircraft to supplement their Ju 88s.

     The Me 410, nicknamed the “Hornisse” (“Hornet”), was the evolution of the earlier, unsuccessful, Me 210 which was supposed to be the successor to the Me 110 heavy fighter. However, delays in development didn't see the type enter production until January 1943 and it never fully replaced the Me 110. Power came from two Daimler-Benz DB 603A 12-cylinder, inverted-V, liquid-cooled engines, each generating 1,750 horsepower for take-off and 1,625hp at 18,700ft. This gave the Me 410 a maximum speed of 388mph at 21,980ft. in altitude. The A-1/U1 model was a modification of the Me 410 from heavy fighter to that of a fast photo reconnaissance aircraft. This involved the removal of the two 7.9mm MG 17 machine-guns from the nose to allow for the fitting of either a Rb 20/30, Rb 50/30, or Rb 75/30 camera. This left the forward firing armament of two 20mm MG 151 cannons, each with 350 rounds. Fitted to each side of the fuselage was a barbette-mounted 13mm MG 131 machine-gun which was remote controlled and provided a measure of rear defense. Each of these machine-guns was provided with 500 rounds of ammunition.

     Following the capture of 'F6+WK', it was found to carry the Werknummer (Work Number) of W.Nr. 10018. This aircraft was built at Messerschmitt's Augsburg facility and it had the radio call sign of 'DI+NN'. It was decided to keep the aircraft for evaluation and so it was ultimately given the Foreign Equipment number of FE-499. After being prepared for shipment, it was placed aboard a transport and sent to the United States and arrived at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio in January 1944. On April 1, 1944, FE-499 was still in a disassembled state in Hanger Three and it would not be until October 4, 1944 was it finally fully assembled. At some point, FE-499 was sent to Freeman Army Airfield (located in Seymour, Indiana) which was the location of the Foreign Aircraft Evaluation Center (FAEC), the latter established at the airfield on June 11, 1944. That FE-499 was there came from an inventory book that listed it on May 17, 1946. However, FAEC was soon stood down by mid-1946 as there was little need for it any longer. Nevertheless, records still showed FE-499 at Freeman Army Airfield on August 1, 1946 where it was designated as a display aircraft. It is believed to have been transported to Air Technical Service Command's storage facility in Park Ridge, Illinois and ultimately, it ended up in the hands of the National Air and Space Museum where it remains today, housed in unrestored condition at the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility located in Silver Hill, Maryland.

     Source depending, FE-499 has been listed as a Me 410A-3 model, which was the definitive photo reconnaissance version which carried two cameras rather than one. It was not possible for 2.(F)/Aufkl.Gr.122 to have had the Me 410A-3 as the type was not received by units until October 1944, long after 2.(F)/Aufkl.Gr.122 had left Trapani (though it remained in Italy, based in various locations, until May 1945). In any case, only 1.(F)/Aufkl.Gr.122 and 3.(F)/Aufkl.Gr.122 ever received any of the Me 410A-3 models. Also, some sources claim that FE-499 was a Me 210 that was brought up to Me 410 standards. This was done to many Me 210 airframes and in some cases, Me 210 aircraft were built from the outset as Me 410. However, it is believed that none of these conversions were used outside of development testing for the Me 410 program, equipment trials, and armament trials. A review of Heinz Mankau and Peter Petrick's book Messerschmitt Bf 110/Me 210/Me 410 published by Aviatic Verlag in 2001 does not list the Werknummer 10018 in their roster of known Me 210 and Me 410 work numbers and in any case, most of the work numbers which began with 100XX were listed as Me 410 models with construction dates in 1943 whereas most of the conversions were done in 1942. Still, there are gaps in Mankau and Petrick's lists so we have to assume that the work number for FE-499 is accurate though it could be disputed that it is a converted Me 210.

     As a note, the unit emblem for 2.(F)/Aufkl.Gr.122 consisted of a blue shield upon which was a man wearing black boots and khaki shorts, a wide brimmed hat, and a shirt riding on a black bomb with a bellows camera under one arm. Beneath this was the motto “Holzauge sei wach!” which literally means “Wooden Eyes Be Aware!” but a more contemporary translation is “Keep Your Eyes Peeled!” This emblem was located on the left side of the forward fuselage.

 

The Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a: A Captured Komet

     The Messerschmitt Me 163 “Komet” was the world’s first operational rocket fighter, entering combat for the first time with the test unit Erprobungskommando 16 on May 13, 1944. Because of the highly limited endurance (7.5 minutes of powered flight), the Me 163 was deployed as a point defense fighter, flying from bases close to known Allied bomber flight paths. The high speed while under power meant interception of the Me 163 was difficult at best. The combat service of the Me 163, taken as a whole, was underwhelming. When Me 163 bases were discovered, bombers would simply fly around them, out of range of the Komet. The high speed, while giving defending escorts fits, meant the Me 163 pilot had mere seconds to line up a bomber, fire, and bank away to avoid collision. Only the most skilled pilots could achieve hits. Finally, once the fuel was used up, the Me 163 was no more than a glider and so the Allied fighters would attack Komet bases before the Me 163s could sortie or would simply wait until the Me 163s expended their fuel and would “bounce” them as they glided back to their base.

     This particular Komet, a Me 163B-1a (the type most deployed in combat), belonged to II.Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 400 (JG 400) [II/JG 400]. It carried the Werk Nummer (Work Number) 191301 and was captured by the U.S. and given the Foreign Equipment (FE) number 500 (FE-500). The plane was sent to Freeman Field in the U.S. and while there, was refurbished to make it ready for flight testing. On April 12, 1946, FE-500 was air freighted in a Fairchild C-82 Packet to Muroc, CA (now Edwards Air Force Base). Once there, the FE number was replaced with a “T-2” number after the Technical Data Laboratory (which evaluated Axis aircraft) became part of the T-2 Intelligence section. Starting on May 3, 1946, T-2-500 underwent numerous unpowered gliding flights, being towed into the air by a Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Nearly all of the flights were carried out by Gustav E. Lundquist (seen here in the cockpit). T-2-500, although the highly reactive fuels T-Stoff and C-Stoff were available, did not fly under power as it was discovered that the laminate on the wooden wings was failing and so T-2-500 was put into storage, ending up in Silver Hill in 1954. 

     The aircraft was put on public display in unrestored condition but in 1996, the aircraft was lent to the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum who restored the Komet. In 2011, it was returned to the Smithsonian and is currently on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.