Messerschmitt Bf 109F-4

  • Period: Second World War (1939-1945)
  • Uses: Fighter
  • First Flight: 1935 (Prototype)
  • Display Status: On the Museum Floor.

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is one of the greatest fighter aircraft of all time. When the prototype flew in 1935, it was the most advanced fighter in the world. Fitted with ever more powerful engines and weapons, this aircraft remained a formidable opponent even in the later years of the Second World War.

The Bf 109 served everywhere the German Luftwaffe was engaged and the type was used by a dozen other air forces. With more than 33,000 built between 1935 and 1956, it can boast a longer history of production and service than any other piston-powered fighter. Fast and powerful, the Bf 109F introduced in late 1940 had the nicest flying characteristics of all Bf 109 versions.

Museum Example

  • Registration #: 10132 (German air force)
  • Manufacturer: Erla-Maschinenwerk, Germany
  • Manufacture Date: 1942
  • Construction #: Unknown
  • Aquisition Date: 1999
  • Provenance: Exchange

The Museum’s aircraft is a Messerschmitt Bf 109F-4 that was crash landed near the Arctic port of Murmansk, Soviet Union, in August 1942. Purchased in the mid-1990s by a British restoration specialist, it was re-finished in its original colours. Such was the respect of the restorer for the aircraft’s historical integrity that the original bullet holes were not repaired and remain visible. A Canadian Forces aircraft delivered it to the Museum in the early part of June 1999 where it was reassembled and put on display.

Specifications

Wing Span:
9.92 m (32 ft 6 1/2 in)
Length:
8.9 m (29 ft 2 1/2 in)
Height:
2.6 m (8 ft 6 1/2 in)
Weight, Empty:
2,390 kg (5,270 lb)
Weight, Gross:
2,900 kg (6,395 lb)
Cruising Speed:
Unknown
Max Speed:
624 km/h (388 mph)
Rate of Climb:
3,000 m (9,845 ft) / 2.6 min
Service Ceiling:
12,000 m (39,375 ft)
Range:
850 km (530 mi) (with drop tank)
Power Plant:
One 1,350 hp Daimler-Benz DB 601E inverted-vee engine