Messerschmitt Bf 162

Bf 162
Role light bomber
Manufacturer Messerschmitt
First flight February 1937
Primary user Luftwaffe
Number built 3

The Messerschmitt Bf 162 Jaguar was a light bomber aircraft designed in Germany prior to World War II, which flew only in prototype form.

The Bf 162 was designed in response to a 1935 RLM (Reichsluftfahrtministerium, Reich Aviation Ministry) specification for a schnellbomber ("fast bomber") for tactical use. Messerschmitt's design was a modified Bf 110 with a glazed nose to accommodate a bombardier. In 1937, three prototypes were flown against rival designs, the Junkers Ju 88 and the Henschel Hs 127, both entirely new aircraft.

It was eventually decided that the Ju 88 be selected for production, and development of the Bf 162 ended. As a disinformation tactic, images of the Bf 162 were widely circulated in the German press, captioned as the "Messerschmitt Jaguar", a name never used outside this context.

This aircraft's RLM official airframe number of 8-162 was later re-used for the Heinkel He 162 jet fighter, probably again for disinformation purposes.

Specifications (Bf 162)

Data from Warplanes of the Third Reich[1]

General characteristics

  • Crew: three - pilot, gunner, and bombardier/navigator
  • Length: 12.75 m (41 ft 10 in)
  • Wingspan: 17.16 m (56 ft 3½ in)
  • Height: 3.58 m (11 ft 9 in)
  • Loaded weight: 5,810 kg (12,782 lb)
  • Powerplant: 2 × Daimler-Benz DB 600Aa liquid-cooled inverted V12 piston engines, 736 kW (986 hp) each

Performance

Armament

  • Guns: 1× 7.92 mm MG 15 machine gun in dorsal position
  • Bombs: 10× 50 kg (110 lb) bombs internally and 2× 250 kg (550 lb) bombs externally (overload)

See also

Related development

References

  1. ↑ Green 1972, pp. 592–593.
  • Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. New York:Doubleday, 1972. ISBN 0-385-05782-2.
  • Wagner, Ray and Heinz Nowarra. German Combat Planes: A Comprehensive Survey and History of the Development of German Military Aircraft from 1914 to 1945. New York: Doubleday, 1971.
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