Messerschmitt Me 262

Germany developed the world’s first fighter jet

high-tech wings

The Me 262’s dramatic swept wings - with a wingspan of 12.7 metres (41ft) – were necessary when engineers discovered that the weight of the engine pods threw off the plane’s center of gravity; the wing shape restored equilibrium. The swept wing became a feature of all post-war jets.

battle tactics

Pilots would dive and attack Allied bombers with the Me 262’s four 30mm cannons or approach from a bomber’s side and fire its R4M rockets at long range. At Hitler’s insistence, a bomber version of the Me 262 – the A-2a ‘Sturmvogel’ (stormbird) – was also developed.

limited numbers

Squadrons of Me 262s, most notably the Jagdverband 44, defended German cities from Allied bomber attacks in 1945, but its delayed production meant the jet never reached its potential, with only 300 of 1,400 ever seeing action.

revolutionary engines

With its Junkers Jumo 004B-1 turbojets giving it a max speed of 870km/h (541mph), the Me 262 fighter made the Allies propeller-powered aircraft seem like relics, as it could fly too fast for their gun crosshairs to keep up with it. However, the Me 262 twin jet engines also meant it used a lot of fuel.