General Background

The first German mass produced 109 fighter was the Bf-109E that has been mistakenly referred to as the Me-109. The Bf is the designator for the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW) (Bavarian Aircraft Works) that produced the original aircraft. In 1938 Messerschmitt took over BFW but throughout WWII German handbooks and documents referred to the aircraft as the Bf-109. By the end of 1939 the Bf-109E (Emil) had replaced all other 109 variants and equipped 13 Gruppens with 40 aircraft each. The Bf-109 was the main single-engine aircraft until the Fw-190 came along.

The Aircraft

In the summer of 1941 Heinrich Bartels joined JG 26 on the Western Front. On August 19 he scored his first victory. On January 27, 1942 Bartels transferred to 11./JG 1 which soon became 8./JGF 5 and where he scored 47 victories. In the spring of 1943 Bartels transferred to 11./JG 27 in the Mediterranean theater. On November 17, 1943 while in Greece he displayed his 70th victory bar on the rudder of Red 13 WNr. 27 169. Bartels final victory total was 99 when on December 23, 1944 he didn’t return.

Specifications

• Production timeline: February 1943 – October 1943
• Number produced: 5,000+
• Dimensions
• Wingspan – 9.92m (32ft 6.5in)
• Length – 9.04m (29ft (8in)
• Height – 2.5m (8ft 2.25in)
• Weight: Empty - 2,700kg (5,900lb)
• Gross Loaded – 3,400kg (7,500lb)
• Performance
• Powerplant – Daimler-Benz DB605A-1, 12 cylinder inverted vee, liquid cooled, 1,475hp
• Maximum Speed – 640km/h (398mph)
• Range – 850km (528miles)
• Service ceiling – 12,000m (39,370ft)
• Armament
• 2 X 13mm (.51in) synchronized MG 131 machine guns with 300 rounds each
• 1 X 20mm (.78in) MG 151/20 cannon as centerline Motorkanone firing through propeller hub with 200 rounds, or
• 1 X 30mm (1.18in) MK 108 cannon as centerline Motorkanone with 65 round per gun (G-6/U4 variant)
• 2 X 20mm MG 151/20 under-wing cannon pods with 135 round per gun (Rustsatz V option)
• Rockets - 2 X 21 cm (8 in) Wfr. Gr. 21 rockets (G-6 with BR21)
• Bomb
• 1 X 250 kg (551 lb) bomb, or
• 4 X 50 kg (110 lb) bombs, or
• 1 X 300 litre (79 US gal) drop tank