The Messerschmitt P.1103 ''Panzerjäger'' and P.1104 were a series of

rocket-powered A rocket-powered aircraft or rocket plane is an aircraft that uses a rocket engine for propulsion, sometimes in addition to airbreathing jet engines. Rocket planes can achieve much higher speeds than similarly sized jet aircraft, but typicall ...

interceptors An interceptor aircraft, or simply interceptor, is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically for the defensive interception role against an attacking enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Aircraft that are c ...

proposed by

Messerschmitt Messerschmitt AG () was a German share-ownership limited, aircraft manufacturing corporation named after its chief designer Willy Messerschmitt from mid-July 1938 onwards, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, in partic ...

Design and development

The P.1103 and P.1104 were proposed in the early summer of 1944, with drawings for the proposals being finalized in August and September of that year. Both were light-weight interceptors of mostly wood construction and powered by a single

rocket engine A rocket engine uses stored rocket propellants as the reaction mass for forming a high-speed propulsive jet of fluid, usually high-temperature gas. Rocket engines are reaction engines, producing thrust by ejecting mass rearward, in accordanc ...

. The wings and vertical tail were adapted from the

V-1 flying bomb The V-1 flying bomb (german: Vergeltungswaffe 1 "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany), Reich Aviation Ministry () designation was Fi 103. It was also known to the Allies as the buz ...

. The fighter would be towed into the air behind a

Messerschmitt Bf 109G Due to the Messerschmitt Bf 109's versatility and time in service with the German and foreign air forces, numerous variants were produced in Germany to serve for over eight years with the Luftwaffe. Additional variants were produced abroad tot ...

Messerschmitt Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germa ...

. The P.1103 and P.1104 were in competition with the

Heinkel P.1077 The Heinkel P.1077 (or He P.1077) was a single seat interceptor design developed for the Luftwaffe by Heinkel under the Emergency Fighter Program during the last year of the Third Reich. This rocket-powered project was originally known as He P.1 ...

and

Bachem Ba 349 The Bachem Ba 349 Natter ( en, Colubrid, grass-snake) was a World War II German point-defence rocket-powered interceptor, which was to be used in a very similar way to a manned surface-to-air missile. After a vertical take-off, which eliminated ...

, the latter being selected by the ''

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

'' over the others. Work on the P.1103 and P.1104 was abandoned in September 1944 to allow Messerchmitt to focus on the Me 262 and P.1101 projects.

Variants

;P.1103/I (P.1103A) :Initial proposal for the P.1103, dated July 6, 1944. It was to have a low-wing configuration and be powered by a Schmidding 109-513 solid-fueled rocket engine and armed with a single 30 mm

MK 108 cannon The MK 108 (German: ''Maschinenkanone''—"machine cannon") was a 30 mm caliber autocannon manufactured in Nazi Germany, Germany during World War II by Rheinmetall‑August Borsig, Borsig for use in aircraft. The cannon saw widespread use as an ...

under the cockpit. Pilot sat in a

prone position Prone position () is a body position in which the person lies flat with the chest down and the back up. In anatomical terms of location, the dorsal side is up, and the ventral side is down. The supine position is the 180° contrast. Etymolog ...

with a single 30 mm

under the cockpit. External armament was proposed, with either a single ''Werfer-Granate'' 21 for aerial targets or a single ''Werfer-Granate'' 28/32 for ground targets. Landing was to have been accomplished with a parachute. ;P.1103/II (P.1103B) :Finalized proposal dated September 12, 1944. It was to have a high-wing configuration and be powered by a liquid-fueled Walter RI 202 rocket engine. Pilot sat in an upright position with a single 30 mm MK 108 cannon under the cockpit. Landing was to have been accomplished with a retractable landing skid. ;P.1104/I (P.1104A) :Finalized proposal dated September 12, 1944. It was to have a mid-wing configuration and be powered by a liquid-fueled Walter HWK 109-509A-1 rocket engine. Pilot sat in an upright position with a single 30 mm MK 108 cannon under the cockpit. Landing was to have been accomplished with a retractable landing skid. ;P.1104/II (P.1104B) :Finalized proposal dated September 12, 1944. It was to have a high-wing configuration and be powered by a liquid-fueled Walter HWK 109-509A-1 rocket engine. Pilot sat in an upright position with a single 30 mm MK 108 cannon under the cockpit. Landing was to have been accomplished with a retractable landing skid.

Specifications (P.1103/I, as proposed)

References

{{Messerschmitt aircraft Abandoned military aircraft projects of Germany World War II fighter aircraft of Germany

P1103 The Hawker P.1103 was a design by Hawker Aircraft to meet the British Operational Requirement F.155; it did not progress further than the drawing board. Background Operational Requirement F.155 was an Operational Requirement issued by the Bri ...

Rocket-powered aircraft 1940s German fighter aircraft

Design and development

Variants

Specifications (P.1103/I, as proposed)

See also

References