The Messerschmitt Me 329 was a design project for a
heavy fighter
A heavy fighter is a historic category of fighter aircraft produced in the 1930s and 1940s, designed to carry heavier weapons, and/or operate at longer ranges than light fighter aircraft. To achieve performance, most heavy fighters were twin-eng ...
and
ground-attack aircraft
An attack aircraft, strike aircraft, or attack bomber is a tactical military aircraft that has a primary role of carrying out airstrikes with greater precision than bombers, and is prepared to encounter strong low-level air defenses while pres ...
, developed towards the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. It was a competitor and possible successor to the
Me 410
The Messerschmitt Me 410 ''Hornisse'' (Hornet) is a German heavy fighter and ''Schnellbomber'' used by the '' Luftwaffe'' during World War II. Though an incremental improvement of the Me 210, it had a new wing plan, longer fuselage and en ...
. Like the
Me 265, the Me 329 used an advanced
flying wing
A flying wing is a tailless fixed-wing aircraft that has no definite fuselage, with its crew, payload, fuel, and equipment housed inside the main wing structure. A flying wing may have various small protuberances such as pods, nacelles, blis ...
design. Other advanced features included the pilot and navigator sitting side by side in a broad
bubble canopy
A bubble canopy is an aircraft canopy constructed without bracing, for the purpose of providing a wider unobstructed field of view to the pilot, often providing 360° all-round visibility.
The designs of bubble canopies can drastically vary; s ...
, and a remote-controlled rear gun in the tail. In spite of the futuristic design, the improvement in performance over the Me 410 was marginal. Development received a low priority, and while a full-scale
glider
Glider may refer to:
Aircraft and transport Aircraft
* Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight
** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of gliding
...
was tested at
Rechlin
Rechlin is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, around 100 km (60 mi) northwest of Berlin. The town's airport has a long history and was the Luftwaffe's main testing ground for new aircraft designs in Nazi Germany. ...
in the winter of 1944/5,
[ work on the project was cancelled shortly after.
]
Specifications (estimated)
See also
References
Further reading
*
External links
{{Authority control
Me 329
Abandoned military aircraft projects of Germany
Twin-engined pusher aircraft
Tailless aircraft
Mid-wing aircraft