The Messerschmitt Me 334 was a proposed
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
piston-engined
fighter, designed by
Alexander Lippisch
Alexander Martin Lippisch (November 2, 1894 – February 11, 1976) was a German aeronautical engineer, a pioneer of aerodynamics who made important contributions to the understanding of tailless aircraft, delta wings and the ground effect, and a ...
. No examples were built.
Design and development
Alexander Lippisch was noted for designing tailless aircraft, with a certain amount of success. Along similar lines as the rocket-powered
Me 163
The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet is a rocket-powered interceptor aircraft primarily designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt. It is the only operational rocket-powered fighter aircraft in history as well as th ...
, Lippisch designed a tailless fighter to be powered by a Heinkel turbojet. The slow pace of development of reliable turbojets forced Lippisch to redesign the aircraft to be powered by a single
Daimler-Benz DB 605 inverted V-12 piston engine, mounted in the nose and driving a pusher propeller at the rear of the fuselage pod, via an extension shaft.
[
The mid-mounted wings would have been swept back 23.4°, housing the skinny retractable main landing gear with elevons inboard and ailerons outboard on the trailing edge. Slots in the outboard leading edges would have improved slow speed performance and handling.][
The intended armament of two ]MG 131
The MG 131 (shortened from German: ''Maschinengewehr'' 131, or "Machine gun 131") was a German 13 mm caliber machine gun developed in 1938 by Rheinmetall-Borsig and produced from 1940 to 1945. The MG 131 was designed for use at fixed, flexible ...
machine guns was to have been housed in the wing roots. Designated Me 334 by the ''Reichsluftfahrtministerium
The Ministry of Aviation (german: Reichsluftfahrtministerium, abbreviated RLM) was a government department during the period of Nazi Germany (1933–45). It is also the original name of the Detlev-Rohwedder-Haus building on the Wilhelmstrasse ...
'' (RLM), development was abandoned by Lippisch with the advent of the Lippisch P.20.[
]
See also
Related lists
* List of German aircraft projects 1939-1945
Specifications
References
External links
Me 334 with 3-view
Emmanuel Gustin's aircraft background notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Messerschmitt Me 334
1940s German experimental aircraft
1940s German fighter aircraft
Me 334
Single-engined pusher aircraft