Messerschmitt Bf 109

Messerschmitt Bf 109

Photo 1 is a starboard side view of an aircraft with nine ground crew assisting.
Photo 2 is a front view with six ground crew performing various tasks.
Photo 3 is a starboard/front view from underneath of a flying aircraft.

Three b/w photographs on an album page

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PThomasAF20080003

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MESSERSCHMITT 109

Messerschmitt Bf 109.
In September 1939 the Luftwaffe had a front line strength of 1200 fighters, including the formidable Messerschmitt Bf 109. As the war swung away from the Germans, greater emphasis was placed on interceptors & night fighters than on bomber escorts, & in the last year output was concentrated entirely on last ditch fighters. The Bf 109E was the Luftwaffe’s standard single seat fighter for the first three years of the war, & was able to hold its own with any opposition. The design of the 109 was begun in 1934, the prototype flying in the following year. The first production model the Bf 109 B was tried out in the Spanish Civil War. The 109 was the subject of continuous development throughout the war.