1940-05-10, Bf109, Spijkenisse (in the `Oude Maas´)

Early in the afternoon of the 10th the RAF 600 squadron carried out a raid with Blenheim -1F fighter-bombers on the Waalhaven airfield. One of the Blenheim had straffed the airbase when it was chased on the way back by a Messerschmitt Bf-109. According to reports from citizens of Hoogvliet and Spijkenisse the Blenheim was able to shoot his attacker down and the German plane crashed with a big splash in the Oude Maas near the bridge of Spijkenisse. Two months later, parts of the wreck was secured by the son of the Bridge guard.

May 10th.: Me Bf-109 crashed in the OUDE MAAS near the bridge of Spijkenisse; in juli/aug 1940 an altitude meter is recovered from the wreck.

- Onderwater p.56/57; Auwerda(T374).

bron http://www.zuidfront-holland1940.nl/index.php?page=ijsselmonde

Shown above is a Bf 109 G6-14.

Illustration by aviation artist Ed Markham.

The Messerschmitt Bf 109, like the North American P-51,1 might have been the plane that never was. Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (Bavarian Aircraft Company/BFW) was initially blocked from being sent contracts due to a long running feud between Willy Messerschmitt and the Secretary of State for Aviation, Erhard Milch.2 In order to save BFW from liquidation,3 Messerschmitt and his joint manager Herr Kokothanki, obtained a contract from a Romanian cartel, to develop the M-37 light transport. Protests were made against Messerschmitt's acceptance of a foreign contract, but Willy Messerschmitt argued that due to a lack of home support, he was forced to seek contracts outside of Germany. Consequently, BFW was awarded a contract for fighter development.4

In 1934 the German Air Ministry (Reichs Luftsfahrt Ministerium / RLM) issued specifications for a new fighter monoplane to replace the Heinkel He 51 and Arado 68 biplanes.5 It was to be equipped with at least two MG-17 7.9 millimeter machine guns, and to have the capability of utilizing the new liquid cooled vee 12 engines under development by Junkers and Daimler-Benz. The request was sent to Focke-Wulf, Arado, Heinkel and BFW. Focke-Wulf submitted the Fw 159V1, Arado the Ar 80V1 and Heinkel the He 112. The Bf 109 was the winner in the trials, exceeding its nearest rival, the Heinkel He 112, by 17 mph.6 Only the He 112 provided any other serious competition besides the Bf 109 in the trials, and ten preproduction prototypes were ordered for the Heinkel He 112 and Bf 109.

Despite the earlier odds of being issued a contract for a production fighter aircraft, Willy Messerschmitt had been developing the Bf 109A alongside the Bf 108A. The first Bf 109 prototype, the Bf-109V1 had a British Rolls-Royce Kestrel engine when it made its debut in September 1935, and had a higher wing loading (24 lbs/sq ft.) than that of any other aircraft submitted for the competition. (The closet rival had 20.3 lbs/sq ft.) The "Bf-109V2" used a 455 kW (610 HP) Junkers Jumo 210A and was not fitted with armament. The Bf-109V3, was fitted with a pair of MG-17 7.9 mm machine guns. This armament arrangement was envisioned for the Bf 109A, but this production model was never flown, due to a new international requirement based on the view of the four-gun Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane. Since no wing armament was required at the onset, the Bf 109 had a thin wing with the main spar at mid-chord, requiring a major wing redesign with later versions. On the other hand, the Spitfire and Hurricane were designed with wing armament in mind, from the very beginning.

A Bf 109G-2 of the Air Force Museum in Gatow.

Image courtesy of Homepage von Wolfgang Bredow.

The Bf-109V4, first flown in November 1936, powered by a Jumo 210A engine was the first version to carry three machine guns in the nose. The third gun fired through the propeller spinner, but this gun was later replaced with a 20 mm, MG FF/M cannon. The Bf 109V5, Bf 109V6 and Bf 109V7 production prototypes flew early in 1937 powered by the Jumo 210B, paralleled the development of the Bf 109B. The Jumo 210B had the same power rating as the 210A for takeoff, but allowed greater power at high altitude, and increased the service ceiling.

Messerschmitt Bf109F-2 belonging to 9./JG54, in combat with a Tupolev SB-2M100

Katyushka, Lithuania, July 1941. Image courtesy of The Virtual Aircraft Website.

The Bf 109E was the first true mass production model and was able to outfight or outrun virtually all opposition. Like the Spitfire, the Bf 109 saw action throughout the war. This version was often referred to as the Me 109, but official German documentation referred to as the Bf 109, referring to the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke, although the company was reorganized as Messerschmitt A.G. in July, 1938.

Characteristic of some Bf 109G versions were the bulges forward of the cockpit, covering the breeches of the engine mounted MG 131 machine guns. Above is a Bf 109G-6.

Image courtesy of Zap 16 Web Site. .

The fact that the Bf 109 had too limited a range to be fully effective as a bomber escort, persuaded the German authorities to consider the type most useful as a defensive fighter in Europe. This was reflected in the more refined, but relatively lightly-armed version of the fighter, the Bf 109F. Bf 109V21 and V24, using the 1,050 hp (783 Kw) DB 601N engine, served as development aircraft for the Bf 109F. Gone were the wing root guns, prompting many pilot complaints. After Helmut Wick was killed on November 28, 1940, Major Walter Oesau refused to fly a Bf 109F as long as spare parts were available to keep his E-4 flying. Another German veteran who disliked the reduction in armament was Major Adolph Galland, who became a General at the age of thirty, and rose to be the Inspector-General of the Fighter arm.¹⁷ Slightly more than 2,000 Bf 109Fs were built before being replaced by the more heavily armed Bf 109G.

www.aviation-history.com/messerschmitt/bf109.html

Keller, P. Fw 10(Nacht)/JG-2 Bf 109D-1 (lost 5/10/40) Night Fighter Operational Clasp His 109 crashed in a river at Rotterdam Holland on 10 May, 1940, cause and pilot disposition unknown. (DeSwart).