Classed as one of the outstanding aircraft of the Second World War, the Messerschmitt Bf 109 was the Luftwaffe's standard day fighter from 1938 until 1945. A low-wing, single-seat monoplane, the Bf 109 was designed by Prof. Willy Messerschmitt in 1934. The type first saw combat during the Spanish Civil War in 1937 and two years later formed the spearhead of the Luftwaffe's fighter units in their Blitzkrieg across Europe. In September 1940, the Battle of Britain saw the Bf 109 pitted against the RAFs Spitfires and for the first time Germanys much-vaunted fighter met its equal in combat. The type was later used in the high-speed fighter-bomber role operating from France against selected targets in southern England. The E version also operated in the Mediterranean, North Africa and Russia. More than 33,000 Bf 109s of all variants were produced, a number greater than any other wartime aircraft. Powerplant of the Bf 190E-4 was a 1,100hp Daimler-Benz DB601 engine giving a maximum speed of 520km/h (323mph) at 5,000m.

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