Messerschmitt Me 410
The Messerschmitt Me 410 Hornisse ("Hornet") was a Luftwaffe heavy fighter of World War II developed from the badly flawed Me 210. Essentially a straightforward development of that type, the 210 had garnered such a bad reputation that it was renamed the Me 410 to avoid disdain.
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| Messerschmitt Me 410A-1
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| The larger engines and longer tail are evident
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The Me 210C models produced for export to Hungary were so much better than the As in German service that there was talk of producing a 210D in Germany, identical to the Hungarian C's. However by this time a complete detail redesign the plane resulted in the "new" Me 410. The new version included a (somewhat obvious) lengthened fuselage and new leading-edge slats, both of which had been tested on leftover 210s and had dramatically improved handling. It also included the new 1,750 hp (1.3 MW) DB 603A engines, which drove it to 390 mph (628 km/h) and greatly improved climb rates, service ceiling, and most notably the cruise speed which jumped to 360 mph (579 km/h) even though the new design added 1,500 lb (680 kg) to the original. Shackles under the wings for four 50 kg bombs were also added, as the new plane could lift a load larger than could be fit into the internal bay.
The 410 was the plane that the 210 should have been, and finally started deliveries in late 1943 ? over two years later than the original plan. When it arrived it was greatly liked by its crews, even though its improved performance was no longer enough to protect it from the swarms of high performance Allied fighters they faced. Why it took over two years to fix what should have been a fairly straightforward problem is something of a mystery. The 410 would prove to be something of a shock to the British, when in February 1944 they started flying over England, after a year of shooting down anything that approached the island.
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| Messerschmitt Me 410A-1/U4
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| Note the new telescopic gunsight, protruding just above the cannon
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The basic A-series planes were armed with two MG 17's and two MG 151's in the nose, and delivered as the Me 410A-1 light bomber, Me 410A-2 heavy fighter versions, the only real difference being the removal of the Stuvi bombsight and external bomb shackles in the A-2 versions. Three Umrüst-Bausätze (factory conversion kits) were available, U1 contained a pallete of cameras for the photo-reconnaissance role, U2 with two 20mm MG 151/20 cannon with 250 rounds each for the heavy fighter use, and U4 used the 50 mm BK50 cannon with 21 rounds for bomber hunting. The cannon, derived from a now outdated anti-tank weapon, allowed the 410s to shoot at their targets from over 1,000 yards, a distance at which the bomber's guns were useless for defense. TheMe 410A-3 was later modifed from the A-1/U1 with a deeper fuselage for additional cameras and fuel. The 410A-3 entered service in small numbers in early 1944, and equipped three long-range reconnaissance Staffeln (one on the Western Front and the other two on the Eastern Front).
The Me 410B-series was largely the same as the A-series, but replaced the MG 17's with MG 131's, and used the newer 1,900 hp (1.4 MW) DB 603G series engines with improved superchargers. This increased the maximum speed to 392 mph (630 km/h), and cruising speed to 370 mph (595 km/h), although the weights increased once again. The versions were the same as with the A-series, the Me 410B-1, Me 410B-2 and Me 410B-3 filling the same roles as the earlier A-1, A-2 and A-3 versions.
Several experimental models were also developed. The Me 410B-5 added shackles under the fuselage to carry a torpedo, and removed the MG17's in the nose to make room for the FuG 200 Hohentwiel ship-search radar. The bomb bay was not used in this version, and it was instead used to fit a 650 litre fuel tank, as well as allowing the defensive gun barbettes to be replaced by another 700 litre fuel tank for long-range missions. The Me 410B-6 was a similar anti-shipping conversion, but intended for the short-range coastal role only. For this mission it did not use a torpedo, and was instead a simple modification of the B-1 with the FuG 200 radar. The Me 410B-8 was an updated B-3 reconnaissance model that was built in very small numbers.
The Me 410C was a high-altitude version drawn up in early 1944, with two new wings designs that increased span to 60 ft or 67 ft (18.25 m or 20.45 m). The larger wings allowed the gear to retract directly to the rear. A new universal engine mount would allow for the use of any of the DB 603JZ, Junkers Jumo 213E/JZ, or BMW 801TJ, all turbocharged versions of existing engines, driving a new four-bladed propeller with very wide blades. The 801 was air-cooled and the 213 used an annular radiator in the nose, so the normal under-wing radiators were removed and the DB powered versions would use the radiator from the 213's. None were ever built, as the engines never matured.
The Me 410D was a simpler upgrade to the B-series to improve altitude performance, but not to the same degree as the C-series. It would be powered by the DB 603JZ engines, and had a revised forward fuselage to increase the field of view of the pilot reduce drag. It also replaced portions of the outer wing panels with ones made of wood to conserve strategic materials. Several were built, but like many other attempts at wood construction, the loss of the Tegofilm factory in a bombing raid meant the adhesives available were not strong enough, and the wooden portions failed.
Production was eventually cancelled to concentrate on Messerschmitt Me 109G's in August 1944, after 1,160 410's had been built.
