Messerschmitt Bf 109 operational history victories. Messerschmitt Bf 109 operational history The Messerschmitt Bf 109 was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid-1930s. It was one of the first true modern fighters of the era, including such features as all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, a retractable landing gear, and was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. The Bf 109 saw active service in many air forces and was active in several conflicts outside of World War II. Dozens of Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters, including the A, B, C, D, and E
Messerschmitt Bf 109 In order to make the new production facilities bomb-proof, other prisoners were forced to build tunnels so that production could be relocated underground. Many died while performing this hazardous duty. Forced labor at Buchenwald produced about 300 Bf 109 fuselages, tails, and wings before the end of the war. By mid-1944, more than a third of the production at the Regensburg factory originated in Flossembürg and Gusen alone; only the final assembly was done in Regensburg. Separately, Erla employed thousands of concentration camp prisoners at Buchenwald and Flossembürg on 109 production. Some 865 Bf 109G derivatives were manufactured postwar under