World War Photos

Click on thumbnail images to enlarge

Messerschmitt Bf 110 Zerstörer (Destroyer) was a twin-engine heavy fighter / night fighter developed in Germany in the 1930s and used by the Luftwaffe and others during World War II.
Total production: 6050 units.

Design and Structure (Bf 110G)

• Wings:
  • Low-wing cantilever monoplane with two tapered sections and small squared tips.
  • Aspect ratio of 7.3:1, with a root thickness-to-chord ratio of 0.185.
  • All-metal construction featuring a single spar, former ribs at 10-inch intervals, and lateral stringers spaced 12 inches apart, all covered with stressed-metal skin.
  • Hydraulically-operated slotted flaps (20% of the chord) and slotted ailerons with external mass-balance weights. The ailerons droop when flaps are lowered.
  • Handley Page automatic slots on the leading edge opposite the ailerons.
• Fuselage:
  • Oval all-metal stressed-skin structure, similar in construction to the Me 109.
  • Made in two portions, with armament mounted in the nose and various internal configurations.
• Tail Unit:
  • Cantilever monoplane with twin fins and rudders located at the extremities.
  • Metal framework with metal-covered fixed surfaces and fabric-covered control surfaces, including trimming tabs in elevators and rudders.

Landing Gear

• Type: Retractable, with wheels that retract backwards into the engine nacelles’ tails. The tail-wheel is fixed, and the main wheels have hydraulic retraction with hinged doors.

Power Plant

• Engines: Two Daimler-Benz DB 605 B twelve-cylinder inverted Vee liquid-cooled engines.
  • Each engine is rated at 1,350 h.p. at 5,700 m (18,700 ft), with 1,500 h.p. available for take-off.
  • Equipped with VDM three-bladed controllable-pitch full-feathering airscrews.
  • Cooling system includes 50/50 glycol/water radiators and oil coolers positioned strategically for efficient airflow and temperature control.
  • Normal fuel capacity is 1,270 liters (280 Imp. gallons), with provisions for additional jettisonable tanks.

Accommodation

• Cockpit: Enclosed cockpit with pilot’s position forward of the wing’s leading edge and rear gunner’s position over the trailing edge, all covered by a continuous transparent hood.
• Armor: Frontal, rear, and floor armor to protect the crew.

Armament

• Varies considerably based on mission requirements:
  • A typical configuration for a night fighter includes:
    • Two 30 mm MG 108 and two 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons in the nose, firing forward.
    • Two 20 mm MG FF cannons fixed in the rear cockpit, firing obliquely upward.
    • Twin 7.9 mm MG 81 machine guns on a flexible mounting, firing aft.
  • Additional options include four 21 cm rocket tubes under the wings and two bomb-carriers under the fuselage, capable of carrying bombs, such as two 500 kg bombs.

Dimensions and Weights

• Dimensions:
  • Span: 53 ft. 4 in. (16.2 m)
  • Length: 40 ft. 4 in. (12.3 m)
  • Height: 13 ft. 1½ in. (3.9 m)
  • Wing Area: 413 sq. ft. (37.17 sq. m)
• Weights:
  • Varies by configuration. A typical loaded weight for a variant equipped with tropical equipment and bombs could reach 22,100 lbs. (10,045 kg), with an empty weight around 11,220 lbs. (5,100 kg).

Performance

• Maximum Speed: 340 mph (544 km/h) at 21,000 ft. (6,405 m)
• Climb Rate: To 18,000 ft. (5,490 m) in 8 minutes
• Range: With maximum fuel, approximately 1,300 miles (2,080 km)

This aircraft was a versatile platform used in various roles throughout its service, known for its adaptability to different combat and support missions.

Bibliography:

• Martin W. Bowman – German Night Fighters Versus Bomber Command 1943-1945. The Second World War by NightManfred Griehl – Nachtjäger über Deutschland 1940 – 1945. Bf 110 – Ju 88 – He219 (German)
• Gebhard Aders – History of the German Night Fighter Force 1917-1945
• Ron Mackay – Messerschmitt Bf 110, Crowood Press 2000
• Messerschmitt Bf110 Zerstorer & Nachtjager – Famous Airplanes Of The World 41, Bunrin Do 1993 (japanese)
• Shigeru Nohara, Masato Tanaka – Messerschmitt Bf110, Aero Detail №21, (japanese)
• Christopher F. Shores: Luftwaffe Fighter, Bomber & Marine Camouflage & Markings 1940 – Bf110 – Ju87 – Fw200 – He59 – He115 – Do215 – Do18 – Do24 – Ar196, Osprey Aircam Aviation Series S11
• David P. Williams – Night Fighters. Hunters of the Reich
• Rudiger Kosin – The German Fighter Since 1915
• Werner Held, Holger Nauroth – German Fighters in World War II. The Night Fighters. A Photographic History of the German Nachtjager 1940-1945
• Peter W. Cohausz – Deutsche Flugzeugcockpits und Instrumentenbretter Teil 8. Zweiter Weltkrieg Messerschmitt – Winter, Cockpit Profile 8
• Armand Van Ishoven – Messerschmitt Bf 110 at War, Ian Allan Ltd 1985
• John Vasco – Messerschmitt Bf 110 C, D and E: An Illustrated Study. Variants, Weapons, Equipment
• John Weal, Chris Davey – Arctic Bf 109 and Bf 110 Aces, Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 124
• Jerry L. Campbell, Don Greer – Messerschmitt Bf 110 Zerstorer in action – Squadron Signal Aircraft No. 30
• John Weal – Messerschmitt Bf 110 Zerstorer Aces of World War 2, Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 25
• Jerry Scutts and John Weal – German Night Fighter Aces of World War 2. Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 20Heinz Mankau, Peter Petrick – Messerschmitt Bf 110/Me 210/Me 410: An Illustrated History, Schiffer Military History Book
• Tony Holmes and Jim Laurier – Hurricane I vs Bf 110: 1940, Osprey Duel
• Robert Forczyk, Jim Laurier -Bf 110 vs Lancaster: 1942-45, Osprey Duel
• Ron Mackay – Walk Around Messerschmitt Bf 110G, Squadron/Signal Publications Walk Around No. 24)
• Brett Green – Modelling the Messerschmitt Bf 110
• Dominique Breffort, Andre Jouineau – Messerschmitt Me 110 From 1939 to 1945. Messerchmitt’s twin-engined Bf 110, Me 210 and 410
• John Vasco -Messerschmitt Bf 110: Bombsights Over England: Erprobungsgruppe 210 in the Battle of Britain, Schiffer Military History Book
• Manfred Griehl – German Night Fighters in World War II, Schiffer Military
• Dominique Breffort – German Fighters. Volume 2: Bf110 – Me210 – Me410 – Fw190 – Me262 – Me183 – He162
• George G. Hopp – Bf 110 G, Monogram Close-Up 18
• Holger Nauroth, Werner Held – Messerschmitt Bf110 Over All Fronts 1939-1945
• Fernando Estanislau, John Vasco – The Messerschmitt Bf 110 in Color Profile: 1939-1945, Schiffer Military History Book
• Marek J. Murawski – Messerschmitt Bf 110 Vol I, Kagero Monographs 16
• Maciej Noszczak – Messerschmitt Bf 110 G All Models, Kagero Top Drawings 10
• Michael Ziefle – Messerschmitt Bf 110. Die Rehabilitierung eines Flugzeuges (German)
• Arms Magazine – German Fighters in W.W.II, Arms Photo Collection Series 1: Messerchmitt Bf 109, Bf110, & Me210, Me410, Me262 and Jet Fighters. Focke-Wulf Fw190 & the other combat airplanes (japanese)
• Martin C Windrow – The Messerscmitt Bf110, Profile Publications 23
• Alfred Price – Messerschmitt Bf 110 Night Fighters, Aircraft Profile 207
• Werner Held, Holger Nauroth – Defence of the Reich: Hitler’s Nightfighter Planes and Pilots
• Werner Held – The Day Fighters : A Photographic History of the German Tagjager, 1934-1945. German Fighters in World War II
• John J. Vasco – Zerstorer Volume Two: Luftwaffe Fighter Bombers and Destroyers 1941-1945, Luftwaffe Colours
• John J. Vasco – Zerstorer Volume One – Luftwaffe Fighter Bombers and Destroyers 1936-1940, Luftwaffe Colours
• John J. Vasco, Peter D. Cornwell – Zerstorer: The Messerschmitt 110 and Its Units in 1940