The first German mass produced 109 fighter was the Bf-109E that has been mistakenly referred to as the Me-109. The Bf is the designator for the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW) (Bavarian Aircraft Works) that produced the original aircraft. In 1938 Messerschmitt took over BFW but throughout WWII German handbooks and documents referred to the aircraft as the Bf-109. By the end of 1939 the Bf-109E (Emil) had replaced all other 109 variants and equipped 13 Gruppens with 40 aircraft each. The Bf-109 was the main single-engine aircraft until the Fw-190 came along.

The Aircraft

The Croatian Air Force Legion was a component of the German Luftwaffe and manned by Croatian volunteers. The unit trained in Germany using the Bf-109 and the Dornier Do-17 before being sent to the Eastern Front. During the units time on the Eastern Front the Bf-109s managed to score 283 victories and the Do-17 flew 2,332 missions. The unit was disbanded on July 21, 1944 and became the Croatian Air Force Training Group. Mato Dukovac was the leading Croatian Fighter Ace with between 40 and 44 victories.

• Production timeline: February 1943 – October 1943
• Number produced: 5,000+
• Dimensions
• Wingspan – 9.92m (32ft 6.5in)
• Length – 9.04m (29ft (8in)
• Height – 2.5m (8ft 2.25in)
• Weight
• Empty - 2,700kg (5,900lb)
• Gross Loaded – 3,400kg (7,500lb)
• Performance
• Powerplant – Daimler-Benz DB605A-1, 12-cylinder inverted vee, liquid cooled, 1,475hp
• Maximum Speed – 640km/h (398mph)
• Range – 850km (528miles)
• Service ceiling – 12,000m (39,370ft)
• Armament
• 2 X 13mm (.51in) synchronized MG 131 machine guns with 300 rounds each
• 1 X 20mm (.78in) MG 151/20 cannon as centerline Motorkanone firing through propeller hub with 200 rounds
• Or
• 1 X 30mm (1.18in) MK 108 cannon as centerline Motorkanone with 65 round per gun (G-6/U4 variant)
• 2 X 20mm MG 151/20 under-wing cannon pods with 135 round per gun (Rustsatz V option)
• Rockets - 2 X 21 cm (8 in) Wfr. Gr. 21 rockets (G-6 with BR21)
• Bomb
• 1 X 250 kg (551 lb) bomb
• Or
• 4 X 50 kg (110 lb) bombs
• Or
• 1 X 300 litre (79 US gal) drop tank