-
1 sailplane
-
2 Messerschmitt, Willi E.
SUBJECT AREA: Aerospace[br]b. 26 June 1898 Frankfurt-am-Main, Germanyd. 17 September 1978 Munich, Germany[br]German aircraft designer noted for successful fighters such as the Bf 109, one of the world's most widely produced aircraft.[br]Messerschmitt studied engineering at the Munich Institute of Tchnology and obtained his degree in 1923. By 1926 he was Chief Designer at the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke in Augsburg. Due to the ban on military aircraft in Germany following the First World War, his early designs included gliders, light aircraft, and a series of high-wing airliners. He began to make a major impact on German aircraft design once Hitler came to power and threw off the shackles of the Treaty of Versailles, which so restricted Germany's armed forces. In 1932 he bought out the now-bankrupt Bayerische Flugzeugwerke, but initially, because of enmity between himself and the German aviation minister, was not invited to compete for an air force contract for a single-engined fighter. However, in 1934 Messerschmitt designed the Bf 108 Taifun, a small civil aircraft with a fighter-like appearance. This displayed the quality of his design and the German air ministry was forced to recognize him. As a result, he unveiled the famous Bf 109 fighter which first flew in August 1935; it was used during the Spanish Civil War in 1936–9, and was to become one of the foremost combat aircraft of the Second World War. In 1938, after several name changes, the company became Messerschmitt Aktien-Gesellschaft (and hence a change of prefix from Bf to Me). During April 1939 a Messerschmitt aircraft broke the world air-speed record at 755.14 km/h (469.32 mph): it was entered in the FAI records as a Bf 109R, but was more accurately a new design designated Me 209V-1.During the Second World War, the 5/70P was progressively improved, and eventually almost 35,000 were built. Other successful fighters followed, such as the twin-engined Me 110 which also served as a bomber and night fighter. The Messerschmitt Me 262 twin-engined jet fighter, the first jet aircraft in the world to enter service, flew during the early years of the war, but it was never given a high priority by the High Command and only a small number were in service when the war ended. Another revolutionary Messerschmitt AG design was the Me 163 Komet, the concept of Professor Alexander Lippisch who had joined Messerschmitt's company in 1939; this was the first rocket-propelled fighter to enter service. It was a small tailless design capable of 880 km/hr (550 mph), but its duration under power was only about 10 minutes and it was very dangerous to fly. From late 1944 onwards it was used to intercept the United States Air Force bombers during their daylight raids. At the other end of the scale, Messerschmitt produced the Me 321 Gigant, a huge transport glider which was towed behind a flight of three Me 110s. Later it was equipped with six engines, but it was an easy target for allied fighters. This was a costly white elephant, as was his high-speed twin-engined Me 210 fighter-bomber project which nearly made his company bankrupt. Nevertheless, he was certainly an innovator and was much admired by Hitler, who declared that he had "the skull of a genius", because of the Me 163 Komet rocket-powered fighter and the Me 262.At the end of the war Messerschmitt was detained by the Americans for two years. In 1952 Messerschmitt became an aviation adviser to the Spanish government, and his Bf109 was produced in Spain as the Hispano Buchon for a number of years and was powered by Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. A factory was also constructed in Egypt to produce aircraft to Messerschmitt's designs. His German company, banned from building aircraft, produced prefabricated houses, sewing machines and, from 1953 to 1962, a series of bubble-cars: the KR 175 (1953–55) and the KR 200 (1955–62) were single-cylinder three-wheeled bubble-cars, and the Tiger (1958–62) was a twin-cylinder, 500cc four-wheeler. In 1958 Messerschmitt resumed aircraft construction in Germany and later became the Honorary Chairman of the merged Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm company (now part of the Franco-German Eurocopter company).[br]Further Readingvan Ishoven, 1975, Messerschmitt. Aircraft Designer, London. J.Richard Smith, 1971, Messerschmitt. An Air-craft Album, London.Anthony Pritchard, 1975, Messerschmitt, London (describes Messerschmitt aircraft).JDS / CMBiographical history of technology > Messerschmitt, Willi E.
См. также в других словарях:
Glider Competition Classes — Competition classes in gliding, as in other sports, mainly exist to ensure fairness in competition. However the classes have not been targeted at fostering technological development as in other sports. Instead classes have arisen because of: *… … Wikipedia
Glider competition classes — Competition classes in gliding, as in other sports, mainly exist to ensure fairness in competition. However the classes have not been targeted at fostering technological development as in other sports. Instead classes have arisen because of: the… … Wikipedia
Radio-controlled glider — A radio controlled glider is a type of radio controlled airplane that normally does not have any form of propulsion. They are able to sustain continuous flight by exploiting the lift produced by slopes and thermals, controlled remotely from the… … Wikipedia
Primary glider — Primary gliders are a category of aircraft that enjoyed worldwide popularity during the 1920s and 1930s as people strove for simple and inexpensive ways to learn to fly.Schweizer, Paul A: Wings Like Eagles, The Story of Soaring in the United… … Wikipedia
Powered hang glider — A foot launched powered hang glider (FLPHG), also called powered harness, nanolight or hangmotor, is a powered hang glider harness with a motor and propeller in pusher configuration. An ordinary hang glider is used for its wing and control frame … Wikipedia
Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry — Badge of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry Active … Wikipedia
Gimli Glider — Air Canada Flight 143 Air Canada flight 143 landed on an auto dragstrip at Gimli, MB Accident summary Date 23 July 1983 … Wikipedia
feathertail glider — Flying Fly ing, a. [From {Fly}, v. i.] Moving in the air with, or as with, wings; moving lightly or rapidly; intended for rapid movement. [1913 Webster] {Flying army} (Mil.) a body of cavalry and infantry, kept in motion, to cover its own… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
List of Vampire Hunter D light novels — This is a listing of all light novels in the Vampire Hunter D series, written by Hideyuki Kikuchi, and illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano.Known simply as the nihongo| Vampire Hunter |吸血鬼ハンター|Kyūketsuki Hantā series in Japan, the first novel, Vampire… … Wikipedia
sailplane — sailplaner, n. /sayl playn /, n., v., sailplaned, sailplaning. n. 1. a very light glider that can be lifted by an upward current of air. v.i. 2. to soar in a sailplane. [1920 25; SAIL + PLANE1] * * * … Universalium
sailplane — sail•plane [[t]ˈseɪlˌpleɪn[/t]] n. v. planed, plan•ing 1) aer. a very light glider that can be lifted by an upward current of air 2) to soar in a sailplane • Etymology: 1920–25 sail′plan er, n … From formal English to slang
