Baron's Combat Corner: Flying and fighting in the Messerschmitt Bf 109

Flying and fighting in the Messerschmitt Bf 109

“During the Battle of Britain, German aces Werner Molders and Adolf Galland, flying their Messerschmitt Bf 109s, learnt to adopt hit-and-run tactics against the more manoeuvrable British fighters, the Spitfire and Hurricane. They discovered that there was no point in trying to get into a dogfight with the Spitfire or Hurricane as this was to fight on their opponent’s terms.”

In our previous issue, we discussed what it was like to fly and fight in the P-51 Mustang. In this edition, we take a look at the handling qualities and dogfighting abilities of the Messerschmitt Bf 109. Various Marks of the Bf 109 have been modelled in different simulations over the years, including the ‘E’ model in IL-2 Sturmovik: Cliffs of Dover, the ‘F’ and ‘G’ variants in IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad and the ‘K’ version in DCS (Digital Combat Simulator) to name a few.

These simulations offer some of the most sophisticated representations of this venerable aircraft on the market today both in terms of graphical representation, as well as flight modelling. However, before we delve into what it was like to fly and fight in the Bf 109, let’s take a brief look at the origin of this iconic aircraft.