Messerschmitt Me 264

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Messerschmitt Me 264
Me 264 V1
Description
Role	Bomber/Maritime Patrol Aircraft
Crew	5-6
First Flight	December 1942
Entered Service	Never
Manufacturer	Willy Messerschmitt Flugzeugwerke GmbH
Dimensions (Me 264V3 Prototype)
Length	20.9 m	68 ft 7 in
Wingspan	43.0 m	141 ft
Height	4.3 m	14 ft
Wing area	127.8 m²	1,376 ft²
Weights
Empty	21,150 kg	46,630 lb
Loaded	45,540 kg	100,400 lb
Maximum takeoff	56,000 kg	123,000 lb
Powerplant
Engine	Four BMW 801G/H
Power (each)	1,272 kW	1,730 PS
Performance
Maximum speed	560 km/h	350 mph
Combat range	6,000 (4,000) km	3,704 (2,500) miles
Ferry range	14,900 km (disputed - other sources give 10,000 km)	9,260 mi (6,250 mi)
Service ceiling	8,000 m	26,000 ft
Rate of climb	120 m/min	390 ft/min
Wing loading	356 kg/m²	72.9 lb/ft²
Power/Mass	0.11 kW/kg	0.07 hp/lb
Armament
Guns	Four 13 mm (0.51 in) MG 131 machine guns
	Two 20 mm (0.79 in) MG 151 cannon
Bombs	3,000 kg	6,600 lb

The Messerschmitt Me 264 Amerika (America) was a long-range strategic bomber and reconnaissance aircraft developed during World War II for the Luftwaffe under the Reichsluftfahrtministerium's (the German Air Ministry) "Amerika Bomber" programme, and for the Kriegsmarine as a maritime reconnaissance and attack aircraft.

The plane was supposed to be capable of flying from Germany to New York City and back, although it is highly doubtful that this would have been achieved with a meaningful payload, if at all. One prototype was made but production was abandoned to allow Messerschmitt to concentrate on fighter production and because another design, the Junkers Ju 390, had been selected in its place as a maritime reconnaissance plane.

1 Development history
2 Design
3 Related content
4 References and external links

[edit] Development history

The origin of the Me 264 design came from Messerschmitt's long range reconnaissance aircraft project, the P.1061, of the late 1930s. A variant on the P.1061 was the P.1062, with only two engines to the P.1061's four, but they were the more powerful DB 606 engines. The progress of these projects was initially slow, but in 1940 the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM) started a programme for a very long range bomber, and the Kriegsmarine (German Navy) separately demanded a long range patrol and attack aircraft to replace the converted Fw 200 Condor in this role. As a result, in early 1941, six P.1061 prototypes were ordered from Messerschmitt, under the designation Me 264. This was later reduced to three prototypes.

The first prototype, the Me 264 V1, was flown on December 23, 1942. It was powered at first by four Jumo 211J engines of 1,340 shp (metric hp, 990 kW) each. In late 1943 these were changed to the BMW 801G which delivered 1,750 shp (1,290 kW). Trials showed numerous minor faults, and handling was found to be difficult. One of the drawbacks was the very high wing load of the plane in fully loaded conditions, e.g. comparable planes such as the B29 Superfortress with 337 kg/m² wing loading at three times the payload or the Ju 390 at 209 kg/m² wing loading had a better design. High wing loading leads to performance problems across the whole flight envelope, in particular bad climb performance, loss of maneuverability and in-flight stability, and the need for high take-off and landing speeds. This first prototype was not fitted with weapons. The following two prototypes, Me 264 V2 and Me 264 V3, were armed and had some vital parts armoured.

In 1943, the Kriegsmarine withdrew their interest in the Me 264 in favour of the existing Ju 290 and the planned Ju 390. As a consequence, in October 1943, Erhard Milch ordered the cancellation of further Me 264 development and focussing on the Me 262 jet fighter-bomber. On July 18, 1944 the first prototype was damaged during an Allied bombing raid and was not repaired. The other two prototypes, which had not been fully completed, were destroyed during the same raid.

On September 23, 1944, work on the Me 264 project was officially canceled.

[edit] Design

It was an all-metal high-wing four-engine heavy bomber of classic construction. The fuselage was round in cross-section and had a crew cabin in a glazed nose. The wing had a slightly swept leading edge and a straight rear edge. The tailplane had double tail fins. The undercarriage was a retractable tricycle gear, with quite large diameter wheels. The planned armament consisted of guns in remotely operated turrets and in positions on the sides of the fuselage. Overall it carried very little armour and few guns in order to increase fuel capacity and range. The Me 264 had four 1,700 PS (1,250 kW) BMW 801G engines. In order to provide comfort on the proposed long-range missions, the Me 264 featured bunk beds and a small galley complete with hotplates.