Me 163 Komet rocket interceptor [Germany]

[copeab]

Messerchmitt Me 163 Komet
Copyright 2005 by Brandon Cope

The Komet, sleek and incredibly fast, was a deadly aircraft – to its own crews. More Me 163 pilots were killed in accidents than from enemy action and, overall, more Me 163’s were probably lost than the sixteen or so aircraft they downed.

The Me 163 design originated in 1939, when a DFS 194 glider airframe (a flying wing) was adapted to take a 880-lb Walter rocket. The combination reached 342 mph and Messerschmitt was told to proceed with six larger prototypes, designated the Me 163A. The first powered flight took place in 1941 using a 1,653-lb thrust rocket; a speed of 624 mph was reached at one point, but control was briefly lost as the plane became unstable nearing the speed of sound. However, at this point, and throughout the Me 163’s life, the greatest danger was that of the two fuels it used, T-Stoff and C-Stoff. Not only were they dangerous for ground crews to handle (a spill could be fatal due to their highly corrosive nature), but if the plane landed with any fuel left in the tanks and they ruptured, the results would be explosive!

To save weight, retractable landing gear was not fitted. Instead, a jettisonable two-wheel trolley was used. Landing was made on an underbelly skid and small tailwheel.

Due to the short range, it was planned to place Komet bases about 60 miles apart, to cover all bomber flight paths. However, the system was never completed and Allied bombers were able to avoid known bases fairly easily.
Other armaments were tried, as the MK 108 cannons fired too slowly for the required high-speed approaches. Alternate weapons ran from 20mm MG 151 cannons (20mm Short Aircraft ACs) to the SG 500 Jagdfaust, with ten vertical 50mm tubes in the wing roots (treat as 47mm Short TG) fired as the plane flew under bomber formations and was triggered by a light cell. Only a dozen planes were so equipped, but apparently a B-17 was brought down by the system.

Some 400 Me 163’s of all versions were built. They first saw combat in July 1944 and were used sporadically until the end of the war. The short flight duration, the vulnerability to Allied fighters when gliding back to base, and the volatile fuel all combined to make the Me 163 a relatively ineffective weapon.

The Me 163B-1 uses 5,625 gallons of liquid rocket fuel per hour at routine usage. A full load of fuel and ammo is $796.

Me 163B-1

Subassemblies: Medium Fighter chassis with Very Good streamlining +3, Heavy Fighter Wings +2, one landing skid +0.
Powertrain: 3,750-lb thrust liquid fuel rocket with 404-gallon self-sealing fuel tanks [Body]; 2,000-kW batteries
Occupancy: 1 CS Cargo: 3 Body, 3.7 Wing

Armor
Skid: 2/3
All Other: 3/5

Weaponry
2¥30mm Medium Aircraft AC/MK 108 [Wings:F] (200 rounds each)

Equipment
Body: Medium range radio transmitter and receiver, navigation instruments, autopilot.

Statistics
Size: 19’¥31’¥9’
Payload: 2.12 tons
Lwt.: 4.58 tons
Volume: 200
Maint.: 45 hours.
Price: $19,900.

HT: 8.
HPs: 120 Body, 180 each Wing, 36 Skid.

aSpeed: 596
aAccel: 8
aDecel: 28
aMR: 7
aSR: 2
Stall speed 101.

gSpeed: 380
gAccel: 18
gDecel: 10
gMR: 0.5
gSR: 2
Ground Pressure Extremely High. No Off-Road Speed.

Design Notes
Design top speed was 626 mph. The historical speed, as well as wing area (199 sf) has been used instead. The Me 163B-1 had a powered flight time of 7.5 minutes, which is a bit less than double the duration the design system provides.

Variants
The rare Me 163S conversion was a tandem, unpowered trainer, which added a second crew station and removed some fuel tankage and other equipment.

The Me 163D, never produced, had retractable tricycle landing gear. It was also known as the Ju 248 and Me 263.

The Japanese built a near copy, the Mitsubishi Ki-200 (also known as the J8M1). The aircraft was reconstructed using an instruction manual, as an airframe and engine en route to Japan via submarine was intercepted. The first Ki-200 flew in July 1945 and only a handful were built; none saw action.