Messerschmitt Me 262 variant
Messerschmitt Me 262 Me 262 A-1a
Main production variant of the Me 262, nicknamed Schwalbe ("Swallow"). Entered service in July 1944 as a pure fighter armed with four nose-mounted MK 108 cannon.
- 1,050 km
- Range
History
The Me 262A-1a was the definitive production fighter, derived from the V6 prototype with retractable tricycle landing gear. It entered operational service in July 1944, powered by two 8.8 kN Junkers Jumo 004B-1 turbojets and armed with four 30 mm MK 108 cannon in the nose. Numerous factory (/U) and field (/R) modification kits were fitted to this airframe: an up-gunned prototype (A-1a/U1), a night fighter with Lichtenstein SN-2 radar (A-1a/U2), photo-reconnaissance versions (A-1a/U3), bomber-destroyer prototypes with a 50 mm anti-tank gun (A-1a/U4), and a heavy fighter with six MK 108 cannon (A-1a/U5). The /R7 field kit fitted twelve unguided R4M rockets under each wing, used with success against Allied bomber formations. A small batch, the A-1b, replaced the Jumo 004 with BMW 003A turbojets.