Bf 109 B/C/D technical data?
 

I´m looking for technical data of Jumo-engined Bf 109 B/C/D

- maximum speed at different altitudes?
- cruising speed?
- rate of climb?
- service ceiling?
- range?
- wing loading?
- other important technical features?

Any differences in performance between B / C / D ?

- different armament configurations and experiments, specially in those in Legion Condor service?

The most reliable / authorative sources regarding the early Bf 109 ?

Re: Bf 109 B/C/D technical data?
 

Hallo Guerra Civil!
these data can be found in the manuals, especially the "Ladeplan" sections. I don't have them at hand so answers would take some time...
These date are essentially "theoretical" - in practical use they might differ slightly according to refits or modifications. But these were rather restricted with the older versions compared to e. g. the Bf109G .
As the Bf109C used another engine as the other versions and Bf109B carried less armament there were certainly some differences. An online source I remember is:
http://www.kurfurst.org/#engines

The armamament was for the Bf109B three MG17 (one through the spinner which was often/mostly removed) while the other versions carried two MG17 above the engine (1000rpg) and two in the wings (500rpg). The Bf109C-3 did carry the same wing armament as the Bf109E-3 e.g. 2 MG/FF with 60 rpg.
IIRC the a/c used by the J/88 were standard types with the exeption of the missing wireless sets.

Sources are:
- Vogt "Messerschmitt Bf 109 Einsatzmaschinen - Das Nachschlagwerk", VDM Nickel (german)
- Radinger/Schick "Messerschmitt Bf 109 A-E", Schiffer (english) or Aviatic (german)
- Manuals, reprints of which are obtainable through Luftfahrt Archiv Hafner:
http://www.luftfahrt-archiv-hafner.de/

Hope this helps!
Regards,
Ralph

Re: Bf 109 B/C/D technical data?
 

Thanks, although the online source seems to give info only on Emil and later models. Quite little is to be found about the early Messers B/C/D. This book is perhaps the best and seems to have reasonable price too: http://www.amazon.de/Messerschmitt-1.../dp/3844865977

When it comes to armament, I remember to have seen one C-3 with a pair of 20 mm wing cannons in Polish book on Bf 109 C/D in September 1939.

Most Bf 109 B/C/D in Spain flew without radio equipment - if I remember correctly Günther Lützow ordered radio masts and antenna wires to be removed as they slowed the speed and the equipment was not yet reliable. Also photos and colourplates of Mölders Bf 109 D show a plane without radio mast and antenna wires. At some point the radios were fitted again as they were useful to keep more loose formations together. But it took until Emil that the radio equipment finally became standard in Legion Condor Bf 109´s.

When it comes to Bf 109 it is not difficult to find info when it comes to E and later models (there is abundance of information). But when it comes to B - D, it is another story.

Was Bf 109 a superfighter already when it was B/C/D? I have read that Günther Lützow made same mock-fights against Fiat CR 32. He noted that Bf 109 B and Fiat CR 32 climbed equally up to 3000 m but above that altitude the biplane climbed faster! In turning fight (Kurvenkampf) the biplane was better, but not as much as he had expected.

It would be interesting to compare Bf 109 B/C/D with I-16 (tip 5 and 10) to see differences in speeds at different altitudes, rate of climb, dive and manouverability.

Re: Bf 109 B/C/D technical data?
 

Perhaps the best reference of early Bf 109 B/C/D in English:

http://www.amazon.com/Messerschmitt-.../dp/B00NZZB1XC

But can not tell how good it is for not having read it yet. However looks better than the reference in the previous post.

Re: Bf 109 B/C/D technical data?
 

Hello Guerra,

Try this Schiffer book:
http://www.amazon.com/Messerschmitt-.../dp/076430951X

77 pages out of 132 pages of text covering the prototype V's and A-D versions, with lots of drawings and photos.

Regards,
...geoff

Re: Bf 109 B/C/D technical data?
 

Radinger & Schick 1997/1999 is very often mentioned as the standard reference. Maybe still the best after all the years after its publication.

However, I do not know if the recently appeared thin Osprey volume is more "up-to-date" - there are many years between it and Radinger & Schick so one could assume that it has something that Radinger & Schcik not.

There is some disagreement concerning the top speed of Bf 109 B -D - mostly it is given around 460 - 470 km/h at an altitude of 4000 meters. This supposedly a production series type, not a light V-prototype without armament and camo.

Soviet tested one Bf 109 B captured in Spain - they could not get more than 422 km/h out of the machine at any altitude. However found it easier to fly than I-16. The photos which I have seen of this Soviet tested machine (Legion Condor nr. 6-15) show that it had a fixed prop (wooden Schwarz?), although some colourplates show it erroneusly with VDM Hamilton variable prop. I wonder how much the different prop may have created difference performance in different test flights.

One could also ask if Bf 109 B - D was really "stiff" in dogfight - probably it was not so bad in dogfight manouvering - it was still a very light aircraft compared to something like Bf 109 G-6.

The A/B -series question is interesting. In the Legion Condor sources it is stated that in Spain were sent first V-prototypes for testing and after that came directly the B-series planes. In some other sources it is stated that almost all A-series planes were sent to Spain, but for some reason they were labelled there as "B". In some sources it is stated that there was not such as the A-series at all and the production went directly from V-prototypes to B-series and only later were the V-prototypes labelled as "A-series"!