Messerschmitt Me 328

Messerschmitt · Germany · first flew 1942 · fighter

The Messerschmitt Me 328 was a German experimental small fighter and attack aircraft powered by Argus As 014 pulse-jet engines, intended as a cheap, quickly produced parasitic fighter or suicide attack aircraft.

Recognition (WEFT)

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

• Experimental German WWII parasite fighter/bomber
• Pulse-jet powered development aircraft; extremely vibration-prone
• Intended to be towed aloft by a mother aircraft

Very small mid-wing monoplane with two Argus pulse-jets mounted under the wing roots, a bubble canopy, and a conventional tail; noticeably diminutive compared to contemporary German fighters.

Specifications

• The Messerschmitt Me 328 has a length of 6.9 m (23 ft).
• It has a wingspan of 8 m (26 ft).
• Its maximum speed is 750 km/h (466 mph).
• Typical crew: 1.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Development began in 1941 and glider trials took place from 1942; pulse-jet powered flights in 1944 revealed extreme vibration from the pulsating engines that caused structural fatigue. The project was cancelled without entering production as vibration problems could not be solved in time.

Variants

Me 328A fighter variant; Me 328B ground-attack variant with bomb load; both remained experimental and neither entered production.

Where you'll see it

Never entered operational service; remained at the experimental stage throughout WWII; proposed as a Selbstopfer (suicide) weapon in desperation planning but not adopted.

Related aircraft

• Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2
• Messerschmitt Bf 109G
• Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6
• Messerschmitt Me 262
• Aichi E16A Zuiun
• Bell P-59 Airacomet
• Bell P-63 Kingcobra
• Bereznyak-Isayev BI-1

AircraftIQ — the aircraft field guide: 5,024 recognition guides, live overhead identification, works offline.