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Welcome to the suggestion for the Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2! This vehicle is currently in-game, but here I’m suggesting it for the normal German tech tree, foldered with the G-2/trop similar to the F-4 and F-4/trop. In-game, this would have access to the R6 modification, allowing it to have underwing gondolas with the 20 mm MG 151/20. While the G-2 wouldn’t be anything new, it is historically significant, seeing over a thousand built of this variant alone, and would provide a non-tropicalized G-2, representing the middle area of the Bf 109’s service life.
History
A Bf 109 F-2 at Werneuchen Airfield, 1941 or 1942.
In 1941, a new model of the famous (or infamous) Messerschmitt Bf 109 entered production, the F-model, Friedrich. This variant was well liked by its pilots, utilizing the more powerful DB 601E engine, and with the F-4 variant, the more effective MG 151/20 cannon firing through the propeller. However, with the promised availability of the new Daimler-Benz DB 605A, work began on the next variant. The DB605 offered more power, 1,475 hp at takeoff, but would increase the weight of the aircraft. Due to this, the fuselage, engine mounts, and landing gear assembly were strengthened, further increasing the weight of the aircraft. It was felt that despite the hit to overall maneuverability, the tradeoff was worth it.
The DB 605A wasn’t available initially, so construction of the pre-production Bf 109 G-0 equipped with the DB 601E began in summer of 1941. It was only in February of 1942 that the first production variant, the G-1, entered production at Messerschmitt’s factory in Regensburg. The cowling on this DB 605A equipped variant had been recontoured to accommodate the engine, the oil cooler had been enlarged, and the cockpit had been pressurized. Along with this, the GM-1 nitrous oxide booster system was installed as standard. Simultaneously with the G-1 entering production, a second variant, the G-2, was constructed, entering production in May at Wiener Neustädter Flugzeugwerke in Austria. The main difference was a non-pressurized cockpit and the lack of the GM-1 system. Despite being produced slightly later, the G-2 would see service first, and would be produced in larger numbers than the G-1.
Commander of JG 54, Major Hannes Trautloft in his Bf 109 G-2 in the Leningrad region, summer 1942.
After entering service, changes were done to the G-2 to produce an extended range fighter-bomber. Two 300-liter drop tanks were fitted under the wings, and a bomb shackle was added under the fuselage to carry a 500 kg SC500. The large bomb size created clearance problems on takeoff, and to remedy this, an extended auxiliary tail wheel was added beneath and to the rear of the cockpit. These tail wheels would be jettisoned after the aircraft was in the air by use of explosive bolts, and the aircraft would land as normal after returning from dropping its bomb. This modification, the Bf 109 G-2/R1, was not produced. A second variant, the Bf 109 G-2/R2, reinstalled the GM-1 system and introduced camera equipment for reconnaissance missions.
Although the R1 never saw operational use, modifications were still made to G-2s in service, including the installation of an ETC 500 bomb rack, enabling it to carry a 250 kg SC250 bomb. There were other field modifications done to in-service G-2s, including underwing gondolas carrying 20 mm MG151/20 cannons, as well as the rack and internal fuel lines to carry a 300-liter drop tank under the fuselage. Production of the G-2 model would end in December 1942, with the final models being produced at Eisenwerk Erla and Wiener Neustädter Flugzeugwerke being the G-2/trop model, equipped for desert combat. In total, 1,587 Bf 109 G-2s were produced, including at least 406 of the trop model, ultimately being phased out in favor of further Gustav developments like the G-6, which used larger 13 mm MG 131s that replaced the 7.92 mm MG 17s in the cowling.
A Bf 109 G-6 from JG 27, 1943.
Specifications
- Crew: 1
- Mass: 3.1 t
- Length: 8.94 m
- Width: 9.924 m
- Height (with propeller): 3.4 m
- Wing area: 16.05 m²
- Primary armament: 2× 7.92 mm MG 17 (1,000 rounds) & 1× 20 mm MG151/20 (200 rounds)
- Secondary armament: 1× 250 kg SC250, 4× 50 kg SC50, 110 kg C 250, 2× 20 mm MG151/20 in underwing gondolas (135 rounds per gun)
- Equipment: FuG 25 IFF, FuG VIIa radio
- Engine: 1,475 hp DB605A-1 V-12
- Propeller: VDM 9-12087
- Maximum speed: 537 km/h at sea level, 660 km/h at 7,000 m
- Maximum range: 642 km
- Number produced: 1,587
Sources
- Pęczkowski, Robert. (2000) Messerschmitt Bf-109 G. Redbourn, UK. Mushroom Model Publications.
- Ritger, Lynn. (2007) The Messerschmitt Bf 109 Part 2: ‘F’ to ‘K’ Variants. Bedford, UK. SAM Publications.
- Feist, Uwe. (1988) The Fighting Me 109. London, UK. Arms & Armour Press Ltd.
- Luftwaffe Resource Center - Fighters/Destroyers - A Warbirds Resource Group Site
