Air Power Series>1:48 die-cast display model>BF-109>HA8717
BF 109E-3 Spanish Civil War Oblt. Hans Schmoller-Haldy, 3.J/88, March 1939
General Background
The first German mass produced 109 fighter was the Bf-109E that has been mistakenly referred
to as the Me-109. The Bf is the designator for the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW) (Bavarian
Aircraft Works) that produced the original aircraft. In 1938 Messerschmitt took over BFW but
throughout WWII German handbooks and documents referred to the aircraft as the Bf-109. By the
end of 1939 the Bf-109E (Emil) had replaced all other 109 variants and equipped 13 Gruppens
with 40 aircraft each. The Bf-109 was the main single-engine aircraft until the Fw-190 came along.
The Aircraft
Hans Schmoller-Haldy was a member of the German Condor Legion and arrived in Spain at the
end of the Spanish Civil War and because of the late arrival didn’t score any victories. However
his Bf-109E-3 did have one of the more unique paint schemes. Not only did it have the 3. Staffel
Mickey Mouse emblem but he added his personal touch, an overflowing beer stein with the initials
CP marked on it. The CP stood for "The Order of Cardinal Puff", a pilot’s beer club in Belgium.
Later in WWII he scored 14 victories.
Specifications :
| Role: | Fighter/Interceptor |
| Weight: | Empty – 2,025 kg |
| Empty With Fuel – 2,328 kg | |
| Maximum Take-Off – 2,610 kg | |
| Performance: | Powerplant – 1 X Daimler-Benz DB-601A 12-Cylinder Inline |
| Maximum Power – 924 hp Upgraded 1,070 hp | |
| Speed Maximum | Stock – 545 km/h @ 5,000 m |
| Upgraded – 594 km/h @ 5.000 m | |
| Rate of Climb | Stock – 12.5 m/sec |
| Upgraded – 25.1 m/sec | |
| Range – 412 miles @ 62.5% power @ 16,000 ft | |
| Initial Climb Rate – 3,100 ft/min | |
| Service ceiling – 36,000 ft | |
| Armament: | Guns Wing Mounted – 2 X 20 mm MGFF Cannons W/60 RPG = 120 Total
Guns Nose Mounted – 2 X 7.92 mm MG 17 Machine Guns W/1,000 RPG = 2,000 Total |
| Bombs | 4 X 50 kg SC50JA
1 X 250 kg SC250JA |