Editing Messerschmitt Me 262 (section)

==Operational history==
{{more citations needed section|date=June 2019}}

===Introduction===
On 19 April 1944, ''[[Erprobungskommando]]'' 262 was formed at [[Lechfeld Air Base|Lechfeld]] just south of [[Augsburg]], as a test unit (''Jäger Erprobungskommando Thierfelder'', commanded by ''[[Hauptmann]]'' [[Werner Thierfelder]]){{sfn|Radinger|Schick|1996|p=49}}{{sfn|Stapfer|2006|p=2}} to introduce the Me 262 into service and train a corps of pilots to fly it.{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=119}} On 26 July 1944, Leutnant [[Alfred Schreiber (officer)|Alfred Schreiber]], while flying over Munich, with the 262 A-1a W.Nr. 130 017, encountered a [[de Havilland Mosquito|Mosquito]] PR Mark XVI reconnaissance aircraft, of [[No. 540 Squadron RAF]], piloted by Fl. Lt. A.E. Wall.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Magazine |first1=Smithsonian |last2=Kindy |first2=David |title=The Day Germany's First Jet Fighter Soared Into History |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/day-germanys-first-jet-fighter-soared-history-180978152/ |access-date=19 April 2024 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}</ref> Schreiber attempted to shoot down the unarmed Mosquito, though Wall evaded Schreiber's three attack runs, to land safely at Fermo, Italy, after the first air-to-air use of a jet fighter. Sources state the Mosquito had a hatch fall out, during the evasive manoeuvres, though the aircraft returned to [[RAF Benson]] on 27 July 1944, and remained in service until it  was lost in a landing in October 1950.{{sfn|Caldwell|Muller|2007|p=223}}<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/day-germanys-first-jet-fighter-soared-history-180978152/ |title = The Day Germany's First Jet Fighter Soared into History |work = [[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]] |date = 13 July 2021 |first = David |last = Kindy}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Incident de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito PR Mk XVI MM273 |url=https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=177214 |access-date=19 April 2024 |website=aviation-safety.net}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Accident de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito PR Mk XVI MM273 |url=https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/163958 |access-date=19 April 2024 |website=aviation-safety.net}}</ref> On 8 August 1944, Lt. Joachim Weber of EKdo 262 claimed the first kill by a 262, of a reconnaissance Mosquito, PR.IX LR433, of 540 squadron, over Munich, killing the pilot, Fl. Lt. Desmond Laurence Mattewman and navigator Flight Sergeant William Stopford.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Flight Lieutenant D L Matthewman (101013), Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve) [Royal Air Force WW2 Details] |url=https://www.rafcommands.com/awards/details.php?qnum=101013&qname=MATTHEWMAN |access-date=19 April 2024 |website=RAFCommands}}</ref>

[[File:Cosford 180723 Messerschmitt Me 262.jpg|thumb|Me 262 A-1a on display at [[RAF Cosford]]. ]]
Major [[Walter Nowotny]] was assigned as commander after the death of Thierfelder in July 1944, and the unit redesignated ''[[Kommando Nowotny]]''. Essentially a trials and development unit, it mounted the world's first jet fighter operations. Trials progressed at a slow pace; it was not until August 1944 that initial operational missions were flown against the Allies; the unit made claims for 19 Allied aircraft in exchange for six Me&nbsp;262s lost.{{sfn|Smith|1971|p=103}}{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=120}} Despite orders to stay grounded, Nowotny chose to fly a mission against an enemy bomber formation flying some {{cvt|30000|ft|order=flip|-2}} above, on 8 November 1944. He claimed two P-51Ds destroyed before suffering engine failure at high altitude.{{sfn|Morgan|Weal|1998|pp=27–28}} Then, while diving and trying to restart his engines, he was attacked by other Mustangs, forced to bail out, and died. The ''Kommando'' was then withdrawn for further [[flight training]] and a revision of combat tactics to optimise the Me&nbsp;262's strengths.{{sfn|Heath|2022|pp=218–220}}

On 26 November 1944, a Me 262A-2a Sturmvogel of III.''Gruppe''/[[KG 51]] 'Edelweiß' based at [[Rheine-Hopsten Air Base]] near [[Osnabrück]] was the first confirmed ground-to-air kill of a jet combat aircraft. The Me 262 was shot down by a [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|Bofors]] gun of B.11 Detachment of 2875 Squadron [[RAF Regiment]] at the RAF forward airfield of Helmond, near [[Eindhoven]]. Others were lost to ground fire on 17 and 18 December when the same airfield was attacked at intervals by a total of 18 Me 262s and the guns of 2873 and 2875 Squadrons RAF Regiment damaged several, causing at least two to crash within a few miles of the airfield. In February 1945, a B.6 gun detachment of 2809 Squadron RAF Regiment shot down another Me 262 over the airfield of [[Volkel Air Base|Volkel]]. The final appearance of Me 262s over Volkel was in 1945 when yet another fell to 2809's guns.{{sfn|Oliver|2002|pp=111–112}}

By January 1945, [[Jagdgeschwader 7|''Jagdgeschwader'' 7]] (JG 7) had been formed as a pure jet fighter wing, partly based at [[Parchim International Airport|Parchim]],<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.svz.de/lokales/parchimer-zeitung/hochfliegende-plaene-in-der-pampa-id10039291.html |title = Schwerin-Parchim Flughafen – Pläne |work = svz |language = German |publisher = Schweriner Volkszeitung |date = 23 June 2015}}</ref> although it was several weeks before it was operational. In the meantime, a bomber unit—I ''Gruppe'', [[Kampfgeschwader 54|''Kampfgeschwader'' 54]] (KG(J) 54)—redesignated as such on 1 October 1944{{sfn|de Zeng|Stankey|Creek|2007|p=183}} through being re-equipped with, and trained to use the Me&nbsp;262A-2a fighter-bomber for use in a ground-attack role. However, the unit lost 12 jets in action in two weeks for minimal returns.{{Citation needed|date=February 2013}} ''[[Jagdverband 44]]'' (JV 44) was another Me&nbsp;262 fighter unit, of squadron (''Staffel'') size given the low numbers of available personnel, formed in February 1945 by Lieutenant General [[Adolf Galland]], who had recently been dismissed as [[Inspector of Fighters]]. Galland was able to draw into the unit many of the most experienced and decorated Luftwaffe fighter pilots from other units grounded by lack of fuel.{{sfn|Miller|2007|p=449}}{{sfn|Heath|2022|p=253}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 141-2497, Flugzeug Me 262A auf Flugplatz.jpg|thumb|left|Me 262 A in 1945]]
During March, Me 262 fighter units were able, for the first time, to mount large-scale attacks on Allied bomber formations. On 18 March 1945, thirty-seven Me 262s of JG 7 intercepted a force of 1,221 bombers and 632 escorting fighters. They shot down 12 bombers and one fighter for the loss of three Me&nbsp;262s. Although a 4:1 ratio was exactly what the Luftwaffe would have needed to make an impact on the war, the absolute scale of their success was minor, as it represented only 1% of the attacking force.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

In the last days of the conflict, Me 262s from JG 7 and other units were committed in ground assault missions, in an attempt to support German troops fighting Red Army forces. Just south of Berlin, halfway between [[Spremberg]] and the German capital, the Wehrmacht's 9th Army (with elements from the 12 Army and [[4th Panzer Army]]) was assaulting the Red Army's [[1st Ukrainian Front]]. To support this attack, on 24 April, JG 7 dispatched thirty-one Me 262s on a strafing mission in the [[Cottbus]]-[[Bautzen]] area. Luftwaffe pilots claimed six lorries and seven Soviet aircraft, but three German jets were lost. On the evening of 27 April, thirty-six Me 262s from JG 7, III.KG(J)6 and KJ(J)54 were sent against Soviet forces that were attacking German troops in the forests north-east of [[Baruth/Mark|Baruth]]. They succeeded in strafing 65 Soviet lorries, after which the Me 262s intercepted low flying [[Ilyushin Il-2|Il-2 Sturmoviks]] searching for German tanks. The jet pilots claimed six Sturmoviks for the loss of three Messerschmitts. During operations between 28 April and 1 May Soviet fighters and ground fire downed at least ten more Me 262s from JG 7.{{sfn|Bergstrom|2008|p=123}}

However, JG 7 managed to keep its jets operational until the end of the war. And on 8 May, at around 4:00&nbsp;p.m. ''Oblt.'' Fritz Stehle of 2./JG 7, while flying a Me 262 on the [[Ore Mountains]], attacked a formation of Soviet aircraft. He claimed a [[Yakovlev Yak-9]], but the aircraft shot down was probably a [[P-39 Airacobra]]. Soviet records show that they lost two Airacobras, one of them probably downed by Stehle, who would thus have scored the last Luftwaffe air victory of the war.{{sfn|Bergstrom|2008|pp=123–124}}

[[File:ME 262 2.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Me 262B-1a/U1 night fighter, Wrknr. 110306, with [[Neptun radar|FuG 218 ''Neptun'']] antennae in the nose and second seat for a radar operator. This airframe was surrendered to the RAF at Schleswig in May 1945 and tested in the UK]]
Several two-seat [[Trainer (aircraft)|trainer]] variants of the Me 262, the Me 262 B-1a, had been adapted through the ''Umrüst-Bausatz 1'' factory refit package as [[night fighter]]s, complete with on-board [[Neptun radar|FuG 218 ''Neptun'']] high-VHF band radar, using ''Hirschgeweih'' ("stag's antlers") antennae with a set of dipole elements shorter than the ''[[Lichtenstein radar|Lichtenstein SN-2]]'' had used, as the B-1a/U1 version. Serving with 10. ''Staffel'' [[Nachtjagdgeschwader 11|''Nachtjagdgeschwader'' 11]], near Berlin, these few aircraft (alongside several single-seat examples) accounted for most of the 13 Mosquitoes lost over Berlin in the first three months of 1945.<ref>{{Cite web |url = http://www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org/LRG/me262-history.html |title = Luftwaffe Resource Center – Fighters/Destroyers – A Warbirds Resource Group Site |website = www.warbirdsresourcegroup.org |access-date = 11 October 2019}}</ref> Intercepts were generally or entirely made using ''[[Wilde Sau]]'' methods, rather than AI radar-controlled interception. As the two-seat trainer was largely unavailable, many pilots made their first jet flight in a single-seater without an instructor.{{sfn|Hecht|1990|p={{page needed|date=October 2022}}}}

Despite its deficiencies, the Me 262 clearly marked the beginning of the end of piston-engined aircraft as effective fighting machines. Once airborne, it could accelerate to speeds over {{convert|850|km/h|mph|abbr=on}}, about {{convert|150|km/h|mph|abbr=on}} faster than any Allied fighter operational in the European Theater of Operations.<ref>{{Cite web |url = https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/messerschmitt-me-262-1a-schwalbe-swallow |title = Messerschmitt Me 262 A-1a Schwalbe (Swallow) |date = 22 April 2016 |website = National Air and Space Museum |language = en |access-date = 11 October 2019 |archive-date = 12 June 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180612144432/https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/messerschmitt-me-262-1a-schwalbe-swallow }}</ref>

The Me 262's top [[Flying ace|ace]]<ref group="Note">For a list of Luftwaffe jet aces, see [[List of German World War II jet aces]]</ref> was probably ''Hauptmann'' [[Franz Schall]] with 17 kills, including six four-engine bombers and ten [[North American P-51 Mustang|P-51 Mustang]] fighters, although fighter ace ''Oberleutnant'' [[Kurt Welter]] claimed 25 Mosquitos and two four-engine bombers shot down by night and two further Mosquitos by day. Most of Welter's claimed night kills were achieved by eye, even though Welter had tested a prototype Me 262 fitted with [[Neptun radar|FuG 218 ''Neptun'' radar]]. Another candidate for top ace on the aircraft was ''[[Oberstleutnant]]'' [[Heinrich Bär]], who is credited with 16 enemy aircraft{{sfn|Miller|1997|p=30}} while flying Me 262s out of his total of 240 aircraft shot down.{{sfn|Isby|2016|p={{page needed|date=June 2022}}}}

===Anti-bomber tactics===

The Me 262 was so fast that German pilots needed new tactics to attack Allied bombers. In a head-on attack, the combined closing speed of about {{convert|320|m/s|mph|abbr=on}} was too high for accurate shooting with the relatively slow firing 30mm  [[MK 108 cannon]] - at about 650 rounds/min this gave around 44 rounds per second from all four guns. Even from astern, the closing speed was too great to use the short-ranged cannon to maximum effect. A roller-coaster attack was devised, the Me 262s approached from astern and about {{convert|1800|m|ft|adj=mid|higher|abbr=on}} than the bombers. From about {{convert|5|km|mi|adj=mid||abbr=on|spell=in}} behind, they went into a shallow dive that took them through the escort fighters with little risk of interception. When they were about {{convert|1.5|km|mi|adj=mid||abbr=on}} astern and {{convert|450|m|ft|abbr=on}} below the bombers, they pulled up sharply to reduce speed. On levelling off, they were {{convert|1|km|yd|adj=mid||abbr=on|spell=in}} astern and overtaking the bombers at about {{convert|150|km/h|mph|-1|abbr=on}} relative speed, well placed to attack them.{{sfn|Spick|1983|p=112}}

Since the short barrels of the MK 108 cannon and low muzzle velocity - {{convert|540|m/s||abbr=on}} - rendered it inaccurate beyond {{convert|600|m|yd|abbr=on}}, coupled with the jet's velocity, which required breaking off at {{convert|200|m|yd|abbr=on}} to avoid colliding with the target, Me 262 pilots normally commenced firing at {{convert|500|m|yd|abbr=on}}.{{sfn|Thompson|Smith|2008|p=233}} Gunners of Allied bomber aircraft found their electrically powered gun turrets had problems tracking the jets. Aiming was difficult because the jets closed into firing range quickly and remained in firing position only briefly, using their standard attack profile, which proved more effective.{{sfn|Hutchinson|2018|p={{page needed|date=October 2022}}}}{{clarify|date=March 2022}}{{vs|date=March 2022}}

[[File:Me 262 with R4M installation.JPG|thumb|Mock-up of an Me 262A-1a/R7 with R4M underwing rocket racks on display at the [[Technikmuseum Speyer]], Germany]]

A prominent Royal Navy test pilot, Captain [[Eric Brown (pilot)|Eric Brown]], chief naval test pilot and commanding officer of the Captured Enemy Aircraft Flight [[Royal Aircraft Establishment]], who tested the Me 262 noted that:

<blockquote>This was a [[Blitzkrieg]] aircraft. You whack in at your bomber. It was never meant to be a [[Dogfight|dogfighter]], it was meant to be a [[Bomber destroyer|destroyer of bombers]]... The great problem with it was it did not have [[Air brake (aircraft)|dive brake]]s. For example, if you want to fight and destroy a B-17, you come in on a dive. The 30mm cannon were not so accurate beyond {{convert|600|m|yd ft||disp=sqbr}}. So you normally came in at {{convert|600|yard|m ft||disp=sqbr}} and would open fire on your B-17. And your closing speed was still high and since you had to break away at {{convert|200|m|yd ft||disp=sqbr}} to avoid a collision, you only had two seconds firing time. Now, in two seconds, you can't sight. You can fire randomly and hope for the best. If you want to sight and fire, you need to double that time to four seconds. And with dive brakes, you could have done that.{{sfn|Thompson|Smith|2008|p=233}}</blockquote>

Eventually, German pilots developed new tactics to counter Allied bombers. Me 262s, equipped with up to 24 unguided folding-fin [[R4M (rocket)|R4M rocket]]s—12 in each of two underwing racks, outboard of the engine nacelles—approached from the side of a bomber formation, where their silhouettes were widest and while still out of range of the bombers' machine guns, fired a [[salvo]] of rockets. One or two hits with these rockets could shoot down even the famously rugged [[Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress]], from the "metal-shattering" brisant effect of the fast-flying rocket's {{convert|520|g|abbr=on}} explosive warhead.{{sfn|Brown|2006|p=101}} The much bigger [[Werfer-Granate 21|BR 21]] large-calibre rockets, fired from their tubular launchers under the nose of the Me 262A (one either side of the nosewheel well) were only as fast as MK 108 rounds.

Though this broadside-attack tactic was effective, it came too late to have a real effect on the war and only small numbers of Me 262s were equipped with the rocket packs; most were Me 262A-1a models, of [[Jagdgeschwader 7|''Jagdgeschwader'' 7]].{{sfn|Stapfer|2006|pp=33–35}} This method of attacking bombers became the standard and mass deployment of [[Ruhrstahl X-4]] guided missiles was cancelled. Some nicknamed this tactic the Luftwaffe's [[Wolfpack (naval tactic)|Wolf Pack]]{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}, as the fighters often made runs in groups of two or three, fired their rockets, then returned to base. On 1 September 1944, USAAF [[General]] [[Carl Spaatz]] expressed the fear that if greater numbers of German jets appeared, they could inflict losses heavy enough to force cancellation of the [[Combined Bomber Offensive|Allied bombing offensive]] by daylight.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

===Counter-jet tactics===
[[File:Messerschmitt Me 262 Schwable.jpg|thumb|left|This airframe, ''Wrknr. 111711'', was the first Me 262 to come into Allied hands when its German test pilot defected on 31 March 1945. The aircraft was then shipped to the United States for testing.{{sfn|Samuel|2004|pp=20–21}}]]
The Me 262 was difficult to counter because its high speed and rate of climb made it hard to intercept. However, as with other turbojet engines at the time, the Me 262's engines did not provide sufficient thrust at low airspeeds and throttle response was slow, so that in certain circumstances such as takeoff and landing the aircraft became a vulnerable target. Another disadvantage that pioneering jet aircraft of the World War II era shared, was the high risk of [[compressor stall]] and if throttle movements were too rapid, the engine(s) could suffer a flameout. The coarse opening of the throttle would cause fuel surging and lead to excessive jet pipe temperatures. Pilots were instructed to operate the throttle gently and avoid quick changes. German engineers introduced an automatic throttle regulator later in the war but it only partly alleviated the problem.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

The aircraft had, by contemporary standards, a high wing loading (294.0&nbsp;kg/m<sup>2</sup>, 60.2&nbsp;lbs/ft<sup>2</sup>) that required higher takeoff and landing speeds. Due to poor throttle response, the engines' tendency for airflow disruption that could cause the compressor to stall was ubiquitous. The high speed of the Me 262 also presented problems when engaging enemy aircraft, the high-speed convergence allowing Me 262 pilots little time to line up their targets or acquire the appropriate amount of [[deflection (military)|deflection]]. This problem faces any aircraft that approaches another from behind at much higher speed, as the slower aircraft in front can always pull a tighter turn, forcing the faster aircraft to overshoot.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

{{Blockquote|quote=I passed one that looked as if it was hanging motionless in the air (I am too fast!). The one above me went into a steep right-hand turn, his pale blue underside standing out against the purple sky. Another banked right in front of the Me's nose. Violent jolt as I flew through his airscrew eddies. Maybe a wing's length away. That one in the gentle left-hand curve! Swing her round. I was coming from underneath, eye glued to the sight (pull her tighter!). A throbbing in the wings as my cannon pounded briefly. Missed him. Way behind his tail. It was exasperating. I would never be able to shoot one down like this. They were like a sack of fleas. A prick of doubt: is this really such a good fighter? Could one in fact, successfully attack a group of erratically banking fighters with the Me 262?|source=[[Johannes Steinhoff]], Luftwaffe [[fighter ace]]{{sfn|Spick|1983|pp=112–113}}}}

Luftwaffe pilots eventually learned how to handle the Me 262's higher speed and the Me 262 soon proved a formidable air superiority fighter, with pilots such as Franz Schall managing to shoot down seventeen enemy fighters in the Me 262, ten of them American [[North American P-51 Mustang|North American P-51 Mustangs]]. Me 262 aces included [[Georg-Peter Eder]], with twelve enemy fighters (including nine P-51s) to his credit, [[Erich Rudorffer]] also with twelve enemy fighters to his credit, [[Walther Dahl]] with eleven (including three [[Lavochkin La-7]]s and six P-51s) and [[Helmut Baudach|Heinz-Helmut Baudach]] with six (including one Spitfire and two P-51s) amongst many others.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

Pilots soon learned that the Me 262 was quite maneuverable despite its high wing loading and lack of low-speed thrust, especially if attention was drawn to its effective maneuvering speeds. The controls were light and effective right up to the maximum permissible speed and perfectly harmonised. The inclusion of full span automatic [[leading-edge slats]],{{refn|The leading edge slats, manufactured by [[Arwa Strumpfwerke]] of Auerbach, were divided into three unconnected sections on each wing and each was fastened to the wing by two hinges.{{sfn|Stapfer|2006|pp=31, 36}} The slats lowered the stalling speed of the aircraft to roughly {{convert|160|to|170|km/h|kn mph|abbr=on}} depending on load out. They deployed automatically below {{convert|300|km/h|kn mph|abbr=on}} on takeoff or landing and at {{convert|450|km/h|kn mph|abbr=on}} in turn or climb.{{sfn|Stapfer|2006|pp=32, 36}}|group="Note"}} something of a "tradition" on Messerschmitt fighters dating back to the original Bf 109's outer wing slots of a similar type, helped increase the overall lift produced by the wing by as much as 35% in tight turns or at low speeds, greatly improving the aircraft's turn performance as well as its landing and takeoff characteristics.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.centennialofflight.net/essay/Theories_of_Flight/Devices/TH17G2.htm |title = Theories of Flight devices |publisher = centennialofflight.net |date = 2003 |access-date = 11 April 2010}}</ref> As many pilots soon found out, the Me 262's clean design also meant that it, like all jets, held its speed in tight turns much better than conventional propeller-driven fighters, which was a great potential advantage in a dogfight as it meant better energy retention in manoeuvres.{{sfn|Loftin|2004}}<ref>Summary of debriefing of Me-262 test pilot and flight instructor Hans Fey.</ref>

[[File:Me-262Shootdown.JPG|thumb|Me 262 being shot down, as seen from [[USAAF]] [[P-51]] Mustang [[gun camera]], January 1945. Note the jettisoned canopy and empty cockpit.]]
Too fast to catch for the escorting Allied fighters, the Me 262s were almost impossible to head off.{{refn|According to aviation historian Mike Spick, it could take eight Mustangs to neutralize a single Me 262, by continually cutting across the circle inside it. Against multiple jet attackers, an effective defense was simply impossible.{{sfn|Spick|1997|p=165}}|group="Note"}} As a result, Me 262 pilots were relatively safe from the Allied fighters, as long as they did not allow themselves to get drawn into low-speed turning contests and saved their maneuvering for higher speeds. Combating the Allied fighters could be effectively done the same way as the U.S. fighters fought the more nimble, but slower, Japanese fighters in the Pacific.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

Allied pilots soon found that the only reliable way to destroy the jets, as with the even faster [[Messerschmitt Me 163|Me 163B ''Komet'']] rocket fighters, was to attack them on the ground or during takeoff or landing. As the Me 262A's pioneering [[Junkers Jumo 004]] axial-flow jet engines needed careful nursing by their pilots, these jet aircraft were particularly vulnerable during takeoff and landing.{{sfn|Forsyth|1996|pp=149, 194}} Luftwaffe airfields identified as jet bases were frequently bombed by [[medium bomber]]s, and Allied fighters patrolled over the fields to attack jets trying to land.{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=142}} The Luftwaffe countered by installing extensive "[[Anti-aircraft warfare|''Flak'']] alleys" of anti-aircraft guns along the approach lines to protect the Me 262s from the ground—and by providing top cover during the jets' takeoff and landing with the most advanced Luftwaffe single-engined fighters, the [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190]]D and (just becoming available in 1945) [[Focke-Wulf Ta 152]]H.{{sfn|Levine|1992|pp=158, 185}}{{sfn|Heath|2022|p=254}} Nevertheless, in March–April 1945, Allied fighter patrol patterns over Me 262 airfields resulted in numerous jet losses.{{sfn|Dorr|2013|pp=218–226}}

On 5 October 1944, Hpt. Hans-Christoph Buttmann's Me 262 was shot down near [[Overasselt]] by a [[Supermarine_Spitfire_(late_Merlin-powered_variants)#Mk_IX_(type_361)|Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk IX]] from [[401 Tactical Fighter Squadron|No. 401 Squadron]] of the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://asn.flightsafety.org/wikibase/49805 | title=Accident Messerschmitt Me 262 A-2a 170093, Thursday 5 October 1944 }}</ref> This was the first aerial victory over a jet aircraft in history.<ref>Shores & Williams (1994), p. 556.</ref>  Lt. [[Chuck Yeager]] of the [[357th Fighter Group]] was one of the first American pilots to shoot down an Me 262, which he caught during its landing approach.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/chuck-yeager-fighter-pilot/ |last = Niderost |first = Eric |title = Chuck Yeager: Fighter Pilot |website = Warfare History Network |date = 21 June 2017 |access-date = 29 March 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180329064304/http://warfarehistorynetwork.com/daily/wwii/chuck-yeager-fighter-pilot/ |archive-date = 29 March 2018 |url-status = live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.chuckyeager.com/yeager-destroys-an-me-262 |title = Encounter Report |date = 6 November 1944 |access-date = 29 March 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180222114645/http://www.chuckyeager.com/yeager-destroys-an-me-262 |archive-date = 22 February 2018 }}</ref> On 7 October 1944, Lt. [[Urban L. Drew|Urban Drew]] of the [[365th Fighter Group]] shot down two Me 262s that were taking off, while on the same day Lt. Col. [[Hubert Zemke]], who had transferred to the Mustang equipped [[479th Fighter Group]], shot down what he thought was a Bf 109, only to have his gun camera film reveal that it may have been an Me 262.{{sfn|Scutts|1994|p=58}} On 25 February 1945, Mustangs of the [[55th Fighter Group]] surprised an entire [[Organization of the Luftwaffe (1933–1945)#Staffel|''Staffel'']] of Me 262As at takeoff and destroyed six jets.<ref>[[Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft]], p. 12.</ref>

The British [[Hawker Tempest]] scored several kills against the new German jets, including the Me 262. Hubert Lange, a Me 262 pilot, said: "the Messerschmitt Me 262's most dangerous opponent was the British Hawker Tempest—extremely fast at low altitudes, highly manoeuvrable and heavily armed."<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.hawkertempest.se/ |title = Hawker Tempest |publisher = hawkertempest.se |access-date = 1 January 2012}}</ref> Some were destroyed with a tactic known to the Tempest-equipped [[No. 135 Wing RAF]] as the "Rat Scramble":{{sfn|Clostermann|1953|p=181}} Tempests on immediate alert took off when an Me 262 was reported airborne. They did not intercept the jet, but instead flew towards the Me 262 and [[Arado Ar 234|Ar 234]] base at [[Rheine-Hopsten Air Base|Hopsten air base]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.etnp.de/Seite2%20Geschichte/Seite%202%20-%20Geschichte.htm |title = Die Geschichte des Fliegerhorstes |website = etnp.de |access-date = 7 July 2016}}</ref>{{refn|Other aircraft based there included Bf 109 and Fw 190-day fighters and [[Messerschmitt Bf 110|Bf 110]] and [[Heinkel He 219|He 219]] night fighters. The base was closer to the town of Hopsten than the city of [[Rheine]] and is no longer active.|group="Note"}} The aim was to attack jets on their landing approach, when they were at their most vulnerable, travelling slowly, with flaps down and incapable of rapid acceleration. The German response was the construction of a "flak lane" of over 150 emplacements of the [[2 cm Flak 30/38/Flakvierling#2 cm Flakvierling 38|20&nbsp;mm ''Flakvierling'']] quadruple [[autocannon]] batteries at Rheine-Hopsten to protect the approaches.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.etnp.de/Seite46-Geschichte-UK/Seite46-Geschichte-UK.htm |title = The "Westfalen-Wing" in Rheine-Hopsten Air Base |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131015073046/http://www.etnp.de/Seite46-Geschichte-UK/Seite46-Geschichte-UK.htm |archive-date = 15 October 2013 |publisher = etnep.de |access-date = 1 January 2012}}</ref>{{refn|As well as the flak guns, several piston engine fighter units based in the area were tasked to cover the jets as they landed.|group="Note"}} After seven Tempests were lost to flak at Hopsten in a week, the "Rat Scramble" was discontinued.{{sfn|Thomas|Shores|1988|p=129}}

===High-speed research===
[[File:Messerschmitt Me 262 HG III pic1.JPG|thumb|Scale model of one of the Me 262 HG III versions at the [[Technikmuseum Speyer]]   ]]

[[Adolf Busemann]] had proposed swept wings as early as 1935; Messerschmitt researched the topic from 1940. In April 1941, Busemann proposed fitting a 35° swept wing (''Pfeilflügel II'', literally "arrow wing II") to the Me 262,{{sfn|Radinger|Schick|1996|p=75}} the same wing-sweep angle later used on both the [[North American F-86 Sabre]] and Soviet [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15]] fighter jets. Though this was not implemented, he continued with the projected HG II and HG III (''Hochgeschwindigkeit'', "high-speed") derivatives in 1944, designed with a 35° and 45° wing sweep, respectively.{{sfn|Radinger|Schick|1996|pp=75, 79. Note: Willy Messerschmitt July 1943.}}

Interest in high-speed flight, which led him to initiate work on swept wings starting in 1940, is evident from the advanced developments Messerschmitt had on his drawing board in 1944. While the Me 262 V9 ''Hochgeschwindigkeit I'' (HG I) flight-tested in 1944 had only small changes compared to combat aircraft, most notably a low-profile [[Aircraft canopy|canopy]]—tried as the ''Rennkabine'' (literally "racing cabin") on the ninth Me 262 prototype for a short time—to reduce drag, the HG II and HG III designs were far more radical. The projected HG II combined the low-drag canopy with a 35° wing sweep and a [[V-tail]] (butterfly tail). The HG III had a conventional tail, but a 45° wing sweep and turbines embedded in the [[wing root]]s.{{sfn|Radinger|Schick|1996|p=79}}

Messerschmitt also conducted a series of flight tests with the series production Me 262. Dive tests determined that the Me&nbsp;262 went out of control in a dive at [[Mach number|Mach]]&nbsp;0.86, and that higher Mach numbers would cause a nose-down trim that the pilot could not counter. The resulting steepening of the dive would lead to even higher speeds and the airframe would disintegrate from excessive negative [[G force|g]] loads.{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=231}}

Messerschmitt believed the HG series of Me 262 derivatives was capable of reaching [[transonic]] Mach numbers in level flight, with the top speed of the HG III being projected as Mach 0.96 at {{convert|6000|m|ft|abbr=on}} altitude.{{sfn|Carruthers|2013|p={{page needed|date=June 2022}}}} After the war, the [[Royal Aircraft Establishment]], at that time one of the leading institutions in high-speed research, re-tested the Me 262 to help with British attempts at exceeding Mach&nbsp;1. The RAE achieved speeds of up to Mach&nbsp;0.84 and confirmed the results from the Messerschmitt dive-tests. The Soviets ran similar tests.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

After Willy Messerschmitt's death in 1978, the former Me 262 pilot [[Hans Guido Mutke]] claimed to have exceeded Mach&nbsp;1 on 9 April 1945 in a Me 262 in a "straight-down" 90° dive. This claim relies solely on Mutke's memory of the incident, which recalls effects other Me 262 pilots observed below the speed of sound at high indicated airspeed, but with no altitude reading required to determine the speed. The [[pitot tube]] used to measure airspeed in aircraft can give falsely elevated readings as the pressure builds up inside the tube at high speeds. The Me 262 wing had only a slight sweep, incorporated for trim ([[center of gravity]]) reasons and likely would have suffered structural failure due to divergence at high transonic speeds. The Me 262 V9, Werknummer 130 004, with ''Stammkennzeichen'' of VI+AD,{{sfn|Radinger|Schick|1996}} was prepared as the HG I test airframe with the low-profile ''Rennkabine'' racing-canopy and may have achieved an unofficial record speed for a turbojet-powered aircraft of {{convert|975|km/h|mph|abbr=on}}, altitude unspecified,<ref>''Flying Review'', 1960s, date unknown</ref> even with the recorded wartime airspeed record being set on 6 July 1944, by another Messerschmitt design—the [[Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet#Later versions|Me 163B V18]] rocket fighter setting a {{convert|1130|km/h|mph|abbr=on}} record, but landing with a nearly disintegrated rudder surface.<ref>{{cite web |last = de Bie |first = Rob |url = http://robdebie.home.xs4all.nl/me163/production.htm |title = Me 163B Komet – Me 163 Production – Me 163B: Werknummern list |publisher = robdebie.home |access-date = 28 July 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.walterwerke.co.uk/walter/me163c1a.htm |title = Me 163 |publisher = walterwerke.co.uk |access-date = 28 August 2010}}</ref>

US tests conducted at the Royal Aircraft bas in Farnborough in October 1945 showed the ME 262 achieving 540 miles per hour (869 kph), with the engine at maxiumum RPM. The peak speed was achieved at 20,000 ft altitude.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Smith |first=F |date=October 1945 |title=Note on the Performance in flight of the German Jet Propelled aircraft, Messerschmidt 262, Heinkel 162 and Arado 234 |url=http://www.wwiiaircraftperformance.org/me262/RAE-german-jets.pdf |journal=Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough - Technical Note |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=1}}</ref>

===Production===
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 141-2738, Unterirdische Produktion von Me 262.jpg|thumb|Underground manufacture of Me 262s]]

About 1,400 aircraft were produced; however, less than a hundred Me 262s were in a combat-ready condition at any one time.{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=214}} According to sources they destroyed from 300 to 450 enemy aircraft, with the Allies destroying about one hundred Me 262s in the air.{{sfn|Levine|1992|pp=158, 185}} While Germany was bombed intensively, production of the Me 262 was dispersed into low-profile production facilities, sometimes little more than clearings in the forests of Germany and occupied countries. From the end of February to the end of March 1945, approximately sixty Me 262s were destroyed in attacks on [[Obertraubling]] and thirty at [[Leipheim]];{{sfn|Englander|1945}} the [[Neuburg Air Base|Neuburg]] jet plant itself was bombed on 19 March 1945.{{sfn|Blue}}

Large, heavily protected underground factories were constructed – as with the partly-buried [[Weingut I]] complex for Jumo 004 jet engine production – to take up production of the Me 262, safe from bomb attacks. A disused mine complex under the [[Walpersberg]] mountain was adapted for the production of complete aircraft. These were hauled to the flat top of the hill where a runway had been cleared and flown out. Between 20 and 30 Me 262s were built here, the underground factory being overrun by Allied troops before it could reach a meaningful output. Wings were produced in Germany's oldest motorway tunnel at [[Engelberg tunnel|Engelberg]], to the west of [[Stuttgart]]. At ''B8 Bergkristall-Esche II'', a vast network of tunnels was excavated beneath [[Sankt Georgen an der Gusen|St. Georgen/Gusen]], Austria, where slave labourers of [[Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp|concentration camp Gusen II]] produced fully equipped fuselages for the Me 262 at a monthly rate of 450 units on large assembly lines from early 1945.{{sfn|Haunschmied|Mills|Witzany-Durda|2008|p=127}}{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=48}} Gusen II was known as one of the harshest concentration camps; the typical life expectancy was six months.<ref>{{cite web |title = Gusen |url = https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10006144 |website = www.ushmm.org |publisher = [[United States Holocaust Memorial Museum]] |language = en}}</ref> An estimated 35,000 to 50,000 people died on the forced labour details for the Me 262.<ref>{{cite web |last1 = Pfeffer |first1 = Anshel |title = Dark skies |url = https://m.jpost.com/Magazine/Features/Dark-skies |website = The Jerusalem Post |date = 8 February 2007 |access-date = 6 July 2018}}</ref>

===Postwar history===
[[File:Me262ila2006.JPG|thumb|Reproduction of a Me 262 (A-1c) at the [[Berlin Air Show]] 2006]]

After the end of the war, the Me 262 and other advanced German technologies were quickly swept up by the Soviets, British and Americans, as part of the USAAF's [[Operation Lusty]]. Many Me 262s were found in readily repairable condition and were confiscated. The Soviets, British and Americans wished to evaluate the technology, particularly the engines.{{sfn|Bauduin|2014|pp=1–14}}

During testing, the Me 262 was found to be faster than the British [[Gloster Meteor]] jet fighter, and had better visibility to the sides and rear (mostly due to the canopy frames and the discoloration caused by the plastics used in the Meteor's construction), and was a superior gun platform to the Meteor F.1 which had a tendency to snake at high speed and exhibited "weak" aileron response.{{sfn|Ethell|Price|1994|pp=97–99}} The Me 262 had a shorter range than the Meteor and had less reliable engines.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brown |first=Eric Melrose |title=Wings of the Luftwaffe |date=2010 |publisher=Hikoki |isbn=978-1-902109-15-2 |location=Ottringham |oclc=660567188}}</ref>

Captain Eric Brown, a British test pilot who flew 487 types of aircraft during his service, flew a captured Me 262 (as well as other German Second World War jets) after the end of the war. He referred to the Me 262 as "the most formidable aircraft of WW2." He noted that it had a number of innovatory features, but in terms of performance, was a quantum jump ahead of other aircraft at the time. In particular he noted its swept back wings, its axial flow jet engine, and the four powerful 30mm cannons. He stated that it was significantly faster than the fastest Spitfire (at the time) and with that speed "you could conduct combat totally on your own terms. If you didn't want to engage, you could go off and leave everyone standing."<ref>{{Citation |title=The Pilot Who Flew 487 Different Aircraft & Landed 2,271 Times On A Carrier! Eric "Winkle" Brown | date=20 December 2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSRAdZzRycc |language=en |access-date=29 December 2022}}</ref>

The USAAF compared the [[Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star]] and Me 262, concluding that the Me 262 was superior in acceleration and speed, with similar climb performance. The Me 262 appeared to have a higher [[critical Mach number]] than any American fighter.{{sfn|Ethell|Price|1994|p=180}}

The Americans also tested a Me 262A-1a/U3 unarmed photo reconnaissance version, which was fitted with a fighter nose and a smooth finish. Between May and August 1946, the aircraft completed eight flights, lasting four hours and forty minutes. Testing was discontinued after four engine changes were required during the course of the tests, culminating in two single-engine landings.{{sfn|Butler|1994|p={{Page needed|date=February 2013}}}} These aircraft were extensively studied, aiding development of early American, British and Soviet jet fighters.{{sfn|LePage|2009|p=246}}{{sfn|Dorr|2013|p=236}} The F-86, designed by [[Aerospace engineering|engineer]] [[Edgar Schmued]], used a [[Leading-edge slats|slat]] design based on the Me&nbsp;262's.{{sfn|Blair|1980|p={{Page needed|date=February 2013}}}}

[[File:Avia S-92 V-34 (Czechoslovak-made Messerschmitt Me 262A), Kbely museum, Prague, Czech Republic pic2.JPG|thumb|Avia S-92, Kbely Museum, Prague, 2012]]

The Czechoslovak aircraft industry continued to produce single-seat ('''Avia S-92''') and two-seat ('''Avia CS-92''') variants of the Me 262 after World War II. From August 1946, a total of nine S-92s and three two-seater CS-92s were completed and test flown. They were introduced in 1947 and in 1950 were supplied to the 5th Fighter Squadron, becoming the first jet fighters to serve in the [[Czechoslovak Air Force]]. These were kept flying until 1951,{{sfn|Balous|Rajlich|Velek|1995|p=53}} when they were replaced in service by Soviet jet fighters. Both versions are on display at the [[Prague]] [[Prague Aviation Museum, Kbely|Aviation museum in Kbely]].

===Flyable reproductions===
[[File:Me 262 flight show at ILA 2006.jpg|thumb|Me 262 (A-1c) replica of (A1-a), Berlin Air Show, 2006]]

In January 2003, the American [[Me 262 Project]], based in [[Everett, Washington]], completed flight testing to allow the delivery of partially updated spec reproductions of several versions of the Me 262 including at least two B-1c two-seater variants, one A-1c single-seater and two "convertibles" that could be switched between the A-1c and B-1c configurations. All are powered by [[General Electric CJ610]] engines and feature additional safety features, such as upgraded brakes and strengthened landing gear. The "c" suffix refers to the new CJ610 powerplant and has been informally assigned with the approval of the Messerschmitt Foundation in Germany<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.stormbirds.com/project/general/profiles.htm |title = Aircraft Profiles: Configuration data |publisher = Me 262 Project |access-date = 29 January 2012}}</ref> (the Werknummer of the reproductions picked up where the last wartime produced Me 262 left off – a continuous airframe serial number run with a near 60-year production break).

Flight testing of the first newly manufactured Me 262 A-1c (single-seat) variant (Werknummer 501244) was completed in August 2005. The first of these machines (Werknummer 501241) went to a private owner in the southwestern United States, while the second (Werknummer 501244) was delivered to the Messerschmitt Foundation at Manching, Germany. This aircraft conducted a private test flight in late April 2006 and made its public debut in May at the [[Internationale Luft- und Raumfahrtausstellung|ILA 2006]]. The new Me 262 flew during the public flight demonstrations.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYXd60D_kgQ |archive-url = https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/RYXd60D_kgQ |archive-date = 11 December 2021 |url-status = live |title = Me 262 Flys Again! |last = Jim1410 |date = 13 July 2006 |via = YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Me 262 Werknummer 501241 was delivered to the [[Collings Foundation]] as White 1 of JG 7; this aircraft offered ride-along flights starting in 2008.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.collingsfoundation.org/ma_me262program.htm |title = Messerschmitt Me 262 Flight Program. |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071011133058/http://collingsfoundation.org/ma_me262program.htm |archive-date = 11 October 2007 |publisher = Collingsfoundation.org |access-date = 19 May 2011}}</ref> The third replica, a non-flyable Me 262 A-1c, was delivered to the [[Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum]] in May 2010.{{sfn|Bailey|2010}}
[[File:Collings Foundation's Me 262-zoom.jpg|thumb|[[Collings Foundation]]'s replica Me 262 B-1a, [[Marana, Arizona]]., 2013]]