Messerschmitt Me - 263 – the rocket fighter

The Messerschmitt Me - 263 was the result of further development of the Me - 163 "Komet", the first fighter with a rocket engine, which entered combat in 1944. The new plane is designed to eliminate the main shortcoming of its predecessor - the short flight distance, caused by the short engine life. Rocket engines were very "corrosive" and it was still necessary to carry a source of additional oxygen, since the rocket engine cannot take it from the atmosphere. Me - 163 fuel was enough for just 6.5 minutes, so the operating range was only about 100 km. The new planes use an engine with two combustion chambers - main and secondary. This system was initially tested on two Me-163 prototypes. Engine run time increased to 12 min. In addition, the Me - 263 was equipped with its own retractable landing gear, which improved the handling characteristics of the aircraft. The good flight characteristics led to the urgent production of these planes, but the end of the war canceled all plans. Only three prototypes were produced, one of which was taken over by the USSR and used in the development process of its I-270 fighter.

A simple, but graphically and structurally well designed model, that depicts a Me - 263 aircraft in a fake, fanciful Luftwaffe camouflage, created in accordance with the paint standards of its aircraft at the time. The model is intended for modellers of any experience, so a version without a cabin interior and with an included chassis is provided, which, under the supervision of a more experienced colleague, will perfectly stick even a beginner or a modeler with little experience.