German Luftwaffe Warplanes, 1939-1945: Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet

German Luftwaffe Warplanes, Second World War: Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet

Deutsche Luftwaffe Flugzeuge: Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet

The aim of this website is to locate, identify and document Warplanes from the Second World War that have been preserved.  Many contributors have assisted in the hunt for these aircraft to provide and update the data on this website.  Photos are as credited.  Any errors found here are by the author, and any additions, corrections or amendments to this list of Warplane Survivors of the Second World War would be most welcome and may be e-mailed to the author at hskaarup@rogers.com.

Ziel dieser Website ist es, erhaltene Kampfflugzeuge aus dem Zweiten Weltkrieg zu lokalisieren, zu identifizieren und zu dokumentieren. Viele Mitwirkende haben bei der Suche nach diesen Flugzeugen mitgewirkt, um die Daten auf dieser Website.bereitzustellen und zu aktualisieren. Fotos gelten als gutgeschrieben. Alle hier gefundenen Fehler sind vom Autor und Ergänzungen, Korrekturen oder Ergänzungen zu dieser Liste der Überlebenden des Zweiten Weltkriegs sind sehr willkommen und können per E-Mail an den Autor unter hskaarup@rogers.com gesendet werden.

Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet, rocket interceptor.  (Luftwaffe Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163 Komets captured at Husum, Nordfriesland Schleswig, Germany, the home base of JG 400, were allocated RAF Air Ministry numbers AM200 to AM222 and shipped to England.  Other Me 163s collected at Husum were shipped to the USA and two were alloted to France.  Two additional Me 163s for France were shipped from the storage depot at Kiel Holenau.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, RAF VF241.  In March 1946, flight trials of the Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a VF241 were made mostly at the nearby airfield of Wisley, to avoid the busy circuit traffic at Farnborough, since the Me 163B was towed off as a glider by a Supermarine Spitfire and released at altitude to make its own way back to earth.  These trials were primarily to explore the handling characteristics of the Me 163B’s tailless configuration, to provide information for other tailless designs on the drawing boards of British manufacturers in the post-war period.  One of these aircraft came to Canada where it was also test flown as a glider.  (RAF Photos)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191329), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM200, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191330), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM201, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191915), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM202, this aircraft was likely scrapped at Farnborough, England.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 310061), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM203, this aircraft was shipped to France from Brize Norton as their fifth Me 163B.

Messerschmitt Me 163B (Werk Nummer 191454), coded "Yellow 11" of JG400, was also surrendered at Husum and shipped to the RAE where it was designated RAF AM 204.  It was despatched from Farnborough to No. 6 Maintenance Unit (MU), Brize Norton, England, on 12 July 1945 and used as a static exhibit in Hyde Park, London, England in September 1945.  It was later returned to No.6 MU, being recorded there at the Census on 21 March 1946.  On 25 June 1946, this Komet was transferred to No. 47 MU, Sealand, for packing and transfer to Canada. AM204 left Solford Docks on 28 August 1946, and arrived at Montréal on 9 September.  One of the records for this aircraft has been interpreted as reading (Wk. N. 191452), as painted post war, but photographic and other documentary evidence supports the view that (Wk. Nr 191454) is the correct identity.  This aircraft was scrapped at Arnprior, Ontario, ca. 1957. [5]  (Photos courtesy of Ed Das)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191905), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM205, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191902), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM206, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191614), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM207, it is shown here wearing two different paint schemes, on display in the RAF Museum, Cosford, England.  This aircraft last flew on 22 April 1945, when it shot down an RAF Lancaster.  (Dapi89 Photo 1, Rept0n1X Photo 2)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191912), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM208, this aircraft was possibly scrapped at RAF South Cerney, England.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191315), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM209, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191316), (Wk. Nr. 120370),"Yellow 6", of JG 400, captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM210, this aircraft has been on display in the Science Museum, London, England since 1964 with the Walter motor removed for separate display.  A second Walter motor and a  take-off dolly are part of the museum's reserve collection and are not generally on display to the public.   It is now displayed at the Deutsches Museum, Munich, Germany.  (Softeis Photo2)

(RCAF Photos)

Messerschmitt Me 163B Komet rocket-propelled fighter (Wk Nr. 191095), RAF AM 211 on display at RCAF Station St Jean, Quebec.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3584053)

Messerschmitt Me 163B Komet rocket-propelled fighter (Wk Nr. 191095), RAF AM 211, RCAF Station Rockcliffe, Ontario, 14 April 1947.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3584049)

Messerschmitt Me 163B Komet rocket-propelled fighter (Wk Nr. 191095), RAF AM 211, in parts at the Experimental and Proving Establishment, 14 February 1947.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3584050)

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3584055)

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4589658)

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4589654)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191095), was flown by JG 400.  It was surrendered at Husum in Germany and shipped to the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE), in the UK, where it was designated RAF AM 211.  It was despatched from Farnborough to No. 6 MU, Brize Norton, on 25 July 1945.  AM 211 was sent to No. 47 MU, Sealand on 26 June and prepared for shipment to Canada, leaving Salford Docks on board the SS Manchester Commerce on 28 August, and arriving at Montréal on 9 September 1945.  Subsequently, it was used as a gate guardian at RCAF Station St Jean, Québec, until it was taken over by the Canadian War Museum (CWM) in Ottawa.  This aircraft passed to the Canadian National Aeronautical Collection (CNAC), now the Canada Air and Space Museum (CA&SM), at Rockcliffe, near Ottawa, Ontario, in 1964.  AM 211 was restored to display standard in the CNAC workshops and loaned to the NMUSAF from 1978-1985.  During the aircraft's restoration in Canada it was discovered that the aircraft had been assembled by French “forced labourers” who had deliberately sabotaged it by placing stones between the rocket's fuel tanks and its supporting straps.  There are also indications that the wing was assembled with contaminated glue.  Patriotic French writing was found inside the fuselage.  The aircraft is displayed without any unit identification.  It is shown here at RCAF Station Rockcliffe, Ontario, 14 Feb 1947

(NMUSAF Photos)

Messerschmitt Me 163B Komet rocket-propelled fighter (Wk Nr. 191095), with the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio. It was a gift from the CASM to the NMUSAF in 1999.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191965), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM212, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191954), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM213, this aircraft was scrapped at Little Rissington, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191660), "Yellow 3", captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Designated RAF AM214, this aircraft was sold to the USA in 2005.  It is owned by the Flying Heritage Collection, Paine Field, Everett, Washington.  Between 1961 and 1976, this aircraft was displayed at the Imperial War Museum in London.  In 1976, it was moved to the Imperial War Museum, RAF Duxford.  It underwent a lengthy restoration, beginning in 1997, that was frequently halted as the restorers were diverted to more pressing projects . In May 2005, it was sold, reportedly for £800,000, to raise money for the purchase of a de Havilland/Airco DH.9 as the Duxford museum had no examples of a First World War bomber in its collection.  Permission for export was granted by the British government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport as three other Komets were held in British museums.  (Articseahorse Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191659), "Yellow 15".  Designated RAF AM215, this aircraft is on display in the National Museum of Flight in East Fortune, East Lothian, Scotland.  Captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany at the end of the war, this Komet went to the College of Aeronautics at Cranfield in 1947.  In 1976 it was refurbished and loaned to the Royal Scottish Museum.  In 2007 it was donated to the museum by Cranfield University.  (Ad Meskens 1, Guinog Photo 2)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191309), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM216, this aircraft's fate is unknown, likely scrapped in England.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191917), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM217, this aircraft was likely scrapped at Farnborough, England.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191654), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM218, this aircraft was scrapped at Brize Norton, England in 1947.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191904), "Yellow 25", belonging to JG 400.  This aircraft was captured by the RAF at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany in 1945. It was sent to England, arriving first at Farnborough, receiving the designation RAF AM219.  It is now on display in the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr - Flugplatz Berlin-Gatow (Bundeswehr Museum of Military History - Berlin-Gatow Airfield), Germany.  (Baku13 Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163B (Werk Nummer 191916) or (Wk. Nr. 191914), designated RAF AM 220, belonged to JG 400.  It was surrendered at Husum and shipped to the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough and from there went to No. 6 MU, Brize Norton, on 1 August 1945.  Recorded at No.6 MU in the Census of 21 March 1946 and despatched to No. 47 MU, Sealand, on 17 June 1945.  It was crated at Sealand for shipment to Canada and left Salford Docks aboard the SS Manchester Commerce on 28 August 1946, arriving at Montréal on 9 September.  It was stored in various locations until arriving at Rockcliffe where it is currently preserved in the Canada Aviation and Space Museum (CASM), Ottawa, Ontario; coded "Yellow 26".  There is some doubt about the accuracy of the Werk-Nummer of this aircraft, which has also been reported both as (Wk. Nr. 191913), and (Wk. Nr. 191916).[3]  (Author Photos)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. unknown), captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.  Designated RAF AM221, fate unknown.

Messserschmitt Me 163B Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191907), served with JG 400.  This aircraft was captured at Husum, Nordfriesland in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany and shipped to the RAE at Farnborough.  It was designated RAF AM222 and was dispatched from Farnborough to No. 6 MU, Brize Norton, on 8 August 1945.  On 21 March 1946, it was recorded in the Census of No. 6 MU, and allocated to No. 76 MU (Wroughton) on 30 April 1946 for shipment to Australia.  It is shown here on display in the Australian War Memorial, Canberra, Australia.  (RAF Photo 1, Nick-D Photo 2)

France received 417 aircraft through a cooperative agreement with the UK and USA.  These included 88 Arado Ar 96B (including 28 cannibalised hulks); one Arado Ar 396; 154 Bücker Bü 181 (including 19 cannibalised hulks); 64 Fieseler Fi 156 Storch; 39 Siebel Si 204; 36 Junkers Ju 52 (including 9 floatplanes); 17 Messerschmitt Bf 108; three Junkers Ju 88G-6; seven Heinkel He 162; four Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet; two Messerschmitt Me 262; and two Arado Ar 234.  France also received 2,772 aircraft engines (spare), 3,071 aircraft cannon and machine-guns, more than two million rounds of various ammunition and 3,000 tons of other material.

Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet fighters loaded on US Army trucks in Germany for transport to the shipping docks, May 1945.  (US Army Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet being loaded on a USAAF Douglas C-46D aircraft.  (USAAF Photo)

The Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet, designed by Alexander Lippisch, was a German rocket-powered fighter aircraft. It is the only rocket-powered fighter aircraft ever to have been operational. Its design was revolutionary, and the Me 163 was capable of performance unrivaled at the time. Messerschmitt test pilot Rudy Opitz in 1944 reached 1,123 km/h (698 mph). Over 300 aircraft were built.  Records indicate the Komet was responsible for the destruction of about nine Allied aircraft (16 air victories for 10 losses, according to other sources).

Five Me 163B-1a Komets were originally brought to the United States in 1945, receiving the Foreign Equipment numbers FE-495 and FE-500 to FE-503.  Me 163B-1a FE-501, later T2-502 was used for spare parts for FE-500 until it was scrapped at Freeman Field in 1946, along with FE-502, later T2-502.  Me 163B-1a FE-503, later T2-503, went to Bell Aircraft in 1946.

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a, (Wk. Nr. 191301), brought to Freeman Field, Indiana post war, designated USA FE-495, later T2-495, and then later incorrectly painted FE-500.  This aircraft is currently on display in the National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Washington-Dulles International Airport, Chantilly, Virginia.  (USAAF Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191301) before being designated USA FE-500, later T2-500, at Freeman Field, Indiana, post war.  This aircraft has survived and is on display in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Centre, Chantilly, Virginia.  (USAAF Photos)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191301), USA FE-500, later USAAF T2-500, at Freeman Field, Indiana, post war.  (USAAF Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191301), USAAF T2-500 being readied for a towed test flight at the USAAF's Muroc dry lake facility in Californian in 1946.  (USAAF Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191301), USA FE-500, later T2-500, on display in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Chantilly, Virginia.  (Deano Photo)

Me 163B-1a Komet, (Wk. Nr. 191301), was airfreighted by a Douglas C-54 to Freeman Field, Indiana, in 1946, where it received the foreign equipment number FE-500, later T2-500.  On 12 April 1946, it was flown aboard a cargo aircraft to the USAAF facility at Muroc dry lake in California for flight testing.  Testing began on 3 May 1946 in the presence of Dr. Alexander Lippisch and involved towing the unfueled Komet behind a B-29 to an altitude of 9,000–10,500 m (30,000–34,400 ft) before it was released for a glide back to earth under the control of test pilot Major Gus Lundquist.  Deterioration of the wooden wing structure led to flight testing being abandoned. The aircraft was stored at Norton Air Force Base in California before being shipped to Silver Hill in 1954, and more recently to "The Mighty Eighth" Museum in Savannah, Georgia..  This aircraft was been returned to the Smithsonian and is on display unrestored at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington D.C.

Messerschmitt Me 163B replica, (Wk. Nr. 191626), "White 11", Planes of Fame Museum, Chino, California. (Dustin May Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163B in USSR service.  (Soviet Air Force Photo)

Messerschmitt Me 163S two-seat trainer version, No. 94, captured by the USSR in Soviet service.  (Soviet Air Force Photos)

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