The famous Messerschmitt Bf 109 single-seat fighter was one of the most
important warplanes of the Second World War. Originally designed during
the 1930s, and a contemporary of the equally-legendary Supermarine
Spitfire, it was vitally important to Germany's Luftwaffe and was flown
in combat by the highest-scoring fighter pilots in history.
It was in service throughout the Second World War and was built in a
number of significant versions that proved to be worthy adversaries of
the very best of the Allied warplanes that it flew against. Bf 109s
operated in all the major areas of conflict where German forces were
engaged in combat and, in modified form, the type even had a post-war
career in several countries that extended well into the 1950s.