Developed from a 1938 design by Messerschmitt the Me 262 Schwalbe (Swallow) was the world's first operational turbojet aircraft. First seeing combat in July 1944, it proved to be particularly effective against the large Allied bomber formations that were operating over Germany late in the war and more than 1,400 were produced, though less than 300 saw combat. This book showcases six different builds of the Me 262 across the scales from 1/72 to 1/32, across a range of skill levels. It also includes a comprehensive list of all the available kits and aftermarket products.

Fighting Hitler's Jets brings together in a single, character-driven narrative two groups of men at war: on one side, American fighter pilots and others who battled the secret “wonder weapons” with which Adolf Hitler hoped to turn the tide; on the other, the German scientists, engineers, and pilots who created and used these machines of war on the cutting edge of technology. Written by Robert F. Dorr, renowned author of Zenith Press titles Hell Hawks!, Mission to Berlin, and Mission to Tokyo, the story begins with a display of high-tech secret weapons arranged for Hitler at a time when Germany still had prospects of winning the war. It concludes with Berlin in rubble and the Allies seeking German technology in order to jumpstart their own jet-powered aviation programs. Along the way, Dorr expertly describes the battles in the sky over the Third Reich that made it possible for the Allies to mount the D-Day invasion and advance toward Berlin. Finally, the book addresses both facts and speculation about German weaponry and leaders, including conspiracy theorists’ view that Hitler escaped in a secret aircraft at the war’s end. Where history and controversy collide with riveting narrative, Fighting Hitler’s Jets furthers a repertoire that comprises some of the United States’ most exceptional military writing.

"It was as if an angel was pushing." So Adolf Galland, absolute icon of the German, described the Messerschmitt 262 "Schwalbe" record holder's first fighter in history with jet engine to enter into operational service. The Messerschmitt Me 262 was a twin-engine multi-role jet fighter wing arrow developed and produced by the German company Messerschmitt AG in the forties. Used by the Luftwaffe during the final stages of World War II, he holds the distinction of being the first fighter in history with jet engine to enter into operational service and the first fighter twin-jet. It is considered the most advanced aircraft used by the Germans, also forerunner of fighter jets made in the Soviet Union after the war. According to some historical allies, with the Me 262 the German aircraft industry created a plane that theoretically could have won the war for air defense and give back to the Luftwaffe supremacy in Germany. Compared with the fighters supplied to the allies at the time, including the Gloster Meteor which would come into service shortly thereafter, the German jet proved faster and more powerfully armed. But many problems of development delayed the entry into service and the technical problems he suffered it made an operating too few examples in order to influence the tide of the air war in Europe. However, unlike the jet planes of the allies, which were used only for operational service and not clash with enemy aircraft, the Me 262 they shot down more than 100 aircraft, including bombers and fighters.

This is the most detailed study ever published on the Me 262: the world's first operational military jet aircraft. The authors have drawn on more than 30 years of detailed and unrivaled research. Each volume includes vintage photos, detailed diagrams, and foldouts of the Me 262, along with full-color illustrations of many of the variants produced by Messerschmitt. Incredible detail.

This eagerly awaited companion volume to the enormously popular volume on fighters looks at the might-have-been strategic German bombers. Filled with transatlantic jets and projects that were on the drawing board or in prototype form at the war's end. Full color action illustrations in contemporary markings and performance data tables show vividly what might have been achieved had the war continued beyond 1945.

The first operational military jet in the world, towards the end of the Second World War the ME 262 was to be the German miracle weapon. Mano Ziegler was involved from its inception and contributed to the design, testing, training and even served in it operationally. Could the ME 262 have broken the Allied supremacy in the air? Why did it take so long to come into service and why were hundreds of German pilots sacrificed in developing it? Why did the ME 262 prove not to be the unparalleled success claimed by Goering and why were German cities left dangerously exposed against Allied bombing campaigns? These are only some the important questions this new book answers.