Messerschmitt Bf 163

The Messerschmitt Bf 163 was a STOL observation aircraft designed by BFW and built by Weser Flugzeugbau before the Second World War. It was a bid for the Reich Aviation Ministry's 1935 army cooperation requirement, drawn up after the Fieseler Fi 156 showed what a short-field reconnaissance and observation machine could do, and it followed the Fi 156 formula of a high-wing braced monoplane with automatic leading-edge slats, double slotted flaps and a tall undercarriage. Its unusual feature was a wing that swivelled on its main spar to vary the angle of incidence. The sole prototype first flew on 19 February 1938 with an Argus As 10C engine and performed much like the Fi 156 but was more complex and expensive, so work ended in favour of the Fieseler design.