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- The Messerschmitt Bf 109, also known as the Me 109, was Germany's most manufactured fighter plane during World War II. Intended to be an interceptor plane, its maneuverability and reliability made it a fine reconnaissance and air-to-ground combat platform. Its all-metal construction, as well as its closed cockpit, made it one of the first truly modern military airplanes. The Bf 109 also became a bomber escort, but due to its short range and limited weapons system, its primary function shifted to defensive air support.
- Junkers Ju 88, Germany's fastest and most versatile bomber, was often used in major military operations during the war. Manufactured from 1936 until 1945, its production reached around 16,000 units. In its later years of production, variants of the Ju 88 were equipped with several machine guns and a 20mm cannon, making it a bit of a fighter-bomber hybrid. It was capable of handling around 12,000 pounds of bomb load.
- One of the best air-to-ground combat planes of the war, the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 was often compared to Britain's Supermarine Spitfire and the U.S. P-51 Mustang. Although designed to be an air-to-ground warplane, like the Bf 109, it was used for several purposes: a night and day fighter, a reconnaissance craft and a fighter-bomber.
- Although intended as both a transport aircraft and a bomber, the Junkers Ju 52 was primarily confined to its transport function, ferrying both troops and cargo. Produced from 1932 up until the end of the war, it became the German military's workhorse, resupplying troops all across Europe. After the war, Ju 52s remained in use as civilian transports up until the early 1980s.
Messerschmitt Bf 109
Junkers Ju 88
Focke-Wulf Fw 190
Junkers Ju 52
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