If you look at Aviation history then you will see that the 109 was one of the best planes of all time. It even rivaled the British Spitfire, which is an amazing feat.
It was graceful in the air as a dancer, no other plane could even touch it in high altitudes, however when it accompanied bombers over Great Britain it usually fought at low altitudes, which it was not made for. It carried 20mm cannons, and it would become the most important fighter plane in the Luftwaffe.
The 109 was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by two men by the names of Robert Lusser and Willy Messerschmitt during the 1930s. The 109 was one of the only true modern planes in the war; it included features such as a retractable landing gear, all-metal monocoque construction, and a closed canopy. It was actually powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 Aero engine.
It was first used in the Spanish Civil war and even stayed in use until the dawn of the jet age near the end of World War II; it was still the backbone of the Luftwaffe’s Fighter Force. Slowly but surely it was being replaced by the superior Focke-Wulf Fw 190.
The original plan for the 109 was for it to be an interceptor, but later models were built for a variety of tasks, fighter-bomber, day-fighter, night-fighter, all-weather fighter, recon plane, ground-attack aircraft and of course a bomber escort.
The 109 was the most produced fighter in history, they produced a total of 33,984 airframes from 1936 -1945.
This Messerschmitt BF-109G-12 is the trainer version of the Messerschmitt BF-109G. Starting in 1944, some BF-109G-2, BF-109G-3, BF-109G-4, and BF-109G-6’s were converted to two seat trainers and designated as BF-109G-12;s. A second cockpit was installed for the instructor behind the pilot and a elongated canopy added. The so-called Rustsatze filed modification kits and Umrust-Bausatze factory conversion kits were part of a system promulgated by the RLM throughout the German military aviation industry.
Following the successful test flights of their unique Me109 G-12 D-FMGZ in 2016 the Air Fighter Academy have now made further major engineering changes to increase the capability of the aircraft.
Firstly, they have now modified the aircraft to enable a quick engine change to be made giving the opportunity to fly the aircraft with either an original DB 605 engine or alternatively with a Rolls Royce Merlin 500-45. The modifications that have been made enable everything in front of the firewall to be changed quickly so that the aircraft can be flown with either engine. The aircraft now has two engines, two props and two cowling sets all of which are now fully airworthy for use in the aircraft. A complete engine change can now be made in a few days.
Secondly the G-12 has had its fuel capacity significantly increased with the installation of an additional fuselage fuel tank taking the new fuel capacity to 320 litres. This is over double the original fuel capacity and now gives the aircraft far greater endurance and hence ease of operation.
You can see more detail at Platinum Warbirds
The ability to fly this ultra-rare and unique Me109 with a Merlin engine provides a more practical and sustainable basis for the operation of the aircraft. The Hangar 10 team are now assessing the possibility of offering passenger flights in the aircraft fitted with the Merlin engine in autumn 2017 and further details will follow shortly. In the spring of 2018 they also have plans to offer a very limited number of flights in it with the DB605 engine but the flying hours with this engine will be restricted due to its rarity.