Messerschmitt Me 264 Amerikabomber: The Luftwaffe's Lost Transatlantic Bomber [Hardcover]

Robert Forsyth (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2007

In 1939, the German Air Ministry asked aircraft manufacturers for proposals for an "Amerikabomber," an ultra-long-range, four-engined aircraft capable of attacking the United States from airfields in Germany. Projects were tendered by Junkers, Focke-Wulf, and Messerschmitt. The latter proposed the Me 264 and Messerschmitt’s personal influence was such that he was not only allowed to go ahead with the design, but was also given an immediate order for three aircraft. Using original German documentation and rare photographs, this book details the story of the remarkable Amerikabomber projects. Aircraft types featured in the book include the Me 264, the Ta 400, Fw 238, Ju 390 and the jet-powered Ho XVIII B flying wing. The book also examines the reality behind the myth associated with Germany’s atomic bomb carrier.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Forsyth has studied the 1939-1945 air war--particularly the history and operations of the Luftwaffe--since his school days. He works full-time in aviation publishing and lives in southern England with his wife.

Eddie J. Creek has for many years produced the most historically accurate line drawings and color artwork published on aviation in the Third Reich. He has been actively collecting documents and photographs relative to the history of the Luftwaffe for over 30 years.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 128 pages
• Publisher: Classic Publications (February 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1903223652
• ISBN-13: 978-1903223659
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 8.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,345,668 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Book!, December 22, 2006

By 

T. Hanover - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Messerschmitt Me 264 Amerikabomber: The Luftwaffe's Lost Transatlantic Bomber (Hardcover)

If you have a strong interest in this unique German aircraft (only one was ever completed), then you'll want to own this book. I have waited many years for such a volume to appear in print and at last it has. You will NOT be disappointed with it.

The authors give us a technically detailed and comprehensive description of the Me 264's genesis, development, construction, flight testing and ultimate destruction at the hands of Allied bombers. They also provide extensive background history on the Luftwaffe's efforts to produce a long-range strategic bomber fleet, the personalities involved in those efforts and the reasons why it eventually all came to naught.

Competing designs for the "Amerika Bomber" project (such as the Junkers Ju 290 and 390, Heinkel He 177 and Blohm & Voss Bv 222) are reviewed as well as brief mention of Italian plans to strike New York using the four-engined Cant Z.511 floatplane, the SM.95 land plane and the three-engined Piaggio P.23R.

The book is profusely illustrated with large-format close-up photos of the Me 264 V 1 under construction and undergoing flight evaluation, factory design plans, 3-view renderings of the proposed swept wing version (using a combination of piston engines and turbo-jets) and includes interesting sidebars on the BMW 801 engine, the British recon flight confirming the plane's existence to the Allies and on Messerschmitt test pilot Karl Baur who flew the Me 264 at least thirty times.

Well-researched and consistently absorbing to read, this book will serve as an excellent reference work on the Me 264 for both the WWII military aircraft enthusiast and modeler. Robert Forsyth and Eddie Creek deserve kudos for sharing their extensive knowledge of this elegant-looking aircraft and removing it from undeserved obscurity.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Bomber That Could Reach New York, January 7, 2007

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Messerschmitt Me 264 Amerikabomber: The Luftwaffe's Lost Transatlantic Bomber (Hardcover)

The fact that Germany began the design of large bombers with the intent of bombing the United States, serving as recon for U-Boats, or bombing beyond the Ural mountains is well known. There were a hald dozen or so projects underway to design and build such an airplane. Of these, the Messerschmitt Me 264 was the most advanced, the most tested (70+ flights), and the one closest to being ready to put into production.

Had the Germans bombed New York City, the effect would probably be similar to that of the Japanese after the Doolittle raid, that is, putting a lot more effort in creating a stronger air force at home, and generally beefing up anti aircraft defenses.

But the planes were never built. The Me 264 reached the stage of having one flying prototype, but by then the Germans had had enough. All aircraft production was put into fighters to defend against the Allied bomber campaign.

This book details the construction of the Me 264, as well as having chapters on competitive aircraft, the German Atomic Bomb project, and the political aspects of the decision to discontinue the effort of building the plane. This is a very well researched book on a subject that has only been hinted at before.

3 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Me 264 AMERIKABOMBER!, April 23, 2008

By 

DR. ROHE (SWITZERLAND) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Messerschmitt Me 264 Amerikabomber: The Luftwaffe's Lost Transatlantic Bomber (Hardcover)

Me 264 IS A MUST HAVE BOOK AS IT IS A MOST REFRESHING MASTERPIECE ON THE LITTLE KNOWN PSEUDO "LUFTWAFFE 1946" ASPECT OF THE WAR WHICH ALMOST HAPPENED! YES NEW YORK CITY U.S.A. WAS A TARGET IN THE EYE OF THE LUFTWAFFE EAGLE! THAT IS THIS HISTORICAL ATTEMPT TO EXPLAIN & ILLUSTRATE THE TRAGIC WASTED GENIUS OF THOSE TALENTED MANY EXPLOITED BY THE THIRD REICH'S AMBITIONS IS NOT THE USUAL TYPICAL REHASH OF EXISTING MATERIAL ( & MANY STUPID OBVIOUS MISTAKES RECOPIED SO AS TO BE MADE ERRONEOUSLY "CORRECT" FACTS ) COPIED & RECOPIED BY ALL THE UNQUESTIONABLE EXPERTS THAT BE , BUT RATHER FRESH NEW RESEARCH INDEPENDENT OF WHAT ALREADY IS IN PRINT & REPRINT 1000 TIMES OVER! SO GET READY FOR SOME REALLY GREAT REICH RESEARCH READING FROM NOW ANOTHER VIOLENT CENTURY FOREVER PAST AS THIS BOOK WILL GIVE YOU CHILLS AS TO HOW REALLY CLOSE WE CAME TO BEING BOMBED IN THE 1940s! IT IS NOT OVER SO PRAY FOR PEACE BUBELA! GOD bless america! SMILE!