Top 5 Rarest German WW2 Planes That Actually Flew

Here is a list of the top 5 rarest German WWII planes that actually flew: 

5. Heinkel He 119

This aircraft was designed to be an unarmed reconnaissance bomber. To achieve high speeds and good visibility, designers decided to forgo cockpit design. Meaning, its cockpit was located directly behind the propeller. 

Despite different prototypes made for various uses, production never pushed through. However, the designs were used when designing the Japanese R2Y which took heavy inspiration from the 119. 

4. Mistel planes

This refers to refitted planes that were converted into glide bombs deployed from planes.

The idea is for a small plane to guide a big payload towards a target. When a payload is on its final dive to the target, the pilot can then detach and fly back to base while the payload crashes to the target. 

3. Blohm & Voss BV 155

The plane was designed as a high-altitude interceptor. Originally called the Messerschmitt Me 155, it was designed for the one aircraft carrier Germany was producing – Graf Zeppelin. It was designed to have a tail hook to make a carrier operational.

When the carrier was canceled, the plane was then redesigned to be a high-speed tactical bomber capable of carrying a single 1000 kg bomb.

However, by the end of the war, the facilities that developed the plane were captured by the British. Only one example of the BV 155 exists today which is held by the American Air and Space Museum. 

2. Heinkel He 162

The He 162 is a small single-seat jet fighter. It was designed to be small and easy to build out of relatively simple and available materials. Most of its airframe was made out of wood which was a deviation from German design which usually had most planes metal skinned.

The unique design of having a single engine in the middle on top of the main fuselage allowed for easy engine maintenance. Mass manufacturing started after January 1945, but the war was already considered lost. 

1. Messerschimitt Me 328

This plane was already doomed at the start of the planning phase. There’s a reason why this is the only plane powered by pulse jets.

First designed in 1941, its original purpose was to be a parasite fighter – the thought was it could be attached to heavy bombers to give bomber cover.

Initially, the goal was to build a thousand of these, but many issues came with pulse jets – one of them being unable to perform well on high altitudes. Nothing really came out of this project and the focus shifted to other fighters.