Arado Ar 234: First Jet Bomber

An Arado Ar 234 after the war with US markings.
Photo sourced from WikiCommons.

As World War II neared its conclusion in Europe, the Germans were growing increasingly desperate for "wonder weapons", weapons that could turn the tide of war in their favor. Nothing the Germans developed did that but they greatly advanced the field of military technology. One of these technological innovations was the implementation of the jet engine in both fighters and bombers. The fighter was the Messerschmitt Me 262, the bomber was the Ar 234.

The first Ar 234s were introduced in the fall of 1944. At first they were only used in a reconnaissance capacity, but soon they were used as bombers. Since the bomb bay was completely filled with fuel tanks, the bombs had to be mounted externally, an unusual trait for such a plane. Even so, the few missions the Ar 234 flew proved that the plane was nearly impossible to catch (see Bombing of Remagen Bridge)

However, like all of Germany's secret weapons it was too little too late. The early jet engines needed a lot of fuel that wasn't available and Allied pilots figured out that the easiest time to shoot down a jet was to wait for it to take off or land, which happened on many occasions. Nevertheless, the innovations made by the Germans in the field of jet aircraft paved the way for all modern jet aircraft today. Until next time take care, and thanks for reading.

(Fcts sourced from "The Encyclopedia of Aircraft of World War II" edited by Paul Eden as well as Wikipedia on the Ar 234)