Ref.: DRAG-5556
German Bf110 D-1/R-1 'Dackelbauch' The original Bf110 aircraft built by Messerschmitt was a twin-engine heavy fighter, a type the Germans referred to as Zersto"rer (“Destroyer”). This aircraft’s greatest success was early on in WWII, but its innate weakness of a lack of aerial agility was dangerously exposed during the Battle of Britain. The Bf110D, based on the preceding C model, was a Zersto"rer specially designed for long-range missions. It came about at the time of the Norwegian campaign, where the need for a long-range anti-shipping aircraft became apparent. The Bf110D-1/R-1 was the first attempt at creating a long-range shipping patrol aircraft, and its key characteristic was the addition of a huge 1,200-liter external belly tank. First appearing in May 1940, the performance of the Bf110D-1/R-1 was adversely affected by the weight of this Dackelbauch (“Daschund belly”) fuel tank. Only the poor quality of Allied aircraft during the Norwegian campaign staved off disaster for this version, although later variants incorporated improvements.