Willy Messerschmitt
Wilhelm Emil "Willy" Messerschmitt (/'vĭli 'messer shmĭt/) (June 26, 1898 – September 15, 1978) was a German aircraft designer and manufacturer. He was born in Frankfurt am Main, the son of a wine merchant. His stepfather was the American painter and Munich Academy Professor Carl von Marr.
Probably Messerschmitt's single most important design was the Messerschmitt Bf 109, designed in 1934 with the collaboration of Walter Rethel. The Bf 109 became the most important fighter in the Luftwaffe as Germany re-armed prior to World War II. To this day, it remains the most-produced fighter in history, with some 35,000 built. Another Messerschmitt aircraft, first called "Bf 109R", purpose-built for record setting, but later re-designated Messerschmitt Me 209, broke the absolute world air-speed record and held the world speed record for propeller-driven aircraft until 1969. His firm also produced the first jet-powered fighter to enter service — the Messerschmitt Me 262, although Messerschmitt himself did not design it.
Read more about Willy Messerschmitt: First Sailplane Designs and WWI, Beginning of His Career, Nazi Germany and World War II, Trial and Post-war Career, Criticism, Bibliography