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The 109C was originally meant to be the last major model of the Bf 109 to use the Jumo 210 engine. It was intended that it would be quickly replaced by the Bf 109D, using a DB 600 engine. However, that engine was not available in suitable numbers, and so the 109D series entered production with a Jumo 210 engine. The C series was produced in relatively small numbers.
In one respect it was more advanced than the 109D, in that the 109C used the Jumo 210Ga engine, the first engine to feature direct fuel injection. This improved its performance in dogfights, as the engine did not loose power under negative G forces. The 109D reverted to the 210D, and it was only with the appearance of the 109E with its Daimler Benz engine that the fuel injection reappeared.
Variants
C-0/ C-1
The first version of the 109C was armed with four 7.92 mm MG 17 machine guns - two in fuselage with 500 rpg (rounds per gun), and two in the wings with 420 rpg. It was powered by the Jumo 210Ga engine. Five of these aircraft reached Spain in 1938, where their reinforced 3./JG22 (these aircraft were numbered 6.46 to 6.50 in Spain)
C-2
The C-2 added a fifth MG-17, firing through the middle of the engine, giving it a total of five machine guns. It was produced in small numbers
C-3
The C-3 was an experimental version armed with two MG FF cannon in the wings and 2 MG-17s over the engine. Like the C-4 it never entered production.
C-4
The final experimental model of the 109C, armed with an engine-mounted MG/FF cannon as well as the normal four MG 17 machine guns of the C-0/C-1
Specifications (C-1)
Engine |
Jumo 210Ga 12-cylinder inverted-vee liquid-cooled engine, providing 700 hp at take off and a constant 675 hp at 12,470 feet |
Speed |
261 mph at sea level, 292 mph at 14,765 feet. Cruising speed 214 mph at 10,000 ft. |
Range |
405 miles |
Service Ceiling |
27,560 ft |
Span |
32f 4.5 inches |
Length |
28 ft .66 inches |
Armament |
Four 7.92 mm MG 17, two in fuselage with 500 rpg, and two in the wings with 420 rpg. |