The Messerschmitt Bf 109 began as an entry by the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke in a Luftwaffe (German Air Force) fighter competition in the early 1930s. Willy Messerschmitt's creation incorporated one of the most advanced aerodynamic designs at the time, with retractable landing gear, an enclosed cockpit, automatic slats, cantilever wings and stressed skin construction. During the trials, the Bf 109 clearly outperformed the larger and heavier favorite, Heinkel's He 112. The first production model, the Bf 109B, began coming off the lines in 1936. The redesignation of the Bayerische Flugzeugwerke AG (Aktiengesellschaft or Corporation) to the Messerschmitt AG in 1938 led many to call it the Me 109, although the official Luftwaffe designation of the aircraft remained the Bf 109 throughout the war

During WWII, the Bf 109 was the backbone of the Luftwaffe fighter force, serving on all fronts and also in the air forces of its European allies. Even though the superior Fw 190 began to replace the Bf 109 in some units as early as the summer of 1941, production of the Bf 109 actually rose until the closing months of the war and it remained the most numerous Luftwaffe fighter. By war's end, Germany had built more than 30,000 Bf 109s. Production of the Bf 109 continued on after the war in Czechoslovakia until 1949 and in Spain until 1958. It remains to this day the most produced fighter in history.

The museum's Bf 109G-10 is painted to represent an aircraft from Jagdgeschwader 300, a unit that defended Germany against Allied bombers. JG 300 was originally formed as a Wilde Sau (or Wild Boar) night fighter unit in 1943 but converted to the day fighter role as U.S. bomber attacks intensified. In the many pitched battles with the U.S. Army Air Forces, the Bf 109G-10s of JG 300 often provided top cover for the more heavily armed Focke Wulf Fw 190s attacking the bomber formations. This unit also had the distinction of being the last command of the war for Maj. Gunther Rall, who with 275 victories, was the third-highest scoring ace in history.

NOTE: My wife's uncle was a ME 109 pilot during WW2 and later became a dentist after the war.