Messerschmitt Me 321 Gigant

what is it?

The Messerschmitt Me 321 Gigant was a large German cargo glider developed and used during World War II. Intended to support large-scale invasions, the Me 321 had very limited use due to the low availability of suitable tug aircraft, high vulnerability whilst in flight, and its difficult ground handling, both at base and at destination landing sites. The Me 321 was developed, in stages, into the six-engined Messerschmitt Me 323 Gigant, which removed some of the problems with ground handling, although the payload was reduced. Vulnerability to ground fire and aerial attack remained a constant problem during operations of all variants.

base stats

• seats 200passengers
• size 34.4 tmax take-off weight
• built 330made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 85 years ago, in 1941.
• 🚗Wingspan of 55 m: about 12 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🐘Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 6 African elephants (~6 t each).

spec sheet

first flight

1941-02-25

introduced

1941

status

retired

number built

330

role

cargo glider

origin

🇩🇪 Germany

makers

Messerschmitt

engines

—

crew

3

passengers

200

length

28.2 m

wingspan

55 m

height

10.2 m

max take-off weight

34.4 t

top speed

—

range

—

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.