Willy Messerschmitt

German aircraft designer and manufacturer (1898–1978)

Wilhelm Emil "Willy" Messerschmitt (German pronunciation: [ˈmɛsɐʃmɪt]; 26 June 1898 – 17 September 1978) was a German aircraft designer and manufacturer who designed a number of prominent aircraft for the Luftwaffe and civil aviation. Messerschmitt designed a number of successful motor gliders and airliners in the early 1920s until the BFW M.20 damaged his reputation, put his company into bankruptcy, and earned the hate of future Reich Aviation Ministry chief Erhard Milch. Messerschmitt rebuilt his company and produced a number of successful military aircraft for the Luftwaffe during World War II, until he was blacklisted from government contracts by Milch in 1941 and the Me 210 damaged his reputation again in 1942, forcing him to resign as director and into a research and development role.

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