
The genesis of the Me 323 was in a 1940 German requirement for a large assault glider in preparation for
Operation Sealion, the projected invasion of
Great Britain. The
DFS 230 light glider had already proven its worth in the famous attack on
Fort Eben-Emael in Belgium (the first ever assault by gliderborne troops), and would later be used successfully in the
Crete invasion in 1941. However, the prospect of mounting an invasion across the
English Channel focused minds on the need to be able to airlift vehicles and other heavy equipment as part of an initial assault
wave. Although Operation Sealion was cancelled, the requirement for a heavy air transport capability still existed, with the focus now on the forthcoming
Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the
Soviet Union.
On 18 October 1940,
Junkers and
Messerschmitt were given just 14 days to submit a proposal for a large transport glider. The emphasis was still very much on the assault role: the ambitious requirement was to be able to carry either an
88 mm gun and its half-track tractor, or a
PzKpfw IV medium tank. The
Junkers Ju 322 Mammut reached
prototype form but was eventually scrapped due to difficulties in procuring the necessary high-grade timber for its all-wood construction and, as was discovered during the
Mammut's only test flight, an unacceptably high degree of instability inherent in the design.
[1] The proposed Messerschmitt aircraft was originally designated
Me 261w, changed to
Me 263 and eventually became the
Me 321. Although the Me 321 saw considerable service in Russia as a transport, it was never actually used for its intended role as an assault glider.
FYI :salute: BTW Did'nt CFS2 have one of those monster birds ? and Murray it was the B707 the test pilot rolled it inverted.
The plane lands at Boeing field and Tex gets out and starts to walk away from the plane. A Boeing official runs over to Tex and tells him Mr. Allen wants to see him now. Mr. Allen is the president of Boeing. So Tex heads off across the street to the Boeing Exec offices and into Mr. Allens office.
Tex walks in. Mr Allen from behind his desk says "How are Tex...Hows the family"? Tex answers the boss. Mr Allen the says "I hear you rolled the plane today, Tex".
Tex says quietly....."Yes sir I did".
Mr Allen answers..."Don't do it again.......Bye Tex..say hello to the wife..".