You know it's dangerous when the WW2 Japanese military decided "nah, that thing is too dangerous."

Not gonna lie probably the worst job I can think of in the Luftwaffe. “Hey. Hans. Go fly in the pilot melter 9000. Try not to crash. You’ll melt.”

Ah yes, the accidental suicide rocket. but you don't crash in to anything, you just catch fire and fucking explode.

Here are some of the things that could happen to you on this plane. Start up rocket: suddenly blows up Starting to take off: suddenly blows up Actually taking off: gear drops and bounces back into plane causing it to crash and suddenly blow up In flight: mixture of fuel can burn your eyes or fog up the entire cockpit Landing: suddenly blows up Landing roughly : if not carefully can snap your spine Landing: if containers for fuel is busted it will literally melt you. It was a truly a wunder how Germany thought this was a great idea.

I read of one accident of an Me 163 which exploded during takeoff. The only remains of the pilot was one thigh bone which had been blasted clean of any flesh. I did read the autobiography of a German pilot who flew the Me-163. One day coming in to land he misjudged his approach and realised he was going to pass through the fuel depot where all the tanks of C-Stoff and T-Stoff were being stored. He rolled the 163 onto its wing and closed his eye. After a few seconds, and no sudden load explosion, he opened them again and realising he had passed between the tanks he made. He managed to make a successful landing. His squadrons motto was "only a flea, but oh what a flea." After the war the British did some experiments with these engines and discovered that passing the two fuels through a silver coated mesh solved the instability problem.

There was also the Me 263, which was basically an improved version of the Komet that was slightly larger but faster, had its own retractable landing gear, and a nearly twice as long endurance in flight. Only 3 prototypes were created and only one of those ever flew.

One bullet from the enemy hitting your 163 Komet and that could easily shatter the glass/enamel tanks or aluminum tanks and spill all over you melting you alive. This literally happened to pilots and has been recorded. One case a Luftwaffe pilot made an emergency crash landing due to a ruptured lines or something; when the people on the ground ran to the crash landing scene only to see the pilot basically dissolved alive and gooey/jelly remains. They quickly closed off the crash scene not wanting everyone to see what happened to the pilot...

One amazing test pilot who flew the Komet was Hannah Reisch. She was also one of the last pilots to fly out of Berlin when it was surrounded by the Soviets in 1945. 👍🏽

That landing gear bouncing away (purposeful or not) at 6:16 just fills me with all kinds of confidence.

Remember the time the Luftwaffe tried to drop an anvil on Churchill during the Blitz? Or painting a picture of a cliff on Remagen bridge and call it a day?(Shermans drove right through the painting, but for panzers that counterattacked, it turned into a cliff)?

Great video as always. My only criticism is that you omitted any mention of Hanna Reitsch. She tested the Me 163 and was badly injured during the testing. She was awarded the Iron Cross (first class) as a result and this might have been a nice link to your earlier video on the medal.

To add to the fuel scarsity, it was also used on the catapults that started of the V1 flying bomb.

the puns are like icing on a delicious cake

Aww, Wile E. Coyote, super genious, which is genious to add Wile in this video, Warner Brothers will thank you for this. Take care, and all the best.

Thanks Johnny for your in detail about the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet The Komet’s rocket engine used a propellant called C-Stoff, combining methanol and hydrazine hydrate. The C-Stoff was oxidized with a hydrogen peroxide-based solution called T-Stoff and is still used today in satellites and many more things...... Old F-4 2 Shoe🇺🇸

I love that the first JATO aircraft was an Erco Ercoupe. Those were "flying cars" with no rudder pedals, all flight controls were linked through the yoke, the 65 hp engine wasn't known for speed or performance but could run on unleaded mogas in a pinch. They were available for purchase at Sears.

This video is actually genuinely underated and damm.

Nobody would ever think Wile E. Coyote came up with this, Wile E. Coyote would never be stupid enough to come up with this or even touch it with a ten-foot pole. The executives in charge of shelving that Wile E. Coyote vs. Acme movie though...

Incredible thumbnail!

4:48 Based. Fishyyy is a great, underrated KZfaq channel. Thanks for including him.

The puns at the end are pretty volatile, and why i keep watching till the end. =P I also had to laugh at the camera strapped to the helmet of the pilot @5:40. :D

Possibly your best vid yet, love your content, keep it coming 👍👍👍

Kudos Johnny! Great work as per usual!

Desperate times ... extremely desperate measures!

Cool video, I worked in HAZMAT as a firefighter for a couple of decades, got to be careful with those hypergolic propellants, wickedly nasty and unforgiving. Fortunately, we have one of these in my neck of woods at the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in VA, thank you much! 👍

Glad you did a video on this one, one of my favorite planes!

Fascinating stuff, cheers Johnny....😊😊😊😊

as a kid I read a book Me-163 by Mano Ziegler many times.

Always look forward to one of your posts johnny.. great stories great narration.. Keep it up

i'm melting i'm melting AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaAAAAAAAA

Always love watching your videos, I'm from New Zealand 🇳🇿

It is said that a Komet was in one head on dog fight w/ a Miskito in a circular chase. The Brit got shot down.

“Acid fighter” is such a cool nickname when I heard about the plane

absolutely fascinating, good video, well done, bro'

My German grandfather said that Wiley Coyote wasn't on the design team in an official capacity but, he was a consultant on the ME 163 projekt. 🤭

So loved by her pilots the survivors held a reunion every year after the War. In a phone booth in Dusseldorf.

Thanks Johnny......l had to watch this amazing video AGAIN...... Old F-4 II Shoe🇺🇸

Great video… loved the comment 💫 at the end!

Nice video, thank you again😊

Another great video

0:44 can’t believe loony toons predicted the oppressor mk2

There's a Komet in the Canadian Museum of Aviation, Ottawa.

"Hey I thought Buck Rogers was on our side "

I thought Johnny was going to say he “had to jet” lol 😂

Ha! I lve always liked the little propeller on the front. It reminds me of those funny propeller hats, like the Calvin sends in a bunch of Sugar Bombs box tops to win. Not so much a "fighter" but more of a semi-guided rocket with some guns on it.

Wow that sounds like a lot of risky stuff. Thanks for sharing.

There's one at WPAFB museum, it is a trippy little thing, no bigger than a car, and it sits about four feet high. Does not, by any means look safe to fly in, let alone doing 700mph on burning hydrozine and peroxide. Also, I believe the cannon only held like thirty or forty rounds, so good luck on that dogfight...

I remember seeing that the Germans had some RATO boosters for aircraft.

I think the pilot with the most kills in the Komet was killed when it blew up on the ground.

Oh my god! I just got the family guy thumbnail. Hilarious

"If the rocket cut out at low altitude, pilots were warned not to try to bank or turn with a full fuel load but to put down straight away. "If at all possible. Heading straight into the cemetery to save expenses.""

"Eric Winkle Brown", the famous test pilot also flew this aircraft under its own power. His buddies and former german ground crew warned him not to try it as it was too dangerous. But he persisted, said it was one of his most "exilerating" moments.

best pun ever

can you do the m1911 video next because the m1911 was the most iconic American pistol there isn't a world war 2 movies and series without the m1911

GREAT one Johnny. I couldn't help but KOMET! 😂

You allude to, but never outright say, the real reason we stopped pursuing "rocket" planes: jet and then turbojet technology rapidly reached the point where we got the same flight performance, but added the advantage of being able to control the power output. Most of the other issues with the Me163 could be solved - and indeed were, in both rocket-propelled missiles and in space vehicles - but you really can't get around the fact that a rocket is either on or off, which gives one very few options for adjusting speed.

Saw the me 163 komet on display at Australian War museum in Canberra

holy crap i never expected footage of fishyyy to show up here XD lets gooo!

What a wild crazy weapon

That thumbnail is amazing. I wouldn’t expect you to make a joke like that (the Peter one)

Holding out for the day you start doing audiobooks Johnny, your voice is so soothing!

Showing the Ercoupe / JATO footage at the end is Cool! It's not commonly known that JATO's were tested on the civilian plane, and this is the first time I've seen the Jato footage!

"Johnny, it's gas that eats your face." "Come on, what's the worst that could happen." *"It's gas that eats your face!"*

After that "Komet" pun I almost jettisoned my dinner.

I’ve seen one that is preserved at the Australian war memorial in Canberra , I have also remember reading a Australian pilot who shot down a komet and bent the rear tail surfaces of his mustang in the process, there is also some stills from his gun camera

The advantage of hypergolic fuel is that it ignites spontaneously when the two parts are mixed. No ignition source is needed. But as you pointed out it's nasty stuff.

Komet goes YEEEEEEET!

0:36 is kind of ironic that the AI coloration sees both the swastica as well as the late war Balkenkreutz as "red cross" items..

Apparently the me 163A's exhaust was purple because of the z stoff

Johnny I wanna hear about those rocket assist pods from cold war and destruction of airfields

Dear Johnny, I'd like to address a few points related to the Me-163 Comet, specifically focusing on its performance and operational aspects. Please allow me to provide some clarifications: 1. Speed Achievements: The Me-163A achieved an impressive speed of 1000 kph. However, it's worth noting that the operational B version reached a slightly lower speed of approximately 920 kph. 2. Fuel Dissolution: It's "only" the T-Stoff that is responsible for dissolving organic materials (such as flesh). 3. Powered Flight Time: There seems to be misinformation circulating online regarding the Me-163's flight time. Let's set the record straight. The HWK 109-509 rocket engine consumed fuel at a rate of 5.3 lbs per 1000 lb sec. at sea level, full throttle. Source: "Analysis and evaluation of german attainments and research in the liquid rocket engine field" vol. vii "thrust control" - ADA800132, feb. 1952. With 1700 kp thrust (equivalent to 3750 lbf), the fuel consumption was approximately 19.875 lb/s at full throttle on the deck. Considering the 2018 kg of fuel available, the maximum full-throttle time was 224 seconds-equivalent to 3 minutes and 44 seconds. Any powered flight exceeding 4 minutes likely involved throttling back, as required. 4. Sound Barrier: The Me-163 cannot break the sound barrier due to its wing profile and chord thickness. Physics remains undefeated! 5. Confirmed Kills: Let's be clear: there are only three confirmed kills attributed to the Comet. Anything beyond that falls into the realm of claims. 6. Attack Tactics: During combat, the Comet climbed above bomber formations, executing gliding attacks. If fuel conditions allowed and sufficient time had passed since engine shutdown (a minimum of two minutes before re-igniting the engine), the Comet would ascend using remaining fuel for another gliding dive attack on the bombers. 7. Landing Challenges: When landing, the T-Stoff had to be dumped. There were no second attempts or go-arounds. Once committed to landing, there was no turning back. The need to eliminate accidental detonations from fuel remnants necessitated this procedure. Thank you for your attention to these details. If you have any further questions or require additional information, feel free to reach out.

Saw one of these in a museum. If l recall it had no landing wheels, just a skid. It was launched on a wheeled sled that dropped off at the end of the runway. Instead of wonder weapons, these last-ditch ideas should be called desperation weapons.

I read somewhere, JJ--that a pilot actually dissolved in his seat when there was a fuel leak.

Japanese Ground Crew: "This stuff is insanely dangerous!" Enola Gay Air Crew: "Hold my beer."

Technology was so crazy back then, what a time period to study!

literally just saw one at udvar hazy

If you want to see the the Walter HWK 109-509B rocket engine and a complete Me 163, you can visit the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at the southern side of the Dulles airport in Virginia USA. I was there in Mar 2015 and the 163 looked like undergoing restoration, hope it’s done by now. They also had a Horten Ho 229 flying wing twin jet in their restoration workshop, in pretty bad condition, but still recognisable, hope they fixed this too. The entrance is free, but you have to pay 20$ for parking, a bargain for a whole family, but even alone I guarantee it’s fully worth seeing, Enola Gay, Bob Hoover Shrike Commander, Do 335, Arado 234 jet bomber, a Concorde, a USAF Connie, an SR 71 and the fully preserved Space Shuttle Discovery, really huge and unexpected surface finishing. If you’re an aviation fan, this place is as close to heaven as you can get.🤩👏🏼

I'd heard that due to the flamable fuel, several blew up on the ground- basically they dissolved their own tanks and-BOOM

Dangerous plane.

I saw this in a museum in va

mmmm... Hydrazine

Tail being removed to service the engine seemed to be a feature in the Komet and early jets like the Sabre.

I was hoping you would use some WT game play footage from Smigol Time. There's plenty of footage of him making this thing dance as he dogfights multiple opponents.

Saw one in Ottawa Canada national Museum of flight.

omg imagine getting the feuls mixed up in the wrong containers

Thank god the Nazi's wasted so much of their limited resources on "Wonder Weapons" that either turned out infeasible, impractical, or just plain disastrous. In the end a big part of their defeat came from them spending money like water and being left with so little they had to power vehicles on wood burning engines

Could you do the K31 Swiss rifle that were shown in movies?

Starting to wonder if the aircraft designers weren't secretly working for the Allies.

Nice - I was almost disappointed about the pun at the end. The Komet was more dangerous to its operators and ground crew than to the bombers. An act of desperation.

Well you kommit to that one

Funnily enough your pun at the end was a perfect German pronunciation of “Komet”

Love the puns 😅😅😅

Muito bom o vídeo. Imagens raras de um avião lindo. Os alemães e suas invenções maravilhosas. Saudações aqui do Brasil. 😁👍😉🆒

This thing was a great candidate for the most technology outlandish combat plane of all time. Swept wings, no tail, rocket propulsion, superb glide characteristics, greatest speed advantage over it's peers of any combat plane ever, and a worse track record than the F-104.

Can we get a video on the he 162?

So you had to have "The Right Stoff" to fly these rockets.

do you have a video on JATO? that would be cool

The number plate for my Tesla ME169B. So many in jokes, including making sure the lithium batteries don’t catch fire. 😊

If only LucasArts' Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe isn't abandonware, for it has this jet. In the meantime, I think the best depiction for the craft is still History Channel's Dogfights. Still, interesting how the craft actually had a buncha appearances on certain dated films, as seen in this video. Addendum: Permission to recommend the Horten Ho-229, seen in fictionalized variants for the likes of Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Wolfenstein: The New Order+The Old Blood?

The predecessor of the guided missile.