Me-163 in combat - Greatest Hits (August-September 1944)

Watch part one if you missed it: • Me-163 in Combat - How...
After the initial trial interceptions and one Allied claim which isn't matched by German records, Me-163 Komet pilots of JG.400 began with serious attempts against Allied bomber formations in August 1944. How well did they do? Find out in this video.
Main sources:
- Stephen Ransom - Jagdgeschwader 400: Germany’s Elite Rocket Fighters
amzn.to/3yMYHyr
- Robert Forsyth - Me 163 vs Allied Heavy Bombers: Northern Europe 1944-45
amzn.to/3yNPRR2
- Wolfgang Späte and Richard Bateson - Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet
amzn.to/3RgSsth
- Stephen Chapis - Allied Jet Killers of World War 2
amzn.to/4aTVef2
- Bat out of Hell
donhollway.com/me-163/
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"Stay the Course" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
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[@philipberry6477]

I met Heinz Schubert, an ex-Luftwaffe Me163 pilot in Windhoek in the mid 1970s

[@showtime112]

Did he tell you about his experience?

[@JoeOvercoat]

Thank you for weaving the gun camera footage into the presentation.

[@showtime112]

When you find something like that, you just have to include it. Thank you for the feedback!

[@rawnukles]

@@showtime112 real 163 gun cam wow!

[@guaporeturns9472]

Bailing out and surviving a flaming Komet must be a pretty rare occurrence

[@jw451]

i was thinking the chemicals would liquify you before you gota chance to jump

[@guaporeturns9472]

@@jw451 Fuel was probably expended , or mostly expended.

[@ericsonhazeltine5064]

Never happened.

[@showtime112]

That's true

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

​@@jw451>>> I was thinking the same thing.

[@ZhihengCao]

As a real world pilot, I am so impressed by the bravery of the comet pilots in the face of overwhelming enemy.

[@showtime112]

The odds were very much against them. Thank you for the comment!

[@AllanMogensen]

the plane was quite risky to fly too

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

I posted this comment under your previous Me-163 video. It still holds true... *_"Of all the advanced weapons Germany developed during World War II, the_** Komet **_has always amazed me the most."_*

[@showtime112]

Thank you for the comment! What I find quite fascinating is that it was so different from anything we know as a fighter, before it or after.

[@CFITOMAHAWK]

No you didnt..

[@VC_27]

Excellent recreation, as usual. Thank you for leaving the fun camera footage silent.

[@showtime112]

Thank you for the positive comment! Yes, adding sound to historic gun camera wouldn't feel right.

[@cannonfodder4376]

Thank goodness there was preserved gun camera footage to weave into this. Added so much. Too bad the rest of the Grrman gun camera footage got lost in the firebombing of Dresden. So much lost history. Another excellent reenactment.

[@showtime112]

Thanks once again. Sadly, most such historical evidence is lost, leaving us to guess about plenty of details.

[@GarySpeight-cv5sw]

Difference in Allied and German gun camera footage quality is telling

[@allengalvez653]

Schubert also shot down an RAF Mosquito during a brief dog fight

[@robertwoodroffe123]

And lost the war ! Dirk weed

[@peterrobbins2862]

Derr​@@robertwoodroffe123

[@i.setyawan]

One can only imagine what would have happened if there were swarms of the rocket fighters. Another excellent video. Keep up the good work!

[@the_mowron]

They could have prolonged the war long enough to get nuked?

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

Excellent black and white guncam footage👌 waiting now 3rd part. Watching guncam on TV fullHD is impressive👍

[@showtime112]

Thanks! Third part will come out in 2 weeks. There's even material for a fourth video but I'll see if I'll do that one.

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

@@showtime112 Ta152H. 345.000views. Only Rudel did better 400k or more

[@BROTHERHOOD_OF_NOD1995]

I like the oxygen mask breathing sound effect it really adds to the realism

[@showtime112]

That's a sound mod. I was able to finish all the video capture right before a major update which broke it.

[@edgein3299]

Considering the odds against them, I think they achieved phenomenal success.

[@CFITOMAHAWK]

Tough Germans. They are not into BS.

[@dougerrohmer]

Actually not. Add up what the program cost in money and lives, consider what was coming their way, and you might realise that it was one of the stupidest military decisions ever made. Unless you're a wehraboo, then you'd not see it.

[@Lonkka665]

ON HINDSIGHT majority of the effort put into these wunderwaffe weapons was wasted. It would've been WAY more efficient to keep on producing bf 109's and FW 190's...

[@larrydee8859]

Thanks for an excellent presentation! The graphics were really good, illustrating the various maneuvers.

[@showtime112]

Thank you for the positive comment!

[@man_vs_life]

You do an amazing job with these recreations!

[@showtime112]

Thanl you very much!

[@danhubert-hx4ss]

The Komet is a strangely attractive kite.

[@showtime112]

It sure is strange 😁

[@Lemard77]

Really nice having the gun camera footage in the video 👌 Could it be that the B-17 attacked by Schubert in the gun camera clip made it back to base? There is a photo of a damaged 17 that went back to base, serial number 42-102609 that has very consistent damage with the gun camera hits, on both wings and the right horizontal stabilizer and tail gunner position.

[@showtime112]

It's not impossible. We have reports from these battles but due to their complexity, putting all the pieces of the puzzle together is hard.

[@Lemard77]

@@showtime112 Yeah, between the reports and the fog of war it's a huge challenge

[@TheGrant65]

At least one source claims the gun camera film shows that Schubert hit two B-17s in that one pass, and the other was Laverdiere's B-17 - on which Ryll had already made one pass. To me the film is inconclusive. And since Ryll was KIA in a crash landing minutes later, we will probably never know.

[@jamiejones7325]

Did anyone else but you Anglo-Americans develop proximity fuse flak/ shells?

[@johnboy384]

Thanks for all the efforts in making, editing and researching these videos. Much appreciated. =)

[@showtime112]

I'm happy to hear it!

[@bjornsmith9431]

Komet was vulnerable guild mode.

[@showtime112]

True, it lost its main advantage - speed.

[@iftikharfaridy2974]

Brilliant . . ❤

[@showtime112]

Great compliment, thank you!

[@offshorequest]

Another good video ! Being small and lightweight the Me-163 did not offer much protection for the pilot as well as having very volatile fuel. The plane probably killed more pilots than the enemy gunners. Looking forward to Part 3.

[@timonsolus]

The Komet's only protection was its speed and small size.

[@showtime112]

Thank you! Third part coming out early next month.

[@williamkoppos7039]

"Balls of Steel", the Me-163 pilot's story.

[@MrNaKillshots]

Really good

[@showtime112]

I appreciate the comment!

[@mattl3729]

Very cool video- the re-creations are excellent as is using real footage. One correction though: it's not "Mark 108" cannon, it's "MK 108"- 'Mk' is Mark, and it's a British and sometimes American term, while the German weapon is the 3cm Machinen-Kanone (MK) 108. It's a common mistake- just like calling various Panzers 'Mark' III, or IV (for example), when it's not at all a correct term.

[@showtime112]

Thank you. You are right about the MK thing, it did sound strange for a moment but for some reason, I didn't investigate it. That was probably my intuition (which I'll have to learn to trust more) 😁

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

​@@showtime112yes it s True, and mk108 better than 103

[@PappaBear_yt]

Oh, and also: Germans rarely flied in feet, but rather meters or kilometers. 😁😉 I could be wrong, though.🤷🏼

[@jonbutzfiscina1307]

Thank you for the accuracy in the aircraft markings.

[@TheKid9678]

Well Done Showtime 112. As Always you do an Excellent Presentation, Sir.

[@showtime112]

I'm glad you liked it, thanks!

[@mdombroski]

Question: Is the ME-163 still the all time fastest climbing combat aircraft?

[@BROTHERHOOD_OF_NOD1995]

Good question

[@musclecarbear4704]

Don’t forget the Bachem Ba 349 Natter.

[@musclecarbear4704]

The Me163 Comet could climb 29,500 feet in 2.6 minutes and 3.35 minutes to 39,370 feet was truly staggering in its era. However the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle can can climb to 30,000 feet in around 60 seconds. So the F15 with its twin, Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-220 or 229 engines, with afterburners, can climb faster…and is much safer to operate.

[@tominva4121]

Wonderful production! I love productions that tell both sides of the story.

[@showtime112]

Thanks! I try to compare the sources when they are available.

[@davidmccann9811]

Great work. Thanks!

[@showtime112]

Thank you for watching!

[@Matterian]

Great video Showtime!!! Can't wait for the next one.

[@showtime112]

Thank you. Next one coming up in a couple of weeks.

[@martinblunden4689]

Fascinating as always mdear...thanks 😊

[@showtime112]

Thank you very much!

[@ratagris21]

Excellent job on this recreation with digitized format as well as original gun camera. Then again this why we watch Showtime 112! ♠️🎩🎯🎱🇺🇸🏁🇮🇱🇺🇦🔱🌻🌸🏵️🌼💮🏴‍☠️🏹

[@showtime112]

Always great reading your comments!

[@tomsen413]

Amazing job showtime 112!!!!

[@showtime112]

Happy to hear it, thank you!

[@showtime112]

I'm glad you think so, thank you!

[@horaciorivara1240]

Hans Bott lived in Argentina and pass away on 2011

[@MrBubbydoo]

Another great Vid.

[@showtime112]

Thank you for the feedback!

[@juancarlosperezcortes9259]

Outstandig video, great continuation of the story

[@showtime112]

Thank you and stick around for the final chapter!

[@juancarlosperezcortes9259]

@@showtime112 I eont miss it

[@chuckcawthon3370]

Excellent video presentation. Very well done.

[@showtime112]

Glad you liked it!

[@brealistic3542]

The Comet flew so fast that comet pilots often missed their shot. Gradually they came up with new tactics. One was to fly up under the bomber and attack it there and then climb high above the B17s dive down and attack it on the way down and repeat thus attack a few times till their fuel ran out. The Comet was very venerable then just gliding down so another tactic was developed. The Comet pilot would put him Comet in a very high speed dive straight down to his airfield. Allied pilots couldn't catch it in these dives. It would closely circle the airfield which was loaded with flak guns and often Fw190 fighters circling the airfield to shoot down anyone that tried to get one that was landing.

[@ThePilot4ever]

That weaving of real footage from the event you're recreating (chefs kiss)

[@showtime112]

Thank you for the feedback!

[@artawhirler]

Another excellent video! Thanks!

[@winstonsmith478]

I think the contrails in that simulation are WAY too dense. Is there a user setting to adjust that? Also, it would be nice if you gave details on casualties and survivors of the B-17s shot down.

[@TheJackHood]

War Thunder has no contrail setting

[@showtime112]

I agree 100 percent. I don't think there's any way to adjust that. Other than putting everything on a much lower altitude (which would be another kind of unrealistic)

[@eduardodeandres3864]

Estaré atento al próximo video. Ha sido brutal! Me ha encantado. Muchas gracias!!!!

[@showtime112]

I'm happy to hear it, thank you very much!

[@alfaeco15]

Attacking bombers on an egg filled up with highly corrosive stuff...

[@1joshjosh1]

Showtime 112 kicking a** and taking names.

[@showtime112]

👍 Thanks a bunch!

[@jhgvjhnouhmiu]

great video mate superb

[@showtime112]

I'm happy that you liked it!

[@FalkFalkenstein]

Sehr gut gemacht!

[@showtime112]

I'm glad you liked it, thanks!

[@ConradAinger]

And he can pronounce German names correctly too!

[@ulooqulg]

8 of you flying into 2000 bombers plus 600 fighter escorts ? Dang . balls of steel...

[@branka4226]

Nice video!

[@showtime112]

Thanks!

[@chaot523]

Hey - Awesome Video! Which simulator is used for the video ?

[@showtime112]

Thanks! It's War Thunder.

[@elijamatt7929]

Thumbs up for the title^^

[@showtime112]

I'm trying to hide the fact that this is part two of the series. YT algorithm absolutely hates sequels 😁

[@chadrowe8452]

He didn't know the smell but it was hydrogen peroxide lol ty👍

[@mattl3729]

Hydrazine hydrate was the really awful stuff too.

[@Axgoodofdunemaul]

What simulation software were you using? It's spectacular!

[@showtime112]

War Thunder

[@sailordude2094]

15 August 1944? Yeah, I don't think that's going to win the air war. Thanks for the great visual war history! BTW, I wonder if the fighters and the bombers had radio coms between them? In the movies they are never talking to each other then by wing movement. Seems like a command isolation issue.

[@showtime112]

They were still trying 😁 I don't think that fighters and bombers were communicating, it would have been too crowded on the same frequency with all those groups in the air.

[@countrichardvoncoudenhovek8855]

Greetings from Ireland 🇮🇪,,, very interesting way to bring history to life,subscribed

[@janlindtner305]

👍👍👍

[@showtime112]

Thank you!

[@PappaBear_yt]

Hit or miss... I guess they rarely hit, huh? 😉 The lengths some people go, just to anihilate others!... Great video, buddy! 👍🏻👏🏻💪🏻🍻🍻🙋🏼‍♂️

[@showtime112]

Plenty of artists released 'greatest hits' compilations with one or two actual hits so I thought I might name the video that way 😁

[@PappaBear_yt]

@@showtime112 😂 Well, I was refering to the aiming difficulties that those German pilots had at such high flying speed and at only 2-3 attempts... But, you're not wrong! 😂😉🙋🏼‍♂️ Edit: oh, I see now... Silly me! 🤭

[@lordterra1377]

Allies are lucky they couldn't have made these in large number's. I can only imagine being swarmed by 50 of these would be terrifying.

[@jeannezehner9450]

Excellent PART TWO. You must have courage for piloting a such dangerous plane.

[@showtime112]

Thanks again! Yes, every takeoff was a gamble with life.

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

Salut Jeanne. La 3ème partie sera diffusée dans 2 semaines. Il m'a dit qu'il pouvait faire une 4ème partie.,( question de volonté). La 1ère partie Ta152H à atteindre 350.000 vues.👍👍

[@jeannezehner9450]

@@dominiqueroudier9401 Le TA 152H est une réussite. Il y a un peu près 16 victoires aériennes avec le ME-163, si il veut toutes les faire, il y a encore du boulot. Dans un autre genre il y a l'ARADO 234 dans des missions de bombardement ou le DORNIER 335 PFEIL mais là, je ne connais pas ses faits de guerre.

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

@@jeannezehner9450 Pour Arado234, il a fait sa 1ere mission reconnaissance sur plages du débarquement pour étendue de l'avancée alliée. En 45 mission bombardement Pont de Remagen. Je crois que Clostermann en parle. Pour le Pfeil, pas trop de infos. A 11h rdv docteur : cervicales douloureuse et suspicion tendinite. Faut rdv pour ostéopathe aussi 😤

[@jeannezehner9450]

@@dominiqueroudier9401 Le pont de Remagen, c'est une opération intéressante. Sur le Pfeil pas trop d'infos non plus. Bonne visite chez le docteur.

[@user-kw5hx7ji8h]

Flying coffin which made no difference.

[@pfg72]

From what I've read about the Me-163's tactics, the usual deal was for the Komet to blast up to altitude, kill the engine, then swoop down on the bombers using the speed it had built up. But this animation's got the thing still buzzing around, doing maneuvers and even climbing with the rocket still firing. Something's not quite right there, mate.

[@showtime112]

So, you think that they always used exactly the same tactics regardless of their situation? Something's not right there if you ask me 😁

[@pfg72]

@@showtime112 The part where they zoom past the bombers and glide down to carry out the attack is not my idea. The Komet's rocket engine didn't carry enough fuel to do anything else. It's how it was designed. And yes, they always used pretty much the same tactics, which seemed to work just fine for them. My question had to do with how this was depicted in the animation.

[@Sugarmountaincondo]

I was always under the belief that the only operational Me-163 Squadron was based around Berlin due to their limited range.

[@qwerk707]

Great video…how about one on the ME262 jet 👍

[@showtime112]

Glad you liked it! So far, I've done a 'Five things you didn't know about Me-262' but I'll cover it's combat record too someday. There's material for a lot more than one video though 😁

[@moxxiloquita2048]

A shame this plane could only be in combat around 10 minutes. Imagine the carnage it could cause if the flying time would've been 1 hour,or even 30 min. The German engineers were decades ahead of their allied counterparts. Which is incredible they could also even make planes like this at this stage due to shortage of everything....😢

[@Eric-kn4yn]

Me 163 very small if larger a/c with larger fuel tanks would seem good idea better endurance how much bigger any opinions.

[@jamiebusch9406]

What software or game simulator is used for these amazing videos??

[@showtime112]

War Thunder

[@branka1980]

❤

[@showtime112]

Hvala!

[@ronaldbyrne3320]

Wonderful story telling and illustration. Luckily Nazi Germany did not have the Me-163 in great numbers.

[@showtime112]

Thank you for the comment!

[@ronaldbyrne3320]

@@showtime112 And thank you for doing these videos.

[@Eric-kn4yn]

US gyro gun sight couldnt calibrate accurately for deflection only guess wing span of komet other e/a measure wing span from downed examples over friendly territory.

[@davidlegg9690]

Great stuff but how do you dive from 6 o'clock?

[@sohrabroozbahani4700]

Inconsequential and yet crazy... how did these people sane the idea to strap themselves to a rocket and go fighting such stupifying great numbers, this is the time in war that Germany is basically helpless in face of the amount of hurt allies can dish out to it in their air raids...

[@renatoandricevic8638]

Kada je Komet polijetao, odbacio je kotače. I oni su se znali odbiti od tla i udariti u sam Komet. Problem je što je Komet imao cijevi za gorivo na trbuhu.

[@showtime112]

Da, i to se događalo. Vjerojatno jedinstven slučaj u cijeloj povijesti avijacije 😁

[@andycroager8850]

Total Me 164 was only 9 (nine) only, war winning effect lol

[@RealDarko]

Do you know If the Komet saw action on the Eastern front?

[@showtime112]

I think it didn't. It was primarily used against large bomber formations, Russians didn't really have much of that.

[@RealDarko]

@@showtime112 Wondering how would have done at low alt against fighters and soviet Sturmovicks.

[@hugodanieljosman7769]

Un error: el Komet rojo que muestras combatiendo nunca combatió pues era un prototipo sin armamento

[@showtime112]

Well, Wolfgang Spate himself says he was flying a red painted Me-163 when he was trying to intercept a P-47. But maybe you know better .

[@W4STJ]

The P-51s were still sporting invasion stripes??

[@steventhorson4487]

👍👌

[@karlheinzvonkroemann2217]

There was no CZ in 1944.

[@showtime112]

De facto no, but most countries never recognized the status which came out of the German aggression.

[@karlheinzvonkroemann2217]

@@showtime112 The UK did! I'd say most countries did. So who didn't? CZ ceased to exist in 1938,39, before the war. There was no aggression towards CZ, no invasion ever occured. Just sayin'.

[@markhollis5850]

You clearly show the fighter escort too close to the bombers. Allied fighter escorts consistently stayed outside of the range of the Allied bombers’ guns to avoid friendly fire incidents. Also, by this time in the war, all B-17 bombers had chin turrets because the Germans had been successful in frontal attacks with their prop-based aircraft. Additionally, you show the Mustangs as having D-Day black and white stripe markings. That paint scheme was only for the Normandy invasions and was repainted afterwards.

[@Randomly_Browsing]

I think you miss write "Hit" in the title

[@showtime112]

Right, thank you. I type too fast 😁

[@Wuei108]

Das Kraftei hatte eine enorme Steigfähigkeit. Gnade Gott den Männern in den alliierten Bombern. Jeder Krieg ist ein Verbrechen.

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

Ahhh, first😂😂👍

[@Randomly_Browsing]

Wow,how original

[@showtime112]

Always prepared 😁

[@dominiqueroudier9401]

@@showtime112 will watch this evening, now going to Decathlon

[@chpet1655]

@@Randomly_Browsing I think he WON ! He’s definitely is better than everyone else.

[@Randomly_Browsing]

@@chpet1655 literally nobody cares

[@stephenwalsh1332triumph]

Rocket planes , before there time and Jet plane's Hitler was to Dumb to see the potential 🥴

[@reeferforall3120]

I always love to ask the "contrails" conspiracy theory people about the bombers creating "contrails" back in WW2. They weren't jets and its unlikely the gov'ment had time to put all those chemicals in the plane fuel to poison the people, as they like to say. 😂

[@_metal_militia773]

neat! great video!

[@showtime112]

Thank you very much!