Me 410 B-2/U4

This page is about the German strike aircraft Me 410 B-2/U4. For other versions, see Me 410 (Family).

Me 410 B-2/U4

Me 410 A-1/U4

Me 410 A-1

Me 410 B-2/U4

Me 410 A-1/U4

Me 410 A-1

Germany

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.0	3.0	4.7

Class:

Strike aircraft

Research:6 900

Purchase:32 000

Show in game

Description

The Me 410 B was planned to be fitted with the DB 603G engine and a few other improvements. However, due to the shortage of the new engine, early production of the Me 410 B instead utilized the regular DB 603A found in the Me 410 A. Some Me 410 B's received an oxygen system for high-altitude flights as well as a better undercarriage. The Me 410 B-2/U4 Zerstörer (Destroyer in German) was fitted with a 5 cm cannon mounted in the chin of the nose. Around 130 planes of this variant were produced, 80 built at Messerschmitt's factory and the rest built at Dornier's factory. In addition to the giant cannon, it also had two 20 mm MG 151 cannons as part of the Waffenbehӓlter conversion set.

In the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27, the Me 410 B-2/U4 is a fairly decent ground attacker. The BK 5 cannon has access to both HVAP and AP shells, the latter being extremely effective from top down into tanks. The B-2/U4 variant also has two 20 mm MG 151 cannons mounted in the nose which complements the main cannon. For defense, the Me 410 B has two single 13 mm turrets, one mounted on each side of the fuselage. All around, the Me 410 B-2/U4 has a fairly decent set of guns but does lack bombs and rockets.

General info

The Me 410's instrument panel.

Flight performance

Air brakes

Allows you to dramatically reduce the flight speed by releasing special flaps

Max speed

at 6 750 m600 km/h

Turn time30 s

Max altitude10 250 m

Engine2 х Daimler-Benz DB-603A

TypeInline

Cooling systemWater

Take-off weight11 t

The Me 410 B-2/U4 has okay performance. Since the more powerful DB 603G engine was cancelled, the Me 410Bs retained the DB 603A engine found in many of the earlier Me 410s. This, in combination with the various armour plates scattered throughout the aircraft, does not help its performance. The acceleration is quite poor and the turn rate suffers compared to some attackers like the IL-2, which can turn tight with sufficient energy. With a climb rate of only 10.8 meters per second, the Me 410B's climb performance leaves much to be desired. However, the Me 410B does have a good structural speed limit of 750 km/h (466 mph), which is fairly good for an attacker; but many fighters will be able to reach or exceed this speed limit safely. This leaves Me 410 pilots vulnerable and there is not much one can do to evade a fighter. Overall, players should not hold high expectations for the performance of the Me 410.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 6,750 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	578	560	10250	31.2	32.1	7.9	7.8	520
Upgraded	625	600		28.9	30.0	14.3	10.8

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	✓	X

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
750	350	457	428	280	~12	~4

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 360	< 360	< 460	> 265

Survivability and armour

Crew2 people

Speed of destruction

Structural750 km/h

Gear350 km/h

Like many attackers, the Me 410 B-2/U4 is no exception in terms of having armour. It has eight steel plates covering vital areas like the cockpit, engines, and wings. Although this heavily hampers performance, each plate is over 5 mm thick which is quite good since many enemy aircraft at its battle rating lack cannons. A 60 mm bulletproof glass panel can also be found in front of the pilot. The Me 410 B-2/U4 has six fuel tanks, four mounted near the wing roots and the rest mounted further outboard. All six tanks are self-sealing which helps with survivability against incendiary rounds. Overall, the Me 410 has some impressive armour which does a fairly decent job of protecting vital components and areas.

• 8 mm Steel - Nose armour
• 60 mm Bulletproof Glass
• 12 mm Steel - Headrest
• 8 mm Steel - Cockpit mid plate
• 8 mm Steel - Rear gunner plate
• 9 mm Steel - Rear boom armour plate
• 9 mm Steel - Liquid cooling protective armour
• 5 mm Steel - Wing leading edge armour
• 8 mm Steel - Engine nacelle fore and aft plates

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB713 → 945

RB980 → 1 299

SB2 480 → 3 288

Total cost of modifications13 880

19 800

Talisman cost860

Crew training9 200

Experts32 000

Aces320

Research Aces250 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

50 / 100 / 280 %

130 / 130 / 130 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 920 Cost: 1 300 125 Radiator Research: 920 Cost: 1 300 125 Compressor Research: 780 Cost: 1 100 105 Wings repair Research: 1 200 Cost: 1 700 165 Engine Research: 1 200 Cost: 1 700 165 Engine injection Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 150	Airframe Research: 780 Cost: 1 100 105 Cover Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 150	mg131_turret_belt_pack Research: 920 Cost: 1 300 125 mg131_turret_new_gun Research: 780 Cost: 1 100 105 bk5_belt_pack Research: 780 Cost: 1 100 105 mg15120_belt_pack Research: 1 200 Cost: 1 700 165 mg15120_new_gun Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 150 bk5_new_gun Research: 1 100 Cost: 1 600 150

Firstly, players should research the flight performance mods at tier one. The stock belt for the MG 131 turrets is more than sufficient for defense against enemy fighters and use against ground targets. Once tier two is unlocked, players should immediately begin researching the BK 5 50 mm cannon belt modification. The stock belt is 50% HE and 50% AP which forces Me 410 B-2/U4 pilots to switch between a soft and armoured target or an enemy aircraft. The belt modification will add three additional belts, which will be up to the player to choose. After that, players should go through the rest of the performance mods. It would be a good idea to also research the MG 151 belt modification, as the stock belts for those cannons are generally weak. Once tier four is opened, the BK 5 new cannon modification will be researchable. This modification is extremely important for accuracy, and since the BK 5 cannon only has 22 rounds, it is greatly needed. Once researched, players are generally free to choose how they want to research the rest of the modification. 

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 150 mm BK 5 cannon

Ammunition22 rounds

Fire rate50 shots/min

Weapon 22 x 20 mm MG 151 cannon

Ammunition700 rounds

Fire rate700 shots/min

The Me 410 B-2/U4 is armed with:

• 1 x 50 mm BK 5 cannon, nose-mounted (22 rpg)
• 2 x 20 mm MG 151 cannons, nose-mounted (350 rpg = 700 total)

The Me 410 B-2/U4 comes armed with three offensive guns: two 20 mm MG 151 cannons and a single 50 mm BK 5 cannon, all nose-mounted. The main feature of the B-2/U4 is the 50 mm cannon that has access to four different types of belts. In real life, the BK 5 mainly served one purpose, which was to attack Allied heavy bomber formations. However, in-game, it has a combination of rounds, including HEI-T (high explosive incendinary tracer), AP-T (armour piercing tracer), and HVAP-T (high velocity armour piercing tracer). The default belt has a 50/50 composition of AP-T and HEI-T. The three other belts are more specialized belts for each of the rounds previously mentioned.

For air targets, players should utilize the air target belt with a full composition of HEI-T belts for the BK 5 cannon. The HEI-T round has over 400 grams of TNT equivalent, which is more than enough to down any fighter or bomber. However, with a fire rate of only 50 rounds per minute, players need to aim carefully due to the long delay with the autoloader. Due to the limited ammunition for the BK 5 cannon, players should more or less reserve the MG 151 cannons for this role. The air target belt has an almost full HE composition, which is quite dangerous against enemy aircraft. Furthermore, it has a much higher rate of fire and more ammunition. 

For ground targets, players can also use both of the cannons. The BK 5 cannon should be reserved for heavily armoured targets like light pillboxes or medium to heavy tanks. Two armoured piercing rounds are available for the BK 5 cannon: HVAP-T and AP-T. HVAP-T is a solid shot projectile with no explosive filler within the shell, so players have to be spot-on with rounds against tanks. It does come with the benefit of higher flat penetration, but suffers at longer ranges. The AP-T round has 28.9 grams of explosive filler and can penetrate up to 106 mm of armour. Although it may seem less, it has more penetration at ranges above 700 metres over the HVAP-T round. This is also a much more common engagement distance, so players should stick to the AP-T belt. For soft ground targets like AA positions, the MG 151 cannons will do just fine. 

Defensive armament

2 х Turret13 mm MG 131 machine gun

Ammunition500 rounds

Fire rate900 shots/min

The Me 410 B-2/U4 is defended by:

• 1 x 13 mm MG 131 machine gun, 2 x beam turrets (500 rpg)

The Me 410 B-2/U4 comes armed with the standard two single 13.2 mm MG 131 machine gun turrets mounted on either side of the fuselage. They have a fairly decent firing arc. However, the firing arc for both turrets firing is very small. Enemy aircraft would have to be almost directly behind the Me 410, so players are usually stuck with only one MG 131 firing on the target. Furthermore, the MG 131 has a relatively low velocity, so landing successful shots will be difficult at long range. The MG 131 turrets can be used against ground targets quite easily thanks to the larger shells being fired. Compared to a 7.62 machine gun turret, it will only take a few rounds to knock out a soft ground target. Overall, the MG 131 turrets will be quite difficult to use against enemy aircraft, but they are effective against ground targets after making a pass.

Usage in battles

In Air Realistic Battles, Me 410 B-2/U4 players can go for either enemy aircraft or ground targets. Since all the cannons have an air target belt, players can easily down an enemy fighter or bomber with these selected. The B-2/U4 also comes with an attacker air spawn, which gives it a slight edge in coming into battle quickly. However, the lacklustre performance means that even with the airspawn, enemy fighters will still easily gain an altitude advantage. It will also be difficult to reach the air spawn altitude for long-range bombers. If used to attack enemy aircraft, Me 410 B-2/U4 players should side-climb till the enemy planes lose their altitude advantage or are in a furball. This playstyle is quite hard to pull off due to its poor performance, so players should stray away from it. 

As for ground pounding, the Me 410 B-2/U4 can easily engage tanks and light pillboxes with the armoured target belts. It will only take one or two rounds to successfully take out AI tanks with the simplified damage model (usually just classified as heavy, medium, or light tank; detailed models will have a specific name). The BK 5 cannon should be reserved for heavily armoured targets, and the MG 151 cannons should be used for soft ground targets like howitzers or machine gun positions. Players should also keep a watchful eye out for enemy aircraft constantly. 

Overall, players should select the air target belt for the MG 151 cannons and the armoured target belt (AP-T) for armoured targets. This provides a good balance between being able to engage enemy aircraft and ground targets. 

In Ground Realistic Battles, players should treat it like an Air Realistic Battle. Keep an eye out for enemy planes spawning in, and select the AP-T armoured target belt to engage tanks. The AP-T round will be better suited for this due to the explosive filler. For maximum effectiveness, players should aim perpendicular to an enemy tank to get a good center-of-mass shot. A good rule of thumb is to fire from the side of tanks and towards the front of the vehicle. 

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Auto control available	Not controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Combined	Not controllable 1 gear	Not controllable

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Well protected nose and pilot
• 50 mm gun is capable of destroying heavy tanks (AP belt) and any kind of planes with a single shot (Air targets belt)
• Very accurate 50 mm gun, if used properly
• Good climbing rate and starting position, suitable for ground attack or intercepting bombers
• 2x13mm turret cover huge vertical angle
• Good in steep dives, has air brakes
• Can fly with one engine

Cons:

• Big plane, a perfect target for enemy fighters
• Fighting other planes requires good aiming skills
• Can't rely much on AI gunner, no good armour
• Very slow turning speed
• 600 km/h at 6,750 m is good, but in reality, you'll be equal or slower than Su-6 at lower heights
• Rather low ammo count for the 50 mm, inexperienced pilot can waste 22 shots pretty quick

History

The Luftwaffe came to the conclusion that the Me 410 was dull and lacklustre in the bomber role. Other planes could do the job far better. As a result, many Me 410s were converted to the Zerstorer standard which was more focused on ground attacking. Zerstorer aircraft were usually fitted with more cannons (30 mm or 20 mm cannons) but some received the 50 mm BK 5 cannon. The Me 410 could still carry bombs but they were usually reserved for tanks and other ground vehicles.

The Me 410B was planned to essentially be the Me 410A but with the superior DB 603G engine. Unfortunately, those engines were needed by other aircraft and production started with the DB 603A engine. The 410B also features a strengthened undercarriage and modifications to carry more fuel. The Me 410Bs were also planned to be fitted with the 30 mm MK 103 cannon, but production issues delayed the cannon coming into service. Many early Me 410Bs were fitted with the Waffenbehalter (WB 151A) modification which allowed the installation of two 20 mm MG 151 cannons. The B-2/U4 had virtually the same armament as the Me 410A-1/U4: a single 50 mm cannon mounted on the centerline and two additional 20 mm cannons. Around 130 Me 410B-2/U4s were built, with 80 being built at Messerschmitt's factory and the rest at Dornier's.

Archive of the in-game description

April 1944 saw the Me 410 B version replace the Me 410 A on the assembly lines. The main distinction of this variant was its Daimler-Benz DB 603G twelve-cylinder, liquid-cooled engine. The new engines had an increased boost and compression ratio, which allowed a takeoff power of 1,900 hp. The aircraft's armament was reinforced. The pair of 7.92 mm Rheinmetall-Borsig MG 17 machine guns mounted in the nose section were replaced with the same number of the more powerful and efficient 13 mm large-calibre Rheinmetall-Borsig MG 131 machine guns. Me 410 B planes could now have two additional 300-litre fuel tanks suspended under their wing panels, and the main landing gear legs were extended. Just as it was in the case of the Me 410 A, two main versions of the aircraft saw full-scale production: the Me 410 B-1 high-speed bomber and the Me 410 B-2 "destroyer". Various Rüstsatz and Umbausatz kits were used on these aircraft. The Me 410 B-1/U2 and the Me 410 B-1/U4 had armament corresponding to the same versions of the A-1 modification: either a pair of 20 mm Mauser MG 151/20 cannons (the U2 kit), or a 50 mm Rheinmetall BK 5 cannon (the U4 kit). The Me 410 B-2/U2 version of the aircraft had a WB 151 ventral container with two more 20 mm Mauser MG 151/20 cannons. In addition to the 50 mm Rheinmetall BK 5 cannon mounted in the bomb bay, Me 410 B-2/U4 planes had a pair of 30 mm Rheinmetall-Borsig MK 103 cannons installed. To make room, their 20 mm Mauser MG 151/20 cannon and 13 mm Rheinmetall-Borsig MG 131 machine guns were removed. About a hundred such kits were delivered to the Luftwaffe's troops on the front lines. Several more "field modification kits" for the Me 410 B-2 were developed for the purpose of fighting Allied bombers. The R2 kit included a WB 108 container with two 30 mm Rheinmetall-Borsig MK 108 cannons. The R3 kit also allowed the mounting of additional 30 mm cannons of a different type (Rheinmetall-Borsig MK 103) in a WB 103 container. In addition to a WB 151 container, planes equipped with the R4 kit received two additional 20 mm Mauser MG 151/20 cannons mounted under the fuselage. Planes with the R5 kit received a container with four Mauser MG 151/20 cannons, mounted in the bomb bay. In April 1944, several Me 410 B-2/U4 aircraft received a 37 mm Rheinmetall BK 3.7 aircraft anti-tank cannon for trial.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Me 410 B-2/U4 from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance