Assembled model of the plane Mistel 1

The Mistel air strike complex was a controlled means of high-power air attack. The combat component of the complex is a Ju 88 bomber, in which a large warhead with an explosive substance weighing from 1,800 to 2,000 kg was mounted instead of the cockpit. In this way, the plane turned into a kind of gigantic bomb. The nose part of the fuselage was equipped with a long tip with a detonator to create a cumulative effect during the explosion. A carrier aircraft was placed on top of the bomber, as a rule, it was a single-seat fighter, whose pilot had to control the entire system from the moment of take-off to the moment of target detection. Next, the carrier aircraft was to separate from the Ju 88 and return to its airfield, and the bomber was to hit the target in dive mode. In the summer of 1944, Mistel 1 was used by specialized units of the Luftwaffe against Allied ships off the coast of France, and in the spring of 1945, such aircraft complexes struck bridges and crossings to stop the advance of the Red Army.