Messerschmitt Bf 109 was one of the most long-lived aircraft throughout history, being used by various countries for no less than 30 years! A long period of time it was the back-bone of the Luftwaffe and the three top-scoring World War II fighter aces proved their valour in battle flying this fighter.
They are: Erich Hartmann (352 victories), Gerhard Barkhorn (301 victories) and Günther Rall (275 victories) - all of them Bf 109 pilots.
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 history begins back in the '30ies, when the German aircraft designer Willy Messerschmitt presented his offer to a Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM) request.
The RLM wanted at that time a modern fighter aircraft that should equip the young Luftwaffe.
Short history It is hard to cover even shallowly the Bf 109's history in an article.
However, some important years can be listed.

• 1937 - Messerschmitt Bf 109 saw action for the first time with the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War.
  The new fighter replaced the Heinkel He 51 that suffered heavy losses during the first year of combat.
  Its enemies are Soviet built airplanes like Polikarpov I-15 and Polikarpov I-16 that proved to be inferior.
  Overall, Luftwaffe lost in Spain only 20 Bf 109s in aerial combat and ground fire.
  
• September 1939 - Invasion of Poland.
  Luftwaffe allocated approximately 850 Bf 109E and 235 Bf 109D to the fighter squadrons, of whom 20 percent took part in the lightning war against this country.
  67 Bf 109s were shot down, but mainly by the ground fire.
  The German fighter dominated the sky once again.
  
• 1940 - The Battle of Britain.
  This was the year that made the Messerschmitt Bf 109 famous.
  This was the year also when it finally met enemies to match its power - the Hawker Hurricane and the Supermarine Spitfire.
  The Bf 109E was responsible for the main RAF casualties: 403 Spitfires, 631 Hurricanes and 115 Blenheims.
  But Luftwaffe suffered also heavy losses: 610 Bf 109s missed, any many pilots were killed or taken prisoners, whereas most of the British pilots were able to go back to fight.
  During the Battle of Britain the Messerschmitt Bf 109 was used for the first time as a fighter-bomber, being able to carry 250 and 50 kg bombs.
  
• 1941 - Operation Barbarossa.
  This time the Messerschmitt Bf 109 faced no significant opponent.
  The Soviet air force was made up of mainly obsolete aircraft like the Polikarpov I-15 biplane and the Polikarpov I-16.
  Although the Mig-3, LaGG-3 and Yak-1 took their first flight in the year of invasion, they were still far inferior to the Messerschmitt Bf 109.
  

The Bf 109 continued to be used many years after the war ended - Finland retired it from service in 1954 and Romania a year later - and even to be produced with some modifications in Czechoslovakia and Spain.