Messerschmitt Me 321

Me 321 Gigant
Messerschmitt Me 321 gliders on airfield 1942
Role	Cargo glider
Manufacturer	Messerschmitt
First flight	25 February 1941
Introduction	1941
Status	retired
Primary user	Luftwaffe
Produced	June 1941 – April 1942
Number built	200
Unit cost	US$ $132,316.89 (adjusted for inflation 2016)
Developed into	Messerschmitt Me 323

The Messerschmitt Me 321 Gigant was a large German cargo glider developed and used during World War II. It was developed into the six-engined Messerschmitt Me 323 Gigant.

During the preparations for a possible invasion of Britain during World War II (Operation Sea Lion) it became obvious to the Luftwaffe's Transport Command that there was a need for a larger capacity cargo- and troop-carrying aircraft than its mainstay, the Junkers Ju 52.

When the plans for Operation Sea Lion were shelved in December 1940, and planning began for the invasion of Russia (Operation Barbarossa), it was decided that the most cost-effective solution to the need for transport aircraft was to use gliders. Accordingly, the Technical Bureau of the Luftwaffe issued a tender for rapid development of a Grossraumlastensegler ("large-capacity transport glider") to the aircraft manufacturers Junkers and Messerschmitt. The specification called for the glider to be capable of carrying either an 88 mm gun plus its tractor, or a medium tank. The codename Projekt Warschau ("Project Warsaw") was used, with Junkers being given the codename Warschau-Ost and Messerschmitt Warschau-Süd.

However, the Junkers design, the Ju 322 Mammut was unsuccessful due to the company opting to use all-wood construction. Messerschmitt's design for this transport glider consequently secured the contract for the company. Initially given the RLM designation: Me 263; this designation number was later reused (see: RLM) for the second generation rocket fighter developed in 1945: Messerschmitt Me 263. That number was 'freed-up' when the number for this aircraft was switched to: Me 321.