| Amerikabomber | |
|---|---|
 The Messerschmitt Me 264 V1 (first prototype Me 264) | |
| General information | |
| Project for | Long-range strategic bomber |
| Issued by | Reich Air Ministry |
| Service | Luftwaffe |
| Proposals | Focke-Wulf, Heinkel, Junkers, and Messerschmitt (conventional bombers) |
| Prototypes | Focke-Wulf Ta 400 Heinkel He 277 (after February 1943) Junkers Ju 390 Messerschmitt Me 264. |
| History | |
| Initiated | April 1942 |
| Concluded | July 1944, with the Jägernotprogramm. |
| Outcome | Five prototypes (two Ju 390, three Me 264) built, no operational aircraft |
| Predecessors | Ural bomber |
The Amerikabomber (English: America bomber) project was an initiative of the German Ministry of Aviation (Reichsluftfahrtministerium) to obtain a long-range strategic bomber for the Luftwaffe that would be capable of striking the United States (specifically New York City) from Germany, a round-trip distance of about 11,600 km (7,200 mi). The concept was raised as early as 1938, but advanced plans for such a long-range strategic bomber design did not begin to appear before Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring until early 1942. Various proposals were put forward, but these plans were all eventually abandoned as they were too expensive, too reliant on rapidly diminishing materiel and production capacity, and/or technically infeasible.