Reading through an old comic from 1968 I spotted a reference to the Junkers Ju 88 Beethoven project. Like most, I guess, this was something that didn't ring any sort of bell, so I decided to to a bit of digging, and found that it was a genuine reference, and that Beethoven, or rather the Junkers Ju 88 Mistel Composite, was also once planned to carry out a 60 aircraft attack on the British Fleet in its safe anchorage within Scapa Flow.



The Ju 88 was probably the most versatile German bomber of World War II, and saw service through the entire conflict, and that meant there were some tired old airframes out there, and someone came up with the idea of producing a composite aircraft by combining these with first the Messerschmitt Bf 109F, then the  Focke-Wulf Fw 190A. The old bombers would be loaded with explosives, flown to the target, and then released under remote-control from the fighter.

Unfortunately, operation of the combination was hampered by its increased weight, and its airspeed and range compromised by the resultant drag. This was why the Scapa Flow raid never took place as planned, when the weather meant that the reduced range of the Mistel Composite could not be sure of reaching and finding its target.

Primarily dedicated to the Ju 88, this article includes a good section on the Mistel, or Beethoven project.