The world’s first rocket-powered interceptor. In the desperate final years of the Third Reich, German engineers unveiled the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet — a revolutionary rocket fighter capable of blistering speed and vertical climbs that no Allied aircraft could match. But with its volatile fuel, limited endurance, and deadly landing hazards, the Komet was as dangerous to its pilots as it was to its enemies. In Rocket Fighter, aviation historian William Green explores the conception, design, and combat record of this extraordinary aircraft. Illustrated with rare photographs and technical drawings, this volume captures both the brilliance and the futility of a weapon born too late to change the war’s outcome.