Artwork by Ingolf Meyer

The E 381.02 proposal lay in the Bordjager category,whereby a self take-off was not intended from the outset. Such types, also known as parasite aircraft, were to have been attached to and air-launched from another aircraft in flight prior to reaching the target. The Ar F 381.02 was to have been attached to the ventral fuselage of an Ar234 C or D in place of the bomb load. Due to the low ground clearance, it had twin end-plate fins and rudders and housed the pilot in the prone position. Variants were drawn up, all featuring the same basic configuration. Armament consisted of a single MK 108 cannon housed in the raised dorsal fuselage aft of the cockpit and provision was made for a number of rocket projectiles fired from within the wing. Powerplant was a 350kp thrust FMK 109-509 B liquid-propellant rocket motor. Landing was to have been on an extensible skid and a brake parachute was provided, the full-span ailerons assisting as landing flaps. The cockpit had 6mm thick armor plating, with auxiliary protection provided by a 20mm swivelling armor shield which had a clear vision panel for target aiming. Calculated performance data are not available, save that a speed of around 900km/h was expected to be attained in a dive.

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The first version had a circular cross-section fuselage, with a small round window in the nose for the pilot's vision. Overall, the entire fuselage was protected by a 5mm armored shell. The pilot lay in a prone position, and the cockpit was very cramped. A removable 140mm (5.5 inch) armored glass screen was mounted in front of the pilot. Two small bulges were located on the fuselage sides for the pilot's elbows. Alongside the pilot's legs were two C-Stoff (one component of the rocket fuel) fuel tanks and by his feet a single T-Stoff fuel tank. The wings were straight and mounted midfuselage, with a stepped bulge above the wings which held the single MK 108 30mm cannon with 60 rounds. The rocket engine exhausted beneath the tail unit which featured a twin fin and rudder setup. A retractable skid could be lowered for landing and a drag parachute (ejected from a hatch on the top rear fuselage) was also to be used upon landing. The aircraft could only be entered from a hatch above the cockpit, so the pilot had to enter the E.381 before the aircraft could be attached to the carrier Ar 234C-2 an had no way to escape in case of emergency.

The second version was very similar to the first version of the Ar E.381. The overall dimensions were enlarged slightly, but the basic layout remained the same. The front canopy was enlarged, giving the prone lying pilot better vision out of the still cramped cockpit. A sligl step still remained aft of the entry hatch atop of the forward fuselage, and a single MK 108 30mm cannon (45 rounds) was still mounted here, firing over the cockpit. The tail unit was similar, with the fins being slightly smaller and rounder. Landing was accomplished by means of a built-in landing skid and the same drag parachute, and the same means of entering and exiting the second version of the E.381 (via a hatch on top of the fuselage) remained from the first version.

Above: Günter Sengfelder's large scale model of the Ar E 381 midget rocket interceptor attached to the underbelly of the Ar 234 C-3 jet bomber, illustrates the central landing skid as well as the location of the single MK 108 cannon above and to the rear of the prone pilot.