Conceived as a single-seat fighter, the Fa 269 project resulted from a design study order issued by the Reich Air Ministry to Focke-Achgelis in 1941.

The order called for a local defence fighter which would combine the VTOL capabilities of a helicopter with the speed and economy of a conventional fixed-wing aircraft.

A large amount of wind tunnel testing was undertaken, along with work on gearboxes, drives and power-pivoting mechanisms, and a full-scale mock-up of the aircraft was built to demonstrate the VTOL concept, but much of this was destroyed by Allied bombing raids and all work was shelved in 1944,[1] when Focke-Achgelis estimated that there was little likelihood of a practical prototype being available before 1947.

It was proposed that the Fa 269 would adopt a high angle of attack when at rest using extremely long undercarriage units.

For translation to conventional flight following take-off, the extension shafts were to pivot to the rear, the rotors then behaving as pusher propellers.