The first aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt after World War II, it was a conventional, low-wing cantilever monoplane with retractable tricycle undercarriage.
The programme was initiated when the Spanish government issued a requirement in 1951 for a replacement for the Hispano HS-42s and HA-43s then in service.
Development was fraught with problems, mostly in obtaining suitable parts, and most particularly with engines.
As it transpired, the performance of this engine was far from satisfactory, and when the second prototype flew in February 1955 (the first HA-100F), it was powered by a Wright R-1300.
Eventually, production ground to a halt, and the decision was taken to scrap the airframes under construction, salvaging only the wings and empennages for use on the HA-200 project.