Strana 48
Bf 109G-6/R6, Hptm. Werner Schroer, CO of II./JG 27, Eschborn, Germany, September 1943
Bf 109G-6, Hptm. Heinrich Ehrler, CO of 6./JG 5, Alakurtti, Finland, June 1943
Werner Schroer was born on February 12, 1918.
In 1937, he joined the Luftwaffe as ground per-
sonnel. Later, he completed flight training and
was assigned to I./JG 27 in August 1940. This unit
was transferred to North Africa, where Schroer
achieved his first aerial victory on April 19, 1941.
In June 1942, he was appointed Staffelkapitän of
8./JG 27. In April 1943, he was appointed Grupp-
enkommandeur of II./JG 27. At the end of 1942,
II./JG 27 was relocated to Germany, and in March
1943, it received new Bf 109G-6 aircraft. After
several months of deployment in Italy, the unit
was transferred back to Germany. The box art
depicts the unit’s first fight against a formation
of B-17 bombers, which occurred on September
6, 1943, during an American raid on Stuttgart.
Werner Schroer’s command aircraft had a whi-
te rudder with 84 victory markings painted on
its left side. Following this battle, three more
B-17 kills were added. Both variants are inclu-
ded on the decal sheet. In March 1944, Schroer
was appointed commander of III./JG 54, and in
February 1945, he assumed command of JG 3.
He achieved a total of 114 aerial victories, inclu-
ding 26 four-engine bombers. He was awarded
the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak
Leaves and Swords. He passed away on Febru-
ary 10, 1985.
Heinrich Ehrler began his military career in
1935 within the anti-aircraft artillery and fought
in the Spanish Civil War as a member of 3.F/88.
He completed fighter training in early 1940 and
was assigned to 4./JG 77, which was later re-
designated 4./JG 5, based in Norway. In late
May 1942, Ehrler was transferred to 6./JG 5 at
Petsamo and became its commander in August.
He achieved his 100th victory on June 8, 1943.
During this period, he flew a Bf 109G-6 Yellow 12
in Erla factory camouflage, with the symbols of
his aerial victories painted on the left side of the
rudder. As the Kommodore of JG 5, Ehrler was
responsible for cover of the Tirpitz battleship,
which was anchored in Norway. After its sinking,
he was wrongly convicted, but the sentence was
commuted. On February 27, 1945, he joined JG
7, flying Me 262 jets. In combat with Liberator
bombers on April 4, 1945, he managed to shoot
down two B-24s and rammed a third. According
to witnesses who heard Ehrler’s last words,
he carried out a suicide attack. His number of
victories thus stopped at 208, and for these
achievements, he was decorated with the Kni-
ght’s Cross with Oak Leaves.
KITS 03/2025
INFO Eduard48
March 2025