07/2021

• Page 1

  Vol 20, July 2021Vol 20, July 2021

  ISSUE 137

  INFOINFO

• Page 2

  INFO

  EDUARDEDUARD

  ISSUE 137

  © Eduard - Model Accessories, 2021

  FREE FOR DOWNLOAD, FREE FOR DISTRIBUTION!

  This material may only be used for personal use. No part of the text

  or graphic presentations can be used in another publication in any other media form

  or otherwise distributed without the prior written

  permission of Eduard - Model Accessories and authors involved.

  Editorial and Graphics - Marketing department, Eduard - Model Accessories, Ltd.

• Page 3

  eduardeduard

  EDITORIAL

  JULY 2021

  KITS

  HISTORY

  BRASSIN

  PHOTO-ETCHED SETS

  BIGED

  RELEASE

  BUILT

  ON APPROACH

  July 2021

  August 2021

  WILDE SAU Episode two: Saudämmerung Limited edition 1/48

  ADLERANGRIFF Limited edition 1/72

  Fw 190A-8/R2 Weekend edition 1/48

  MiG-21bis Weekend edition 1/48

  Bf 109F-4 ProPACK 1/48

  Spitre Mk.IXc ProPACK 1/48

  Bf 109G-6/AS Weekend edition 1/48

  Spitre Story: Tally Ho! 1/48

  Tempest Mk.V Series 2 1/48

  Bf 109G-6 early version 1/48

  CONTENTS

  GELBE EINS

  WILDE SAU: a Short history

  WILDE SAU: Stories

  HOW I MET ZDENEK SEKYRKA

  TAIL END CHARLIE

  Published by Eduard-Model Accessories, spol. s.r.o.

  Mírová 170, Obrnice 435 21

  support@eduard.com www.eduard.com

  4

  74

  82

  28

  7

  60

  85

  86

  90

  113

• Page 4

  Dear Friends and Modellers,

  The news from the front, as you know, is

  ever changing. The same holds true for

  us here. The moment I wrote in the last

  issue of our monthly newsletter the da

  -

  tes for E-day, damned if it didn’t change.

  The new date of the show is October

  1st and 2nd, 2021. Write it down…may

  -

  be if enough of us do, it won’t change

  again. The original date had a monkey

  wrench thrown in, in the form of ano

  -

  ther traditionally fall event, an agri-

  cultural one, that coincided with E-day.

  Somehoworother, it got mixed into the

  dates of our show, so the change was

  necessary. The management of the ve

  -

  nue decided to allow the other show

  to keep the dates, and I take that as a

  business decision that is possibly fed

  by a level of sentiment towards a tradi

  -

  tional agricultural show as opposed to

  a modelling event. I guess, honest-

  ly, that I can understand it. There have

  been problems with that show right

  from the beginning when we changed

  the venue to Lyse. It always has some

  -

  thing to do with horses. The year before

  last, the show I mentioned above was a

  week before ours, and there was ano

  -

  ther horse show, something to do with

  show jumping, I believe, the week after.

  The venue people were trying to get us

  to change E-day to after the second

  horse show, because they didn’t want to

  go through the process of cleaning out

  the sand that is used to give the horses

  a natural ground to move in while in

  -

  side the hall, only to bring it all back in

  a week later. Fortunately, we were able

  to convince them to do just that. Perha

  -

  ps some of you that attended the show

  will recall the mysterious piles of sand

  in the parking lot next to the hall. I have

  the sneaking suspicion that it will be

  the same again this year. After June’s

  newsletter, we received a lot of questi

  -

  ons, and so for that reason, I am repe-

  ating all of the information and adding

  some new bits, too.

  One Day or Two Day Format?

  Really, this years’ E-day will be a day

  -

  -and-a-half affair. Just as we did in

  2019, it will begin on the Friday after

  -

  noon. Our table will be open for busi-

  ness, as I am sure will many others.

  The concession stands will also be

  open. We are planning two, and perha

  -

  ps even three, lectures for the evening.

  In hindsight, the first lecture in 2019

  was a little weak, and the question re

  -

  mains whether or not this was due to

  the subject matter, or if it as too early

  in the schedule. The lecture lineup has

  not yet been finalized, but the certain

  thing about them is that the last, late

  evening one, will be hosted by Jiri

  Silhanek. I highly recommend atten-

  ding! You’ll experience what you have

  not yet experienced, and you’ll learn

  things you wouldn’t have thought possi

  -

  ble. The rest of these lectures should

  centre around new kits that will have

  their premiere at E-day. This will inclu

  -

  de the Trener in 1:48th scale, a Limited

  Edition kit dedicated to different versi

  -

  ons of the Z-126 and Z-226 , and a 1:48th

  scale Mi-24D Hind, also a limited Editi

  -

  on release based around the Zvezda kit.

  This will include conversion bits of our

  own production for the D version. Then,

  there will be a 1:72nd scale Limited Edi

  -

  tion kit dubbed ‘Hurristory’, dedicated

  to the Hurricane Mk.I, this time based

  around the Arma Hobby plastic. The

  -

  re should be no shortage of speakers

  to provide insight into these themes.

  A Hurricane was recently flown to the

  Czech Republic, the pilots of which we

  know personally, and there should be

  nice flying displays put on by the Mi-24

  and Trener aircraft….

  One Hall or Two Halls?

  Two. This year’s E-day will be held in two

  halls. Traditionally, we occupied Hall D,

  which we all know and love so well, and

  to that we add Hall A. We were prepa

  -

  red to go into two halls last year, which

  could not go forward, and so we pick

  it up this year. This will spread us out

  a bit, and it won’t seem quite so crow

  -

  ded around any of the displays. We will

  use the scheme of club displays in Hall

  A, with the main displays and vendors

  in Hall D. It’s possible, even very like

  -

  ly, that the Kettle Q and A, and awards

  announcements, will be held in Hall A.

  One Contest or Two?

  For the first time in a long time, there

  will be one contest this year. Our wor

  -

  king name for it is the Czech Model Ma-

  sters. The English format of the name

  suggests that it will be a multi-national

  affair. And that’s how it is. It is intended

  to be a multi-national event. But to what

  extent this will hold true this year is as

  yet uncertain, because the times are un

  -

  certain, leading to questions regarding

  what measures and restrictions will be

  in place in the fall regarding such shows

  and of travel. We will do all that we can

  to make sure that the show is a success

  to the greatest extent possible. I think

  that if we can ensure the success of the

  show, word of mouth will take it from

  there. On the Czech Republic Nationals,

  I have already written much, and I will

  just take this opportunity to remind all

  that this MR SMCzR will take place on

  September 11th at the Hotel Olympic in

  Prague, and as of this year, we’ll travel

  down our own road.

  Point System, Comparative System or

  Like/Not Like?

  Good question that I’ve been asked

  countless times over the past month.

  How will the entries in the Czech Mo

  -

  del masters be judged? The answer is

  that the judging system will follow in

  the tracks of the system used for the

  last E-day in 2019. This didn’t employ

  the classic point system in the Czech

  sense, where each aspect of a model is

  graded in a complex judging procedu

  -

  re. This won’t even be possible with the

  amount of time available and the anti

  -

  cipated number of entries. Our system

  is a collection of judging criteria which

  should assess the quality of the work

  on a given model, eliminating certain

  models with specific faults in terms of

  the build, assess its compliance to the

  accepted standard and compare rela

  -

  ted models in terms of these aspects,

  execution, and level of detail. The co

  -

  llection of judges will be, of course,

  ÚVODNÍK

  eduard

  4

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 5

  very important. Here, too, we will fall

  back on our experience from 2019, we

  will again consult co-operating clubs,

  and the lineup will be complemented

  with other modeling personalities. Most

  importantly, we will try to assemble the

  committees of the various categories in

  such a way as to avoid as much of the

  political infighting amongst individual

  modelers and clubs as possible. I know

  that all of this sounds a bit complica

  -

  ted, I rather suspect that we all know

  to what I am referring to. In short, what

  we would like to achieve is a show that

  is fair and in the right spirit of the event.

  Awards and Results

  The main awards will be in the form

  of glass trophies, and there will be six.

  Five will be for sub-categories…aircraft,

  armor, ships, civil and figures, while the

  sixth will be for the overall ‘best of’. Wi

  -

  nning and placing entries in individual

  categories, such as 1:72nd scale aircraft,

  will receive smaller awards. What form

  these will take, I cannot say right now.

  But it will not look like an afterthought.

  Don’t worry about that. The awards an

  -

  nouncements will in all likelihood take

  place in Hall A, if only because the po

  -

  dium is already there. We’d also like to

  inject a little something in this process

  as well, that will take it away from the

  ‘here’s your award, now get lost’ feel.

  Anti-Pandemic Measures

  Anti pandemic measures are, naturally,

  the biggest and most important fac

  -

  tor in all this, because we don’t know

  what conditions will persist or arise in

  the fall. Currently, the prevailing feel is

  one of cautious optimism with a slow

  easing of restrictions, and most are

  expecting that the fall will see a return

  to the conditions that prevailed in the

  spring. Although there is a certain level

  of skepticism among modellers, I feel

  that there won’t be a return to those

  conditions, and that society as a whole

  has taken the lessons of the past and is

  fully aware of its potential return, and is

  acting accordingly. As the saying goes,

  Generals prepare extremely well for

  the previous war. But the new war is al

  -

  ways different, and as far as I am con-

  cerned, it will not be without covid-19. If

  it does make a return in the fall, it will

  be in some modified form, and the re

  -

  strictions to contain it may well be di-

  fferent in the fall than they were in the

  spring.

  We don’t anticipate the worst case sce

  -

  nario, which would involve the shutting

  down of such events and the cancella

  -

  tion of E-day. We do have a contingency

  plan in place that assumes the possi

  -

  bility of a limit on the number of people

  allowed to attend such an event. Actu

  -

  ally, we think that the number of peo-

  ple allowed will rise as we approach

  our dates, and that any limits will be

  satisfied by a typical attendance of be

  -

  tween 3,500 and 4,000 people. For now,

  we are not concerned with any mask or

  respirator requirements, because it’s

  basically a small detail. Social distan

  -

  cing requirements should be made po-

  ssible by the addition of the second hall.

  Of course, there may some problems

  with localized concentrations of people.

  This could be a problem where there is

  a self-serve type of vendors’ table,

  which our table and Special Hobby’s

  too, are. Those of you who have been

  at an E-day and have visited our table

  will know. I am not confident that this

  year will be any different, and I do hope

  that sales that will be in place on Friday

  afternoon and evening will help to alle

  -

  viate this situation.

  We are working with other contingen

  -

  cies, too, in an effort to be as prepared

  as possible for any potential restric

  -

  tions. As one example, and perhaps

  the most relevant, at least to my mind,

  is the possibility of such events being

  open only for ‘related participants’ as

  opposed to the general public….ie, mo

  -

  delers. In that case, we would publicize

  the event through industry circles, we

  would have a limited number of tickets

  available, and these would be sold sole

  -

  ly on pre-order. The pre-order of tickets

  and pre-registration for contest partici

  -

  pants is on the table also for the possi-

  bility of some 1500 limit, which would

  make it pretty easy to avoid any people

  concentration issues.

  99 New Items for July

  Yes, you read right. It’s no typo, and we

  really do have 99 new items which are

  being shown for the first time in this

  newsletter. It’s not the first time we’ve

  hit this number, and we’ve even had

  a hundred and more new items, but it’s

  just nice to say….’99 new items’. Who

  else do you know can claim that they

  have 99 new items in a month. And

  have no fear, I won’t go into any detail

  about each and every one of them, but I

  will just touch up on the highlights and

  you can glean the rest throughout this

  newsletter.

  Kits and Re-Editions

  There are even a lot of kits. If we include

  re-editions, there are seven kits being

  released. Considering that currently,

  re-editions are items that are con

  -

  stantly being tweaked, instructions are

  improved, different marking options

  are included and boxart is ever evol

  -

  ving, then these can in most respects,

  be considered among new items. For

  us, these re-editions are a necessi

  -

  ty, and they are one of three roads by

  which older kits are kept in the ro

  -

  tation. In this case, it’s manifested in

  innovation of the look of the kit, and

  they are otherwise finished items. That

  means that they are relatively low on

  the scale of labor intensity. If you take

  a closer look at how we do things, you

  will note that typically within a month

  (either before or after) the release of

  a re-edition, we release a similar kit,

  usually in the form of a Weekend Edi

  -

  tion item. As an example, today the re-

  -edition is that of the Spitfire LF Mk.IXc

  in the ProfiPACK line, and next month,

  this will be followed by the Weekend

  Edition of the Spitfire F Mk.IX. This is

  a version that has also been called

  Spitfire Mk.IX Early, and I recommend

  a good look at the Weekend kit because

  it has some very noteworthy marking

  options to offer. In September, we will

  see another re-edition, this time of the

  ProfiPACK Spitfire Mk.VIII, and when

  I add that in August, we will also have

  the new Mk Vs in American service as

  the Limited Edition Eagle’s Call, then

  I can only look forward to the asserti-

  ons that all we do is Spitfires and no-

  thing else. It’s a similar story with the

  MiG-21s in 1:48th. This month, we have

  the new Weekend kit of the MiG-21bis,

  to be followed by the MiG-21MF in the

  ProfiPACK line, and then a new Wee

  -

  kend MiG-21MF in September.

  Besides the 48th scale ProfiPACK Spit

  -

  fire Mk.IXc, we have dusted off the Bf

  109F-4, also in the ProfiPACK family.

  This is another nice Eduard morsel

  with nice markings that really needs

  no tweaking at all. The six options cen

  -

  tre around Hans-Joachim Marseille,

  with schemes that go from the desert

  to the classic to winter type. It’s a sight

  to behold. With the second re-edition,

  the aforementioned Spitfire Mk.IXc, it is

  similar, although someone at the time

  was bellyaching over the options not

  being striking enough, because they

  were all grey-green. But that’s how it,

  more or less, was with Spitfires. There

  were also complaints, likely from En

  -

  gland, that the marking options were

  composed of a band of foreigners…no

  Brits. Which was true….we had a Pole, a

  Czech and a Canadian , which left only

  a silver bird of No.601 Squadron, the

  pilot of which is unknown. But I would

  stake anything that an Englishman

  eduard

  5

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 6

  from No.601 Squadron flew the thing at

  some point in time! The above-mentio

  -

  ned August Weekend kit of the F Mk.IX,

  we have been more accommodating in

  this regard, and have been more ‘co

  -

  rrect’ with respect to nationalities. The

  third re-edition this month covers the

  Bf 109G-6/AS, and it’s in the Weekend

  line. This kit is interesting through the

  fact that it is the second re-edition of

  the type this year, and it was a new

  release back in January. I must admit

  that I am surprised by this fact, and

  I confess that I underestimated the po-

  tential of the late Bf 109Gs. I was under

  the impression that these were not

  particularly interesting aircraft. OK…

  so they are popular. Very good sellers,

  and yes, I was wrong.

  Weekend Kits

  Within the Weekend Line we are relea

  -

  sing the MiG-21bis in 1:48th scale and

  the Fw 190A-8/R2 in the same scale.

  The MiG is being released along the

  same philosophical lines as described

  above. The Fw 190A-8/R2 is a bit of clas

  -

  sic for us and is another of a growing

  line of releases that features boxart

  depicting historically relevant events. In

  this case, the event is the type of thing

  that it is hard to believe that something

  like it could have actually occurred. But

  occur it did. If you have your doubts,

  check out the article in today’s newsle

  -

  tter by Jan Zdiarsky, as he vividly de-

  scribes the events prior, during and

  after the depiction. I have little doubt in

  either Jan Zdiarsky’s research abilities

  or his passion for the subject in which

  to utilize them. They centre around the

  events of September 11th, 1944 over

  the Ore Mountains, and as far as being

  a passion for him, it is a lifelong one.

  If you begin reading the article, you will

  also finish it. It’s that good.

  Limited Edition

  July sees two Limited Edition kits being

  released. I’ll start with the smaller one,

  and it is called Alderangriff 1:72 and is

  closely related to an earlier item. The

  plastic comes from Special Hobby and

  is the result of a collaborative effort be

  -

  tween our two companies. The design

  of the item has its genes in Eduard, but

  is a Special Hobby scaling down of our

  original 48th scale kit. The molds ori

  -

  ginated with a foreign partner, which

  brought with it certain complications

  in timing. In short, the release had to

  be delayed, and we were planning on

  a March or April release of our Limited

  Edition kit based on this plastic. Ulti

  -

  mately, the delay did come, but really,

  that’s a pretty common occurrence in

  our field. Now, the plastic is in boxes

  and they arrived in the nick of time, but

  I have a good feeling about this one. I’ve

  been involved with this project from the

  get go, and I have a tendency, I find, to

  keep sticking my nose in it to one de

  -

  gree or another. And in this case, my

  hands as well. Adlerangriff 1:72 has the

  same marking options available as the

  48th and 32nd scale versions did, bea

  -

  ring the same name, with the exception

  of one specific option. Thanks to this di

  -

  fference, the options now include that of

  Franz von Werr, which is probably my

  favorite historical figure. I will just add

  that this kit covers the bf 109E in several

  versions that flew in the Battle of Bri

  -

  tain. Today’s kit will be the first of the

  line, and will be followed in the fall by

  a ProfiPACK release.

  The second Limited Edition kit is the se

  -

  cond volume in the Wilde Sau line. It’s

  called ‘Wilde Sau, Episode Two: Sau

  -

  dammerung’. This is a change from the

  first working title, because it was re

  -

  alized that it didn’t really fit the theme

  all that well. Saudammerung’ is a refe

  -

  rence to a Wagner opera ‘Twilight of the

  Gods’, and the end result is that maybe

  the titles should be chalked up to, and

  taken as, artistic license and leave it at

  that. And if you think that poems and

  poets have no place in aviation or mo

  -

  deling, then we will have something to

  get you out of that opinion in August’s

  newsletter. But, back to the Wild Sows.

  This one concerns itself with the ti

  -

  meframe of the end of 1944 through ’45

  to the end of the war. This was a time

  that for the German pilots was not

  particularly pleasant. You can find out

  more about this aspect of the war not

  just from the kit’s instruction manual,

  but also from two historical notebooks

  in today’s newsletter. One is from Neil

  Page, a recognized authority on the Wil

  -

  de Sau concept, and the other is from

  me. I am no expert on this theme, but I

  gave it my best shot. When it comes to

  aircraft types, there are two in the pac

  -

  kage: the Bf 109G-14/AS and the bf 109G-

  10 Erla. There are two G-10 versions po

  -

  ssible, the changes being represented

  by both small and large landing gear

  fairings over the wheel wells. The Wil

  -

  de Sau theme will round out next year

  with Wilde Sau Episode Three: The Final

  Countdown. I won’t guarantee thjat this

  will end up being the release’s title, be

  -

  cause, as I said, the situation over the

  battlefield changes with every minute

  and this is a year away still. But from

  what I know about this subject, the tit

  -

  le fits well, to my mind. It will cover the

  Fw 190A of various versions, and I fore-

  see this as another winner.

  Accessories

  There are 90 accessories out of the 99

  new releases, and as promised, I won’t

  describe them all in detail. I will touch on

  those that I see as the most interesting,

  and these are more than a few as well.

  There are three Brassin sets that de

  -

  serve notice that are dedicated to the Fw

  190F-8, and they cover the engine, the

  fuselage weapons, and the third com

  -

  bines the two in one package. Among

  Brassin items, there appears another

  one for the P-51D, with a tire pattern that

  is suitable for British Mustangs, and the

  -

  re are smaller sets for the B-17F from

  HKM, including Löök items, and smaller

  sets also for the Tempest Mk.II in 1:48th

  scale. The kit itself will be a new release

  in August as a ProfiPACK kit. There are

  six new Space sets, three Löök sets and

  two LööKplus items. Also, there are the

  usual weapons sets in various scales,

  including machine guns for the B-17F.

  In photoetching and masks, there are

  an incredible ten sets for the trumpeter

  1:32nd scale F-100C. Furthermore, there

  are more sets for the 1:48th B-17F. Take

  a look at the Wooden Floors and Ammo

  Boxes in 1:48th, catalog Number 491201.

  This utilizes a specific methodology in

  the application of the wood grain simu

  -

  lation. We’ve confirmed that it works

  well in previous sets, and it looks ama

  -

  zing. We also have masks for the HKM

  48th scale Lancaster, the Pucara and the

  F-84F from Kinetic in the same scale.

  Also, for the F-111F and D in 1:72nd sca

  -

  le. Someone kept asking, I would say

  ceaselessly, for the F-11 sets, so here

  they are. I hope you like them. The same

  thing goes for the Ju 87D, demand for

  accessories of which rose after the kit

  was reboxed by HOBBY 2000. There are

  also new releases among decal sheets,

  with four three of which cover the P-51D

  Mustang in 1:48th and 1:32nd scale, and

  the fourth covers Italian ‘Smoke Ring’

  camouflage. Very poetic title, and these

  are in 1:72nd scale.

  And that’s it from me for now. I am hea

  -

  ding of on vacation, during which I will

  bike around Jutterbog and visit the air

  -

  fields that were used by individual com-

  ponents of JG 300 and other Wilde Sau

  units.

  Happy Modelling

  Vladimir Sulc

  eduard

  6

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 7

  The events of the air battle over the Czech-German frontier

  on Monday, September 11th, 1944, remained virtually forgo-

  tten for decades after the war. The rich mosaic of the fates

  of those involved began to come together over the course of

  over thirty years , which began with research into the fates

  of the American and German pilots and crews, that met over

  the Ore Mountains on that day, resulting in the loss of over

  sixty aircraft and more than eighty lives on both sides. These

  were the fates of family members, friends and fellow yers

  who had ended up paying the ultimate price.

  The fruits of the ongoing research into this event, culmina-

  ting in the museum dedicated to it, has also been benecial

  to the modeling community. The rst project on which the

  museum and Eduard cooperated on was the nostalgically re-

  membered Royal Class edition of the Fw 190A-8/R2 in 1:48th

  scale back in 2007. After that, there was a ProPACK kit,

  ‘Sturmbock’, in the same scale carrying the catalog number

  8175. This kit, for the rst time, featured boxart by Martin

  Novotny depicting the battle itself. After several years, this

  was followed by the Fw 190A-8/R2 Royal Class kit in 1:72nd

  scale, the 1:48th scale Royal Class Bf 109G, and several other

  projects as well.

  Currently, we see a return by Eduard to the subject of the Air

  Battle Over the Ore Mountains in the form of theme specic

  boxart by Piotr Forkasiewicz and one of the marking options

  supplied with the kit. The centre of attention of the boxart is

  a Sturmbock aircraft coded Yellow ‘1’, own by Obgefr. Karl

  Kleemann, attacking one of the elements of the 100th Bomb

  Group shortly after noon on September 11th, 1944. That,

  which is depicted in the boxart, tries to stay faithful and ac-

  curate to as many details as possible, but it still needs to be

  said that due to the monumental nature of the intercept by

  II.(Sturm)/JG 4, it is impossible to ascertain whether or not

  Kleemann and his 7. Stael actually attacked this specic

  element of B-17s of the 349th Bomb Squadron. At some point,

  despite all eorts, some artistic license must be allowed for.

  The ‘feel’ of the battle, and the fates of individual aircraft,

  is depicted in the painting extremely well. Given the severe

  losses suered by both sides, it should come as no surprise

  that none of the ve aircraft depicted on the box ever made

  it home again. And this accounts for less than a tenth of the

  total losses suered. So, this painting of Piotr’s has been

  christened ‘No Way Back’. Let’s take a look at the individual

  NOW AN´THEN

  Besides Kleemann’s aircraft, the artwork is also dominated by

  the burning B-17G, dubbed ‘Now an’ Then’. This was an aircraft

  carrying the serial number 42-97806 and was coded XR-D. The

  bomber ew its rst mission for the 100th Bomb Group as a new

  addition on May 20th, 1944 in a raid on Brussels. Up to the fate-

  ful mission to Ruhland, the aircraft completed 37 combat ights,

  most own by the crew commanded by Lt. Ferdinand J. Herres.

  His crew ew this aircraft on 17 of their 33 combat missions.

  It was also them that named the aircraft. After they became the

  leading crew, aircraft mission assignments were irregular, and it

  was impossible to predict which mission they would be assigned.

  So, as a result, they named the aircraft ‘Now an’ Then’. As fate

  would have it, or maybe it was a squadron bureaucrat, Herres’s

  crew ying their last mission on the current tour of duty on Sep-

  tember 11th, 1944, wasn’t in ‘Now An’ Then’, but rather a newer

  fates of the aircraft that are shown in closer detail. Although

  the centre of focus is Kleemann’s aircraft, we’ll leave that

  story for the end of this article. In order to save space, I will

  leave out the history of the battle, which can be referenced

  in Eduard Newsletters from the years 2010 - 2018 here :

  07/2010 – STURMBOCK: Panzerglass, Panzerplatte

  and the Whites of the Tail Gunner’s Eyes

  www.eduard.com/out/media/InfoEduard/archive/2010/info-eduard-2010-07EN.pdf

  05/2012 – The Aircraft in the Background

  www.eduard.com/out/media/InfoEduard/archive/2012/info-eduard-2012-05EN.pdf

  07/2014 – Black Four

  www.eduard.com/out/media/InfoEduard/archive/2014/info-eduard-2014-07EN.pdf

  04/2015 – Pauke! Pauke!

  www.eduard.com/out/media/InfoEduard/archive/2015/info-eduard-2015-04EN.pdf

  09/2018 – Lone Adler

  www.eduard.com/out/media/InfoEduard/archive/2018/info-eduard-2018-09en.pdf

  Main Picture: Painting by Piotr Forkasiewicz ‘No Way Back’,

  depicting the scene of the attack by 7.(Sturm)/JG 4 on a for-

  mation of 100th BG aircraft on noon on September 11th, 1944.

  It is the boxart of the Eduard Model Accessories

  kit No. 84114, Fw 190A-8/R2.

  eduard

  7

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 8

  aircraft serialled 43-37823, coded XR-V, and was, importantly, not

  designated to be in the lower section of the combat box, which

  was later decimated. But even so, this mission for Ferdinand He-

  rres and his crew would prove quite fateful, as even they would

  need to bail out of their burning aircraft. Luckily for them, this

  was not until they were back over England, and all would be able

  to return to their base relatively unscathed and able to celebrate

  the end of their tour of duty. It turned out dierently for the

  crew that ended up ying Herres’s B-17 on September 11th, 1944.

  That crew was commanded by Lt. Charles E. Baker. The crew was

  going on its sixth operational mission, and despite being relatively

  young, they led a three ship element from the 349th BS. Navigator

  Lt. Donald Lienemann recalled the beginning of the encounter

  with the Germans:

  ‘…our ship was very badly riddled in the waist and tail section,

  and also had a re in the bomb bay area due to enemy action. The

  attacks, as nearly as I could determine, all came from between

  6 and 9 o’clock and were deadly accurate, however the enemy

  fared none too well either, for they told Lt Chiles, Co Pilot of the

  crew, upon capture, that they lost 82 ships as a result of that li-

  ttle battle, and that they were highly peeved having to pay such

  a high penalty for the days work. As a result of this enemy action,

  the interphone was shot out, as was the alarm bell, the C-1 and

  two 20´s had gone through the pilots instrument panel. Both the

  Co-Pilot and I had tried to use the interphone, but neither had

  any success, so I know denitely it was out. When the copilot,

  Lt. Chiles, rst noticed the re in the bomb bay, he immediate-

  ly notied the pilot, Lt. Baker, of the existing condition of the

  ship and then proceeded to call the crew, which was, as I men-

  tioned, an impossibility. The Pilot, Lt Baker, then motioned to

  Lt. Chiles and Sgt. Damrel, Engineer, to proceed and bail, which

  they did immediately, however the pilot refused to abandon ship,

  because he had no way of notifying the remainder of the crew,

  so remained steadfast in the cockpit, knowing full well that, in

  a matter of a few minutes, he would pay the supreme price for

  his gallantry, which I believe was the case. He must have felt that

  perhaps the few extra seconds that he might give for the crew,

  they in turn might discover the condition of the ship and pro-

  ceed to bail out on their own, which, of course, did not happen.

  Of the seven men still in that ship at the time of the nal explo-

  sion, it seems that I am the only remaining one, and so it falls my

  lot to tell this gruelsome story, for I was the only eyewitness to

  the entire proceedings that is alive today. Had I know the condi-

  tion of the ship, it is needless to say that I too would have bailed,

  however I did not know all the afore story until I later met my

  Co-pilot and Engineer. Shortly before the explosion, I do know

  the left wing was shot o right outside of engine No.1, at which

  time the plane made a mad surge to the left and up, and then the

  right wing left us too, and almost immediately the plane went

  into a wild dive and blew up. I am convinced that it must have

  been those bombs that went o, for the explosion came from

  the bomb bay area, and it was so terrifying that even thinking

  about it today makes me shudder. We were at 26,000 when all

  this occurred and of course were knocked out as result of the

  explosion, losing consciousness and all. I regained my senses after

  I had fallen some 22,000 feet, or at least that would be my ho-

  nest estimate, leaving 4,000 feet between me and the ground to

  right myself, get my wits about me and pull the rip cord, all of

  which I did pronto and used my chute for a total of 15 seconds

  before nally hitting the forest…’

  The burning aircraft came down between Oberhals and Schmie-

  deberg (today’s Horni Halze and Kovarska). The crash of the

  aircraft was also witnessed by several of the locals.

  Horst Schmiedl of Medenec: ‘I was a young boy at the time,

  and was mushroom picking with my grandfather, when a large

  battle unfolded above us. My granddad forced me to the ground

  and wouldn’t allow me to look up. I only heard massive hits and

  explosions. I don’t how long it lasted, but when it quieted down,

  my grandfather told me that a plane came down nearby. We went

  to look for it. The area nearby was burning when we reached

  the crash site. I think we were the rst on the scene. There was

  a lot of twisted metal around, and nearby, in a tree, there was

  the body of a yer. He was tangled in the ropes of his parachute.

  I remember my grandfather telling me not to look there, that it

  was nothing for a young boy to see…’

  Donald H. Lienemann during his rst visit to Kovarska

  on July 15th, 1995.

  eduard

  8

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 9

  aircraft serialled 43-37823, coded XR-V, and was, importantly, not

  designated to be in the lower section of the combat box, which

  was later decimated. But even so, this mission for Ferdinand He-

  rres and his crew would prove quite fateful, as even they would

  need to bail out of their burning aircraft. Luckily for them, this

  was not until they were back over England, and all would be able

  to return to their base relatively unscathed and able to celebrate

  the end of their tour of duty. It turned out dierently for the

  crew that ended up ying Herres’s B-17 on September 11th, 1944.

  That crew was commanded by Lt. Charles E. Baker. The crew was

  going on its sixth operational mission, and despite being relatively

  young, they led a three ship element from the 349th BS. Navigator

  Lt. Donald Lienemann recalled the beginning of the encounter

  with the Germans:

  ‘…our ship was very badly riddled in the waist and tail section,

  and also had a re in the bomb bay area due to enemy action. The

  attacks, as nearly as I could determine, all came from between

  6 and 9 o’clock and were deadly accurate, however the enemy

  fared none too well either, for they told Lt Chiles, Co Pilot of the

  crew, upon capture, that they lost 82 ships as a result of that li-

  ttle battle, and that they were highly peeved having to pay such

  a high penalty for the days work. As a result of this enemy action,

  the interphone was shot out, as was the alarm bell, the C-1 and

  two 20´s had gone through the pilots instrument panel. Both the

  Co-Pilot and I had tried to use the interphone, but neither had

  any success, so I know denitely it was out. When the copilot,

  Lt. Chiles, rst noticed the re in the bomb bay, he immediate-

  ly notied the pilot, Lt. Baker, of the existing condition of the

  ship and then proceeded to call the crew, which was, as I men-

  tioned, an impossibility. The Pilot, Lt Baker, then motioned to

  Lt. Chiles and Sgt. Damrel, Engineer, to proceed and bail, which

  they did immediately, however the pilot refused to abandon ship,

  because he had no way of notifying the remainder of the crew,

  so remained steadfast in the cockpit, knowing full well that, in

  a matter of a few minutes, he would pay the supreme price for

  his gallantry, which I believe was the case. He must have felt that

  perhaps the few extra seconds that he might give for the crew,

  they in turn might discover the condition of the ship and pro-

  ceed to bail out on their own, which, of course, did not happen.

  Of the seven men still in that ship at the time of the nal explo-

  sion, it seems that I am the only remaining one, and so it falls my

  lot to tell this gruelsome story, for I was the only eyewitness to

  the entire proceedings that is alive today. Had I know the condi-

  tion of the ship, it is needless to say that I too would have bailed,

  however I did not know all the afore story until I later met my

  Co-pilot and Engineer. Shortly before the explosion, I do know

  the left wing was shot o right outside of engine No.1, at which

  time the plane made a mad surge to the left and up, and then the

  right wing left us too, and almost immediately the plane went

  into a wild dive and blew up. I am convinced that it must have

  been those bombs that went o, for the explosion came from

  the bomb bay area, and it was so terrifying that even thinking

  about it today makes me shudder. We were at 26,000 when all

  this occurred and of course were knocked out as result of the

  explosion, losing consciousness and all. I regained my senses after

  I had fallen some 22,000 feet, or at least that would be my ho-

  nest estimate, leaving 4,000 feet between me and the ground to

  right myself, get my wits about me and pull the rip cord, all of

  which I did pronto and used my chute for a total of 15 seconds

  before nally hitting the forest…’

  The burning aircraft came down between Oberhals and Schmie-

  deberg (today’s Horni Halze and Kovarska). The crash of the

  aircraft was also witnessed by several of the locals.

  Horst Schmiedl of Medenec: ‘I was a young boy at the time,

  and was mushroom picking with my grandfather, when a large

  battle unfolded above us. My granddad forced me to the ground

  and wouldn’t allow me to look up. I only heard massive hits and

  explosions. I don’t how long it lasted, but when it quieted down,

  my grandfather told me that a plane came down nearby. We went

  to look for it. The area nearby was burning when we reached

  the crash site. I think we were the rst on the scene. There was

  a lot of twisted metal around, and nearby, in a tree, there was

  the body of a yer. He was tangled in the ropes of his parachute.

  I remember my grandfather telling me not to look there, that it

  was nothing for a young boy to see…’

  Donald H. Lienemann during his rst visit to Kovarska

  on July 15th, 1995.

  In July, 1995, navigator Donald H. Lienemann was the rst

  American vet from the battle, with whom researchers from the

  evolving museum made contact and who would revisit the place

  where he was shot down. He subsequently came back again from

  his native Nebraska on two occasions, including to attend the

  opening ceremony for the museum in September, 1997.

  MUD IN YER EYE

  A similar fate to Baker’s ‘Now an’ Then’ befell the aircraft

  ying o its left wing, B-17G 42-97834 ‘Mud in yer Eye’, own by

  Lt. Orville C. Everitt. Over almost fty missions own by this

  B-17G, eight were manned by Everitt’s crew (who were ying

  their 20th combat mission on September 11th, 1944). One of the

  three of nine crew to survive the mission was Lt. Warren L. Soden,

  and in 1997 he recounted for us: ’ After several passes by the

  190’s 20mm re knocked out our tail controls, both rudder and

  elevator. We started down and I could see the pilot’s feet (Eve-

  ritt) on the rudders trying to get control. The co-pilot was gone.

  (I could see the cockpit from the nose due to the fabric panel

  being absent in this plane.) I bailed out and on the way down

  I saw our plane almost directly below me on a ight path that

  was consistently left-right, left-right, with descent signicant-

  ly slowed. This ight pattern indicated to me that Everitt was

  still ying the plane. I can only conclude that he had not bailed

  out and was trying to get below cloud cover before bailing out.

  However the plane exploded shortly before reaching cloud cover

  and I saw only pieces of aluminum oating down. I landed in

  a forest and was picked up by German soldiers‘.

  Tail Gunner Sgt. Kenney died in 1963 as a result of the injuries

  he suerred in the battle. On his return from captivity in 1945,

  he reported in his debrief:

  ‘We were ying a mission to Ruhland, Germany on September

  11´1944. At about 12:10 English time, were hit by F.W.´s 190.

  Due to oxygen system which was shot away and also serious lung

  wounds I was unconscious and don´t remember how I get out

  and have no knowledge on what happened at all except heresay.

  I heard in Germany from a fellow yer that the ship blew up…’

  Of the nine man crew, three lived to see the end of the war.

  OOMBREE AGO

  Signicantly better luck was experienced by the crew to the

  right of Baker. Serialed 43-38161, it was the most recently built

  airplane of the three, and had thirteen combat missions under

  its belt. Most of these were own by a crew commanded by

  Lt. Raymond L. Hieronimus. Both of the aforementioned crews

  also ew a mission each in this aircraft. The bomber carried the

  name ‘Oombree Ago’. Raymond Hieronimus was at the controls

  of this airplane on this occasion, and his crew accounted for four

  destroyed and one damaged enemy aircraft. Tail gunner S/Sgt.

  Marvin D. Cooper: ‘Six e/a were attacked up at 6 o´clock low.

  They came straight in and at 600 yards I began ring at the lead

  E/A. It was a straight shot with no deection and smoke began

  to come from his left wing. He came in to 300 yards without

  wavering where the plane suddenly exploded and disintegrated

  in mid air.’

  Top turret gunner Sgt. Carlyle E. Miller caught a dierent

  Fw 190: ‘A single E/A came in at 7 o’clock as I was trying to get

  another E/A on our right wing. I swung around to 7 o’clock and

  started ring at a range of 200 yards. I saw smoke come from the

  engine and the E/A fell o to 8 o’clock low and exploded…’

  Pilot Raymond L. Heironimus recounted several days after the

  battle: ‘Diving out of the sun the Germans attacked... our lead

  Fortress fell, its wing tips burning... the bomber to the right did

  a wing-over, falling up to pieces... another blew up under us...

  those boys were old friends of mine... we saw only half dozen

  parachutes... then we got it, hit in the tail we went straight up,

  stalled, went down in a tight spiral, losing 6000 feet.’

  During the falling spin, the injured radio operator, T/Sgt.

  William G. Terry bailed out of the stricken aircraft. He was sub-

  sequently taken prisoner at Jachymov. Navigator Lt. George H.

  Geis added to the pilot’s account in 2000:

  ’„…when Raymond and Glenn got us out of a at spin at 15,000

  we were all alone. Cannon re around the tail wheel nacel-

  le dropped the tail section – jamming the rudder and elevator.

  We stayed aloft with the control yoke full forward and one aile-

  ron for lateral steering.

  Ray Carl was severely wounded – one arm with a double com-

  pound fracture – both kneecaps and upper leg bones visible and

  massive puncture wounds of the face. We packed the wounds,

  used sulfa and morphine – wrapping him in ak vests and fashi-

  oned a hammock with control cables to cushion him from the

  severe vibration.

  The radio room door was shattered and Terry’s boots were on

  the bloody oor. He somehow managed to bail out during the

  spin. We were losing altitude so we jettisoned the ball turret,

  radios, guns, etc., and Cooper and I dropped four 500# by ope-

  ning the toggles with a screwdriver. We couldn’t reach the other

  two on the lower outside racks.

  ‘Oombree Ago’ after its emergency landing in France

  (Museum of Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains

  on September 11th, 1944 Archives, Stephane Muret)

  .

  eduard

  9

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 10

  By this time we were maintaining altitude but only a few thou-

  sand feet. The plane was “skidding” about 30% o course (due to

  the rudder), but fortunately the one thing that still worked were

  the engines. Avoiding populated areas was a tough job for Ray

  and Glenn – we got small arms re around the Rhine.’

  The pilots ultimately managed to set the damaged aircraft down,

  running on fumes, in a eld near the town of Joigny, southeast of

  Paris, just beyond the front line. They were welcomed with horse

  meat and wine by the locals. They returned to their base several

  days later at Thorpe Abbotts, and picked up their tour of duty

  where they had left o. That ended in February, 1945. In 2002 and

  2004, navigator George Geise visited the museum at Kovarska and

  also the spot where his bomber set down near Paris.

  YELLOW ‘6’

  The Fw 190 ying under the stricken B-17 ‘Oombree Ago’ is

  Yellow ‘6’, W.Nr. 681337, own by 25-year-old Uz. Heinrich

  Hörner. The moments immediately after his attack on the bom-

  ber formation were described by Oblt. Othmar Zehart, 7. Stael

  Commanding Ocer, in a letter to Hörner’s father:

  ‘…11.9.1944, at about 1215h, we entered into combat with six-

  teen four-engined bombers over Saxony. Even before we condu-

  cted our rst attack against them, over half were shot down in

  ames. Unfortunately, my Stael also suered losses. Your son,

  ying on my left, was hit, forcing him to disengage and lose al-

  titude. His aircraft was bellowing smoke, but was not on re.

  I had also suered serious hits to my aircraft, and could not mo-

  nitor your son’s situation much further. Because we did not see

  him crash, and his aircraft appeared under control during his

  descent, we all believed that he was able to bail out and take to

  his parachute. Unfortunately, two days ago, I received word that

  Heinrich died during the battle…’

  Uz. Horner died while trying to belly in on a school eld at

  Dorf Chemnitz. Walter Burkart, eleven at the time, recalled ye-

  ars later: ‘…I was in an air raid shelter in the cellar. After the

  all-clear, we came out. It was said that a ghter came down ne-

  arby. We ran to the spot where that had happened, but it was

  already cordoned o and not accessible. It was said that the pilot

  had survived the landing, but died shortly thereafter. I found out

  from which direction the aircraft came in, and that it was ying

  very low. He ew past the church and landed in a eld behind

  the school. After the pilot’s body had been taken away and the

  ammunition and armament was removed, we could get closer. My

  friends and I collected various items. I had a piece of plexiglass

  and a cartridge, but my mother threw it all away. The aircraft

  engine lay about six meters from the airframe. People thought

  he was trying to land in the eld, but that he was unsuccessful.’

  The plane, just short of open elds beyond the town, ew

  through some treetops between the school building and the chu-

  rch, and impacted, among other things, a memorial to soldiers

  of the First World War which was destroyed, after a hard landing.

  The pilot was buried at a local cemetery just a few dozen meters

  from where the tragedy occurred.

  eduard

  10

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 11

  By this time we were maintaining altitude but only a few thou-

  sand feet. The plane was “skidding” about 30% o course (due to

  the rudder), but fortunately the one thing that still worked were

  the engines. Avoiding populated areas was a tough job for Ray

  and Glenn – we got small arms re around the Rhine.’

  The pilots ultimately managed to set the damaged aircraft down,

  running on fumes, in a eld near the town of Joigny, southeast of

  Paris, just beyond the front line. They were welcomed with horse

  meat and wine by the locals. They returned to their base several

  days later at Thorpe Abbotts, and picked up their tour of duty

  where they had left o. That ended in February, 1945. In 2002 and

  2004, navigator George Geise visited the museum at Kovarska and

  also the spot where his bomber set down near Paris.

  YELLOW ‘6’

  The Fw 190 ying under the stricken B-17 ‘Oombree Ago’ is

  Yellow ‘6’, W.Nr. 681337, own by 25-year-old Uz. Heinrich

  Hörner. The moments immediately after his attack on the bom-

  ber formation were described by Oblt. Othmar Zehart, 7. Stael

  Commanding Ocer, in a letter to Hörner’s father:

  ‘…11.9.1944, at about 1215h, we entered into combat with six-

  teen four-engined bombers over Saxony. Even before we condu-

  cted our rst attack against them, over half were shot down in

  ames. Unfortunately, my Stael also suered losses. Your son,

  ying on my left, was hit, forcing him to disengage and lose al-

  titude. His aircraft was bellowing smoke, but was not on re.

  I had also suered serious hits to my aircraft, and could not mo-

  nitor your son’s situation much further. Because we did not see

  him crash, and his aircraft appeared under control during his

  descent, we all believed that he was able to bail out and take to

  his parachute. Unfortunately, two days ago, I received word that

  Heinrich died during the battle…’

  Uz. Horner died while trying to belly in on a school eld at

  Dorf Chemnitz. Walter Burkart, eleven at the time, recalled ye-

  ars later: ‘…I was in an air raid shelter in the cellar. After the

  all-clear, we came out. It was said that a ghter came down ne-

  arby. We ran to the spot where that had happened, but it was

  already cordoned o and not accessible. It was said that the pilot

  had survived the landing, but died shortly thereafter. I found out

  from which direction the aircraft came in, and that it was ying

  very low. He ew past the church and landed in a eld behind

  the school. After the pilot’s body had been taken away and the

  ammunition and armament was removed, we could get closer. My

  friends and I collected various items. I had a piece of plexiglass

  and a cartridge, but my mother threw it all away. The aircraft

  engine lay about six meters from the airframe. People thought

  he was trying to land in the eld, but that he was unsuccessful.’

  The plane, just short of open elds beyond the town, ew

  through some treetops between the school building and the chu-

  rch, and impacted, among other things, a memorial to soldiers

  of the First World War which was destroyed, after a hard landing.

  The pilot was buried at a local cemetery just a few dozen meters

  from where the tragedy occurred.

  YELLOW ‘1’

  The last aircraft that is within the realm of this article, and is

  an integral part of the boxart in question, is Yellow ‘1’, own by

  Ogefr. Karl Kleemann. This Fw 190 had the W.Nr. 681343 assigned

  to it, and along with the other Sturmbocks own by II.(Sturm)/

  JG 4 at this time, it was manufactured by Fiesler at Kassel.

  The use of the tactical number ‘1’ by a regular pilot within a unit

  was unorthodox. It was usually reserved for the Stael CO, but it

  was not a rule.

  Just after the Sturmbock aircraft attacked the 100th BG forma-

  tion, 339th Fighter Group P-51s appeared, and immediately took

  on their German opponents. The R2 modication to the Fw 190A-8

  made it a lethal weapon against the formations of four-engined

  heavy bombers. Notably, the 30mm Mk 108 cannon with explosive

  ammunition, was capable of cutting apart the ‘dump trucks’ or

  ‘fat cars’, as the German ghter pilots nicknamed the American

  bombers. The other side of the coin was that the heavy weaponry

  and, as the case may have been, extra armor, made the Fw 190s

  somewhat less capable dogghters, in cases where these situati-

  ons arose with the escorting ghters. This was the main reason

  for most of the Fw 190s diving out of the picture after completing

  their rst attack, head for the cover of clouds, and make their

  way back to their base. Fights typically took place from 26,000

  feet down to near ground level and from the Czech-German bor-

  der northward in line with the town of Chemnitz. It was in this

  area that II.(Sturm)/JG 4 lost at least six of its Sturmbock ghters

  to the Mustangs. One of these was the plane own by Karl Klee-

  mann. The burning aircraft appeared low over the centre of Thum,

  chased by a pair of P-51s. With a sharp turn, he bypassed a church

  steeple, and crashed in a eld immediately behind the fence of

  the city’s hospital garden. Annemarie Kraus was a witness, and

  recalled later: ‘I was standing in the garden with my grandmo-

  ther, when a low-ying aircraft overew Thum from the direc-

  tion of Annaberg. Then, another one ew over, lower than the

  rst, and it was trailing smoke. It avoided the church bell tower,

  and headed in our direction. We lived to the left of the hospital.

  And then we heard a massive explosion. We ran to the location of

  the impact, as did our neighbors. They didn’t allow us kids near

  the actual crashsite. The dead pilot was still in the seat…’

  The nal moments of Karl Kleemann’s ight was observed from

  another angle by a student named Dieter Hertzsch: ‘…suddenly,

  a burning German ghter appeared only several meters above

  the houses on the west side of Neumarkt headed in our direction.

  He was able to coax it back up one more time, and got directly

  over the brewery. That was followed by a horrible noise coming

  from the direction of the hospital. We ran to the impact point be-

  side the hospital in a eld, but there was no help we could oer.

  There was a large crater clearly visible, a piece of the airplane

  some distance away, and a little beyond that, the pilot. Imme-

  diately before us was the wreckage of the plane, completely

  deformed. The twenty-three-year-old pilot from Bad Cannstadt,

  Obgefr. Karl Klee-

  mann, could not

  be helped…’

  The ocial

  report that was

  released by the

  police gives a so-

  mewhat more pre-

  cise accounting of

  the details. The

  typically police

  expressionism is

  worthy of note,

  same as the al-

  most obligatory

  distortion of the

  fact that Klee-

  mann was shot

  down by American

  ghters. Accor-

  ding to the report,

  and to the con-

  trary, it was Klee-

  mann who was the

  antagonist, and

  his death was an

  aerial mishap:

  The church tower in Thum around which Karl Kleemann banked immediately prior to the crash.

  (Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains September 11th, 1944 Archives)

  Karl-Martin Kleemann, born November 10th, 1923

  (via the Kleemann family)

  eduard

  11

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 12

  The current painting for

  the Eduard kit is not the

  rst that Piotr Forka-

  siewicz did, dedicated

  to Karl Kleemann. On the

  occasion of the monu-

  ment unveiling in 2018,

  there was a painting of

  the low ypast over the

  town of Thum, called

  ‘Der letzte atemzug’

  (The Last Breath)

  The eld behind the

  Thum hospital that

  became the crash site.

  (Air Battle Over the Ore

  Mountains September

  11th, 1944 Archives)

  .

  eduard

  12

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 13

  The current painting for

  the Eduard kit is not the

  rst that Piotr Forka-

  siewicz did, dedicated

  to Karl Kleemann. On the

  occasion of the monu-

  ment unveiling in 2018,

  there was a painting of

  the low ypast over the

  town of Thum, called

  ‘Der letzte atemzug’

  (The Last Breath)

  The eld behind the

  Thum hospital that

  became the crash site.

  (Air Battle Over the Ore

  Mountains September

  11th, 1944 Archives)

  ‘On September 11th, 1944, between 1150h and 1230h, several

  enemy formations ew over Thum. At approximately 1210h, se-

  veral low ying enemy aircraft appeared, which were chased and

  shot at by German ghters. One German ghter ew from the

  southeast and went into an easterly turn over the square in Thum

  at a height of some 50m. He took on a direction towards the hos-

  pital in Thum, and at around 20m from the building he was only

  about 10m above the ground and dropping, ying between two

  trees in the hospital garden. It is likely that the aircraft clipped

  the fence of the hospital, forcing the propeller into a potato

  eld about six meters past the fence, ipping the aircraft onto

  its back. After the crash, a plume of smoke could be seen and

  an explosion heard. With that, the aircraft disintegrated. The

  engine lay 30m to the right of the wreck. The remaining pieces

  of the plane, including ammunition, lay strewn about. As a result

  of the impact or the explosion, the pilot was found 110m behind

  the impact site. He was still belted to his seat. The parachute

  lay unopened beside the pilot. His logbook and other documents,

  along with his pistol and eld cap, were nearby. The fuselage

  of the airplane was a burned out wreck. The pilot’s body was

  also burned. The ames on him were put out with a portable

  extinguisher, but there were no vital signs anymore. There were

  obvious signs of trauma to the legs, the right shoulder, and face.

  The pilot had an identication stamp on his person. It carried the

  number 542 64817, and from his logbook, it was apparent that he

  was Obergefreiter Karl Kleemann, born on November 10th, 1923,

  in Bad Cannstadt.

  It was also possible to determine that he belonged to 7.Sturm/

  Jagdgeschwader 4. This incident has been reported to Air Control

  at Chemnitz. According to the information supplied by Kassenin-

  spektor Finenkel in Thum, it was requested that the body be

  taken to the mortuary in Thum. The crash site will be guarded

  until the wreckage is cleared.’

  Karl Kleemann was buried on September 16th, 1944 at 1530h in

  the ‘hero section’ of the cemetery in Thum. Annemarie Kraus also

  recalls those days: ‘The pilot’s picture was displayed for a long

  time in the window of the Gensel bookstore. He was buried with

  full honors in the cemetery in Thum. Us kids were present, and

  we observed the ceremony from the cemetery wall…’ The cere-

  mony was also attended by a delegation from the non-com ocer

  school in Annaberg, and according to the town of Thum records,

  two members of Kleemann’s Stael were also present.

  THE STORY DOESN’T END THERE

  The crash of the young pilot in Thum, same as countless other

  pilots, was forgotten over time and the memory faded in the

  minds of the witnesses to the event and most young people never

  even learned about the event. Ocial communist doctrine in East

  Germany dictated that when it came to a Second World War Ge-

  rman pilot dying on German territory, it was too uncomfortable

  The report of the losses of II.(Sturm)/JG 4. (Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains September 11th, 1944 Archives)

  Death notication entry in the Thum archives (Via Frank Retzla)

  .

  eduard

  13

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 14

  to not have it swept under the rug or alibistically have the facts

  massaged to t the needs of the government. It is possible to

  not use the death of the young pilot for propaganda purposes to

  the fulllment of an ideological agenda and the turning around

  of horrors that Germany and her Nazism brought to the world.

  On the contrary – it can be used as a reminder of the types of

  horrors that that regime and its insanity brought the world, inc-

  luding to her own civilian population and members of her armed

  forces as well. However, such themes are extremely dicult to

  contemplate for many people in Germany to this day and are very

  much a taboo, and it is, unfortunately, much easier for them to

  simply close their eyes to the reality of the past than it is to

  use the past as a learning experience from which much can, and

  should, be taken.

  Under the conditions imposed by a society that hides from its

  past, it seems unbelievable that there would be an attempt to

  erect a memorial to Karl Kleemann, who died in Thum on Septem-

  ber 11th, 1944. The idea was brought forth by two locals, from

  our view, two cross-border fellow collaborators of the Museum of

  the Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains, Frank Retzla and Ronny

  Gehra. These two have co-operated with us on other occasions.

  They have been the main driving force behind the idea of erecting

  the monument to Karl Kleemann and all victims of the air battle

  over the Ore Mountains. The memorial came to fruition thanks

  to the understanding and support of the Thum City Council and

  many local elements. The unveiling of the memorial, as a tribute

  to a World War Two German pilot who lost his life on German soil

  and a reminder of the vicious horrors and senseless loss caused

  by war, occurred on September 8th, 2018. It was unveiled by two

  children from both former enemies, a German girl and a Czech

  boy, in a symbolic gesture of the need to reconcile. The ags of

  both sides of the conict swayed over the monument – American

  and German, and along with them, thanks to German – Czech

  co-operation on the project and the involvement of the museum

  that also pays tribute to Obgefr. Kleemann who died in combat

  over the region, the Czech ag. The site where the monument

  is located, has been named ‘Kleemann Eck’ (Kleemann’s Corner)

  Frank and Ronny managed a pretty much unimaginable feat –

  unveil a monument to

  a Second World War Ge-

  rman pilot in Germany,

  and in the process con-

  vince the local powers

  that be of the idea and

  bring them on board, and

  all this under anti-war

  and anti-Nazi sentiment

  with no political motives

  either way. Last, but not

  least, they also were able

  to track down Kleeman’s

  family and co-ordinate

  their eorts with them.

  And with that, they were

  able to add another pie-

  ce to the mosaic of the

  Air Battle Over the Ore

  Mountains of September

  11th, 1944, which should

  not be so easily forgotten.

  The author during the

  unveiling ceremony.

  Actual view of the

  church tower from

  the accident area.

  eduard

  14

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 15

  to not have it swept under the rug or alibistically have the facts

  massaged to t the needs of the government. It is possible to

  not use the death of the young pilot for propaganda purposes to

  the fulllment of an ideological agenda and the turning around

  of horrors that Germany and her Nazism brought to the world.

  On the contrary – it can be used as a reminder of the types of

  horrors that that regime and its insanity brought the world, inc-

  luding to her own civilian population and members of her armed

  forces as well. However, such themes are extremely dicult to

  contemplate for many people in Germany to this day and are very

  much a taboo, and it is, unfortunately, much easier for them to

  simply close their eyes to the reality of the past than it is to

  use the past as a learning experience from which much can, and

  should, be taken.

  Under the conditions imposed by a society that hides from its

  past, it seems unbelievable that there would be an attempt to

  erect a memorial to Karl Kleemann, who died in Thum on Septem-

  ber 11th, 1944. The idea was brought forth by two locals, from

  our view, two cross-border fellow collaborators of the Museum of

  the Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains, Frank Retzla and Ronny

  Gehra. These two have co-operated with us on other occasions.

  They have been the main driving force behind the idea of erecting

  the monument to Karl Kleemann and all victims of the air battle

  over the Ore Mountains. The memorial came to fruition thanks

  to the understanding and support of the Thum City Council and

  many local elements. The unveiling of the memorial, as a tribute

  to a World War Two German pilot who lost his life on German soil

  and a reminder of the vicious horrors and senseless loss caused

  by war, occurred on September 8th, 2018. It was unveiled by two

  children from both former enemies, a German girl and a Czech

  boy, in a symbolic gesture of the need to reconcile. The ags of

  both sides of the conict swayed over the monument – American

  and German, and along with them, thanks to German – Czech

  co-operation on the project and the involvement of the museum

  that also pays tribute to Obgefr. Kleemann who died in combat

  over the region, the Czech ag. The site where the monument

  is located, has been named ‘Kleemann Eck’ (Kleemann’s Corner)

  Frank and Ronny managed a pretty much unimaginable feat –

  unveil a monument to

  a Second World War Ge-

  rman pilot in Germany,

  and in the process con-

  vince the local powers

  that be of the idea and

  bring them on board, and

  all this under anti-war

  and anti-Nazi sentiment

  with no political motives

  either way. Last, but not

  least, they also were able

  to track down Kleeman’s

  family and co-ordinate

  their eorts with them.

  And with that, they were

  able to add another pie-

  ce to the mosaic of the

  Air Battle Over the Ore

  Mountains of September

  11th, 1944, which should

  not be so easily forgotten.

  The author during the

  unveiling ceremony.

  Actual view of the

  church tower from

  the accident area.

  The main proponents of the erec-

  ting of the memorial, Frank

  Retzla and Ronny Gehra.

  A close-up of the memorial with

  the Jagdgeschwader 4 emblem.

  The text reads:

  In this vicinity in air combat, Ober-

  gefraiter Karl Kleemann lost his life.

  7.(Sturm)/Jagdgeschwader 4. Born No-

  vember 10th, 1923, Died September

  11th, 1944.

  In memory, and as a warning.

  In the air combat over the Ore Moun-

  tains on September 11th, 1944, 56 Ame-

  rican and 21 German pilots and aircrews

  lost their lives.

  The author of this article is also the cura-

  tor of the Museum of the Air Battle Over

  the Ore Mountains September 11th, 1944

  in Kovarska.

  Gratitude and thanks in help with this

  article go out to Frank Retzla, Ronny

  Gehra, Piotr Forkasiewitz, the family of

  Karl Kleemann, Thum City Hall, and Hei-

  demarie Klein of the Thum Town Archives.

  Sources:

  Archives of the Museum of Air Battle

  over the Ore Mountains on September

  11th, 1944 in Kovarska, Czech Republic

  City Archives Thum

  Artworks: Piotr Forkasiewicz

  eduard

  15

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 16

  HISTORY

  By the late summer of 1944 wilde Sau operations

  were a distant memory for the majority of pilots in

  JG 300. All night-fighter actvities in the Geschwader

  had been concentrated in a ‘specialised’ Moskito

  -

  -hunting Staffel designated 10. (N)/ JG 300. This was

  the so-called ‘Kometen’ or Comet Staffel, established

  to combat the almost nightly incursions over Berlin

  by DH Mosquito bombers of the RAF's LNSF (Light

  Night Striking Force.). Operating out of Jüterbog,

  south of Berlin, under Staffelkapitän Leutnant Karl

  Mitterdorfer, 10. Staffel flew a 'modified' Wilde Sau

  system— guided by two vertical searchlight beams

  and a ground controller, the unit’s high performan

  -

  ce G-14/AS fighters loitered at high altitude (10,000

  meters) above the 'corridors' used by the Mosqui

  -

  toes flying into Berlin. Karl Mitterdorfer was initially

  a flight instructor and did not join 10. / JG 300 until

  August 1944. He quickly made a name for himself

  with a spirited sortie on the night of 13/14 September

  1944, his first 'sharp' sortie.

  Just two pilots, Mitterdorfer and an unknown

  Feldwebel, were assigned to cockpit readiness that

  night. Mosquitoes were reported approaching Berlin

  and so the alarm was raised. However, the unknown

  sergeant turned back because of an engine failure,

  leaving Ltn. Mitterdorfer to fly this mission alone.

  Over the course of his sortie he was vectored onto

  two Mosquitoes, and after closing on one of the RAF

  twins, pursued the enemy down to 4,000 metres be

  -

  fore realising that it was spinning down out of con-

  trol. After landing, Ltn. Mitterdorfer filed two claims

  (although contrary to what can be read elsewhere

  the second Mosquito loss was not credited to Mi

  -

  tterdorfer). He was immediately awarded the EKII

  in the field for his exploit - shooting down the fast

  Mosquito with a Me 109G-14/AS, an encounter where

  circumstances really had to favor the fighter in order

  to record any success.

  Jorg Czypionka was a flight instructor with FFS A/B

  115 in Austria, prior to being posted to 10./JG 300;

  "..[We flew ] a modification of the earlier Wilde Sau

  system—single seat Messerschmitt 109s without ra

  -

  dar, using ground-based navigation and communi-

  cation. The Mosquitoes came in very loosely and very

  fast. They flew in singly and were thus widely spread

  out. Our Bf 109s had only a small speed advantage

  over the Mosquito, and the enemy aircraft came in

  and flew out at top speed from the target area. So

  we had to be at a higher altitude to have a chance of

  knocking them down. We waited for them mostly at

  about 10,000 meters (25,000 feet), often higher. It was

  a very difficult task..."

  Czypionka recalled being vectored onto a Mosqui-

  to that was captured in the glare of as many as 30

  searchlights. He approached the speeding bomber

  from behind, and as he was lining up his shot, the

  searchlights went out. Czypionka opened up none

  -

  theless but had no way of knowing if he ever hit the

  aircraft. Not that Czypionka was unduly concerned

  - flying was most important to Czypionka, not com

  -

  bat - his mother had told him not to kill anybody. As it

  was he found it challenging and risky enough simply

  flying at night—alone in the cockpit with the roar of a

  2,000 horsepower engine, the sky at 30,000 feet, cold,

  huge and pitch-black.

  Czypionka described an added problem – engine re

  -

  liability. With the throttle at full power for too long, it

  WILDE SAU - STORIES

  NEIL PAGE

  WILDE SAU - STORIES

  Bf 109G-14/AS, Lt. Karl Mitterdorfer, CO of 10./JG 300,

  Jüterbog, Germany, September 1944

  eduard

  16

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 17

  HISTORY

  was easy to ask too much of the DB 605.

  "..On the way back home the engine blew and started

  a fire. Oil came out and so there was no chance to do

  anything. I just kept my cool and talked to my control

  officer, who said he knew where I was, and I bailed

  out..."

  Another 10./JG 300 pilot was Kurt Welter, a contro-

  versial figure who went on to lead his own Me 262

  Kommando against the Mosquitoes of the LSNF af

  -

  ter his successes with 10./ JG 300. In one account he

  claimed to have brought down a Mosquito after colli

  -

  ding with it, an event apparently corroborated by the

  Mosquito crew who filed a combat report for almost

  exactly the same place and time - they reported that

  a Bf 109 rammed them and took off parts of their

  wing so they lost control temporarily before being

  able to fly home…

  While the wilde Sau had been relegated to no more

  than a night-time sideshow on the fringes of the

  activities of JG 300, by day the Geschwader faced up

  to the huge numbers of American aircraft that domi

  -

  nated the skies of the Reich..

  Robert Jung was an enthusiastic 17-year old young

  glider pilot when he was accepted for fighter pilot

  training in the Luftwaffe during 1942. After attending

  the Luftkriegsschule (War College) and then being

  accepted for Jagdfliegerausbildung (fighter pilot

  training) he was posted in August 1944 as a youthful

  Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier (officer candidate) to the

  leading 'all-weather' Reich Defence Geschwader JG

  300 and as he put it,

  ‘.. eager to arrive at the front

  before it was too late.’.

  (‘inständig hoffend nicht zu

  spät zu kommen’). Just twenty hours after his arri

  -

  val at JG 300, Jung’s youthful illusions about life in

  a front-line fighter unit had been shattered - every

  sortie was a fight for survival against hopeless odds.

  Jung later recalled that the JG 300 pilots invariably

  ‘..prayed for clouds..’

  September 13, 1944 was one of those days. There

  was huge American aerial activity over Germany -

  well over 1,000 US bombers and hundreds of figh

  -

  ters were launched at various targets. It was 10h35

  when the green flare signalling the order to take off

  rose into the sky over the airfield at Esperstedt. The

  Messerschmitt 109s of I./JG 300 took off behind the

  Bf 109 G-14/AS “double chevron” of Ritterkreuzträger

  Hptm. Gerd Stamp. The Gruppe could barely assem

  -

  ble twenty combat-ready aircraft, the last of Stamp’s

  machines. This small formation was vectored over

  the Halle-Leipzig sector, briefly clashed with 357th

  FG Mustangs and then closed on several boxes of

  B-17s between Eisenach and Coburg at around 12h15.

  Opening up on a B-17 Oblt. Manfred Dieterle, Kapitän

  of 2. Staffel, at the controls of ‘Red 7’ looked on as his

  target veered out of formation trailing a thick plume

  of black smoke in its wake. After Gfr. Hans Dahmen

  (2. Staffel) and Fhr. Otto Leisner (1. Staffel) had each

  claimed a Boeing destroyed, the German pilots once

  again clashed with Mustangs of the 357th FG, now

  joined by P-51s of the 55th FG. After his 3. Staffel

  Schwarm had been scattered, Jung's G-14 was cha

  -

  sed by four Mustangs. In the dogfight that followed,

  one of the P 51s flew in front of him - a short burst

  from his three guns resulted only in the jamming of

  the engine-mounted cannon. Managing to get into

  a good position for a second time, Robert Jung un

  -

  leashed a burst from his cowl machine guns and

  saw his rounds explode against a P-51’s wing, which

  appeared to catch fire. The Mustang rolled slowly

  inverted and went down vertically. Despite the proxi

  -

  mity of the ground, Jung did not have time to observe

  his victim crash. He himself had taken hits fired

  by one of his pursuers and had to attempt a dead

  stick landing, putting his “Yellow 3” down gear up in

  a field. The Bf 109 G 14/AS flipped over as it struck

  the ground. The concussed pilot was pulled clear of

  the aircraft and transported to the nearest hospital.

  If a victory claim was filed, then it was not confirmed.

  A few weeks later I./JG 300 moved to Borkheide, an

  isolated village some thirty miles or so south of Ber

  -

  lin comprising a handful of houses and a large open

  expanse of "heath-land" of sandy soil, grassy tufts

  and felled pine fir stumps. The pilots and ground

  crews 'lived' in underground log bunkers - a "fore

  -

  taste of the coffin" according to one pilot- and spent

  most of their days at cockpit readiness. The field

  was surrounded by pines on three sides, in theo

  -

  ry difficult to spot from the air - and by marauding

  P-51s. On November 2 the order to go to cockpit rea-

  diness had already come through and a deathly si-

  lence had descended over the field. The pilots found

  themselves alone with their thoughts, seated at the

  controls of their Messerschmitts. Mechanics stood

  on the wings, ready to wind up the heavy inertia

  starters of the Daimler-Benz engines. Suddenly the

  silence was broken by the sound of a DB 605 engine,

  throttled back, flying a landing approach. A Me 109

  hove into view and touched down.

  Moments later, slipstream screaming across the

  open ports of their wing machine guns, around fif

  -

  teen P-51s of the 355th FG - the 'Steeple Morden

  Strafers' – fell on the 'airfield' at Borkheide, The

  P-51s had ‘discovered’ the airfield having followed

  in the new arrival – a JG 3 machine attempting to

  put down after combat. Unleashing a series of firing

  passes that lasted some ten minutes, the ‘Strafers’

  attack sent columns of thick black smoke billowing

  up into the air. In the chaos and confusion some of

  the Messerschmitts attempted to taxi away under

  the cover of the trees, while crews scrambled for

  safety. As the Mustangs departed the scene the re

  -

  sults were spectacular -virtually half the entire air-

  craft complement of I./ JG 300 had gone up in flames.

  At least nineteen Bf 109 G-14/AS fighters with fuel

  tanks and magazines recently replenished for a sor

  -

  tie had been destroyed. At Jagddivsion HQ there was

  consternation. Generalleutnant Beppo Schmid, CO

  of I. Jagdkorps, accompanied by Kommodore Dahl,

  arrived at Borkheide to inspect the damage. The

  Kommandeur I./ JG 300 Hptm. Stamp only narrowly

  avoided disciplinary sanctions. In fact he would soon

  depart the Gruppe.

  These JG 300 losses were soon replaced as the first

  Bf 109 G-10s arrived at I./ JG 300 during November

  1944. Production of the latest DB 605-powered Bf 109

  sub-type the G-10 had started in October 1944 and by

  February 1945 Erla had produced over 1500 exam

  -

  ples. The G-10 had been conceived as a light fast fi-

  ghter, perhaps the fastest of all the Gustavs, capable

  of 700 km/h at 7,000 metres. In the fuselage, behind

  the 400 litre main fuel tank was a 115 litre MW in

  -

  stallation for boosted takeoff and emergency power.

  The cowl MGs featured a new aerodynamic cover,

  dispensing with the ugly Beulen and both the tall tail

  and the tall tail-wheel could be fitted for better stabi

  -

  lity and visibility on the ground.

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, WNr. 490249, Uffz. Hans Dahmen,

  2./JG 300, Borkheide, Německo, prosinec 1944

  eduard

  17

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 18

  But not even the arrival of the Bf 109 G-10s could halt

  the massacre of JG 300’s pilots. On January 14, 1945

  during another huge raid over Berlin, Jagdgeschwa

  -

  der 300 and 301 lost at least 90 fighters and 68 pilots,

  either dead, wounded or missing in the space of thir

  -

  ty minutes! For Jagdgeschwader 300, aircraft losses,

  amounting to at least sixty machines, approached

  50% of those committed during the course of the day.

  The Staffelführer of 9./ JG 300 Klaus Grothues was

  shot down and killed flying Bf 109 G 14/AS “Yellow 2”

  north of Rathenow. Credited with 17 victories he was

  the last ace of III. Gruppe. His disappearance, coming

  as it did one month after the loss of Lt. Otto Köhler -

  along with the huge losses in combat that day - had

  a profound impact on his comrades.

  In late January 1945 I./JG 300 along with the other

  Gruppen of JG 300 were rushed to the Eastern Front.

  With the Russians within striking distance of Berlin

  there were more pressing concerns than intercep

  -

  ting bombers and dog-fighting P-51s as Lt. Fried-

  rich-Wilhelm ‘Timo’ Schenk, Staffelführer of 2./JG

  300 recalled ;

  " Liegnitz - February 1945. The Russians had crossed

  the Oder near Steinau. (..) When the weather allo

  -

  wed, we flew uninterrupted sorties, up to eight a day

  for some of us. The fields and roads between the

  villages were teeming with thousands of people, wo

  -

  men, children, the elderly, all attempting to flee the

  Soviet invasion in the bitter cold. Most of the columns

  of refugees were heading for Dresden. Viewed from

  the sky these columns of civilians clogging the roads

  painted a picture of terrible suffering. The Russians

  were everywhere. We flew strafing attacks with va

  -

  riable results - low level firing passes against tanks,

  vehicles and infantrymen was no easy task.. "

  In March 1945 with just a handful of serviceable air-

  craft and pilots remaining, I./ JG 300 was disbanded.

  The young and inexperienced pilots in its ranks were

  encouraged by ‘Hajo’ Herrmann – the creator of the

  wilde Sau - to ‘volunteer’ for the ramming mission to

  be flown by the Sonderkommando Elbe. The more

  experienced pilots had already been posted for jet

  training - Eberhard Gzik had gone to 9./EJG 2 in No

  -

  vember 1944 and flew with the former Kommandeur

  of I./ JG 300 Gerhard Stamp in the Me 262 Komman

  -

  do Stamp. The remaining pilots went to III. and IV./ JG

  300. Both these units were shuttling around various

  airfields in southern Germany. Their aircraft – essen

  -

  tially Erla built G-10s and Bf 109 K-4s - all featured

  the blue-white-blue JG 300 fuselage bands introdu

  -

  ced at the turn of the year 1944-45. Brought together

  under the banner of Jagdgruppe 300, a short black

  Gruppe bar was painted over the fuselage bands.

  Ultimately little is known about Jagdgruppe 300 - it

  was 'officially' established through the amalgamati

  -

  on of II. and III./JG 300 in April 1945 and is mentioned

  in a Luftflottenkommando 6 ORB dated May 3, 1945.

  Ordered to Ainring and from there on to Prague with

  stated diversionary airfields in Czech territory, their

  pilots flew some of the last – and perhaps most ho

  -

  peless - Luftwaffe sorties of the war.

  HISTORY

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, WNr. 151965 (not confirmed),

  I. or III./JG 300, Germany, early 1945

  eduard

  18

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 19

  Area Bombing Directive

  Over the rst half of 1942, the RAF conducted three large raids,

  dubbed ‘Thousand-bomber raids’ against German industrial cities du-

  ring Operation Arabian Nights. The rst raid, coded Operation Millen-

  nium, was conducted by 1,047 bombers over a ninety-minute span on

  the night of the May 30 and 31, 1942. They carried some 1,480 tons of

  bombs, with about a third of them being incendiaries. Losses incurred

  by the RAF amounted to 41 bombers, which was to just under 4 % of

  the force, which is a value that Bomber Command would consider ac-

  ceptable given the amount of damage inicted. The latter aspect was

  signicant, leaving behind the destruction of 3,330 structures, 2090

  heavily damaged, with 7,420 lightly damaged. Loss of life was high,

  with 486 casualties and 5,027 injuries.

  The second ‘Thousand-bomber raid’ was conducted by RAF Bomber

  Command two days later, on the night of the June 1 and 2, 1942,

  when 960 bombers attacked Essen. The results of this raid were much

  less favorable due to inclement weather conditions. Losses were put

  at 31 aircraft (3.24 %). The third raid under Operation Arabian Nights

  saw Bremen being targeted on the night of the June 25 and 26 by

  another 960-bomber force, with 5 % of them being lost in the process,

  corresponding to 48 aircraft. This raid saw the use of heavy, two-ton

  bombs, one of which literally dismantled one of the assembly halls of

  Focke-Wulf. Although only some 700 of the bombers managed to get

  over the primary target, this raid was deemed relatively successful.

  Within the scope of this oensive campaign, which fell under Bri-

  tish Air Ministry Directive No. 5 from February 14, 1942, RAF Bomber

  Command conducted several smaller raids. They were own prior to

  and after the described thousand plane raids and included a well-

  -known raid against Pilsen on the night of the April 23 and 24, 1942.

  Raids with such a high concentration of force as were seen during

  Operation Arabian Nights, could not be sustained by the RAF, because

  Title photo: Frankfurt am Main shortly after the war.

  Photo: Museum of Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains Archives

  Photo on right: Oblique aerial view of ruined residential and

  commercial buildings south of the Stadtpark (seen at upper right)

  in the Eilbek district of Hamburg, Germany. These were among

  the 16,000 multi-storeyed apartment buildings destroyed by the

  restorm which developed during the raid by Bomber Command

  on the night of 27/28 July 1943 (Operation GOMORRAH). The road

  running diagonally from upper left to lower right is Eilbeker Weg.

  Photo: IWM

  they required the services of virtually every available aircraft, in-

  cluding those of Coastal Command and training units. Notably, the

  training units that were pressed into service were ineective and suf-

  fered high losses. For example, No. 91 (OTU) Group lost 23 of its 198

  aircraft in the raid on Bremen, close to 12 %. In any case, Bomber

  Command diligently embarked on a mission to form new squadrons

  equipped with the most modern assets, namely the Stirling, Halifax

  and especially the Lancaster, and to develop new tactical protocols.

  In the spring of 1943, Bomber Command had around 65 squadrons

  equipped with heavy bombers, ready to ply their trade against Ge-

  rmany in a continuation of the night bombing campaign against her.

  Operation Gomorrah

  Night ghter units of the Luftwae under these new conditions were

  inadequate in terms of their numbers and also their eectiveness.

  This became abundantly clear over the course of the week that saw

  raids against Hamburg under Operation Gomorrah, initiated on the

  night of July 24, 1943, with 791 bombes. This raid was conducted

  chiey by Lancaster bombers that dropped 2,400 tons of bombs for

  the loss of only twelve aircraft. Smaller USAAF raids followed on

  eduard

  19

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 20

  the July 25 and 26, and just before midnight on July 27, there was

  a raid by 729 Lancaster and Halifax bombers of the RAF. This raid

  also dropped some 2,400 tons of bombs on the city, a large number of

  which were M69 incendiary bombs that turned the centre of the city

  into a ery hell. Further raids with fewer losses were conducted on

  the night of the July 29 and 30 and the August 2 and 3. The loss of life

  was monumental, and reportedly some 42,500 people lost their lives,

  the majority of them civilians. The event produced the rst known

  restorm, with ames reaching into the air several kilometers. The

  eectiveness of countering this raid was woefully inadequate part-

  ly because of, among other factors, the use of Window metal strips

  which severely limited the functionality of both ground and airborne

  radar systems. The result of the eect of the raid and the resulting

  ineectiveness in countering it, as well as the restorm, was that the

  door was opened to implementing new concepts of night ghting. This

  involved the use of traditional day ghters in free-roaming intercepts.

  The driving force behind this concept was the very successful and

  highly decorated bomber pilot, Col. Hans-Joachim Herrmann, nickna-

  med Hajo Herrmann. He had proposed trying out this concept as early

  as the end of 1942. He also personally tested this concept in practical

  terms in the spring of 1943 and received the go-ahead to form an

  evaluation unit.

  Jagdgruppe Herrmann

  Stab/Versuchskommando Herrmann was ocially activated on June

  26, 1943 at Deelen, the Netherlands. The unit was composed of ex-

  perienced pilots, largely of former transport and bomber pilots with

  expertise in blind ying techniques. The aircraft were borrowed from

  JG 1 and JG 11. Herrmann’s unit was based at Bonn-Hangelar and re-

  ceived its baptism of re during a raid on Cologne on the night of the

  July 3 and 4, 1943. Herrmann’s pilots brought down ten British aircraft

  for the loss of one of their own. Herrmann himself was credited with

  one kill. After the use of Window over Hamburg, they began to be

  considered the only eective combat element at the disposal of the

  Luftwae. The tactic, that involved interception without the use of

  ground control or airborne radar, where the ghters roamed at will

  and wreaked havoc among enemy bombers in any given operational

  area, much like wild boars, was dubbed ‘Wilde Sau’ (Wild Boar).

  The evaluation unit’s designation was changed to Jagdgruppe Herr-

  mann in July 1943, and it was integrated into II./JG 1. I./JG 300 was

  activated in August 1943. In the rst phase of its existence, the unit

  shared aircraft with day ghter units II./JG 11 and III./JG 11. Another

  two units, JG 301 and JG 302, were established later, during the fall

  of 1943, but the shortage of new aircraft dictated that only one Grup-

  pe of each of these Jagdgeschwader units had their own equipment.

  The remaining groups (Gruppen), dubbed ‘Aufsitzer’, or, less atterin-

  gly, ‘Boar’s Ass’, were forced to continue to rely on borrowed aircraft

  from day ghter units. All three Wilde Sau units, JG 300, 301 and 302,

  were, under Hermann’s leadership, integrated into the Jagddivision

  30 and were subordinate to Luftwaebefehlshaber Mitte.

  Wilde Sau concept

  Bf 109G-5 and G-6 ghters that were tasked with Wilde Sau missions

  carried minimal modications for night ying. Pilots had to be spe-

  cialized in blind ying and in ring at targets at night. To prevent

  being blinded by exhaust ames at night, the aircraft had visor plates,

  called Blendschutzleiste, mounted over the exhaust stubs on both si-

  des of the engine cowl. In the vicinity of the bomber targets, typi-

  cally a burning agglomeration, silhouettes of the attacking bombers

  were discernible, but the high level of contrast above these areas,

  the exploding shells of the anti-aircraft guns, searchlight beams, the

  glare of the res below reecting o clouds, smoke, and other eects,

  easily led to pilot disorientation. Important ight instruments were

  doubled and placed on a blind ying panel, ensuring important ight

  data in case of damage to the aircraft. Navigation and landing lights

  were usually left o, as were landing strip lights. Take-os and lan-

  dings were usually carried out in total darkness, and only in cases of

  emergency , there would be a light placed at the end of the runway,

  pointing straight up, that would indicate to a pilot the axis of the

  runway. The aircraft carried standard radio equipment, augmented

  by a FuG 16ZY navigation system, using directional beams to aid in

  navigating, and the FuG 25a IFF system. For acoustic identication of

  friendly aircraft, rst and foremost among localized counter-air de-

  fensive units, exhaust mounted sirens were installed, called Eberspä-

  cher. This emitted a distinctive and easily identiable tone. As an aid

  to visual identication, an infrared light was installed on the bottom

  surface of the wing, and in cases of emergency, a are could be red

  out from the cockpit.

  Fuel carried by the Bf 109G-6, under normal conditions, allowed for

  around eighty minutes of ight time, fteen of which were generally

  Hans-Joachim „Hajo“ Herrmann

  (1913 – 2010)

  Hans-Joachim „Hajo“ Herrmann (1913 - 2010) originally worked as

  a policeman, then joined the army and in August 1935 was recruited

  to the Luftwae with the rank of Leutnant. He rst served with

  Fliegergruppe Nordhausen and in 1936 was assigned as a bomber

  pilot to 9./KG 253. In August of that year he was deployed in the

  Spanish Civil War. He ew with the Legion Condor in that theatre

  until April 1937 and was awarded the Spanish Cross in Gold with

  Swords. Later in the ranks of his Geschwader, renamed KG 4, he

  took part as commander of the 7th Stael in the attack against Po-

  land, Norway and France. At the end of May 1940 he was shot down

  over Dunkirk. In September 1940 he received the Honor Goblet „For

  Special Achievement in the Air War“ and in October he was awarded

  the Knight‘s Cross. In 1941 he also served briey with KG 54 and

  IX. Fliegerkorps, but in September he became commander of III./

  KG 30 and joined the ght against Allied convoys on the routes to

  the Soviet Union. In the summer of 1942 he was transferred to the

  Stab of General der Kampieger and was in charge of technical and

  tactical changes in the deployment of bomber units. From May 1943,

  he experimented with the „Wilde Sau“ tactic and achieved his rst

  night victory on the night of July 3-4. In the same month he founded

  JG 300, and in August he was awarded the Oak Leaf Cluster and

  simultaneously appointed to command the Jagddivision 30 and in-

  spector of night ghters. In January 1944 he was awarded with the

  Swords to the Knight‘s Cross and two months later became comman-

  der of the Jagddivision 1. From November 1944 he served with the

  Stab of the II Fliegerkorps and in January 1945 became commander

  of the 9. Fliegerdivision. He was the initiator of the formation of

  a ghter unit which was to crash its machines into Allied bombers

  (Rammkommando Elbe), and at the end of the war he organized an

  air operation for sabotage in the rear of the enemy (Unternehmen

  Bienenstock), whose activities ended at the base Salzburg-Ainring.

  Here he got into a dispute with the commander of JV 44 Heinz Bär

  and threatened him with personal liquidation. After the war he was

  a Soviet prisoner of war until 1955. He was one of the inuential

  and fanatical military commanders who lost track of the realities of

  the war situation and whose decisions led to unnecessary casualties.

  After returning to West Germany, he became a lawyer and was an

  active neo-Nazi and Holocaust denier.

  eduard

  20

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 21

  the July 25 and 26, and just before midnight on July 27, there was

  a raid by 729 Lancaster and Halifax bombers of the RAF. This raid

  also dropped some 2,400 tons of bombs on the city, a large number of

  which were M69 incendiary bombs that turned the centre of the city

  into a ery hell. Further raids with fewer losses were conducted on

  the night of the July 29 and 30 and the August 2 and 3. The loss of life

  was monumental, and reportedly some 42,500 people lost their lives,

  the majority of them civilians. The event produced the rst known

  restorm, with ames reaching into the air several kilometers. The

  eectiveness of countering this raid was woefully inadequate part-

  ly because of, among other factors, the use of Window metal strips

  which severely limited the functionality of both ground and airborne

  radar systems. The result of the eect of the raid and the resulting

  ineectiveness in countering it, as well as the restorm, was that the

  door was opened to implementing new concepts of night ghting. This

  involved the use of traditional day ghters in free-roaming intercepts.

  The driving force behind this concept was the very successful and

  highly decorated bomber pilot, Col. Hans-Joachim Herrmann, nickna-

  med Hajo Herrmann. He had proposed trying out this concept as early

  as the end of 1942. He also personally tested this concept in practical

  terms in the spring of 1943 and received the go-ahead to form an

  evaluation unit.

  Jagdgruppe Herrmann

  Stab/Versuchskommando Herrmann was ocially activated on June

  26, 1943 at Deelen, the Netherlands. The unit was composed of ex-

  perienced pilots, largely of former transport and bomber pilots with

  expertise in blind ying techniques. The aircraft were borrowed from

  JG 1 and JG 11. Herrmann’s unit was based at Bonn-Hangelar and re-

  ceived its baptism of re during a raid on Cologne on the night of the

  July 3 and 4, 1943. Herrmann’s pilots brought down ten British aircraft

  for the loss of one of their own. Herrmann himself was credited with

  one kill. After the use of Window over Hamburg, they began to be

  considered the only eective combat element at the disposal of the

  Luftwae. The tactic, that involved interception without the use of

  ground control or airborne radar, where the ghters roamed at will

  and wreaked havoc among enemy bombers in any given operational

  area, much like wild boars, was dubbed ‘Wilde Sau’ (Wild Boar).

  The evaluation unit’s designation was changed to Jagdgruppe Herr-

  mann in July 1943, and it was integrated into II./JG 1. I./JG 300 was

  activated in August 1943. In the rst phase of its existence, the unit

  shared aircraft with day ghter units II./JG 11 and III./JG 11. Another

  two units, JG 301 and JG 302, were established later, during the fall

  of 1943, but the shortage of new aircraft dictated that only one Grup-

  pe of each of these Jagdgeschwader units had their own equipment.

  The remaining groups (Gruppen), dubbed ‘Aufsitzer’, or, less atterin-

  gly, ‘Boar’s Ass’, were forced to continue to rely on borrowed aircraft

  from day ghter units. All three Wilde Sau units, JG 300, 301 and 302,

  were, under Hermann’s leadership, integrated into the Jagddivision

  30 and were subordinate to Luftwaebefehlshaber Mitte.

  Wilde Sau concept

  Bf 109G-5 and G-6 ghters that were tasked with Wilde Sau missions

  carried minimal modications for night ying. Pilots had to be spe-

  cialized in blind ying and in ring at targets at night. To prevent

  being blinded by exhaust ames at night, the aircraft had visor plates,

  called Blendschutzleiste, mounted over the exhaust stubs on both si-

  des of the engine cowl. In the vicinity of the bomber targets, typi-

  cally a burning agglomeration, silhouettes of the attacking bombers

  were discernible, but the high level of contrast above these areas,

  the exploding shells of the anti-aircraft guns, searchlight beams, the

  glare of the res below reecting o clouds, smoke, and other eects,

  easily led to pilot disorientation. Important ight instruments were

  doubled and placed on a blind ying panel, ensuring important ight

  data in case of damage to the aircraft. Navigation and landing lights

  were usually left o, as were landing strip lights. Take-os and lan-

  dings were usually carried out in total darkness, and only in cases of

  emergency , there would be a light placed at the end of the runway,

  pointing straight up, that would indicate to a pilot the axis of the

  runway. The aircraft carried standard radio equipment, augmented

  by a FuG 16ZY navigation system, using directional beams to aid in

  navigating, and the FuG 25a IFF system. For acoustic identication of

  friendly aircraft, rst and foremost among localized counter-air de-

  fensive units, exhaust mounted sirens were installed, called Eberspä-

  cher. This emitted a distinctive and easily identiable tone. As an aid

  to visual identication, an infrared light was installed on the bottom

  surface of the wing, and in cases of emergency, a are could be red

  out from the cockpit.

  Fuel carried by the Bf 109G-6, under normal conditions, allowed for

  around eighty minutes of ight time, fteen of which were generally

  Hans-Joachim „Hajo“ Herrmann

  (1913 – 2010)

  Hans-Joachim „Hajo“ Herrmann (1913 - 2010) originally worked as

  a policeman, then joined the army and in August 1935 was recruited

  to the Luftwae with the rank of Leutnant. He rst served with

  Fliegergruppe Nordhausen and in 1936 was assigned as a bomber

  pilot to 9./KG 253. In August of that year he was deployed in the

  Spanish Civil War. He ew with the Legion Condor in that theatre

  until April 1937 and was awarded the Spanish Cross in Gold with

  Swords. Later in the ranks of his Geschwader, renamed KG 4, he

  took part as commander of the 7th Stael in the attack against Po-

  land, Norway and France. At the end of May 1940 he was shot down

  over Dunkirk. In September 1940 he received the Honor Goblet „For

  Special Achievement in the Air War“ and in October he was awarded

  the Knight‘s Cross. In 1941 he also served briey with KG 54 and

  IX. Fliegerkorps, but in September he became commander of III./

  KG 30 and joined the ght against Allied convoys on the routes to

  the Soviet Union. In the summer of 1942 he was transferred to the

  Stab of General der Kampieger and was in charge of technical and

  tactical changes in the deployment of bomber units. From May 1943,

  he experimented with the „Wilde Sau“ tactic and achieved his rst

  night victory on the night of July 3-4. In the same month he founded

  JG 300, and in August he was awarded the Oak Leaf Cluster and

  simultaneously appointed to command the Jagddivision 30 and in-

  spector of night ghters. In January 1944 he was awarded with the

  Swords to the Knight‘s Cross and two months later became comman-

  der of the Jagddivision 1. From November 1944 he served with the

  Stab of the II Fliegerkorps and in January 1945 became commander

  of the 9. Fliegerdivision. He was the initiator of the formation of

  a ghter unit which was to crash its machines into Allied bombers

  (Rammkommando Elbe), and at the end of the war he organized an

  air operation for sabotage in the rear of the enemy (Unternehmen

  Bienenstock), whose activities ended at the base Salzburg-Ainring.

  Here he got into a dispute with the commander of JV 44 Heinz Bär

  and threatened him with personal liquidation. After the war he was

  a Soviet prisoner of war until 1955. He was one of the inuential

  and fanatical military commanders who lost track of the realities of

  the war situation and whose decisions led to unnecessary casualties.

  After returning to West Germany, he became a lawyer and was an

  active neo-Nazi and Holocaust denier.

  used up in reaching operational alti-

  tudes. A 300 litre drop tank increa-

  sed this by an hour at cruising speed.

  Weapons generally included two

  MG 131 13mm machine guns with

  300 rounds per gun, one MG 151/20

  20mm cannon ring through the pro-

  peller hub, and two such weapons

  mounted inside of gondolas below

  the wings, each with 200 rounds.

  Often, the head armor was removed

  to save weight, as It was conside-

  red largely useless for night ghting.

  According to pilot memoirs, defensi-

  ve re from the bombers was seldom

  eective, and the gunners rarely

  were able to train their weapons on

  the attacking ghters under dicult

  lighting conditions as described ear-

  lier. In cases of hits to the aircraft

  or mechanical issues that rendered

  the aircraft unyable, the pilots pre-

  ferred to bail out rather than belly-

  -land, because emergency landings

  at night were extremely dicult.

  Mighty Eight is coming

  As it is well known the situation in

  the battleeld changes every mi-

  nute. The air war over Europe was

  fundamentally impacted by the arri-

  val of the Americans. 8th Air Force

  USAAF was established in Savannah,

  Georgia, in January 1942 by the or-

  der dated January 8, 1942 to crea-

  te US Air Forces in the British Isles. The rst USAAF contingent, to-

  gether with 15th Bombardment Group personnel (without aircraft)

  arrived in May followed by General Spaatz‘s sta who settled in Bushy

  Park at London’s outskirts. The subordinate commands, VIII. Bomber

  Command and VIII. Fighter Command, were also established in Janua-

  ry 1942 followed by VIII. Air Support Command established on April 24.

  The rst 8th AF ocial operation was conducted on July 4, 1942, but

  it was a propaganda show performed by RAF aircraft crewed by RAF

  personnel on the day of the American holiday. The rst real mission

  was own on August 17, 1942 by 98th

  BG B-17Es escorted by RAF Spitres

  to bomb the marshalling yards in So-

  tteville-les-Rouen, France.

  The rst ghter group of the VIII. Fi-

  ghter Command was 4th FG founded

  on September 29, 1942 using three

  RAF Eagle Squadrons where Ameri-

  can citizens served as a base. 4th FG

  operated the British Spitres Mk.V

  until it was re-equipped with P-47

  Thunderbolt. For several months the

  4th FG was the only unit available to

  8th AF command. Another FG assig-

  ned to 8th AF, 78th FG, equipped

  with P-38 Lightning, arrived in Bri-

  tain as late as November 1943 but

  in February 1943 was transferred to

  North Africa under 12th AF command. The unit returned to Britain in

  the end of 1943 and was re-equipped with Thunderbolts. Only in May

  the 56th FG ew its rst mission as well, and with Thunderbolts too.

  Since the summer the number of 8th AF ghter groups was rapidly

  growing. In the end of 1943 there were eleven out of the ultimate

  fteen ghter groups, the inventory VIII. Fighter Command managed

  in the beginning of 1944. On 14 May, 1943 the 8th AF conducted its

  rst mission when 200 bombers were dispatched to raid Kiel.

  Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6/U2 (W.Nr.

  412951) „White 16“ of 3./JG 301, one

  of two aircraft which landed in error at

  Manston on 21 July 1944. Both ghters

  were on a night „Wilde Sau“ operation

  against RAF bombers. The pilot of this

  aircraft was Leutnant Horst Prenzel,

  Staelkapitän of 3./JG 301. Photo: IWM

  An Avro Lancaster silhouetted

  against ares, smoke and explo-

  sions during the attack on Ham-

  burg, Germany on the night of

  30/31 January 1943. This raid was

  the rst occasion on which H2S

  centimetric radar was used by the

  Pathnder aircraft to navigate the

  force to the target.

  Photo: IWM

  eduard

  21

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 22

  Directive Pointblank

  This directive, issued by the Combined Chiefs of Sta o n J une 14,

  1943, determined the German aviation industry as a prime target for

  the Allied Combined Bomber Oensive. The German factories were

  within the American bombers‘ range, however the USAAF did not have

  the escort ghters with s ucient range available yet. The raids to

  such a distant targets were own partially over the German territory

  and over the target without the ghters‘ cover. From May to July the-

  se bombing missions were concentrated on the Focke-Wulf factories

  in Kassel, Bremen and Oschersleben and even though the attacking

  units suered heavy losses the missions were deemed successful.

  The series of raids on Hamburg, as mentioned earlier, is an example of

  the cooperation between the RAF Bomber Command and 8th AF when

  the RAF night missions were supplemented by the consequent USAAF

  raids during the day. The example of the mission with catastrophic lo-

  sses suered by the attacking airplanes is the raid on Regensburg and

  Schweinfurt conducted on August 17, 1943 and own by 376 B-17Fs

  from 16 bombing groups on the anniversary of the 8th AF rst inde-

  pendent mission. Even though the raid caused serious damages to the

  enemy the own losses were 60 airplanes shot down and another 55 to

  95 damaged, mostly beyond repair. The raids on Wiener Neustadt and

  Ludwigshafen as well as the second raid on Schweinfurt on October 14,

  1943 inicted heavy losses to the Americans.

  The Battle for Berlin

  During the night of 18 to 19 November, 1943 the Bomber Command

  commenced the Battle for Berlin by dispatching 440 Lancasters and

  4 Mosquitos on the raid. The mission was repeated during the night

  of 22 to 23 November, however this time 764 bombers were attacking

  and the raid was repeated the following night by 383 bombers. Till the

  end of the year RAF performed 8 large scale raids on Berlin, from New

  Year 1944 till the end of March 1944 another 8 raids. This sorties were

  supplemented by the Mosquito raids on the smaller scale and large ra-

  ids on the other large German cities such as Leipzig, Essen, Nürnberg,

  Frankfurt am Oder, Magdeburg, Braunschweig, Stuttgart. Despite the

  heavy losses suered by the attackers the destruction of Berlin was

  devastating. The waves of the raids were gradually destroying one ne-

  ighborhood after another until there was nothing left standing. Berlin

  as a symbol of Germany and Nazi power was a target of 363 bombing

  raids in total. Nevertheless, 16 large scale raids own by RAF during

  ve months, from November 1943 to March 1944 brought about a per-

  fect storm. The gradual destruction of the city as well as its change

  of spirit of its population during the endless waves of bombing was

  masterfully described by Jonathan Littell in his novel The Kindly Ones.

  Reorganization and regrouping of forces

  8th AF ew its rst day raid on Berlin on March 4, 1944. It was howe-

  ver preceded by the fundamental restructuring of the USAAF strategic

  forces command in Europe. In January 1944 the USSTAF-US Strate-

  gic Air Forces in Europe command, and all the air forces operating

  in Europe were put under its command including 8th and 9th AF in

  Great Britain and 12th and 15th AF in Italy. Lt.Gen.Carl Spaatz was

  appointed to the command, the operational ocer became Maj.Gen.

  Fred Anderson and Lt.Gen. James Doolittle was given the command

  of the 8th AF. This reorganization has caused signicant changes in

  the USAAF operations in Europe, change in tactics and the equipment

  as well, P-51B Mustang was arriving in the theater. The re-equipment

  of the 8th AF ghter groups commenced in February 1944 and till the

  summer, 14 out of 15 8th AF ghter groups transitioned to the type.

  The same development was under way in the 15th AF operating out

  of Italy. USAAF bombers received the ghter escorts along their route

  to Germany and back regardless if they took o from Britain or Italy.

  The primary tactical aim was the destruction of Luftwae. This missi-

  on was spelled out by the USAAF Chief of Sta, General Arnold, who

  in his New Year’s speech to the personnel said :“Destroy the enemy

  air force wherever you nd them, in the air, on the ground and in the

  factories.“

  The Luftwae was reorganized as well. On February 5, 1944 the

  Oberkommando der Luftwae, OKL was established. It’s interesting

  to learn that until then Luftwae, contrary to the Navy and Wehrma-

  cht, did not possess the supreme command and was directed by the

  Reich‘s Aviation Ministry-RLM. The direction of the units and combat

  missions, inspection of the equipment, lodging, communication and

  anti-aircraft artillery were still under OKL command. RLM continued

  to direct the training, administration, protection of the civilians and

  technical development. At the same time the Luftwaenbefehlshaber

  Mitte was replaced by Luftotte Reich which was still responsible for

  the Reich’s air defense-Reichsluftverteidigung.

  Bf 109G-6/R6 „Red 29“, 2./JG 302 operating from Helsinki-Malmi in early 1944 under tactical designation Einsatzkomman-

  do Helsinki. Note black lower surfaces on the starboard wing and the ame-damping exhaust covers.

  Photo: SA-Kuva

  eduard

  22

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 23

  Directive Pointblank

  This directive, issued by the Combined Chiefs of Sta o n J une 14,

  1943, determined the German aviation industry as a prime target for

  the Allied Combined Bomber Oensive. The German factories were

  within the American bombers‘ range, however the USAAF did not have

  the escort ghters with s ucient range available yet. The raids to

  such a distant targets were own partially over the German territory

  and over the target without the ghters‘ cover. From May to July the-

  se bombing missions were concentrated on the Focke-Wulf factories

  in Kassel, Bremen and Oschersleben and even though the attacking

  units suered heavy losses the missions were deemed successful.

  The series of raids on Hamburg, as mentioned earlier, is an example of

  the cooperation between the RAF Bomber Command and 8th AF when

  the RAF night missions were supplemented by the consequent USAAF

  raids during the day. The example of the mission with catastrophic lo-

  sses suered by the attacking airplanes is the raid on Regensburg and

  Schweinfurt conducted on August 17, 1943 and own by 376 B-17Fs

  from 16 bombing groups on the anniversary of the 8th AF rst inde-

  pendent mission. Even though the raid caused serious damages to the

  enemy the own losses were 60 airplanes shot down and another 55 to

  95 damaged, mostly beyond repair. The raids on Wiener Neustadt and

  Ludwigshafen as well as the second raid on Schweinfurt on October 14,

  1943 inicted heavy losses to the Americans.

  The Battle for Berlin

  During the night of 18 to 19 November, 1943 the Bomber Command

  commenced the Battle for Berlin by dispatching 440 Lancasters and

  4 Mosquitos on the raid. The mission was repeated during the night

  of 22 to 23 November, however this time 764 bombers were attacking

  and the raid was repeated the following night by 383 bombers. Till the

  end of the year RAF performed 8 large scale raids on Berlin, from New

  Year 1944 till the end of March 1944 another 8 raids. This sorties were

  supplemented by the Mosquito raids on the smaller scale and large ra-

  ids on the other large German cities such as Leipzig, Essen, Nürnberg,

  Frankfurt am Oder, Magdeburg, Braunschweig, Stuttgart. Despite the

  heavy losses suered by the attackers the destruction of Berlin was

  devastating. The waves of the raids were gradually destroying one ne-

  ighborhood after another until there was nothing left standing. Berlin

  as a symbol of Germany and Nazi power was a target of 363 bombing

  raids in total. Nevertheless, 16 large scale raids own by RAF during

  ve months, from November 1943 to March 1944 brought about a per-

  fect storm. The gradual destruction of the city as well as its change

  of spirit of its population during the endless waves of bombing was

  masterfully described by Jonathan Littell in his novel The Kindly Ones.

  Reorganization and regrouping of forces

  8th AF ew its rst day raid on Berlin on March 4, 1944. It was howe-

  ver preceded by the fundamental restructuring of the USAAF strategic

  forces command in Europe. In January 1944 the USSTAF-US Strate-

  gic Air Forces in Europe command, and all the air forces operating

  in Europe were put under its command including 8th and 9th AF in

  Great Britain and 12th and 15th AF in Italy. Lt.Gen.Carl Spaatz was

  appointed to the command, the operational ocer became Maj.Gen.

  Fred Anderson and Lt.Gen. James Doolittle was given the command

  of the 8th AF. This reorganization has caused signicant changes in

  the USAAF operations in Europe, change in tactics and the equipment

  as well, P-51B Mustang was arriving in the theater. The re-equipment

  of the 8th AF ghter groups commenced in February 1944 and till the

  summer, 14 out of 15 8th AF ghter groups transitioned to the type.

  The same development was under way in the 15th AF operating out

  of Italy. USAAF bombers received the ghter escorts along their route

  to Germany and back regardless if they took o from Britain or Italy.

  The primary tactical aim was the destruction of Luftwae. This missi-

  on was spelled out by the USAAF Chief of Sta, General Arnold, who

  in his New Year’s speech to the personnel said :“Destroy the enemy

  air force wherever you nd them, in the air, on the ground and in the

  factories.“

  The Luftwae was reorganized as well. On February 5, 1944 the

  Oberkommando der Luftwae, OKL was established. It’s interesting

  to learn that until then Luftwae, contrary to the Navy and Wehrma-

  cht, did not possess the supreme command and was directed by the

  Reich‘s Aviation Ministry-RLM. The direction of the units and combat

  missions, inspection of the equipment, lodging, communication and

  anti-aircraft artillery were still under OKL command. RLM continued

  to direct the training, administration, protection of the civilians and

  technical development. At the same time the Luftwaenbefehlshaber

  Mitte was replaced by Luftotte Reich which was still responsible for

  the Reich’s air defense-Reichsluftverteidigung.

  Bf 109G-6/R6 „Red 29“, 2./JG 302 operating from Helsinki-Malmi in early 1944 under tactical designation Einsatzkomman-

  do Helsinki. Note black lower surfaces on the starboard wing and the ame-damping exhaust covers.

  Photo: SA-Kuva

  Oil Campaign

  With the Battle for Berlin at the end, the combined bombing oen-

  sive ceased as well. Until May 1944 the Allied Air Forces dened the

  priority tasks: the attacks on the cities, the attacks on the V-1 laun-

  ching pads and the attacks on the German railway system. On May 8

  the USAAF launched the Oil Campaign with the German fuel industry

  as a main target. The USAAF day bombers have become the primary

  opponents of the German ghters. In the end of 1943, and in the rst

  half of 1944, the power balance in the battleeld changed. With the

  USAAF arrival in ETO and its growing combat capability and above all

  introduction of P-51B to the escort ghter groups, the German ghter

  units were under the extreme pressure. It rapidly turned out that

  they were falling behind in terms of organization, technology as well

  as personnel. It was necessary to quickly replenish the ghter units

  ranks. Therefore, as early as spring 1944, the majority of Wilde Sau

  units were gradually integrated into the Reichsverteidigung (RLV) sys-

  tem and deployed in the day ghting against the American bombing

  force.

  The tactics

  After the successful deployment of Sturmstael 1, in summer the

  Sturmgruppen IV.(Sturm)/JG 3, IV.(Sturm)JG 4 and II.(Sturm)/JG 300

  were established and equipped with heavy, armored Fw 190A-8/R2.

  The rst combat debut of the new Sturmgruppen took place on July

  7, 1944 during the raid on Leipzig. The new tactics of attacking the

  American formations further relied on the ghter formations called

  Gefechtsverbände concentrated around heavy Sturmgruppen attac-

  king the bombers with their Fw 190A-8 and Fw 190A-8/R2 and the

  units equipped with the lighter Bf 109G that would provide the top

  cover against the American escort ghter arriving at the higher altitu-

  de. Since summer 1944 the Gruppe JG 300 and JG 301 were deployed

  as a ghter cover for the heavy ghters Fw 190A-8/R2 in this manner,

  since the fall equipped with Bf 109G-14/AS and later (since December

  1944) with Bf-109G-10. In the dogght with American ghter escorts,

  which were in summer and fall practically exclusively equipped with

  powerful P-51D Mustang surpassing Bf 109G-14/AS in the most ight

  parameters, the Wilde Sau units suered heavy losses which were

  dicult to replace.

  Not only the aircraft parameters mattered. The other supporting

  equipment played a role too. The anti-G pants or a new gyroscopic

  gunsight K-14 gave USAAF ghter pilots further advantage. Apparently

  the most important factor of the Allied air superiority became the

  thorough, highly ecient new pilots‘ training. On the other side the

  level of training of the young German pilots was deteriorating. The

  average ight time logged by new Luftwae pilots was 100-120 hours

  out of which only around 10 hours on the combat airplanes. That was

  less than half of the ight time of their opponents whose training

  was heavily focused on the combat ying. During the summer, as the

  Allied attacks on the oil reneries continued, the fuel allocation to

  the training units was cut down. In June 1944 the monthly fuel alloca-

  tion to Luftwae pilot schools was 50 000 tons. In October 1944 it

  was only 7000 tons. The negative impact on pilots‘ training is obvious.

  In the fall the fuel was in short supply everywhere.

  The combat tactics played the crucial role. The oensive deployment

  of the American ghters was conducted by ying ahead of its own

  formation and clearing the area of the enemy ghters, blocking the

  German airports by continuously circling ghters and strang the air-

  ports and supply lines. This tactics proved to be fatal for Luftwae.

  Photo taken from a Boeing B-17 of 95th BG during a raid on Mainz on September 8, 1944.

  Photo: Museum of Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains Archives

  eduard

  23

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 24

  Restructuring of RLV ghter units

  In July 1944 it became clear that deployment of the twin-engine hea-

  vy ghters in day attacks against the bomber formations protected by

  ghter escorts is ineective and the units equipped with twin-engine

  ghters started to restructure and re-equip with single-engine gh-

  ters.

  For example ZG 26 became JG 6. Since August 1, the number of

  aircraft forming a Stael was increased to 16 and number of Staels

  in the Gruppe increased from three to four. During the summer 1944

  RLV managed to establish 8 new Gruppen, mostly based on twin-en-

  gine ghter units personnel but also bomber and transport aircraft

  crews and of course, pilot schools graduates. Restructuring also en-

  tailed disbanding of some units. In June the majority of JG 302 was

  disbanded including Stab/JG 302. The only surviving JG 302 unit,

  I./JG 302, which operated independently, from February to May 1944

  out of Helsinki as Einsatzkommando Helsinki for example, was in

  October 1944 integrated into JG 301 as III./JG 301. It was equipped

  with Fw 190A-8 and operated as a heavy Gruppe but lacking the armo-

  red Fw 190A-8/R2. Its aircraft were standard A-8 carrying four 20 mm

  cannons and two 12.7 mm machine guns lacking the armor. In the fall,

  the armored Fw 190A-8/R2 were being phased out of the heavy Grup-

  pen and replaced by standard Fw 190A-8s or had the weight reduced

  by removing the outer applique armor and sometimes 30 mm cannos

  as well. In its initial conguration these cannons were quite eective

  weapons against the bombers. A single 30 mm round was sucient

  to destroy B-24 (three were needed to destroy a sturdier B-17) but

  in case of a dogght with Mustangs, Focke Wulfs were cumbersome,

  clumsy and almost defenseless. As we can see further, such combats

  did occur and Fw 190A-8/R2 losses were extremely high.

  Oil Campaign continues

  After a short break, during the Normandy landing in June, USAAF con-

  tinued attacking the reneries and factories producing the synthetic

  fuel, railroad infrastructure and other targets. In July also 15th AF

  operating out of Italy joined the attacks on Germany. Between 19 and

  31 July 15th AF conducted seven large operations, 8th AF conducted

  ve, at 2% average loss of the deployed aircraft. That was quite some

  dierence compared to 1943! Wilde Sau units also joined the attacks

  against the 15th AF formations, for example on July 25, during the

  raid on Linz, these units were attacking the Americans together with

  II./JG 27, I./JG 300, II./JG 300 and I./JG 302. On August 3 during the

  15th AF raid on Friedrichshafen, the I./JG 300 shot down 8 Liberators

  at the loss of 11 own aircraft.

  The already mentioned II.(Sturm)/JG 300 was ocially established on

  August 9. Quite exemplary deployment of the Gefechtverband com-

  posed of Stab/JG 300, I./JG 300, II. (Sturm)/JG 300 and IV. (Sturm)/

  JG 3 took place on August 15 during the raid on Wiesbaden. I./JG 300

  ying the top cover, kept Mustangs far from the Focke-Wulfs resulting

  in 8 B-17s shot down at the loss of 10 own ghters and 5 pilots killed.

  The second Gefechtverband composed of II./JG 5 and III./JG 53 attac-

  ked without the top cover and reported the same results, 8 B-24s shot

  down at the loss of 10 own aircraft. Walter Dahl rather optimistically

  reported 83 B-17s and 18 ghters shot down. The actually losses o-

  cially recorded by USAAF were 13 B-17s, 5 B-24s and 5 Mustangs. On

  August 19 the 15th AF ew the last attack against Ploiesti, Romania

  and further concentrated on the raids on Germany. From 20 to 29

  August it performed the raid on Germany every single day. For the

  rst ten days of September there was a lull in ghting. There was

  an inclement weather in the West and 15th AF was conducting the

  repatriation ights in Romania and the operation in support of the

  attacking Russians and new allies, the Romanians. On August 23 Roma-

  nians surrendered and after a rather injudicious German bombing of

  the Royal Palace, on August 24 Romania declared the war on Germany.

  On September 11 the lull on the Western front was over when the 8th

  AF deployed 1131 bombers and 715 ghters in the operation against

  Germany. RLV managed to muster the opposition of 355 ghters from

  12 ghter groups (Gruppen) concentrated into three Gefechtverbände

  led by three Sturmgruppen. The strongest Gefechtsverband was led

  by Walter Dahl. His pilots attacked 92nd BG above Merseburg and

  shot down eight B-17s (further four B-17s crashed behind the Allied

  lines) at the loss of 7 aircraft. However during the repeated attack,

  II.(Sturm)/JG300 was scattered by Mustangs and lost 13 Fw 190A-8.

  The second Gefechtsverband, composed of II.(Sturm)/JG4, III./JG4

  and Stab/JG1, led by Major Specht (JG11), attacked 100th BG box

  without the ghter cover above Kovářská (Schmiedeberg) in Krušné

  Hory (Ore Mountains or Erzgebirge) and shot down 11 B-17s, later

  three more crashed behind the Allied lines.

  The September 11 operations demonstrate the typical combat condi-

  tions above Germany in fall and a rather disproportionate losses sue-

  Walther Dahl

  (1916 – 1985)

  Walther Dahl joined the army in 1935 and was accepted into the

  Luftwae in the autumn of 1938. In 1939 he became a ight in-

  structor and in May 1941 was assigned to Stab JG 3. On the rst

  day of the attack against the Soviet Union he achieved his rst

  victory and in July 1941 was transferred to II./JG 3. In April 1942

  he became commander of the operational training 1. Stael Er-

  gänzungsgruppe Süd. In August 1942 he returned to the Eastern

  Front as Adjutant of Kommodore of JG 3 „Udet“ and in Decem-

  ber he received the German Cross in Gold and also the Honor

  Goblet „For Special Achievement in the Air War“. In April 1943,

  he achieved his 51st victory and was transferred to the Stab of

  the General der Jagdieger, who at that time was Adolf Galland.

  In July 1943 he became commander of III./JG 3 „Udet“, which

  at that time was nishing its deployment on the Eastern Front

  and moving to Germany to join the Defense of the Reich. At its

  head, Dahl became one of the most famous commanders in the

  ght against the American four-engine bombers. In March 1944,

  he was awarded the Knight‘s Cross at the rank of Major. Two

  months later he was appointed commander of Jagdgeschwader

  z.b.V. and in June 1944 he took command of JG 300. By the end

  of 1944 he had achieved his 92nd victory, was awarded the Oak

  Leaf Cluster and promoted to the rank of Oberstleutnant. But

  due to disputes with Göring, he was removed from his post as

  commander of JG 300 and in January became inspector of ghter

  units. Even in this capacity he continued to y combat sorties and

  in the last weeks of the war he achieved several victories in the

  Me 262 with III./EJG 2. The authors dier on the number of his

  victories. According to E. Obermaier, Dahl achieved 129 victories

  in 678 combat sorties, 30 of which were four-engined bombers.

  After the war, he had close ties to organizations and media with

  a far-right orientation.

  eduard

  24

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 25

  Restructuring of RLV ghter units

  In July 1944 it became clear that deployment of the twin-engine hea-

  vy ghters in day attacks against the bomber formations protected by

  ghter escorts is ineective and the units equipped with twin-engine

  ghters started to restructure and re-equip with single-engine gh-

  ters.

  For example ZG 26 became JG 6. Since August 1, the number of

  aircraft forming a Stael was increased to 16 and number of Staels

  in the Gruppe increased from three to four. During the summer 1944

  RLV managed to establish 8 new Gruppen, mostly based on twin-en-

  gine ghter units personnel but also bomber and transport aircraft

  crews and of course, pilot schools graduates. Restructuring also en-

  tailed disbanding of some units. In June the majority of JG 302 was

  disbanded including Stab/JG 302. The only surviving JG 302 unit,

  I./JG 302, which operated independently, from February to May 1944

  out of Helsinki as Einsatzkommando Helsinki for example, was in

  October 1944 integrated into JG 301 as III./JG 301. It was equipped

  with Fw 190A-8 and operated as a heavy Gruppe but lacking the armo-

  red Fw 190A-8/R2. Its aircraft were standard A-8 carrying four 20 mm

  cannons and two 12.7 mm machine guns lacking the armor. In the fall,

  the armored Fw 190A-8/R2 were being phased out of the heavy Grup-

  pen and replaced by standard Fw 190A-8s or had the weight reduced

  by removing the outer applique armor and sometimes 30 mm cannos

  as well. In its initial conguration these cannons were quite eective

  weapons against the bombers. A single 30 mm round was sucient

  to destroy B-24 (three were needed to destroy a sturdier B-17) but

  in case of a dogght with Mustangs, Focke Wulfs were cumbersome,

  clumsy and almost defenseless. As we can see further, such combats

  did occur and Fw 190A-8/R2 losses were extremely high.

  Oil Campaign continues

  After a short break, during the Normandy landing in June, USAAF con-

  tinued attacking the reneries and factories producing the synthetic

  fuel, railroad infrastructure and other targets. In July also 15th AF

  operating out of Italy joined the attacks on Germany. Between 19 and

  31 July 15th AF conducted seven large operations, 8th AF conducted

  ve, at 2% average loss of the deployed aircraft. That was quite some

  dierence compared to 1943! Wilde Sau units also joined the attacks

  against the 15th AF formations, for example on July 25, during the

  raid on Linz, these units were attacking the Americans together with

  II./JG 27, I./JG 300, II./JG 300 and I./JG 302. On August 3 during the

  15th AF raid on Friedrichshafen, the I./JG 300 shot down 8 Liberators

  at the loss of 11 own aircraft.

  The already mentioned II.(Sturm)/JG 300 was ocially established on

  August 9. Quite exemplary deployment of the Gefechtverband com-

  posed of Stab/JG 300, I./JG 300, II. (Sturm)/JG 300 and IV. (Sturm)/

  JG 3 took place on August 15 during the raid on Wiesbaden. I./JG 300

  ying the top cover, kept Mustangs far from the Focke-Wulfs resulting

  in 8 B-17s shot down at the loss of 10 own ghters and 5 pilots killed.

  The second Gefechtverband composed of II./JG 5 and III./JG 53 attac-

  ked without the top cover and reported the same results, 8 B-24s shot

  down at the loss of 10 own aircraft. Walter Dahl rather optimistically

  reported 83 B-17s and 18 ghters shot down. The actually losses o-

  cially recorded by USAAF were 13 B-17s, 5 B-24s and 5 Mustangs. On

  August 19 the 15th AF ew the last attack against Ploiesti, Romania

  and further concentrated on the raids on Germany. From 20 to 29

  August it performed the raid on Germany every single day. For the

  rst ten days of September there was a lull in ghting. There was

  an inclement weather in the West and 15th AF was conducting the

  repatriation ights in Romania and the operation in support of the

  attacking Russians and new allies, the Romanians. On August 23 Roma-

  nians surrendered and after a rather injudicious German bombing of

  the Royal Palace, on August 24 Romania declared the war on Germany.

  On September 11 the lull on the Western front was over when the 8th

  AF deployed 1131 bombers and 715 ghters in the operation against

  Germany. RLV managed to muster the opposition of 355 ghters from

  12 ghter groups (Gruppen) concentrated into three Gefechtverbände

  led by three Sturmgruppen. The strongest Gefechtsverband was led

  by Walter Dahl. His pilots attacked 92nd BG above Merseburg and

  shot down eight B-17s (further four B-17s crashed behind the Allied

  lines) at the loss of 7 aircraft. However during the repeated attack,

  II.(Sturm)/JG300 was scattered by Mustangs and lost 13 Fw 190A-8.

  The second Gefechtsverband, composed of II.(Sturm)/JG4, III./JG4

  and Stab/JG1, led by Major Specht (JG11), attacked 100th BG box

  without the ghter cover above Kovářská (Schmiedeberg) in Krušné

  Hory (Ore Mountains or Erzgebirge) and shot down 11 B-17s, later

  three more crashed behind the Allied lines.

  The September 11 operations demonstrate the typical combat condi-

  tions above Germany in fall and a rather disproportionate losses sue-

  Walther Dahl

  (1916 – 1985)

  Walther Dahl joined the army in 1935 and was accepted into the

  Luftwae in the autumn of 1938. In 1939 he became a ight in-

  structor and in May 1941 was assigned to Stab JG 3. On the rst

  day of the attack against the Soviet Union he achieved his rst

  victory and in July 1941 was transferred to II./JG 3. In April 1942

  he became commander of the operational training 1. Stael Er-

  gänzungsgruppe Süd. In August 1942 he returned to the Eastern

  Front as Adjutant of Kommodore of JG 3 „Udet“ and in Decem-

  ber he received the German Cross in Gold and also the Honor

  Goblet „For Special Achievement in the Air War“. In April 1943,

  he achieved his 51st victory and was transferred to the Stab of

  the General der Jagdieger, who at that time was Adolf Galland.

  In July 1943 he became commander of III./JG 3 „Udet“, which

  at that time was nishing its deployment on the Eastern Front

  and moving to Germany to join the Defense of the Reich. At its

  head, Dahl became one of the most famous commanders in the

  ght against the American four-engine bombers. In March 1944,

  he was awarded the Knight‘s Cross at the rank of Major. Two

  months later he was appointed commander of Jagdgeschwader

  z.b.V. and in June 1944 he took command of JG 300. By the end

  of 1944 he had achieved his 92nd victory, was awarded the Oak

  Leaf Cluster and promoted to the rank of Oberstleutnant. But

  due to disputes with Göring, he was removed from his post as

  commander of JG 300 and in January became inspector of ghter

  units. Even in this capacity he continued to y combat sorties and

  in the last weeks of the war he achieved several victories in the

  Me 262 with III./EJG 2. The authors dier on the number of his

  victories. According to E. Obermaier, Dahl achieved 129 victories

  in 678 combat sorties, 30 of which were four-engined bombers.

  After the war, he had close ties to organizations and media with

  a far-right orientation.

  red by both sides. 8th AF lost 46 bombers and 25 ghters. RLV lost 110

  out of 305 attacking ghters i.e. 36% loss ratio. 60 pilots were killed,

  25 survived with injuries. On September 12 the 8th AF attacked again,

  the outcome for RLV was even worse. 147 ghters entered combat, 76

  were shot down, 42 pilots killed i.e. 52% loss ratio! On September 13

  15th AF arrived at the scene raiding plants in Odertal (Oder valley)

  and Blechhammer (Blachownia Śląska) in Silesia. It comes as a sur-

  prise that RLV still managed to throw 137 ghters into combat, 63 of

  them got close enough to attack the enemy formation. In the middle

  of October the German fuel supplies have reached the lowest level

  since the beginning of war. On August 1 the Warsaw Uprising started.

  On September 17 the operation Market Garden commenced which cal-

  med down the situation above Germany a little bit. 8th AF operated

  above the Dutch combat area and together with 15th AF conducted

  the supply ights in Warsaw area and smaller scale operations above

  the central Germany.

  Night operations Wilde Sau in 1944

  Let‘s take advantage of the relative combat ina-

  ctivity and talk about the night operations Wilde

  Sau. They did not cease even though their restric-

  tions and transfer of the Wilde Sau ghters to the

  day operations were caused by dierent factors,

  besides the arrival of USAAF arrival in the thea-

  ter. Among others it was strengthening the night

  ghter units equipped with twin-engine aircraft

  featuring the airborne radar and improvement of

  their armament and other equipment. The tech-

  nical conditions of the ground radar network have

  improved as well. New devices, such as Mammut,

  have arrived with the eective range 300km,

  Freya went through the modernization, the very

  advanced and sophisticated Jagdschloss system appeared and in ge-

  neral the system of the search and vector radars was being developed

  and expanded. The radars with short range Wurzburg A, C and D were

  being developed with eective range 40 km. In the system of moni-

  toring the combat situation, night ghter and anti-aircraft artillery

  vectoring, the radio communication interception and passive moni-

  toring of H2X airborne radars transmission played the important role.

  This translated into the higher eciency of both the night ghters

  deployment and anti-aircraft artillery which, as the war progressed,

  played more important role and losses it inicted on the attacking

  bombers were heavier than those caused by ghters. The single-engi-

  ne ghters hanging out in the airspace without radar presented more

  of the burden to the system than the benet. The concept of such

  deployment visioned by Hajo Hermann in 1944 was no longer feasible.

  It did not mean though these ghters could not be useful. As opposed

  to the heavy twin-engine ghters they possessed one valuable advan-

  tage - the speed.

  Formation of the 92nd BG during a raid on September 11, 1944 minutes before they were attacked by JG 300 led by Walther Dahl.

  Photo: Museum of Air Battle Over the Ore Mountains Archives

  Feldwebel Konrad ‘Pitt’ Bauer and his Fw 190A-8

  ‘Kornjark’ with the fuselage „Red 3“ and W.Nr.

  171 641 of 5.(Sturm)/JG 300. Reportedly,

  he was shot down seven times, but destroyed

  57 enemy aircraft, 32 of which were reported

  as four engined heavy bombers. Today, some

  forty of his kills have been documented.

  For his success, he was awarded the Knight’s

  Cross, and nominated for the Oak Leaf.

  eduard

  25

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 26

  Serious challenge to the current air defense system were Allied fast

  reconnaissance and bomber aircraft, British Mosquitos in the rst

  place. Since 1943 RAF deployed them in the small scale disruptive

  but annoying attacks and Luftwae lacked the means to stop them.

  The reconnaissance Mosquitos and Spitres ying during daylight

  at the high speed and altitude presented another problem. In August

  1944 the special anti-Mosquito ight was established to counter the

  disruptive raids of the De Haviland Mosquito squadrons commanded

  by RAF Light Night Strike Force.

  At the end of summer, 1944, as a reaction to destructive raids

  conducted by De Havilland Mosquito light bombers of the Light Ni-

  ght Strike Force RAF, a specialized anti-Mosquito unit was formed,

  10./JG 300, also called ‘Mosquito Stael’, under the leadership of Karl

  Mitterdorfer. The unit ew out of Jüterbog and was tasked with inter-

  cepting lone Mosquitos bombing Berlin and other fast enemy aircraft

  attacking by night. Mosquito Stael was equipped with the new high-

  -performance Bf 109G-14/AS, built by Messerschmitt at Regensburg.

  Its high-performance characteristics came from its power plant, the

  DB 605D, coupled with the MW50 water injection system, boosting

  power output for temporary emergency situations. Thanks to its high

  maximum speed at high altitude, around 10,000m, the Bf 109G-14/AS

  had at the very least, a theoretical chance of intercepting successfu-

  lly the fast Mosquito, ying at these heights. Vectoring to the target

  was done through a modication to the Wilde Sau method, utilizing

  a hybrid of ground control, guidance using directional beams and

  ground-based searchlights, which brought some success, despite not

  stopping or even limiting these attacks.

  Using 10./JG300 as the foundation, the II./NJG11 was formed in No-

  vember still equipped with Bf 109. in January 1944, based on the ex-

  perienced personnel of I./JG300, the night ghter 1./Nachtjagdgrup-

  pe 10 (NJGr.10) was established ying Fw 190A, Bf 109G, Bf 110 and

  other types. in August 1944 2./NJG 11 was formed from the section of

  1./NJGr. 10 and in October 3./NJG 11 from the remainder. And on Au-

  gust 28, to complete this process, 1./NJG 11 emerged from 6./JG300.

  A number of NJG 11 operational single-engine ghters were equipped

  with radar but a portion was without it and continued ying Wilde

  Sau missions. And then we have Sonderkommando Stamp established

  in November 1944, shortly renamed Sonderkommando Welter after

  a new commander. This experimental unit operated Me 262A-1a in

  the night ghter role without the airborne radar i.e. in Wilde Sau

  style. On January 28, 1945 the unit was renamed as 10./NJG 11. Until

  April 1945 it was ying out of Burg airport at Magdeburg, then on April

  24 it ew over to Reinfeld and on May 7 to Schleswig-Jagel where on

  May 8 the unit surrendered to the British.

  8th AF Grand Finale

  Let’s go back to fall 1944 when the Oil Campaign was at its peak.

  In November the 8th AF conducted 13 raids, 15th AF 12. In November

  the fuel production in Germany dropped to 31% of the June producti-

  on. November 2 the 8th AF deployed 1174 bombers and 968 ghters in

  the raid on Merseburg/Leuna. All 15 ghter groups of the 8th AF ew

  the mission. During the raid RLV lost 133 out of 305 deployed aircraft

  which represents 44%. This repeated itself on almost every raid. On

  November 6 RLV command conference took place at Hitler’s den. An-

  gry Hitler expressed the opinion that further aircraft supplies to RLV

  was only a waste of material. A day after, Göring delivered his famous

  address at Wannsee. In in 3 and half hours long emotional speech he

  humiliated the whole Luftwae command.

  On November 27 the 8th AF conducted an interesting operation.

  10 ghter groups ew a mock raid on Merseburg. Half of the ghter

  groups ew at the altitude typical for the bombers in order to lure

  RLV ghters into the combat. The other half ew the top cover. JG 3

  and JG 3 did not take the bait and disappeared from the area. Howe-

  ver JG 300 and JG 301 were ambushed and lost 39 aircraft destroyed

  and 27 pilots killed. 8th AF bombers in the meantime bombed the

  marshalling yards in the southern Germany without any interference

  from Luftwae ghters.

  In December the 8th AF refocused on Berlin. On December 5 the am-

  munition factory in Tegel was attacked. 1st and 3rd Bombing Divisi-

  on sortied on Berlin while 2nd BD on Munich. RAF Bomber Command

  dispatched its bombers escorted by Spitres to Soest, a historic town

  between Paderborn and Dortmund, with large marshalling yards. This

  well planned operation completely disintegrated the RLV defense

  as they literally did not know what to do rst. JG1 was engaged by

  Mustangs even before it commenced the attack. It lost 37 aircraft

  and 25 pilots and was eectively out of the action. JG 301 and JG 27

  above Soest shared the same fate. In total RLV lost 77 aircraft and 44

  pilots, the Americans and British did not loose a single bomber. 8th

  AF lost 11 Mustangs and RAF one Spitre. RLV commanders were going

  insane at that time. The American yers were duly fullling the task

  Gen. Arnolds had given them and were close to nish it.

  On December 16 the German counter oensive in Ardennes was laun-

  ched and the weather was bad. 8th AF operated above Ardennes, as

  conditions permitted, while 15th AF ew missions over Germany al-

  most without any RLV ghters opposition. Nevertheless, on Christmas

  Eve, December 24, 8th AF conducted its largest raid deploying 2700

  aircraft. Then it returned to Ardennes. On December 31 and New Ye-

  ar’s 1945 It continued the strategic bombing. The ill-fated German

  Operation Bodenplatte, which practically nished the hard-tested

  Günther Rall

  (1918 – 2009)

  Günther Rall was, with his 275 victories, the third most successful gh-

  ter ace in history. In August, 1939, he was attached to III./JG 52, and

  remained there until the spring of 1944. His rst kill came in the Battle

  of France, and then (as CO of 8. Stael) took part in the Battle of Britain,

  and also the battle over Crete. His second victory didn’t come until the

  conict began with the Soviets. By the end of November, 1941, he gained

  another 34 victories, but was himself shot down and suered spinal in-

  juries that took him some eight months to recuperate from. During this

  period he met a doctor that eventually became his wife. In July, 1942,

  he returned to the Eastern Front, and for his one hundredth victory was

  awarded the Oak Leaf to go with the Knight’s Cross he received not even

  two months previous. In April, 1943, he was credited with JG 52’s 5000th

  kill, and at the end of August, he attained the two hundred mark. From

  the beginning of June, 1943, he was named CO of III./JG 52, which was

  the most successful component of JG 52. This unit amassed over 10,000

  kills, and Rall’s III. Gruppe was credited at least with 4,000 of them. His

  personal best month came in October, 1943, over the course of which he

  destroyed forty Soviet ghters. In the spring of 1944, JG 52 needed to

  pick ve commanders with signi cant enough combat experience against

  ghters to be recalled back to Germany, to take part in the planning of

  the ‘Defense of the Reich’. Günther Rall became the commanding o-

  cer of II./JG 11 on April 19th, and less than a month later, on May 12th,

  he was shot down during combat with 56th FG Thunderbolts and sue-

  red a hand injury. In the fall of 1944, he became CO of Verbandsführer-

  schule des Generals der Jagdieger, and in the nal weeks of the war he

  took over command of JG 300. After the war, he returned to ying, not

  avoiding the military, and progressively built a second career. He trained

  in the United States, and became a pioneer in the use of the F-104 in

  Germany. In the sixties, he was Kommodore of Jagdbombergeschwader

  34, and later commanded the 3rd and 1st Luftwaendivision, and at the

  start of the seventies, he became Inspekteur der Luftwae. Up to 1975,

  he was Germany’s attaché to NATO.

  eduard

  26

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 27

  Serious challenge to the current air defense system were Allied fast

  reconnaissance and bomber aircraft, British Mosquitos in the rst

  place. Since 1943 RAF deployed them in the small scale disruptive

  but annoying attacks and Luftwae lacked the means to stop them.

  The reconnaissance Mosquitos and Spitres ying during daylight

  at the high speed and altitude presented another problem. In August

  1944 the special anti-Mosquito ight was established to counter the

  disruptive raids of the De Haviland Mosquito squadrons commanded

  by RAF Light Night Strike Force.

  At the end of summer, 1944, as a reaction to destructive raids

  conducted by De Havilland Mosquito light bombers of the Light Ni-

  ght Strike Force RAF, a specialized anti-Mosquito unit was formed,

  10./JG 300, also called ‘Mosquito Stael’, under the leadership of Karl

  Mitterdorfer. The unit ew out of Jüterbog and was tasked with inter-

  cepting lone Mosquitos bombing Berlin and other fast enemy aircraft

  attacking by night. Mosquito Stael was equipped with the new high-

  -performance Bf 109G-14/AS, built by Messerschmitt at Regensburg.

  Its high-performance characteristics came from its power plant, the

  DB 605D, coupled with the MW50 water injection system, boosting

  power output for temporary emergency situations. Thanks to its high

  maximum speed at high altitude, around 10,000m, the Bf 109G-14/AS

  had at the very least, a theoretical chance of intercepting successfu-

  lly the fast Mosquito, ying at these heights. Vectoring to the target

  was done through a modication to the Wilde Sau method, utilizing

  a hybrid of ground control, guidance using directional beams and

  ground-based searchlights, which brought some success, despite not

  stopping or even limiting these attacks.

  Using 10./JG300 as the foundation, the II./NJG11 was formed in No-

  vember still equipped with Bf 109. in January 1944, based on the ex-

  perienced personnel of I./JG300, the night ghter 1./Nachtjagdgrup-

  pe 10 (NJGr.10) was established ying Fw 190A, Bf 109G, Bf 110 and

  other types. in August 1944 2./NJG 11 was formed from the section of

  1./NJGr. 10 and in October 3./NJG 11 from the remainder. And on Au-

  gust 28, to complete this process, 1./NJG 11 emerged from 6./JG300.

  A number of NJG 11 operational single-engine ghters were equipped

  with radar but a portion was without it and continued ying Wilde

  Sau missions. And then we have Sonderkommando Stamp established

  in November 1944, shortly renamed Sonderkommando Welter after

  a new commander. This experimental unit operated Me 262A-1a in

  the night ghter role without the airborne radar i.e. in Wilde Sau

  style. On January 28, 1945 the unit was renamed as 10./NJG 11. Until

  April 1945 it was ying out of Burg airport at Magdeburg, then on April

  24 it ew over to Reinfeld and on May 7 to Schleswig-Jagel where on

  May 8 the unit surrendered to the British.

  8th AF Grand Finale

  Let’s go back to fall 1944 when the Oil Campaign was at its peak.

  In November the 8th AF conducted 13 raids, 15th AF 12. In November

  the fuel production in Germany dropped to 31% of the June producti-

  on. November 2 the 8th AF deployed 1174 bombers and 968 ghters in

  the raid on Merseburg/Leuna. All 15 ghter groups of the 8th AF ew

  the mission. During the raid RLV lost 133 out of 305 deployed aircraft

  which represents 44%. This repeated itself on almost every raid. On

  November 6 RLV command conference took place at Hitler’s den. An-

  gry Hitler expressed the opinion that further aircraft supplies to RLV

  was only a waste of material. A day after, Göring delivered his famous

  address at Wannsee. In in 3 and half hours long emotional speech he

  humiliated the whole Luftwae command.

  On November 27 the 8th AF conducted an interesting operation.

  10 ghter groups ew a mock raid on Merseburg. Half of the ghter

  groups ew at the altitude typical for the bombers in order to lure

  RLV ghters into the combat. The other half ew the top cover. JG 3

  and JG 3 did not take the bait and disappeared from the area. Howe-

  ver JG 300 and JG 301 were ambushed and lost 39 aircraft destroyed

  and 27 pilots killed. 8th AF bombers in the meantime bombed the

  marshalling yards in the southern Germany without any interference

  from Luftwae ghters.

  In December the 8th AF refocused on Berlin. On December 5 the am-

  munition factory in Tegel was attacked. 1st and 3rd Bombing Divisi-

  on sortied on Berlin while 2nd BD on Munich. RAF Bomber Command

  dispatched its bombers escorted by Spitres to Soest, a historic town

  between Paderborn and Dortmund, with large marshalling yards. This

  well planned operation completely disintegrated the RLV defense

  as they literally did not know what to do rst. JG1 was engaged by

  Mustangs even before it commenced the attack. It lost 37 aircraft

  and 25 pilots and was eectively out of the action. JG 301 and JG 27

  above Soest shared the same fate. In total RLV lost 77 aircraft and 44

  pilots, the Americans and British did not loose a single bomber. 8th

  AF lost 11 Mustangs and RAF one Spitre. RLV commanders were going

  insane at that time. The American yers were duly fullling the task

  Gen. Arnolds had given them and were close to nish it.

  On December 16 the German counter oensive in Ardennes was laun-

  ched and the weather was bad. 8th AF operated above Ardennes, as

  conditions permitted, while 15th AF ew missions over Germany al-

  most without any RLV ghters opposition. Nevertheless, on Christmas

  Eve, December 24, 8th AF conducted its largest raid deploying 2700

  aircraft. Then it returned to Ardennes. On December 31 and New Ye-

  ar’s 1945 It continued the strategic bombing. The ill-fated German

  Operation Bodenplatte, which practically nished the hard-tested

  Günther Rall

  (1918 – 2009)

  Günther Rall was, with his 275 victories, the third most successful gh-

  ter ace in history. In August, 1939, he was attached to III./JG 52, and

  remained there until the spring of 1944. His rst kill came in the Battle

  of France, and then (as CO of 8. Stael) took part in the Battle of Britain,

  and also the battle over Crete. His second victory didn’t come until the

  conict began with the Soviets. By the end of November, 1941, he gained

  another 34 victories, but was himself shot down and suered spinal in-

  juries that took him some eight months to recuperate from. During this

  period he met a doctor that eventually became his wife. In July, 1942,

  he returned to the Eastern Front, and for his one hundredth victory was

  awarded the Oak Leaf to go with the Knight’s Cross he received not even

  two months previous. In April, 1943, he was credited with JG 52’s 5000th

  kill, and at the end of August, he attained the two hundred mark. From

  the beginning of June, 1943, he was named CO of III./JG 52, which was

  the most successful component of JG 52. This unit amassed over 10,000

  kills, and Rall’s III. Gruppe was credited at least with 4,000 of them. His

  personal best month came in October, 1943, over the course of which he

  destroyed forty Soviet ghters. In the spring of 1944, JG 52 needed to

  pick ve commanders with signi cant enough combat experience against

  ghters to be recalled back to Germany, to take part in the planning of

  the ‘Defense of the Reich’. Günther Rall became the commanding o-

  cer of II./JG 11 on April 19th, and less than a month later, on May 12th,

  he was shot down during combat with 56th FG Thunderbolts and sue-

  red a hand injury. In the fall of 1944, he became CO of Verbandsführer-

  schule des Generals der Jagdieger, and in the nal weeks of the war he

  took over command of JG 300. After the war, he returned to ying, not

  avoiding the military, and progressively built a second career. He trained

  in the United States, and became a pioneer in the use of the F-104 in

  Germany. In the sixties, he was Kommodore of Jagdbombergeschwader

  34, and later commanded the 3rd and 1st Luftwaendivision, and at the

  start of the seventies, he became Inspekteur der Luftwae. Up to 1975,

  he was Germany’s attaché to NATO.

  Luftwae, had to make do without JG 300 and JG 301 as they faced

  their own challenges. It did not mean these units were spared of hea-

  vy losses though. In January 1945 the losses mounted, for example on

  January 14 JG 300 lost half of its combat aircraft. The total losses of

  JG 300 and JG 301 on that day were 57 aircraft and 32 pilots killed.

  Final countdown

  To top it o, the Soviet oensive began at the same time, on January

  12, with the Vistula-Oder operation, during which Soviet forces advan-

  ced quickly through Silesia, on the right banks of the Oder. By the

  January 27, the Oder was crossed at Küstrin (today Kostrzyn, Poland),

  and a bridge was established to the left bank. In an eort to halt the

  Soviet advance, elements of JG 300 and JG 301 were committed to

  the area, engaging ground attack aircraft and ghters of the VVS from

  the end of January and into February. They performed ground attack

  missions against the Soviet units, a mission much dierent from the

  one Wilde Sau units were originally formed for. In March, heavy losses

  caused the disbandment of I. Gruppe JG 300, which at the time was

  down to fteen combat-capable aircraft.

  Some pilots of the unit were invited by the founder of Wilde Sau, Hajo

  Herrmann, to join Sonderkommando Elbe, that was developing taran

  tactics that were nothing short of suicide, involving the ramming of

  incoming heavy bombers. The only operation Sonderkommando Elbe

  conducted took place on April 7, 1945. It also yielded an insignicant

  success - 3rd Air Division of the 8th AF lost 9 bombers. Herrmann´s

  task force sent to combat 213 ghters, 45 of them were shot down,

  24 killed, 8 remained missing and 13 survived with injuries.

  A portion of the pilots were converted onto the jet powered Me 262

  Schwalbe and were later integrated into units ying the type, such as

  JG 7. The rest of the pilots and aircraft were integrated into III. and

  IV./JG 300, that were transferred to the Western Front in the area

  of southern Germany and from where they were gradually retreating

  eastwards. By the beginning of May, they found themselves on their

  former home eld of Reichenhall-Berchtesgaden in Ainring, on the

  German side of the German-Austrian border, some three kilometers

  west of Salzburg. Here, they received an order on May 3 to form

  an operational unit designated Jagdgruppe 300 Ainring, and to move

  through České Budějovice (Budweis) to Prague. At least a section of

  Jagdgruppe 300 managed to reach Prague immediately prior to the

  Prague Uprising, and with that, somewhat paradoxically, went from

  the relative safe of Ainring and the American area of operations to

  the extremely dangerous trap of the insurgent Prague and the Soviet

  sphere of inuence. Some of the pilots attempted to evade capture

  by the Soviets by eeing to the west, but a large number perished in

  the trap. Mass of aircraft wrecks of Jagdgruppe 300 have been docu-

  mented in photographs obtained after the end of the war scattered

  around Prague airelds. Photographs taken around the same time on

  west German airelds show wrecks of JG 301 aircraft.

  The last JGr. 300 base was the new airport in Žatec (Saatz) west

  of Prague where all remaining combat-ready aircraft ew over on

  May 7. Me 262A from JG 7 took o from Žatec for an ground attack on

  the Soviet columns advancing from Dresden to Most (Brüx). The last

  kill and apparently the very last JGr. 300, respectively JG 300, sortie

  out of Žatec is attributed to Uz. Eugen Mayer. On May 8 at 10am he

  was scrambled against the solitary Soviet Pe-2 bomber which he duly

  shot down in the vicinity of Žatec airport. In the early afternoon the

  remaining aircraft were destroyed and pilots and ground personnel

  set on the march to Cheb where the unit‘s torso surrendered to the

  Americans.

  Sources:

  CALDWELL D.: Luftwae Over Germany: Defense of the Reich

  CALDWELL D.: Day Fighters in Defence of the Reich: A War Diary, 1942–45

  LORANT J.-Y., GOYAT R.: Jagdgeschwader 300 Wilde Sau, A Chronicle of

  a Fighter Geschwader in the Battle for Germany, Vol 1 & 2

  OBERMAIER E.: DIE RITTERKREUZTRÃGER DER LUFT-

  WAFFE 1939 – 1945, BAND 2, JAGDFLIEGER

  www.ww2.dk

  www.ww2.dk/lwairelds.html

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Berlin_(RAF_campaign)

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pointblank_directive

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_campaign_of_World_War_II

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schweinfurt%E2%80%93Regensburg_mission

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Raid_on_Schweinfurt

  Archiv Muzea letecké bitvy nad Krušnohořím 11. 9.1944 v Kovářské

  Photo taken after the war at Bad Aibling aireld in Bavaria. The Fw 190A-8 „White 5“ probably belonged to 7./JG 300. On the right is

  a Bf 110G-4 (W.Nr. 180 837), the „2Z+NU“ of 10./NJG 6. The Fw 190A-8 with light blue paint carries the Stammkennzeichen VS+BX and

  the fuselage designation „yellow 10“.

  Photo: Fold3

  eduard

  27

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 28

  KITS 07/2021

  Product page

  1/48 Cat. No. 11148

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  11 marking options

  Brassin wheels

  eduard

  28

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 29

  KITS 07/2021

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, WNr. 490249, Uffz. Hans Dahmen, 2./JG 300, Borkheide, Germany, December 1944

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, WNr. 151965 (not confirmed), I. or III./JG 300, Germany, early 1945

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, Jagdgruppe 300, Ainring, Germany, early May 1945

  This aircraft with the Gisela inscription was flown by Uffz. Hanz Dahmen in December 1944 from the airfield in Borkheide,

  southwest of Potsdam. The designation was later changed to red 12. In December 1944 the marking of the JG 300 aircraft was

  changed to blue-white-blue fuselage band. In the second half of January 1945 was JG 300 deployed on the eastern front to fight

  on the Oder River, conducting ground attacks and strafing advancing Soviet troops. By this time, Hans Dahmen had already seen

  heavy fights in the fall of 1944, in which he shot down a B-17 on September 13, as well as the bloodbath of JG 300 pilots during

  the USAAF raid on Berlin on January 14, 1945.

  WNr. 151965 is an example of a Bf 109G-10 produced by the Erla factory, series 151. These machines were characterized by

  a wing with large bulges over the undercarriage well and camouflage in a dark green overpaint on the upper and side surfaces,

  including the lower fuselage except of the center wing. This color would be green version of the RLM 81, or even older RLM 70

  or 71 or another green paint. The bottom of the wing including the center section were left in bare metal, but the bottom surfaces

  of the ailerons and flaps were painted in light blue RLM 76. The lower surfaces of the wingtips and the horizontal tail were also

  painted in the same color. The underwing crosses were painted in form of black angles.

  During March 1945 the I./JG 300 was disbanded and between April 1 and April 12, some 15 of the remaining airworthy aircraft

  were handed over to the III. and IV./JG 300. Both units were shuttling around various airfields in southern Germany. As American

  forces advanced further southwards these aircraft were ordered to move to Ainring near Salzburg and then to Prague. Luftwa-

  ffekommando 6 ordered II. and III./JG 300 to be integrated into Jagdgruppe 300 Ainring on May 3, 1945. A short black horizontal

  stripe was then added to the blue-white-blue Reichsverteidigung stripes of the Jagdgruppe 300 aircraft. Ainring airfield was

  located on German side of German-Austrian border, also known as Reichenhall-Berchtesgaden airport. It was one of two

  Salzburg area military airfields during wartime.

  eduard

  29

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 30

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, Jagdgruppe 300, Prague-Gbel, Protectorate Böhmen und Mähren, May 8, 1945

  Bf 109G-14/AS, Fw. Eberhard Gzik, 2./JG 300, Borkheide, Germany, October 1944

  Bf 109G-14/AS, Fw. Wolfgang Hundsdörfer, 2./JG 300, Esperstedt, Germany, September 1944

  This aircraft, originally belonging to 16./JG 300, is an Erla build 150 or 151 series machine with large bulges over the undercarri-

  age wells. This machine was flown from Prague-Gbel airfield on May 8, 1945 by Fw. Josef Unminger, a pilot of Flugzeugüber-

  führungsgeschwader 1. He had to make a belly-landing due to the lack of fuel near the city of Bochov near Karlsbad in Western

  Bohemia and the aircraft was destroyed by retreating German soldiers by several shots of Panzerfaust. Unminger was captured

  by the Russians but managed to escape from captivity and returned home to Bavaria after long way through Saxony and

  Thuringia.

  This Bf 109G-14/AS belonging to I./JG 300 was either a Series 780 machine produced by the Messerschmitt factory in Augsburg,

  or a Series 413 or 460, produced by the Erla factory in Leipzig. During the fall of the 1944, the I./JG 300 led by Hptm. Gerhard

  Stamp conducted fighter cover for the Fw 190A-8/R2 Sturmbock heavy fighters. The unit suffered serious losses during tough

  combats with USAAF fighters in September and October. On October 2, I./JG 300 lost 19 aircraft destroyed and 13 damaged by

  Mustangs of the 355th FG which strafed the Borkheide airfield. Fw. Eberhard Gzik was posted to 9./EJG 2 in November 1944 and

  flew the Me 262 in Kommando Stamp. He achieved three aerial victories during the war.

  There was the emblem of a dog cartoon with a B-17 in its mouth and the inscription Lumpi on the fuselage side below the cockpit

  of this aircraft. Lumpi was the pilot´s, Wolfgang Hunsdörfer's, nickname. On the fuselage, in front of the tail surfaces was a red

  stripe, the designation of JG 300 aircraft within the Reichsverteidigung system. In December 1944 was this marking changed to

  blue-white-blue stripes.

  KITS 07/2021

  eduard

  30

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 31

  KITS 07/2021

  Bf 109G-14/AS, Ofhr. Klaus Grothues, CO of 9./ JG 300, Mark Zwuschen, Germany, December 1944

  Bf 109G-14/AS, Ofhr. Bruno Klostermann, 11./JG 300, Jüterbog-Waldlager, Germany, December 1944

  Bf 109G-14/AS, Lt. Karl Mitterdorfer, CO of 10./JG 300, Jüterbog, Germany, September 1944

  This Yellow 1 was damaged when the landing gear dug into the soft ground and the propeller hit the runway surface of the Mark

  Zwuschen airfield. The aircraft had the undercarriage legs painted red. Klaus Grothues was the last ace of III./JG 300 with 17

  confirmed kills. He was killed in action during an attack against the formation of the American bombers during USAAF raid on

  Berlin on January 14, 1945. Grothues was shot down near Rathenow, west of Berlin when at controls of the Bf 109G-14 Yellow 2.

  Ofhr. Bruno Klostermann was a cousin of the French fighter ace Pierre Clostermann. Unlike his more famous relative, he did

  not live to see the end of the war, as he was killed in action during the USAAF's big raid on Berlin on January 14, 1945. That date

  was a black day for the Wilde Sau units, with JG 300 and JG 301 losing nearly 90 aircraft and 68 pilots in thirty minutes. Jagd-

  geschwader 300 alone lost 50 % of all its aircraft. Klostermann's Green 12 had the undercarriage legs painted red.

  In the late summer and early autumn of 1944, the JG 300 established a special Mosquito-Jagdstaffel to combat the night incur-

  sions over Berlin conducted by de Havilland Mosquito bombers of the RAF's Light Night Strike Force. The 10.(N)/JG 300 operated

  out of Jüterbog under Staffelkapitän Karl Mitterdorfer. His White 1 featured the unit's comet emblem on both sides of the cowling

  and a narrower-than-usual red band around the rear fuselage. The aircraft´s lower starboard wing surfaces were black.

  eduard

  31

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 32

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, WNr. 151556, JG 301, Germany, May 1945

  Bf 109G-10 Erla, WNr. 151035, Stab IV./JG 301, Stendal-Borstel, Germany, early 1945

  WNr. 151556 was an example of a Bf 109G-10 series 151 manufactured by the Erla factory. These machines were typical in having

  a wing with large bulge over the undercarriage well. It would be possible this aircraft was camouflaged in RLM 81 and RLM 82

  colors on the upper surfaces and RLM 76-painted lower and side surfaces. Further details about this aircraft are not known.

  WNr. 151035 was an example of an early Bf 109G-10 series 151 produced by the Erla factory. These machines were characterized

  by a wing with large bulge over the undercarriage well. It is believed this aircraft served with the staff Staffel of the IV. Gruppe

  JG 301 at the Stendal-Borstel air base in Saxony-Anhalt. Further details about this aircraft are unknown.

  KITS 07/2021

  48942 Bf 109G-14 (PE

  -

  Set)

  481006 Bf 109G-10 Erla (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE910 Bf 109G seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE1191 Bf 109G-10 ERLA Weekend (PE

  -

  Set)

  644004 Bf 109G-10 LööK (Brassin)

  644045 Bf 109G-10 w/ early wheels LööKplus (Brassin)

  644046 Bf 109G-10 w/ late wheels LööKplus (Brassin)

  648158 Bf 109G-10 wheels (Brassin)

  648239 Bf 109G-6 radio compartment (Brassin)

  648247 Bf 109G exhaust stacks (Brassin)

  648261 Bf 109G-6 wheels (Brassin)

  648265 Bf 109G external fuel tanks (Brassin)

  648309 Bf 109G undercarriage legs BRONZE (Brassin)

  648310 Bf 109G control surfaces (Brassin)

  648422 Bf 109G-10 cockpit (Brassin)

  648441 Bf 109G-10 engine (Brassin)

  D48025 Bf 109G stencils (Decal set)

  D48027 Bf 109G Balkenkreuze (Decal set)

  D48028 Bf 109G svastikas (Decal set)

  D48042 Bf 109G-10 Erla national insignia (Decal set)

  3DL48014 Bf 109G-6 SPACE (3D Decal set)

  EX512 Bf 109G spinner spirals (Mask)

  EX524 Bf 109G-6 Erla canopy (Mask)

  EX581 Bf 109G Erla canopy TFace (Mask)

  EX608 Bf 109G-10 (Mask)

  EX609 Bf 109G-10 TFace (Mask)

  Recommended for WILDE SAU

  Cat. No. 648422

  eduard

  32

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 33

  EX512 Bf 109G spinner spirals (Mask)

  EX524 Bf 109G-6 Erla canopy (Mask)

  EX581 Bf 109G Erla canopy TFace (Mask)

  EX608 Bf 109G-10 (Mask)

  EX609 Bf 109G-10 TFace (Mask)

  KITS 07/2021

  OVERTREES

  Bf 109G-10

  Cat. No. 82164X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 82164-LEPT1

  OVERTREES

  Bf 109G-14/AS

  Cat. No. 82162X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 82162-LEPT1

  eduard

  33

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 34

  KITS 07/2021

  Product page

  1/72 Cat. No 2136

  Special Hobby plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  13 marking options

  Brassin wheels and pilot figure

  eduard

  34

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 35

  KITS 07/2021

  Bf 109E-3, WNr. 5102, Lt. Herbert Kunze, Stab I./JG 77, Döberitz, Germany, June 1940

  Bf 109E-4, WNr. 5274, Lt. Werner Machold, 1./JG 2, Marigny, France, June 1940

  Bf 109E-1, WNr. 3413, Lt. Hans Krug, 5./JG 26, Marquise, France, July 1940

  This aircraft was manufactured by WNF in early autumn 1939 and assigned to I./JG 77 led by Hptm. Johannes Janke. This unit

  was frequently relocated prior to World War II outbreak so it was no wonder the members of I./JG 77 ironically dubbed themsel-

  ves “Wanderzirkus Janke” (Janke’s Wandering Circus) and expressed their feelings about the constant relocation with a scuffed

  boot as the unit's emblem. Janke's adjutant Lt. Kunze was born in Berlin in 1918. He achieved two victories in September 1940 and

  lived to see his promotion to the rank of Oberleutnant. He was killed in combat with Spitfires of No. 603 Squadron on September

  14, 1940 while at the controls of Bf 109E-4 WNr. 3759. He crashed near Lympne and was buried two days later in Hawkinge Ce-

  metery. Kunze originally used a Bf 109E-1 with the name “Sepp” under the cockpit, but for this Bf 109E-3 he chose to paint a small

  rabbit with a spear between its ears and the inscription “Kieki”.

  Machold was serving with 1./JG 2 at the beginning of World War II. He was very successful in Battle of France, gaining 10 victo-

  ries including three Hurricanes and one Spitfire. His 11th victory was a “Tomahawk” claimed on August 11 at about midday near

  Portland. Oberfeldwebel Machold continued to gain victories during the Battle of Britain and became eighth German fighter

  pilot to reach 20-victories mark. On September 5, 1940, he was awarded the Knight Cross for 21 victories. On September 7,

  Machold was transferred to 9./JG 2. He recorded his 24th through 26th victories on September 30, shooting down three Spitfires.

  Oberleutnant Machold was appointed Staffelkapitän of 7./JG 2 in spring 1941. On June 9, 1941 during a low-level Jabo attack on

  a shipping convoy off Portland was his Bf 109 E-7/Z (WNr. 5983) “White 15” hit by anti-aircraft fire from a Royal Navy destroyer.

  Machold belly-landed near Swanage, Dorset and became prisoner of war. Werner Machold claimed 32 victories in more than

  250 combat missions. He achieved all his victories over the Western front.

  Hans Krug was born in 1899 and served in various Bavarian aviation units during the Great War. He was flying combat missions

  from March till May 1918. Considered rather old for fighter pilot in Germany during mid-thirties he joined the Spanish nationalist

  air force instead of Legion Condor like other German “volunteers”. Krug often flew alongside Spanish ace Joaquin Garcia Morato,

  whose Fiat CR.32 carried bullfighting motto “VISTA SUERTE Y AL TORO” (The look, good fortune and lets´s go for the bull!). Krug

  adopted this inscription on his “Emil”, as he was finally accepted to Luftwaffe and entered successful service with II./JG 26

  “Schlageter” with rank of Leutnant. He scored with 5./JG 26 five victories during French campaign including one unconfirmed. All

  were depicted on his tail with kill marks. Krug scored additional five victories during Battle of Britain and took over leadership of

  4./JG 26. He was shot down by RAF fighters over England and performed belly landing near Pluckley in the evening of Septem-

  ber 7. His name is sometimes confused with bomber pilot Lt. Peter Krug who escaped from prison camp in Canada to the United

  States.

  eduard

  35

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 36

  Bf 109E-4, WNr. 3709, Oblt. Josef Fözö, CO of 4./JG 51, Desvres, France, July 1940

  Bf 109E-3, Maj. Adolf Galland, CO of III./JG 26, Caffiers, France, August 1940

  Bf 109E-3, Maj. Adolf Galland, CO of III./JG 26, Caffiers, France, late August 1940

  Raven with running nose and umbrella was badge of II./JG 51 and was later adopted by some of unit´s Staffeln with different

  background colors. Mickey Mouse is personal emblem of Josef Fözö who was a Vienna-born Austrian. As a pre-war pilot of

  Austrian Air Force Fözö joined Luftwaffe in 1938 and volunteered for service in Spain where he scored three victories. He was

  already commander of 4./JG 51 at the beginning of World War II and downed one balloon during Sitzkrieg and two RAF fighters

  during “Kanalkampf” in July. His second and third victory were scored west of Cap Griz-Nez against Hurricanes of No. 56 Sqn.

  During Battle of Britain he scored nine victories against RAF and one more in April 1941. Fözö was appointed commander of II./JG

  51 and was seriously injured on Russian front in July 1941. He was awarded Knight Cross during the same month. After recovery

  he became commander of I./JG 51 in May 1942. However, he was injured again the same month. After lengthy recovery Fözö took

  over commanding position on operational training unit JG 108. His total score was 27 victories including service in Spain. Fözö

  passed away in Vienna in 1979, at the age of 67 years.

  Major Adolf Galland was the highest scoring Luftwaffe fighter pilot of Battle of Britain. In the period from August 8 to October 31,

  1940, he scored 32 victories including 15 Spitfires. After service with Legion Condor, 4.(S)/LG 2 and JG 27 he became comman-

  der of III./JG 26 on June 11, 1940. This unit was the second-most successful Jagdgruppe of Battle of Britain with 105 victories

  achieved. Galland´s last victories (19th to 22nd) with III./JG 26 were scored on August 15. He claimed one Spitfire possibly flown

  by RAF ace F/Lt A.C. Deere of No. 54 Sqn. and later added two Spitfires of No. 64 Sqn. On August 22 Galland became Kommodore

  of JG 26 “Schlageter”. He took position of General der Jagdflieger later, becoming the youngest Luftwaffe General. He did not get

  along with Göring very well and lost his position in 1944. During the last months of the war, he was allowed to organize elite unit

  Jagdverband 44 equipped with Me 262 Schwalbe jet fighters. Adolf Galland achieved 104 aerial victories during 705 missions,

  all on the Western front. Included in his score are at least seven victories achieved when he was flying the Me 262. Galland also

  downed four four-engined bombers. He was himself shot down four times.

  This is Galland´s aircraft as it appeared at the end of August 1940, i.e., with yellow identification markings introduced by Luftwaffe

  command at the beginning of August 1940. Some authors believe that this is aircraft WNr. 4820 flown by Galland during August

  1940 as his last personal mount when at command of III./JG 26. But… The 4820 was manufactured by Arado in July 1940 as

  E-1/B and Galland´s logbook states E-1 version as well, but photographs reveal his aircraft sported cannons in the wing. There is

  another aircraft of Galland known from this period, and it is also attributed to WNr. 4820. But again, this “Emil” shows cannons in

  the wings and earlier style of the canopy. After the war, Adolf Galland took part in development of Argentine Air Force and was

  also active in German fighter pilot association. He also became one of the advisers during the filming of Battle of Britain movie.

  Fellow adviser RAF ace Robert S. Tuck became Galland´s very close friend and godfather of his son.

  KITS 07/2021

  eduard

  36

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 37

  Bf 109E-1, WNr. 3771, flown by Fw. Ernst Arnold, 3./JG 27, Peuplingues, France, August 1940

  Bf 109E-1, WNr. 3417, Gefr. Erich Mummert, 4./JG 52, Peuplingues, France, September 1940

  Bf 109E-4, WNr. 5375, Hptm. Wilhelm Meyerweissflog, Stab JG 53, Etaples, France, September 1940

  Fw. Arnold was shot down in the late afternoon on August 30 during free hunt sortie over England. The I./JG 27 formation was

  attacked by RAF fighters and Arnold´s “Emil” was hit in radiator, possibly by F/O B. J. G. Carbury of No. 603 Squadron. He had

  performed belly-landing at Westwood Court, near Faversham, Kent and his Aircraft was placed on display in Exeter as the

  fundraising motivation element. Africa emblem of I./JG 27 was introduced in late spring 1940 as reminder of German African

  colonies lost after Great War. The scissors (in German language “Schere”) and the “r” letter are play on the name of former

  Schwarmführer and within the 3. Staffel popular Lt. Ulrich Scherer. He was declared missing after combat with Hurricanes of

  No. 615 Sqn. near Cherbourg on July 20. The unit lost Gruppenkommandeur Hptm. Helmut Riegel during the same combat. Sta-

  ffelkapitän of 3./JG 27 was future Knight Cross recipient Oblt. Gerhard Homuth who was later successfully leading I./JG 27 in Af-

  rica. Homuth scored 15 victories during 1940 and his final score resulting from 450 combat missions counted 63 aerial victories.

  Homuth was engaged in a 20-minutes dogfight with Russian fighters on August 2, 1943, and remains missing from that time on…

  This Messerschmitt saw very long career, being manufactured by Arado company in the late summer or early autumn 1939. Its

  camouflage consists of RLM 71, 02 and 65 and probably went through several changes. It cannot be ruled out the aircraft was

  finished in the RLM 70/71 scheme on upper surfaces originally. Probably due to error, the JG 52 kept this aircraft in books as the

  E-4 variant. Red cat emblem was introduced as unit badge in 1939 when the Staffel carried designation 1./JG 71. Erich Mummert

  was shot down with this “Emil” on September 30 in the afternoon during bomber escort mission. Six JG 52 fighters had been

  attacked by Spitfires and tried to form a defensive circle. But Germans were running out of fuel and had to abandon the combat

  soon. Being pursued by Spitfires the combat got slightly chaotic for Germans and Mummert´s aircraft was hit in radiator by the

  “friendly” fire of another Bf 109. Mummert performed belly-landing on the edge of Detling airfield. Another II./JG 52 pilot was also

  shot down and bailed out, being captured near Detling as well. Commander of 4./JG 52 was the legendary Johannes Steinhoff,

  the man, who acted as Kommodore of the Jagdgeschwader 7 flying with Me 262s and later joined Adolf Galland and his elite

  Jagdverband 44.

  Wilhelm Meyerweissflog was born in 1889 and served in military during Great War. It is assumed he lived in Switzerland after the

  war and travelled to USA as businessman regularly. In the ranks of the JG 53 “Pik As” he was acting as an administrative officer

  of Geschwaderstab. His aircraft was photographed during refueling at former British airbase La Villiaze, Guernsey, part of occu-

  pied Channel Islands. Meyerweissflog was captured on September 5, 1940. During interrogation he said: “Saw the boys going

  off and thought he would like a flip too. He jumped into his aircraft, flew vaguely in the direction of England and was neatly shot

  through the petrol tank by a British fighter," probably by F/Lt. P. C. Hughes flying Spitfire of No. 234 Sqn. Hptm. Meyerweissflog

  made a forced landing at Monkton farm near St. Nicholas-at-Wade at 15.45 hrs “from which more by luck than good judgement

  he came out safely and, when apprehended, had not the slightest idea where he was”. To further quote the interrogation report,

  his start and mission were described as a “Very freelance patrol”, and his morale as “Good under trying circumstances”.

  KITS 07/2021

  eduard

  37

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 38

  Bf 109E-4, WNr. 3709, Oblt. Josef Fözö, CO of 4./JG 51, Desvres, France, second half of September 1940

  WNr. 1480, Oblt. Franz von Werra, Gruppenadjutant of II./JG 3, Wierre-au-Bois, France, September 1940

  Bf 109E-4, WNr. 5153, Oblt. Egon Troha, CO of 9./JG 3, Desvres, France, October 1940

  This is Fözö´s aircraft after he scored his 14th victory on October 15 in the morning near London when escorting fighter bom-

  bers. Yellow cowling and rudder were identification markings introduced at beginning of September to identify Bf 109s assigned

  to fighter bomber missions.

  Franz von Werra became the first German fighter ace to fall into British hands. It happened on the morning of September 5, 1940,

  when he was shot down with this “Emil” over the county of Kent. Von Werra then became famous for his escape from

  a Canadian prison camp. He was able to return halfway around the world to German territory, where he rejoined the Luftwaffe

  and continued his combat flights. He served on both the eastern and western fronts but was strictly ordered to avoid the shores

  of England. This proved fatal when he failed to return from a flight over the English Channel as CO of I./JG 53 on October 25, 1941.

  The WNr. 1480 carried the standard camouflage of RLM 02/71/65 with white identification markings. These included the rudder

  and wingtips. It is also often depicted with a white engine cowling, but a careful study of photographs and archival documents

  prove contrary to it and the supposed white paint was in fact a newer and lighter coat of RLM 65 paint. It is possible that the

  cover came from another aircraft. The vertical tail area bears the symbols of von Werra's achievements, i.e. eight aerial victories

  and five aircraft destroyed on the ground. They are depicted on each side in a slightly different form. The RLM65 color extended

  to the upper surfaces of the leading-edge wing.

  Egon Troha was born in Austria in 1916 and after finishing his pilot and fighter training, he started to serve in the ranks of the JG

  26 in 1939. Later he joined the JG 27 before being finally assigned to III./JG 3. Troha scored five victories during 1940 including one

  Dutch Fokker C.V and on October 1 he became commander of 9./JG 3. His last kill, probably a Hurricane of No. 605 Sqn., was sco-

  red on October 26 just after midday west of Boulogne. On October 29 Oblt. Troha was attacked by Spitfires of No. 74 Sqn. during

  mission over England. He believed his wingman was covering him, but instead he got a burst of fire which damaged radiator of

  his Messerschmitt. He force-landed near Shepherdswell. During his stay in Canadian prison camp, Troha lost an eye in a pris-

  oner´s riot and was repatriated. After return to Germany he was promoted to Hauptmann and served with operational training

  unit JG 108 till the end of war. Troha´s plane was manufactured by WNF in autumn 1939 as Bf 109E-3. In 1940 it was not upgraded

  only with new canopy but probably also with new MG FF/M cannons, so unit kept the airplane in records as E-4. The sea horse

  emblem was created by the core of original unit´s pilots who were supposed to form fighter squadron of German aircraft carrier

  Graf Zeppelin.

  KITS 07/2021

  eduard

  38

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 39

  Bf 109E-4, WNr. 4869, flown by Lt. Bernhard Malischewski, Stab II./JG 54, Campagne-les-Guines, France, October 1940

  This “Emil” was personal mount of Stab II./JG 54 officer Lt. Bernhard Malischewski who was already long serving member at the

  time, as his presence was dating back to the times, when the unit had original designation I./JG 76. He scored one victory during

  Sitzkrieg and three more during French campaign and the Battle of Britain. His last victory dates to the September 29 when he

  shot down a Spitfire near London. Malischewski was captured on October 12 after forced landing south of Tenterden, Kent. It is

  believed he was shot down by S/Ldr R. S. Tuck, however Malischewski stated the engine failure was his real defeater in the do-

  gfight. Indeed, his airplane did not have any hits from enemy fire. In the UK he was kept as prisoner of war at Camp 13, the Hayes

  Camp, Swanwick, Derbyshire. He joined the group of prisoners, who were planning escape through a tunnel. One of the group

  members was Franz von Werra. They nicknamed themselves as “Swanwick Tiefbau A. G.” meaning Swanwick Engineering Co.

  Three prisoners including von Werra escaped, but Malischewski gave up the effort earlier during digging process. In February

  1945 he was sentenced to 28 days detention for attempting to escape from the train bringing him from one Canadian camp to

  another. He was promoted to rank of Oberleutnant during his captivity and passed away in 1975.

  KITS 07/2021

  73736 Bf 109E-4 (PE

  -

  Set)

  73739 Bf 109E-3 (PE

  -

  Set)

  Sprue - A

  -

  E-1

  Sprue - A

  -

  E-3/4

  Sprue - A

  -

  E-3/4

  Sprue - B

  Sprue - B

  Sprue - B

  Sprue - C - malý

  Sprue - C - malý

  Sprue - C - velký

  Recommended for ADLERANGRIFF

  OVERTREES OVERTREES OVERTREES

  Bf 109E-1 Bf 109E-3 Bf 109E-4/7

  Cat. No. 7031X Cat. No. 7032X Cat. No. 7033X

  1/72 1/72 1/72

  eduard

  39

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 40

  KITS 07/2021

  1/48 Cat. No. 84114

  Eduard plastic parts

  4 marking options

  Product page

  eduard

  40

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 41

  KITS 07/2021

  Hptm. W. Moritz, CO of IV.(Sturm)/JG 3, Memmingen, Germany, July 1944

  WNr. 682181, Fw. Hubert Engst, 6.(Sturm)/ JG 300, Löbnitz, Germany, early 1945

  Wilhelm Moritz joined German army service in 1933 and was assigned to the Luftwaffe afterwards. The outbreak of WWII found

  Moritz flying Bf 110 with II./ZG 1. In the summer of 1940, he was reassigned to 6./JG 77 and served as CO of 11./JG 1 in April 1942.

  He was transferred to JG 51 on the Eastern Front in September 1942, there he shot down 25 aircraft. On October 19, 1943, he was

  appointed Staffelkapitan of 6./JG 3. The JG 3 was a component of the fighter network tasked with the defense of the Reich (Re-

  ichsverteidigung). Moritz became the CO of its IV. Gruppe on April 18, 1944. This Gruppe specialized in the use of heavily armed

  and armored single-engine fighters against Allied four-engined bombers. He was relieved of his command of IV. Gruppe on

  December 5, 1944, following a nervous breakdown and after recuperation he took over command of the Luftwaffe replacement

  training unit IV./EJG 1. Moritz found his way back to a combat unit before the war ended, as he became CO of II./JG 4 on April 18,

  1945. He held this post till the end of the war. He was credited with 44 victories and was awarded the Knight's Cross on July 18,

  1944. Moritz's aircraft carried the standard Luftwaffe fighter camouflage scheme. Aircraft of IV./JG 3 had black engine cowls. The

  double chevron identifies the Gruppe leader's aircraft and the wave marking on the rear fuselage was carried by aircraft of the

  IV. Gruppe. Fuselage protective armor plates were light gray or unpainted. Most of the JG 3 aircraft carried the unit marking on

  the engine cowl, but available photographs cannot confirm whether this was the case with this aircraft.

  A native of Krauschwitz, Hubert Engst was born on November 10, 1921 and on completion of flight training in July 1943, he was

  assigned to JG Hermann (later redesignated as JG 300), specialists in the use of Wilde Sau tactics (night attacks against bom-

  bers using single-engine fighters). Here, on his first combat flight and only three hours after his arrival he would shoot down

  a Stirling bomber. Hubert Engst flew with the 5. and later 6. Staffel of JG 300, the unit integrated from the beginning of its exi-

  stence into the structure of the Defense of the Reich. According to the sources Engst shot down some 20 aircraft. He was shot

  down twice himself. Remains of his Fw 190A-8/R2 WNr. 681361 “Yellow 7” were discovered in 2011 near Otin close to Jindrichuv

  Hradec. They are part of the collection of the local museum there nowadays. Hubert Engst lived in the former East Germany

  after the WWII and died in 1981. The standard RLM74/75/76 scheme was complemented by JG 300 colors and markings from the

  end of the war in the shape of a blue-white-blue band of prescribed 900 mm overall width. A horizontal strip designating aircraft

  of the II. Gruppe was painted over the band, its yellow color was specific to the planes of the 6. Staffel.

  eduard

  41

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 42

  KITS 07/2021

  WNr. 681343, Obgefr. Karl Kleemann, 7.(Sturm)/JG 4, Welzow, Germany, September 1944

  WNr. 739431, Ltn. Norbert Graziadei, 5.(Sturm)/JG 300, Löbnitz, Germany, October 1944

  Karl Kleemann became a member of 7. Staffel II.(Sturm)/JG 4 in August 1944. The newly formed unit was to fight with Allied

  four-engine bomber formations. Its first combat occurred on September 11, 1944, and its pilots achieved considerable success

  in combat with aircraft from the 3rd Bomb Division. With the support of Messerschmitts from the III. Gruppe, they managed to

  shoot down fourteen B-17s, mostly from the 100th Bomb Group. The Sturmgruppe paid for this with the loss of at least 20 Sturm-

  bocks and 12 pilots killed. Karl Kleemann in the aircraft designated “Yellow 1” was one of them. To escape the battle area, many

  Sturmbock pilots got into dogfights with American fighters. Kleemann's machine appeared shortly after 12:10 at an altitude of 160

  ft (50 m) over the town of Thum, pursued by several P-51s. After a sharp turn over the center of town, the aircraft crashed in

  a field just next to the town hospital and exploded. In September 2018 a monument was unveiled near the crash site, designed as

  a memorial to all the victims of the Battle of the Erzgebirge. Kleemann's Sturmbock bore the standard livery used by II.(Sturm)/

  JG 4. The RLM 74/75/76 color scheme was supplemented by the fuselage markings of JG 4 according to the Reich Defense Sys-

  tem (black and white band). The horizontal stripe of the II. Gruppe was not used on JG 4 aircraft during this period. The emblem

  on the engine cowling could have had the crest of the knight's helmet painted yellow, or it could have remained unpainted. During

  the period in question, JG 4 still used side armor windows on its Fw 190s. The fuselage machine guns were often removed.

  A native of Vienna, Norbert Graziadei was born on February 20, 1920. He joined the Luftwaffe in 1941 and completed pilot training,

  after which he flew with a transport squadron. In April 1944, he joined the fighters, underwent night fighter training, and on

  June 14 he was sent to II./JG 300, which was at the time conducting Wilde Sau night flights using single seaters to fight British

  bomber raids. Later on the unit was transferred to the Defence of the Reich system, which necessitated change in its activities,

  as it became a day combat unit. Graziadei was chosen by the commander of 6./JG 300 as his deputy and technical officer. In Sep-

  tember, the change occurred again and II. Gruppe became Sturmgruppe, i.e. a special group for fighting daylight bombers. On 25

  September 1944, Ltn. Graziadei, nicknamed Naggi, was transferred to the 5. Staffel, where he also acted as the technical officer

  and CO´ s deputy, now to Ltn. Bretschneider. Norbert Graziadei survived deployment during World War II, shooting down a total

  of ten enemy aircraft. He died in 1999. During his time with the 5. (Sturm)/JG 300, he flew at least two Fw 190A-8/R2s, designated

  “Red 2”, which bore the inscription “Moidl”, the Tyrolean dialect term for girl (Mädchen), on the armour under the front plate.

  eduard

  42

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 43

  KITS 07/2021

  48973 Fw 190A-8/R2 (PE

  -

  Set)

  48974 Fw 190A-8/R2 landing flaps (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE863 Fw 190A seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  644005 Fw 190A-8/R2 LööK (Brassin)

  648356 Fw 190A wingroot gun bays (Brassin)

  648366 Fw 190A propeller (Brassin)

  648381 Fw 190A exhaust stacks (Brassin)

  648426 Fw 190A-8/R2 cockpit (Brassin)

  648482 Fw 190A-8/R2 engine (Brassin)

  SIN64852 Fw 190A-8/R2 ESSENTIAL (Brassin)

  D48036 Fw 190A-8/R2 national insignia (Decal set)

  3DL48027 Fw 190A-8/R2 SPACE (3D Decal set)

  EX587 Fw 190A TFace (Mask)

  Recommended for Fw 190A-8/R2

  Cat. No. 644005

  Cat. No. 648426

  Cat. No. 648482

  Cat. No. 648366

  eduard

  43

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 44

  KITS 07/2021

  Product page

  1/48 Cat. No. 84130

  Eduard plastic parts

  4 marking options

  Brassin Anthenas

  eduard

  44

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 45

  KITS 07/2021

  MiG-21bisD, Eskadrila borbenih aviona, HRZ i PZO, Zagreb – Pleso, Croatia, December 2016

  MiG-21bis, 115th GIAP, Soviet VVS, Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan, 1980

  The Croatian Air Force purchased forty MiG-21bis fighters and MiG-21UM trainers from Ukraine in 1995. In 2003, eight MiG-21bis

  aircraft were modernized to bisD standard in Romania. The modernization program included upgrade of the navigation, com-

  munication and IFF equipment. In 2014, another modernization took place involving seven Croat MiG-21bisD/UMD aircraft, along

  with a purchase of another five aircraft from repair facility in Odessa. The modernized aircraft received an all-grey camouflage

  scheme. Aircraft coded 116 received a stylized “25” on the left side of the fin to commemorate 25th anniversary of the Croatian

  Air Force.

  Fighter cover duties during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan were conducted by the 115th Guards' Regiment at the end of 1979.

  The unit was equipped with the MiG-21bis and was based at Kokaity in Uzbekistan, a Soviet Socialist State at the time. Three days

  after the invasion beginning, the 1st Squadron moved to Bagram Air Base, followed by a second Squadron on January 23, 1980.

  Due to the lack of any enemy fighters, the 115th GIAP became involved in ground support duties together with the 136th APIB.

  MiG-21bis aircraft of the 115th GIAP used in Afghanistan were painted in green and brown on the upper surfaces at the beginning

  of the war, with lower surfaces in a blue-grey tone.

  eduard

  45

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 46

  KITS 07/2021

  MiG-21bis, C2283, No.3 Squadron „Cobras“, Pathankot AB, India, early ´90s

  The newest version of the MiG-21, the “bis”, was purchased to the tune of twenty-six pieces by the Finnish Air Force in the latter

  half of the seventies. The first aircraft were delivered in 1978, and at the beginning of the eighties, these aircraft began to be

  westernized. The process included a new instrument panel and radio equipment compatible with those of west European air-

  craft. The aircraft coded MG-130 was delivered to Finland on July 17th, 1980, and its westernization was conducted during 1982.

  It made its last flight on March 7th, 1998, and it can currently be seen on the roof terrace of the Verkkokauppa Oy Shopping Cen-

  ter in Helsinki. At the beginning of the eighties, MG-130 carried the camouflage scheme in which it was delivered from the Soviet

  Union, i.e. brown and green on the upper and side surfaces, while the lower surfaces in light grey.

  C2283 displays a unique combination of camouflage scheme and colorful ID markings. The unit personnel named their aircraft

  after snakes, among which “Rattler”, “Mamba” and “Cobra” are known. The dorsal section of the fuselage was taken from another

  MiG-21bis, probably from a “Mamba”. The history of No.3 Squadron goes back to October 1941, when the unit was activated in

  Peshawar, equipped with the Hawker Audax. During the second half of the Twentieth Century, the unit took part in every conflict

  that India was involved in with neighboring states. The No.3 Squadron used the MiG-21bis from July 1980 to 2002, when it was

  re-equipped with the modernized MiG-21 “Bison”.

  MiG-21bis, HävLLv 31, Suomen ilmavoimat, Kuopio-Rissala AB, Finland, 1980

  eduard

  46

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 47

  Recommended for MiG-21bis

  KITS 07/2021

  48704 MiG-21 ladder 1/48 (PE

  -

  Set)

  48994 MiG-21 surface panels 1/48 (PE

  -

  Set)

  48999 MiG-21bis exterior 1/48 (PE

  -

  Set)

  49065 MiG-21 KM-1 seatbelts FABRIC (PE

  -

  Set)

  49110 MiG-21 seatbelts STEEL 1/48 (PE

  -

  Set)

  491036 MiG-21bis interior 1/48 (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE1149 MiG-21bis Weekend 1/48 (PE

  -

  Set)

  644033 MiG-21bis LööK 1/48 (Brassin)

  648025 Rocket launcher UB-16 and UB-32 1/48 (Brassin)

  648026 MiG-21 wheels 1/48 (Brassin)

  648030 MiG-21 seat late 1/48 (Brassin)

  648049 MiG-21 wheel wells 1/48 (Brassin)

  648050 MiG-21BIS interior (Brassin)

  648051 MiG-21BIS exhaust nozzle (Brassin)

  648064 MiG-21 late airbrakes 1/48 (Brassin)

  648080 MiG-21 undercarriage legs BRONZE 1/48 (Brassin)

  648082 R-60 / AA-8 Aphid 1/48 (Brassin)

  648125 R-3S / AA-2 Atoll-A 1/48 (Brassin)

  648126 OFAB-100 Soviet bombs 1/48 (Brassin)

  648127 OFAB-250 Soviet bombs 1/48 (Brassin)

  648136 S-24 rocket 1/48 (Brassin)

  648173 UB-16 rocket launcher (2 pcs) 1/48 (Brassin)

  648424 FAB-500 M54 bombs 1/48 (Brassin)

  648445 R-13M missiles 1/48 (Brassin)

  648490 MiG-21 F.O.D 1/48 (Brassin)

  3DL48026 MiG-21bis SPACE (3D Decal set)

  EX751 MiG-21bis Weekend 1/48 (Mask)

  Cat. No. 644033

  Cat. No. 648050

  Cat. No. 648080

  Cat. No. 648490

  eduard

  47

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 48

  KITS 07/2021

  Re-release

  1/48 Cat. No. 82114

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  6 marking options

  Product page

  eduard

  48

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 49

  KITS 07/2021

  Bf 109F-4, WNr. 7183, Hptm. Hans Hahn, III./JG 2, St. Pol, France, October 13, 1941

  Bf 109F-4, WNr. 7243, Oblt. Otto Kath, Stab/JG 54, Staraya Russa, Soviet Union, early December 1941

  Bf 109F-4, Uffz. Hans Döbrich, 6./JG 5, Petsamo, Finland, September 2, 1942

  Hans „Assi“ Hahn, a fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross with oak leaves was in command of 4./JG 2 from December,

  1939 and starting from October 1940 he overtook the lead of III./JG 2. Fifty kill marks on the rudder related to his service on the

  Western Front. Hahn added the fiftieth kill to his tally on October 13, 1941, shooting down a Spitfire near Boulogne-sur-Mer. Alto-

  gether he destroyed 66 enemy aircraft in the West. In late 1942 “Assi” Hahn moved to the East and commanded II./JG 54 from No-

  vember 1, 1942. On February 21, 1943, he was downed and captured. He spent seven years in captivity, returning back to Germany

  in 1950. He wrote a book about his life in prison Prisoner of War in Russia (Ich spreche die Wahrheit – I Speak the Truth). Hahn´s

  total score stands at 108 kills. The rooster head was the crest of III./JG 2, based on Hahn´s family name (“der Hahn” means “the

  rooster” in English).

  Otto Kath served as Geschwaderadjutant for Hannes Trautloft, the famous fighter ace and CO of JG 54 from March, 1941 till Sep-

  tember, 1943. Trautloft retained Kath when moving from I./JG 20 to JG 54. Kath is credited with 6 kills. The standard camouflage

  of RLM 74/75/76 was oversprayed with washable white paint on the upper sides as the temporary winter camouflage. The only

  exception was the framing of the canopy. The non-standard Geschwader Stab marking is green, which was the color reserved

  for aircraft of the HQ members. The green heart was the symbol of the JG 54 “Grünherz”. Note the yellow Eastern Front mar-

  kings on the wings, rudder, and fuselage.

  This aircraft was flown by Hans Döbrich, a fighter ace credited with 65 victories. He was downed three times and seriously

  wounded during the last incident. He never flew a combat sortie again. During the second half of 1942, II./JG 5 was equipped with

  “Friedrichs” manufactured for service in a tropical environment. The desert camouflage colors consisting of RLM 79 and RLM

  78 were applied at the factory. Feldflugpark (Repair Field Unit) in Pori added segments of RLM 74/70 (some sources state RLM

  75/71) which helped to camouflage effect over the northern territory. The green shamrock on the cowling was a crest of 6./JG 5.

  eduard

  49

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 50

  KITS 07/2021

  Bf 109F-4/trop, WNr. 8693, Lt. Hans-Joachim Marseille, 3./JG 27, North Africa, February 1942

  Bf 109F-4, WNr. 13325, Oblt. Viktor Bauer, 9./JG 3, Shchigry, Soviet Union, June 1942

  Bf 109F-4/B, W. Nr. 7629, Oblt. Frank Liesendahl, 10. (Jabo)/JG 2, France, June 1942

  This aircraft was flown by Lt. Hans-Joachim Marseille, a fighter ace with 158 kills to his credit. Marseille was awarded the Kni-

  ght´s Cross with Swords, Oak Leaves and Diamonds as the recognition of his remarkable success. He was shooting down ene-

  my aircraft at rapid rate with many multiple one-day victories. The German propaganda made use of it to make Marseille a star.

  The tale ended with Marseille´s death. He was killed in accident on September 30, 1942. The camouflage of his aircraft consisted

  of RLM 79 “Sandgelb” on the upper surfaces and RLM 78 “Himmelblau” on the lower ones. The rudder was adorned with fifty kill

  marks (Abschussmarken) and appears to be oversprayed with a red-brown primer. Marseille achieved his 49th and 50th kills

  on February 21, 1942. His victims were two Kittyhawks. The white-painted wingtips and fuselage band were Luftwaffe markings

  used on the aircraft flown in the Mediterranean theatre.

  This aircraft was flown by Viktor Bauer, holder of the Knight's Cross with an oak leaves and ace with 106 kills. He achieved most

  of them in combats with Soviet pilots. Bauer flew this particular aircraft in the summer of 1942, when German Group of Armies

  A advanced on Stalingrad. The unit received Messerschmitts originally intended for service in North Africa, thus camouflaged in

  RLM 78/79 colors. The segments of RLM 74/70 (some sources state RLM 75/71) were added to the desert camouflage scheme to

  better the camouflage effect in the Eastern Front environment. The yellow wingtips, fuselage band and lower cowling were typi-

  cal for airplanes flown in the east. Note the III./JG 3 badge on the nose. The name Ellen referred to Bauer´s wife. Bauer achieved

  his 106th and last kill on August 9, 1942, northwest of Stalingrad. The very next day he was hit by enemy fire, wounded, and had to

  belly land his crippled plane. After rescue, Bauer served in various posts of Ergänzungs (replacement) units.

  During late 1941, the Luftwaffe considered renewing bombing of Great Britain and coastal shipping. Each fighter unit fighting

  against the Great Britain was ordered to single out one Staffel for this purpose. The 10. (Jabo) Staffel played this role within

  JG 2. Under command of Oblt. Frank Liesendahl this Staffel sank 20 vessels (total tonnage 630.000 BRT) over a four-month

  period. Liesendahl was killed when attacking cargo vessels near Brixham on July 17, 1942. Posthumously he was promoted

  to Hauptmann rank and was awarded the Knight´s Cross as well. Liesendahl´s personal mount wore a standard day fighter

  camouflage consisting of RLM 74/75/76. The ship-munching fox was a 10. (Jabo) Staffel badge. Note the symbols of vessels da-

  maged or sunk by Liesendahl on the rudder.

  eduard

  50

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 51

  KITS 07/2021

  OVERTREES

  Bf 109F-4

  Cat. No. 82114X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 82114-LEPT1

  Recommended for Bf 109F-4

  48899 Bf 109F-4 (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE844 Bf 109F-4 Weekend (PE

  -

  Set)

  644010 Bf 109F LööK (Brassin)

  648279 Bf 109F cockpit (Brassin)

  648282 Bf 109F wheels (Brassin)

  648288 Bf 109F propeller LATE (Brassin)

  648291 Bf 109F landing flaps (Brassin)

  648300 Bf 109F engine & fuselage guns (Brassin)

  648308 Bf 109F undercarriage legs BRONZE (Brassin)

  648365 Bf 109F radio compartment (Brassin)

  SIN64829 Bf 109F ESSENTIAL (Brassin)

  SIN64830 Bf 109F ADVANCED (Brassin)

  D48026 Bf 109F stencils (Decal set)

  3DL48028 Bf 109F-4 SPACE (3D Decal set)

  EX535 Bf 109F-4 (Mask)

  EX588 Bf 109F TFace (Mask)

  Cat. No. 644010

  Cat. No. 648365

  Cat. No. 648300

  eduard

  51

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 52

  KITS 07/2021

  Re-release

  Product page

  1/48 Cat. No. 8281

  Eduard plastic parts

  Photo-etched set

  Paiting mask

  6 marking options

  eduard

  52

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 53

  KITS 07/2021

  Spitfire LF Mk.IXc, MH712, W/O Henryk Dygala, No. 302 (Polish) Sqn., ALG G10 Plumetot, France, August 1944

  Spitfire HF Mk.IXc, MJ296, F/Lt Otto Smik, No. 312 (Czechoslovak) Sqn., RAF North Weald, United Kingdom, August 1944

  Spitfire LF Mk.IXc, MJ586, S/Lt. Pierre Clostermann, No. 602 Sqn., Longues-sur-Mer, France, July 1944

  The No. 302 (Polish) Squadron was one of the units that participated in the invasion of Normandy in June 1944. The D

  -

  Day „In-

  vasion Stripes“ painted on the bottom of the fuselage and wings indicate that fact as well. This aircraft was equipped with wing

  racks for 250Ib bombs. The pointed rudder was freshly painted and so the colors appeared darker than the rest of the aircraft.

  Nose art paintings were not common within the RAF, so this one, the girl sitting on the bomb, is one of exceptions. The Polish

  stencil right of the cockpit door “Wycierac obuwie” means “Wipe your shoes“.

  This Spitfire was flown by F/Lt Otto Smik, the CO of B Flight of No. 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron. On the cockpit door 8,5 confir-

  med kill marks plus three V-1s destroyed were painted as his personal score of that time. Smik was flying this Spitfire during

  July and August on strafing missions over occupied Europe. He was shot down by AA fire during an attack on Gilze-Rijen Air

  Base but survived and with the help of the Dutch resistance, he returned to Great Britain. Smik met his fate on November 28,

  1944, when he was killed during attack on the Zwolle railway station. The camouflage and marking of this Spitfire were typical for

  No. 312 (Czechoslovak) Sqn. with the unit badge painted on both sides of the cowling. Available photos do not reveal the type of

  the rudder. The MJ296 could have had either the rounded or pointed type.

  Pierre Clostermann, a famous French fighter ace, became known worldwide thanks to his book “Le Grand Cirque” (The Big

  Show) as well. One of the aircraft he was flying during the war was Spitfire MJ586. Clostermann´s score of seven confirmed,

  three probable and seven damaged enemy aircraft is painted below windshield. French sources credit Clostermann with 20

  kills, but it has been a topic of debate for many years. The post war French numbers are inconsistent with those of wartime

  documentation in British archives due to different methodology of these two Air Forces. At the end of WWII, Clostermann flew

  Tempests with No. 3 Squadron RAF. Note the squadron badge on both sides of the engine cowling.

  eduard

  53

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 54

  KITS 07/2021

  Spitfire LF Mk.lXc, MJ250, F/O Desmond Ibbotson, No. 601 Sqn., Italy, Summer, 1944

  Spitfire LF Mk.lXc, ML135, P/O Jerry Billing, No. 401 Sqn., RAF Tangmere, United Kingdom, June 7, 1944

  Spitfire LF Mk.lXc, ML 135, flown by Jerry Billing, No. 401 Sqn., France, July 1, 1944

  MJ250 was flown by No. 601 "County of London" Squadron from July 1944. The unit was operating from the airfields at Perugia,

  Loreto and Fano at that time. The aircraft was used primarily for dive-bombing operations. MJ250 survived the war but was

  scrapped shortly afterward. The MJ250 was regularly flown by F/O Desmond Ibbotson, DFC & Bar. This fighter ace is credited

  with 11 confirmed and four probable kills plus five damaged aircraft. He died on November 19, 1944 at the controls of Spitfire

  MH614. The camouflage colors of MJ250 were removed except for the upper engine and fuel tank cowling. These parts seem to

  be taken from another aircraft which retained the camouflage colors. Note the unit badge on the fin tip.

  Jerry Billing was one of many Canadians serving with RAF. He volunteered in October 1942 to help the Malta defense. After

  joining No. 185 Squadron, he fought over the island until March 1943, when he was downed by a Bf 109. Billing was transferred to

  No. 401 Squadron in 1944. He downed a Ju 88 bomber and damaged two Fw 190s on June 7, 1944, the second day of the invasion

  of Normandy. On July 1, 1944, his Spitfire ML135 was hit by AA fire and Billing belly-landed in no-man's land in France. He man-

  aged to get back to the UK with the help of a French family. After WWII, Jerry Billing re-enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force

  and became an instructor. In 1951 he joined the Blue Devils, a Canadian aerobatics team flying Vampire jets. Billing left the RCAF

  in 1964, becoming DeHavilland test pilot.

  Jerry Billing was shot down at the controls of ML135 on July 1, 1944, belly-landing seven miles south of Carentan, France.

  The D

  -

  Day stripes were left on the undersides only and the female name „Dorothy“ appeared under the windscreen.

  eduard

  54

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 55

  KITS 07/2021

  OVERTREES

  Spitfire Mk.IXc late version

  Cat. No. 8289X

  1/48

  Product page

  Product page

  Cat. No. 8281-LEPT1

  Recommended for Spitfire Mk.IXc late

  48765 Spitfire Mk.IXc landing flaps (PE

  -

  Set)

  48766 Spitfire Mk.IX surface panels (PE

  -

  Set)

  49639 Spitfire Mk.IXc (PE

  -

  Set)

  FE840 Spitfire Mk.IX seatbelts STEEL (PE

  -

  Set)

  644008 Spitfire Mk.IX late LööK (Brassin)

  644067 Spitfire Mk.I late LööKplus (Brassin)

  648099 Spitfire exhaust stacks fishtail (Brassin)

  648100 Spitfire Mk.IX cockpit (Brassin)

  648109 Spitfire 500lb bomb set (Brassin)

  648112 Spitfire Mk.IX engine (Brassin)

  648113 Spitfire Mk.IX gun bay (Brassin)

  648119 Spitfire wheels - 5 spoke, smooth tire (Brassin)

  648120 Spitfire - radio compartment (Brassin)

  648124 Spitfire undercarriage legs BRONZE (Brassin)

  648306 Spitfire Mk.IX top cowl late (Brassin)

  3DL48029 Spitfire Mk.IXc late version SPACE (3D Decal set)

  Cat. No. 644008

  Cat. No. 648100

  Cat. No. 6481112

  eduard

  55

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 56

  KITS 07/2021

  Product page

  1/48 Cat. No. 84169 REEDICE

  Eduard plastic parts

  4 markings options

  eduard

  56

  INFO Eduard - July 2021

• Page 57

  KITS 07/2021

  9./JG 1, Paderborn, Germany, May 1944

  WNr. 412179, flown by Uffz. Horst Petzschler, 2./JG 3, Burg near Magdeburg, Germany, May 1944

  The Bf 109G-6/AS was developed to intercept enemy aircraft at higher altitudes. This accounts for the camouflage paint con-

  sisting of just RLM 76. At unit level, these aircraft often received additional coats of then standard colours consisting of RLM 74

  and RLM 75 over the side and upper surfaces. The JG 1 unit emblem was applied to the nose, and this was a winged numeral

  '1' inside of a square, rotated to sit on one of its corners. On period photographs of Yellow '14', the red fuselage band is clearly

  visible, signifying the fact that this aircraft served within the Defense of the Reich system. The vertical bar located within it was

  a designator for III. Gruppe planes, and was always rendered in the Staffel colour. This was, in the case of the 9. Staffel, yellow.

  Some sources conclude that the fuselage code of Yellow '14' covered the earlier applied numeral '3', while others suggest that

  the covered designation was either the factory applied 'TO' or 'TQ'. We are offering both possibilities.

  Horst Petzschler was born in Berlin on September 1st, 1921 and joined the Luftwaffe on April 1st, 1941. After undergoing fighter

  pilot training, he was assigned to JG 51 on August 23rd, 1943, and it was there he would gain his first three kills. On April 13th,

  1944, he was