KITS 07/2022

Albatros D.V 2065/17, Oblt. Richard Flashar, Jasta 5, Boistrancourt, France, July 1917

Richard Flashar is proof that a good Jasta commanding officer does not need a long list of kills to his

credit necessarily. Flashar achieved only two victories, but due to his leadership and organizational

skills he commanded the elite Jasta 5 unit from June

1917 to May 1918. Finally, he became commander of

the parent Jagdgruppe 2. The end of Flashar's aircraft was rather unceremonious. It was borrowed

by Hans Joachim von Hippel, who entered a fight

with three or four Sopwith Camels and lost left lower wing during combat on February 18, 1918. More

to it the engine stopped, but von Hippel miraculously

managed to descent from some 13,000 ft (4,000 m)

and crash-land the Albatros. The aircraft flipped, but

pilot escaped unhurt. Aircraft of Jasta 5 had their

tails painted in green at the time and the fuselage

of Flashar's Albatros was painted in light grey, while

the wings were camouflaged in green and purple. The

most distinctive feature of the marking, the red dragon either differed on port and starboard in shape, or

the second known photo of Albatros with this painting shows different aircraft decorated in such a manner. It is hard to say, as the evidence is deficient...

Albatros D.Va, 7161/17, Uffz. Erich Gürgenz, Jasta 46, early 1918

This aircraft was probably flown by Erich Gurgenz,

a native of Berlin who served with Jasta 46 from

February 10, 1918. This airplane fell into the hands of

the Allies after being shot down and was displayed

on several occasions. It was restored in 1979 and is

displayed at the Smithsonian National Air and Space

60

INFO Eduard

Museum in Washington DC today. Gürgenz died next

day in captivity after being shot down. The writing

“Stropp“ means small or little boy in German. This

could either mean that Gürgenz

was not too tall or he was a bit of a tomboy. The aircraft had its fuselage in natural wood finish. There

are some indications that the wings were painted

green and mauve at the factory actually, and the

five-color pattern printed Flugzeugstoff wings were

replaced by French or Americans after the capture.

So it is possible to paint the wings similarly to the

marking D scheme, if someone feels so…

July 2022