08/2010

• Page 1

• Page 2

• Page 3

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Today’s editorial is fairly unusual, becau-

  se I am not writing it in my home office,

  or the kitchen and bedroom, where I’ve

  tended to write these in recent months, but

  on board KLM Flight 669 some 38 000 feet

  over the Atlantic. I’m flying with our team to

  Phoenix, Arizona to celebrate my birthday.

  Well, of course, the reason for our trip are

  the US IPMS Nationals, my Thursday birthday is just

  a bonus. However, at my age, it is nothing to celebrate,

  so I will be fully focused on discussions with modelers,

  as every year.

  I hope we will be finally able to issue this August’s

  info more quickly than the July issue. I’m very sorry

  for the July delay. As it is very often with new projects,

  we underestimated how difficult the new form

  of the newsletter could be, especially with the English

  translation. I trust we will be able to eliminate all, and for

  us, new, troubles, and report our activities in real time.

  Our new Youtube advertisement for the 1/48th scale

  OEFFAG was introduced also in late July, and it seems

  it quickly became very popular, much more than we

  expected. However, some people doubt the real kit will

  be really so easy to build. I can promise that, yes, it will.

  The OEFFAG is maybe our first kit release, where all

  of the theoretical premises regarding fit were fulfilled at

  100%, and the kit fits exceptionally well. There is no

  doubt in my mind that there will be some very important

  shape problem, such as wrong proportions of seat, or

  the size of the wheels, but I must confess that the fit and

  sharpness of the parts are my personal quality criterion.

  That’s not to say the exact shape is not important, surely

  it is, but there will be always too many individual points

  of view and individual interpretations of various historical

  and technical aspects, that there must be that discussion

  forever. Which is not a bad thing, such discussion pushes

  the evolution ahead, although it seems the more we learn

  on a specific subject, more questions arise. Which is

  nice, it gives our bunnies a good chance for a long life.

  You can see the beautiful OEFFAG built by Slava Vanous

  in this newsletter, and we all here at Eduard think it is

  a magnificent job by Slava. I personally hope he will be so

  kind and he will prepare an article about his approach to

  model building, it could be highly interesting, I think.

  The first August working day was extremely important

  for Eduard. That day, we received our new CNC milling

  machine, which will take the center position in our future

  kit and Brassin development. This machine is exceptional

  not only for its weight, which comes in at 9 tons, but it

  also represents the biggest investment in an individual

  machine in company history. We expect it will help us

  very much with timing of our new projects, as well with

  the quality of the final items. However, we expect that we

  will need some time, at least a couple of months, to fully

  integrate the new machine into our process, and to allow

  us to fully employ all advantages of the new machine.

  To understand this well, it needs to be realized that this

  new machine is two generations ahead of our topically

  used CNC milling machines, and the new machine has

  many processes that are automated, and it works faster

  and much more precisely. The accuracy of the milling is

  about one decimal place higher than the old machine,

  and this fact alone gives us a big chance to make much

  better kits than in the past with respect to the fit and

  quality of the details and surface.

  Except for the new machine installation, the summer

  period is usually not super exciting, unless you book your

  Greek vacation through a tourism office on the verge

  of collapse! I was with my wife in Norway. It was fine,

  maybe a little bit cooler, which I can now balance out

  in Arizona. Weather its hot or cold where you are, I hope

  you enjoy the Eduard August newsletter!

  Vladimir Sulc

  Instruction sheet,

  pictures and more

  information

  www.eduard.com

  Vol. 10 Sunday 15 August 2010 Issue 8

  New CNC milling machine

  Bf 109E-1: Wanderzirkus Janke

  Oeffag once again...

  Medallion of pilot Franta Toman

  Be ready for E-Day

  New CNC machine already in its place, under the care of engineers.

  Page 1

  EDITORIAL

• Page 4

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  August kits offer an excursion through pretty much

  the whole of the twentieth century. From the end of the

  First World War, we have the Nieuport 17 in a ProfiPACK

  boxing, to the other big one with a Weekend Kit offering

  of the Bf 109E-1, on through the war in Afghanistan.

  The latter is covered by a 1/48th scale Su-25K, which

  extends the line of Sukhois from KP with the addition

  of the extras defining it as a Limited Edition kit.

  The previous Su-7BKL/BMK and Su-22/Su-17M3 kits are

  gone, so be forewarned…

  September 2010 offers up some interesting pieces.

  Besides the Weekend boxing of the Avia B-534 Serie IV

  and the repopping of the Japanese Navy Aircraft Carrier

  Deck, we have the La-7 as a ProfiPACK kit and a Limited

  Edition P-39 Airacobra over New Guinea as a Dual

  Combo kit, which includes not only seven very interesting

  camouflage schemes, but also a sixteen page booklet on

  the subject. All kits are in 1/48th.

  September releases are covered in the section

  ‘On Approach’ at the end of this magazine. October

  will see the Albatros D.III Oeffag Series 153 (1/48th),

  the next in the line of Limited Edition Sukhois, this time

  with the Su-22M4 (1/48th), satisfying our own lovers of

  Czech aviation that month, and a Weekend edition Il-2

  (1/72nd).

  (JZ)

  Nieuport Ni-17 1/48 PROFIPACK Cat.No. 8051

  AUGUST KITS

  BUY Nieuport Ni-17 1/48 ProfiPACK (8051)

  Page 2

  

  

  Ni-17, N1887, Stg. Edward Hinkle,

  Esc. N124 Lafayette, Western Front,

  Spring 1917

  Ni-23, B‘3474, Capt. William C. Campbell,

  No. 1 Sqn RFC, Western Front,

  July 1917

  Ni-17, N3139,

  ten. Fulco Ruffo di Calabria,

  91a Squadriglia, Italian Front,

  Spring 1917

  Ni-17, Lt. Marius Ambrogi, Esc. N90,

  Western Front, 1917 - 1918

  Ni-23, B‘3578,

  Lt. Laurence Kert,

  No. 29 Sqn RFC, Western

  Front, November 1917

  The kit of the famous French fighter

  in the colors of the French Air Force,

  the Royal Flying Corps, and the

  Italian Air Force. Color photoetched,

  Express Mask, and all-color

  instructions are the standard

  makeup of a ProfiPACK kit.

• Page 5

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  AUGUST KITS

  Page 3

  Su-25K 1/48

  LIMITED EDITION

  Cat.No. 1150

  Model kit of a Soviet close support aircraft, covered by the Su-25 and Su-25K, offers six

  attractive marking options and a large decal sheet from Cartograph. 103 original parts from KP

  are complemented by detail components from the Eduard Brassin line, such as the seat, front fender,

  and chaff/flare dispensers. The kit naturally does not lack color photoetched brass components

  or an Express Mask.

  BUY Su-25K 1/48 Limited Edition (1150)

  Su-25, 160th UAP, Russian Naval Aviation. Russian Naval Aviation is a recent Frog-

  foot operator. This Su-25 was used by this service of the Russian Armed Forces, as can

  be deduced from the Naval Aviation flag situated on the engine nacelles. In recent times,

  the Russian Naval Aviation uses 8 Su-25UBP and 6 Su-25UTG twoseaters for Su-33

  pilot training. The singleseat Su-25 depicted was also used for training by the 160th UAP

  (Uchobnyi Aviatsyonnyi Polk – Training Air Regiment).

  Su-25, 368th OShAP Soviet Air Force. The combat career of the 368th OShAP is quite

  interesting. It was the third Su-25 regiment to serve in Afghanistan between October

  1986 and November 1987. Its Frogfoots flew from Baghram and Kandahar air bases.

  The regiment was transferred to Demmin-Tütow air base in East Germany, and then,

  along with 357th OshAP, was the only Su-25 equipped unit to serve in East Germany

  as a part of 16th Air Army. After the reunification of Germany, the unit flew back to the

  Soviet Union in 1993.

  Su-25K, No. 1002, 32nd zTL, Czech Air Force. This Su-25K served wearing the

  standard camouflage scheme from 1987, when it was delivered to the Czechoslovak Air

  Force. The new attractive „shark“ colours appeared on the Frogfoot in May 1996 at Par-

  dubice air base. The aircraft belonged o the 32nd zTL (32nd Tactical Air Force Airbase)

  and was to be used for exhibitions. The 32nd zTL was formed from the 30th bilp in 1993.

  Su-25K, No. 6019 „Anca“, 30th bilp.

  This export version of the Frogfoot was delivered to former Czechoslovakia in October

  1984. During military exercises at Slovak air base Malacky on August 25, 1988, the

  artwork of the pin-up girl and female name „Anca“ (Czech version of „Ann“) was applied

  to the starboard side of the nose. The artwork was erased just after the static exhibition

  and was never flown. The badge of City of Ostrava on the port engine nacelle refers to

  the titular name of the 30th bilp (Attack Air Regiment) „Ostravsky“ (Ostravian). This

  Frogfoot ended its military career in 2000 and was sold to an American client in 2004.

  Su-25, Red 29, 378th OShAP Soviet Air Force. The 378th OShAP (Otdyelnyi

  Shturmovoy Aviatsyonnyi Polk – Independent Attack Air Regiment), the operator of

  this Frogfoot A, fought in Afghanistan from 1984, flying numerous counter-insurgency

  missions against the Mujahideen. Afghan Mujahideen employed the Stinger personal

  portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile to shoot down enemy aircraft. The Stinger

  was developed in the United States, entered service in 1981, and was supplied to the

  Mujahidden by the CIA. As can be seen in photos, the Frogfoot was able to stay in the

  air after absorbing heavy damage by such weapons as the Stinger.

  Su-25K, No. 3009, Iraqi Air Force. Iraq was one of the foreign operators of the Frogfoot.

  These aircraft took part in the air war against Iran from 1987 and performed approxi-

  mately 900 combat sorties throughout the course of the war, carrying out the bulk of Iraqi

  air attack missions. During Operation Desert Storm in the early 90´s, seven Su-25Ks flew

  to Iran to avoid damage or capture. All the Iraqi Frogfoots remain in Iranian hands to this

  day. Only one aerial clash between US aircraft and Iraqi Frogfoots is recorded.

  Two Su-25Ks along with two MiG-21s were shot down by USAF F-15C Eagles

  on February 6, 1991

  Brassin details covering the Su-25

  kit – seat, front fender

  and chaff/flare dispensers.

• Page 6

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Bf 109E-1 1/32 WEEKEND EDITION Cat.No. 3401

  AUGUST KITS

  Page 4

  Bf 109E-1 W.Nr. 4072 Red “1”,

  Hptm. Hannes Trautloft, 2./JG 77,

  Juliusburg, Germany, September 1939

  „Red ‘1’ was flown by veteran of the Spanish Civil War, later the ace and

  Knight’s Cross recipient Hptm. Trautloft, and was an example of the old-

  est camouflage scheme used on the E-1. The upper surfaces are in the

  standard irregular patterns of two dark greens, RLM 70/71. The sharp

  demarcation between these and the lower RLM65 was very low on the

  fuselage, Upper surface colors also curled under the leading edges of

  the wings to extend to the bottom surfaces. Inconsistent upper and

  lower color demarcation appears on the engine cowling. The striking red

  markings reveal service with 2. Staffel and the shoe emblem identifies

  the planes connection to I./JG 77, which descended from IV./JG 132.

  It was with this aircraft that Hptm. Trautloft commanded his Staffel during

  the Polish campaign.

  For further information on the theme of this kit

  of Bf 109E-1, W.Nr. 4072, and of Hptm. Hannes

  Trautloft, don’t miss the article in the History

  Section on Page 9.

  BUY Weekend edition Bf 109E-1 1/32 (3401)

  OTHER KITS OF THE 1/32nd Bf 109E from the PROFIPACK BOXING

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  3001 Bf 109E-1

  3002 Bf 109E-3

  3003 Bf 109E-4

  3004 Bf 109E-7 Trop

• Page 7

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  632001 F-4C/D/E/F/G seat 1/32 (for Tamiya kit)

  648018 F-22A seat 1/48 (for Hasegawa kit)

  August Brassin offerings include two more seats

  for jets. The first is in 1/48th for the F-22A from Hasegawa

  (the wheels for which were released in May, 2010,

  Cat. No. 648017). The second Brassin set is a seat for the

  F-4 version C, D, E, F and G from Tamiya. We released

  a seat set for these birds back in May, 2010, but those

  were for the Hasegawa 1/48th scale kits, which is not

  the main difference. First and foremost, this set, 632001,

  is our first 1/32nd scale Brassin. The details of the Brassin

  technology are even more noticeable here. (JZ)

  AUGUST BRASSIN

  Page 5

  BUY 632001 F-4C/D/E/F/G seat 1/32 (TAM)

  BUY 648018 F-22A seat 1/48 (HAS)

  632001 F-4C/D/E/F/G seat 1/32 (for Tamiya kit)

  648018 F-22A seat 1/48 (for Hasegawa kit)

  Check out our first Youtube video! - 3D animation of Albatros D.III Oeffag 253 1/48 construction:

  BUY Albatros D.III Oeffag 253 1/48 ProfiPACK

• Page 8

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  48660 F-100D exterior 1/48 (Trumpeter)

  48662 F-100D undercarriage 1/48 (Trumpeter)

  36133 M-1127 blast panels 1/35 (Trumpeter)

  48655 Bf 110D exterior1/48 (Dragon)

  49500 F-111 late seatbelts 1/48 (Hobby Boss)

  49494 Bf 110D interior S.A. 1/48 (Dragon)

  36132 M-1131 FSV 1/35 (Trumpeter)

  36116 T-34/85 1/35 (AFV Club)

  

  36117

  Sherman Firefly Mk.Ic Hybrid

  1/35 (Dragon)

  36134

  Sherman Firefly Mk.Ic Hybrid fenders

  1/35 (Dragon)

  36130

  M-1131 blast panels

  1/35 (Trumpeter)

  49499

  F-111A interior S.A.

  1/48 (Hobby Boss)

  AUGUST PHOTOETCHED

  Page 6

  Photoetched for this month is represented by 18 sets

  and five Zooms. The offerings will be most welcomed

  by owners and builders of the Trumpeter F-100, since

  sets for this kit have been rather impatiently anticipated.

  This month offers up three sets for this kit and one interior

  Zoom. Turning to AFVs, close attention has been paid

  to Trumpeter’s M-1127 in 1/35th scale. If you’re building

  the M-1131, don’t despair, that there is only one set

  offered for it this month. September will add another

  three. (JZ)

  Left Photo: One of our PE designers, Vladislav Kratochvil, working

  on a set for the A5M2b Claude in 1/32nd scale from MPM.

  The set will come out in October, 2010 under the Catalog Number

  32676 (more in our Facebook gallery here).

  BUY NOW (e-shop www.eduard.com)

  PHOTOETCHED - SEPTEMBER 2010 SELECTION

  48660 F-100D exterior 1/48 (Trumpeter)

  48662 F-100D undercarriage 1/48 (Trumpeter)

  36133 M-1127 blast panels 1/35 (Trumpeter)

  48655 Bf 110D exterior1/48 (Dragon)

  49500 F-111 late seatbelts 1/48 (Hobby Boss)

  49494 Bf 110D interior S.A. 1/48 (Dragon)

  36132 M-1131 FSV 1/35 (Trumpeter)

  36116 T-34/85 1/35 (AFV Club)

  

  36117

  Sherman Firefly Mk.Ic Hybrid

  1/35 (Dragon)

  36134

  Sherman Firefly Mk.Ic Hybrid fenders

  1/35 (Dragon)

  36130

  M-1131 blast panels

  1/35 (Trumpeter)

  49499

  F-111A interior S.A.

  1/48 (Hobby Boss)

• Page 9

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  AUGUST BIG-ED SETS

  Page 7

  BUY BIG3287 P-51D 1/32 (TRU)

  BUY BIG4931 B-57B 1/48 (AIR)

  BUY BIG3288 F-8E French Navy 1/32 (TRU)

  BUY BIG4932 B-24D 1/48 (REV/MON)

  32216 P-51D exterior (TRU)

  32237 F-8E exterior (TRU)

  32237 F-8E interior S.A. (TRU)

  32233 F-8E/J weapon (TRU)

  BIG3287 P-51D 1/32 (TRUMPETER)

  BIG4931 B-57B 1/48 (AIRFIX)

  32216 P-51D exterior 32226 P-51D wheel wells

  32627 P-51D interior S.A.

  32218 P-51D gun bay

  JX083 P-51D

  48630 B-57B/G landing flaps 49495 B-57B seatbelts 49465 B-57B S.A.

  EX279 B-57B

  285,1 mm

  130 mm

  BIG4932 B-24D 1/48 (REVELL/MONOGRAM)

  BIG3288 F-8E FRENCH NAVY 1/32 (TRUMPETER)

  32233 F-8E/J weapon 32237 F-8E exterior

  32241 F-8E/J

  wing central section

  32501 Remove

  Before Flight

  JX088 F-8E

  32648 F-8E/J M.B.Mk.7A

  France seatbelts

  32637 F-8E interior

  48634 B-24 bomb bay 48635 B-24D exterior

  48647 B-24 surface panels

  49473 B-24D front interior

  48636 B-24D rear interior

  489474 B-24D cockpit interior

  489474

  B-24D seatbelts EX293 B-24D

  223 mm

• Page 10

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  NEW ITEMS FOR AUGUST 2010

  COMMENTS AND INPUT FROM J&T

  page 8

  

  

  BUY NOW (e-shop www.eduard.com)

  MODELY / KITS

  8051 Nieuport Ni-17 1/48 ProfiPACK

  1150 Su-25K 1/48 Limited

  3401 Bf 109E-1 1/32 Weekend

  BRASSIN

  648018 F-22A seat 1/48 Hasegawa

  632001 F-4C/D/E/F/G seat 1/32 Tamiya

  LEPTY / PE-SETS

  32663 Su-27UB/Su-30 Flanker seatbelts 1/32 Trumpeter

  36116 T-34/85 1/35 AFV Club

  36123 T19 105mm HMC 1/35 Dragon

  36128 M-1127 additional armour 1/35 Trumpeter

  36131 M-1127 slat armour 1/35 Trumpeter

  36132 M-1131 FSV 1/35 Trumpeter

  36133 M-1127 blast panels 1/35 Trumpeter

  48655 Bf 110D exterior 1/48 Dragon

  48660 F-100D exterior 1/48 Trumpeter

  48662 F-100D undercarriage 1/48 Trumpeter

  49494 Bf 110D interior S.A. 1/48 Dragon

  49500 F-111 late seatbelts 1/48 Hobby Boss

  49503 F-100D interior S.A. 1/48 Trumpeter

  72503 Su-27 Flanker A exterior 1/72 ICM

  72510 Su-27 ladder 1/72 ICM

  73018 Remove Before Flight yellow/black 1/72

  73350 Su-27 Flanker A S.A. 1/72 ICM

  73355 F/A-18A S.A. 1/72 Academy

  ZOOMY / ZOOMS

  33068 Su-27UB Flanker C interior S.A. 1/32 Trumpeter

  FE494 Bf 110D interior S.A. 1/48 Dragon

  FE503 F-100D interior S.A. 1/48 Trumpeter

  SS350 Su-27 Flanker A S.A. 1/72 ICM

  SS355 F/A-18A interior S.A. 1/72 Academy

  MASKY / MASKS

  EX308 Sea King AEW Mk.2 1/48 Hasegawa

  EX309 A-7D 1/48 Hobby Boss

  EX310 Bf 109F-2 1/48 Zvezda

  XT162 Sherman Firefly wheel masks 1/35 Dragon

  BIGY / BIG-ED sets

  BIG3287 P-51D 1/32 Trumpeter

  BIG3288 F-8E FRENCH NAVY 1/32 Trumpeter

  BIG4931 B-57B 1/48 Airfix/REV

  BIG4932 B-24D 1/48 REV/MON

• Page 11

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Most people con-

  nect Hannes Trautloft

  with his association

  with Jagdgeschwader

  54 ‘Grünherz’ (‘Green

  Heart’), which is under-

  standable, since this

  was the most important

  era of his military career. What is lesser known is that

  he had already a distinguished military past behind him

  by the time the Second World War began. In the first

  year of the war, he performed command duties with

  two units that had no connection to JG 54, while JG 54

  (with 3 Gruppen) was formed by Hannes Trautloft. A closer

  look at this period of his military career is warranted,

  as is a more detailed look at the Messerschmitt Bf 109E-1,

  which this month appears as a Weekend Edition kit.

  SECRET TRAINING IN RUSSIA

  AND A LEGIONNAIRE IN SPAIN

  Hannes Trautloft was born on March 3 rd, 1912

  in Grossobringen at Weimar / Thüringen. This area

  is known as the ‘Green Heart of Germany’. As a child,

  he felt very much at home in the forest, helped by his

  father who performed the function of a gameskeeper

  in Thüringen. So, it becomes apparent why Hannes

  Trautloft felt comfortable in the hunt, and why his aircraft

  were adorned with a green heart. His family was evidently

  well situated, as Hannes was accepted for study at

  Germany’s school for transport pilots in Schleissheim

  after finishing high school in 1931. These were actually

  secretive studies for future military fliers.

  Secret training in the case of Trautloft led all the way

  to Russia. The German leadership at the time signed

  a deal with its Soviet counterpart on the training of

  German soldiers at Lipetsk. The secret program lasted

  from 1925 to 1933, when it was cancelled by the Nazi

  government. It included the development of fighter pilots,

  as well as other fliers. Trautloft gained four months worth

  of experience here from May, 1932. It is interesting to

  ponder the possibility that he would fight against Soviet

  fliers in two wars.

  After his return to Germany, he was attached to Infantry

  Regiment No.15 in October, and over the two subsequent

  years he underwent officer training at the relevant facility

  in Dresden. In October, 1934, he was given the position

  Hannes Trautloft

  and Wanderzirkus Janke

  Jan Bobek

  of instructor with the rank of lieutenant at Schleissheim’s

  school for fighter pilots.

  In April, 1936, he joined III.(schwere)/JG 134

  in Cologne (Köln am Rhein) equipped with Heinkel He 51

  biplanes. This unit later gave way to heavy fighter Gruppe

  I.(Zestörer)/LG 1 with Meserschmitt Bf 110s. Of course,

  the peace time service of Trautloft would dramatically

  change. In July, 1936, the Spanish Civil War erupted,

  and Hitler decided to support Franco’s Nationalists with

  materials and combat units. It wasn’t only the Germans

  and the Italians that stood with the Nationalists as

  foreign volunteers. It is not a well known fact that combat

  against the Republicans was also participated in by the

  Portuguese, Romanians, French and Irish, with other

  nationalities being represented in smaller numbers.

  For example, American firms contributed significant

  quantities of oil and transport equipment (with American

  volunteers fighting on the side of the Republicans).

  Among the Legionnaires fighting for Franco was also

  Hannes Trautloft. He came to Spain in August, 1937 as

  a civilian, although in actual fact he was a member of the

  Legion Condor. Along with other pilots and mechanics,

  he had to assemble the first six Heinkel He 51s of his

  unit. Summers in Spain run hot, and combat missions

  were started off by pilots in the cockpits of their aircraft

  wearing sporting clothes. Trautloft would start out

  wearing his tennis shorts and shirt. Together with Staffel

  CO Oblt. Kraft Eberhardt, Trautloft would gain the very

  first German fighter kills since the First World War.

  On August 25, 1936 they claimed one Bregeut XIX each.

  But, on August 30, Trautloft was himself shot down

  and had to bail out of his aircraft. He was fortunate to

  endure this fate over friendly territory, and even so, the

  high flying non-Spanish speaking tennis player was met

  with suspicion from Nationalist troops. He was the first

  German downed during this conflict!

  HISTORY

  Page 9

  (Hannes Trautloft portrait by Petr Štěpánek; profiles of Bf 109E-1 - Miroslav Horčička)

  Bf 109E-1 W.Nr. 4072

  Hptm. Hannes Trautloft,

  2./JG 77, Juliusburg,

  Německo, září 1939

• Page 12

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Hannes Trautloft gained a total of five aerial

  victories in Spain up to December, 1936. It was already

  becoming evident what his strong and weak points were.

  He was a capable leader with good organizational skills,

  commanded excellent understanding of the technical

  aspects of aircraft, and was a superb pilot. However,

  he suffered from a lack of something that was generally

  common to pilots that achieved a greater number of kills

  in the Second World War; good eyesight. In his memoirs

  from Spain, Trautloft wrote of his tendency to spot enemy

  aircraft later than his colleagues, his tendency to confuse

  enemy aircraft with Italian ones, and so on.

  His last kill was a Polikarpov I-16 Rata, which,

  for an He 51 would have been an annoying enemy.

  At this time, the Germans had decided to combat test

  their new fighter, the Messerschmitt Bf 109, and one of

  the pilots to conduct the testing was to be Trautloft. Three

  prototypes were sent to Spain: V3, V4 and V5 (possibly

  V6). The situation was somewhat an improvisation,

  as there was no factory pilot available for any schooling

  or advice. Additionally, there were still teething

  troubles with the type, to say nothing of specific Bf 109

  characteristics. So, it comes as no surprise that one of

  the prototypes crashed immediately during a failed take-

  off. Hannes Trautloft concentrated on fine tuning the use

  of the other prototypes, which took about a month (from

  mid December, 1936 to the middle of January). By that

  time, even Trautloft had several forced landings behind

  him, and each flight with the new Messerschmitts brought

  new challenges. During the first combat flight on January

  20th, 1937 out of Villa del Prado, with Hannes Trautloft

  at the controls, another problem was encountered

  when the tail wheel failed to lower, and the rudder was

  damaged on landing.

  Hannes Trautloft, however, did a great service

  to Messerschmitt and the Luftwaffe. He helped to

  uncover provisional problems and other shortcomings of

  the type under combat conditions. The prototype with the

  call numbers ‘6-1’ carried Trautloft’s personal emblem,

  the green heart as a reminder of his ancestral Thuringia.

  Trautloft returned to Germany in March, 1937, and in the

  same month, the Legion Condor received its first series

  Messerschmitt Bf 109s.

  AIR RACES IN ZURICH

  After his return from Spain, Trautloft began to share his

  combat experiences. First, he served as CO of 1. Staffel

  u.l./JG 135 (later I./JG 51) in the Bavarian town of Bad

  Aibling, until the Luftwaffe decided to utilize him for more

  representative purposes.

  The first task was to participate in the opening

  ceremonies for an airfield at Budapest. An aerobatic

  group of Messerschmitt Bf 109s went through their

  paces at this event in June, 1937. A more significant

  event for Trautloft came at the end of July, 1937, with his

  participation in the 4th International Air Meet in Zurich,

  Switzerland (IV. Internationales Flugmeeting Zürich).

  This included large air races that were organized every

  five years. Civil as well as military aircraft took part.

  The German team was composed of people like Ernst

  Udet, Major Seidemann

  (NOTE 1), and even General der

  Flieger Erhard Milch.

  Much attention was garnered by the five Messerschmitt

  Bf 109s, four prototypes and one series production Bf 109 B.

  Three of the aircraft were powered by the Jumo 210 G

  (730 hp), and two with the significantly uprated Daimler-

  Benz DB 601 (1565 and 1658 hp).

  The main opposition to the Germans at these races

  were the Czechoslovaks with four Avia B-534s and eight

  aerobatic Avia Ba-122. Unfortunately, the British did not

  attend with their Hurricanes and Spitfires.

  Ernst Udet had remarkably bad luck, crashing twice

  with Bf 109 V-14 (with a DB 601). The Germans, except

  for one occasion, were pressured to continue racing with

  only the Messerschmitts powered by the lower rated

  Jumo 210G, and as such, during one event, the aircraft

  were outpaced by a Dornier 17M V-1.

  Probably the most intense races were the Alp circuits

  with three member formations on July 27 (Alpenrundflug

  Kategorie C: Ein-oder Mehrsitzer in Dreierkette),

  which came to do a battle between the Germans

  and the Czechoslovaks. The course was in three

  sections: Dübendorf – Thun, Thun – Bellinzona, and

  Bellinzona – Dübendorf. The German effort was flown

  by Hptm. Restemeier, Oblt. Trautloft and Oblt. Schleif.

  The Czech B-534s were flown by Jaroslav Hlaďo,

  Frantisek Peřina and Jaroslav Šnobl

  (NOTE 2). Both sides

  endured technical problems, and the Germans prevailed

  with a time of 58:52.7 with an average speed of 374.8

  km/h. The Czechoslovaks came in about 2 minutes later

  with an average speed of 361.2 km/h. In third place were

  the French, with Dewoitine 510s with an average speed

  of 336.0 km/h.

  The same course was flown by individuals, where

  the best time was submitted by Major Seidemann

  (56:47.1), while Jaroslav Hlaďo was second at 63:32.8.

  Page 10

  HISTORY

  NOTE 1. Hans Seidemann also underwent aerial training in

  Lipetsk, Russia. After serving some time with Legion Condor,

  he gained the function of Staff Chief. At air races Challenge

  International de Tourisme 1934, he finished third of all with

  a Fieseler Fi-97 (D-IPUS). Over the Second World War,

  he led III./LG 1, led aerial operations in Africa, and later

  became head of VIII. Fliegerkorps. He was awarded

  the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leave.

  NOTE 2. Jaroslav Hlaďo, during the war in Great Britain and

  after service with several British squadrons, took command

  of No.312 Squadron (Czechoslovak) RAF and later the Czecho-

  slovak Fighter Wing. Frantisek Peřina gained eleven confirmed

  victories with the French Air Force. He later also served with

  No.312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron RAF, where gained one more

  victory. After the war, he emigrated out of Czechoslovakia

  to avoid imprisonment by the communists. He moved to the

  United States where he worked for Weber Aircraft Co. in San

  Fernando Valley where he was involved with the manufacture

  of components for the Gemini Program and the Boeing 747.

  After 1989, he and his wife Ann returned to the Czech Republic,

  where he was actively involved with the Veteran’s Organization

  of Czechoslovak Airmen RAF. He died in 2006.

• Page 13

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  FIGHTER WING RICHTHOFEN,

  WANDERZIRKUS JANKE or WHERE DID

  THAT DISCARDED SHOE COME FROM?

  In the fall of 1937,

  Hannes Trautloft was

  named commanding

  officer and head of

  training at Werneuchen’s fighter

  school. In July, 1938, finally came the

  longed for attachment to a fighter squadron,

  and that to the elite Richthofen unit. Trautloft

  was named CO of 12. Staffel within the framework of

  Jagdgeschwader 132 in Werneuchen. The Gruppe was

  equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf 109 D-1, and the

  Gruppenkommandeur was Hptm. Johannes Janke.

  He became a friend of Trautloft’s, and more will be

  warranted about him later.

  Hannes Trautloft almost met his Czechoslovak

  opponents from Zurich in combat in September, 1938.

  Germany and Czechoslovakia were on the brink of

  war. History and fate dictated that war would be averted

  at that time, and Germany was granted large sections

  of Czechoslovakia, with some going to Hungary, and,

  to a lesser extent, Poland. Germany annexed the western

  Czechoslovak frontier which was populated mainly by

  Sudeten Germans, and for this action deemed air cover

  necessary.

  One unit that was allocated to this action was Janke’s

  IV./JG 132 ‘Richthofen’. Trauthoft, as a result, spent most

  of October in Karlovy Vary (Karlsbad), and at the end of

  the month he and his unit moved to Moravská Třebová

  (Mährisch – Trübau), where he remained until February,

  1939. At the beginning of November, 1938, Janke’s

  unit was extracted from ‘Richthofen’, and was given

  the designation I./JG 331, and from May, 1939, was

  re-designated its likely best known designation, I./JG 77.

  During this evolution, Hannes Trautloft’s Staffel changed

  its position within the Gruppe, and at the time was

  2. Staffel carrying red tactical markings.

  In February, Janke’s unit moved to today’s Wroclaw,

  to the Breslau-Schöngarten airfield in German Upper

  Silesia. The unit did not remain there for very long, as in

  March, 1939, Hitler managed to annex the remainder of

  Bohemia and Moravia (in former Czechoslovakia) thanks

  to the infamous policy of appeasement on the part of the

  world. Janke’s unit again found itself covering ground

  units, and for a change, found itself in the Moravian town

  of Olomouc (Olmütz).

  It is easy to lose track of all the places that Janke’s

  unit was stationed. For the time, the movement was

  uncommon, and covered relatively large distances.

  For fighter and transport pilots, that belonged to the

  Jagdgruppe, this was not a big issue. Naturally, they

  simply flew to where they were ordered to be. But, the

  remaining Gruppe personnel, which numbered about

  600, would generally be moved via ground transport.

  It’s no wonder, then, that members of I./JG 77 ironically

  dubbed themselves ‘Wanderzirkus Janke’ (Janke’s

  Travelling Circus), and expressed their feelings resulting

  from constant relocation through their unit symbol,

  a discarded shoe.

  THE WAR AGAINST POLAND AND FURTHER

  FATE OF TRAUTLOFT’S ‘RED 1’

  In April. 1939, Janke’s Wanderzirkus moved again

  from Olomouc to Breslau-Schöngarten airfield, and in

  May began to re-equip from the Messerschmitt Bf 109 D-1

  to ‘light’ Bf 109 E-1s and ‘heavy’ Bf 109 E-3s. At the end

  of August, I./JG 77 moved to the field at Juliusburg (today

  Page 11

  HISTORY

  Hptm. Hannes Trautloft with his men from 2. Staffel Jagdgeschwader 77

  at Juliusburg airfield several days prior to the invasion of Poland.

  In the background is his personal Emil Red ‘1’ (W.Nr. 4072).

  On the front of it is the discarded shoe marking, the emblem of I./JG 77,

  which was nicknamed ‘Wanderzirkus Janke’. Trautloft’s aircraft has the

  fuselage stripes identifying it as the unit CO’s.

  (Trautloft via J. Prien)

  Bf 109E-1 W.Nr. 4072

  2./JG 77

  Hannes Trautloft resting in front of his aircraft. After leaving 2./JG 77,

  his Red ‘1’ was taken over by Oblt. Eckehard Priebe.

  (Lächler via J. Prien)

• Page 14

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Page 12

  Dobroszyce not far from Wroclaw) to be in a location

  better suited to support the attack on Poland. There are

  two color films from this period, available on the internet,

  that capture not only Trautloft, but also aircraft from his

  2. Staffel. Janke’s personal aircraft, and that of Trautloft’s

  Red ‘1’, carried fuselage stripes behind the crosses that

  clearly signified aircraft of the unit CO.

  When the war began on September 1st, 1939, Janke’s

  I./JG 77 was tasked with covering the advance on

  Krakow. The very first aerial victory in the war was gained

  on September 3rd by Lt. Karl-Gottfried Nordmann with

  the downing of a PZL-23

  (NOTE 3).

  The second victory over the Poles was gained

  by Hannes Trautloft. It involved the flaming of a PZL-23

  at 0820h over Warta, about 15km northwest of Sieradz.

  An eye witness to the event was Oblt. Eckehard Priebe

  of 2./JG 77: ‘In Poland, we had few encounters with the

  enemy. Hannes Trautloft, with who’s Staffel I flew, shot

  down a Polish observer. It crashed into a marsh, and one

  crewmember bailed out, but his chute snagged the tail of

  the aircraft, and it dragged him down behind it. Lt. ‘Hubs’

  Mütherich shot at the dark squiggle in the swamp, the

  later holder of the Knight’s Cross figuring that if it’s shot

  down, it should burn.’

  (NOTE 4)

  The crew that died in this tragic manner apparently

  belonged to reconnaissance unit 32. Eskadra

  Rozpoznawcza. Trautloft’s victory corresponds to the

  events under which a PZL-23B coded 44.55 was lost.

  Its crew were composed of ppor. pil. Adam Kandzior,

  plut. pil. Czesław Kruszewski and kpr. strz. Kazimier

  Tyrakowski.

  Janke’s unit gained one more aerial victory, but further

  successes were elusive. Polish resistance ended without

  further loss of aerial personnel, but the end of September

  saw the unit go through an important change. Hannes

  Trautloft was transferred to take command of an entirely

  different fighter Gruppe, and 2. Staffel JG 77 command

  was picked up by Oblt. Priebe. He also took over

  Trautloft’s Red ‘1’ (W.Nr. 4072), previous to which Priebe

  flew Bf 109E-1 Red ‘13’ (W.Nr. 3378)

  NOTE 3. Nordmann later became Kommodor JG 51, gained

  a total of 78 kills, and was awarded the Knight’s Cross with Oak

  Leave. He spent the latter part of his life in Connecticut, USA.

  NOTE 4. Citation Prien J.: Geschichte des Jagdgeschwaders 77

  Teil, page 80. Hubert Mütherich gained a total of 43 kills

  and later became CO of 5./JG 54. He died on September 9,

  1941 not far from Leningrad. He was shot down by an enemy

  fighter and hit a tree on attempting to land. From the wreckage

  photos, it is evident that the aircraft didn’t burn either.

  Wanderzirkus Janke at Odendorf base, in the summer of 1940.

  On the cowling of the aircraft in the foreground, the ‘Lumpenstiefel’

  emblem of I./JG 77 can be seen.

  Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-058-1784A-14 via Wikimedia Commons

  Gruppenkommandeur Hptm. Johannes ‘Jänki’ Janke (left) with officers

  of his Stab. In the fall of 1940, his Gruppe was made subordinate

  to Hannes Trautloft’s JG 54, which was paradoxical since Janke

  was formerly Trautloft’s superior. Janke was transferred to Stab

  1. Jagddivision in February 1941.

  Bundesarchiv 58-1784-17 via J. Prien

  Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-1 of 2. Staffel from I. Gruppe Jagdgeschwader

  20 at Brandenburg-Briest base. Trautloft led this unit from September 23,

  1939 to August 24, 1940. In July, 1940, it was redesignated III./JG 51.

  Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1997-026-32A via Wikimedia Commons

  HISTORY

• Page 15

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010 page 13

  At the end of September, 1939, I./JG 77 was moved

  to western Germany, and Priebe managed a kill on the

  very first combat flight in the area. It occurred on the

  11th of October over Lauterburg, and the victim was

  a French high-wing Mureaux 115 (No. 12) reconnaissance

  plane from GAO 553. The French crew’s mission

  was to photograph bridges over the Rhein around

  Worth. S/Lt Laluée was injured and taken prisoner,

  while Lt. B. Hautiere was killed.

  At the beginning of 1940, fuselage of Red ‘1’ received

  a coat of light blue paint, but the fuselage stripes behind

  the cross remained. I./JG 77 participated in Blitzkrieg

  operations in May and June, and Oblt. Priebe gained

  his second and third victories. First, he downed a French

  Morane MS.406 on May 15th at 1455h over Dinant.

  His third and last came on the evening of May 19th over

  Cambrai. Priebe’s 2. Staffel tangled with eight Hurricanes.

  Priebe and Mütherich managed one Hurricane each,

  but Priebe was wounded and his Red ‘1’ was damaged.

  This ends the known history of Bf 109 E-1 with Werk

  Nummer 4072. It was built in the summer of 1939 by

  Focke-Wulf as part of a ninety aircraft production run,

  and after its use by Trautloft and Priebe, further

  information on this aircraft is lacking, aside from appearing

  in kit form by Eduard in the beginning of the 21st cen-

  tury, first as an option among four in Profipack form

  (Cat.No. 3001) and in August, 2010, in a Weekend Edition

  kit (Cat.No. 3401).

  Janke’s ‘Traveling Circus’ was transferred to northern

  Germany after combat in France. Getting back into

  intensive combat occurred in August 1940, in the

  middle of the Battle of Britain. The first combat against

  the defenders of Albion occurred on August 31, 1940.

  The first action resulted in the capture of Eckehard

  Priebe. During late morning fighting, his Messerschmitt

  (W.Nr. 4076) suffered a gun problem. In combat over the

  Thames, he tried to disengage, but had Spitfires bearing

  down on him from behind. Eventually, he bailed out of his

  heavily damaged plane over Elham. It was a black day for

  Janke’s unit. Over the course of several combat flights,

  it lost seven machines and six pilots.

  In the fall of 1940, I./JG 77 was redesignated IV./JG 51.

  GOOD MORNING,

  HERR GESCHWADERKOMMODORE!

  At the end of September, 1939, Trautloft took control

  of the fighter Gruppe designated I./JG 20 in Brandenburg

  – Briest. At the time, the unit was provisionally placed

  under JG 2 ‘Richthofen’ and in the future was to have

  been transformed into III./JG 2. The plans changed,

  however, and progressively, Trautloft’s unit was attached

  to JG 3 and finally JG 51. During ‘Sitzkrieg’ (or The

  Phoney War), I./JG 20 was able to down only two enemy

  aircraft, but during the fighting in the west in May, 1940,

  thirty-five were claimed. Hannes Trautloft accounted for

  two Spitfires during this period, and his Adjutant was

  Lt. Werner Kalau vom Hofe, who would serve as such for

  the next several years.

  From the end of June, 1940, Trautloft and his Gruppe

  were again engaged in heavy combat. Through July and

  August, I./JG 20 (through which time it was redesignated

  III./JG 51), was constantly engaged against the RAF.

  By August 24th, the unit accounted for over seventy

  aerial victories, with relatively low losses – six pilots

  lost, two injured, and 13 aircraft lost or heavily damaged.

  The unit’s CO gained only two kills, while his Adjutant

  claimed three, and the CO of 7. Staffel and future

  legendary fighter pilot Walter Oesau got fourteen.

  Why is the 24th August so important? That was the

  day that Hannes Trautloft was called back, and made

  Kommodore Jagdgeschwader 54. It was for him difficult

  to fathom. He was only 28, and was put in command of

  a fighter wing of over 2,000 men!

  He heard of the promotion unofficially a day in advance,

  and bearer of the good news was none other than

  Werner Mölders. Trautloft was awakened in the morning

  by the phone call, with the greeting ‘Good Morning,

  Herr Geschwaderkommodore!’. He basically warned

  the caller that it was too early in the morning for such

  gags, but he was assured that the information had ‘come

  from a reliable source’.

  Messerschmitt Bf 109 F of Jagdgeschwader 54 ‘Grünherz’ at a Russian

  airfield at the beginning of 1942. At this time the whole of JG 54 adopted

  the personal emblem of Hannes Trautloft – the green heart – as its own.

  Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-395-1533-06A via Wikimedia Commons

  Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 of III./JG 54 at a Russian airfield in the fall

  of 1942. A non-standard camouflage scheme consisting of no less than

  three dark colors are visible on the top surfaces. Jagdgeschwader 54

  used its own camouflage customized for the conditions on the eastern

  Front practically from the beginning of the war against the USSR.

  Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-398-1794-18 via Wikimedia Commons

  HISTORY

• Page 16

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Page 14

  In his memoirs, Trautloft looks back at the nomination

  with respect and humility. He described as such:

  Staffelkapitän fights, Kommandeur leads, but the

  Kommodore – its up to him to shape the Geschwader,

  define its character, and give it its very spirit’.

  The new Kommodore meets up with his former

  brothers in arms from I./JG 77 and his friend, Janke,

  at the end of August. And that sets up a paradoxal

  situation, because I./JG

  Furthermore, so that things weren’t too simple,

  Trautloft’s unit wasn’t a single entity. Its only original

  component was I./JG 54. But, II./JG 54 was up to the

  beginning of July, 1940, an individual, standalone unit

  with the designation I./JG 76 (earlier falling under JG 2),

  and III./JG 54 was also standalone – originally carrying

  the designation I./JG 21, and operationally falling under

  JG 27. Trautloft then was faced with a formidable task:

  take these individual components, and meld them into

  one unit, and successfully deploy it in combat.

  Another conflict into which Trautloft led his fighters was

  the Balkan campaign. Participants included II. and III./JG

  54, and, of course, the Kommodore and his Stab. The

  German pilots met the Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-3s that

  were flown by the Yugoslavs in combat. After the end of

  the conflict, Trautloft flew a captured glider over Belgrade,

  which ended in a crash, but without injuries.

  In June, 1941, the entire Jagdgeschwader 54 took

  part in the invasion of the Soviet Union. By that time, the

  unit emblem had become Trautloft’s Green Heart, and

  the pilot’s accepted as their own. It began to appear on

  aircraft, ground equipment, and even on the collar of the

  Kommodor’s dachshund. Even to this day, some JG 54

  veterans have the Green Heart on their mail box.

  The different type of combat and the environmental

  conditions found in the Soviet Union compared to western

  Europe quickly led JG 54 to modify the camouflage of

  its aircraft. An example can be found again with the

  Kommodor’s aircraft, which, at the beginning of the

  Soviet campaign, had little in common with standard

  camouflage schemes. There are several theories as

  to where these colors came from. Anders Hjortsberg,

  in a commentary with one of his illustrations in this article,

  summarizes most of these. Personally, I feel that over the

  course of three years of war, during which JG 54 modified

  the camouflage of its aircraft, led to all of the following

  theories, and even the possibility of the use of paints from

  other sources.

  Bf 109 G-2 flown by Hannes Trautloft in the summer of 1942. Color

  photos of this aircraft show that the upper camouflage colors probably

  consisted of RLM 70, RLM 02 and a rather bright medium green not

  corresponding to any contemporary Luftwaffe color. The aircraft was

  also photographed without the broad yellow fuselage band. This

  machine had pressure-sealing vertical head armor equal to G-1 or G-3

  version.

  There have been many theories about the non-standard colors used by

  JG 54 on the Eastern front. One has been the use of captured Soviet

  paints. Suggestions have also been made that Finnish paint had been

  used and the Finns indeed used a bright medium green that comes

  close to what some JG 54 machines wore. Two theories involve the use

  of RLM colors. One, as put forward by Ken Merrick, is that JG 54 used

  the old colors RLM 61 and RLM 62 in a field test before their re-intro-

  duction as RLM 81 and RLM 82 respectively. The final theory is that

  JG 54 mixed regular camouflage colors like RLM 70 and RLM 71

  with parking colors like RLM 04 and RLM 23 to obtain the browns

  and greens found in some photos. Indeed, a mix of RLM 04 and RLM

  71 could be used to create the medium color seen on Trautloft’s G-2.

  Text and Illustrations by Anders Hjortsberg

  W. Nr. 19456 was originally a Bf 109 G-4 which was damaged in

  a bombing raid of Trapani on May 10, 1943 whilst on strength with

  6./JG 27. When it was repaired, it was also upgraded to G-6 standard,

  although it retained the earlier wheel configuration with spoked main

  wheels and open tailwheel well. Trautloft used it in June, 1943.

  It is finished in a standard RLM 74/75/76 camouflage scheme

  which has been additionally mottled with what appears to be RLM 70.

  During autumn 1943 this machine was flown by members of Stab

  of the General der Jagdflieger, among others by Hannes Trautloft

  and Günther Lützow. Text and Illustrations by Anders Hjortsberg

  HISTORY

• Page 17

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010 Page 15

  During the vast majority of combat on the Eastern

  Front under Trautloft’s command, JG 54 operated over

  the northern and central sectors within the framework

  of Luftflotte 1. Despite the size of the area of operations,

  Trautloft managed to maintain contact with all elements

  of the fighter wing and personally knew all the pilots,

  including non commissioned officers. Under his

  command, there was a line of successful fighter pilots

  and commanders, such as Nowotny, Kittel, Phillip,

  Beisswenger, Hrabak, Ostermann, etc.

  Trautloft was awarded the Knight’s Cross on July 27th,

  1941, not for his number of kills, but more for the overall

  success of JG 54. It is interesting to note that he received

  the German Cross in Gold, which typically preceded the

  awarding of the Knight’s Cross, on August 17th, 1942.

  The number of aerial victories attained by the Germans

  on the Eastern Front, compared to those reached on the

  Western Front, were nothing short of unbelievable. JG 54

  reached its 1000th on August 1st, 1941 (Lt. Ostermann),

  the 2000th was bagged by Ofw. Klemm on April 4th,

  1942, and no. 3000 came on September 14th, 1942

  by Lt. Heyer.

  Trautloft scored his fiftieth kill in WW II on February

  15th, 1943 south of Leningrad. He identified his victim

  as a Mustang. Trautloft wanted to personally capture his

  victim and meet him, but the unfortunate Soviet pilot hit

  a tree while trying to set down. Shortly after that event,

  JG 54 achieved its 4000th kill.

  At the time, part of the unit was re-equipping on the

  Messerschmitt Bf 109 G transferred to Western Europe,

  where the pilots had to re-orientate themselves to

  a different opponent, at different altitudes, and ground

  support that was unthinkable on the Eastern Front.

  The remainder of JG 54 went from the Messerschmitt

  Bf 109G to the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A.

  In July, 1943, Trautloft left JG 54, and became

  Inspector of Fighter Units on the Eastern Front under the

  Stab of General of Fighter Forces Adolf Galland. At the

  end of 1943, he was named inspector of the entire fighter

  force, and after difficulties with Luftwaffe leadership,

  he gained the dubious function as CO of the 4th Air Force

  Training Division.

  In all, he flew 560 combat missions from 1936 to the

  summer of 1943, and scored 58 victories.

  After the end of the war, he made a living by various

  means, including in graphics, and as a merchant.

  In 1957, he returned to the air force, and gained the

  rank of Generalmajor, retiring in 1970. He was also the

  first chairman of the German Fighter Pilots Association.

  In 1979, he became the senior European tennis champion

  in mixed doubles!

  Hannes Trautloft is the author, or co-author, of around

  ten books, some of which he himself illustrated.

  In the preparation of this article, valuable assistance

  was given by Franek Grabowski, Ota Jírovec, Dr. Jochen

  Prien and Anders Hjortsberg. I extend my gratitude

  to all. For an overview of Trautloft’s victories, I recom-

  mend visiting the web page of Petr Kacha at

  http://www.luftwaffe.cz/trautloft.html

  Main Sources:

  - Bob E.: Kriegs-Tagebuch von Hannes Trautloft, VDM, Zweibrücken, 2006

  - Bob E., Trautloft H., Held W.: Die Grünherzjäger, Freiburg, 1999

  - Cornwell P.: Battle of France, Then and Now

  - van Ishoven A.: Messerschmitt Bf 109 at War, Ian Allan, Shepperton, 1977

  - Mombeek E.: Jagdwaffe Volume One, Section 2, The Spanish Civil War, Classic

  Publications, Crowborrow, 1999

  - Obermaier E.: Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe, Band I, Jagdflieger, Verlag

  Dieter Hoffmann, Mainz, 1989

  - Prien J.: Geschichte des Jagdgeschwaders 77 Teil 1, Eutin

  - Prien J. a spol: Die Jagdfliegerverbande der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945,

  various volumes

  - Skawran P. R.: Ikaros, Verlag 27, Memmingen 2000

  HISTORY

  (Emblems illustration by Jan Zdiarský, text by Jan Bobek)

  BUY Weekend edition Bf 109E-1 (3401)

  Bf 109E-1 W.Nr. 4072,

  Hptm. Hannes Trautloft,

  2./JG 77, Juliusburg,

  Germany, September

  1939

  Illustration by Petr Štěpánek

  used as boxart for the

  Weekend edition of Eduard

  Bf 109E-1 kit.

  The original personal emblem

  of Hannes Trautloft,

  later adopted by Stab

  and all JG 54 Gruppen.

  The personal emblem

  of Hannes Trautloft

  in the function of Kommodore

  JG 54. He used it on

  the Bf 109 F, G and on

  the Fw 190 A. The order

  of the three Gruppe

  emblems inside the

  green heart progressively

  changed.

  I./JG 54 emblem

  formed out of the

  Nürnberg Coat of

  Arms.

  II./JG 54 emblem

  - The Lion of Aspern

  (Lowe von Aspern)

  indicating the Gruppe’s

  formation at Vi-

  enna – Aspern (Wien

  – Aspern). The Lion

  of Aspern is a memorial

  dedicated to the victory

  over Napoleon

  at Aspern – Essling

  in May, 1809.

  III./JG 54 emblem

  – Jesau Coat

  of Arms, where

  the Gruppe was

  formed, detailed

  with fighter silhou-

  ettes. Jesau is

  nowadays Russian

  city Yushny in for-

  mer East Prussia.

• Page 18

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Introduction

  This article is intended as a reference for modellers

  who will be building the 200HP Austro-Daimler engine

  in 1/48 as part of their WWI aircraft builds. I will describe

  the engine, discuss the kit parts and walk the modeller

  though the build steps, adding suggestions for simple

  additions to the supplied parts for extra authenticity/

  detail. References are given below.

  WORKSHOP

  History

  The A-D 200HP engine was designed by the legendary

  Dr. Ferdinand Porsche and produced by Austro-Daimler

  in Wiener-Neustadt and also under Licence by MAG.

  It was a very efficient engine, with a high compression

  ratio, comparable to the Maybach Zeppelin engines

  of the time, which A-D were building under licence,

  and far in excess of the contemporary fighter engines of

  the Central Powers. It gave over 200BHP at 1400RPM

  with extremely little fluid leakage. In fact a captured

  engine tested in 1918 by the RAE showed no oil or water

  leakage at all. It also was not prone to the overheating

  problems of the Mercedes engines, which, combined with

  summer weather had caused accidental “cooking off” of

  phosphorous ammunition. Even the high compression

  200HP Mercedes D.IIIa engine and the high altitude

  version of that engine built by BMW to power the Fokker

  D.VII fighter didn’t match the performance of the A-D

  engine, and Fokker was determined to marry his D.VII

  airframe with the A-D engine. He got his wish right

  at the end of the war when MAG, in which Anthony Fokker

  was a shareholder, was given a contract to produce

  Fokker D.VIIs for the Empire. However this came too

  late and the 30 or so single and two seater versions that

  were produced only saw service for the various air forces

  involved in the strife brought upon by the collapse of the

  Empire. Marek Mincberger has produced a splendid

  history of these aircraft which comes with the Eduard

  Limited Edition Fokker D.VII (MAG) dual combo kit.

  (Cat.No. 1147)

  Eduard Austro-Daimler

  1/48 engine

  by Rob Stewart

  Austro-Daimler, Mercedes D.IIIa and BMW III.

  Left side view

  (photo: Flight, 1918) Right side view (photo: Flight, 1918)

  Page 16

• Page 19

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Page 17

  It was a 6-cylinder vertical water cooled engine with

  separate steel cylinders. These were encased in

  a pressed steel water jackets. Each cylinder had twin inlet

  and exhaust valves and 2 spark plugs on the inlet side

  only. The crankcase and pistons were made of (mostly)

  aluminum. The two magnetos are set at 52 degrees of

  the vertical cam shaft at the front of the engine and are

  controlled automatically by the throttle. An air pump is

  positioned on top of the rocker case, and the water pump

  is at the rear of the crankcase.

  Kit parts

  The engine comes on a single sprue. In “ProfiPACK”

  versions of the kit there will be additional parts on

  a PE fret. In all there are 12 plastic parts to the engine

  and an additional 6 PE parts. The parts are moulded in

  great detail and are crisp. There are no sink or pin marks

  anywhere that I could see.

  Colours

  Either follow the Eduard colour guide for the engine parts

  or paint parts according to the references. A couple of

  points to note from the RAE report are that the HT cable

  carrier was “red sheet fabric”, and that the inlet pipes

  were “galvanised steel lagged with asbestos”.

  Build Steps

  1. Assemble the engine block and add the rocker cover,

  parts X 1, 8 and 9. Paint according to the painting guide

  or references. Add the name plate PE part if necessary.

  At this stage you can either add parts X11 to the rocker

  cover and cylinder heads or scratch build some valve

  springs. I chose the latter option and made some valve

  springs by winding a length of wire round a #80 drill bit

  as shown.

  2. Add the PE labels and gaskets, if applicable.

  3. Add the magneto assembly, parts X2 and X10(2).

  Not that the magnetos are supposed to be at an angle

  of 104o to each other, and not 90o. A right angle will

  cause you some problems with later fittings.

  4. Additional scratch building step - Add HT cabled

  to the spark plugs and join them to the cable carrier.

  Wire the magnetos to the cable carrier. I used short

  lengths of copper wire to do this CA glued into position.

  5. Add the air pump, X6 and the carburettor, X12,

  and the PE plate 13 if applicable.

  6. Add the cooling system to the engine block and the

  cylinder cooling jackets. X7, 3, 13. NB the exploded

  view in the instructions may showX5 and X3 incorrectly

  positioned. Part X3 should be above part X5, as in the

  diagram shown here.

  (Flight, 1918)

  WORKSHOP

• Page 20

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  BUY Fokker D.VII (MÁG) 1/48 Limited edition

  Detailing

  I was able to add some copper wire as HT leads to the

  spark plugs, ans to the magnetos. I also experimented

  with adding valve springs, which should be manageable

  in scale, as the original springs were made from 4mm

  steel, but my attempts weren’t as precise as I wanted.

  See for yourself in the image above. I also added

  a lenght of sbet styrene rod from the water pump forward

  to the radiator. This works for a MAG Fokker D.VII,

  but on an Albatros this piping would go vertically upward

  to the upper wing radiator.

  Conclusion

  A lot can be done with this very detailed little engine.

  It isn’t such a great challenge to scratch build the parts

  I did, and will look great inside any OEFFAG aircraft.

  Thanks

  Thanks to Eduard for the kit. Thanks to Karen Rychlewski

  for permission to use her images of the engine at the

  Krakow Museum.

  Author is member of the Internetmodeler team

  http://www.internetmodeler.com/

  References

  Jane’s Fighting Aircraft of WWI

  Flight Magazine October 31 1918 p 1217-1222

  Flight Magazine November 7, 1918, p 1255-1259

  Flight Magazine; November 14 1918, 1 1288-1293

  Karen Rychlewski’s photos of the engine the Kraków museum.

  Andi Szekeres’ photos of the engine at the Budapest Aviation Museum/

  Vienna Technical Museum.

  Photo credits:

  Title Image: Karen Rychlewski

  All other embedded photos: Rob Stewart, Eduard

  Valve springs

  Eduard kits containing the above described engine:

  BUY Albatros D.III Oeffag 253 1/48 ProfiPACK

  Page 18

  Mounted on a MAG Fokker D.VII (Eduard).

  WORKSHOP

• Page 21

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  WORKSHOP

  QUICKLY FROM THE OEFFAG 253 BUILD

  A few tempting morsels from the build of the Albatros

  D.III Oeffag 253 by Prague modeler Miloslav Vanous. Two

  photographs below act as an invitation to workshops from

  some of the future issues, to which the model’s author is

  preparing a tutorial on the creation of the very realistic

  opaque fabric covering (in process on the left photo)

  and the wooden covering of the aircraft. This theme

  will be covered later with two very different approaches

  rendering very nice results by Jiri Bruna and Miloslav

  Vanous.

  Photograph of the completed work in progress can be

  found on Pages 22-23. (JZ)

  Page 19

• Page 22

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  IPMS CZECH REPUBLIC

  PRAGUE

  18th - 19th of September 2010, 9.00 -16.00

  Shopping Center Gallery Butovice

  (Radlická, Praha 5, underground parking lot)

  more on www.eday.cz

  

  more on www.eday.cz

  More than 1000 models of aircraft,

  AFV, ships, cars and bikes, figures

  and dioramas

  EXHIBITORS AND RESELLERS

  OF HUNDREDS OF MODELS

  ENTERTAINMENT

  FOR VISITORS

  EASY ACCESSABILITY

  FREE PARKING

  SNACK-BAR

  EXHIBITORS AND RESELLERS

  OF HUNDREDS OF MODELS

  EXHIBITORS AND RESELLERS

  OF HUNDREDS OF MODELS

  ENTERTAINMENT

  ENTERTAINMENT

  FOR VISITORS

  EASY ACCESSABILITY

  FREE PARKING

  SNACK-BAR

  2010

  B

  DON”T FORGET TO REGISTER ON TIME. IT”S COMING UP!

  Page 20

• Page 23

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Page 21

  BUILT!

  XXX

  KOUPIT Bf 109E-7 Trop Profipack (3004)

  Brassin wheels for the F-22A in 1/48th from Hasegawa (648017), as with the

  F-16CJ Block 50 exhaust for the Tamiya kit (648020) built by court modeler Luboš

  Zach. This well built and exquisitely painted accessory shows the effectiveness of

  the resin and photoetched components. (JZ)

  BUY 648017 F-22A wheels 1/48 (HAS)

  BUY 648020 F-16CJ Block 50 engine 1/48 (TAM)

• Page 24

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Excellent model of the Oeffag 253 in 1/48th scale

  from modeling champion Miloslav (Slava) Vanous

  from Prague built in the markings of the CO of Flik 51/J

  Oblt.i.d.Res. Benno Fiala. Note the rendering of the

  opaque fabric on the wing and wooden panel surfaces on

  the fuselage. The markings come from the kit. Also worth

  noting are the treatment of the stitching and other details.

  Some of Slava Vanous’s techniques will be descri-

  bed in future issues in the Workshop section of the

  Eduard Newsletter. (JZ)

  BUY Albatros D.III Oeffag 253 ProfiPACK 1/48 (8242)

  Page 22

  BUILT!

• Page 25

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  BUILT!

  Page 23

  BUY Albatros D.III Oeffag 253 ProfiPACK 1/48 (8242)

  Realistic rendering of the engine, including exhausts and covers.

• Page 26

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  BUILT!

  A beautifully built model of the Fw 190D-11 from the

  Eduard kit, Cat. No. 8185 by Jiri Bruna. The model carries

  the markings depicted in the boxart, an aircraft from

  Sachsenberg Schwarm JV 44 flying out of Munchen-Riem

  in May, 1945, where this unit covered Me 262 experts

  under the command of Adolf Galland. The well rendered

  kit and subtle weathering bring out the beautiful lines

  of the ‘Longnose Dora’. (JZ)

  BUY Fw 190D-11/D-13 1/48 Dual Combo! ProfiPACK

  Page 24

• Page 27

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  BUILT!

  The monotone scheme of this night fighting F6F-5N

  in 1/48th flown by Maj. Bruce Porter, CO of VMF(N)-542

  and modeled by Karel Cvancara doesn’t detract from

  the model’s appearance. This is built out of the box,

  Cat.No.8226 (released in January, 2010). Worth noting

  are the accented panel lines and the treatment of the

  sheen on individual parts of the model, and also the subtle

  signs of use. The kit of this aircraft includes resin details

  to make it into a nightfighting Hellcat. (JZ)

  BUY F6F-5N Hellcat ProfiPACK (8226)

  Page 25

• Page 28

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  EVENTS

  Page 26

  One of the bigger events for us this year has been

  the acquisition and installation of a new CNC five-axle

  highspeed milling machine. The nine tonne Digma 600

  reaches 42,000 rpm, and besides orientating tools along

  five axis , it has the added feature of individual component

  temperature regulation which adds to its precision. Also

  adding to precision is a special polymer bed that, with other

  features, dampens vibration. The new milling machine

  will allow us to increase the speed and precision of our

  metal mold production. The timing of the delivery of this

  colossus coincided with construction work in and around

  the square in Obrnice, and this, as is evident from the shots,

  had a bearing on delivery. Now, the machine is in place,

  and is undergoing connection and calibration.

  The first news of the moving in of the milling machine,

  placed in our Facebook page, evoked a wave of interesting

  comments (which can be seen and participated in here).

  Further developments of bringing this piece of equipment

  on-line will be reported on regularly, including the first molds

  that pass through it. We are all excited about this event...!

  (JZ)

• Page 29

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  CONNECT WITH US ON FACEBOOK

  AND HELP US GROW THE COMMUNITY

  www.facebook.com/EduardCompany

  EVENTS

  Page 27

  Stay tuned regarding Eduard news and events

  on Facebook!

  

  

  

  

   

  

  

  

• Page 30

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Page 28

  MEDALLION EDUARD

  FRANTIŠEK TOMAN

  Two saved castaways after a non-voluntary landing in a field…. In fact three – in the background, an L-13 Blanik.‘One of my built models’.

  Frantisek has worked at Eduard for twelve years,

  but his association goes back further. For example, he

  hails from the same model club as Vladimir Sulc. He is

  48 years old, and his current function is that of Tooling

  Head. It is through Frantisek and his people that mold

  production, fine tuning and prepping for molding passes

  through. His life-long passion is aviation in many forms.

  He is a modeler, and flies an ultralight and gliders at the

  aeroclub in Slany. Besides his smaller aircraft types, he

  has also tried his hand at historically significant gliders

  and even a P-51 Mustang, and a Ju 52. He also likes

  motorcycles and traveling.

  (JZ)

  “This is what it’s like when

  we all pull on the same

  rope!”

  Frantisek Toman calibrating forms.

• Page 31

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Page 29

  MEDALLION EDUARD

  An awesome experience was to be able to fly historically significant gliders, which Frantisek was able to do in the spring of 2010. At left, Hol’s der

  Teufel, and at right, the SG 38.

  A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fly in a modified two-seat P-51D Mustang at Lakeland, Florida. ‘It was like at home, over Bohemia…..

  we escorted a B-24 Liberator….’

  Frantisek thinking to himself: ‘now, THAT”S a production line for Eduard…’

  With the EV97 Eurostar in Charvatka.

• Page 32

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Have you missed any of the previous issues of INFO EDUARD?

  Don’t worry – the Ebunny knows what to do!

  

  

  All older issues from years 2001-2010 of Info Eduard can be found here:

  NEWSLETTER 2001-2010

  Page 30

• Page 33

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  Info Eduard - August 2010

  THE FINAL DOT

  And that’s all for today. September is slowly coming,

  and that month is dedicated to E-DAY. So, if you come

  to Prague in the third week of September, we are looking

  forward to seeing you! Keep on modeling!

  Vladimír Šulc

  ON APPROACH

  September 2010 offers up some interesting pieces.

  Besides the Weekend boxing of the Avia B-534 Serie IV

  and the repopping of the Japanese Navy Aircraft

  Carrier Deck, we have the La-7 as a Profipack kit and

  a Limited Edition P-39 Airacobra over New Guinea

  as a Dual Combo kit, which includes not only seven very

  interesting camouflage schemes, but also a sixteen page

  booklet on the subject. All kits are in 1/48th.

  La-7 1/48 ProPACK Cat.No. 8098

  P-39 Airacobra

  over New Guinea

  1/48 Dual Combo!

  Limited edition

  Cat.No. 1152

  Avia B-534 serie IV

  1/48 Weekend edition

  Cat.No. 8475

  SEPTEMBER 2010

  Page 31

• Page 34

  Info Eduard - August 2010