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Markings for Bf 109G-5 1/48

COL A

Bf 109G-5/U2/R3/R6, W.Nr. 27112, Maj. Walther Dahl, CO of III./JG 3, Bad Wörishofen, Germany, December 1943

Maj. Walther Dahl was born on March 27, 1916, in Lugu. He joined the Luftwaffe on May 1, 1939, and became a fighter pilot. In May 1941, he was assigned to JG 3. He scored his first aerial victory on June 22, 1941, in the Soviet Union, and his last on April 26, 1945. On July 20, 1943, he was appointed commander of III./JG 3 on the Eastern Front; in August, his unit was transferred to Western Europe. At that time, the Gruppe was equipped with Bf 109G-6 aircraft, but in October it received three G-5 models, and by the end of the year, that number had increased to nine. On the left side of the rudder of Dahl’s aircraft there were marks of 51 victories achieved on the Eastern Front, including one Spitfire shot down over Malta. Photographs of the aircraft were taken sometime between October 14 and December 19, 1943, during which time Dahl scored his fourth and fifth victories in combat against USAAF bombers. The right side of the tailplane is not documented, so the decal of his victories on that side is marked with a question mark. Dahl’s total score was 128 aerial victories; for his achievements, he was awarded the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves. The Bf 109G-5 W.Nr. 27112 was painted RLM 76 on all surfaces. Walther Dahl survived the war and died on November 25, 1985.


COL B

Bf 109G-5/R3/R6, Stab III./JG 11, Oldenburg, Germany, September 1943

JG 11 was formed in May 1943 in Neumünster, Germany, and operated primarily on the Western Front and in the defense of the Reich from Oldenburg. The increasing number of daytime raids by Allied bomber formations on German cities necessitated an increase in the number of fighters to defend the Reich’s airspace. For this reason, JG 11, along with III./JG 54, was deployed along the northern German coastline. From July 1943 to the spring of 1944, JG 11 thus found itself on the front line of defense against USAAF bombers and remained there until the very end. It was disbanded only on April 4, 1945. This Bf 109G-5 was manufactured at the Erla factory. It bore the III./JG 11 insignia on both sides beneath the cockpit and was camouflaged in RLM 74 and RLM 75, the typical color scheme of the Erla factory in Leipzig, with circular patches on the sides of the fuselage.


COL C

Bf 109G-5/R3, 1./JG 50, Wiesbaden-Erbenheim, Germany, July-October 1943

The Jagdgruppe Süd der ObdL was formed on July 21, 1943, under the command of ace Hermann Graf, and was primarily intended to intercept fast British twin-engine de Havilland Mosquito bombers. The unit consisted of experienced pilots who had been selected from other units. On August 15, 1943, this unit was renamed JG 50. Although, alongside JG 25, it did not achieve many successes against the Mosquitos, both groups were considered successful in their deployment against American heavy bomber formations during the daytime offensive over Europe in the summer of 1943. The Bf 109G-5 “white 1” bore Erla’s factory paint scheme, and the surfaces of the aircraft in JG 50 were very carefully polished. In JG 50, the aircraft did not bear the usual markings, only numbers on the rudder. The unit did not last long; it was disbanded at the end of October 1943 and incorporated into I./JG 301. Hermann Graf was appointed commander of JG 11 in November 1943.


COL D

Bf 109G-5/R3, Lt. Ingomar Feldmann, 8./JG 54, Ludwigslust, Germany, February 1944

From December 1943 to February 25, 1944, 8./JG 54 was stationed at a base near Ludwigslust, northwest of Berlin in the direction of Hamburg. This Bf 109G-5 was flown here by Lt. Ingomar Feldmann. Due to increased air activity by Allied bomber formations, Luftwaffe pilots frequently rotated among operational aircraft, and lower-ranking officers did not have personal aircraft at their disposal. The Bf 109G-5 “Black 11” bore the 8./JG 54 insignia on both sides of the nose, with the III./JG 54 insignia beneath the cockpit. On the fuselage in front of the tail surfaces was a blue stripe, which marked JG 54 as part of the Reich Defense Forces. Lt. Ingomar Feldmann was killed on February 10, 1944, while flying a Bf 109G-6, W.Nr. 20221, “black 6”, when he was shot down over Hanover in the area of Lake Steinhuder. Today, the remains of his Bf 109G-6 (primarily the damaged rear fuselage) are part of the collection at the Shoreham Aircraft Museum in Kent.

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