KITS 11/2021

WNr. 5587, Ofw. Fritz Beeck, 6./JG 51, Wissant, France, August 24, 1940

Simple but effective camouflage adorned this aircraft that shortly after noon on August 28, 1940, was shot down with Ofw. Fritz

Beeck at the controls in the vicinity of East Langdon. It was during the second escort mission of the day that culminated in

combat with RAF fighters in which the engine of Yellow ‘10’ was hit. After an unavoidable forced landing, the aircraft, in relatively

good shape, was made otherwise by civilian vandals and allied soldiers before it could be inspected by RAF

experts. Light blue sides of the RLM 02/71/65 fuselage scheme were sprayed with the upper surface colors. Yellow identification

colors, typical for mid-August 1940, were applied to the wing tips, horizontal tail surfaces, and top portion of the fin. Because the

aircraft in question belonged to 6. Staffel, tactical numbering and the background II./JG 51 ‘Gott strafe England’ emblem were

yellow. Three victory tabs on the left side were in white. It is not out of the question that these also appeared on the right side,

but documentation is lacking.

WNr. 5344, Maj. Helmut Wick, CO of JG 2, Beaumont, France, November 1940

The appearance of this aircraft comes from a period in time when it was flown by Maj. Helmut Wick, and after many modifications to the camouflage scheme and tactical markings. The changes mirrored not only Wick’s ascension through the ranks as

Staffel CO, to Gruppe leader to commanding officer of JG 2, but also the prescribed changes to Luftwaffe camouflage specifications in the second half of 1940. Our reconstruction of the aircraft shows as it appeared in its final guise, when Maj. Wick (as

the Luftwaffe’s most successful ace at that time) was killed in combat with Spitfires on November 28, 1940. The aircraft carried

a standard scheme of RLM 02/71/65. The light blue fuselage sides were darkened with a light overspray of RLM 71 applied

with the blunt end of a brush. The yellow rudder was similarly dulled. The yellow rudder and nose segments were part of later

marking modifications. The fuselage retains evidence of the double chevron marking denoting the CO of the Gruppe. Besides the

tactical markings, the JG 2 unit insignia was carried below the cockpit, and on the front fuselage, Wick’s original 3. Staffel. The

pilot’s personal emblem, the flying kingfisher, was partly oversprayed with the Kommodor insignia, over which the emblem was

partially reconstructed. This aircraft had the armored windscreen removed towards the end of its career, but was still mounted

when Wick led I./JG 2. One interesting point regarding the national markings on the bottom of the wings and fuselage sides that

was present on many JG 2 Emils, including Wick’s 5344, was that the fuselage markings had an accentuated black border at the

expense of the white segments, while those on the bottom of the wings were modified as indicated in our illustrations.

Ltn. Josef Eberle, 9./JG 54, The Netherlands, August 1940

Very interesting camouflage schemes were rendered on the aircraft of JG 54 by the unit’s ground personnel in the summer of

1940. They applied vertical to diagonal lines of RLM 71 in an attempt to darken the light blue fuselage sides. The standard scheme

of RLM 02/71/65 was applied, along with the quick identification attributes. The period scheme was applied to Yellow ‘13’, with

which, on August 12, 1940, Ltn. Josef Eberle managed to cross the Channel and belly land in France despite personal injury. The

wingtips and fin of Eberle’s aircraft were painted RLM 27 Yellow, lighter than RLM 04 that the spinner, tactical number and background of the III./JG 54 emblem were painted. The bottom wing color RLM 65 extended marginally to the upper surface. Some

sources erroneously identify this aircraft as an E-3. Despite having tempted fate once over the Channel, he was not as successful on October 9, 1940, when he lost his life in combat with RAF fighters.

INFO Eduard - November 2021

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