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Bf 109G-6/AS, WNr. 110087, Hptm. Horst Carganico, CO of I./JG 5,
Herzogenaurach, Germany, May 1944
Bf 109G-6/AS, MT-463, ylik. Tapio Järvi, 2/HLeLv 24, Lappeenranta,
Finland, July/August 1944
The first unit in which the then twenty-two-year-
old Lt. Carganico served after completing flight
training was JG 1 at the beginning of the war. This
was followed by service with JG 77 with which he
saw combat in Norway and then in the Battle of
Britain. On January 1, 1941, he returned to Norway
where he led 1./JG 77. On September 25, 1941,
Carganico achieved his 27th kill and was awarded
the Knight’s Cross. In March 1942, Carganico’s
unit was redesignated 6./JG 5 and he was given
command of the entire II. Gruppe in April 1942.
On March 26, 1944, he took over I./JG 5 as CO and
the unit saw combat against Allied forces within
the Defense of the Reich. On April 27 of the same
year, Carganico took off for the last time. In an
attack on a group of B-17s, his Bf 109G-5 was
heavily damaged and during his attempt to belly-
land, he struck some high power lines and died in
the resulting crash near the French town of Chevry.
His final tally consisted of sixty kills over the
course of 600 sorties. Bf 109G-6/AS aircraft were
assigned to the high altitude interception units
therefore they were camouflaged in the overall
coat of RLM 76. Hptm. Carganico had Mickey
Mouse painted on the fuselage port side, marking
carried by his previous airplanes. Starboard side
is not photographically documented, it may have
carried the Gruppe Commander’s double chevron
marking.
Among the deliveries of Bf 109G-2 and G-6
fighters to Germany’s ally Finland were two
G-6/AS version aircraft. In the Finnish Air
Force, these were coded MT-463 and MT-471.
MT-463 was delivered on June 28, 1944, and
was assigned to HLeLv 24, where it was flown
by, among other pilots, ylikersantti (Technical
Sergeant) Järvi, who used it to shoot down two
of his total 27 victims. A further five kills with
this aircraft were claimed by another four pilots.
The Bf 109G-6/AS did not represent any major
advantage for the Finnish Air Force, because
the majority of air combat with the Soviets took
place at altitudes below 3,000 m. The DB 605AS,
which powered the type, was designed to offer
advantages at high altitudes. The camouflage
scheme of this aircraft consisted of sprayed RLM
74/75/76 with the blue swastikas on white discs
on the fuselage and wing positions. The code
MT-463 appeared on the fuselage ahead of the
tail surfaces. The yellow number of the aircraft
within the unit was applied between the fuselage
code and the cockpit. There are no available
photographs of this aircraft during its combat
career with HLeLv 24, but from other period
photographs of other such aircraft, the list of
aircraft numbers for this specific plane has been
reduced to 2, 4 or 6.
KITS 11/2024
INFO Eduard42
November 2024