Wednesday 18 May 2016

Hptm. Erich Hartmann - Bf 109 G-6 'Doppelwinkel' Gruppenkommandeur I./JG 53




...details of Hartmann's Bf 109 G-6 W.Nr. unknown, "Schwarzer Doppelwinkel", I./JG 53, Veszprém, Hungary. Picture source BPK Archiv, Heinrich Hoffmann; image is captioned 'Flugeinsatz' (combat sortie) 20 February 1945.

Note the details in this image and in the pretty neat representation below by an unknown 'skinner' - although he has used the 'square' canopy with antenna mast. The 'skinner' has rendered the upper surface camouflage extremely well - it is just possible to make out some details on the photo of the over-sprayed lines on the wings and forward fuselage which just about every modeller and 'artist' (except Claes Sundin; see here; a superlative piece of artwork from his 'Luftwaffe Fighter Aircraft in Profile Vol I ) just seems to ignore...much of this has to be speculative unfortunately, although it is there! Note too the heavy white overspray onto the prop blades (see image below). Claes Sundin also gets the variant correct - Hartmann's Kommandeur machine 'Double Chevron' was a G-6 according to his own logbook..and NOT a G-14. Thanks to Jan Bobek for the pointer to this great image...

other details of note - no antenna mast, the aerial attaches to the fuselage spine just behind the canopy. The DF loop is absent, although its base is visible in the photo top. No ventilation scoop ahead of the windscreen.






there is of course much more on Hartman and his aircraft  - including his final tulip-adorned G-10 - on this blog. See the label links to the right of the screen

Hartmann's JG 52 Bf 109s - Erich Hartmann's last Bf 109 G-10 - Edit October 2015

and my model of Hartmann's I./JG 53 Kommandeur machine is here