Hans Dieterle (Heinkel) captures the World Speed Record, 30 March 1939

 

Below; Oranienburg, 30 March 1939 - 24-year old pilot and 'Rekordflieger' Hans Dieterle alongside his wife has just attained a timed speed of 746 km/h with the (so-called) 'He 112 U' to achieve a World speed record. ( the 'U' may have stood for 'Udet' - who had test-flown some of the earlier He 100/112 'variants' during 1938). The aircraft was in actual fact the He 100 V8 coded D-IDGH with 'cut-down' windshield and canopy, powered by a modified DB 601 with methyl alcohol injection to produce around 1800 hp for a very short period. The aircraft covered the 3 km long Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) measured 'course' in just 14 seconds! Dieterle’s new record - 'schnellster Mann der Welt' -would last less than one month, however. On 26 April 1939, Fritz Wendel achieved 755 km/h (around 470 mph) in the Me 209, although some have argued that as this flight had taken place in Augsburg - which was much higher above sea level than allowed in FAI regulations-  Wendel's record was invalid.

Werkspilot Dieterle (along with Chefpilot Gerhard Nitschke) had previously been involved in 'world record' flight attempts in another Heinkel prototype - the He 119 fast bomber/recce aircraft and earlier  in 1937 had achieved another world (distance) record in the He 116 four-engine long-range 'mail' or courier aircraft (langstrecken Postflugzeug). Both pilots had been injured in the crash-landing of the He 119 V1 in December 1937. (on December 16, 1937 the He 119 SV-1, Wnr. 2402, D-AUTE crashed in Travemünde). The He 119 (below) featured a unique buried engine (coupled DB 601s designated DB 606) driving a nose propeller through an extension shaft.

Bundesarchiv caption - " World records being “processed” -  the two pilots of the twin-engine Heinkel aircraft, Flugkapitän Nitschke (left) and Pilot Dieterle (right), who on Monday set three world speed records over 1,000 km for Germany, together with the designer of the Heinkel aircraft, Dr. Ernst Heinkel (centre), with whom they are discussing their experiences on the record-breaking flight, November 23, 1937 .." 

new Luftwaffe books - LUFTWAFFE FIGHTER AIRCRAFT, Profile Book No 16

 

Due this month (April 2026) from Claes Sundin is his LUFTWAFFE FIGHTER AIRCRAFT, Profile Book No 16

- 136 full color pages with 130 aircraft profiles

- Many examples of single-seat fighter aircraft flown by Luftwaffe aces

- Included are all single-seat fighter types operated by the Jagdwaffe

- 140 additional illustrations of unit insignia and personal markings

- Detailed captions for each profile with historical and descriptive information of the pilots and their aircraft compiled with the assistance of David E. Brown, Jeff C. Clements and the FalkeEins blog!

- A comprehensive index section of all of Claes Sundin's Luftwaffe fighters profile books

- Exceptional high-quality paper and print quality, glossy hard-bound cover

- And of course, world-class profiles, all at a very reasonable price. The price for this new book is: 45 Euros

AK Real Colors - a revelation

 

I'm guessing that occasionally modellers have an epiphany. Mine just happened  - AK Real Colors. Having spent the last few months using them I rate them so highly I thought I'd endorse them here. They really appear to have 'revolutionised' my airbrush work - they spray beautifully, have great self levelling qualities and excellent color coverage in thin coats. I feel in full control of the airbrush which was rare with my usual enamels - Colourcoats, Xtracolor, Humbrol, whatever. I find they spray even better when thinned a little with Mr Color Leveling Thinner (MCLT). They are easy to gloss coat with Gunze GX100 or 112 or Galeria. No compatibility issues. They spray fine lines and handle even the smallest mottles (1:72 Luftwaffe fighters..) without issue. Even better, they clean up so easily! They come in 'dropper' type bottles, so a couple of drops into the cup, a quick dip of a brush into the Leveling Thinner and you are good to go! I have yet to try the own-brand thinner - AK Real Colors High Compatibility Thinner. Like MCLT this is formulated for lacquer-based paints and has a retarder. I was going to say that AK Real Colors are in the same category as Gunze and Tamiya - but they are better in my view; Gunze is very good too albeit a little thick, requiring more thinning compared to Tamiya and AK (thinned with MCLT). My ranking is AK first, Hobby Color a very close second and Tamiya third. Why is Tamiya third? I find that Tamiya colour occasionally requires mixing while the other two brands usually have the colour I want out of the bottle. As for colour accuracy - I think that is a given. In conclusion, a no-nonsense paint that works brilliantly. I rank them very highly. Buy with confidence - the various Luftwaffe sets come in packs of four or six bottles, which basically equates to one 'free'.

New and forthcoming from John McIllmurray - Modellers Guide to the Ju 388 via KLP Publishing

From John McIllmurray two new Ju 388 conversion sets (a J and an L set) and a 'modellers guide' to the Ju 388 via KLP coming soon. Not forgetting a book of rare archive photos of the type licensed from the Deutsches Museum, see picture below. From John, 

"..This is my forthcoming 'Modeller's guide to the Ju 388' - Kevin at KLP will post a link very soon I guess. Here's the draft cover! I am obviously using my own 1/32 kit as the basis of showing the modeller what details are needed for a 388 build whatever the scale - it will include a 1/48 and 1/72 chapter but only as an overview. The book will include reference photos under licence and revised profiles of my decal options. All in all a big work like my G-6 book! "

 

Also on this blog;

A Modellers Guide to the Ju 88 G-6 from KLP Publishing

Axis Wings volume 4 has landed !

Rich from Chandos Publications shows us Axis Wings Vol 4 and explains the 'bundle' deals available when purchasing this book series over at the Chandos Publications web site. This issue - 184-large format pages- features content from leading specialists such as Richard Dunn, Michael Claringbould, Dietmar Hermann, Alexander Steenbeck, Peter Kassak, Tim Oliver, J. Richard Smith and more.

" I could not love the 109 the way I loved my friend Brewster.." - F2A Buffalo - Brewster Model 239

 

Lentolaivue 24 Brewster being refueled in Tiiksjärvi. The Model 239 had two 300 ltr integral wing tanks

I guess most aviation enthusiasts know something about the F2A Buffalo - typically that the USMC, the RAF and other air forces suffered at the hands of the Japanese while north of the Arctic Circle the Finns achieved some success with the type against the Soviets during the Continuation war.

" The Marines on Midway had no combat experience and were fighting IJN pilots with extensive combat experience. The Dutch and British faced similarly experienced IJAAF pilots over the DEI and Malaysia, with limited time in the Buffaloes and experience in high altitude fighting over Europe. Fighting in the Pacific was at lower altitudes and required different tactics. The Finns were all combat veterans of the Winter War and when the later Continuation War began they were also quite familiar with their Buffaloes. They knew their aircraft and their enemy..."

The F2A was of course probably not as bad as it is often portrayed. Usually decried as being 'heavy and under-powered', on both counts the F2A-3 (Wright R-1820 Cyclone) came out with better numbers than the F4F Wildcat (Twin Wasp R-1830). The Finnish B-239s were modified from US Navy F2A-1s, featuring a more powerful engine, no armour, integral wing tanks, and extra machine guns. The elite Finnish Lelv 24 claimed 477 victories for the loss of 19 in combat and six more in accidents or destroyed on the ground during the period 1941-44 in their Brewsters. This blog is not about to suggest that the Buffalo - or Brewster Model 239 as the export 'version' was designated - was superior to the Bf 109 G. But by certain criteria it actually was. 

Take for example, 'drag coefficient'.  The drag coefficient is perhaps the most important aerodynamic parameter in aircraft design, representing how "streamlined" its shape is. A lower figure directly correlates to better performance, fuel efficiency and speed. Somewhat surprisingly the stubby, radial-engined, short-winged Buffalo had a lower drag coefficient than the Bf 109 G as this Finnish data table highlights.

The Buffalo had been extensively wind-tunnel tested during its design, while the Me 109 was - in its early variants - usually described as 'kantig' (or 'angular'). The 109 'famously' underwent a 're-design' to a more 'aerodynamic' profile with the Friedrich.  The F2A used the same NACA 230xx aerofoil sections that were employed in a number of US designs including the P-38, F4U, F6F and even the later Bearcat.

The Buffalo performed well in Finland. Firstly, it was probably the easiest of the Finnish fighters to handle all round. In the summer of 1941 there were fighter pilots flying it with fewer than 150 total hours. Second, it was quite reliable. It was a sound design, no major faults and it was also "erk friendly". Third, for a significant period of time its performance was adequate (up to late 1942). The Soviets still used lots of I-153 and I-16. Fourth, the enemy pilots in general were not particularly good and especially their aggressiveness left much to be desired. 

Pure comparison accounts are surprisingly few even if most Buffalo pilots continued on to the 109. In the 1990s the-then director of the FAF museum published his 109 book which had a chapter with personal reports. The author had requested accounts from pilots and mechanics for their opinions on the 109. Basically very few were by "the aces" (most had died by then) and most were from pilots who flew it only post-war. There is quite a lot of variance. For example, Eino Luukkanen considered the 109 easier to handle than the Fokker D. 21. But he was one of the most experienced of them all.

Some Finnish pilots actually preferred the Buffalo - or the 239-  over their later 109 Gustavs received from Germany;

SSgt Heimo 'Hemmi' Lampi recounted his attachment to the Brewster to historian Dan Ford;

 

“The old friend Messerschmitt, who was a real hard fighter, was my next plane after the Brewster, but it totally lacked in humaneness.. [..]..I could not love it the way I loved my friend Brewster. Nor any other plane for that matter.” 

Having scored during the Winter War, Lampi became an ace on day 1 of the Continuation War - 25 June 1941 - then later became an ace on the Brewster 239 and added eight more victories in the 109. 

 Warrant Officer Juutilainen (with 34, second-highest scoring ace on the Brewster Model 239) referred to the 239s as “fat hustlers, just like bees. They had speed, agility and good weaponry, too.…We were happy to take them anywhere to take on any opponent.” The top three Buffalo pilots - Lt. Wind (with 39 victories in a Brewster), and 1st Lt. Jorma Karhunen (26.5)—claimed 23 Polikarpov I-16 monoplane fighters, 18 Polikarpov I-153 biplanes and 11 Hawker Hurricanes. Encounters with more modern Russian fighters—Yaks, MiGs and LaGGs—were rare until the Finns began the conversion to Messerschmitts in early 1943.

The men of Llv 24's 4th Flight putting CO Llv 24' Major 'Eka' Magnusson's aircraft BW-380 in the firing butts, Rantasalmi, July 10, 1941. The fuel drum on which the machine is about to be balanced is just visible. Note tactical number 'black 1'

 

Many have claimed that at 25-to-1 Finnish Brewsters recorded the highest victory-loss ratio of the war. Juutilainen described his combat experiences in the memoir Double Fighter Knight, referring to his two Mannerheim Crosses. He pressed attacks to minimum range to ensure lethal accuracy. Juutilainen recalled one particularly close-in dogfight with a Soviet Hurricane:

" I came in at high speed from above and behind and pulled the throttle back to idle. The target grew in my gunsight. It was a very clean airplane and looked brand new. Now I was approaching the perfect firing range and looked around me one more time. No other enemies were in sight. The pipper on my sight was just slightly in front of the nose of the Hurricane, and my glide angle was about 10 degrees. Now I could count rivets on the target..."

The Buffalo is often thought of as being obsolete by 1941. It could not survive in Western Europe and did not survive in the Pacific. Ultimately the Finns were successful with the type because they stripped out as much weight as possible, leading to even better performance. It was piloted by combat veterans who knew the tactics of their enemy and in an environment that better suited the aircraft. And for the first year or so of the Continuation War they were also up against ancient I-16s and other obsolescent Soviet types flown by poorly trained pilots.

(Thanks to Jukka for help with this post)

Captain Ahola's victorious flight crew around their aircraft at Tiiksjärvi, May 21, 1942.

Also on this blog;

The life and times of Finnish fighter ace Veikko Karu

Werner Schroer 8./JG 27 - Bundesarchiv photo report #13

 

Early Gustav on Rhodes seen in January 1943 flown by Werner Schroer of 8./JG 27. Bundesarchiv images may be reproduced on non-commercial sites. Posted here for the Me 109 Group build currently taking place on Britmodeller.. PK images such as these are available in much better quality on the BA web site than they are on sites that just plunder from books and other sites, like Laird's asisbiz pages. Many are beautifully reproduced in the 'Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe' series, in this instance Teil 11/1. See pages 226-237 for several photos of Oblt. Schroer's G-2 trop and other 8./JG 27 machines on/over Rhodes and Crete. The Prien team concludes that the a/c are finished in their original two-colour scheme of 78/79 modified at the unit to suit local conditions, probably with 80. The spinner is black with 1/3 white.

From the 'official' caption;

" German fighter planes have now also landed on the island of Rhodes, close to the gates of Turkey, as part of the increased expansion of the individual bastions of the Axis front in the Mediterranean. The photos show the deployment of a Gruppe. The ground crew, who ensure that the Me 109s are always ready for take-off at the new operational field, also relocate with the fighters. The welcome from the Italian pilots was very warm and they were very interested to see the latest variant of Me 109. Location: Rhodes Island. The German airmen got on very well with their Italian comrades. There is a warm camaraderie. German and Italian air force soldiers are seen chatting next to a Messerschmitt Bf 109..."