Captured enemy aircraft at the Farnborough exhibition October/November 1945 - Heinkel He 219

 

Open to the public in October and November 1945 the RAF displayed its captured Luftwaffe aircraft and many British prototypes then undergoing evaluation during late 1945. Inspired by an article in the September 2010 issue of Aeroplane magazine here are some period images of the exhibition and some excerpts from Flight's coverage of November 1945, taken from the apparently now defunct flightglobal pdf archive! Click on the image above to get in a little closer....

Back row left to right: Ju 290, Ju 52/3, Ju 352, a Fw 200 and a Do 17. A Ju 88 Mistel combination can just be discerned right at the back. In the second row are the following;  Si 204, Ju 88 G, Fi 103 manned V-1, Ju 388, He 219. Third row: Me 410 (maybe 210...), Bf 110 G, Do 335 B (probably the B-12 trainer), Ta 152, Fw 190 A, Ar 234, and Me 262. Final row: Supermarine Spiteful, Martin-Baker MB 5, Blackburn Firebrand, Bristol Brigand, Fairey Firefly, Fairey Spearfish, Meteor and a couple of late-mark Spitfire tails.

dismantled Focke Wulf Fw 190 S-8 (WNr 584219) at the RAF Museum (Colindale, London) - March 2022

 

The RAF Museum's Focke Wulf Fw 190 S-8  is now dismantled and awaiting transport to a museum in Germany - according to staff on duty yesterday. The aircraft has been a part of the RAF Museum's collection since 1989 when the  RAF facility at St Athan was closed. Moved to Hendon the Focke Wulf has been on display in London since then... until now..

 

From mid-1943 the Schlacht units began their refit on the 'fast' Fw 190 in replacement of their 'slow' Ju 87s while elsewhere training or Schul-units were using more and more elderly Fw 190 models - both Jagdfliegerschule and Schlachtflieger urgently required a Schul-version of the Fw 190  - a 'Zwei' or 'Doppelsitzer' ..with 'Doppelsteuer' or dual controls (and flight instruments)..

"Der Doppelsitzer ist für den Schulbetrieb vorgesehen, wobei Lehrer und Schüler die Sitze beliebig wechseln können." The two-seater is intended for school use. Instructor and student can fly from either seat.. The 'new' elongated canopy comprised a new fixed central section and two 'folding hood' sections, both of which could be jettisoned. Both occupants flew with parachutes (rear cockpit manual chute). Cowl MGs were removed. Each conversion required some 2,500 man-hours. The metal-working firm 'Brinckmann & Mergell' (Menibum) started conversion work on A-8 sub-types in October 1944 in Stendal and by February 1945 had delivered 58 examples.  (Rodeike, 'Jagdflugzeug 190' page 373). WNr. 584219 is a 1943 Ago (Oschersleben) constructed  F-8, later attached to JG 103 and the sole surviving twin-seat Fw 190.

Fw 190 S-8 'weiße 30' of 1./JG 110. Note the Gruppe emblem on the cowl. This machine is equipped with a Peilrahmen  DF loop just behind the rear cockpit. The fuel filler triangle is just visible underneath. See Rodeike P. 377 for another view of this same machine.

Below; 'Umschulung' (retraining) of KG pilots on the Fw 190 at II./JG 301 in early 1945 (possibly in Stendal). Fw 190 S-8 being towed back to the takeoff strip by oxen.. compare with the reproduction on page 376 of Rodeike's 'Jagdflugzeug 190'..

 

 Roland Jahne photos (below) taken in May 1987 during the period the dual-control Fw 190 S-8 was at St Athan. Having been captured at Grove the machine was flown to Farnborough in September 1945 and later as Air Min 29 it was allocated for preservation by the Air Historical Branch in 1946. The airframe spent many years stored in various locations arriving at St. Athan in 1970. The BMW 801 engine was first overhauled and ground run in 1984 and would subsequently be regularly run on 'first Sunday of the month' open days.

 

More on captive Fw 190s (in colour) on this blog here 

Building the new IBG Models Fw 190 Dora 9 (Early Production Cottbus) - new Luftwaffe models

 

Finished my first of the lovely 72nd scale IBG Doras (Cottbus 'early'). Totally hassle-free build, loads of detail and neat options! 

Finished in one of the kit markings options, Fw 190 D-9 "black 3" WNr 210239 flown by Uffz. Fritz Hanusch, 6./JG 26, shot down on 7 March 1945 by the 366th FG and crash landed at Börsiker, Wesel. 

 Part 1 of my build is here

 Part 2 of my build is here

The Junkers F 13 at the National Museum of Science and Technology, Stockholm - Part 2

 

Both Flugzeug Classic and Flieger Revue magazines have covered preserved F13s in recent issues. Jan Forsgren contacted the Luftwaffe Blog with the following contribution.

" ...The Junkers F 13 at the National Museum of Science and Technology in Stockholm was built in 1923 (W Nr 715), and originally registered as D-343 and named Schleiervogel. It was delivered to Aktiebolaget Aerotransport (ABA) in 1924, and registered as S-AAAC. Apart from being used on regular passenger services, she also flew on the Stockholm-Amsterdam-London night mail route. Mail sorting shelves were installed in the cabin. (These are preserved at the National Postal Museum.)The postman is said to have been so frightened during the inaugural flight, that he contemplated making himself a parachute from the mail bags!

 
Re-registered as SE-AAC in the late 1920s, the F 13 remained in service until 1934. The registration was cancelled on 5 November 1934, with the aeroplane being donated to the National Museum of Science and Technology in March 1935. Displayed outside the museum for decades, she was restored and brought into the museum's main hall in 1971..."

I can only add that being allowed to work on such a historic aeroplane has been a privilege! Here are a few more pictures. Note the cup holders in the front corners of the cabin! ..."

Part 1 on this blog here 

" Junkers F 13 Rückkehr einer Legende – das weltweit erste Passagierflugzeug "

https://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2016/09/junkers-f-13-rimowa-first-flight.html

Focke Wulf Fw 190 - Jagdflieger Karl Walz am Kanal 1943 - ebay photo find #354

 

Loss data for Uffz. Karl Walz shot down on July 1, 1943

Walz was flying a 2./JG 1 Fw 190 A-5, WNr. 410198. Shot down 5-10 km west of the Hook of Holland  + Absturz nach Luftkampf mit P-47. Bruch 100 %. Uffz Walz tot angeschwemmt. (via Matti Salonen)

Slovak Gustavs in Anapa - Bundesarchiv photo report series #5

 

View of the Black Sea coastal air field at Anapa in April 1943 showing the conditions at this base to good advantage. Visible are Messerschmitt Bf 109 Gustavs of the Slovak 13./JG 52, which was subordinated to II./JG 52. 13. Staffel used yellow fuselage markings and a horizontal stripe aft of the Balkenkreuz similar to II./JG 52. JG 52 aircraft used smaller fuselage numbers while the Slovak machines featured  tri-colour spinner stripes  (in national colours).