Luftschraube Uhrzeit 12:30 - setting the propeller pitch in the Bf 109 Emil

 

In his 'Inside the cockpit - 'Messerschmitt Bf 109 E' video, Chris from the 'Military Aviation History' channel describes the dials on the instrument panel of the Deutsches Museum Emil. One small 'clock-like' indicator on the bottom right of the panel is marked "Luftschraube" - 'propeller'. All we see is a clock dial with no numerical markings but divided into hours and minutes.  This simple instrument relates to engine management in a 109 by aiding the pilot in selecting propeller pitch. This is the propeller pitch control indicator on early Emils - in early Emils there was no automatic propeller pitch control.

Simply put, the pilot set the pitch manually  - degrees of either 'fine' or 'coarse' according to the rpm - by selecting a 'clock time' - the  "Luftschraube Uhrzeit " as seen on performance charts. The Luftwaffe fighter pilot would have to learn the rpm and associated 'clock' settings to manage the engine at its most efficient settings and avoid 'over-speeding' the engine.

 Below; an extract from a wwiiaircraftperformance Bf 109 engine settings chart for 'Sperrflug'  or 'patrol'. From left to right , 'Altitude', 'RPM' 'Manifold pressure' and 'Prop pitch time' (Luftschraube Uhrzeit). Note the low rpm settings for increased endurance (lower fuel consumption).

Note: the sentences under the 'Sperrflug' table refer to later Bf 109 variants with auto pitch control and/or earlier variants with retro-fitted auto pitch control - which could be disengaged as required, eg takeoffs, landings or as here, when in the 'Sperrflug' regime - 'switch off' (ausschalten) the 'autocontrol' and adjust (einstellen) pitch either using the thumb control (Daumenschalter) on the throttle or the lever on the instrument panel' . The power settings given in the table give very low fuel consumption, perhaps about 100 ltr/h.

The electric VDM system was produced to compete with the American Hamilton standard 'hydramatic' pitch propeller control system and was different from most other propeller hub and pitch control systems - the centre of the hub was hollow so that it could be fitted to engines with centrally mounted engine armament such as the DB 600 series of engines. This resulted in the need for the propeller pitch control system to be remotely located as opposed to being located in the hub as it was in most other systems. 

 Below; prop pitch control mechanism on the side of the DB 601 engine in the Emil.

Prop pitch control lever on an Emil instrument panel

 When flying the Me 109 the pilot did not really need to know the exact degrees of the propeller's pitch, just what indications on the instrument related to the selection that was required; there were essentially two options, to 'coarsen' or to 'fine' the pitch. This corresponds to the two options available - "größer" moving the lever up and "kleiner" moving the lever down (in the same way a modern Airbus pilot does not need to know what exact degrees of flap and slats he is selecting - he just needs to know when he needs flaps one or flaps two) 

In early 109s (including the Emil) the control 'switch' was a lever attached to the instrument panel but as it became clear that flying an aircraft in combat and having to move your hand off the throttle (or the stick) to change the prop pitch was not a good idea, a rocker thumb switch was added to the top of the throttle. From this point on all the pilot had to do was move his thumb up or down to increase or decrease the prop pitch. 

A decrease in engine rpm means an increase in propeller pitch or coarsening the propeller blades and an increase in engine rpm means a decrease in propeller pitch and a 'fining' of the propeller blades. Thus there are no markings on the face of the 'Luftschraube 'clock'. It is read just like a clock - higher rpm means that the clock needs to rotate clockwise to its maximum reading of 12:30 which is fully fine on the prop pitch ( about 22 degrees). For lower rpm the clock should be rotated all the way round anti-clockwise to 4:30 which indicates the propeller is now fully coarse. (blade pitch about 70 degrees) .. 

The "Bf 109 Mecanik" youtube channel explains how this worked in both early (DB 601) and later (DB 605) variants of the Bf 109 in this short video.

Also on this blog

Contending with engine torque in late-war Bf 109s

new from Lela Presse - KG 54 Death's Head Geschwader history in two volumes, Luftwaffe in Romania

  

New from Peter Taghon through Lela Presse is a two volume history of the Death's Head Geschwader, KG 54, one of the Luftwaffe's most 'famous' bomber wings.  Volume I covers the Polish campaign to France and the Battle of Britain. Gruppen of  KG 54 were deployed on the Eastern Front, against Malta and in support of Rommel's Afrika Korps. A 16-page PDF extract is available on the publishers web site here. This superb 398-page large format volume was released at the end of last year with volume II due on 31 January. Free postage if ordered before the publication date...

Volume II opens with the Totenkopf facing the Allied invasion of Sicily before undergoing various withdrawals in mainland Italy. The Totenkopf left the Mediterranean for good at the end of 1943 to return to the West. The Geschwader was then deployed to operate over the UK as part of the bloody ‘Steinbock’ operation. Casualties were so high that II./KG 54 was disbanded in April 1944. Two months later, the Geschwader - now comprising just two Gruppen - faced the Allied landings in Normandy on missions that were just as costly in terms of men and equipment.

Fighting tooth and nail, KG 54 returned to the Reich where, in September 1944, it became a fighter unit equipped with the famous Me 262 jet. However, the jet still suffered from serious ‘teething issues', and KG (J) 54 (despite having been reinforced with a second Gruppe) was barely able to inflict more than pinpricks on the vastly superior Allied air forces. The unit was decimated. On 8 May 1945, the surviving personnel of the skull and crossbones Geschwader surrendered, their numbers then being mainly dispersed in Austria and Czechoslovakia. Volume II is another near 400-page volume with over 650 photos, 17 colour profiles and period documents. Table of contents follows..

The latest issue of BATAILLES AÉRIENNES has arrived! N°111 covers the history of the Luftwaffe in Romania, covering units such as JG 52, JG 77, JG 4, JG 301, various short and long-range recce units, SG 2, NJG 6 and NJG 100, all deployed at various intervals to cover the Ploesti oilfields. The artwork is by Eric Schwartz - the cover profile shows Kommandeur Ubben's III./JG 77 Gustav. This 96-page A-4 issue features around 200 photos, 8 high quality profile artworks and is also available as a digital download in PDF format. Just 10 euros! (for the downloadable version). Go here to order..

 

Me 109 V-14 - AZ Model 1:72nd

 

 Me 109 V-14 D-ISLU. Click on the image for a full-screen view..

The Me 109 V-14 was a 'racing' prototype powered by the new DB 601 engine. It is easily distinguishable by its large 'cylindrical' supercharger intake. The V-14 was coded D-ISLU and flown and crashed by Udet at Dübendorf in  Switzerland in 1937.  Devoid of all military equipment the V-14 was probably not built from an Emil airframe, unlike AZ's model in 1:72nd scale! AZ do mould new fuselage halves and make a reasonably good job of it, although leaving the modeller to undertake some filling and filing work; most notably on the upper cowl MG troughs and the lower wing cannon bulges - which was a surprise as their E-1 kit comes with two sets of wings, one of which does not have the lower wing bulges. Unfortunately, this is just one of a number of modifications required to make a proper V-14 : spinner, air intakes, landing gear covers and bays all really need some attention. Note that all the cooling louvres are of different shape and position than on an Emil. The lower cowl oil cooler may be larger than AZ have made it  - simply cut off and substitute a normal Gustav radiator. Colour was 'weinrot' - not blue.. 

Model built by Michel Wilhelme. Photos of the V-14 scanned from the Van Ishoven archive. Click to view full screen.

Eduard Bf 109 G-6 as Kurt Gabler's 8./JG 300 'Moskito-chaser'

 Here's a great looking interpretation of Kurt Gabler's 8./JG 300 'Moskito-chaser' in 72nd scale!

" my first completion for 2025, wrapping up the 1/72 Eduard Bf-109 G-6. So impressed with this kit, but found room for some extra detailing with the cockpit, wheel wells and wheels, prop/spinner and aileron mass balances from the Brassin sets. The kit canopy was replaced with a Falcon vac-form, added the Fine Molds brass pitot and the seat belts were scratchbuilt using an old Model Technolgies buckle set. I have tried to follow some of the conventional wisdom that this Mosquito-Jager flown by Kurt Gabler of JG 300, had its fuselage paint removed, leaving a heavily worn natural metal finish. To try to capture this, the fuselage was covered with oxidised pieces of aluminium foil (mainly Reynolds wrap), then painted RLM 75 and gently sanded off with 4000 grit and steel wool to leave the worn finish and paint remnants in corners, around the panel lines and rivets, which was the effect I was looking for. The photos probably exaggerate it in the close up shots, but I am quite happy with the effect in real life. MRP and SMS paints were used with some very subtle oil paint weathering on the painted surfaces added and oil paint washes. The decals are from the EagleCals set, however, I also added the scribble on the rudder using a home made decal. Cannot praise this kit more, it’s a great model to build and I feel it really captures the look and sit of a 109..." Paul from 'Glossy Kits' on FB..

Below; the original Gabler 'red 8' pic here published over two full pages in a two-part feature I compiled for the now defunct 'Model Aircraft' magazine which appeared in the June and July 2014 issues. Entitled "Wilde Sau und Moskito Jagd" the 6000 word article featured the recollections of JG 302, NJGr.10 and NJG 11 pilots Fritz Gniffke and Walter Schermutzki over 12 pages in the two issues with some great artwork by Anders Hjortsberg. Osprey have a new title 'Wilde Sau' title in their combat units series (Streetly, 2024) but Gabler is not even mentioned. Nor are other JG 300 wilde Sau aces such as Wischnewski - while pilots that never flew 'wilde Sau' (eg the WWI vet Lindenberger) are featured in the 'Pilot bios' section...

 

Gabler flew both day and night sorties. For his account of downing the first Mosquito to be shot down over Berlin see the Casemate 'Day Fighter Aces' volume.. 

" As an Osprey book addict, I was quite impressed with this volume. The focus is less on detailed encyclopedic knowledge and more on interesting anecdotes and rare insights into the world of the late-war Luftwaffe. There are excerpts from memoirs long out of print and never printed in English, which are, to my knowledge, impossible to find anywhere else. I enjoyed the small handful of beautifully illustrated aircraft profiles and the attendant descriptions of the stories behind the aircraft.

As someone who collects books of this type, I'd say this is one of the best. A volume I return to again and again. Do get the printed version instead of the kindle version though. With the best will in the world, the formatting of this book does *not* lend itself to a kindle's screen, and you will just get frustrated with it..."

Review by Wolfgang Mercer

 

JG 2 Friedrich 'Notlandung Cherbourg' - ebay photo find #384

 

..and the seller also states 'Wick 1940'.  So probably not Cherbourg either - III./JG 2 was mostly based at St.Pol/Brias during the summer and autumn of 1941.

This yellow-nosed  7.Staffel JG 2 Bf 109 F-2 'white 10' with (barely visible and rare for a Friedrich) 'top hat' or Zylinderhut emblem on the cowl appears to have made a wheels-up landing and slid off the end of the field during the late summer of 1941 - or perhaps the gear has collapsed after the machine has run over the slight embankment around the perimeter. Certainly the prop does not appear to have been damaged. Subsequent images show the aircraft back on its gear and being pushed around the perimeter road. The focus of attention though in the picture below is not on the aircraft but on something in the road behind it - has the aircraft hit something? There certainly seems to be some damage on the spinner. Note (presumably) the pilot near the tailplane (in life jacket) and the onlooker behind him wearing a black beret. 7. Staffel gave up their Friedrichs in May 1942 to convert to the Fw 190. Kapitän during this period was Oblt. Egon Mayer.

also on this blog

III./JG 2 convert onto the Fw 190 May-June 1942 - 7. Staffel Kapitän Oblt. Egon Mayer.

new from Casemate - Luftwaffe Night Fighter Aces 1940-43

 

Two titles written in collaboration with Jean-Louis Roba, artwork by Claes Sundin, plenty of 'new' personal accounts and a selection of rare and 'new' images. From the blurb;

" On 10 May 1940, the Wehrmacht launched its assault on the West. One element of the West’s response was the dispatch of RAF Bomber Command ‘heavy’ bombers at night over German industrial centers. These raids had only limited effectiveness, but the inability of the Luftwaffe to chase down RAF bombers at night so annoyed Wolfgang Falck that it swiftly resulted in the creation of a credible night fighter force.

Initial trials had been flown with Bf 110s at dusk in Denmark in April, and 1. Nachtjagd.Division was founded in the summer of 1940. Its first few months were chaotic, with constant reorganizations of units, and reassignment of aircraft, but soon enough the night fighter arm was achieving steady victories—and losing crews at a similarly steady rate.

Despite the efforts of senior leadership, the Nachtjagd constantly struggled to secure sufficient personnel or aircraft, and would spend most of its life playing catch up—its radar systems regularly outdone by RAF Bomber Command’s jamming capabilities, though the development of Schräge Musik and Wilde Sau did give the Nachtjagd an edge. The first specialist Luftwaffe night fighter—the Heinkel He 219—would be trialed only in 1943.

Fully illustrated, this is a full chronological account of the night fighter units for the first part of World War II, covering major campaigns, the biographies of individual aces, and the details of the technology developed for the Nachtjagd..."

 Available now from Pen & Sword here

new book from Tim Heath - German Aircraft Weaponry-Machine Guns, Cannon and Aerial Artillery in Luftwaffe Service 1939-1945

 A new book from Tim Heath is due soon from Pen & Sword. Tim has worked with the German War Graves Commission and has written a dozen books on German history 1933-45. I was impressed by his 'history' of the Luftwaffe as told by the bomber and fighter crews in his book entitled "In furious skies" - a recommended read for anyone visiting this blog. His new book further develops the subject of aircraft armament . Visit his author's page at Pen and Sword here

"..hi Neil, I now have the front and rear cover design for my next book German Aircraft Weaponry-Machine Guns, Cannon and Aerial Artillery in Luftwaffe Service 1939-1945. Pen and Sword have done yet another fine job and I can't wait to see this one released. It was such a great project to work on and one I had wanted to do for so many years and have finally done. Thanks to the Pen and Sword Books Ltd team as these books require a team effort to produce and big thanks to Jon Wilkinson the graphics genius for bringing life to the books with his amazing graphics work. This new book is purely focused on the machine guns and cannons plus larger calibre guns including those which only got as far as proposal stage plus experimental weapons. This book also shows in the photos what these weapons could do to a human body. If you liked the brief coverage in 'In Furious Skies' you will love this one. Thanks so much for your kind words.."

 

Sergent-chef Denys Boudard - Bücker Bü 131 D Jungmann 'GD+EG'

 

Denys Boudard was another courageous Frenchman who managed to get to England and join the RAF after the fall of France. On 29 April 1941, Boudard and a fellow countryman, Jean Hébert, had dressed in dark-coloured overalls to resemble German mechanics and walked onto the huge Caen-Carpiquet Luftwaffe airfield, which was, according to one source, home to nearly 400 Luftwaffe machines at that time. The two former Armée de l'Air pilots planned to steal an aircraft and fly it to England. 

From the site of the Prefet du Calvados; 

 "..The two men attempted their exploit on 29 April 1941. It was raining. They slipped on the airfield at Caen-Carpiquet wearing black overalls, as worn by German mechanics, and entered a hangar, where Bücker Jungmann WNr. 4477 coded 'GD+EG' was parked. (The aircraft belonged to the Luftdienstkommando Westfrankreich.) Just as they were about to start the engine, German officers passed in front of the hangar. The two friends opened the cowl cover and plunged their hands into the engine. The Germans move on. Then two French workers stopped in front of the hangar door. When at last the coast was clear, the Germans returned. Disciplined, they stopped to let the plane pass in front of them before taking off. Jean Hébert flew the small liaison machine low over the SNCF station and waggled his wings, a sign agreed with a friend, an SNCF inspector. This was the signal that letters written by the two friends to their families could be posted. After an hour's flight the two former Armée de l'Air pilots arrived over the English coastline, flying over Bournemouth's main street and sounding the warning siren. Shortly afterwards, two fighters patrolled overhead, but did not spot the small biplane. Boudard and Hébert looked for an airfield and landed their plane in Christchurch, where they parked it in front of a hangar. Surrounded by British soldiers, they declared ‘we are French’. After several hours of interrogation, they reached London and were presented to Winston Churchill with Mrs Churchill acting as interpreter..." 

According to Chris Thomas; " the poor visibility that day probably saved their lives. Following the coast to look for an airfield, they had started on a second circuit of the Isle of Wight before they realised it was an island! They eventually landed at Christchurch.." 

It was a Sunday and visibility was presumably much better on the English side of the Channel - the two Frenchmen (Boudard left, Hébert right) were surprised to find the RAF were playing cricket on the airfield..

Fast forward three years- Jean Hébert had been sadly KIA during 1943, but on 18 June 1944 Sergent-chef Denys Boudard was filmed preparing to fly to Normandy in his 340 Sqn Spitfire IX at Merston. The IWM film was shot by the RAF FPU to celebrate Denys Boudard's return to France. He was later the first Allied pilot to land at the recaptured Carpiquet airfield - the same field from which he had stolen his Bücker Jungmann three years previously. 

The Jungmann was allocated serial DR 626, dismantled and sent to London for War Weapons Week display, still in its Luftwaffe markings. It returned to Christchurch on 13 June. However the machine had been damaged by souvenir hunters and was later struck off charge (November 1941) It is not known if it was ever repainted in RAF colours - the likelihood is that at some stage between May and November 1941 it probably was...

Also on this blog;

Clostermann and Demozay - 'modest and exemplary heroes'

Flugzeug Classic Jahrbuch 2024

 

I finally got around to ordering the Flugzeug Classic Jahrbuch 2024 (Geramond, Heft 12). One hundred pages for 13 euros and packed with interesting features; the history of on-board toilets ( seriously..), Peter Cronauer on JG 54 in 1944 (a stalwart of 'Flugzeug Classic', Peter sadly passed away in 2024), stories of the He 59 and the Ju 34, Jagdflieger navigation techniques, the Luftwaffe in Tunisia, the British Me 163 (DH 108) and more..

Two articles caught my eye in particular. The first is an investigation into the circumstances of the crash of a Lufthansa Boeing 720 airliner in the summer of 1964. I've previously mentioned this accident in a post entitled 'The strange post-war deaths of the Luftwaffe aces'.. 

Werner Baake survived the war as Kommandeur of I./NJG 1 and leading ace on the He 219 with around 40 claims. His last three Halifax 'Viermots' were downed on the night of January 5/6, 1945. Post-war he was a blind flying instructor and and had been flying airliners for Lufthansa since 1954 - like a number of other nightfighter aces. His co-pilot on July 15, 1964 was Flugkapitän Hans Zimmermann, also a former Nachtjagd pilot. What the two pilots had planned for their training flight that day though simply beggars belief   - they were going to recreate 'Tex' Johnston's 'famous' barrel-roll' in the B707 prototype in Lufthansa Boeing 720 'D-ABOP'. However the B720 with its MTOW of over 100 tonnes was not quite the same aircraft. Attempting aerobatic manoeuvres ('Kunstflug Figuren') over Ansbach the pilots overstressed the airframe which broke up in mid-air. Transformed into a burning cascading waterfall of fire, Baake plunged to his death with the two crew - he had been on board the airliner as the check-captain!

The second feature of interest "Den 'Duce' im Schlepptau" covers the activities of III./LLG 1 in the lead up to the operation ('Eiche') to 'liberate' Mussolini, then in detention at the Campo Imperatore hotel in the Abruzzo mountains, Gran Sasso, Italy in September 1943. The Gruppe flew Dornier Do-17s, Henschel Hs-126s and Avia B.534s, adapted to tow DFS 230 gliders. This airborne Gruppe was based at Lézignan-Corbières, then at Pratica di Mare (south of Rome). III./LLG 1 (Luftlandegeschwader 1) had been reinforced in April 1943 by four Staffeln and a Stab. The four Staffeln were: 7./LLG1, 8./LLG1, 9./LLG1 and 12./LLG1. On 19 August 1943, 12./LLG1 was transferred to Ottana (Sardinia), then on 11 September 1943 to Pratica di Mare (south of Rome). It was this unit that transported 1./FJR.7 (Fallschirmjäger-Regiment) to Gran Sasso for the ‘liberation’ of Mussolini. This would also have been the same unit that transported German parachutists to Vassieux in the Vercors post D-Day. The article features a neat selection of PK images - although the photo of the Massey-Ferguson tractor seen towing the DFS 230 (below) was taken at an 8./LLG 1 training detachment in Norway (Banak) at around the time of the Mussolini rescue. 

Arado Ar 240 Versuchsflugzeuge - Revell re-release 72nd scale Ar 240

 Ar 240 V-3 'KK+CD'

Here's what the average web site - ie ChatGPT (AI) - will tell you about the Ar 240;

" The Arado Ar 240 was a twin-engine, multi-role aircraft developed by Germany during World War II. Intended to replace the Messerschmitt Bf 110 as a heavy fighter and reconnaissance aircraft, the Ar 240 was designed with advanced features for its time, including a pressurized cockpit, a remotely controlled defensive armament system, and excellent high-speed performance. However, the aircraft suffered from persistent stability issues, poor handling, and mechanical problems during its development and testing phases. Although prototypes demonstrated promising speed and versatility, these shortcomings prevented the Ar 240 from entering full production. Despite its limited deployment and operational use, the aircraft provided valuable lessons for German aviation engineers and remains a fascinating example of ambitious wartime aircraft design.."

 Or in other words, a promising design that failed to deliver. A rare Luftwaffe type, but one that failed to get a production order..

Let's put a slightly different take out there. The Arado Ar 240 was an experimental and test aircraft. In 1937 Dipl.Ing Walter Blume had proposed a twin-engined Zerstörer with both engines in the fuselage driving twin props - a concept rejected by the RLM, who nonetheless recommended that Blume submit a more conventional proposal. A mock-up was produced by March 1939 and in May 1939 the RLM asked for six 'Versuchsflugzeuge' or test aircraft (see Hans-Jürgen Becker, 'Schwere Jäger und Zerstörer der Luftwaffe', p117). The type was never conceived with the idea that it might go into series production. At all. It was designed to the same specification that had already resulted in orders for 3,000 Me 210s - the Ar 240 V1 first flew in June 1940 nearly one year after the Me 210. For more on this see Mankau/Petrick, " Messerchmitt Bf 110, Me 210, Me 410 - die Messerschmitt Zerstörer und ihre Konkurrenten", (Aviatic Verlag, 2001)

'Konkurrenten' means 'competitors' ..but the Ar 240 was never in the race - it was a 'technology demonstrator'.

" Das RLM hatte die Me 210 für die Grossserienproduktion vorgesehen und die Ar 240 in wenigen Exemplaren als Experimentalflugzeug, mit der neue Techniken erprobt werden sollten. Ein Einsatz der Ar 240 war bei der Luftwaffe zunächst nur in Einzelexemplaren zu Erprobungszwecken geplant..."

The Me 210 had been ordered into large-scale production by the RLM who had also ordered a handful of the Ar 240 as an experimental aircraft to test new technologies. Initially, the Luftwaffe only planned to use the Ar 240 in individual examples for testing purposes.

With little prospect of a production order - in the Luftwaffe's planning of 7 November 1938 approx. 3000 Me 210 units were to be delivered up to 1942 - Arado was encouraged to innovate in their design. The company received preliminary approval for the development and construction of six prototypes on 16 May 1939 and began work on a design based on the Bf 110, but with much smaller dimensions. However, the small wings required special high-lift devices. These were provided in the form of automatic leading edge slats, double-slotted flaps outboard of the engines and Fowler flaps inboard of the engine nacelles, along with 'full-span' ailerons on the outer wing. Early examples had tail-mounted dive brakes which were soon dispensed with. 

Following the first flight, instability problems led to extensive redesign work- the V3 pictured here was a rather different beast from the V1. Lengthening the fuselage, relocating the cockpit and enlarging the wing cured the problems - partially. The last line of an Arado report on the instability issue (reproduced in Becker p119) confirmed that " this state was no longer significantly affected by further enlargement of the wing and lengthening of the fuselage. It was considered tolerable, as the instability only occurred with intentional actions or complete removal of the feet from the pedals..." Testing continued on the design. For example, this included development of the pressure cabin and the testing of warm air in a double-glazed canopy to prevent the panes from fogging up for the Arado 234 programme. Elsewhere the Me 210 was in full-scale production - large production orders were a done deal in the case of the Me 210. No such orders were ever likely to have been forthcoming in the case of the Arado - not least because the aircraft did not have a bomb bay. 

In August 1941 the V3 was still at Rechlin being flown by Oberst Siegfried Knemeyer - head of the Amtsgruppe Entwicklung von fliegerischem Gerät - and Oberst Theodor Rowehl. The V4 first flew in June 1941 and crashed on 7 August 1941. The V5  'T5+MH' was powered by two DB 601Es and in March 1942 the Versuchsstelle für Hohenflüge took over the aircraft to test it as an Aufklärer. Initial motorisation with the DB 601 and later DB 603 gave the type relatively good performance - max speed 350-400 mph saw the type deployed over England in the high altitude Aufklärer recce role " with some success". Independently of the Versuchs aircraft 1-6, a further five Ar 240s were built for 'unarmed reconnaissance'- the first of these, the A-01 ('GL+QA'), entered flight testing on 5 June 1942.  

Our good friend Michel Wilhelme has built Revell's re-release of the Arado Ar 240 for this blog. The unit code 'T5' represents a machine of the Aufklärungsgruppe Ob.d.L. (Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaffe) or Aufklärungsgruppe Rowehl..

NJG 2 nightfighters - ebay photo find #383

Above; a 2./NJG 2 Do 17 Z-7 at Gilze-Rijen in September 1940. Finish is all black with white spinner tips and the new Nachtjagd emblem on the nose. The infrared Spanner lamp appears to have been removed from the nose - or not yet fitted. Below; Ju 88 C-6 of 9./NJG 2 in the summer of 1942 at Gilze-Rijen. In the cockpit is Uffz. Günther Riemann, BM (flight engineer) in Ofw. Wilhelm Baier's crew. 

Michael Meyer ebay sales are here

IBG models I.A.R 80/81 in-box review - 'Great Air Battles of 1944' (2)

 

Continuing our look at the IBG models IAR 80/81 kits. In our first post here we looked at the historical background to the IBG Models IAR 81 C 'Great Air Battles of 1944'  (72nd) kit. Now to see what's in the box. As a modeller who has built both the IBG D-9 and PZL. P.11 (see links below) I know that I am going to be impressed! IBG Models kit number 72570 "IAR 81 C- Great Air Battles of 1944" was designed by IAR 80/81 expert Radu Brinzan and features five frames of some 90 finely moulded parts and seven clear parts, a sheet of photo-etch with 17 parts and a decal sheet with four colourful options and full stencil data.

 Above; PK shot of Grupul 6 IAR 81 Cs with the heavy cannon in the wings. 

Below; a closer look at some of the sprues. Construction starts with the cowl gun assembly which locates onto the cockpit sill/instrument panel at the top and the foot rails which plug into the bottom of the seat. The cockpit is well detailed with 14 plastic parts and seven photo-etched pieces, including two types of harness straps. Note the engine parts - including both banks of cylinders -the radial comprising some 13 parts.

Note the recessed panel lines and riveting detail. I'm probably not the only modeller to think that this is a little 'finer' than the surface texture of the IBG Dora series, but I had no issues with those in any case. You really have to get the light on the rivets to notice them. The fabric texture on the control surfaces looks good (below) and note the raised cockpit wall detail. 

IBG have also produced some 3-D printed accessories, including a beautifully detailed seat and wheels/tyres. 

In summary then, this looks like a slightly less complex kit than the Doras, although that may well be down to the radial as opposed to in-line engine which made for a very large internal sub-assembly. The build starts now!

Below; Escadrila 61 commander Dumitrescu (right) describes a recent combat encounter in front of his IAR 81 C No.320, a markings option in the kit. Note the gunsight in the cockpit. The triangle (left) is red, one of two that identifies the Escadrila. The unit's unoffical emblem was Disney's Bambi and the quails. The bigger white triangle (right) denoted the CO's aircraft. (LFT SO F2557 L32)

Also on this blog;

Building the IBG models Fw 190 D-9

IBG Models PZL P.11 in Romanian service