Me 110 G heavy weapons - ebay photo find #377

Me 110 G of ZG 1 Bad Lippspringe, early 1944. Caption reads, (I think..), 'upper nose cannon have been removed and openings faired over to enable installation of GM-1 ..' Note the folding upper section of the canopy serving as a makeshift deckchair..

Bottom;  ZG 1 Bf 110 with Flak 18 3,7 cm cannon installation.

new Print Scale Decals for black Me 110s

new Print Scale decals for Me 110 "night fighter and interceptor aces"

Available at  the print scale site here

Also on this blog - a page of early NJG black schemes for the Bf 110
http://falkeeins.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/bf-110-night-fighters-of-njg-1-njg-2.html

Ju 88/Bf 110 Nachtjäger mit Hirschgeweih - daily Ebay photo find #188

Top photo, a Ju 88 C-6 possibly of NJG 2 (6./NJG 2 had a lot of machines painted just like this). The G-1 below it is previously unknown at least to this blogger, nor do I know of any photos that might go along with it in sequence. The Bf 110 G-4 is 2Z+GB of 2./NJG 6 flown by Kommodore Olbt. Martin 'Tino' Becker. Based at Neubiberg - sequence of photos taken on 18 July 1944.

Captions from John McIllmurray of AIMS, the Ju 88 enthusiast site. Check out John's site here
Images currently on offer here


Below; 'weisse 3' a Bf 109 E-3 WNr. 779 of 4./ JG 26 lost during the Westfeldzug. See JfV der Deutschen Luftwaffe Teil 3 page 212. Note the tiger's head emblem just visible under the cockpit.

Bottom,  a nice 'hangar' view for my friend Laurent - Laurent's article on Luftwaffe hangars and field equipment for modellers coming soon..

Lastly this Bf 109 E on the apron in front of a hangar is an a/c of Stab I.(J)/LG 2 taken shortly before the outbreak of war at Garz airfield; in the background you can see two Bückers from the aerobatic Staffel which was run by I.(J)/LG 2. (caption via Prien)

Me 110 ZG 26 BK 37 mm Flak 18

Pilot Flugzeugführer Uffz. Herbert Weiner of 1./ ZG 26 seen wearing his EK I in Wunstorf in late 1943 in front of his Me 110 G-2 toting the BK 37mm Flak 18 cannon. This large-calibre weapon was trialed and briefly employed against USAAF bomber formations. Click to view large.

More Me 110s with Flak 18 cannon on this blog

http://falkeeins.blogspot.co.uk/2010/01/bf-110-g-with-37mm-flak-18-cannon.html

Me 110 E of 1./Erg.Zerstörergruppe Deblin-Irena - daily Ebay photo find #122

Above; Me 110 E of 1./Erg.Zerstörergruppe Deblin-Irena possibly late November 1942. The larger oil cooler indicates a 'tropicalised' sub-type and an additional rear view mirror above the Wolfskopf emblem is evidence that it may have served as a Schleppmaschine (glider tug) for the Me 321 Gigant  On the left  Flugzeugführer (pilot) Uffz. Josef Scheidler and BordfunkerUffz. Herbert Weiner who both later crewed in I./ZG 1 which became 1./ZG 26.

Below;  Me 110 C/D loaded with practice bombs 1./ErgZGr Deblin-Irena warming up its engines. The wolf's head emblem features on both sides of the nose. Note the sand filters on the compressor intakes.

Michael Meyer's latest Ebay sales are here

Schnellkampfgeschwader 210 May 1941 - Johannes Kaufmann " Meine Flugberichte "

Me 110 E "S9+.L" of 3./SKG 210 over Cambrai, northern France, in April 1941



" ..on Saturday 10 May we arrived in Brussels after a long train journey and the following morning travelled on to Lille. From there we were bussed on to our new airfield at Merville driving through the bucolic countryside of northern France - of the war there was nothing to be seen.. Our group, freshly posted to SKG 210, comprised young Zerstörer crews just out of the 'destroyer' training school and included my radio operator Gefr. Schmidt and myself. Our Geschwader CO was Major Storp, Gruppenkommandeur Hptm. Stricker and our Staffelkapitän Oblt. Forgatsch. The principal mission of our Geschwader was all-weather precision bombing sorties by day and night with the Bf 110. The Me 210 - after which our unit was named- was not yet available. On Tuesday 13 May we flew our first orientation flights, followed by navigation and practise bombing training sorties - the latter were flown against shipwrecks off the Channel coast. These were the sort of sorties that we weren't taught at the Zerstörer training school at Schleissheim. Another deficiency in our training programme that we were to make good as quickly as we could was night flying in the Bf 110. On 18 May 1941 we took off at 23:15 from Merville heading out over the Channel coast. We climbed to 3,000 metres and once through the cloud deck visibility in the light of the moon was good. We had to maintain strict radio silence and had no ground navigation aids. Course, height and speed had to be scrupulously maintained in order to find our way safely back home.. While we had to keep a keen watch  out for English night fighters there were no untoward events on this flight. Shortly after crossing back over the coast we let down through the clouds and once in the vicinity of the airfield requested the very sparse airfield lighting be switched on, which was just of sufficient help to line up for an  approach and touch down. This was our first night sortie 'at the front' and as such was of particular significance for us. Our daytime navigation flights took us to Le Bourget, Calais, Chateaudun and Paderborn. In the view of our Staffelkapitän we quickly reached a point where we could be declared 'einsatzreif' - ready for combat - and awaited our first 'Feindflug' ...some combat sorties were planned but always cancelled, sometimes at the last moment, without us ever knowing why. It was around this period though that the Fuehrer's Deputy, Rudolf Hess, flew to Great Britain in his Bf 110 and there was much rumour and speculation in our personal conversations. Those wishing for a speedy end to the war and peace kept their own counsel though.."

extract from Johannes Kaufmann - 'Meine Flugberichte'









images of 3./SKG 210 Bf 110s from Michael Meyer's current Ebay sales

http://www.ebay.de/sch/macflly41/m.html?hash=item5894725e29&item=380447645225&pt=Militaria&rt=nc&_trksid=p4340.l2562

Sting of the Wasp!..Me 110 E ZG 1 - Wespengeschwader Bf 110s Johannes Kaufmann's " Meine Flugberichte "

Me 110 E belonging to 3./ZG 1 in Bjelgorod photographed on 5 June 1942. Sitzbereitschaft or cockpit readiness for the pilot Uffz Lußki and his BF Uffz Karl-Fritz Schröder

M. Meyer's Ebay sales

From Der Adler - article entitled 'the Sting of the Wasp'

“..Feared by the Soviets, the Messerschmitt Zerstörer 110 continues to demonstrate its superb all-round versatility and hard-hitting fire power in virtually all of the hot-spots on the Eastern Front as our forces fight the hard defensive battles of the Russian winter. This is especially true when the Me 110s strike at enemy airfields and heavily defended pin-point targets in the interior. Whether strafing enemy columns moving forward or destroying prepared positions with bombing raids and hitting railway locomotives and supply depots with great destructive effect, our Zerstörergeschwader are deployed with great success..”

New Year's greetings card from the Wespengeschwader on the Eastern Front

and, below, the cover of  Johannes Kaufmann's " Meine Flugberichte " (lit. My flight reports..'My flight log..). Kaufmann ended the war flying Bf 109s with JG 4 but during 1942 was a ZG 1 Zerstörer pilot. The jacket photo shows Kaufmann with a wreath to mark his 100th combat sortie being interviewed by a PK reporter. Brief extracts from his book are featured in the Classic Pubs Zerstörer volumes - unfortunately Kaufmann's is one of the dullest Luftwaffe 'memoirs' ever written...note the prominent (cockpit air) intake on the nose, an identifying feature of the 'E'/'F' sub-types..

Me 110s ZG 76

Me 110 C  most probably belonging to 1./ZG 76 seen in Stavanger during the late summer/fall of 1940. In the background,  Do 17 "5D+BL" on the strength of 3./F)31.

Below; Me 110 C/D of II./ZG 76 mit Haifischmaulbemalung - with sharksmouth nose art

Above; Me 110 C "M8+ FH" of 1./ZG 76, seen probably in late 1939.
Me 110 C/D being retrieved following a belly-landing in Holland during 1940. Only the letter 'A' is visible from the machine's Verbandskennung.

Michael Meyer's Ebay sales

Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain - Classic Modelling Guide

New from Classic/Ian Allan (spelling guys !) is the first of what is promised to be a series of modelling guides. This 'visual reference' comprises 96 pages between A4 soft card covers and features a series of builds of some of the latest 'super' kits out there along with reference photos and profile artwork of the subjects. The authors involved (Green, Robertson, Haggo) are among some of the best known modellers out there and as if the kits themselves are not 'cutting edge' the 'after-market' and detail sets that they incorporate into their builds are probably the last word in detail, accuracy ...and expense! However if you've got most of these kits in the stash, as I have, you will no doubt find this book immensely useful.

Kits covered in build form are

Eduard’s 1/32nd Bf 109 E-4
Tamiya’s Bf 109 E in 1:48 scale
Eduard’s Bf 110 C in 1:48 scale
Dragon’s 1/32 scale Bf 110 C-7
Revell/Hasegawa 1:48 scale Junkers Ju 87 B-2 “Stuka”
Hasegawa 1:72 scale Heinkel He 111.
Revell 1:32 scale Junkers Ju 88 A-1.

Airfix Bf110 C in-box first-look review 1/72 and Me 110 reference walkaround for Eduard 72nd series - latest update December 2016

From the amount of google searches arriving here for this kit I thought I'd post a few quick comments. Mine arrived this morning and after a quick gander at the sprues I can report - it's a far cry from Airfix's previous Me 110 ! A lot of kit in a crowded red box and great VFM at £7.99. There is reasonable interior detail including cannon ammo drums, a separate under fuselage bomb rack, two types of bomb, two types of drop tank. Radiator inserts fit to the wings then the separate radiator covers go over these as in the recent 48th scale Emil. The nose MGs and exhausts have been designed to assemble in alignment. The undercarriage is also impressive with wheel well detail and lots of separate parts and can be inserted at the correct forward-slanting angle to achieve an accurate 'stance' not possible on any other 72nd scale Bf110 kit.





The engraved detail is a bit on the deep side, especially the fuselage frames, but will probably look better under a few coats of paint. Once again extra attention is needed in removing parts from the sprues.

One piece canopy - no open options. Decals for a ZG 76 Haifischmaul (sharkmouth) and an Eastern Front SKG 210 Wespe are colourful but very matt. Colour scheme instructions are printed in monochrome rather than colour.





Interesting to compare it to the Fujimi offering. Wing shape etc much the same but the Fujimi fuselage is very slim! Fin/rudder is also a different shape - the Airfix looking more accurate when compared with photos.
The Fujimi kit has the lower fuselage 'towel-rail' antenna integrally moulded - no sign of it in the Airfix kit but an easy 'fix'..



A look at the Airfix cockpit and canopy - which appear to be the weak spots in this otherwise great new kit. The Airfix canopy is a thick one piece affair (on the right right below), so probably not much point in detailing that cavernous cockpit - Fujimi multi-part canopy alongside for comparison. As usual click on the images for a closer look..




More comment and images and the build on my modelling blog . My finished build (using Kagero decals) below and 'M8+EP' from the kit OOB by Rowan Gough

Some Bf110 cockpit reference from Bundesarchiv/Wikicommons. (free for use on web-sites). ZG 26 Bf 110 C/D being refuelled.

External ID feature of the 'E' variant was the cockpit heater air intake on the nose (see above) on this ZG 76 machine. Messerschmitt works calender photo from Stipdonk/Meyer below. Click on the image for a larger view. Compare this with the very dark reproduction in the Vasco/Estanislau book (which is otherwise a beautiful volume John!)






ZG 26 machine under-going maintenance in a Belgian hangar, late May 1940



Stipdonk/Meyer Zerstörer photo book series