Luftwaffe modelling - 1/48th DML Ju88 G-1 nightfighter

First posted on britmodeller.com and completed just in time for the US IPMS Nationals in Nebraska is Jim Root's superb 1/48th DML Ju 88 G-1 nightfighter finished in the markings of the 7./NJG 2 Ju 88 G-1 that landed at Woodbridge, Suffolk, England on 13 July 1944. More on this at the following link

http://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2011/02/karcher-de-icing-equipment-fitted-in.html


Jim's model was built with the addition of Eduard seat belts, Master Model Radar Antenna, Royale Resin Wheels and Master Model Machine Gun Barrels.  My thanks to Jim for kindly allowing me to post his pictures here.
 
Elsewhere a recently restored Junkers Ju 88 G-1 night fighter fuselage WNr 714628 has been put on display in Berlin’s Deutsches Technik  museum.
 
http://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2011/02/junkers-ju-88-g-1-nachtjager-on-display.html
 
 
 

Sturmjäger of JG 300 - Hubert Engst 6./JG 300 - edit

The following images were furnished exclusively for this site via Jean-Yves Lorant, author of the two volume history of JG 300 published by Docavia in France during 2005 - 'Bataille dans le Ciel d'Allemagne'. This series of photos shows Hubert Engst of 6./JG 300 preparing for a spell of cockpit readiness during November 1944. The first photo shows Engst with his wife Elisabeth (and comrade Norbert Graziadei) in front of the pilot's FW 190 Sturmbock 'Yellow 2' W.Nr 682181 and provides a super view of his Lederkombination leather flying suit with the Luftwaffe armband. 

Seen here from left to right, Elisabeth Engst (wife of Hubert Engst), Lt. Norbert Graziadei of 5./JG 300 and Fw. Hubert Engst. Löbnitz airfield, autumn 1944. (Engst via Lorant)

In the third picture below Engst is seen climbing up into the cockpit -note the EZ 42 gyroscopic sight above the instrument panel. Some background info on Hubert Engst might be of interest. The following of Petr Kacha's claims at the Luftwaffe aces web site would appear to any readers of the Lorant/Goyat JG300 history to be highly unlikely - that Engst achieved some twenty victories (there is no evidence for this), that he claimed a Mosquito shot down (no evidence for any Mosquito claim submitted) and that he was awarded the DKiG at the end of the war (he does not appear to have been).

Not unnaturally I will have upset the Czechs and Wolfgang Engst with that ;
http://hloubkari.cz/forum/index.php?topic=1484.135

Note that Wolfgang furnished his father's personal journal to the authors of the JG 300 history along with other papers and an unpublished magazine article written by Hubert Engst during the mid-1960s for East German magazine "Welt der Flieger - Aerosport" - all that is known of Engst is drawn from these sources. Claims at the end of his text that he witnessed Ta 152s flying out of Ainring at the end of WWII are indication enough that it is wise to be cautious with some veteran statements.

Engst was born on 10 November 1921 in Krauschwitz and completed his flying training at JG 110 at Altenburg in late July 1943 prior to being posted to JG Herrmann in late July 1943. Established expressly to take the war to the British bomber streams, Herrmann's Wilde Sau fighters were based at Rheine and Uffz.Engst flew his first combat mission three hours after his arrival at the unit, claiming his first victory, a RAF Stirling four-engine bomber shot down near Wüppertal. The victory was not recognised as his since Engst had not been 'officially' assigned to a Staffel. Engst's own account of his sortie that night appears in Volume I of the JG 300 history and was extracted from the pilot's personal journal. By June 1944, Feldwebel Engst was serving with 5./JG 300. On 21 June, he claimed two USAAF four-engine bombers shot down, recognised as the 20th and 21st victories of 5./JG 300. In June 1944, Engst was transferred to 6./JG 300. On 24 August 1944, he attacked a formation of USAAF B-24 four-engine bombers over the Neuhaus region (Jindrichuv Hradec area) of Bohemia. Engst shot down one B-24 to record his "sixth victory", but his Fw 190 A-8 (W.Nr. 681 361) 'Yellow 7' was damaged by return fire and he was wounded. Once again this victory was never officially ratified. Engst claimed his second 'double' on 27 September 1944 high over Eisenach - however the first of these was also claimed by a flak unit and there is no official trace whatsoever of the second. On 24 December, Engst was shot-down and wounded in aerial combat near Hersfeld whilst flying Fw 190 A-8 (W.Nr. 682 181) 'Yellow 2'. He parachuted clear with a round in his backside and had the scare of his life as he jumped clear of his blazing Focke-Wulf: the left-hand strap of the parachute harness, damaged by the round that had caught him, snapped under the force of the chute deploying. Suspended under the canopy by a single harness strap, Engst endured a terrifying and agonizingly slow descent....

Engst rejoined his Staffel during 1945 and flew sorties to the end of the war. He describes in his journal the rearguard retreat of II./JG 300 through southern Germany during March and April 1945 - an almost ceaseless round of Tiefangriffe strafing sorties against American tank spearheads. He has harsh words for his superiors including his Kommandeur who rarely flew during this period due to 'sickness'. On 9 April 1945 Engst was shot down by US fighters as described by Ernst Schröder in Volume II of the JG 300 history;

" We set out on a heading for Adlholz tucked in alongside each other, a “Rotte” with Hubert leading. Not far from Bayreuth, while we were progressing through a relatively misty sky at one thousand meters altitude, we were set upon by several P-51 D Mustangs. Hubert had not detected them at all. I saw them first, as often happened in such situations. For some reason unknown to me, my comrade did not hear my warning shout in his earphones and continued calmly on track. I saw a well positioned Mustang open fire on Hubert Engst’s 190 as I peeled off to be able to take up the fight without colliding with my Rottenführer! I straightened up and the 190 and its pursuer re-appeared in my field of vision. Hubert took to his parachute, unharmed, in front of my eyes. For a few seconds the Mustang that had just brought him down was framed in my windscreen. A perfect target but I could hardly open fire... my comrade had just bailed out of his 190 a few hundred meters ahead of me and was swinging in my sights as I bore down on him... not a pleasant position to be in! As far as I know, Hubert got off lightly, since all he lost was his 190 and his personal belongings left in his ship..".

Engst was present at Salzburg Ainring during the first days of May 1945 as the rump of JG 300 was ordered to fall back to Prague - Engst personally witnessed the unit's Fw 190 Doras get airborne for the last Verlegung - airfield transfer - of the war. He erroneously describes in his journal the aircraft he saw taking off from Salzburg on 3 May as the latest Ta 152 fighters ! There is no suggestion anywhere in his papers that he was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold. With the kind permission of Wolfgang Engst and Jean-Yves Lorant we hope to bring more from Hubert Engst's journal here soon.. it is perhaps worth bearing in mind that although he might not have achieved more than six or seven confirmed aerial victories Engst was nonetheless an ace - a night fighter and heavy bomber killer caught up - like so many of his comrades - in the terrible drama of bloody battles of the summer of 1944 who - unlike many of his comrades - survived to the end of the war, having witnessed some terrible sights and having lost virtually everything.

Il -2 board hosted by Asisbiz.com - picture, text and book theft -Asissbiz Asisbiz JG, KG, photos -edit January 2016

Pictures are a large part of the stuff that makes this blog interesting. Some of my contacts have given me some fantastic images. However when putting these pictures on line, there is always a chance that someone will come along and copy it, and put it on their own site. Or in other words, steal it ! OK so we all 'borrow' the odd pic from time to time to illustrate our articles, usually with a link and a thank you I hasten to add, but at the Il-2 board hosted by asisbiz.com they make a habit of just taking whatever they fancy with apparent impunity - in fact most of 'their' stuff is taken from elsewhere. They even have a page where you can subscribe to access book downloads! And when people contact me to say 'have you seen these great pictures' and they turn out to be mine then enough is enough! There are those who would argue that placing images on the web without setting limits on their distribution is tacit agreement for the images’ re-distribution. There are also plenty of forums and sites that re-publish pictures from books with a suitable credit - their view is that this is free advertising so therefore nothing inherently wrong with it..I'm personally not sure about this argument, but would probably come up with a similar line myself if pushed. Many of the authors and publishers I've talked to about this don't accept it either. In fact there seems to be a big divergence between producers of copyright material and consumers on this point. The well-known photographer Scott Bourne says he makes more money from suing people who steal his images than from the ones he sells. He has created software that finds a copyright infringement in minutes after the photo is online. Then he sends an e-mail asking for fair payment in 48 hours. If none is forthcoming then all communications are cut and the next step could well be a court of law....

At a more mundane level many web site owners try to protect images they put on-line, usually by incorporating a bit of Java script into their code to prevent visitors 'right-clicking' an image. A complete waste of time; you can simply inhibit Java in your browser or even do a screen copy with the 'print screen' button, so most of us take other half-arsed measures such a putting a link or a 'water-mark' on the picture. This still doesn't prevent the thief from republishing the image. And if you're sitting there thinking, well, he does that too, then let me tell you I always ASK!

Some of the pics posted on at least one particular link at asisbiz.com ( Fw 190 A, Hubert Engst) were just taken from this blog - they still have my 'mark' on them, although most of them on the particular link I'm referring to happen to 'belong' to jg300.de. The point is they certainly don't belong to Asisbiz.com. There is not even the courtesy of a link back..

When I asked asisbiz.com to remove my pictures I received the following rather pathetic and incoherent response ;

" I didn't steal the images they came with the skins. All my images are free and people are forever taking images from my site but that's why I upload them in the first place. As a photographer I also contribute to Wikipedia and upload all my images as copyright free. I'm just trying to build a good historical site. I don't put small images up but only the best I can find. This is history after all and like yourself it's my hobby. Unlike you I don't plaster my website name all over the images which I feel is so unnecessary but you obliviously (sic!) feel otherwise..I won't be taking them down as they are referenced to you..... Matthew  "


You can probably imagine my response.

".. Hang on a moment. You cannot just take other web sites' photos. They are not yours. Do you not understand that basic concept? Maybe when you've done some original research, corresponded with vets etc and received their photos, then maybe you can put your own photos up. I don't see why MY pics should end up on your page..by the way the only pics I mark with my website address are those that I have obtained personally, not just scanned in from somebody else's book - no doubt you do that too.."

To which the delightful 'Matthew' Acred responded;

" ..I don't vandalize photos by putting my website name all over the image. I wont take them down because they show people the difference between someone who honors history and someone who vandalizes it. My parents had their house destroyed by German bombers my Dad was in the RAF. My family has fought German tyranny for two generations so basically get ...deleted.."

Of course it's not just my material that Matthew Acred helps himself to. For example the following is lifted almost exclusively from 'Luftwaffe in Focus' magazine, including pictures and text. I'm sure there's much more but you get the picture by now. (page content at the following link now REMOVED!).

http://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Ju-88/Ju-88A-KG26.3-%281H+FL%29.html

Storm in a teacup ? Maybe, but I fail to see why I should have my stuff taken by this unpleasant little twit. Had he bothered to ask and then linked back here I probably wouldn't have had a problem with it - I don’t mind people using the photos I put online as long as they add a credit and link to my blog. There’s a quid pro quo there. Still, two can play at that game...

And here is a link to an old thread on the LEMB calling out the blatant thievery of the asisbiz Luftwaffe pages

"...Is it naive to think that it's just possible that Asisbiz ..could herald the sharing of knowledge that hitherto had only been accessible to the privileged few or those with the financial muscle to buy books at £50 a throw ?..."

The "privileged few"?   I have to say that is one of the most pathetic defences of Acred I've ever read. As one author points out "...This seems a bit like saying it makes sense to buy from a fence because he has wide and attractively priced range of stolen goods..". If you can't afford a £50 book, that is your problem and not something I'm going to feel guilty about. But scanning copies of new works  and then posting images from such sources constantly will surely have an impact on the production of new works and I, like others, don't for one moment see why Acred and his 'friends' should get away with doing that..

 Nor do others. And the very apposite response from a well-known Luftwaffe author; " Bullshit. There are already sites where the sharing of information is common.."

Countering the theft practised by the IL2 board hosted by asisbiz.com is straight forward - I'm tempted to say that there simply won't be any more 'new' stuff posted here for 'Matthew' to lift. Jean-Yves Lorant was right - he tells me he won't be producing an up-dated edition of his 'Le Focke Wulf 190' book since in his view most of it, including all the best pictures, will likely end up scanned on some thieving little no-mark's web site ....and I don't think he meant me!


oh ..and just in case you were wondering - this is a 'google' blog so google search requests with 'assisbiz' will bring up this blog among the first pages requested !

Revell 1:32 Heinkel He 111 P-1 - first look by Iain Ogilvie, He 111 reference and walkaround images

Revell 1:32 Heinkel He 111P-1 

A first look by Iain Ogilvie of the 32nd SIG

The follow-on to Revell’s 1:32 Ju-88 is finally here – and it looks superb! (Click on the images for a larger view.)

Comprising 433 very crisply moulded parts and with final dimensions when complete of 51.1cm long and 70.9cm wingspan, this model will be a real stunner when complete.

Model features full cockpit detail, individual bomb cells, radio equipment, spare ammunition cases and detailed bays and some of the clearest transparencies I’ve seen - important as they’re such a feature of the prototype. The model represents the P-1 version of this iconic aeroplane as used early in the war and during the Battle of Britain but I think it’s a safe bet that a later ‘H’ series kit will be on the cards at some point in the future if this one sells well.
A superb decal sheet is included (minus the swastikas as would be expected from a German company) and features markings for three aircraft:

5./KG 54 “Totenkopf Geschwader”, Coulommiers, France 1940

III./KG 27 “Geschwader Boelcke”, Delmenhorst, Germany 1940

II./KG 5 “General Wever”, preserved at the Norwegian Aviation Museum, Gardmoen, Norway

At a retail price of £59.99 (and many outlets offering discounts even on that!) this model represents astounding value in this day and age. The aftermarket manufacturers are bound to be releasing accessories for what will undoubtedly be a popular kit, but to my mind the most worthwhile addition would be a set of etched seat belts and Revell have just released a set of pre-coloured etch (by Eduard) to enhance the new kit.

Accuracy? Not had a chance to go through in detail yet – but there’s nothing that shouts ‘fix me’ yet – it’s just shouting ‘build me’!

Edit - This model featured in Military in Scale magazine - click on the images for a closer view.

Click on the label links below for more He 111 reference on this blog. Check out Mike's review on http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=74574



'Feindberührung' - Julius Meimberg memoir published by 296 Verlag

On 12 May 1944 the US 8th Air Force dispatched hundreds of B-17s and B-24s- screened by long range escort fighters - to petro-chemical targets in central Germany. One unit that rose to meet this awesome array of strength was II. Gruppe of JG 53 commanded by Julius Meimberg. Aged twenty seven years old, he had seen service in France and Africa with JG 2 and was now responsible for some eight hundred men in the defence of the Reich, knowing already that the war was lost. His vividly written memoir 'Feindberührung' - Contact with the Enemy - opens with a description of his bail out that day. Scrambled from Eschborn at 11:30, Meimberg's Schwarm had sighted Mustangs glinting in the sunlight at lower altitude and swept down on the bounce. Opening up with the engine mounted cannon, Meimberg was quickly in trouble - a defective 30mm round suddenly exploded in his weapon..The following translated extract nicely captures the drama of Meimburg's vivid account..


" ......Get out! Out! OUT! Oh my God - get out! Quick!

While reason is still fighting the rising panic, my hands start to dart around the cockpit in a well-rehearsed ballet of actions...

My left hand pulls the throttle lever back to idle and with a jerk I disconnect the cable that runs to the flight helmet from the radio set. My right hand releases its grip from the stick and starts to grope for the clasp of the harness. Even as I'm doing this the aircraft has already started to fall away in an uncontrollable dive.

I do not want to get roasted as happened last year over Tunis.

The push-in buckle of the clasp has to be open before the negative acceleration of the plummeting fighter in its final dive pins me so tightly into my straps that it will impossible to release it. It has to be undone before I release the canopy - the force of the slipstream will whip and lash my body so powerfully that the belt lock will block.

With both hands I fumble around on the safety catch.

Done! My left hand flies up to the emergency canopy- jettison lever but the hood sits tight; both hands grab the lever which opens the canopy normally and and start to wind it furiously but the hood remains closed. I can feel the panic rising again, choking. The explosion must have bent something; some ridiculously small part, a peg, a locking mechanism, a linkage or a drill hole.

Through the black film of oil that the shot-up engine is spraying onto the plexiglass wind shield, I can see bight red flames streaming back along the fuselage. My 109 is on fire. Feet drawn up onto the seat already, I arch my back against the canopy hood desperately. The Messerschmitt continues its headlong plunge to earth - now no more than a blazing torch.

There-finally: a crack! A tiny opening! Any hope of being able to escape the deadly trap imparts almost superhuman strength.

A bang, the brute punch of the airflow against head and chest - I am free...right hand groping for the handle for the ripcord, I whirl down through the skies. As soon as I open my eyes, I see a grey-green expanse above me and deep blue at my feet. Strange how you always fall head first. I have to resist the urge to pull the ripcord now. This would be very dangerous: far too many comrades have been machine-gunned while hanging in their chutes recently. Discernable details come into focus in the grey-green mass above me - here a village, surrounded by fields of rape oil seed blossoming brightly, there a small forest. Now, country roads and gravel paths come into view.

No, don't pull it yet.

I've at least 500 or 600 more metres to fall - that would be two -much too - long, dangerous minutes hanging under the open chute. But very quickly the red-white area of the village resolves into individual houses and the light- and dark grey of the wood develops into conifers and broad-leafed trees.

Now!

One last moment of terror - I hold the ripcord handle with its short wire in my hand and think that it has been torn off – but then - just at that instant - the jolt of the chute as it billows out behind me brakes my descent and I float downwards, envelopped by the tender smell of Spring.

My jump ends on a slope full of fresh green. Suddenly the roar of the engines of the three American P-51 Mustangs - appearing out of nowhere they sweep over my landing site without attacking - resonates as a dramatic final chord.

And then - silence. This redeeming silence which talks even more vividly not letting you hear any sound at all.

I will be here forever, it says; behind the thunder of your engines, the hammering of your guns, the rattling inferno of your orders and your death-cries in the earphones, I will await you, timeless and indifferently. Your war – your war does not touch me …

In front of me a pair of rabbit ears pops up in a furrow. I do not move. Flat on my belly, my head raised, I listen into this silence. A hare stretches,bobs up for a few seconds and then jumps away without any hurry.

With a deep breath, childish joy flows through me: joy for the Spring, the sun, the colours and the smells around me. I'm alive. Again, Still. And infinitely thankful.

A whirling sound drills itself into my ears and ends in a hollow banging and splintering sound. Over there - where just seconds before the hare was musing - the cabin hood of my plane smashed into the ground.

I pull myself together and head towards it - the canopy is scorched, charred, bent, shattered and covered with a raw, blinding coat of boiling oil.

“Hands up !”  I hear the voice behind me as -with shaking hands- I'm still trying to clean a fragment of the hood for safekeeping...the villagers are here, lead by a man who is being pulled by a barking mutt that looks very aggressive. No, I have to disappoint them. All they have before them is a German airman. A German fighter pilot, brought down by his own machine five minutes ago.

That must have been how it happened, I think to myself, while we are trotting towards their village; There is no other reasonable explanation for this turn of events. We were climbing, when I saw something flashing to the right below me- the glinting of sunlight on the aluminium body of an enemy aircraft, a glittering spot above the Taunus hills - still more flashing spots were swarming eastwards, weaving and bobbing. The American fighter sweep is below us, we are up at 5000 metres and have the sun in our backs. The ideal position to attack.... "

'Feindberührung' is published by 296 Verlag. An English-language edition has been promised for some time now. Unfortunately I have no news on its possible appearance. Elsewhere Meimberg contributes extensively to Erik Mombeek's history of JG 2 (two volumes published in French, one in English - translator Neil Page)

More Meimberg on this blog

http://falkeeins.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Jules%20Meimberg

Jagdgeschwader 53 - the story of the Ace of Spades - Jean-Louis Roba

New from Lela Presse publishers of 'Avions' magazine is part one of a two-part monograph by noted Luftwaffe author Jean Louis Roba covering the history of Jagdgeschwader 53.

Created as JG 334 in March 1937, JG 53 was one of the leading Luftwaffe fighter units of WWII. This first volume covers the period from the unit's establishment to the end of the Battle of Britain in late 1940. JG 53 was a 'nursery' for pilots who would go on to become some of the leading Jagdwaffe aces. The author describes the fascinating history of this great fighter unit that saw action in all the great air campaigns fought by the Luftwaffe. This brand new text (in French) is illustrated by dozens of photographs, some previously unpublished. Recommended for all Luftwaffe enthusiasts.



SUMMARY:

- The pre-war period (March 1937 - August 1939)

- The Sitzkrieg (Phony War) (September 1939 - May 1940)

- The Westfeldzug - campaign in the West (May-June 1940)

- Over England - the Battle of Britain (June-December 1940)

A4 format, 80 pages, 200 photos and 20 colour profile artworks by Thierry Dekker

Wekusta 2 - 'cloud chasers' of the Luftwaffe

Just ahead of the release of the huge new Revell Heinkel He 111 in 1/32 scale, part 1 of a small article on a little-known He 111 unit, the 'cloud-chasers' of the Luftwaffe, weather recce Staffel Wekusta 2.

Below; He 111 D7 + LH and a Do 17 Z of Westa 2 Ob.d.L. in front of the hangars and the tower at Brest-Lanvéoc, autumn 1940.

Wettererkungdungstaffel 2 Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (weather reconnaissance squadron) was established during July 1940 in Oldenburg, north-west Germany and located at the German-designated 'Brest Süd' (Lanvéoc) from the summer of 1940. The primary mission of the Staffel was long-range Atlantic weather observation for the preparation of accurate forecasting both for the Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine, particularly the U-boot arm. During the course of its activities the Staffel not unnaturally fulfilled the secondary but equally important of role of spotting Allied Atlantic convoys. The Staffel operated under the auspices of, and drew its personnel and equipment from, Aufklärungsgruppe 123, whose Stab was located in Tossus-le-Noble and Buc in the Paris region from July 1940 until mid-1944. 3.(F)/123 was located in Rennes from August 1942. The Staffel was one of the rare Luftwaffe units to fly sorties with 'semi-civilians' on-board - each flight carried a meteorologist who was also trained to fire the on-board armament of the He 111s and Ju 88 Ds with which the unit flew its sorties out over the Atlantic and around the western coasts of Ireland. Note there were several grades/ranks of meteorologists from Regierungsrat and Wetterdienst Assessor. The full story of Wekusta 2 in Brittany is told by Pierre Babin in 'Avions' magazine issues 162 and 163. The images reproduced here are currently offered for sale in Michael Meyer's Ebay shop and some of them are featured in Pierre's articles....

He 111 H-3 coded 'D7 + CH' of  Wekusta 2 Ob.d.L. in Brest-Lanvéoc during August/September 1940.

The first Staffelführer of Wekusta 2 was Oblt. Rudolf Prasse and the first of the unit's daily sorties out over the Atlantic were flown from mid-August 1940 and followed the same routine - an early, often pre-dawn, takeoff maintaining altitudes of between 500 and 3,000 metres according to the height of the cloud deck and following a pre-determined flight plan, with a weather information 'bulletin' broadcast back to Brittany every 90 minutes during the flight. A sortie could last anything up to six hours. The Staffel sustained its first loss that same month, an He 111 H-3 crashing on takeoff from Brest on 23 August 1940. On 23 September 1940 Prasse and his crew were shot down over the Atlantic by RAF Blenheims while flying a 'rescue' sortie for the He 111 H-3 flown by Lt. Horst-Max Dümcke. Dümcke and his crew had ditched safely in the Atlantic after technical problems but his 'SOS' messages had also been picked up by listening stations in the UK. Dümcke and his crew put their He 111 down near a small group of French fishing boats and were quickly rescued  and subsequently picked up by a Do 24 of  Seenotstaffel 1. Prasse meanwhile also ditched in the Atlantic after coming under attack by RAF twins sent out to the area and he and his crew spent the best part of two days and two nights in their dinghy before being rescued by another fishing boat, finally arriving back in Brest on 28 September 1940. One of Prasse's crew died of his wounds. 

 

During 1941 the unit received its first Junkers Ju 88s. Above, a Ju 88 of Wekusta 2 Ob.d.L. in Brest-Lanvéoc suitably decorated on the occasion of the unit's 500th Feindflug (combat sortie) on 31 December 1941 (Meyer incorrectly states 'early 1941' on his 'caption'). The crew for this sortie comprised Reg.Rat Richard Not, Oblt. Horst Dümke, BF Wilde, BM Gajewski and Staffelkapitän Rudolf Prasse. Below; gound crews assemble in front of the aircraft decorated for the occasion.

On 6 January 1942 an RAF bombing raid on Brest Lanvéoc caused considerable damage to installations and aircraft and saw Wekusta 2 eventaully move to Nantes- Château Bougon during July 1942 where the picture below was taken.