Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

While doing some research for a recent post I ran across two different aircraft with the same Wnr., first time I've come across this.

Is this an error or common place? Are there other examples of duplicate Wnr's?

08/09.07.41: Target Filton Airfield: KGr 100.
He 111H-3, Wnr.5725, of KGr 100
Oblt. Ferdinand Cartes (Bm) killed
Uffz. Alosius Menzel (Bs) POW died later
Damaged 60% following night-fighter attack over the Bristol Channel.


Bf 109F-1 WNr.5725 06.07.41 I./JG3 N.N., Spritmangel - Notlandung, Luzk-Nord - 75%

Regards,
Mike

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

Hi Mike!

There is also a Ju88 with the W.Nr. 5725.

Werk numbers were not specific to only one aircraft type. The models themselves were specific, meaning there will be no other Me109 with 5725...no other Ju88 with 5725, no other He111 with 5725, etc.

It would be like buying a Mercedes with a serial number of 5725...and finding a Lamborghini with the same serial....if that makes sense.

...not that I have ever seen a Lamborghini serial...ha!


:)


Mike

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

Later in the war the Luftwaffe did introduce a WNr system that operated more like the RAF's serial numbers. This had six figures and did not repeat for different types.

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

Both the Fw 190D-9 and Me 262's have numbers in the 500xxx range.

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

The same numbers? Or in different blocks?

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

The six figure WNrs were also not unique. Here just an example:

WNr.110 051 Bf 110G-4 BE+QK
WNr.110 051 Fi 156C-3 DJ+UK
WNr.110 051 He 111H-11 GL+EA

best regards,
Tomislav

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

Sorry Graham, I don't have any WNrs for the 262's, so I can't compare them.

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

But the 4 digits codes are part of the full code , 088+... for Ju88 for example
6 digits, the example of Tomi is maybe explained by the fact that those codes are given at the beg. or maybe prior to the beg. of the use of the 6 digits system, we hv the same with 100+++ a m. of Ju87 Ar196 Ar232
130+++ Ju87+Ju52 140+++ Bf109+Ju88+Ju87+Hs129 but not the Fw190A
160+++ Fw190G /Bf109G/He111H The only example in the higher numbers I hv found is 550+++ Ju88/Bf109

Remi

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

Regarding the six-digit Werknummer system introduced from summer 1942 as a trial and made compulsary by RLM for most manufacturers from early 1943, is based on a system were the main factory, like Focke-Wulf for themselves and for all their licencees, issued a two-digit number identifying the producer and the model of the aircraft, followed by four digits which was the actual Werk-nummer. RLM ordered the factories to make gaps in the series of Werk-nummern, to make it more difficult for enemy intelligence to reconstruct production batches. As it was up to each factory, like Focke-Wulf, to issue the two digits to their licencees, it is obvious that aircraft from different producers could end up with the same six-digit Werk-nummer. However, aircraft of the same main type, like Fw 190, never received duplicated Werk-nummern. I have for years believed that these Werk-nummern were issued by RLM to each factory, but this seems not to be the case.

Re: Luftwaffe aircraft with same Wnr.?
 

In some of the CIOS field reports are tables of RLM W.Nr., STZ and manufacturer's W.Nr., based on captured documents and interrogations at the end of the war. This would seem to indicate that although in some cases, manufactuers issued their own W.Nr. (and in some cases I have been able to track these versus the 6 digit W.Nr.), the RLM did indeed control both the assignment of the six digit W.Nr. and SKZ. In the case "skipped" W.Nr., the key to the actual airframe sequence is the SKZ which in most of the cases is continuous across the gaps (hypothetical example-620455 (XC+FJ), 620486 (XC+FK), 620507 (XC+FL), 620508 (XC+FM)....).

Best Regards,

Artie Bob