[Larry Hickey]

Clint,

I saw your post on TOCH this morning, and wondered why this is still an issue. This caused me to look into my source more closely, Prien's JFV 4/I P.56, which clearly lists the production batch of 106 E-7s in the W.Nr. block 4091 - 4222 were E-7s produced at the Erla Maschinenwerk, Liepzig, as I'd previously reported. Then, for some reason I happened to look at the E-4/B page (P.53) and, to my surprise, found the listing for the same factory as 26 E/4Bs from the same production block of 4091-4222. So obviously, there were BOTH E-4/Bs and E-7s produced from the same production block in that factory.

This led me to do a translation of the explanation published on the E-7 information, which I'd never taken the time to analyze, since I don't read fluent German.

It says:

"Die genaue Zahl der Tatsächlich hergestellten Bf109E-7 Neubaumaschinen wird sich vermutlich niemals genau bestimmen lassen, da die bruchstückhaft erhalten gebliebenen Werks-und RLM Unterlagen widersprüchliche Angaben enthalten; die insoweit letzte verbindliche Zahl ergibt sich as dem C-Amts Programm Jäger vom 1.11.40, ausweislich dessen bis zum 31.10.40 ingesamt 186 Bf109E-7 abgeliefert worden sind, während die Fertigung der verbleibenden 266 geplanten Maschinen bis zum Februar 1941 erfolgen sollt. Der Auftrag an WNF, der aüf 102 Bf109E-7 lautete, wurde nach 89 Machinen abgebrochen; bei den Bf109E-7/N und E-7/Z handelte es sich um nachträgliche Umbauten an bereits fertiggestellten Flugzeugen. Offenbar ergaben sich auch bie der Fertigung der Bf109E-7 in allen Werknummerblöcken mehr oder weniger grosse Fehlstellen."

Google Translations give a somewhat awkward translation (with a couple of minor modifications by me), but the content is clear:

"The exact number of new Bf109E-7 aircraft actually produced will probably never be determined exactly, since the fragmentary surviving plant and RLM documents contain contradictory information, and the existing final figure is calculated as the C-Office Fighter program from 1:11:40, as evidenced by its reporting of up to 31.10.40 a total of 186 Bf109E-7 were delivered, while the production of the remaining 266 scheduled machines would take place through February 1941. For the contract awarded to WNF, the production run was 102 Bf109E-7, but it was canceled after 89 machines at the Bf109E-7 / N and E-7 / Z and there were subsequent modifications to already completed aircraft. Apparently also during the production of the Bf109E-7, there were more or less large voids in all work number blocks."

So clearly, my dogmatic statement that W.Nr.4112 was produced as an E-7 was not necessarily accurate, and it could also have been factory produced as an E-4/B.

I really want to acknowledge you for sticking to your guns on this, when the engineering visible in the profile package photos did not match what you were being told to do. The other bit of info that I'd previously sent you from Gerhard, is that 4112 was produced in August, 1940. I believe that this a/c probably came to II./JG53 sometime in September, 1940 as a new aircraft, and was taken over by Bretnütz shortly thereafter as "his" aircraft, probably at the time that he transferred from Sta Kap of 6./JG53 to Gr Kdr of II./JG53 on 08.10.40.

We know that he was flying on 20 October 1940, and engaged in air combat, claiming his 20th victory, a Hurricane that day. W.Nr.4112 was reported (in JFV 4/II, P.238) as an "E-7" damaged in an air battle and subsequently made an emergency landing (Notlandung) at St. Inglevert with 5% damage. The a/c was reported in that source as black <<+, which is the subject of our profile. The "E-7" could have been an erroneous entry if the photos of the a/c you are working with show details for other than a textbook E-7. Or it's werk plate could have listed it as an E-7, but due to the production changeover, it could have had mixed characteristics of both an E-4/B and an E-7. Call it by what you see in the photos.

So does this clear up the issues with the profile of this a/c?

Regards,

Larry