[Johannes]

Hi Guys

Thank you for your many replies. I will cross-check the Nick list against the whole of 7./JG 52 and 9./JG 52. Seems Hartmann was an opportunist whilst over-claiming.

Certain facts are clear.

In the Summer of 1944 when Hartmann was making huge numbers of claims I cannot really find any obvious obliging wingmen, by that I mean wingmen that get a small share of the over-claiming.........this is quite off putting, in my opinion a dodgy wingman would need an incentive, there would appear to be none. This could mean that everybody with these Staffel's was dodgy.......in my opinion.

If Hartmann's claims over Hungary are honest, well something must have changed. Could be combat no longer over enemy territory, could be a change in personal.

Hartmann was unpopular among his piers, is this because they suspected something(which would suggest there own innocents), or was he not looking after his wingmen.......we are told he only ever lost one wingman, I suspect this is far from the truth?

I have sort have cleared Herbert Bachnick of collusion with Hartmann.

I have not proven any pilots of I./JG 52 of being dodgy....is this the case I now wonder?

A big question is why would wingmen witness his over-claims without personal gain.

It would seem that Nowotny and Hartmann were always going to lead in scoring, because they would claim whatever it took to lead.

Can I ask what about those out-claimed i.e Rall and Barkhorn, how do their claims match-up to losses? With Wilhelm Batz, he had quite a few of his earlier claims A.S.M i.e no air witness, but he did have ground witnesses, surely these are reliable......at least.

Actually Hartmann's claims are remarkable as none are A.S.M, Rall certainly had some, and never really had "big days".

If Hermann Graf also over-claimed, did this process continue with 9./JG 52.

Finally today I read the Toliver/Constable Hartmann book in my childhood, yet nothing in it would appear fact, no Mustang's, no four Il-2's ploughing into the ground after one shot, actually no seventy Il-2's.......hardly any at all. How much information did Hartmann give to the authors I wonder.

Kind Regards

Johannes