A factory fresh Me 109G-G14AS

[Marc-André Haldimann]

Here is another link which takes us to a veteran's pictures page

http://www.pbase.com/rhssr/after_dday

Among the planes shown, there is, if I'm not mistaken, this factory fresh Me 109G-14/AS found at Grafenwohr in 1945;

http://www.pbase.com/rhssr/image/1671876

Any idea of the units which used this airfield in the closing days of the war?

Thanks

Marc

[Kuba Plewka]

Marc, this is an Erla-built G-10, not a G-14/AS.
It's cowling, no chin bulges and a square panel under the windscreen are to be seen.
It's camouflage (dark green 83 or 81 for example) with smaller fuselage crosses identifies it's origin too.

There are some of those well documented in Japo book (a JG 52's 109 in Deutsch Brod).

cheers!
Kuba

[Marc-André Haldimann]

Kuba,

Thanks for correcting me! You're right, the Erla flat panel is obvious; I was at a loss for the lower cowling bulges; the radiator does not look very deep also... All told, an excellent picture. Too bad there is no W.Nr. to be made out. I have the JaPo book over the Deutsch Brod 109's, I'll check back.

Cheers

Marc

[S Sheflin]

Greetings all,

In late 1984, I published a color photo of a very darkly camouflaged Bf 109 G (AIRFOIL #1, page 21 top). Even though my photo was taken at Frankfurt Rhein-Main on 30 April, 1945, and Searl says Grafenwohr, April, 1945, I believe they are one in the same. Everything in the background of Mr. Searl’s photo matches my AIRFOIL color photo: the same berm, trees, and concrete bunker are in both photos, and both plane’s main wheels are resting near what looks like a small drainage ditch. Also, both aircraft have the “Erla-style” refined cowling and wider oil cooler, large upper wing bumps and short tail wheel leg; the same light patch above their raised oil filler hatch; and their Morane antenna is curved the same. While the Bf 109 in AIRFOIL has its spinner in 2/3 black and 1/3 white, apparently some time between the two photos being taken someone has turned its prop and opened its Erla-Haube canopy. Its camouflage is still somewhat of a mystery, however. In my color shot its looks very, very dark indeed (in fact, I thought it was black?). However, in Searl’s photo I think I can see some camouflage demarcation lines behind the cockpit and the fuselage Balkenkreuz. Finally, perhaps it is just wishful thinking, but on Searl’s photo I think I just make out a low-contrast blur on its fin and rudder where a Werknummer would normally be on an Erla-built G-10.

Steve Sheflin

[Marc-André Haldimann]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your comment; any chance to see this picture in colour? I understand your impression to have an all black Me 109G-6/AS, like the colour photograph of Green 5 of 2./EJG 2 photographed on 14 april 1945 in Gardelegen, from the Jeff Ethell collection, recently published in the Luftwaffe in Focus Special 2, p. 26 - 27.
Actually, like you, Kuba pointed on a two tone 81/82 or 83 camouflage extended on most of the fuselage. A good example of his type of camo can be seen with Yellow 11 from JG 52 (?), found at the end of the war in Deutsch Brod (Jada and Poruba 2004, 46 - 49). Is your shot better concerning the possibility of reading the W. Nr.?

Thanks for the input

Marc

Sources:
- Axel Urbanke 2006, Almost a miracle: "Green 5" of 2./EJG 2 in colour, Luftwaffe im Focus, spezial 2, p. 26-27.

- Ales Janda and Thomas Poruba 2004, Messerschmitt Bf 109s of JG 52, in Deutsch Brod, JaPo, p. 46 - 49.

[Kuba Plewka]

No no, I'm afraid that due to my not so good english you have understood me wrong Marc. I meant, that G-10 (G-10/R6?) looks like it's uppersurfaces were painted solid dark colour, maybe 81, maybe 83 green.
What is interesting, what Mr. Sheflin wrote - a light patch near the oil filler neck - there are stencils painted on a light patches all over the airframe, as if they painted them on light colour, then masked and applied that dark paint next.
This photo is so small and blurry, that I can only guess, that it's Werknummer is painted on the rudder on the middle height.

cheers
Kuba

[Cpt_Farrel]

What makes it even stranger, the stencils being painted on light color is that these aircraft seem to have been painted without any RLM 76. Notice that the dark color, whatever it is, goes around the entire fuselage, even the underside, and I also think looking at other similarly camoflaged G-10's, it would have had the underside of the wings in natural metal. This would be the most extreme form of camoflage simplification at the end of the war, but it makes it strange indeed that the stencils seems to be painted on light surface. - unless they were painted on the bare metal...

Cheers! / Anders

[Marc-André Haldimann]

Hi Kuba,

You're correct, I checked too late yesterday evening, one solid colour, indeed. thanks for correcting.

Anders,

Darck colour around the entire fueselage: is this a fact or an illusion borne out of the prevailing light conditions when the shot was taken? Or was it again an all black machine, like "Green 5", 2./EJG 2?

Thanks for your inputs

Marc

[veltro]

Originally Posted by Cpt_Farrel

What makes it even stranger, the stencils being painted on light color is that these aircraft seem to have been painted without any RLM 76. (...) it makes it strange indeed that the stencils seems to be painted on light surface. - unless they were painted on the bare metal...

If I can bring my small contribute, the fact is that those stencil apparently weren'y painted on the surface, but were printed on decals having a light background...

This is all too clear from these two images showing close-up details of Italian (ANR)-flown Bf 109 G-10s of Erla production:



here the label is being applied on a brand-new aircraft, which would gave no sense to a "masking" of any kind...



Here the same label appears scratched and scuffed, which is clearly compatible with a rectangular patch or decal, rather than to a painted wording on a painted background...

Hope this helps

[Modeldad]

Playing with the images in Photoship it appears that there is a banded camoufalge. A dark, wide band at the front of the cowl going from upper left to lower right. Another at the cockpit and a third behind the fuselage cross. A fourth may be at the fin and going under the tailplanes. Note also the rudder appears lighter than the fin infront.