Ju88 Natascha

[kaki3152]

Anybody know any more about this airplane?

[sidney]

"Natascha, daughter of the Steppe" is a Ju 88 aircraft that at one time, according to the emblem on its nose, belonged to Wettererkundungsstaffeln (Wekusta) 26.

Some more information you can find here http://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php?topic=48518.0

I used to think that the photo was taken sometime after the battle of Stalingrad, but Wekusta 26 had been transferred to the Mediterranean theatre of operations at the end of 1941, so it is hard to tell.

Regards,
Sinisa

[Andy Mitchell]

Sorry, can someone correct me here but I believed that this emblem belonged to Westa 76 not 26. Westa 26's emblem was an Owl.

Selinger and Kington page 149 shows Westa 76's emblem - "a winged frog emerging from a cloud on an ovate azure background"

The same emblem in both versions of ketley's "Luftwaffe Emblems" which is attributed to Westa 76.

However, Westa 26 (ost) was formed from WeFlugSta 464 on 15 June 1944 at Thorn. (see Wekusta by Selinger and Kington p134) and was to be operational under Luftflotte 6. There are some elements of Westa 76/3 and 76/2 in the mix here as well as they provided interim weather recce cover for Luftflotte 6 and may have been a source of aircraft and crews for the new unit as well.

[sidney]

Well, I am not going to correct you - I took the info from Karl Ries, LW Embleme - Photo Collection 1935 - 1945, page 53.

[Andy Mitchell]

The one book that I did not look in!

[sidney]

That book offered an excellent photographic evidence back in the mid-1970's and has served well the Luftwaffe enthusiasts for many years thereafter. However, the more recent works, such as the references quoted by you, perhaps corrected certain inputs, and this Wekusta 26 (or 76) emblem might have been one of them. I would leave it to the experts in this particular field to have their say.

Regards,
Sinisa

[Andy Mitchell]

Sinisa,

Looking at Ries' work my second hand copy has a pencil correction for the "Westa 26" emblem and the "unidentified" on on the next page.

Interestingly regarding Bf 110C "Rosita" (mentioned in the forum on the link) Kington and Selinger have a photo on page 148 attibuted to Westa 76 "being serviced, southern Eastern Front 1941"

All the very best

[sidney]

Andy,

Yes, on the following page (i.e., 54) the author is referring to a Do 17 Z-2 aircraft bearing the fuselage code 5M+..., and sporting the sitting owl emblem beneath the cockpit, as belonging to then still unidentified unit.

If you have the other references giving the aforementioned code as belonging to Westa 26, than you might have the match.

Best Regards,
Snisa