Focke Wulf Fw 190 A-3 "10+I" W Nr 403

[Milos Gazdic]

Dear all,

Hope you don't mind me posting all the Fw 190 related questions in last week or so... But I have been absent for such a long time and I have 1000s of questions about my beloved FWs

Anyhow, this small topic is about the Fw 190 that always intrigued me:

Focke Wulf Fw 190 White or Yellow "10+I" W.Nr 403

Production number (0130403) puts it in the batch produced in Focke-Wulf factory, Bremen and Marienburg. Tip of the tails spots "WNr 403" clearly written up.

Only photo of the aircraft known to me is published in Rodeike's book on page 87 and Mr Rodeike is describing it as a machine with STKZ "RC + TC" which is crudely overpainted (as seen in the photo) and belonging to III./JG 26. JG26 is established based on known style "eagle-wing" exhaust pattern.

(same photo is published in the in Osprey's "Fw190 Aces of the western Front" by John Weal on the bottom of the page but author doesn't give any more clues about the machine)

Author dates the photo to July 24, 1942, when pilots accident caused crash landing in Vendeville.

Aircraft was apparently written off on August 24th 1943
On August 24, 1943 this Fw 190 A-3 went in Lfl. Res. 3 lost in Vélizy-Villacoublay in a bombing raid. Maybe someone who has some loss-records could confirm to which unit the aircraft was belonging at least at the end of it's carrier?

By the book it is belonging to 9./JG 26 and is called "Yellow 10+I", I am wondering if it is in fact "White 10+I" of 7./JG 26 instead.

What makes me believe that it's in fact White is the fact that ruder is obviously painted Yellow & it's way too much darker than numerals. Same applies to lower cowling panel.

Two interesting links that I have found of the aircraft are:

1) Mission4Today's skin page where author of the skin "Emel" did both interpretations (White & Yellow) of the machine;

©Emel

2) Wing Palette Profile page - which for me doesn't seem great but confirms once again my fear that the machine could have been White 10 and not Yellow...

© BORA-PRESS 'Focke-Wulf FW.190A'

Questions:
A) Can you help me confirm the unit / colour of the codes?
B) (More important): Do you believe that the fuselage could have been left in natural metal on such an early aircraft? I know it sounds crazy but: it was not 'overpainted with fresh RLM76' since then STKZ would be overpainted too and RLM76 (and I believe tail too) seem to be much darker than the fuselage! Please note that even wing root spots the same look and really looks metalic


NOTE: Hope it's not a problem to post the photo from above mentioned publications in order to make it easier for people to discuss the topics? If it is - please feel free to remove it.

Thank you for any help

Milos