Bf109E Early film footage of eventual Battle of Britain Loss.

[Mr Schmitt]

Hi Guys,

I was just perusing some Wartime German/Luftwaffe footage on You tube and it shows early wartime Bf109E's taxing and taking off. I happened to notice one bf109E's Werk Nummer is clearly visible on the tail fin as it taxiing by the camera. It shows in what looks like white numbers 966.
I looked in the book the Battle of Britain Then and Now by Winston Ramsey and on page 681 and it states;

9th October 1940
Bf109E4 (0966) Rubber Dinghy accidentally inflated in cockpit during Free-lance sortie over Kent. Lost control and crash landed near Vensons Farm, Eastry at 7:45 am. Lt Escherhaus captured unhurt. Aircraft 10+ a write-off.

Please look at the footage and see if you spot it.

Here is the You tube link;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bY87PnIj2i0

I just thought I would share it with you.

Kind Regards

[Chris Goss]

Very early wartime footage and although I am no expert, the footage appears to show an E-1? Likelihood of this plane still being around in October 1940 would be slim? However, I stand to be corrected

[Clint Mitchell]

Briefly you get a glimpse of the MG-FF drum bulge under the wing, but no cannon installed whilst filming. So Erla E-3, WNr.966 upgraded with E-4 cannons sometime prior to loss in October 1940.

[Chris Goss]

Missed the bulges-just saw no cannon & an early canopy

[Clint Mitchell]

That's what I thought, they sneakily removed the cannons and thought no one would notice until 70+ years later...

BTW this footage is available in DVD quality in several German language documentary DVDs. A shame there is not more of it. I think the original can be obtained from the Polar Films Archives or Spiegel Archive from memory.

[Mr Schmitt]

Yes it certainly looks like the cannons have been removed. You can definitely see the FF drum bulges.
Would anyone happen to have contact information how to obtain a copy of this film?

Yes definitely a pity there wasn't more of it.

[Clint Mitchell]

It's possible these guys have it: Spiegel TV Archive

I'm pretty sure these guys made one or two of the documentaries that features this footage. On one of the DVDs there is a small section that explains the editing of the old colour films.

Let me know if they have it?

[RolandF]

Those seem to be Bf 109s based at Breslau-Schöngarten. Remember WNr 4034.

Regards

RolandF

[Clint Mitchell]

Yes, the officer is Hannes Trautloft. I./JG 77

[PhilippeDM]

Interesting to see the low contrast between 70/71 and the use of Savoia Marchettis SM.82 as transportplane for Falschrimmjägers so early in the war.