Researching Bf109E WNr 1295

[harri109]

Dear all
I’m trying to find out the history of a Luftwaffe aircraft with the Werk Nummer 1295.
I believe it could be a Bf109E, from around the Battle of Britain period. I’ve tried to ID the aircraft online, but with no success so far.

Any help would be gratefully received

Many thanks

[Peter Cook]

1295 was a Bf109E-3 built by Erla Maschinenwerke, Leipzig, as part of a batch of 100 (1201-1300) - according to German Aircraft Industry and Production, 1933-45, by Peter G. Dancey and Franz-Antal Vajda. I have fairly extensive records of aircraft that were lost or damaged during the Battle of Britain and 1295 is not included -- although it probably flew during this period.

[harri109]

Thank you Peter, very useful information and very much appreciated.

[Peter Cook]

I did some more digging for similar Werk Numbers and found the following:

Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 - Black 7, Wn. 1294 was flown by Oberfeldwebel Wilhelm Bauer of 8/JG 3, and was shot down on October 15th, crash landing on Princes' Golf Course, Sandwich, Kent, at 09.17 hrs. Bauer was made a PoW. Assuming that aircraft with sequential numbers were issued to the same units, it is likely that 1295 was also assigned to JG 3 and flew during the Battle of Britain.

[Chris Goss]

It is a big assumption that sequential Wk Nrs were assigned. If it was a repacement for a combat loss or damage it would be a one for one exchange & therefore the next Wk Nr could go somewhere totally different

[Jim P.]

Yes. What Chris said - there is absolutely no guarantee of sequential WNr. being assigned to the same unit. In the case of WNr.1295, it never shows up in either the Gen.Qu. or Schulen losses. That could be for numerous reasons, but the most likely scenario is that it was among the machines lost in the first year of the war before the LW started regularly recording WNr. in documentation. That bit of information only started to consistently appear in loss records in late-August 1940.

[Charles Bavarois]

Bf 109 WNr. 1295 was flown on 13. April 1939 at Illesheim by Ltn. Emil Schnoor for a "Verbandsflug". AFAIK Schnoor was a member of 3./ZG 52 at that time, later LG 1 and NJG 1. Source is Flugbuch.

[harri109]

Thank you everybody for your research and replies.
Happy New Year

[Merlin]

The entry in the Schnoor Flugbuch is a typo. The unit operated only Jumo engined Bf 109 aircraft.