Some enlarged and 'tweaked' known photos of Me 262s

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by Karoband

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1124

Erprobungskommando Braunegg (Panther) that, like EKdo. 262, wore a yellow band behind the cockpit … It has one of the single MK 108 cannon muzzles as requested by Oblt. Herward Braunegg.

Appart from the machine in this photo, what's the source for Braunegg's aircraft wearing a yellow band?

A document in the Bundesarchiv confirms the Kommando was part of 1./Versuchsverband OKL while three ULTRAS from 26–28 November 1944 give the codes of the five Me 262s then on strength as NH, OH, PH, QH, RH and SH. These individual letters follow straight on from those given to the Staffel's Ar 234s and as such it seems probable that, like the Arados, they carried the T9 unit code (sadly no photos of this have surfaced yet).

(Sources: BA-MA RL 2-III/67 (page 0021); ULTRA CX/MSS/R382(C) paras. 1, 5 and 5)

About the single cannon, ULTRA CX/MSS/R489(C), para. 19 from 2 March 1945 says:

From UDASO ((NAG)) 6 Lechfeld, No. 157 to (B% UDIAN) ((2./NAG)) 6 Schwaebisch Hall dated 2/3:

In accordance with No. 1118 from GALNA ((AO for Recce) Silber ((Me 262)) a/c are to be used without armament till standard production for 2 MK 108. Supplementary equipment with armament is to cease.

Supplement ((NAG)) 6: Supplementary equipment has again been asked for.

[Karoband]

Hi Nick,

You are quite right to call me on this. I added two and two and got five. There is no documentary proof that Erprobungskommando Braunegg wore yellow bands. But, why does this one have it?

Jim

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by Karoband

Hi Nick,

You are quite right to call me on this. I added two and two and got five. There is no documentary proof that Erprobungskommando Braunegg wore yellow bands. But, why does this one have it?

Jim

Possibly a converted Erpr.Kdo. 262 or EJG 2 machine? But that’s only guesswork.

[Dan O'Connell]

Just a guess, perhaps one of the recon machines that had been sent to EJG2 at Lechfeld for training was sent back to Braunegg as Nick suggests?

[Karoband]

Hi Nick and Dan,

You may be correct. Me 262s of III./EJG 2 at Lechfeld were distinguished not only by the yellow band but, in many photos, by white or bare metal forward engine nacelle cowls. In particular, photos of Erich Hohagen in Me 262 A-1a W.Nr. 170071 White 2 on 15 November 1944 show such bare metal cowls. A close look at "white 3" in my #261 shows that the cowls are replacements.

Jim

[Karoband]

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1129

266. This photo shows Me 262 A-2a W.Nr. 170041 "white 10", possibly of the detachment of Erprobungskommando 262 at Lärz in the summer of 1944. Note its early RLM 74/75/76 camouflage and distinctive white hakenkreuz. The zero in its "10" is clearly a different shape to the zero of W.Nr. 110926 "white 10" of III./EJG 2. At some point it was assigned to E-Stelle Lärz, (O'Connell, p. 46).


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1130

267. This poor screenshot of "white 10" shows its camouflaged forward engine cowls and a single early ETC-503 bomb rack on its port side. On it, the "041L" can just be made out.


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1131

268. Probably in late fall 1944, "white 10" underwent upgrades. Stronger landing gear struts allowed all four MK 108s to be installed and the ETC-503 was removed and a Wikingerschiff bomb rack was attached to the starboard side. A sharper view seen in O'Connell, page 210, reveals the Ar 234 as having the stammkenzeichen "NM+xx", which series had their first flights in the last weeks of November 1944.

[Karoband]

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1132

269. Another screenshot from the same training film shows one of the ground crew pulling the "O"-ring with its cord to the Riedel starter motor to ignite the Jumo 004. Note the two white gun rectangles. In this scene there appears to be snow beneath the aircraft.


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1133

270. Also that winter, "white 10" was part of an exhibit for Albert Speer. To the right is a Do 335, probably V5, (see Smith, Creek and Petrick, On Special Missions, (Air War Classica, 2003), p. 46). W.Nr. 170041 "white 10" was still with E.Kdo. Lärz on 10 March 1945, (O'Connell, p. 46).

[Karoband]

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1134

271. Me 262 V1 W.Nr. 262 000 0001 "PC+UA" first flew as a conventional piston-engined aircraft powered by a single Junkers Jumo 210G. Messerschmitt test pilot Fritz Wendel lifted off the runway at Augsburg at 13:40 hours on 18 April 1941. He quickly returned due to an overheated engine.


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1135

272. This and the previous photo show that the standard Luftwaffe markings were first painted over the bare metal airframe whose different tones suggest wide vertical bands of colour.


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1136

273. This is a photo that was cropped from a larger view of the front of the hangar at Augsburg, which can be seen on page 86 of Smith & Creek, Me 262 Volume One, (Classic, 1997). This cropping shows that the V1 retained the Jumo piston engine while a pair of BMW P.3302 V2/V10 prototype turbojets were installed between September and December 1941 at Augsburg.

[Karoband]

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1137

274. "On 25 March 1942, the aircraft attempted to take off from Augsburg on the power of all three engines (its 48th flight), but just after leaving the ground both turbojets suffered compressor blade failures. This forced Fritz Wendel to land the heavily laden prototype on the power of the piston engine alone," Smith & Creek, p. 86. The BMWs were removed and it was test flown using its piston engine in the summer of 1942. It was then sent back to the factory to be rebuilt with two Junker Jumo 004 A-0 engines.


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1138

275. Now fitted with Jumo 004 turbojets, W.Nr. 033, port and 039, starboard and without the piston engine in the nose, V1 first flew on jets alone on 19 July 1943 and was transferred to Lechfeld as a test aircraft.


http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/album....pictureid=1139

276. On page 161 of Me 262 Volume One, Smith and Creek give this caption for this photo, "Believed to show the Me 262 V1 (PC+UA) after it was rebuilt with Jumo 004 engines. The aircraft was fitted with a production type canopy, but was destroyed on 7 June 1944 ...". O'Connell, p. 14, explains that "It crashed and was damaged while flown by Heinz Herlitzius on its 95th flight on 7 June ... It was destroyed on 12 September in a bombing raid by the US 15th Air Force."

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by Karoband

Hi Nick and Dan,

You may be correct. Me 262s of III./EJG 2 at Lechfeld were distinguished not only by the yellow band but, in many photos, by white or bare metal forward engine nacelle cowls. In particular, photos of Erich Hohagen in Me 262 A-1a W.Nr. 170071 White 2 on 15 November 1944 show such bare metal cowls. A close look at "white 3" in my #261 shows that the cowls are replacements.

Jim

It seems at least possible that this was one of the first three airframes made available for conversion to the reconnaissance role, hence the non-standard nose panels.

From Bundesarchiv RL 2-I/79, Lageorientierungen und Einsatzplanungen.- Tagesverlauf, Besprechungsnotizen, Bd. 1 (März-Juni 1944), frame _0208.

Der Chef des Lutwaffenführungsstabes Den 22.6.1944

Ia Nr. 4532/44 g.Kdos.17.Ang.

Tagesverlauf am 22.6.44

6.) … Chef Genst. ist mit der Forderung 3 Zellen Me 262 für Aufklärer, wie schon bereits mehrmals gefordert freizugeben, einverstanden. Die 3 Zellen sind für Einbau der 3 vorhandenen Bildkanzeln freizugeben.

Roughly translated:

Day's events, 22 June 1944

6.) … The Chief of the General Staff is in agreement with the requisition, as already submitted several times, to make available 3 Me 262 airframes for reconnaissance [versions]. The 3 airframes are to be made available for the installation of the 3 existing camera nose-sections.