Corrected Colors for Insignia of II./KG255 & Colored fuselage band

[Larry Hickey]

Hello,

I've recently become aware of an excellent color photo that clears up a mystery for me, in which I thought some of you might have a similar interest. This shows a Staffel line up of Do17E-1s of 5./KG255, taken during the winter of 1938-39. A visible code is 54+A25, which shows red prop spinners and a thin red ring around the fuselage just behind the wing roots, similar to ones used on KG76 aircraft in 1940. The Gruppe insignia differs from the one depicted in Ketley/Rolfe, P. 55 (emblem 373), in that the shield is white with a thin black outline instead of blue with a thin black outline. The gentian flower is purple with black outlines and shading around the triple flowers. This unit became III./KG77 in May, 1939, but apparently the flower, which Ketley/Rolfe say was inherited from II./KG153, was "bequeathed to II./KG51." The blue version of this insignia may have been used by II./KG153, as illustrated in K-R. A good black & white photo of this insignia can be found on P. 31 of Chris Goss' excellent book, "Do17 in Focus," by Red Kite publishing. This aircraft has yellow or white prop spinners, indicating that this was used in the colors I describe by aircraft other than 5./KG255. Presumably the fuselage bands were in the staffel colors, rather than the Gruppe colors. Does anyone have confirmation of this last statement?

Regards,