Dornier Do 335 11/15 at Oberpfaffenhofen - My book project

[Simon Schatz]

Dear folks,

Marc-André was so kind to send me a link to a photographs sold via ebay some time ago. It shows the not so well known Dornier Do 335 11/15 in the woods of Oberpfaffenhofen. Although I know 3 other photographs of that plane this was new to me.




source: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/downed-ww2-german-aircraft-snapshot-1864126285


I didn’t know that website so I continued the search and also found this one.



source:https://www.worthpoint.com/worthoped...3Q1tNdianKoh7o


Did someone safe these images from the original Ebay auctions? They are very small at worthpoint.


The top photograph also shows the 11/15, the bottom photograph shows 240114. When the photograph was taken, 11/15 was quite incomplete. The fuel tank was removed. Spinners, propellers and the rear engine were missing. It looks like that this one never flew. Do 335 12/16 also found at Oberpfaffenhofen had nearly the same conditions.


The conclusion is that the W.Nr. listings and the associated double tailnumbers that were published in the past can’t be correct!


These listings say that Do 335 M15 was 240311 (tail number 11/15), and Do 335 M16 was 240312 (tail number 12/16), but Do 335 M15 was first flown in autumn 1944 and Do 335 M16 was tested at Diepensee in February 1945. Why should flyable planes end in such conditions? Why should they be unpainted? As I have written above, I think the W.Nr. listings were wrong. An original document also clearly proves that M16 was W.Nr. 230016.

BTW: Does anybody have an idea who has first published the W.Nr. block starting with 240311? I couldn’t find any original document with such a W.Nr. block.


Here the reason why I ask these questions.


Some of you already know that I have contributed the Dornier Do 335 colour profiles for Classic publication in 2006 and 2017. 2018 I also have made a 3-side view of Do 335 M14 for Roberth Forsyth's Osprey title.


Although many books about that plane were published in the past years, I decided in 2017 to start my own book project about the Do 335 because of following reasons:


I wanted to show all known planes as profile, but in „my“ books wasn't the space for that wish.


I wanted to see some errors from the past corrected. (for example that the Dornier Do 335 W.Nr. 240113 was a double seater and not a single seater as written in the past. I have already started a thread about that some time ago: http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=50578 BTW: next to the mentioned photograph in that thread I have an additional flightbook proof that Do 335 W.Nr. 240113 was a double seater)


And some gaps in history of that airplane should get stuffed, like the German tail markings of the Do 335 A-1, that later became AM 225 and crashed at Merville or photographs of not so well known planes (like the 11/15) found at Oberpfaffenhofen and other places.


Here some facts about the planned book.


The plan is to show all known Do 335 at least with one side view profile. Some of them will get shown as 4-side views. Captured planes will get shown in different stages. The drawings will get a detailed description to show all the differences. At the moment at least 110 drawings are planned. About 1/3 of them are finished. These drawings will get supplemented with a huge number of photographs, many of them haven't been published before. Attached is a possible layout.







Photographs and colour profiles will get shown in the largest size as possible. Each plane will get at least 2 pages, but most 4 to 6 pages. I hope to get it finished before mid 2021.


Without the help of many collectors around the globe, who shared their material with me, such a project wouldn’t be possible. So here again a big thank you! Although the helpfulness was enormous, there are still gaps in the history of this aircraft.


So, I ask all the forum members if they would be so kind to help me to get the gaps stuffed.


Does anybody knows the winners of the Ebay auctions from the beginning of the thread?


I would be happy if you own and share never published photographs taken by GI’s after the war. Oberpfaffenhofen is quite well documented, although there are some gaps, but also on other places like Friedrichshafen, Löwental, Manzell or Mengen Do 335 fuselages and parts were found. Most interesting would be so see photographs of the laminar wing that was found at Reutin, or the remains of Do 335 at Rechlin. A probably unattainable wish would be to get photographs of the plane found by the Russians at Oranienburg.

Best regards,
Simon