General Ju 88 thread

[Dornier335nut]

Hi Ed. Those are great photos. Thanks for sharing. I thought the same thing with the rack of an Fw 190A-8. That's what they looked like to me as well but couldn't find any definitive information. A couple of documents I have list them at ETC 500's missing their covers. So I've been searching and searching for drawings of the coverless ETCs and finally found two drawings yesterday morning without the covers and they look nothing like what's in the photo I posted. So then I came back here and posted the photo of the Ju 88 in question. I'll see what I can dig up on the Fw 190A-8 rack.

Thank you Ed.

Nicholas

[hedgehog6]

That is an extremely nice picture of one of KG66's Ju-88S-3 with the "Eisenhammer" modifications. I have never seen the tanks so clearly, and these late war pictures are rare. Can you quote the source?

[Dornier335nut]

Originally Posted by hedgehog6

That is an extremely nice picture of one of KG66's Ju-88S-3 with the "Eisenhammer" modifications. I have never seen the tanks so clearly, and these late war pictures are rare. Can you quote the source?

As I'm a modeler by hobby, the source of this image came from John Mcillmurray. He owns a company called AIMS that does Ju 88 detail sets and conversions. He's the one that sent me the photo. I had found a set of markings on ebay and sent him a message about that particular aircraft in that listing. So he sent me that photo to use as reference whenever I got around to building that particular aircraft. The outer wing racks are the only thing he hadn't figured out yet on that aircraft. So I've been doing the digging to find more information for my eventual build of that aircraft.

So is that an S-3 bomber variant or a T-3 reconnaissance variant? I'm building it as a T-3 as I figure with the long range fuel tanks it would have been a recon variant. Thanks.

Nicholas

[PMoz99]

Nicholas, which picture are you referring to when you ask whether S-3/T-3?
The only real visual difference between the two is the T-3 does not have the bombsight or fairing, and of course the cameras in the rear fuselage.
In the photo of the Ju-88 with multiple tanks, I can't see a bombsight fairing, so I'd go T-3. But then, the pic is not that clear under the nose .........
Peter

[Nick Beale]

Lots of extra fuel and no bombs suggests a reconnaissance mission, so I'd think it was a T-3 as well.

[edNorth]

Spirals on spinners suggest Recce plane, but absence of Lotfe 7 bombsight fairing is also known from S-3 - so only think this is T-3. Tanks were 2 x 900 L inboard and 2 x 600 L outboard (Outboard hardpoint were "je 250 kg" per A-4 Ladeplan B, M15) so 500 kg is real overload ... if full.

[Juha]

Hello
from Eisenhammer mods the Operation Eisenhammer comes to my mind. It was the LW plan to destroy a large part of the SU's war production capacity by massive long-range air attacks on SU's electricity generating plants and elecric grid. Are the mods anyway connected with the Operation Eisenhammer?

TIA
Juha

[hedgehog6]

The Eisenhammer operation was at the outside limits of what could be done with a Ju-88 given the front lines in 1945. I understand the Ju-88S-3 of KG 66 were to act as pathfinders for Misteln. In this role, the load-out would have been 4 fuel tanks externally, with target marking flares in the aft bomb bay. If the identification of the photo is correct, that it is an aircraft of KG66 (and the cammo scheme makes me think it is) I would bet on it being an S-3.

[Dornier335nut]

Originally Posted by PMoz99

Nicholas, which picture are you referring to when you ask whether S-3/T-3?
The only real visual difference between the two is the T-3 does not have the bombsight or fairing, and of course the cameras in the rear fuselage.
In the photo of the Ju-88 with multiple tanks, I can't see a bombsight fairing, so I'd go T-3. But then, the pic is not that clear under the nose .........
Peter

Hi Peter,

It's the second picture I just posted with the inquiry about the outer wing racks. I came to the conclusion it's a recon variant with the extra tanks. Now to find the parts I need for that out wing tank rack.

Nicholas

[Dornier335nut]

Originally Posted by hedgehog6

The Eisenhammer operation was at the outside limits of what could be done with a Ju-88 given the front lines in 1945. I understand the Ju-88S-3 of KG 66 were to act as pathfinders for Misteln. In this role, the load-out would have been 4 fuel tanks externally, with target marking flares in the aft bomb bay. If the identification of the photo is correct, that it is an aircraft of KG66 (and the cammo scheme makes me think it is) I would bet on it being an S-3.

So are there any details pertaining to the target marking flares in the aft bomb bay? I've never heard of such a thing and it's very interesting.

N.