Feeding the Wolves Bite by Brian Bateman.

The twelfth of May, 1944. The German countryside is blooming with the coming of spring. Germanys struggle is coming to a crescendo as the Allies continue their assault on the Third Reich. Just above the deceptive peace of the countryside, Gruppenkommandeur Gunther Rall, assigned to JG/11 on the Western Front, is bounced by P-47s of the 56th Fighter Group. Better known as Zemkes Wolf pack, the 56th is the highest scoring USAAF fighter unit of the ETO, accounting for some 665-1/2 aircraft in the air. Rall is outnumbered four to one. Taking evasive action, Rall descends from the clouds toward the treetops, trying everything he knows to pull out and away from the much-too-powerful P-47s. Weaving, twisting and at full throttle, even Rall is no match for the numbers against him. Finally, Ralls 109 is within range and the P-47s eight 50-caliber guns are making deadly strikes--igniting Ralls aircraft and shooting his thumb off at the throttle. Rall has no choice but to pull into a half loop and bail out. To make matters worse, as Rall reaches the ground he is approached by a German farmer with a pitchfork who tries to impale him! After convincing the farmer hes German, Rall stomps off to a local phone and is subsequently taken to a hospital where he would remain until 1944. Feeling the Wolves Bite depicts Gunther Ralls 109G during this encounter. Rall, on fire and wounded, begins to pull into a half loop as he prepares to bail out of his Messerschmitt for the first and only time in his career.

Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 26 inches x 21 inches (66cm x 53cm). Price £125.00

Signed by :
General Gunther Rall (deceased)
and
Oberleutnant Walter Schuck.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE DHM1876

Her Majesty the Queen by Brian Bateman.

April 26, 1943. The Yankee Queen, a sturdy and rugged B-17F, lumbered its way home on a steamy, hot and arid late afternoon. She was coming in to land, almost miraculously, as if being held up by Gods own hand. The Yankee Queen had been in on the bombing raid of the German airfield at Grosseto, Italy. A hot, long day with nothing but dust and heat and nerves all jumbled together in the souls of ten young airmen. The raid had not been an easy one. As they approached the airfield, they were discouraged to find that the target was covered by cloud. This was a bomber formations worst fear. If there was a chance to complete the mission they had to go around again at the same altitude and airspeed to approach the target, this time giving the German flak gunners on the ground much more time to gauge the bomber stream for their deadly 88mm guns. On second approach the target was clear, and going in on the bomb run the German gunners were deadly accurate. Yankee Queens right wingman took a direct flak hit in the bomb bay - the plane disintegrated with parts hitting the Queen - the tremendous force of the blast nearly knocking them out of the sky! The number three engine was hit by flak after the bombing run, severing the oil line with the prop having to be feathered. Number two engine, oil line severed, had oil draining from the engine so quickly that the prop could not be feathered. The prop windmills, making handling the crippled B-17 very difficult. Finally able to flatten out the prop before the engine siezed, the Queen, vibrating and falling out of formation, was now easy prey for the Luftwaffe fighters that hovered above waiting for a kill. Once out of the safety of the formation, the B-17s guns were now down to ten from what the strength of the box once had. Sitting ducks. Slow and losing altitude, the pilot gave the standby for bail out- but the signal never came. The pilot and co-pilot, fighting the bucking 17, are able to keep her under enough control to maintain flight. The crew stood ready at their stations, scanning, searching for that 109 or 190 to come at them from out of the sun and finish them off - they never came. Lady luck so far was with the Queen as she struggled and lumbered for any altitude she could muster. The crew threw out anything that had any weight as they reached the African coast, in order to keep her high enough to get over the mountains that lay ahead. But it was not enough as the Queen did not have it in her to get over the top - they would have to go through the valley and the surrounding mountains. Finally, the base! Home! The Queen struggles for every inch, groping, smoking, and vibrating as she reaches for the ground. Ever so slowly she touches down. The crew, hot, tired, and exhausted, realizes that this was their closest call to date. Nerves on end and wet with sweat; the crew emerges into the early African evening, thankful to be home and once again on the ground. Total flying time for this mission was 7 hours and 30 minutes.

Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 26 inches x 21 inches (66cm x 53cm). Price £135.00

Signed by the six survining aircrew of Yankee Queen :
Ralph Keele,
Gene Platek,
L G Creel,
William Gonyo,
John OConnell
and
John Assmussen.

ITEM CODE DHM1877

Two for Drew by Brian Bateman.

The scene was October 7, 1944, Lt. Urban Ben Drew was flying escort with the 361st Fighter Group in P-51D Detroit Miss over Achmer airfield when he spotted unidentified aircraft lined up on the runway below awaiting takeoff. Drew, his wingman, and element leader broke off and started a steep dive from 15,000 feet closing in on the enemy aircraft which were taking off line astern. Upon reaching the aircraft, which were now identified as ME-262s, Drew fired away and immediately hit the rear 262. As Ben puts it: I have never seen a plane before or since totally disintegrate as the one that day. It just vanished. By then the second 262 had realized his situation and started a climbing turn to the left - his undoing. Flying through the explosion form the first kill, Ben pulled back on the stick and proceeded to shoot down the second jet - two in one action! The entire shoot down took place in just 31 seconds. Drew was given credit but his claims were unconfirmed until 40 years later when Georg-Peter Eder, an accomplished pilot with the Luftwaffe who witnessed the attack, confirmed his claim to U.S. officials. On May 12, 1983, Drew was awarded the Air Force Cross for his action that October day, 1944.

Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 30 inches x 20 inches (76cm x 51cm). Price £105.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF.

ITEM CODE DHM1872

Detroit Miss by Brian Bateman. (P)

Urban Ben Drew in his P-51 Mustang Detroit Miss claiming his fifth victory to become an Ace. The German Heinkel He111 was over the Baltic Sea on 18th September 1944 when it was spotted by Ben. Attempting to escape Ben and the two other Mustangs with him, the German aircraft made for the coast, but was shot down and plunged into the sea before making landfall.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0407

Take Him, Blue Two by Brian Bateman. (P)

Urban Ben Drew scores his second victory, and his first aerial victory, as he claims a Bf109G over Lisieux, France in 1944. His wing leader, Martin Johnson, had his guns jammed as the twisting turning low level dogfight took place, so the frustrated leader quipped to Ben - take him Blue Two. With all four guns in working order Ben took over and shot him down as they passed over a French farmhouse.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0404

Jet Ace by Brian Bateman. (P)

Walter Schuck claims one of two P-51 Mustangs shot down as his first two victories in his new Me262 jet fighter. Flying with JG7, Walter Schuck claimed his first two victories in the jet on 24th March 1945, and eventually went on to claim eight jet victories, and over 200 enemy aircraft in total.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Walter Wolfrum
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0409

Knights Realm by Brian Bateman.

Spring, April 15, 1945. With the pincers from both the Eastern and Western Fronts encircling the Third Reich any hopes of a German victory had long since been crushed. The German pilots goal now was to survive from day to day and wish for a quick end to an already hopeless situation. The pilots of the vaunted JG26 had been respected and feared in the war since their inception on 28 September 1939 to their bitter end in 1945, achieving more than 2,700 aerial victories, a kill ratio of 3 to 1. Even though these pilots realized the final outcome of this war they continued to fight on as ordered - some for honor, most flying reconnaissance and low level bombing attacks against oncoming allied forces trying to stop the insurgence of armies into the Fatherland.

Signed limited edition of 226 prints. Paper size 26 inches x 21 inches (66cm x 53cm). Price £125.00

Signed by :
Karl-Georg Genth
and
John Jack Stafford.

ITEM CODE DHM1871

Erich Rudorffer - Eastern Front Ace by Brian Bateman. (P)

Major Erich Rudorffer claims one of three Airacobra's shot down on 10th October 1944 as he claims seven victories in a single day in his Fw190 of JG54. One of the greatest Aces of World War Two, Rudorffer scored a total of 222 victories including over 75 on the western front, making him the 7th highest scoring Ace of all time.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Major Erich Rudorffer
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0410

Historic Victory by Brian Bateman. (P)

Urban Ben Drew in his P-51 Mustang makes his strafing run on the monster German BV-238 flying boat. A one of a kind prototype, the BV-238 was strafed and sunk on Lake Schaal by the three Mustangs led by Drew on 18th September 1944. When it first flew earlier in 1944, the BV-238 was the heaviest aircraft ever to have flown, and was the largest axis aircraft of the war. After being destroyed by the Mustangs, it was the single largest aircraft to have been destroyed in the war.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0408

Shadow of the Moon by Brian Bateman.

By the summer of 1943, the Allied bombing offensive against Germany was gearing up for a combined 24-hour operation; the British by night and the Americans by day. The recent British introduction of window (small strips of aluminum cut to reflect the radio waves of the German radar and dropped during these missions) effectively blinded the Germans in directing their night fighters to intercept the British bomber stream. Around this time, Major Hajo Herrmann, an accomplished bomber pilot with nearly 70,000 tons of enemy shipping to his credit, came up with the concept of sending single seat fighters which were used during the day to also be used to intercept British bombers at night. Flying above the bomber stream, the German pilots would be able to see the bombers silhouetted by the glare of the probing searchlights of the defenses below or by the glow of the full moon above. Recruiting expert pilots with night flying experience, these flyers formed the nucleus of a test unit known as JG300. Their tactics became known as the Wilde-Sau (Wild Boar) and like the ferocious beasts for which they were named, they soon struck fear into the Allied bomber crews they encountered. Depicting the FW-190A-6 of one of Germanys leading night fighter pilots with 23 kills, Friedrich Karl Mullers Green 3, aviation artist Brian Bateman captures the deceptive tranquility of the night sky as Muller gently banks high over Berlin among contrails of enemy aircraft, looking for yet another victim of the Wilde-Sau.

Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 26 inches x 21 inches (66cm x 53cm). Price £125.00

Signed by Oberst Hajo Hermann.

ITEM CODE DHM1873

Major Urban 'Ben' Drew - First Victory by Brian Bateman. (P)

Urban Ben Drew claims his first victory in his Mustang as he makes a strafing run of a Luftwaffe JU-52 transport at Toussus-Le-Noble in France in mid 1944.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0403

Urban 'Ben' Drew - Good Hunting by Brian Bateman. (P)

On August 25th 1944, Ben Drew found himself locked in a stalemate with the Bf109 of an experienced Luftwaffe pilot. Circling each other to try and force an advantage, the two pilots spiraled towards the ground until the German finally broke away from the Lufberry circle to escape the guns of the Mustang. With 5 of his 6 guns jammed from the extreme forces encountered while circling, Ben Drew chased his opponent, raking the fuselage with the one remaining gun. The enemy aircraft started to smoke then nosed into the ground at full throttle. As he flew over the resulting fireball, Ben remembered how his mother always ended her letters - good hunting, son..

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0405

Topaz One at Twilight by Brian Bateman.

Yontan Airfield, Okinawa, June 1945. It was early evening at this tropical airdrome. The brilliant sun was setting, the air was hot and humid with a faint pall of propeller dust hanging over the field, giving the place an unusual softness. It was time for the planes at Yontan to start departing for their missions. While the day fighters came in to end daylight operations, the night fighters were only beginning theirs. The sunsets in the Pacific are truly things with soul. The violence of their color is incredible. They splatter the sky and the clouds glow with a surging beauty. The ocean blends into the horizon, and palm trees silhouette themselves dramatically against the fiery West. The noiseless peace that sometimes comes just before dusk hung over the airdrome. Men talked in low tones about the nights missions. The night fighter pilots are eager to get into the humid night sky. As they take off, one by one they are vectored to their positions, where they will spend the evening patrolling these zones. There have been few aces with the Marine night fighters. These men are a special breed, with their mounts named after loved ones back home or a city or town. The name of this F6F5N was Black Death, a fitting name for the role in which it was used. Black Death was one of a few F6F5Ns that was fitted with the cannon, with this particular plane having flame dampeners for better concealment. One of these elite night fighter Marine aces was Bruce Porter. Bruce was credited with 5 confirmed kills and was one of only a handful to have a rare double kill at night! Bruce flew the Corsair in Guadalcanal as well as the Hellcat later in the war. Topaz One at Twilight depicts one of Bruce Porters missions while commanding VMF(N) 542 based in Okinawa in 1945. The brilliance of a Pacific sunset is captured by the artist as the men and their machines hurl into the dark unknown skies, protecting the fleet below as they anchor in the harbor. The ships lie lazy, almost peaceful in the evening mist, but there is the ever-present danger of the gut wrenching kamikaze attacks which are becoming ever more frequent as Japan continues her death throes. Soon the war will be a memory, and once again the Pacific can share its brilliance with the world at peace.

Signed limited edition of 250 prints. Image size 26 inches x 21 inches (66cm x 53cm). Price £125.00

Signed by Colonel Bruce Porter USMC (deceased).

ITEM CODE DHM1875

Thunder from the Heavens by Brian Bateman.

t was a time of grueling air combat and continuous sorties facing overwhelming odds. A time of wrecked nerves, fatigue, and the constant reality that the end was near for the men and machines of Hitlers Luftwaffe. Nevertheless, men flew into combat time and time again, defending their solemn oath to fight and die for the Fatherland! Thunder from the Heavens depicts the pilots and machines of JG7, the first operational jet fighter group to be formed after the remotely successful EKDO 262. Flying high above the ruins of the Reich in the beauty of an early evening sky, its hard to realize the enormity of destruction to the scorched earth below. Set in early March, 1945, the painting conveys the beauty of these sleek machines of war, contrasting with the peaceful surrounding of the coming spring evening.

ITEM CODE DHM1874

Urban 'Ben' Drew - Aerial Hat-Trick by Brian Bateman. (P)

On 11th September 1944, Urban Ben Drew claimed his third aerial victory claiming another Me109 in his P-51 Mustang.

Original pencil drawing by Brian Bateman. Paper size 16 inches x 12 inches (41cm x 31cm). Price £320.00

Signed by Maj Urban L Drew USAF
.

Part of our Buy One, Get One Half Price Offer

ITEM CODE B0406