Messerschmitt
Me262. German jet fighter Me262 of the Luftwaffe in
aviation art prints by aviation artists David Pentland and Nicholas
Trudgian. Messerschmitt Me262 of Adolf Galland, Lt. Schall, Georg Csurusky,
Rony Lauer and Hermann Wieczorek available from aviation prints.co.uk.
Too Little Too Late by Stan Stokes.
Heinz Bar joined JG 51 in 1939 as a non-officer pilot.
By August of 1940 he had become the highest scoring non-officer pilot in
the Luftwaffe. Although shot down once during the Battle of Britain, Bar
survived, and was later transferred to the Eastern Front. He received
his commission and by the end of 1941 had chalked up 91 victories. By
mid-1942, with 113 victories, he was promoted to Hauptman and made Group
Commander of I/JG 77. Flying out of Sicily he participated in the siege
of Malta, and later was shifted to North Africa where he obtained
another 61 victories. With his health suffering, Heinz was reassigned to
Germany, where he flew interception missions against the steady
onslaught of Eighth Air Force bombers. With his victory total at 202,
Bar was put in command of JG 3 and later III/EJG2, a unit equipped with
the Me-262 jet fighter. He obtained 16 victories in March and April of
1945 while piloting the 262, making him the top jet ace of WW II. His
record for victories in a jet stands until this day, having been equaled
in Korea by Capt. Joseph McConnell. Bars final victory count of 220 made
him the eighth highest scoring ace of all time. He was killed after the
War in a flying accident. The Messerschmitt Me-262 Swallow, a
masterpiece of engineering, was the first operational mass-produced jet
to see service. Prototype testing of the airframe commenced in 1941
utilizinga piston engine.
General Adolf Galland, who was in charge of the German Fighter Forces at
that time, pressured both Goring and Hitler to accelerate the Me-262,
and stress its use as a fighter to defend Germany from Allied bombers.
Hitler, however, envisioned the 262 as the aircraft which might allow
him to inflict punishment on Britain. About 1400 Swallows were produced,
but fortunately for the Allies, only about 300 saw combat duty. While
the original plans for the 262 presumed the use of BMW jet engines,
production Swallows were ultimately equipped with Jumo 004B turbojet
engines. The wing design of the 262 necessitated the unique triangular
hull section of the fuselage, giving the aircraft a shark-like
appearance. With an 18 degree swept wing, the 262 was capable of Mach
.86. The 262 was totally ineffective in a turning duel with Allied
fighters, and was also vulnerable to attack during take off and
landings. The landing gear was also suspect, and many 262s were
destroyed or damaged due to landing gear failure. Despite its sleek
jet-age appearance, the 262 was roughly manufactured, because Germany
had lost access to its normal aircraft assembly plants. In spite of
these drawbacks the 262 was effective. For example, on April 7, 1945 a
force of sixty 262s took on a large force of Allied bombers with escort
fighters. Armed with their four nose-mounted cannons, and underwing
rockets the Swallows succeeded in downing or damaging 25 Allied B-17s on
that single mission. While it is unlikely that the outcome of the War
could have been altered by an earlier introduction or greater production
totals for this aircraft, it is clear to many historians that the
duration of the War might have been drastically lengthened if the Me-262
had not been too little too late.
Return of the Hunters by Nicolas Trudgian.
Messerschmitt Me262s of JG7 race back to their base at Brandenburg after intercepting a USAAF bomber raid on Munich, and Luftwaffe air bases in the area. Below them a B-26 has crash-landed in the fields still covered with a sprinkling of late winter snow. In the distance the afternoon sun glistens on the Bavarian Alpine mountains.
Item Code : DHM2662
Return of the Hunters by Nicolas Trudgian. - Editions Available
Messerschmitt Me262. With a sleek shark-like fuselage, revolutionary swept back wings and Jumo turbine engines, it must have been a sight to see one autumn day in 1944 when seen for the first time. The 262 represented the Luftwaffes most potent air weapon during World War 2; however, not enough were produced in time to make a decisive difference to the outcome.
Item Code : DHM2272
Guardians of the Reich by Philip West. - Editions Available
Squadron Leader Schuck, Germany, Spring 1945 by David Pentland.
Oberleutnant Walter Schuck moved to JG7 in early March 1945, and assumed command of 3 Staffel on the 26th of that month. In all he was to claim 8 victories while flying the Me262.
Item Code : DP0142
Squadron Leader Schuck, Germany, Spring 1945 by David Pentland. - Editions Available
Ben Drew shot down two Me262s in October of 1944. The painting shows the second Me262 as the main subject with Ben's Detroit Miss peeling off at full speed after he showered the aircraft with the fatal bullets. The shoot down action was so quick in occurring, (31 seconds), that Drew never saw what had actually happened to the pilot, Oblt. Paul Bley, who slipped over the side in time to live to fight again. As fate would have it Oblt. Bley was killed 2 weeks later when his 262 developed trouble while taking off and he plowed into a tractor at the end of the field.
Item Code : DHM6066
Swallows by Brian Bateman. (GL) - Editions Available
Original painting, oil on canvas by Brian Bateman. Full Item Details
Size 36 inches x 24 inches (91cm x 61cm)
Artist : Brian Bateman
£500 Off!
Now : £2300.00
Defenders of the Reich by Graeme Lothian.
Major Rudolf Rudi Sinner of STAB.III/JG7 attacking B-17s of 91st Bomb Group during March 1945. Attacking in a Kette of three aircraft from behind and below targeting the tailenders and rising over the B-17s. Avoiding any debris and evading the incoming fighter escort, who are dropping down from their top cover positions. Rudolf Sinner acheived a total of 39 victories, including two in the Me262.
Item Code : DHM1156
Defenders of the Reich by Graeme Lothian. - Editions Available
Though some 1400 of Germanys remarkable Me262 jet aircraft were built, fewer than 300 ever saw action during its short 10 month combat career, the 550 mph fighter-bomber arriving in service too late to make any impression on the course of the war. Most famous of all Me262 units was Jagdverband 44, commanded by General Adolf Galland. Instructed by Hitler to set up a small defensive fighter unit to make the most of the new Me262, Gallands JV44 attracted other top-scoring pilots, including top aces Macky Steinhoff and Walter Krupinski, and the unit soon became dubbed Gallands Squadron of Experts. Though doing their best to repel daylight attacks on jet production plants in Southern Germany, JV44 were fighting a losing battle. During a raid on 9 April 1945 the unit lost nine aircraft – a pattern that was to continue. Also, American fighter pilots, unable to catch the 262 in the air, found success taking the jets out as they took off or landed, catching them while at their most vulnerabl.........
For bomber crews, any daylight-bombing mission almost certainly meant combat. If it werent the attentions of determined Luftwaffe fighter pilots, it would be an aerial carpet of flak that welcomed the bombers en route to the target - and again on the journey home. On most missions the Eighth Air Force aircrews had to contend with both. Enduring up to ten hours of concentrated flying under cramped conditions, extreme cold, with the constant noise and vibration produced by four powerful engines, made every mission uncomfortable enough without being shot at. But the USAAF aircrews confronted the odds - a one in three chance of completing a 25-mission tour of operations - cheerfully and with gallant resolve. Playing a major role in the great raids on Germany and other targets in occupied Europe from early in 1944, equipped with the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, the USAAF Second Air Division flew no fewer than 95,048 sorties. Based in Norfolk, England, the crews also attacked targets far di.........
Heinz Bar joined JG 51 in 1939 as a non-officer pilot. By August of 1940 he had become the highest scoring non-officer pilot in the Luftwaffe. Although shot down once during the Battle of Britain, Bar survived, and was later transferred to the Eastern Front. He received his commission and by the end of 1941 had chalked up 91 victories. By mid-1942, with 113 victories, he was promoted to Hauptman and made Group Commander of I/JG 77. Flying out of Sicily he participated in the siege of Malta, and later was shifted to North Africa where he obtained another 61 victories. With his health suffering, Heinz was reassigned to Germany, where he flew interception missions against the steady onslaught of Eighth Air Force bombers. With his victory total at 202, Bar was put in command of JG 3 and later III/EJG2, a unit equipped with the Me-262 jet fighter. He obtained 16 victories in March and April of 1945 while piloting the 262, making him the top jet ace of WW II. His record for victories in a j.........
