D.B. Andrus

I can fly one....into the ground.

Anniversary of the first Schweinfurt raid: https://www.historynet.com/world-war-ii-eighth-air-force-raid-on-schweinfurt.htm Losses: https://b17flyingfortress.de/en/datenbank/verluste-beim-schweinfurt-regensburg-einsatz-am-17-08-1943/

+ 1,000

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/24940/weapons-testers-at-china-lake-obliterate-everything-in-this-crazy-greatest-hits-reel

Hoping for the best for HKM in HK re. PLA. Still, was a poor marketing move with the "new kit" raffle.

https://www.themodellingnews.com/2019/08/do-you-feel-need-need-for-new-f-14-amk.html

Roger This is a Motivation Evaporation Free Zone - No MoEvap Allowed. It's in the rules.* Please proceed with your excellent build. * - Not sure which rule book, but it still applies. Cheers, D.B.

Didn't know the Germans had IRST pods in the war? Cheers, D.B.

Ah, yes, pretty smart. Thanks, Tom. Cheers, D.B.

Outstanding build! Purpose of water bottle on antenna? Sure is a nice touch. Cheers, D.B.

A couple of thoughts to tag on to Rob's post. One, the variance in paint batches, improper mixing before application, improper thinning, inconsistent application - too thick, too thin - etc., changes the paint's appearance. There were rules and instruction about all of this, but as the war dragged on not all were followed all the time. Two, of the swatches I have, Merrick x2( Monogram & Kiroff), Eagle Editions(Warnecke & Bohm), the 74 to my eye in each is a dark, slightly warm gray - with the Kiroff slightly lighter and warmer. Cheers, D.B.

+1

Excellent, Antonio! Thanks very much for posting the photos. Cheers, D.B.

Catalina & Mavis........or Mariner & Emily Duelists.

Hs 129

So gut, dass es mir Tränen in die Augen treibt !!! Prost! D.B.

Peter The seatbelts are perfect. Of course, as is everything about your build.........might want to thin those leading and trailing edges...they look a bit thick. Cheers, D.B.

Javier The following text and photos are from LRG: Jim P : http://www.ebay.de/itm/332166163071?clk_rvr_id=1195981231439&rmvSB=true http://www.ebay.de/itm/332166162007?clk_rvr_id=1195950037544&rmvSB=true Göran Larsson: It is possible these two are of the same L1+AL: http://www.ebay.de/itm/Luftwaffe-Junkers-88-Ju-88-Stab-I-Lehrgeschwader-1-Iraklion-KRETA-28-11-1942/332166164211?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D42849%26meid%3D79eb5c52d7f64a1180746d593346222e%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D332166163071 http://www.ebay.de/itm/Luftwaffe-Junkers-88-Ju-88-Stab-I-Lehrgeschwader-1-Iraklion-KRETA-28-11-1942/332166164211?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D2%26asc%3D42849%26meid%3D79eb5c52d7f64a1180746d593346222e%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D332166163071 Roland F: I read it as "Väterchen" - little father (pet name). This implies there must have been a Ju88 named "Söhnchen" - little son. Paul H: This thread was initially posted into Lehrgruppe 88, but given that it relates to LG1, I felt it best to move it into this forum. Lehrgruppe 88 did exist in its own right so I haven't deleted that forum, but it seems to have been a rather short-lived life before being re-designated early in 1940. ... given that the vendor states the location as Iraklion, the '88' in the background with the standard camouflage would appear to have its cowlings painted yellow. Ronnie O: For what it's worth, I can confirm that the airfield is Iraklion. Note the rock in the distance. The yellow cowlings on the machine in the background, do they date the photo to approx. summer 1941? Christian A: I agree with Roland. I read "Väterchen". Peter T: For me it’s clearly ‘Väterchen’, that probably refers to the Staffelkapitän, who was often seen as the father of the Staffel. I think the picture was taken in the second half of 1942. It could have been the plane of Ritterkreuzträger Hptm Horst Beeger. Ronnie O: Interesting info Peter, thanks! Given that it's aircraft "A" of the staffel, that seems quite likely. Was Beeger the Staffelkapitän when based at Iraklion? According to this document he left LG1 in August 1942: https://www.luftfahrtverlag-start.de/rkt2leseprobe.pdf Could the guy sitting on top of the fuselage (first photo in post #2) be Beeger? The upper wing and fuselage crosses may give a further clue as to the date, as they do not have the black outlines any more. I am not sure when exactly those were eliminated in production... Anything else that might give a clue to the date, such as the MGFF cannon, flame dampers, cockpit armour panels, wide chord prop blades or perhaps the crew members' uniforms? These are the relevant posts to your inquiry, Javier.....good luck in your search. D.B.

LRG members have determined the upper word is "Väterchen". HTH, D.B.

Javier I'd be happy to pass the information to you. There are also a few more photos of what may be WNr.300615 I can post. It will take me a couple of days, but I will send. Cheers, D.B.

"Vaterchen (Possibly refers to the Staffelkapitän, who was often seen as the father of the Staffel.) Vater u Sohn" Posted by Ronnie Olsthoorn on Luftwaffe Research Group https://luftwaffe-research-group.org/threads/ju88a-l1-al-carrying-name-väterchen.8226/#post-35097 About the suspected date of the photo... I found that up till February 1942 I./LG1 operated from Eleusis. It seems they had moved to Iraklion by late February 1942 and remained operating from there for the remainder of the year. I don't have information on actual unit movement and these conclusions are based on the loss records of the unit. The last loss for I./LG1 from Iraklion is dated 20 February 1943, a single loss is reported on Eleusis on 16 March and from 10 May onwards all losses originate from Foggia returning to Eleusis in November havind stayed at Wiener-Neustads during September and October of 1943. So my question is... did I./LG1 pass through Iraklion in the summer of 1941 (missions? special visit?), or were there still yellow-cowled Ju88s around as late as February 1942? Perhaps the real explanation for the bright cowlings is that they were not yellow, but they were taken from a desert-camouflaged Ju88 during repaints and they're actually sand-coloured! Then the date of this photo is sometime in 1942 when I./LG1 regularly operated over North Africa (why else have desert-camo airplanes in the first place?). Another clue to the date is the type: a Ju88A-4. All I./LG1 combat losses 1941 are Ju88A-5 models. In 1942 they are all reported as Ju88A-4s! In 1943 the vast majority is of the Ju88A-4 type as well (one Ju88C-6 and a He111 are also reported). As for L1+AL, this may have been Ju88A-4 WNr.300615. It was reported 10% damaged by fighters on 13 November 1943 over Leros, while operating from Eleusis. It was lost near Augusta harbour on 31 December 1943. Given he big gap between the approximate date of the photo (see earlier post) and this loss, I suspect this may have been a different L1+AL already. No other L1+ALs feature in the loss reports from 1941 or 1942 though. HTH, D.B.

Saving Private Ryan through the Wayback Machine.......

Great job, Kag!

81(brown variation) + 65 + 04 spinner + 23 backing plate + 23 chevron and number? Quite colorful.