SafetyDad

More lively debate here - good to see. This machine is Ju 188E-1 Z6+DM of II/KG66 found abandoned in France, probably at Coulommiers, in 1944. It appears in Aufklarer by Wadman, Bradley and Ketley on P202, and also on AIMS decal sheet 48D006. Three bladed props, plus the Ju188 canopy and lack of tail turret are the identifying features here. Also, it's attached to an operational unit. Whatever is on the wing is not an exhaust - the exhaust gas patterns are from standard BMW801 engines. You can make out exhaust staining underneath the object lying on the wing and in front of its rear end. I'm not an engineer, but I would imagine that an exhaust of that length might very well reduce engine horsepower by limiting exhaust egress. If you look carefully you can make out the unit code in small letters at the top of the vertical fin - the Z is obscured by a dark blotch, but the 6, a small cross and the D in white can be seen. This was a common marking practice within KG66. The servicemen examining it appear to be wearing British uniforms. HTH SD

Lynn Ritger seems to have discovered documentary evidence that some He219s may have been painted white, rather than RLM76 https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/hyperscale/a-possibly-brand-new-discovery-about-nachtjaeger-p-t533639.html HTH SD

This is the colour picture I referred to earlier - thanks Jochen! SD

That's a very helpful link there Matt. Thanks! SD

Apparently it is, although from KG6 rather than KG66. A better picture with caption - make of the caption what you will, The uppersurface colour seems very pale indeed - notice how the upper portions of the fuselage Balkenkruez almost disappear against it. White? or nearly white? photo from Pinterest user @Brian7100 - available in the public domain. I'll remove this if requested to HTH SD

What about this @JWM? No idea if this is a KG66 aircraft (it might be). RLM66 over white? or 76? Who knows? Couldn't resist posting it. SD

Good thread topic - looking forward to seeing what this throws up Taking @GiampieroSilvestri's comments above, I would tend to agree with him that the blotches or spots are applied over a lighter basecoat for these Ju88S models, as here Always perilous to speculate on colours from black and white pictures, but this shot is interesting in that it places the underside, prop hubs and blades and uppersurface blotches in close proximity. To my eye they all have a very similar tonal value. Perhaps the blotches are very slightly lighter than the underside colour (which is black distemper for night ops?). Similar to the prop blades - so RLM71 Dark Green if these remain in their original colours, and assuming that the blades are the wooden versions? If they're metal blades (which they may be by their shape) then RLM 70 is more likely. See here I can certainly also entertain the idea that the blotches are black-grey RLM66 applied on top of a very light grey (or even white). Note the cockpit frames above are the same light shade. I'm aware of at least one 'colour' picture of a KG66 Ju88S aircraft, but this pic has such a pronounced colour shift within that I'm not sure it's helpful here - for completeness the blotches seem almost black on that shot. I'll find it if I can... KG66 schemes appear to vary greatly, with some aircraft painted with blotches as above, yet others using a Wellenmuster wave camouflage pattern as here Just my take. Other views may vary (of course) SD

Is it the cover for the cockpit cannon breech? https://me109.info/display.php?from=site&lang=de&auth=e&name=ausgabetabelle_wnr&fotonummer=15841 SD

And so we come full circle... It would be very helpful if the fillet bump was an identifying feature of a G-8. I can but dream... SD

Marc-Andre Haldimann's Flickr site is helpful here - this picture seems to show the edge of the 'scabbed on plate' . Not a detail I was ever aware of before - thanks Matt. Floyd, it seems the plate must cover the central panel line as you suggest. Graham - I would tend to trust Marc-Andre's captions as he's put some work into them, cross referencing with Wk Nummeren, (clearly visible here) but I take your more general point about photo captions being open to question. Marc-Andre's full caption is here Bf 109 G-8 W.Nr. 201 143 "Schwarze 2", Olt. Leibnitz, 2./NAGr. 5, Nyker, Bornholm, 9 May 1945. Source: photo bornholmskebilleder.dk, inv. MUS18369. Courtesy of Jes Touvdal Christensen, Luftwaffe airplanes from WWII Group, FB, 2 February 2019. HTH SD

RLM 66 for most internal painting - including some wheel wells. I believe these pics are from an example in Canada in its original colours at the time. There's primer (RLM99?) beneath the engine on the wing uppersurface but the gun bay seems bare metal (note the RLM66 door interior) And, of course there's this walkaround here on BM - this aircraft was repainted when it was at RAF St Athan - the wheelwells look original in what seems to be 02, but I have seen other colour pictures of other examples with this area in RLM66. So perhaps some latitude here? HTH SD

Pleased to hear it - my pleasure SD

Do you know I looked at that intake and wondered exactly the same thing! The fuel requirement (at B4) is different however, and it is a G8 rather than a G6. Doesn't rule it out though. @Ingo Ritz what do you think? SD

If you're building two, then you could cross-kit the wheel bulges to build one of the G-6 versions with the larger wheels. See this thread I've just started I caught that detail on your profile from the EagleCals instructions - I'm normally cautious about profiles, but checking the pics of White 44, it seems the fuel triangle may well read C3 - it certainly seems darker than the normal yellow triangles for B3 or 87 Octane. And the aircraft has the enlarged cowl bulges for the higher performing series of DB 605 engines, so that would fit. SD

As a young lad, I was given a collection of Air Training Corps Gazette magazines, one of which contained this picture from here (I think - the cover has detached from the magazine itself) Quite possibly the oldest reference I have on the Bf109G . Certainly played a part in developing my life-long interest in the late war Luftwaffe. Both the dejected pose of the pilot, and the machine itself made an impact. The picture really captured my imagination then; returning to it after all these years I can now add some more detail to it Bf109G-8 Photo Recce Note the early fuselage cowl bulges, but the later large upperwing bulges Belonged to an unidentified NAG according to Prien and Rodeike, who also include a slightly clearer version of this picture here Note also the Luftflotte 5 yellow nose band, which would seem to suggest this aircraft operated in South-East Europe at war's end. The second picture in the ATC gazette shows Bad Aibling airfield, which would be a possible location, but that's pure supposition on my part. (Duh! Just realised that Prien confirms this as the location!) And is that the open lid of the baggage compartment visible behind the parachute on top of the fuselage? This thread mentions the part played by the Luftwaffe repair/remanufacturing centres, and how they turned out some 'hybrid' airframes. I wondered if this airframe might also have been through this remanufacturing scenario? Sadly, we don't have a Wk.Nr. for this aircraft, but the combination of features in the picture is uncommon. I would appreciate any thoughts from other BMers SD

This is so true. Understanding Bf109s presents a number of challenges, but these are not insuperable if, as you say, you have the reference material. One of the challenges here is that all references are not equal - some are now old and have been superceded by newer material and more accurate pictures. It would seem that you've decided on either White 43 or 44? A good call as they are well photographed, so much of the evidence is there for you. The smaller wing bulges shouldn't be a huge obstacle (I see you've posted in the Wanted section - Troy's moulding guidance will get you there too). Good luck with your build! A final point for contributors @Mattlow and @Troy Smith to this thread so far -looking at the pic above that Troy has linked to FalkeEins blog, I'm looking at the gear legs and wheel hubs on this airframe, They seem too dark for 76 or 02, but not dark enough for RLM66? I just wonder if the legs are red? SD

So it would seem that the Dragon kit still has some appeal today? Nice link BTW, I have had all of these kits (bar the Hobbyboss) in my time - like you the adverts in Airfix Magazine for these Lindberg kits in the early 70s seemed to be the stuff of dreams to my then 12 year old imagination! It really took Dragon to make these dreams a reality Thanks SD

As Troy says you've made an excellent start here with your research. You'll need to decide which precise mark of G that you intend to complete - the G-6AS and G-10s are very similar, but not identical. Best to find a picture of your preferred airframe and then work to meet the details that you find. For instance, note the non-standard sliding clear vision panel in the side of the clear view cockpit hood on 'White 43', plus the small rear view mirror in a non-standard blister on the upper cockpit. As you imply, the late-war Bf109 rabbit hole is more of a warren, with complex and subtle pieces of information to grasp. The information that Troy has offered here is very much what I would have provided - the FalkeEins website link is really good, with clear pictures and well informed commentary. I would also recommend that you track down the instructions for the AIMS decal sheet 'Monotone Me's' . There seems to be two purposes for these all-over 76 airframes - high altitude interception and perhaps later war night fighting. I'll have a sift through my stuff and see what I can come up with. SD

I remember comparing items like the seat and control column between the resin bits and the kit and the difference wasn't huge. The sizes of pedals can sometimes differ between p/e manufacturers within the same scale. That shouldn't be the case but it happens. 1/24 stuff is pretty thin on the ground for Luftwaffe kits, so sometimes it's a question of being creative. SD

@Aerofix Or you could try this https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/234239583665 It's 1/20 scale and quite old, but the pedals are there, plus there are other pieces in the set that might be useful? I had one of these at one point, and intended to use it in just the same way as you're considering. HTH SD

Here we are Notice, as the caption describes, the tail warning radar antennae are mounted horizontally projecting from the vertical fin. These don't seem to appear on the Hasegawa artwork above? Easily added to the model though. HTH SD

The pic I referred to clearly shows the H2S radome so no worries on that part (as you will shortly see!). You'll love the Wingleader book - so much information is set out logically and clearly. Excellent for reference and resolving these kinds of modelling queries. Good luck with your build - I've just bought the HK cockpit section, but referring to the Wingleader references starkly highlights some of the problems with this and the marking selection supplied, one of which is RF128. Sadly the HK canopy has the smaller astrodome, so that's out. I may have to create my own markings as the other options don't really appeal. SD

Hi Gary According to the new Wingleader Lancaster books (which are superb by the way) - no fuselage windows on QB@V RF128. RF120 to RF326 was a very late batch of Lancasters built between Dec 44 and April 1945. RF128 has the later tall Astrodome No fuselage windows H2S (so no port canopy blister) Cabin air intake on the starboard side above the wing root, so no port leading edge intake Oval bomb aimers window from online pics Lovely full page pic of RF128 taken from the starboard side on P75 of WL photo archive 15 shows most of the fuselage, paddle bladed props and starboard canopy blister, as well as circular windows in the upper fuselage escape hatches. Also the bases of what seems to be two whip aerials on the upper fuselage (I'm not certain of this) This https://www.facebook.com/1greatvirtualeducationalexperience/photos/a.613532908705174/891684447556684/?type=3 shows Rebecca aerials fitted, with the front part painted in a pale colour - the pic is colourised, so that's as far as we can go I think. HTH SD

Indeed! I found this so now I don't feel so bad! SD (reading and learning, but still confused!) Thanks Troy for the input. And Graham - I wasn't aware that the Jagdwaffe volumes (at least these ones) were suspect in terms of info

A quick skim through the volume on the Spanish Civil War reveals no mention of the 109A that I can see - there's a section on the arrival of the Bf109 in the Spanish theatre which focuses upon early B models (with 2 bladed wooden props), plus mention of a couple of prototypes being used in theatre. As I said above, this is not my usual fare - I'm more acquainted with the late war Luftwaffe, The book does mention that the major difference with the 109C was the fuel-injected Junkers engine. Perhaps not too far removed from other variants to mean a major logistics issue if it was used in the Spanish theatre? I don't know, just thinking out loud... HTH SD