Ar234 C markings

[Denford]

The reissue of the Dragon Ar234 C kit brings the usual problem of markings: either none or speculative. But there is the possibility of a set of ‘real’ markings, in this case of a C4 !

Jet Planes of the Third Reich (Smith and Creek, published by Monogram in 1982) pp 396 lists jet losses. 

Verbatim and under column headings which I have separated with *:

Apl. 4 *  1.(F)/ 123  * Ar 234 C4  * shot down by US fighters east of Reinharthausen near Bobingham, pilot baled out.  (Here I cannot but add my sorrow at the list of injuries and of lives lost bravely fighting in vain for a cause that was clearly and hopelessly lost.)

Earlier in the book it notes that -/123 was part of Kommando Sperling, to which all recconaisance 234’s  (and hence this one) were assigned. 

Unlike, say the Me262, the Ar234 seemed to have a fairly formalised 4 character (letters and digits) system of coding with a variety of colours and sizes.

Can anyone with a better understanding than myself (which isn’t saying much) of this system suggest (any of) the characters, their colours and sizes, which the said 234 C4 might have carried?

 

[Graham Boak]

Kommando Sperling (I.(F)/123) carried the unit code T9, which in this period will have appeared in small letters before the cross.  The code system was indeed highly standardised for Luftwaffe types other than fighters (which had their own standardised system) and this included bomber Me.262s.  The first two letters identified the main unit, usually a Geschwader.  The last letter identified the sub-unit, in the case of a 1st Staffel this would have been H.  (Earlier letters are for Staff aircraft.)   The third letter was that of the individual aircraft in the sub-unit.  This would commonly be coloured in the Staffel colour, but this had probably lapsed by this time and can be ignored (unless someone knows otherwise)

 

So this Ar.234C could have carried the code T9+AH, depending upon which letter was free when it arrived on the unit.

 

There is a recent Osprey dedicated to the operations of the Ar.234, but I don't recall mention of operational use of a C.  If I find it, and it adds anything, I'll add a PS.

[Denford]

I didn't know Osprey had published such a book.  I'll definitely buy it.

Many thanks

[Graham Boak]

 There's no mention of this loss., and statements that KG76 only got their first C-3s in early May.  Nothing about the C-4 in the recce unit (that I saw in a quick look).  However there's no real doubt concerning which unit would have got them, and it was indeed 1.(F)/123.

 

I've also looked n the Monogram book Arado 234 Blitz, which says that there is a report of such a loss on April 4th.  But as the second and third C only flew on March 27th, this does seem a very early date.  There is another anecdotal tale of a C being flown by a civilian pilot being shot down by a P-51 when practising slow flying.  This could be an early production aircraft being tested - I don't know whether Bobingham is in the right region for this to be reasonable.  If so, it wouldn't be carrying a unit code but its own Stammkenzeichen, or radio code, which were issued and retained by every German aircraft.  Nothing I have gives me an SKZ allocated to any production C.

 

Presumably KG.76 will have intended to paint their unit code F1, although whether they bothered in the circumstances is open to doubt.

 

[Seahawk]

Little to add to Graham's responses beyond that the photos in the Monogram book of the Ar 234C-3 captured by the Americans (2560006) do not show any codes at all.  Nor do those of other derelict C-3s derelict (2560001 at Prague-Rusin, 2560012) though those 2 photos are too murky to be 100% certain.

 

[Graham Boak]

Which unfortunately does suggest that the factory didn't bother painting the SKZ on either.

 

However, I do have an old copy of Peter Gogh's German registrations, and this gives only one C - T9+HB.  Which to me looks like an error for T9+BH, but I've lost touch with Peter and also the website which replaced LEMB - Luftwaffe Research Group.  There's another good Luftwaffe website called 12 O'Clock High, but just to help (not) my link to this site appears to be down at the moment.  So there may be more information, and perhaps an up-to-date copy of Peter's listings, if you check LRG.

[Roman Schilhart]

4 hours ago, Seahawk said:

Little to add to Graham's responses beyond that the photos in the Monogram book of the Ar 234C-3 captured by the Americans (2560006) do not show any codes at all.  Nor do those of other derelict C-3s derelict (2560001 at Prague-Rusin, 2560012) though those 2 photos are too murky to be 100% certain.

 

 

This lines up with Valliant's "Airframe Album Arado 234" which contains the above mentioned photographs as well as a color profile of a C-3 of III./KG76.

The aircraft in the color profile does not have any codes, only the Werknummer (250008) on the tail fin.

 

[Abakan]

T9? Didn't the Wanderzirkus Rosarius used T9 as well??

[Graham Boak]

Yes.  Also the original prewar recce unit belonging to the General Staff - which became the Ar 234 unit.

[SafetyDad]

Good thread - I too have looked for markings for operational C models with little success.

 

As well as the sources listed above, perhaps the most comprehensive source is this JaPo publication. 

 

 

'Comprehensive' is perhaps not the best term to use, as the information contained within is certainly not complete.  Relevant text extracts are here:

 

 

 

 

(Posted here solely for the purpose of discussion - in accordance with UK Copyright Law).

 

There is no photographic evidence within of any 234C with tactical markings. No evidence either for Stammkenzeichen on fuselage or carried underwing - this is confirmed for 250006 as underwing pictures are available.  You'll note both the mention of various units to which these aircraft were allocated, plus the conclusion of the authors that tactical markings were unlikely to have been applied to them.

 

If you decide to go down the 'plausible guess' route for markings it's worth noting that Kommando Sperling tended to paint their T9 Gruppe marking in white characters (at this stage of the war they were 1/5 the size of the remaining letters aft of the fuselage cross). It's also worth noting that there's no confirmation here (either photographic or textual) of the aircraft profiled in the Valiant publication. Doesn't mean it's wrong...  just not confirmed.

 

In my view the JaPo authors have done remarkably well to amass this information - there is only evidence for 15 AR234Cs being produced at Alt Lonnewitz and this summary mentions 12 of them by my reading. Note that W.Nr 250001 seems to have been a little bit of a 234B/C hybrid, with the tail unit of a B carrying the larger Hakenkreuz and external counterbalances. There's also a bit of uncertainty about armament carried by these aircraft. W.Nr 250006 found at Riem certainly carried two forward facing cannon mounted beneath the cockpit - there's photographic evidence for that. Did they all?

 

HTH

 

SD