whitewall 'earthed' tyres on Luftwaffe Aircraft

[Pete in Lincs]

It's only in the last few years that I learned of whitewall tyres on Luftwaffe aircraft being earthed.

I think I've only seen it on tailwheels.

When I worked on Aircraft you used wire leads to earth the Aircraft to the ground and another lead to the bowser.

Does anyone know how the tyre thing worked? Metal strips in the rubber perhaps?

[RAF4EVER]

If I remember my mechs training correctly, you also had ECTA, Electrically Conductive Tyre Assemblies.mech course was back in 1972 at Saint Athan.

 

Found this on Google: https://www.google.nl/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjZgen5g5zzAhXG4KQKHRKsAX8QFnoECAcQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpatents.google.com%2Fpatent%2FUS6289958B1%2Fen&usg=AOvVaw1CtZ2FdtlQ39AqJYWR25D2

Edited September 26, 2021 by RAF4EVER
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[Pete in Lincs]

I'd forgotten those. Must have been asleep that day, We got through some beer back then!  (Halton '76).

[G.R.Morrison]

Pete, you're right, it was only on tail wheels.  This indicated the presence of copper filaments in the tire.

 

'White walls' on main wheel tires are only rarely seen - a very-few Bf 109F-4/Trops in North Africa, but this was a temporary water-based paint, soon rubbed off.  Instead, you're more likely to find examples of cloth covers for the wheels (sometimes with the aircraft's Kennung (number, or letter) to identify 'ownership.'

 

GRM

[nicholas mayhew]

On 9/28/2021 at 3:43 AM, G.R.Morrison said:

Pete, you're right, it was only on tail wheels.  This indicated the presence of copper filaments in the tire.

 

'White walls' on main wheel tires are only rarely seen - a very-few Bf 109F-4/Trops in North Africa, but this was a temporary water-based paint, soon rubbed off.  Instead, you're more likely to find examples of cloth covers for the wheels (sometimes with the aircraft's Kennung (number, or letter) to identify 'ownership.'

 

GRM

 

hi,

 

there are a few images showing JG27 Emils in either North Africa or Sicily that seem to have white walls on the main tyres...

 

kind of hoping this is not just dust as I modelled my Black 8 as such...

 

was that too much of a liberty you think?

 

cheers

N

 

 

 

[Rob G]

From what I recall reading in various books and articles over the years (probably plagiarised from the same source, and no promise as to its accuracy) the tyres were painted white to protect them from UV, especially in the desert, as replacement wasn't always an easy option due to the low availability of rubber to the Germans.

 

Edit: in fact, on closer examination, the caption for the lower photo states exactly that.