MESSERSCHMITT Bf-109 G Version Red Gear

[WrathofAtlantis]

9 hours ago, Troy Smith said:

I said the number was red as well, I just quoted the caption from where I eventually found the photo which says white 1.

 

I posted the image as I recalled the discussion on the band and the  wheel appearing as near white I the image.

 

I'll @JackG  on film/filter possibilities.

 

HTH 

 

   Yes, but was the spiral in the photo red as well? I do know of confirmed cases of black and white Luftwaffe pictures where it is yellow that (alledgedly) shows up as near fully black, but to show red as white would require a completely opposite tonal shift: It would be like a negative of the image, yet the image is not a negative.

 

  Also, rlm 76 was often much lighter than assumed, and would often look white if the light struck it squarely. The wheels and legs could be light blue or light gray, and lit up by a low sun angle. If anything, red would look gray or black. It's not that I know for sure, but red seems unlikely.

 

 Somewhat unrelated: Higher in this thread we see red legs almost completely over painted with dark gray, and that to my mind confirms the downgrading of the aircraft away from C-3. At least it seems like a plausible reason. That would confirm my supposition that many of these aircrafts reverted away from the C-3/MW-50 option. There were additional problems with the MW-50 installation: It allowed climb rates so steep they led to oil circulation problems and engine seizure or damage, and the extra power, when the prop was unloaded for prolonged periods in a steep dive, would also cause the engine to over-rev and blow up... I have read at least one combat account in which a diving Me-109G-14AS, chasing a Mosquito, is lost for that very reason. 

 

  With low hour pilots driving these things roughly, one can see how MW-50 could cause problems as well as having a significant cost in weight... While computer simulation discussion boards always bring up MW-50, actual late War Luftwaffe pilots, particularly those flying something other than a FW-190D-9, rarely mention it, if at all. Eric Hartmann's quote is one of the rare non D-9 quotes to mention it. Even in June of 1944, a pilot from a squadron of Me-109G-6AS mentions a single recent Eastern Front arrival as having a polished aircraft with MW-50 on board, making it stand out from the rest of the squadron... This new arrival Eastern Front pilot was 136 kill ace Weber, who ignored pressing and repeated advice by his 5 kill Western Front wingman to "use horizontal turns instead of the vertical". This 136 kill ace was then immediately killed on his very first Western mission, while using the vertical and making a MW-50 vapour trail, despite continuing radio pleas from his wingman to turn... It is one of those snippets that paints a very stark picture.

[JackG]

From a digital viewpoint the film emulator software shows that a 100 per cent red filter can lighten the intensity in both colour and grey value, but definitely does not result in white.

 

[Jochen Barett]

9 hours ago, JackG said:

From a digital viewpoint the film emulator software shows that a 100 per cent red filter can lighten the intensity in both colour and grey value, but definitely does not result in white.

+++

From a_person_who_has_used_B&W_film_in_real_life's viewpoint and a person who has looked through red glass I can report that it is possible to register red objects "white" on B&W film or to be unable to visually differentiate between red and white and red fiters were invented befor 1939 and panchromatic film was in widespread use in Germany in thoses day. But: It is a pain in the neck to lose all that light using a red filter and you need a really good reason to do so.

 

I'd dismiss the oxen-109 and just scratch my head (or other area of my body if alone) and say to myself "interesting wheel hubs" and maybe "I wonder what color the markings were, the fuel triangle is not really well represented to give any clues, on to the next 109 pic". For any evaluation I'd like to check on pics of good technical quality only.

 

Same plane (at least I do not have a lot of doubt), two pictures, source asisbiz.com:

 

Exhibit A:

Sky? Darkish blue sky, clouds white. Probably panchromatic film and a yellow filter used. Well defined shadow of plane on the grass.

Fuel triangle? "Blank". Yellow looks like white (confirming the idea of use of a yellow filter).

Wheel hubs? "Funny!"

Cowling? "White" is it a tactical marking or just a reflection on her shoes?

Tonal range? Kinda high contrast, no good print, let the student print it again using paper grade 1 or 2

 

 

Exhibit B:

Sky: White. Maybe just an overcast day, plane's shadow on the grass fuzzy.

Fuel triangle? White outline, "grey" (yellow) inner triangle the way it is supposed to look, some dark writing in it.

Wheel hubs? "OK-ish"

Cowling? "OK"

Tonal range? Kinda OK but sky burnt out, let the student print it again burning the sky / dodging the plane and landscape.

Probably panchromatic film and no filter used.

 

Wheel hubs looking the way they are supposed to?

Oh, and let's take a look at the oil triangle it is supposed to be brown (probably RLM 26 used or is it RAL 8008?):

 

 

and let's recheck https://ww2aircraft.net/forum/threads/was-rlm-02-used-as-a-top-surface-camouflage-colour-on-luftwaffe-fighters.50255/page-6

giving:

"Gefahrenschutz" = hazard protection

"Wasser" = water

"Luft und Sauerstoff" = air and oxygen

"Kraftstoff" = fuel

"Schmierstoff" = lubricant

"Abgas" = exhaust

 

Edited July 22, 2023 by Jochen Barett
typo

[Troy Smith]

16 hours ago, JackG said:

From a digital viewpoint the film emulator software shows that a 100 per cent red filter can lighten the intensity in both colour and grey value, but definitely does not result in white.

The image I was asking about was this one, not the colour shots

11 hours ago, Jochen Barett said:

From a_person_who_has_used_B&W_film_in_real_life's viewpoint and a person who has looked through red glass I can report that it is possible to register red objects "white" on B&W film or to be unable to visually differentiate between red and white and red fiters were invented befor 1939 and panchromatic film was in widespread use in Germany in thoses day. But: It is a pain in the neck to lose all that light using a red filter and you need a really good reason to do so.

Available film?  

11 hours ago, Jochen Barett said:

 

I'd dismiss the oxen-109 and just scratch my head (or other area of my body if alone) and say to myself "interesting wheel hubs" and maybe "I wonder what color the markings were, the fuel triangle is not really well represented to give any clues, on to the next 109 pic". For any evaluation I'd like to check on pics of good technical quality only.

It's the wheel hubs....  standard is gloss black.  

20 hours ago, WrathofAtlantis said:

Yes, but was the spiral in the photo red as well? I do know of confirmed cases of black and white Luftwaffe pictures where it is yellow that (alledgedly) shows up as near fully black, but to show red as white would require a completely opposite tonal shift: It would be like a negative of the image, yet the image is not a negative.

See above.  Spiral is white  A red filter can make red appear white.  

20 hours ago, WrathofAtlantis said:

 

  Also, rlm 76 was often much lighter than assumed, and would often look white if the light struck it squarely. The wheels and legs could be light blue or light gray, and lit up by a low sun angle. If anything, red would look gray or black. It's not that I know for sure, but red seems unlikely.

 

The standard specified wheel hub colour for ALL Luftwaffe types was gloss black.   

 

Any decent photo of a wheel that is not coated in dust will show this, and as the tyres were synthetic rubber, they were often dark grey.

 

 

because the hubs are gloss, they can appear lighter due to reflectance, or a coat of dust,  but not white.

 

Before anyone says, look at the illumination of pic under discussion.  Also the 109 in the background. 

 

Anyway, I've posted the pic and query on a late war 109  farcebook page,  which has various names I recognise as being knowledgeable on the subject, who likely will know the image and IIRC or not.   

I will post up any responses.

 

HTH

 

 

 

[Dave Fleming]

Red filters can certainly make reds turn white - there's a well known line up of 111 Squadron Hurricanes, one photos showing L1550 with no red in the roundel, but a similar shot taken without a filter shows the reds.

 

As with all films, especially B+W, the printing process can also have an effect (How long you expose the print can affect the intensity, so fainter colours can wash out)

Edited July 23, 2023 by Dave Fleming

[Troy Smith]

5 minutes ago, Dave Fleming said:

Red filters can certainly make reds turn white - there's a well know shot of 111 Squadron Hurricanes showing L1550 with no red in the roundel, but a similar shot taken without a filter shows the reds.

Thanks Dave, 

pics in question.

 

[JackG]

My apologies, I thought the query was about how red behaves when photographed with a red filter, so that was why I used the period color photos as test examples.  For the b/w image of the oxen pulling the 109, I don't have any software that can transform grey tones back to their original colour.  

 

Indeed if a photograph is taken on a bright day and that sunlight is hitting directly a red surface, there is no doubt the red filter will result in the print showing up as white.

[SafetyDad]

Back to Bf109s with red legs

 

I found this looking for pics of the well-known Croatian 109 defector

 

 

I think those legs are red...

 

SD

[Werdna]

Sorry, I'm not doubting the evidence, but I am struggling with the logic.  From a purely theoretical standpoint - is painting the landing gear legs (and/or wheel hubs) red really the most efficient or practical way of indicating the type of fuel required?  Most of the time, the Luftwaffe managed to fill their aircraft by referring to a simple - and relatively small - octane triangle.  Surely something more simple (and requiring less paint and effort) would have been just as effective? 

[Super Aereo]

9 hours ago, Dave Fleming said:

Red filters can certainly make reds turn white - there's a well known line up of 111 Squadron Hurricanes, one photos showing L1550 with no red in the roundel, but a similar shot taken without a filter shows the reds.

 

As with all films, especially B+W, the printing process can also have an effect (How long you expose the print can affect the intensity, so fainter colours can wash out)

 

A red filter will indeed make bright red look white, but it will also darken the sky considerably, same with any green trees and grass, while quite possibly lightening yellow as well. And the yellow fuel triangle still looks darker. The whole photo would look different, imho. 

 

As far as 111 Sqn. Hurricanes are concerned, one has to bear in mind the possible effects of light reflection and film development. Other shots from (presumably) the same film roll show clearly the red centres.

 

https://pin.it/XNGErQ1

 

https://www.surreymilitaria.com/en-GB/wwii-british-photographs-and-ephemera/the-kings-air-force-magazine-1939/prod_10122

 

 

The main thing to bear in mind is that while a bright will show up white with a red filter, a dark red will not, because the light intensity will not be the same, but far minor.

[Dave Fleming]

53 minutes ago, Super Aereo said:

 

 

As far as 111 Sqn. Hurricanes are concerned, one has to bear in mind the possible effects of light reflection and film development. Other shots from (presumably) the same film roll show clearly the red centres.

 

 

It was a press day, so there were several different photographers present, The filtered shot also shows the Dark earth much lighter, but the clincher is the first aid box stencil under the cockpit, which shows as dark on a normal photo, but light on the 'filtered' one - the Wingleader photo archive book on the Hurricane has a very good side by side of the line up showing the differences.

 

 

In terms of the 109, I'm far less convinced it's a 'red 1' rather than something else.

Edited July 23, 2023 by Dave Fleming

[Kari Lumppio]

3 hours ago, Werdna said:

... is painting the landing gear legs (and/or wheel hubs) red really the most efficient or practical way of indicating the type of fuel required?  Most of the time, the Luftwaffe managed to fill their aircraft by referring to a simple - and relatively small - octane triangle...

 

I agree this is the key question.

Yes, there were Luftwaffe standard fuel triangles. But what write into ithe triangle when the required fuel was anilline douped near C3 equivalent B4 without type code?

Anilline is also red dye, perhaps red colour on some visible place?

In any case, the general unferstanding is that red legs were related to fuel requirements.

 

Cheers,

Kari

[Phoenix44]

Red filters don't make red white, they make it a very light grey. And they make blue skies very dark. If that shot of Hurricanes is on a cloudless day, it's not shot with a red filter. If its on an overcast day, its not a red filter either. And red filters are not "normal" usage in b&w photography but for intense, dramatic effects. They are quite difficult to see through. They also do not turn yellows white. But judging what filters have been used on digital reproductions of b&w prints is a bit of a mug's game - you need the original negative to have any chance of working it out. Who knows what has been done to the reproductions seen on here, possibjyvyhrough many iterations.

[WrathofAtlantis]

17 hours ago, Werdna said:

Sorry, I'm not doubting the evidence, but I am struggling with the logic.  From a purely theoretical standpoint - is painting the landing gear legs (and/or wheel hubs) red really the most efficient or practical way of indicating the type of fuel required?  Most of the time, the Luftwaffe managed to fill their aircraft by referring to a simple - and relatively small - octane triangle.  Surely something more simple (and requiring less paint and effort) would have been just as effective? 

 

  Obviously it was meant to be seen from a distance, and implies that the squadrons were routinely mixed fuels. The aircrafts being far from the junction lane on dispersals, sometimes catered to with fuel carts pulled by animals, it would be a waste of effort to go read the small triangle on every single one.

 

  That being said, it is not a given the practice was systematic. I have seen more red gear color photos in this thread than in 30 years of looking at 109s... Before this thread, I had never even seen a single bright red wheel hub in a colour photo, even in all those colour photos of post War wreck cemeteries. The few red 109 legs I did see usually had black or dark gray wheel hubs (or so it seemed to me).

Edited July 24, 2023 by WrathofAtlantis

[Werdna]

4 hours ago, WrathofAtlantis said:

 

  Obviously it was meant to be seen from a distance, and implies that the squadrons were routinely mixed fuels. The aircrafts being far from the junction lane on dispersals, sometimes catered to with fuel carts pulled by animals, it would be a waste of effort to go read the small triangle on every single one.

 

Surely mixed fuels were commonplace anyway?  Most airfields usually operated more than one aircraft type and in those cases the octane triangles seemed to have been sufficient for getting the right fuel into the right aircraft.  I’m just struggling with the concept that, with a new fuel type, it became necessary to engage in some relatively complex re-painting.

 

As I said earlier, It’s the logic I’m struggling with, not the purpose  

[SafetyDad]

1 hour ago, Werdna said:

 

Surely mixed fuels were commonplace anyway?  Most airfields usually operated more than one aircraft type and in those cases the octane triangles seemed to have been sufficient for getting the right fuel into the right aircraft.  I’m just struggling with the concept that, with a new fuel type, it became necessary to engage in some relatively complex re-painting.

 

As I said earlier, It’s the logic I’m struggling with, not the purpose  

 

I must be honest - you've got me thinking here.

 

Like many, I have accepted the idea that the read gear legs were there to remind ground crew that this airframe required special fuel. However, I can't ever recall any publication linking this idea with an RLM directive or instruction. I understand that this painting of the gear could have been evolved informally, but it seems very likely that it was not restricted to a single unit or airfield - the evidence (such as it is - I tip my hat to @WrathofAtlantis here) does seem to support this practice being uncommon, but not localised. 

 

I think these might be red too, but being monochrome, not as obvious. You decide.

 

 

Courtesy Marc-Andre Haldimann Flickr account

 

@FalkeEins has a page on these non-standard Bf109s on his blog here with bigger and better pictures

 

https://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2013/05/messerschmitt-bf-109-g-10-of-5njg-11.html

 

 

 

 

Here's the Croation 109 in monochrome as a comparison

 

 

SD

[Werdna]

58 minutes ago, SafetyDad said:

I understand that this painting of the gear could have been evolved informally, but it seems very likely that it was not restricted to a single unit or airfield - the evidence (such as it is - I tip my hat to @WrathofAtlantis here) does seem to support this practice being uncommon, but not localised. 

 

Further to this - the pic of the up-ended/bombed 109 which Troy posted on P1 shows a clearly red wheel hub, but with no stencilling.  Assuming the stencilling is absent (as opposed to being present, but simply not being visible in the pic), it might suggest a more informal type arrangement where these were re-painted in the field, as opposed to being painted in the factory. Just a thought..

[dov]

Hallo

Now after a quick check through the entire album:

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/28092068@N03/albums/page1

 

I found  some pictures, which would show us a red leg and red wheel disc.

But I found no pattern of this matter!

 

Happy modelling

[dov]

Some more pictures, which may show a red gear:

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG3/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6R3-8.JG3-Black-9-Germany-Mar-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG3/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6R6-9.JG3-Yellow-6-Alfred-Surau-WNr-18807-Bad-Worishofen-Bavaria-Germany-Sep-1943-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG3/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6R6Trop-6.JG3-Yellow-3-Bad-Worishofen-Germany-May-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG3/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6R6Trop-6.JG3-Yellow-3-Bad-Worishofen-Germany-May-1944-02.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG3/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6-Stab-III.JG3-Walther-Dahl-Leipheim-March-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG3/pages/Warbird-Bf-109G4-as-Stab-I.JG3-Klaus-Jun-1943-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG11/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G10R3-Erla-5.JG11-Black-7-WNr-152033-captured-1945-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG26/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6R3-9.JG26-Yellow-17-Hans-Georg-Dippel-WNr-440714-taxing-France-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG27/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G14-Erla-belonging-to-Feldwebel-Mueller-of-II-JG-27-August-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG27/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6-4.JG27-Alfred-Muller-Hans-Eberhard-Blume-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG27/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G6AS-Erla-6.JG27-Yellow-2-Heinz-Zimmermann-WNr-412807-Germany-1944-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG51/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G10R3-Erla-10.JG51-Yellow-5-Horst-Walter-Petzschler-WNr-130297-Sweden-4th-May-1945-05.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG51/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G10R3W-6.JG51-Neubiberg-1943-01.html

 

https://www.asisbiz.com/il2/Bf-109G/JG52/pages/Messerschmitt-Bf-109G10-Erla-7.JG52-Black-21-WNr-610783-Wagram-Austria-Apr-1945-01.html

 

Now, I could not see any more.

One thing is sure, that if I see correct, a/c with red gear also had underwing cannons.

Underwing cannons do not make this boost installation possible due to space for pressurized air is already spent by the cannon.

So all GM-1 and MW  50 thoughts are deleted!

 

Happy modelling

 

@SafetyDad and @Jochen Barett what is your opinion?

 

[Werdna]

18 minutes ago, dov said:

One thing is sure, that if I see correct, a/c with red gear also had underwing cannons.

Underwing cannons do not make this boost installation possible due to space for pressurized air is already spent by the cannon.

So all GM-1 and MW  50 thoughts are deleted!

 

Have another look at the pics posted by Troy on P1 - I don't think any of them have gondolas fitted.

[dov]

The batch of pics, where I recognized the posdibility of a ' Red Gear' are in mixed Rüstzustand. You find ALL of them! @Werdna, so if you check all the links, you can make up your mind.i do in this matter never say, that my conclusion is correct! 

Happy modelling 

[Werdna]

14 minutes ago, dov said:

The batch of pics, where I recognized the posdibility of a ' Red Gear' are in mixed Rüstzustand.

 

Using that logic, you can argue that almost any b/w pic of a 109G might have red gear legs.  I'm (literally) not seeing it....

[Jochen Barett]

On 23/07/2023 at 01:11, Troy Smith said:

The image I was asking about was this one, not the colour shots

Available film?  

+++

https://www.ebay.de/itm/155436920031

 

for example. And before anybody asks about "super ortho-panchromatic": "Orthopan-Film" or "Rectepan-Film" was invented after "Pan" was incvented because some customers thought that "red" would come out too light with panchromatic film.

 

Other manufacturers besides Agfa (Wolfen) in those days were

Adox (Frankfurt)

Ferrania (Italy)

Perutz (Munich) pioneers in panchromatic material

Foma (Bohemia)

Gevaert (Belgium)

Zeiss Ikon / Contax and Voigtländer marketed films too, but I do not know who made these (probably former Goerz Photochemische Werke for Zeiss Ikon)

J. Hauff & Co. G.m.b.H. Chemische Fabrik (plates, probably no films)

 

During the war it was probably hard to buy film (and plates) for plain civilians, a little better for soldiers but in case your unit was operating RoBoT cameras (in the planes' wings), there was some supply of 35mm film.

 

Further reading (yes, peacetime publications)

The Golden Book of the Rolleiflex. 1936 Results of a photographoc competition (usually naming film, camera, filter, ... used)

"Die Fotografie mit Rolleiflex und Rolleicord" like seen here (was available in English and French too IIRC), look at the pictures and the captions no translations neded https://www.ebay.de/itm/8-x-Die-Fotografie-mit-Rolleiflex-und-Rolleicord-1938-39-/125970863879

 

The wheel hubs in the pic above can be any light color, yellow, bright green, RLM 77, red (and red filter used) light blue, dirty white, RLM 76. Nobody can tell. But yes, they are not glossy black and I can't see neither the fuel triangle nor underwing canons.

[GiampieroSilvestri]

On 19/07/2023 at 01:14, Troy Smith said:

For very late war, maybe.

 

AFAIK, the red legs are seen summer/autumn 44.  And are seen on AS engine types, which were new, and this was for quick recognition.

 

one of the few that is absolutely confirmed as red

 

"This is one of the more famous color 109 photos; this shows a lineup of G-6/AS aircraft of II./JG27 at Fels am Wagram in August 1944.  According to the Prien/Rodeike 109F-G-K book, the nearest aircraft is W.Nr. 412807 "gelbe 2", shot down near St. Pölten on 23 August 1944 with the pilot Uffz. Zimmerman being killed.  "Weiße 5" behind it may be W.Nr. 412918, shot down near Holzminden on 16 August with the wounded pilot Uffz. Salinger escaping by parachute.

Worthy of note are the yellow underwing tips, the RLM25 Grün RVT bands immediately aft of the Balkankreuz, and the Spiralschnauze on "gelbe 2" but not on "weiße 5".  Also, all aircraft carry a relatively standard 74/75/76 scheme.  All visible aircraft carry the R3 droptank mod, and "gelbe 2" has the fuselage-mounted FuG 16zy Morane mast (look carefully...it appears to be striped, but that may be an illusion)."

 

" Whoops...

No word on what caused this, but my personal guess is bomb damage- note the prop blades are unbent, so the engine was not turning when this calamity occurred, and it didn't hit nose first because the spinner, though well-dented, is not flattened.  Plus, there was no fire (strange in any event, given that the belly tank is still present!)

So, here's the exciting part...note the wheelwells, 76 throughout (even the aft wall liner).  Note also that 76 is used in the flap well (see the inside of the port upper "gator" flap).  That's not all, of course.

The shades of 76 and 04 are notably lighter than that commonly used in scale modeling; these also dovetail nicely with some fabric samples I have from a JG5 Fw190 aileron showing traces of the brush-painted yellow wingtip markings as well as the pale, almost white variety of 76.   The yellow here appears to be brush-painted as well; note the demarcation line.  And of course, we note the red legs and wheels, indicating this is (or was...) likely a G-6/AS aircraft.

The spine shows an octane triangle for the aft primer tank, and the RLM25 Grün band shows up well here.

And take a look at the drop tank style...not the common "ribbed" 300 liter tank, but the later two-piece stamped variety.

All in all, an utterly fascinating photograph!"

 

captions from the 109 Lair, so I presume by Lynn Ritger, whose wrote the SAM datafiles on the Bf109, and knows his stuff.

http://109lair.hobbyvista.com/index1024.htm

 

The other I recall was one I've not seen online for ages, and was a JG300 plane being pulled by an Ox, which had been taken with film/filter that caused the red RD band to appear white,  as did the UC legs.

I recall it from years ago, as part of a discussion on the Jg300.de site and how the site owner Burkhardt Otto was frequently wrong in photo captions...  Maybe it got taken down as it was fairly rude about him?  Anyway, I'm not turning up the image, but it's pretty distinctive if anyone can recall it, white band, white UC legs.

The discussion may well have been on a forum google can't access.

I'll @FalkeEins  as he may recall the image, also @G.R.Morrison @David E. Brown  @SafetyDad  does this sound familiar?   

 

Right... after various search combinations... This one "bf 109 with oxen"  found this, which is what I was thinking of...

captioned on Rods Warbirds as 

"Me109-G14/AS/R3 III.9.JG300 ex-I.1.JG3 White1 WrkN165693 with Tall T3-Rudder & Fo987 Deep Oil Cooler & White Fuselage Band & Team of Oxen Tows Aircraft to Its Dispersal At Juterbog AirBase, Germany September, 1944"

 

Note, standard wheel hub colour was black.   so red hub, number and band.  

 

Anyway, i think the use of red legs/hubs was reasonably short lived,  as the need for differing fuels became common and crews would know to check?

 

HTH

I am sorry for the silly question but the first picture was taken at Fels am Wagram in lower Austria in august of 1944 and "Gelbe 6" was shot down on the 23rd of august near St.Pölten,also in lower Austria.If "Weisse 5" was shot down on the 16th of august near Holzminden which is in lower Saxony in Northern Germany how can both aircraft be on the same picture?

 

Saluti

 

Giampiero

[Jochen Barett]

3 minutes ago, GiampieroSilvestri said:

I am sorry for the silly question but the first picture was taken at Fels am Wagram in lower Austria in august of 1944 and "Gelbe 6" was shot down on the 23rd of august near St.Pölten,also in lower Austria.If "Weisse 5" was shot down on the 16th of august near Holzminden which is in lower Saxony in Northern Germany how can both aircraft be on the same picture?

 

Saluti

 

Giampiero

The plane had a 300l drop tank.

 

But supposedly it started at Franfurt

https://luftwaffeinprofile.se/Bf 109 G Salinger.html

 

and who knows?

https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gliederungen/Jagdgeschwader/JG27-R.htm