Reviewed by Rob Baumgartner
 

Eagle Strike Productions' Gustavs Part 3 are available online from Squadron.com

 

FirstLook

Here we have the start of what should be a very interesting series. The Bf 109E flew in some very colourful and unusual schemes during the Battle of Britain. To have the Aces singled out for a series of sheets promises much.

This first offering contains some well-known subjects but it has been a while since they were available in this scale. Eagle Strike’s cover sheet recommends the Hasegawa F-14A/ F-14D Tomcats…I’d like to see that!

The colours themselves are very well printed and on my example the registration was perfect. The carrier film is very thin which is what we have come to expect from this manufacturer.

The always-welcome stencil data is included and the printing of the words is very crisp and legible. There are also VDM decals for the propeller blades, which is a nice touch.

Bf 109E-1, “Yellow 8”, 9./JG2

It is believed that Lt. Rudolph Rothenfelder usually flew this aircraft (he is also associated with “yellow 7” which had an all yellow engine cowl, rudder and spinner).

Being an early example, one of the reference sources given in the instructions quotes the upper surface colours as RLM 70/71. Looking at the appropriate photo suggests it could just as easily be RLM 71/02.
In fact that same reference book illustrates it in RLM 71/02 despite their RLM 70/71 caption! The demarcation of these colours is very high with a mottle down the entire fuselage sides.

The aircraft appears to have had another identity in a past life as the paintwork under the numeral “8” testifies. The Stechmücke badge of 9./JG 2 sits on the engine cowling and while the disk is sometimes yellow on other machines, in this instance the photo clearly shows it as white.

The JG 2 shield is present under the cockpit and was painted on both sides of the machine. The early use of the wavy line to denote the III. Gruppe is shown behind the Balkenkreuz and the spinner is RLM 70 with a yellow tip.

Bf 109E-3, “Black <o”, III./JG51

Oblt. Werner Pichon-Kalau von Hofe had this machine when he was Technical Officer of III./JG51.
Interestingly one of the reference books used for this subject again confuses itself with the colour scheme. They illustrate and caption the aircraft with RLM 70/71 upper surfaces and yet show and describe a photo of this machine on the same page as RLM 71/02. In this instance Eagle Strike followed the illustration but a good case can be made for the latter scheme.

The aircraft wears the III. Gruppe “Axe of Niederrhein” under the fuselage but no III Gruppe bar. The fuselage is void of any mottle and the spinner is in the regulation RLM 70.

Bf 109E-4, “Yellow 2”, 3./JG2

No Emil aces series would be complete without the aircraft of Oblt. Helmut Wick.

Many aircraft of JG2 wore this stippled camouflage over the original RLM 71/02/65 scheme.
The scoreboard on the rudder shows 22 victories which dates the aircraft as no earlier than the 25 August 1940.

On the engine cowl we see the emblem of 3./JG 2. The colours of blue and yellow were a reference to the Swedish relationship of former Staffelkapitäin Hennig Strümpell.

Behind this is the JG2 “Richthofen” badge and fortunately Eagle Strike have not forgotten Wick’s personal Kingfisher emblem that was seen under the rear canopy on the port side.

Note that the fuselage Balkenkreuz has had the white borders reduced in size to lessen its visibility.

Wick scored 56 victories in total before being posted MIA after bailing out of his stricken aircraft over the sea on 28 November 1940.

 

Conclusion

With three different types of the Bf 109E covered on this sheet, there should be something to keep most Battle of Britain modelers happy. If not, there are more sheets to come in this series so stay tuned.

Recommended

Thanks to Eagle Strike Productions for the review sample.
 

Review Text Copyright © 2004 by Robert Baumgartner
Page Created 02 July, 2004
Last updated 01 July, 2004

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