TROTSKIY is up

[member_3]

I concur - I was checking daily.

[Don Boose]

On further consideration, I think a begtter translation of Seinō wa keikakuchi would be: "Performance data are projected [or planned] values."

Standing by for any better ideas from someone who actually reads Japanese.

Don

[dansls1]

KI98_v18 is up for download - he's moving pretty quickly through right now, isn't he.

[Don Boose]

Thanks, Dan.

Ki98_v18 is a Mansyu (Manchurian) Ki-98 ground attack aircraft.

The caption reads “Ki-98 Prototype [Shisaku] Ultra-high-altitude fighter [Kōkōdo Sentōki].”

Design of this aircraft began in 1942. It was powered by a 2,200hp turbosupercharged Mitsubishi Ha-211 Ru (Ha 43-11 Ru) 18-cylinder radial engine (the same engine as installed in the Mitsubishi A7M Reppu fighter) and was to be armed with one 37mm and two 20mm cannon in the nose. The prototype was still under construction when the war ended.

Don

[dansls1]

The ME109-G6 is up for download.

[Don Boose]

Thanks, Dan.

I think the caption is self-explanatory, except for the katakana characters at the right, which read "Rumania."

And the date is November 1944 (1944-nen, 11-gatsu).

Don

[pahorace]

fw190a5_ejg_v16 is up for download

Orazio

[CharlieC]

The A5 version is the Gruppe commander's plane of III/JG2 (Richthofen) 1942 France. The pilot was Hans Hahn - 108 victories before he was pow on the Russian front.

The colourful EJG (Erganzungs-Jagdgeschwader - replacement group) version belonged to either EJG 1 or 2 in 1944/45. These notionally were second line units but did both training and operations over Germany. The bright colour scheme (to make it easy for flak gunners to identify) may indicate airfield defence for Me 262 operations.

Regards,

Charlie

[Don Boose]

Thanks for the heads up Orazio, and thanks for the explanatory information, Charlie. While the site has been down, Ron (Old Troll) and I have been puzzling over this one.

The caption fw190a5_ejg_v16 reads:

"Focke Wulf FW 190 A-5 EJG (Sento kunren hikotai [Fighter Training Flying Unit]), August, 1943 [1943-nen, 8-gatsu], France [Futsu], 'Byuzashiku'."

Sento kunren hikotai is the Japanese for Ergaenzungs-Jagdgeschwader.

I can't figure out what French Luftwaffe airfield would be pronounced phonetically "Byuzashiku."

Wikipedia has a Luftwaffe Luftflotte 3, Western Front order of battle with airfield names, but I can't find any that sounds like "Byuzashiko," nor are any of the EJGs listed:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Front_(Frankreich)_Area_(Luftflotte_3,_Fra nce)

Ron thought the unit was most likely stationed on the Eastern front, and you indicate that it was likely in Germany. And yet, Futsu can only be translated as "France" in this context.

Another Trotskiy mystery!

Don

[CharlieC]

There's a hint in the Japanese - Trotskiy is probably referring to Erganzungs-Jagdgruppe West which was based in France in 1943 (http://www.ww2.dk/air/jagd/jgrwest.htm). EJG West seems to have been renamed Jagdgruppe (JGr) West in late 1942 but the function remained the same. All the regional EJGs were rolled up into EJG1 and 2 in 1944.

Although the colour scheme has some similarities to the airfield defence schemes of 1944-45 it could also be seen as having echoes of the Vichy French colour schemes of 1941-42.

Some possible airfields for 1943 deployments are:

Cazaux (6.2.42 - 2.42),
Mont de Marsan (2.42 - 27.4.43),
Tarbes-Ossun (28.4.43 - 10.5.44),
Perpignan (11.42 - 2.43),
Biarritz (2.43 - 20.2.44),
Corme Ecluse (30.9.43 - 18.1.44)

(sourced from URL above)

Could the mysterious "Byuzashiko" be Biarritz? - if so then it's 2/JGr.West.

Regards,

Charlie