This is a repaint for the payware FlyingIron Simulations Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6 'Gustav'. This repaint depicts the restored Bf 109G-14 WkNr.462707 'Black 2', registered as D-FMGV, owned and operated by Hangar10/Air Fighter Academy (likely soon to be renamed) based at Heringsdorf Airport (EDAH) on the island of Usedom, northern Germany.
History:
The original Bf 109G-14 WkNr.462707 was built by Erla, near Leipzig, and flew with 14./JG300 as 'Black 2'. It was shot down by a formation of B-17s over Hanover on November 21, 1944, with the loss of its pilot, Oberfähnrich Karl-Heinz Schirmacher. The remains of the aircraft and its pilot were recovered in late 1997. Karl-Heinz Schirmacher was given a proper burial at Stöcken Municipal Cemetary in Hanover.
The aircraft that flies today, which this repaint depicts, although identified as WkNr.462707, is in-fact largely that of Spanish-built Hispano HA-1112 Buchón C.4K-31 (c/n 67). Built in 1948, it served with the Spanish Air Force until 1966. Soon after, it was one of 18 flyable Buchóns brought to England by T.G. "Hamish" Mahaddie (Spitfire Productions), where it was registered as G-AWHE and used in 1968 for the filming of the movie "The Battle of Britain", masquerading as a Bf 109E (believed to have been painted as "Red 8"). Following filming, the aircraft was brought to Texas by Wilson "Connie" Edwards and registered as N109ME. In 1971 it was sold to the Confederate Air Force (known today as the Commemorative Air Force), and was moved to their headquarters at Harlingen, TX, and later Midland, TX. With the CAF it was first painted in ficticious JG52-themed markings as "Red 13", and it found itself in front of movie cameras once again when it was used in the 1975 film, "The Hindbenburg", where it was temporarily dressed in Condor Legion markings. Following a landing gear collapse and repairs, the aircraft was retired to static display by the late 1970s and was repainted in North African Theatre markings as JG27 pilot Hans-Joachim Marseille's "Yellow 14". Remaining static for more than twenty years, it was transported to Oklahoma in 1999 where it was restored to flight by 2004, and later returned to Midland, TX, but little to no flying was performed. In 2008 it was sold to Richard Lake in the United Kingdom and shipped to Duxford, where it underwent a complete ground-up restoration by the Aircraft Restoration Company. Finished in an attractive North African Theatre JG53 paint scheme and placed back on the British register as G-AWHE, it returned to the air in May 2011 and was very active on the UK airshow circuit for the next five years.
In 2016, the Buchón was sold to Hangar10/Air Fighter Academy, located at Heringsdorf Airport on the island of Usedom, northern Germany. Following the sale, the aircraft was sent to Rare Bird Aviation at Meidl Airport in Hungary, where the airframe was disassembled, stripped to bare metal, and rebuilt to Bf 109G-14 specifications. This included modifcations to the cockpit and fuselage, and adding a completely new rebuilt G-14 tail section. The firewall-forward section was removed and a DB 605 engine, mount and cowlings were added (swapped with another previously-converted Buchón, D-FMGZ, also then owned by Hangar10). Reportedly, with parts recovered from the original Bf 109G-14 WkNr.462707 incorporated into the rebuild, the aircraft was able to be registered with the German civil aviation authority, Luftfahrt-Bundesamt, as that identity. When it came to painting the aircraft, Rare Bird Aviation referenced the colors of paint found on the original wreckage, as well as wartime photos. Registered as D-FMGV, the '109 made its first post-rebuild test flight at Heringsdorf on July 18, 2018, with Klaus Plasa at the controls. Fielding three Bf 109s in its collection, in 2018 Hangar10 was able to get all three of them flying together in formation at a special flying event, with Klaus Plasa in the Bf 109G-6 D-FMGS, Mikael Carlson in the Bf 109G-12 D-FMGZ, and Volker Bau in the Bf 109G-14 D-FMGV. This was of course the first time since the end of the war in Europe that so many '109s had been in the air over Germany at one time.
Tragically, in 2020, Volker Schülke, founder of Hangar10, was killed in the crash of his Pilatus P-2, and the entire Hangar10 fleet of aircraft was put up for sale. Fortunately, in early August 2023, it was publicly announced that German businessman and vintage aircraft collector, Karl-Friedemann Grimminger, has purchased the entire collection, and intends to keep the Hangar10 museum operating at Heringsdorf, though likely under the new name 'Luftraum Nord' (with his collection in Neresheim already named 'Luftraum Süd').
Details of Repaint:
- Every effort was made to accurately recreate the paint scheme, in exacting detail, as applied on the real world restored Bf 109G-14 WkNr.462707 (D-FMGV) as it looks today.
- Colors matched to those applied on the restored aircraft (according to the restorer, the colors match what was found on the original wreckage, though they don't quite match RLM standard colors).
- Areas where the camouflage doesn't line up perfectly across wing and tail fairings is correct to the way in which the real aircraft is painted.
- The German cross on the port-side fuselage isn't centered with the panel lines, as that's the way it is on the restored aircraft.
- All new stencils are applied across the airframe, matching the stencils applied on the restored aircraft (stencils missing on the real aircraft are accurately missing in the repaint).
- The hand hold and step on the starboard fuselage have been eliminated, as they don't exist on the real aircraft (a result of it being a Buchón fuselage).
- Access panel for machine gun pressurization tank added on rear starboard fuselage.
From me 5 stars. Thank You
4 months ago
Teraz_Polska
9 months ago
9 months ago
Bomber12th
TimHH
By the way, I love the filters you use in MSFS, could you share those too, if it's not too much to ask?
Best regards
9 months ago
9 months ago
Bomber12th
Gerardius
Even though I know to expect absolute perfection with your repaints I'm always amazed to what level you'll go, like removing the hand holds and adding access panels. Thank you so much, all those little details really make your work stand out! I can't wait to see what your next project will be =)
9 months ago
9 months ago
Bomber12th
Stearman94