talking about bad experiences for pilots, I once read a story of a Jug pilot who was attacked by a FW190 while on his way back to UK. He was hit by surprise and couldnt do any successful evasive manouver and could feel his Jug taking bad hits, many of them banging hard on the armoured headrest. After a few minutes of desperate evasive actions the FW gave up the chase, probably having finished the ammunition, and once again the Jug pilot found himself alone over the Channel. He was shaking really hard for the shock and literally peed in his pants for the fear. After a while the shock took over and he eventually threw up on his legs. Even if the plane was seriously damaged he flew his way back home and made an emergency landing. The crewmen that ran at the plane to pull the pilot out and they were tactful enough not to comment about the mess inside the cockpit…
The average pilots were 24 at the time, an age when a cockpit hammered by a german MG is the last place u want to be…

Cheers

Alex

rudder authority has always been a serious issue with the 109 family, things got better after the early G6 version, when a longer wooden rudder was introduced, but still the plane could bite really hard on takeoffs. I talked to a Regia Aeronautica pilot that flew from Sciacca in Sicily and shared the airfield with the Pik As. The italians flew mainly with G2s and he remembers seein one of the new G6 scrambling with a belly tank. They remember seeing the pilot not giving enough rudder while the plane was taking off. Everybody held his breath as the pilot pulled up and closed the gears, but the torque had taken him out of the runway line, and the pilot touched one of the aircraft shelter edges with the tip of the prop and with the tank. The plane blew up in the air and the pieces and flames were scattered for 200 metres.. it was a really sad episode that killed the morale of the pilots and crews for a couple of days.

Alex

I was reading the link posted by G-ORDY and honestly I can’t believe the amount of historical material that went to the States.

Alex

…ok, those pics are nice, but where are the pics of the girls?!?! Prague as the most impressive female fauna ever!!! 😀

Cheers!

Alex

model maker?? here here! i’m a 48th box collector 😀

Cheers!

Alex

uh, if u find it mate drop me a message! I might well start my dreamy restoration from the grip! 😉

Alex

It’s just… blasphemous? 😮

*takes a long breath…another one…another one*

…ok, anybody fancy a hop to the other side of the pond to unbolt that poor Merlin outta that provocation on wheels?

Alex