Messerschmitt Bf-109 E Units in the Battle of Britain Part 1 - JG2, JG3 and JG26

Messerschmitt Bf 109 E units in the Battle of Britain, part 1 — JG 2, JG 3 and JG 26

A photographic publication from the British publisher Wingleader, volume 2 of the numbered Wingleader Photo Archive series. It is the first of three parts on the units with Messerschmitt Bf 109 Es in the Battle of Britain and it covers JG 2, JG 3 and JG 26. The second part is devoted to JG 27, JG 51 and JG 52, the third to JG 53, JG 54, JG 77, LG 2 and EprGr 210 — without that distinction the parts are easily confused.

The Bf 109 E, nicknamed the Emil, was the main fighter type of the Luftwaffe in 1940. The inverted twelve-cylinder Daimler-Benz DB 601 had direct fuel injection, so it did not cut out under negative g; the carburetted British Merlins did not have that advantage at first. The E-3 and E-4 versions carried two machine guns above the engine and a pair of cannon in the wings. Range was the weak point — over London the pilots had only a few minutes of combat time left. It was during the battle that the colors of the machines changed: from dark upper surfaces to gray shades and to the yellow cowlings and rudders that served as a quick recognition mark.

What the book contains

• Period photographs of the machines of JG 2, JG 3 and JG 26 from 1940.
• Color profiles drawn for the volumes of this series.
• An emphasis on camouflage, tactical markings and numbering rather than on a technical description of the structure.
• The scope of the part as set by the publisher's series: part 1 of three.

Who it is for

For modelers who build the Bf 109 E in a particular form and are looking for support for the camouflage and markings, and for anyone interested in the Battle of Britain from the German side. The publication is not a kit and not instructions, it is picture reference usable in any scale.

Check the extent, the arrangement and the language version on the box.