Mit der Kamera an der Front der 1(J)/LG2 und dem JG77

by Axel Urbanke

Luftfahrtverlag - Start 

Reviewed by Graham Carter

HyperScale is proudly supported by Squadron

A bit of a mouthful but what a stunning book for the fan of the early WWII Luftwaffe.

340 pages of high-quality gloss paper (which allows superb reproduction of colour and B&W images) are encased in a hard-cover landscape A4 sized book with a glossy dust- jacket embellished with a lovely colour shot of a winter-based Bf 109.

This is a remarkable photographic record collected and collated by Herr Urbanke over what appears to be several years, with excellent maps and descriptions/explanations of the aircraft, personnel and activities of these two fighter units from November 1938 until July 1942. The photographer whose images are displayed here is unknown but he was attached to 1(J)/LG2 and JG77 during its operations in Poland, on the Channel ( including action against the BEF, France and England between May 1940 and March 1941), then in the Balkans and Crete, finally ending up in Romania mid-1941. He then transferred to JG77 from May to July 1942 and produced a detailed photo essay on Major Mac Gollob, Commandant of the Gruppe.  Elements of his collection of colour slides and B&W photos are presented in this volume and are reproduced to a good size allowing all details to be discerned.

Most of the text is in German, but there are English summaries and photo captions that are  exceptional useful. The colour images are especially wonderful - what a shame so little is available of RAF aeroplanes of the time!

The reproduction of so many in-action images will inspire diorama and vignette modellers: such as the scene on page 43 of a Bf109E taking off between rows of stooked wheat while other planes await their turn to use the ‘runway’, or the aircraft repair shop on page 63, or the numerous shots of aircraft under camouflage netting in the field - just lovely!  Colour photos of a captured Hurricane in Luftwaffe marks on pages 86-7 are fascinating and the scene of six shirtless lads using a length of 6”x4” lumber to hold up a Bf109 so that the undercarriage can be adjusted is priceless, as are the numerous winter shots.

Most of the images are of the main equipment of these two units, the Bf109E, but there are a couple of shots of Ju52 and Storches as well. A useful addition for modellers is that, whenever there is a clear image of an interesting/unusual scheme on an aircraft, then there is nice colour profile of it by Australia’s own Juanita Franzi. Axel does mention in the text that the image collection is incomplete so there are gaps in the coverage, a shame but at least we have the ones to enjoy.

• 
• 
• 
• 

Thumbnail panels:

At the rear of the book is a detailed list of the victories of each pilot in the units and the rate at which these mounted is amazing, especially those who fought the French, Polish and Russians when their equipment was not up to scratch. One example is Herbert Ilhefeld who got his first, an MS406 over France on 2/5/40, his 10th and 25th, both Spitfires on 30/8/40 and 27/9/40 respectively and his 50th, an I-16 on 9/12/41. Frightening statistics!  The volume concludes with a list of specific aircraft known to be flown by particular pilots.

The aviation historian, the Luftwaffe fan and the modeller interested in this period and the Bf109 in particular will find this book a great source of information and ideas - highly recommended, and a credit to the research and collecting skills of Axel Urbanke. Definitely one to savour with a glass of wine and a warm fire!

Thanks to Luftfahrtverlag - Start for the sample.

Review Copyright © 2019 by Graham Carter
This Page Created on 8 May, 2019
Last updated 8 May, 2019

Back to HyperScale Main Page

Back to Reviews Page