One of the most successful of the Luftwaffe fighter units,
JG54 ‘Green Heart Warriors’, first coming to prominence
during the Battle of Britain over south-east England. In early
1941 the unit moved to the Eastern Front in preparation for the
invasion of Russia.
Shown here are JG54Fw190s in February 1943 taxiing out on to
their unit’s snow-blanketed airfield in
Krasnogvardeisk, Russia to begin another fighter sweep of the
front lines. For the long winter months the aircraft were camouflaged
in the livery considered to be one of the most attractive of
all Luftwaffe paint schemes; overall white with the distinctive
yellow theatre markings. Later, with the Spring thaw, the white
was replaced by the unit’s more familiar green paint as
they constantly adapted themselves to the ever-changing
battlefront conditions. By the end of the war the Geschwader
had claimed over 9500 victories and produced
over 100 aces, including Major Erich Rudorffer. - Signed by Erich
Rudorffer. |