Delta One | Me 109G-6's on Eastern Front: 15 (Kroat)./JG 52

Reviewed by Kevin Futter

Delta One is a new decal provider out of Europe, aiming to fill gaps in the existing market. The set we're examining here is called "Me 109G-6's on Eastern Front: 15 (Kroat)./JG 52", and features seven Bf 109G-6 aircraft flown by Croatian pilots. Each scheme is accompanied by a paragraph of notes, and a painting guide consisting of a set of colour 3-view drawings.

Provided Schemes

These aircraft functioned as part of JG 52, and were painted in standard Luftwaffe schemes. As such, they wore standard Luftwaffe national markings, and the decal sheet does not provide these, with the exception of some swastikas. These are provided in the now-familiar 'split' style to conform with EU regulations. The details for each option, as provided in the instructions, are as follows:

1. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-6, WNr. unknown, 15./JG52 'Black <1', Karankut airfield, Kerch peninsula, January 1944
- This aircraft was one of the mounts of Croatian No. 1 ace and newly appointed 15./JG52 CO nadporučnik (Oberleutnant) Mato Dukovac (44 confirmed victories + 1 unconfirmed). On February 25th 1944 Soviet P-39 (probably from 57th GIAP) shot down Dukovac in this aircraft. He managed to crash-land his stricken fighter near Bagerovo airfield but injured his spine in the process.
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage (RLM 74/75/76). Spinner was in RLM70 with 1/3 in white. Landing gear covers probably removed, as it was standard for muddy Russian airfields. Marking of Hrvatska Zrakoplovna Legija HZL (Croatian Air Legion), the “Flying or Winged chessboard”, was painted on both sides of aircraft under the windshield. At first, this marking was unfinished (no. 10 on this decal set) but there is photographic evidence that later it was finished with black border lines and shading on the wings probably done in grey (RLM 75 or 76). Also, it is possible that another 'Black <1' existed.
2. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-6, WNr. 19680, 15./JG52 'Red 9', Bagerovo airfield, Kerch peninsula, November 1943
- Narednik (Feldwebel) Eduard Martinko (12 confirmed victories + 1 unconfirmed) crash-landed this aircraft after being hit by German flak (40% damage) on November 12th 1943.
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage with traces of radio code (stammkennzeichen) showing beneath newly applied Red 9 and Balkenkreuzen. Large patch of dark grey was applied on upper central part of the fuselage while canopy framing was in RLM75 or maybe canopy was replaced after crashlanding. Spinner was in RLM70 with 1/3 in white. Landing gear covers removed. HZL “Flying chessboard” semi-finished - wings were all white without border, Ustasha marking above chequered shield black. This marking can be made by cutting the ‘U’ marking from decal no.12 and placing it on top of decal no.10.
3. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-6, WNr.20039, 15./JG52 possible 'White 6', Bagerovo airfield, Kerch peninsula, November 1943
- This aircraft was flown by vodnik (Unteroffizier) Vladimir Salomon (1 confirmed victory) on November 7th 1943. After dogfight with Soviet P-39's and La-5's Salomon bailed from his heavily damaged fighter only to drown in freezing waters of Sea of Azov.
  This machine possibly wore “White 6” on the fuselage although from photographic source it seems that number could be 3, 8 or 9. Our choice was 6.
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage. Spinner was in RLM70 with 1/3 in white. HZL marking was unfinished. Landing gear covers removed. As photo evidence shows this aircraft had two red triangles (oil filler door markings) on the nose!
4. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-5, WNr. 15770 (Stammkennzeichen DV+LN), 15./JG52 'Black 5', Karankut airfield, Kerch peninsula, November 1943
- On November 25th 1943 vodnik (Unteroffizier) Albin Šval (3 confirmed victories + 2 unconfirmed) force landed this machine (35% damage).
  According to werknummer and stammkennzeichen this aircraft was probably G-5 upgraded to G-6 standard at Erla Maschinenwerk GmbH factory in Leipzig.
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage but dark grey patches covered large area of the nose and fuselage. Also dark patches of RLM 74 covered previous numeric code and black 5 outlines were added after forced landing damage was repaired. Spinner was all white but propeller back plate was metallic or dark grey. Landing gear covers probably removed.
5. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-6, WNr. 18497 (Stamm. SI+OG), 15./JG52 'White 13', Karankut airfield, Kerch peninsula, November 1943
- On November 21st 1943 časnički namjesnik (Stabsfeldwebel) Zdenko Avdić (10 confirmed victories) claimed his last kill in this aircraft, an LAGG-3 probably from 805 IAP. He was attacked by Soviet Airacobras and heavily wounded his left hand was shot off! Despite wounds Avdić managed to crash-land his fighter behind frontline with minimal damage (20%) and survived the war.
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage. Spinner was in RLM70 with 1/3 in white. Landing gear covers removed. No HZL markings beneath cockpit.
6. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-6, WNr. unknown, 15./JG52 'White 5', Karankut airfield, Kerch peninsula, November 1943
- It was flown by vodnik (Unteroffizier) Josip Kranjc (9 confirmed victories).
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage. Spinner was in RLM70 with white spiral. HZL marking fully finished with shaded wings. Landing gear covers removed.
7. Messerschmitt Bf109 G-6, WNr. 19475 (Stamm. BI+OV), 15./JG52 possible 'White 7', Karankut airfield, Kerch peninsula, November 1943
- On November 27th 1943 this aircraft was flown by vodnik (Unteroffizier) Dragutin Gazapi (7 confirmed victories + 1 unconfirmed) when he was shot down and killed by Soviet Airacobra.
  Aircraft wore standard Luftwaffe camouflage. Spinner was in RLM70 with 1/3 in white. Landing gear covers probably removed. “White 7” marking on the fuselage is still unconfirmed.

The Decals

The decals themselves are provided on a single small sheet, and are very nicely printed. Colour density and registration are both very good. No printing house is given, so they appear to be an in-house production. They're traditional screen-printed decals however, and not laser, inkjet or ALPS printed.

If you look closely at the image above, you'll note that the chevron marked as decal #4 is missing its white outline. A correctly-printed replacement has been provided on a separate sheet in my sample, so this will not pose any problems at all. It's good to see that Delta One is exercising some quality control procedures!

For information on how Delta One decals perform, see my review of the company's American G-6s set, where I put them to the test. Assuming the same printing methods have been employed, these will be fine.

Conclusion

This is another terrific decal set for those who are looking to do something unusual with a 109, and is highly recommended!

The Delta One website had not been launched at the time of writing this review, but enquiries can be made via email at delta1decal@gmail.com.

Thanks to Delta One for the review sample.

Delta One | Me 109G-6's on Eastern Front: 15 (Kroat)./JG 52

Reviewed by Kevin Futter

Provided Schemes

The Decals

Conclusion

Related Content