Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Custom Skins => Topic started by: Devil 505 on September 15, 2019, 11:03:16 PM
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Fw 190A-5 flown by Emil "Bully" Lang of 5./Jg 54 in the summer of 1943. Before the war Lang was a successful track-and-field athlete and also a pilot for Lufthansa. His first war time duties came as a transport pilot but he attended fighter pilot training in 1942 and was posted to Jg 54 in northern Russia at the start of 1943. He scored his first victories in March and by mid-August had been promoted to command of his squadron with just 18 victories. By this point, 5./Jg 54 had been transferred south to participate in the the Kursk operation and the battles of the post-Kursk Soviet offensive.
During the battle for Kiev, Lang's score would rise at an incredible rate. Flying multiple sorties almost daily, he would receive credit for 100 Soviet aircraft shot down just in October and November 1943. It was in this stretch that his most famous exploit was achieved. Lang destroyed 18 enemy planes on November 3, making him the pilot with the most victories in a single day.
Lang was transferred to Germany in April, 1944 to command 9./Jg 54 in Reich defense missions until being given command of II Gruppe/ Jg 26 on June 28. On September 3, Lang was bounced by RAF Spitfires shortly after takeoff while attempting to solve an issue with his landing gear - it would not retract. He was shot down and killed while trying to evade with his aircraft in less than fighting shape. Lang was 35 years old, one of the oldest fighter pilots in the Luftwaffe.
"Black 7" is shown as it appeared when photographed in the Kursk area. It has a base scheme of RLM 70 and 71 greens with a straw brown color in streaks and blobs over it. In accordance with the wishes of high command, the unit emblems were over-painted as well - but the clever soul given that task elected to use the same bold green paint which was normally used in Jg 54's "green heart" emblem and that area still looks generally heart shaped.
(https://i.postimg.cc/W4WdDMf9/Lang-1.png) (https://postimg.cc/7CzHdT47)
(https://i.postimg.cc/QMxBx6S9/Lang-2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/DSHfxP9n)
This skin is a replacement of Selector's original skin from the same squadron with a different pilot. Unfortunately, the scheme he chose has only a few profile drawings as reference. I chose Lang's plane as a replacement both because his "Black 7" is well documented, and also because I feel that an aircraft flown by Lang is very deserving of being skinned.
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:aok
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Fabulous. :aok
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That's a keeper.
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:rock :rock
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Very nice skin and an unusual scheme too.
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I got to know the Spit XII driver who shot him down very well back in the 1980s. Stayed at his home for a few days during a 41 Squadron Reunion in 85.
Terry Spencer. He was flying Spit XII MB882 EB-B at the time. Lang's wing damaged Spencer's Spit before being shot up by Spencer's wingman. Lang KIA, Peter Chattin KIA and another German pilot wounded badly enough he was done for the war.
(https://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s199/guppy35/Terry_zpsi45wxrvj.jpg) (https://s152.photobucket.com/user/guppy35/media/Terry_zpsi45wxrvj.jpg.html)
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I got to know the Spit XII driver who shot him down very well back in the 1980s. Stayed at his home for a few days during a 41 Squadron Reunion in 85.
Terry Spencer. He was flying Spit XII MB882 EB-B at the time. Lang's wing damaged Spencer's Spit before being shot up by Spencer's wingman. Lang KIA, Peter Chattin KIA and another German pilot wounded badly enough he was done for the war.
(https://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s199/guppy35/Terry_zpsi45wxrvj.jpg) (https://s152.photobucket.com/user/guppy35/media/Terry_zpsi45wxrvj.jpg.html)
That's cool that you knew Spencer.
How did he learn that he downed Lang?
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https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_Spencer_(RAF_officer)
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That's cool that you knew Spencer.
How did he learn that he downed Lang?
I don’t recall when he learned it. No doubt it was post war. He copied his diary entries for me and there is no mention of knowing that it was Lang. His logbook doesn’t show anything beyond the claim of a 190. His story is right out of fiction in some ways. His postwar career was if anything far more interesting than his wartime exploits. Steve McQueen did it in the Great Escape. Terry stole a motorcycle and escaped from POW camp for real :). Married a movie star too. And the story goes on and on
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Awesome!
Boo
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Another Great looking skin! :rock
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Nice work! :aok
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One of my favourite A5 skins !