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Cranston Fine Arts Aviation Art and Artists World War Two Veteran Signatures Germany R to S Rall, Gunther

General Gunther Rall

A young pilot with III/JG52 at the outbreak of war. He quickly demonstrated his natural ability and leadership qualities, scoring his first air victory early in the Battle of Britain, and by July 1940 was leading 8/JG52. After transfer to the Eastern Front his air victories mounted at an astonishing rate. A crash hospitalised him but within nine months he was back in the cockpit, and, when commanding III/JG52, gained the Wings 500th victory. Gunther fought throughout the war to become the 3rd highest Ace in history with 275 victories. He was awarded the Knights Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords. Gunther Rall was born on March 10, 1918 in the small Bavarian town of Gaggenau, Baden. Immersing himself in Boy Scout activities during the difficult economic times in Germany following WW 1, Rall finished school in 1936 and joined the German Army. Influenced by a friend, who was a young officer in the Luftwaffe, Rall entered pilots school in 1938. His initial posting was with JG52. He attained his first aerial victory during the Battle of France in May of 1940. During the Battle of Britain JG52 absorbed many casualties, and Rall was promoted to Squadron Commander at the young age of 22. With his fair-hair and smooth complexion the young officer looked even younger than his years. But behind this pleasant exterior was a fierce competitor with the heart of a tiger. Later, Ralls squadron would support the attack on Crete, followed by deployment to the Southern Sector on the Eastern Front. Ralls victory totals began to mount. Following his 37 th victory, GiInther was himself shot down. He was lucky to survive the crash, but with a badly broken back he would spend most of the next year in various hospitals. In Vienna at the University Hospital he would meet his future wife, Hertha. Miraculously, Rall recovered and returned to the Luftwaffe in August of 1942. By November his score exceeded 100 and he was awarded the Oak Leaves to accompany the Knights Cross he was awarded only weeks earlier. As the War progressed against Russia, Rall began to encounter ever more experienced Soviet pilots flying better performing aircraft. Despite this fact, and being shot down several more times himself, Ralls victory tally kept rising. By March of 1944 the ace had attained 273 aerial victories. With the War now going badly for Germany, Rall was transferred to the Western Front. He was able to attain only two more victories against the swarms of Allied bombers and fighter escorts which now pounded Germany every day and night. In May of 1944 Rall was shot down by a P-47. Losing his thumb in the battle he remained out of combat until later in 1944. Ralls final assignments included flying 190Ds as Kornmodore of JG300, and flying the Me-262 jet. Ralls 275 aerial victories (attained on less than 700 combat sorties) make him the third highest scoring ace of all time. If not for the down time suffered as a result of his broken back, Rall might have actually equaled or exceeded Erich Hartmanns alltime record of 352 aerial victories. Rall was not much for socializing during the War. He was a fierce competitor with a businessmans attitude about flying. He was an excellent marksman, and possibly the best deflection shot expert of the War. He continued to fly with the Bundeslufwaffe following the War, serving as its Commander-In Chief in 1970-74. Sadly Gunther Rall died on 4th October 2009.

Knights Cross	Oak Leaves	Swords

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General Gunther Rall - Signed Aviation Art

Knight of the Reich by Robert Taylor. 2 of 6 editions available. All 6 editions feature up to 15 additional signatures. £215.00 - £430.00

Gunther Rall - Me109 Ace by Ivan Berryman. 4 editions. All 4 editions feature up to 6 additional signature(s). £100.00 - £690.00

The Right of the Line by Graeme Lothian. 2 of 3 editions available. All 3 editions feature up to 6 additional signatures. £190.00 - £230.00

JG52 - Summer 1940 by Ivan Berryman. 3 of 4 editions available. All 4 editions feature up to 3 additional signatures. £80.00 - £280.00

A Costly Victory by Stan Stokes. One of 3 editions available. The available edition features an additional signature. £180.00

Eagle Strike by Simon Atack. 3 editions. All 3 editions feature an additional signature. £120.00 - £200.00

Anton Hafner by Ivan Berryman. 9 of 10 editions available. All 3 editions featuring up to 5 additional signatures are available. £2.90 - £500.00

Gunther Rall by Ivan Berryman. 3 of 4 editions available. All 4 editions feature up to 4 additional signatures. £80.00 - £480.00

Russian Roulette by Robert Taylor. 2 editions. Both editions feature up to 6 additional signatures. £215.00 - £375.00

Lost Over Dunkirk by Ivan Berryman. 3 of 4 editions available. All 4 editions feature up to 5 additional signatures. £85.00 - £430.00

Horrido! Rall by Les Carter. One edition. The edition features an additional signature. £145.00

Feeling the Wolves Bite by Brian Bateman. One edition. The edition features 2 additional signature(s). £90.00

Schweinfurt Thunderbolts by Jason Askew. (P) This single edition is sold out. The edition features 2 additional signatures.

Lucky 13 - Gunther Rall by Ivan Berryman. (P) This single edition is sold out. The edition features an additional signature.

Evening Reflection by Richard Taylor. 3 of 5 editions available. All 5 editions feature up to 6 additional signatures. £75.00 - £625.00

Air Armada by Robert Taylor. One of 4 editions available. All 4 editions feature up to 11 additional signatures. £215.00

Combat Over London by Robert Taylor This single edition is sold out. The edition features 6 additional signatures.

Three Hundred Club by Nicolas Trudgian One of 2 editions available. The edition featuring 3 additional signatures is sold out. £2.00

Horrido! by Robert Taylor. All 4 editions sold out. All editions feature up to 18 additional signatures.

JG-52 by Robert Taylor. All 5 editions sold out. All editions feature up to 10 additional signatures.

Me109 of JG26 by Graeme Lothian. (P) This single edition is sold out. The edition features 5 additional signatures.

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Text for the above items :

Knight of the Reich by Robert Taylor. On the morning of 15th October 1943, as Bf109G's from III./JG52 dive into attack a group of Russian fighters high over Zaporozhye in south-east Ukraine, their Kommandeur Hauptmann Gunther Rall pounces on a Soviet La-5 to claim his 222nd victory. During this astonishing one month period Rall shot down 40 aircraft and at the end of November 1943 achieved 250 victories - at the time only the second Ace to do so after Walter Nowotny. By the time he was posted back to the West, he was well on the way to his final score of 275 victories, making him the third highest-scoring Ace in history. Had he not been wounded in action numerous times and forced to spend months in hospital, he might well have been the highest-scoring Ace of them all.

Gunther Rall - Me109 Ace by Ivan Berryman. With 275 victories, Gunther Rall was one of the top Luftwaffe Aces of the second world war. Here, he is depicted in his Me109 Black 13 of JG52.

The Right of the Line by Graeme Lothian. Sailor Malam leading 74 Squadron engaging Me109s of I/JG52 during the Battle of Britain, September 1940.

JG52 - Summer 1940 by Ivan Berryman. Gunther Rall is shown flying his Bf109E of JG52 during the Battle of Britain in the summer of 1940.

A Costly Victory by Stan Stokes. Gunther Rall, who attained 275 confirmed aerial victories, was the third highest scoring ace of all time. In Stans dramatic painting Rall is about to have a mid-air collision with a Lagg-5 during the Battle of Kursk on the Eastern Front. Rall would survive this collision and continue to chalk-up victories until the end of the war. Rall flew about 800 combat missions and missed nearly a year of flying when he suffered a broken back.

Eagle Strike by Simon Atack. Flying his Messerschmitt Me109G6, Major Gunther Rall, Group Commander of II./JG11 with over 200 air victories already to his credit, clashes with a P-47 Thunderbolt of the 63rd Sqn, 56th Fighter Group high over the Rhine south of Koblenz, May 12, 1944. Led by Colonel Hub Zemke, the 56th Fighter Group played advance guard to a deep penetration bomber raid to central Germany. As his forty eight P-47 Thunderbolts arrived to sweep the sky around the Koblenz - Frankfurt area, the Me109s of II./JG11 pounced from a 5000 feet height advantage. Simon Atacks high-impact painting shows Major Gunther Rall bringing down Hub Zemkes wingman, the first of two victories he claimed before himself being brought down by 56th Fighter Group P-47s later in the combat. Gunther Rall returned to combat flying, commanding JG300 until the end of hostilities by which time, with 275 air victories, he became the third highest scoring Ace in history.

Anton Hafner by Ivan Berryman. The top scoring ace of JG.51, Anton Hafner is credited with 204 confirmed victories. A prolific scorer, on 8th August 1944, he shot down no fewer than seven Russian Sturmoviks and, by October of that year, his overall tally had exceeded 200. He died in combat with a Yak 7, his 204th victim, when his aircraft hit a tree. He is shown here in Messerschmitt Bf.109G-6 442013 Black 1.

Gunther Rall by Ivan Berryman. Gunther Rall sitting on the cockpit side of Bf 109G-2 Black 13 of III/JG 52, Eastern Front, 1943.

Russian Roulette by Robert Taylor. A Soviet Yak 3 hurtles towards us in a typically daring head-on attack on a Bf109. Other Yaks wheel and turn frantically in search of the enemy. Casualties on both sides are evident. Away into the distant horizon stretches a vast Russian sky, painted in Roberts inimitable style: soon all will be quiet again until the next ferocious encounter.

Lost Over Dunkirk by Ivan Berryman. Spitfire N3289 of F/O John Wilson was shot down over Dunkirk on 29th May 1940 by a Messerschmitt Bf109.

Horrido! Rall by Les Carter. High over the Eastern front Gunther Rall is seen shooting down a Russian Sturmivik aircraft, yet another victory taking him one closer to his final total of 275 victories in only 621 misisons, making him the third highest scoring ace in history.

Feeling the Wolves Bite by Brian Bateman. The twelfth of May, 1944. The German countryside is blooming with the coming of spring. Germanys struggle is coming to a crescendo as the Allies continue their assault on the Third Reich. Just above the deceptive peace of the countryside, Gruppenkommandeur Gunther Rall, assigned to JG/11 on the Western Front, is bounced by P-47s of the 56th Fighter Group. Better known as Zemkes Wolf pack, the 56th is the highest scoring USAAF fighter unit of the ETO, accounting for some 665-1/2 aircraft in the air. Rall is outnumbered four to one. Taking evasive action, Rall descends from the clouds toward the treetops, trying everything he knows to pull out and away from the much-too-powerful P-47s. Weaving, twisting and at full throttle, even Rall is no match for the numbers against him. Finally, Ralls 109 is within range and the P-47s eight 50-caliber guns are making deadly strikes--igniting Ralls aircraft and shooting his thumb off at the throttle. Rall has no choice but to pull into a half loop and bail out. To make matters worse, as Rall reaches the ground he is approached by a German farmer with a pitchfork who tries to impale him! After convincing the farmer hes German, Rall stomps off to a local phone and is subsequently taken to a hospital where he would remain until 1944. Feeling the Wolves Bite depicts Gunther Ralls 109G during this encounter. Rall, on fire and wounded, begins to pull into a half loop as he prepares to bail out of his Messerschmitt for the first and only time in his career.

Schweinfurt Thunderbolts by Jason Askew. (P) Thunderbolts of the 78th Fighter Group based at Duxford (station 357) engage Me109s during the August 17th raid on Schweinfurt. The 78th Fighter Group were assigned the duty of escorting the B-17s from Antwerp to Eupen between the hours of 1353-1410, and the group claimed two confirmed kills and no losses during their engagement.

Lucky 13 - Gunther Rall by Ivan Berryman. (P) No text for this item

Evening Reflection by Richard Taylor. With soft evening sunlight radiant behind them, Hauptmann Wolfgang Ewald, Gruppenkommandeur of 1./JG52, leads a schwarm of Bf109s back to their base near Calais after another hectic encounter with pilots of RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain, September 1940. This evocative new painting pays a fitting tribute to the Luftwaffe pilots that fought during this crucial period in history.

Air Armada by Robert Taylor. In just six weeks Hitler's forces had overrun western Europe as once proud armies swiftly fell before the might of the German blitzkrieg. It was a devastating defeat, and now only Britain stood alone. Few thought she could survive. As Churchill pledged that Britain would never surrender, a German invasion seemed inevitable. But before any invasion could take place the Luftwaffe must neutralise the RAF and win control of the skies over southern England. Awaiting them was a small but resilient band of young men, the pilots of RAF Fighter Command. First the Germans attacked the coastal convoys, hoping to draw the RAF en-masse into battle. They failed. And then on 12th August, they turned their full attention to the forward fighter bases and radar stations, hoping to obliterate them once and for all. From Norway in the north, through the Low Countries and northern France to Brittany in the west, the Luftwaffe threw every available aircraft into the attack. For the young men of Fighter Command the next seven days of fighting would leave them exhausted and all but spent. They were to be the hardest days of the Battle of Britain, culminating on Sunday 18th August. This painting recreates a moment on that day as Heinz Bar, the Luftwaffe's top-scoring NCO Ace of the Battle of Britain and one of the greatest Aces in history, climbs away from his airfield near Calais with the other pilots of 1./JG51 to escort the Dornier Do17s of KG76 for yet another deadly attack on the RAF. Away in the distance, Me110s from EPRG210 also prepare to join the epic encounters that lie ahead.

Combat Over London by Robert Taylor During the legendary Battle of Britain Spitfires of 92 Squadron are engaged with Messerschmitt Me109s of JG-2 in a high-altitude dog-fight directly over London in September 1940. Way below bombers of the Luftwaffe attempt one of their final daylight raids over the capital.

Three Hundred Club by Nicolas Trudgian Although the true qualities of a fighter pilot cannot be measured simply by tallying his number of air victories - some of the greatest fighter leaders do not feature in the top score sheets -there can be no question that any fighter pilot whose victory tally is counted in 100s has got to be exceptional. That two of them achieved more than 300 air-to-air victories is pure phenomena. In paying tribute to Erich Hartmann and Gerhard Barkhorn, the only two fighter pilots ever to top the 300 victory mark, Nicolas Trudgian has painted a gripping combat scene being played out in the typically harsh environment where these two remarkable fighter aces achieved immortality. Both 300 Club members flew the majority of their combat missions with JG-52, the most successful fighter wing of WWII, where, on the Eastern Front they encountered and conquered every type of fighter including British built Spitfires and Hurricanes, the American Airacobra, and all the best Russian built fighters, including the Yak-9. Nicolas Trudgians quite stunning rendition brings to life the harsh reality of the air war on the Eastern Front in a scene from November 1944. Heading back from the Front, a German armoured column has come under attack from Russian LA7s as it files past a frozen Lake Balaton, in Hungary. Luftwaffe fighters from JG-52 have been called in, and the Me109s of Erich Hartman and Gerhard Barkhorn are seen engaging the attacking aircraft. Typical of this popular artists style, the picture is filled with detail authentic to the period, and with prints signed by leading fighter aces, all of whom fought alongside Hartmann and Barkhorn in JG-52, this new limited edition print provides a fitting tribute to historys two highest scoring fighter aces for enthusiasts of the era to add to their collections.

Horrido! by Robert Taylor. Of the many outstanding Luftwaffe fighter Wings of World War II, JG52 became the most successful. Many of the most famous Aces flew with this legendary wing, including one-time Squadron Commander Adolf Galland. JG-52 was home to the only fighter Aces in history to destroy more than 300 enemy aircraft - Erich Hartmann and Gerhard Barkhorn. The wings top ten scoring Aces amassed a staggering 2286 aerial victories and, by the end of the war, JG-52s pilots had recorded over 10,000 aerial victories; sixty-seven of their number were awarded the coveted Knights Cross or higher decorations, but the cost to the Wing was high: 678 of its aircrew perished in combat, while many others were taken prisoner following combat. Appropriately, Robert Taylor has chosen the Me109s of JG52 as his subject to represent the fighter pilots of the Luftwaffe in his tribute to these courageous flyers, with his breathtaking painting Horrido! With the traditional battle cry ringing in their ears, Squadron Commander Hptm Wolfgang Ewald leads pilots of I./JG52 into combat. Based at Coquelles/Calais in September 1940, the JG-52 Me109s hurtle down in a high-speed dive to engage the enemy during the ferociously fought Battle of Britain. Robert eloquently depicts these sleek and deadly fighters high over the Channel, glinting and menacing against an ominous backdrop of heavy cumulous clouds.

JG-52 by Robert Taylor. It was the foundation upon which the Luftwaffe was built and flew throughout WWII. It was flown by some of the greatest fighter Aces of all time, and credited with more air victories than any other fighter in history. It was the Messerschmitt Bf109. One of the finest fighter aircraft ever to take to the skies, the Bf109 was flown by the Luftwaffe's greatest Aces - men like Hartmann, Galland, Rall, Reinert and Krupinski.

Me109 of JG26 by Graeme Lothian. (P) An Me109 makes a low flight over the English countryside during the Battle of Britain. This painting was a preliminary painting by Graeme in preparation for the larger painting entitled Fighter General. When Graeme traveled to Germany to have prints of Fighter General signed by some of the top German Aces, he took this painting with him, and they have signed it on the back of the canvas.

Gunther Rall signing the print - Eagles Over the Steppes - by Graeme Lothian.

Fw190 Manufacturer : Fokke-Wulf

Fw190 The Focke-Wulf 190 development project began in 1937. Conceived as a hedge against total dependence on the Messerchmitt 109, the 190 was designed by Kurt Tank utilizing a radial engine. This was against generally accepted design criteria in Germany, and many historians believe that the decision to produce a radial engine fighter was largely due to the limited manufacturing capacity for in-line, water-cooled engines which were widely used on all other Luftwaffe aircraft. Despite these concerns, Tanks design was brilliant, and the 190 would become one of the top fighter aircraft of WWII. The first prototype flew in mid-1939. The aircraft had excellent flying characteristics, a wonderful rate of acceleration, and was heavily armed. By late 1940 the new fighter was ordered into production. Nicknamed the butcher bird, by Luftwaffe pilots, early 190s were quite successful in the bomber interceptor role, but at this stage of the war many Allied bombing raids lacked fighter escort. As the war dragged on, Allied bombers were increasingly accompanied by fighters, including the very effective P-51 Mustang. The Allies learned from experience that the 190s performance fell off sharply at altitudes above 20,000 feet. As a result, most Allied bombing missions were shifted to higher altitudes when fighter opposition was likely. Kurt Tank had recognized this shortcoming and began working on a high-altitude version of the 190 utilizing an in-line, water-cooled engine. Utilizing a Jumo 12-cylinder engine rated at 1770-HP, and capable of 2,240-HP for short bursts with its methanol injection system, the 190D, or Long Nose or Dora as it was called, had a top speed of 426-MPH at 22,000 feet. Armament was improved with two fuselage and two wing mounted 20mm cannon. To accommodate the changes in power plants the Dora had a longer, more streamlined fuselage, with 24 inches added to the nose, and an additional 19 inches added aft of the cockpit to compensate for the altered center of gravity. By mid 1944 the Dora began to reach fighter squadrons in quantity. Although the aircraft had all the right attributes to serve admirably in the high altitude interceptor role, it was not generally focused on such missions. Instead many 190Ds were assigned to protect airfields where Me-262 jet fighters were based. This was due to the latter aircrafts extreme vulnerability to Allied attack during takeoff and landing. The 190Ds also played a major role in Operation Bodenplatte, the New Years Day raid in 1945 which destroyed approximately 500 Allied aircraft on the ground. The High Command was impressed with the 190Ds record on this raid, and ordered most future production of the Doras to be equipped as fighter-bombers. In retrospect this was a strategic error, and this capable aircraft was not fully utilized in the role for which it was intended.

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Me109 Manufacturer : Messerschmitt Built : 33984

Me109 Willy Messerschmitt designed the BF109 during the early 1930s. The Bf109 was one of the first all metal monocoque construction fighters with a closed canopy and retractable undercarriage. The engine of the Me109 was a V12 aero engine which was liquid-cooled. The Bf109 first saw operational service during the Spanish Civil War and flew to the end of World War II, during which time it was the backbone of the Luftwaffe fighter squadrons. During the Battle of Britian the Bf109 was used in the role of an escort fighter, a role for which it was not designed for, and it was also used as a fighter bomber. During the last days of May 1940 Robert Stanford-Tuck, the RAF ace, got the chance to fly an Me109 which they had rebuilt after it had crash landed. Stanford-Tuck found out that the Me109 was a wonderful little plane, it was slightly faster than the Spitfire, but lacked the Spitfire manoeuvrability. By testing the Me109, Tuck could put himself inside the Me109 when fighting them, knowing its weak and strong points. With the introduction of the improved Bf109F in the spring of 1941, the type again proved to be an effective fighter during the invasion of Yugoslavia and during the Battle of Crete and the invasion of Russia and it was used during the Siege of the Mediteranean island of Malta. The Bf109 was the main fighter for the Luftwaffe until 1942 when the Fw190 entered service and shared this position, and was partially replaced in Western Europe, but the Me109 continued to serve on the Eastern Front and during the defence of the Reich against the allied bombers. It was also used to good effect in the Mediterranean and North Africa in support of The Africa Korps. The Me109 was also supplied to several German allies, including Finland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Slovakia. The Bf109 scored more kills than any other fighter of any country during the war and was built in greater numbers with a total of over 31,000 aircraft being built. The Bf109 was flown by the three top German aces of the war war. Erich Hartmann with 352 victories, Gerhard Barkhorn with 301 victories and Gunther Rall with 275 kills. Bf109 pilots were credited with the destruction of 100 or more enemy aircraft. Thirteen Luftwaffe Aces scored more than 200 kills. Altogether this group of pilots were credited with a total of nearly 15,000 kills, of which the Messerschmitt Bf109 was credited with over 10,000 of these victories. The Bf109 was the most produced warplane during World War II, with 30,573 examples built during the war, and the most produced fighter aircraft in history, with a total of 33,984 units produced up to April 1945. Bf109s remained in foreign service for many years after World War II. The Swiss used their Bf109Gs well into the 1950s. The Finnish Air Force did not retire their Bf109Gs until March 1954. Romania used its Bf109s until 1955. The Spanish Hispanos flew even longer. Some were still in service in the late 1960s.

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Me262 Manufacturer : Messerschmitt Built : 1400

Me262 The Messerschmitt Me-262 Swallow, a masterpiece of engineering, was the first operational mass-produced jet to see service. Prototype testing of the airframe commenced in 1941 utilizing a piston engine. General Adolf Galland, who was in charge of the German Fighter Forces at that time, pressured both Goring and Hitler to accelerate the Me-262, and stress its use as a fighter to defend Germany from Allied bombers. Hitler, however, envisioned the 262 as the aircraft which might allow him to inflict punishment on Britain. About 1400 Swallows were produced, but fortunately for the Allies, only about 300 saw combat duty. While the original plans for the 262 presumed the use of BMW jet engines, production Swallows were ultimately equipped with Jumo 004B turbojet engines. The wing design of the 262 necessitated the unique triangular hull section of the fuselage, giving the aircraft a shark-like appearance. With an 18 degree swept wing, the 262 was capable of Mach .86. The 262 was totally ineffective in a turning duel with Allied fighters, and was also vulnerable to attack during take off and landings. The landing gear was also suspect, and many 262s were destroyed or damaged due to landing gear failure. Despite its sleek jet-age appearance, the 262 was roughly manufactured, because Germany had lost access to its normal aircraft assembly plants. In spite of these drawbacks the 262 was effective. For example, on April 7, 1945 a force of sixty 262s took on a large force of Allied bombers with escort fighters. Armed with their four nose-mounted cannons, and underwing rockets the Swallows succeeded in downing or damaging 25 Allied B-17s on that single mission. While it is unlikely that the outcome of the War could have been altered by an earlier introduction or greater production totals for this aircraft, it is clear to many historians that the duration of the War might have been drastically lengthened if the Me-262 had not been too little too late.

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General Gunther Rall Squadron details

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