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Cranston Fine Arts  Aviation Art and Artists Aviation Artists Nicolas Trudgian German Air Force  Me109 |
[UP] - Me109 - Me262 - Fw190 - Ju88 - Me110 - Do17 - He219 - He162 - Me163 - Fokker Dr.I - Albatros - Ju87 - Fw200 |
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Combat Over Beachy Head by Nicolas Trudgian. Mickey Mount, flying his 602 Squadron MkII Spitfire, successfully attacks a Messerschmitt Me109 low over the cliffs of Beachy Head on the south coast during the Battle of Britain in the summer of 1940. Spitfires and Me109s were so evenly matched at this early point in the war that the outcome of such contests were usually decided by the skill of the competing pilots. |
Hot Pursuit by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) Flying a bomber escort mission, a P- 51 Mustang of the 357th Fighter Group engages Me109s about to descend upon a formation of B-17 Flying Fortresses. |
First Flap of the Day by Nicolas Trudgian. HM Stephen - one of the Battle of Britains top scoring fighter pilots, brings down two Me109s in quick succession over the White Cliffs of Dover, early on August 11, 1940. Flying a Spitfire with 74 Squadron, HM shot down five German aircraft on this day, and damaged a further three. The note in his log book starts First flap of the day at 0600 hrs ... Published 2000. Sadly, all of the pilots who signed this edition have since passed away. |
Kursk - Clash of Steel by Nicolas Trudgian. The Germans launched their attack on the Kursk salient on 5th July 1943, and for both sides this was maximum effort. The Soviets, however, informed by intelligence of the impending German attack, had ample time to prepare huge defensive works with hundreds of planned anti tank belts. They deployed 10 Tank Corps, 5 Tank Armies, 1 mechanised Corps and 14 Field Armies equipped with 4000 anti tank guns and 6000 tanks. The Soviet Air Forces were equally impressive - 2600 aircraft. The Germans, outnumbered in every department, were forced to scrape together whatever serviceable tanks they could from their badly under strength Panzer formations. Most of the tanks deployed were old Panzer IIIs or IVs, with only 147 Tigers available for action. The northern German attack made very little headway, but, in the south, the Germans had grouped all of the SS Panzer forces into the II SS Panzer Corps and these units, despite the enormous Soviet forces ranged against them, began to smash their way through the Soviet defences. The Luftwaffe too had brought together 1200 aircraft and these made an immediate impact on the fighting - on the first day alone German fighters broke up massive formations of Soviet aircraft, over 400 victories being claimed. |
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. |
Eagle Attack by Nicolas Trudgian Typical of great air battles fought in the skies above occupied Europe were the determined interceptions by Luftwaffe fighters, particularly upon the massed daylight raids mounted by the American Eighth Air Force. Major Herman Graf, Gruppenkommandeur of JG50, and Oberleutnant Alfred Grislawski, Staffelkapitan of 1./JG50, flying Me109G-6s lead an attack on B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 91st Bomb Group, high over Germany in early September 1943. |
Stormclouds Gather by Nicolas Trudgian Me109s of I/JG2, under the command of the brilliant Helmut Wick, setting out on a mission across the English Channel in September 1940. Wick, seen in the foreground, with Gunther Seeger off his starboard wing, was the top-scoring Luftwaffe Ace in the Battle of Britain with 56 victories. Published 2000. |
Tigers in Normandy by Nicolas Trudgian. The Battle for Point 112, a strategically positioned hill just a few miles south-west of Caen, was the scene of the most violent fighting between German and British armor, artillery and ground troops during the weeks immediately following the D-Day invasion, in June 1944. Desperate to regain Hill 112, on July 9th, the Tiger tanks of SS Panzer Battalion 102 were ordered to advance. 2 Kompanies Tigers managed to occupy the eastern slopes of the hill, while 1 Kompanie came under fire as they rached the first houses in the small village of Maltot. At this point they came head on to British Sherman tanks. Entering the village firing his 88, Unterscharfuhrer Fey in tank 138 quickly knocked out three Shermans at 200 yards range, and by the evening of July 10th the Panzers had re-taken Maltot. But Allied artillery had driven the Germans off Hill 112. The battle raged on for another three weeks when on August 1st the Allies frove the Germans off Point 112 for the final time. Tigers of SS Panzer Battalion 102 yet again advance towards the infamous hill, passing two Shermans knocked out in the previous days fighting. Overhead, Me109s of II./JG26 give aerial support as the German armour makes a last ditch attempt to repel the advancing forces, in their effort to hold the important city of Caen. |
Fighter Legend - Adolf Galland by Nicolas Trudgian. Published 1991. This is a great value item for the collector of great signatures. |
Spitfire Country by Nicolas Trudgian. A typical scene from a bright August morning in that momentous summer of 1940. Having climbed into the dawn sky at daybreak, the Spitfires of No 603 Squadron have already been in action, and with more heavy raids on the plotters table, they scurry back to Biggin Hill to re-arm and refuel. A Messerschmitt Me109, shot down during the previous days fighting, lies discarded in a hay field, its lucky pilot having escaped with his life. Meanwhile, the beautiful Kent countryside comes awake as it prepares for the toils of another glorious summers day. |
Messerschmitt Country by Nicolas Trudgian Nobody, least of all Allied aircrew, ever doubted the tenacity of the Luftwaffe, more particularly that of the German fighter pilots. From the early encounters during the Battle of Britain to the greeat air battles in defence of their homeland late in the war, at all times they were held in high regard, even if resented as a foe. At no time was their dedication, determination, and courage better demonstrated than during the final stages of World War Two. By the summer of 1944 the Allies had gained a foothold in Normandy, and total air superiority above northern France. German installations and ground positions were being pounded daily from the air, and the Ruhr, the heartland of industrial Germany, was under constant siege. Even the factories in southern Germany were not safe from the attentions of the USAAF bombers by day, and the RAF by night. But in spite of the pressures of mounting losses and diminished supplies, the Luftwaffe fought doggedly on in best traditions of the fighter pilot. The morning of 19th July 1944 saw the USAAFs 8th and 15th Air Forces mount an attack of awesome proportion against the aircraft factories in the region of Munich. To combat a seemingly overwhelming force of 1400 bombers and almost as many fighter escorts, the Luftwaffe were able to put up just three Gruppen from JG300 and one from JG302, flying a mix of Me109Gs and Fw190s - barely 50 serviceable fighters between them. They were joined by a dozen Me109s of II./JG27, these fighters desperately trying to defend the very factories in which they were made. |
Head to Head by Nicolas Trudgian A classic head-to-head combat between Squadron Leader Sandy Johnstone in his Spitfire and an Me109 over the south coast of England on 25th August, 1940. With 602 Squadron scrambled to intercept an approaching raid. The Commanding Officer notches up his second victory of the day. Published 2000. |
Dragons of Colombert by Nicolas Trudgian In the summer of 1940, JG3, under the command of Hans von Hahn, scramble their Me109s from their French countryside base at Colombert, near Calais. With the deafening sound of their piston-engined aircraft, sporting the groups colourful Dragon emblem on their cowlings, they head for the battle front. Published 2000. |
Desert Sharks and Eagles by Nicolas Trudgian. The air war fought in the skies above the inhospitable wastelands of the North African desert were among the most hotly contested of the war. The outcome of the bitter land war raging below largely depended upon who controlled the air space above, and both sides knew it. JG-27, having cut its teeth in the battles of France and Britain, was the first Luftwaffe unit to arrive in North Africa. Commanded by the mercurial Eduard Neumann, its Me109s were superior to the Hurricanes and P-40 Kittyhawks flown by the RAF pilots and, without the restriction of close escort duties dictated on the Western Front, the JG-27 pilots roamed the desert skies, closing in combat with the British fighters at every opportunity. The North African air campaign spawned many fighter aces, including Hans-Joachim Marseille who claimed more than 150 victories in his short career - more than any other Luftwaffe ace flying against RAF pilots. The scale of the desert air war is highlighted by raw statistics: 1400 British aircraft lost; over 1200 Luftwaffe destroyed. A dog-fight between Me109s from JG-27 and P-40 Kittyhawks of the RAFs 112 Squadron, led by Killer Caldwell, and later Billy Drake, 112 Squadron were in constant combat with Edu Neumanns fighters as they jousted for air supremacy above Rommels advancing Afrika Korps tanks. Below them, the desolate beauty of the Libyan desert stretches as far as the eye can see. Published 2001. Signed by two RAF and two Luftwaffe pilots (both of whom did not sign many art prints) who fought in the desert campaign, sadly all of whom have since passed away. This is a sought after art print and well worth adding to your collection. |
Desert Victory by Nicolas Trudgian. Nicolas Trudgians painting Desert Victory recreates all the atmosphere of the North African desert war with a stunning portrayal of the Me109s of 3./JG-27. The wing is depicted being led by Staffelkapitan Gerhard Homuth as they escort Afrikakorps armor heading for the front line at Gazala, Libya, on February 21, 1942. Flying alongside Homuth, the great Luftwaffe Ace Joachim Marseille scored his 49th and 50th victories on this day, earning his Knights Cross. Below, the crew of an SdKfz 10 light half-track stop to investigate a crashed P-40 Kittyhawk belonging to No 112 Squadron RAF, brought down during an earlier contest. |
Black Devil by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) Top-scoring ace of all time, Erich Hartmann, scrambles his black tulip nose Me109 from a snow-covered airfield on the Eastern Front. Christened Black Devil by Russian pilots, many of whom hurriedly vacated the vicinity when Hartmanns distinctively painted fighter appeared. Hartmann ended the war with 352 air victories. |
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