Model is Mint 10/10. Box is 9 /10 , missing white slip cover
Great chance to
pickup a modern classic and one only certain to become harder to find as the
years go by. I will consider reasonable offers.
Galland, JV44 and the
ME262
Designed to meet
Adolph Hitler's vision of a high-speed, light-payload ground attack bomber, the
Me 262 was first flown on April 18, 1941. As the world's first operational jet
aircraft, development of the 262 was dominated by confusion, with Hitler
envisioning a bomber and designers envisioning a jet fighter. Capable of
outpacing the P-51 Mustang by 120 miles per hour, the 262 was clearly the best
fighter plane to serve in WWII but was too late to help the Luftwaffe. Its
specialized maintenance requirements and fuel shortages, coupled with aggressive
Allied ground attacks prevented it from having any serious impact on the
outcome of the war.
Adolf
"Dolfo" Galland was one of Germany's greatest aces, with 104 aerial
victories in 705 missions. He scored his first kill during the Battle of France
in 1940 as a Bf 109 pilot with JG.27, and went on to achieve a total of 12
kills during that campaign. Later that year, Galland was assigned to JG.26 and
quickly became a key figure in the Battle of Britain. By November 1, 1940 he
was already celebrating his 50th kill. He continued to fly Bf 109s through
1941, and by the age of 30 had been promoted to General Lieutenant.
Galland was a test
pilot for the revolutionary Me-262, the world's first fully operational jet
aircraft. He believed strongly in the Me-262's potential as a fighter, but
Hitler's desire to develop the aircraft as a bomber delayed its entrance into
the war and initially placed the aircraft into a role it was not suited for.
Though the Me-262's effectiveness in attacks against bomber formations was undeniable,
it wasn't until 1944 that it began to be used strictly in a fighter capacity.
Adolf Galland oversaw
the formation of the world's first jet fighter group, Kommando Nowotny. The
group became operational on October 3, 1944 but was disbanded a short time
later when its commander, Austrian ace Walter Nowotny, was killed in action on
October 8. Though its lifespan was very short, Kommando Nowotny successfully
demonstrated the Me-262's combat potential by destroying 22 Allied aircraft.
By 1945, Adolf Galland
had formed his own Me-262 fighter unit, JV.44. Every pilot Galland recruited
for his squadron was an ace, and each was a holder of the Ritterkreutz
(Knight's Cross). During its single month of service, JV.44 was credited with
the destruction of 45 Allied aircraft, seven of which were shot down by Galland
himself.
Although the Me-262
was over 100 mph faster than the American P-51 Mustang, by the time it entered
service in 1944 it was already too late to make a difference in the outcome of
the war. Of the 1,400 Me-262s that were produced, less than 300 ever saw
combat. The rest were destroyed in Allied bombing attacks, or remained grounded
because of a lack of parts, fuel, or qualified pilots.