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Aircraft in Comics 10

After having worked in the late 60' and the 70' for the Famous French magazine "Le Fana de l'Aviation" and the plastic kit manufacturer "Heller", and before starting the Biggles serie, Francis Bergèse made a "one shot" comic called "la Bataille d' Angleterre". This comic, full of spectacular combat scenes, was awarded several prizes in 1984 and still represents to my eyes the best book of its kind about aerial warfare of WW2. It tells the story of the "Battle of Britain" in 1940 but also depicts quite dramatically the last days of the Luftwaffe in 1945.

The Battle of Britain

Picture 1: The cover of the comic shows a typical "Battle of Britain" combat between a Hurricane and a Messerschmitt Bf 109. In the background you can see a flight of Dornier Do 17s and also the famous elliptical wings of a Spitfire.

Picture 2: A similar scene but this time the Bf 109 is in the foreground. The combat takes place over the Dunkirk beaches in 1940. I'm not quite sure if the unicorn emblem really existed in the Luftwaffe. The German pilot of the comic had it one all his personnal machines.

Picture 3: A spectacular view of a Channel convoy attack by Dornier Do 17s. Hurricanes are about to engage them while Messerschmitts are coming to rescue in the background

Picture 4: A classic: the Ju 87 "Stuka" dive bomber in action.

Picture 5: A short sequence from the comic. Hurricanes are attacking (with success) a flight of Ju 88s. Note the gunsight details.

Picture 6: Sometimes, real characters appear in the comic. In this case it is the famous German Ace Adolf Galland. Note his personal emblem on his Bf 109, a Mickey Mouse!

Picture 7: Another famous Ace! This time it's Douglas Bader, the well know RAF pilot. Here too, note the personal emblem on the fuselage side...

Picture 8: A nice interior view of a Heinkel He 111. This picture is probably inspired by famous photos published in the Luftwaffe magazine "Der Adler".

Picture 9: The RAF pilots used to say "watch out for the Hun in the Sun" In this case it's the contrary, the British have the sun in their back.

Picture 10: A dramatic example of the ferocity of WW2 aerial combats. While attacking a Dornier 17 bomber, the British pilot didn't noticed the Messerschmitt behind him. This must have been the fate of many RAF pilots during the Battle of Britain.

Picture 11: Scramble! A flight of Hurricanes during take off... and crash landing. Note the red fire tender in the background. I don't know if this color is accurate for a RAF military vehicle.

Picture 12: The first "Flying Fortresses" of the 8th Airf Force are taking off for a mission over Germany in October 1943..

Picture 13: Bombs away! But beware of the Luftwaffe fighters! In this case, Bf 110s equiped with rocket launchers under the wings. You can see one firing in the background.

Picture 14: Scramble... this time on the German side! Pilots are runing to their FW 190s while Bf 109 G-6s are intercepting "Dicke Autos" (big cars) or "Viermots" (four engined bombers). This is how the Luftwaffe pilots nicknamed the USAAF heavy bombers.

Picture 15: Thunderbolts are taking off to protect the bombers on their return flight. Unfortunately not all the Flying Fortresses will make it back safely to England.

Picture 16: Another superb sequence: a RAF "heavy" is under attack by a German Heinkel He 219 "Uhu" nighfighter.

Picture 17: Her also, the agressor becomes the prey. In the early morning, the He 219 is intercepted by a Mosquito. The unicorn emblem is back.

Picture 18: A late war combat scene with a Me 262 jet and a flight of B-24 Liberators. Again, note the unicorn emblem.

Picture 19: Things are getting worse for the Luftwaffe! A P-51 D Mustang pilot releases his additional fuel tanks and dives to gain more speed. He wants to have his Me 262 kill!

Picture 19: The last days of the Luftwaffe... Adolf Galland knows it's over. Mustangs are circling over the airfield peacefully. They want to capture the jet planes intact!

To be continued

In Part 11 of Aircraft in Comics you will see the planes used by the famous RAF pilot Biggles after World War 2, during his detective years!

Copyrights

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