The
German High Command entered World War II with the notion that
the war would be quickly won, and certainly without the need
to fight at night. The RAF changed all that when Bomber Command,
having suffered appalling lasses in daylight, turned to attacking
under the cloak of darkness. By mid-1940 the Luftwaffe was
forced to hurriedly form its first night-fighter wing utilizing
the Messerschmitt Bf 110.
Without specialized equipment, initially
Luftwaffe pilots relied on visual acquisition, detecting enemy
aircraft with the aid of searchlights. To combat intensifying
RAF night attacks, new electronic methods of navigation and
detection were developed, and by the end of 1942 the German
night-fighter force had almost 400 aircraft contesting the
night skies. Almost 1300 British aircraft were destroyed in
that year alone.
Nicolas Trudgian's atmospheric painting
"Night Hunters of the Reich"
depicts the Bf 110G-4 of 47-night pilot Oberleutnant Martin
Drewes at dusk in March 1944, heading out to intercept in-bound
British four-engine bombers over northwest Germany. Equipped
with the latest FuG 220 and 218 radars, the experienced crew
will lie in wait, carefully choose their prey, stalk and close
for the kill. The deadly game of hide and seek is about to
begin.
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Overall print
size: 23 3/8" wide x 18 7/8" high.
A pair of Bf 110G-4 night-fighters
set about their deadly business, nightfall, northern Germany,
Mar 1944.
| Night
Hunters Of The Reich
by Nicolas Trudgian |
| 450 s/n prints w/ONE signature. |
US $110 |
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Each print of NIGHT HUNTERS OF THE
REICH is signed by the artist Nicolas Trudgian, and authenticated
with the signature of one of the Luftwaffe's most inspirational
night-fighter leaders.
 Oberst
Wolfgang Falck "The
Happy Falcon"
At the outbreak of war Wolfgang Falck
was Staffelkapitän of 8./JG-132 flying the Bf 110 Zerstorer
in the Polish Campaign. In February 1940 he became Kommandeur
1./ZG1 and led it during the Western campaign. From June 1940
Falck was appointed Kommodore NJG1, the largest Geschwader
in the Luftwaffe. During this time the greatest Luftwaffe
night Aces were under his command. In July 1943 he joined
the staff of Luftflotte Reich
where he was responsible for the day and night fighter defense
of the Reich. In the autumn of 1944 he was made Fighter Leader
in the Balkans, and later became head of staff for flying
training. Wolfgang Falck flew 90 operations and was awarded
the Knight's Cross.
"Wofgang Falck was not only
one of the first who flew in 1939, but also was one of the
greatest in terms of pioneering and innovations to the new
art of night fighting. He was one of our best men."
….General Adolf Galland.
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