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Otto Kittel - Pilot Profile - Otto Kittel

Otto Kittel

Victories : 267
-----------------------------
Country : Germany
Fought in : WW2
Fought for : Axis
Died : 14th February 1945


Awarded the Knights Cross of the Iron CrossAwarded Oak Leaves to the Knights CrossAwarded Swords to the Knights Cross
Knights
Cross
Oak LeavesSwords

Otto Kittel was Born in 1917, a calm young pilot, but even so he developed into one of the top scoring fighter aces of World War II. In the fall of 1941 the short-in-growth 24-year-old Unteroffizier Otto Kittel had just received his ”wings” and was posted to the Bf 109-equipped 2./J.G. 54 on the northern sector of the Eastern Front.

Otto Kittel; was awarded with the Iron Cross of the First Class (EK I) on September 29, 1941. Until May 1942, Otto managed to score fifteen victories on the Eastern Front. But his real successes in air combat commenced only after he had exchanged his Bf 109 for an FW 190 in early 1943. Intercepting large formations of Il-2s in the Leningrad sector on 19 February 1943, J.G. 54 Grünherz claimed thirty Soviet aircraft shot down. With one of the last kills on that day, Feldwebel Otto Kittel scored his 39th and the 4,000th victory of the Geschwader. On 15 March 1943 Kittel force-landed in Soviet-held territory and was listed as missing but managed to return to the German lines.

”Bruno” as Kittel was called, reached his 100-victory-mark. On 29 October 1943, Oberfeldwebel Otto Kittel was awarded with the Knight’s Cross (RK). Following his 150th victory on 8 April 1944, he was promoted to Leutnant and became Staffelkapitän of 2./J.G. 54. Three days later, Kittel was awarded with the Oak Leaves (EL). On 15 August 1944, Kittel’s 2./J.G. 54 achieved its 1,000th aerial victory. On 25 November 1944, when Kittel’s victory tally stood at 230, he was awarded with the Swords (S) to the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves.

On 16 February 1945 four FW 190 A-8s led by Oberleutnant Otto Kittel of 2./J.G. 54 took off from an airbase in the Kurland pocket. The mission was free hunting over the frontline area near Dzukste. This was Kittel’s 583rd combat sortie. After only seven minutes the German fighters spotted fourteen Il-2s that were bombing and shooting rockets at German ground troops from an altitude of 150 metres. Oberleutnant Kittel radioed an attack order. The Il-2 Shturmoviks were flying in a row, one after another, and Kittel attacked from the right hand side.

Otto’s wingman Oberfähnrich Renner put these words down in writing:

"Flying at a distance of about 100 metres from Oblt. Kittel I saw him dive beneath and behind an Il-2 and attack it. Behind us two other Il-2s pulled up sharply. In the next moment an explosion was seen in his cockpit and the aircraft started to descend".

Otto’s FW 190 tore into the ground with its starboard wing, caught fire, and then exploded. Otto Kittel, victor in 267 aerial combats and the highest scoring fighter pilot to fall prey to an enemy, had no chance whatsoever of surviving. He was buried in Sabile/Lithuania.


Latest Axis Aviation Artwork !
 In early May 1941, in conditions of strict secrecy because the United States was not yet at war, seventeen pilots of the US Navy had arrived in Britain and been attached to Catalina squadrons of Coastal Command.  These experienced PBY pilots were there to assist the Royal Air Force to become familiar with the Catalina, and also to gain operational experience for the US Navy.  On 26th May 1941 Catalina Z of No.209 Sqn, commanded by Flying Officer Dennis Briggs RAF, with Ensign Leonard B Smith USN as co-pilot, joined the search for the Bismarck.  At 1015 the aircraft was being flown in poor visibility at an altitude of 500ft when Ensign Smith sighted the Bismarck at a range of eight miles.  The Catalina was flown towards the contact so that a positive identification could be made and emerged from the cloud only 500 yards from the German ship.  The aircraft met a hail of anti-aircraft fire but was able to make its escape.  As a result of the sighting report from Catalina Z the Bismarck was again engaged by ships and aircraft of the Royal Navy and was sunk at 1040 on 27th May 1941.  Leonard Smith can be considered therefore, the first American to be directly involved in action in World War Two.  He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (American) for his actions.

The Aircraft That Found the Bismarck by Ivan Berryman.
 One of the all time great fighter aces, Adolf Galland is depicted flying Bf 109E-4/N of Stab/JG26 in September 1940.  Galland flew 705 combat missions during World War Two and was credited with a final tally of 104 aerial victories. He survived the war and died peacefully in February 1996.

Tribute to Generalleutnant Adolf Galland by Ivan Berryman.
 Walter Briegleb is shown in his Ju88 G.7 4R+BR as he stalks his prey - on this occasion a Lancaster.  Flying below their target, his crew would aim upward firing cannon at the inner wing of the bomber, igniting the fuel tanks.  For the bomber crews, they were very much defenceless against this type of attack, and often had no idea of the presence of an enemy aircraft in the dark.

Tribute to Walter Briegleb by Ivan Berryman.
 The attack by Leutnant Walter Briegleb and his crew on Lancaster Mk.III ND960 DX-I of No.57 Sqn early on 22nd May 1944.  Flying Me110 with codes D5+BV with his crew of Feldwebel Walter Bräunlich and Bordfunker Feldwebel Brandt, Briegleb flew undetected beneath the bomber and used the deadly 'Schräge Musik' - upward firing cannon - to hit the fuel tanks in the port wing between the fuselage and inner engine.  Pulling away, he watched the aircraft burn and could see both gunners in their turrets but no return fire came.  He wondered why none of the crew escaped by parachute with the bomber doomed - it disintegrated in the air over the coast of the island of Fyn, Denmark, impacting near Emtekær at 00:44hrs.<br><br><center>All of the crew were killed :<br>Flight Lieutenant Arthur Richards (Pilot)<br>Flying Officer William Woodall (Navigator)<br>Pilot Officer Athur Bugden (Flight Engineer)<br>Sergeant Thomas Edwards (Wireless Operator)<br>Flying Officer George Ferguson (Air Bomber)<br>Sergeant Harold Griffiths (Air Gunner)<br>Sergeant Cyril Woodmass (Air Gunner)

The Hunted and the Hunter by Ivan Berryman.

Otto Kittel

Squadrons for : Otto Kittel
A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Otto Kittel. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name.
SquadronInfo

JG54


Country : Germany
County of Surrey (Auxiliary)

Conjunctis viribus

Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of JG54

JG54

I./JG 54 was initially formed as I./JG 70 near Nuremberg in July 1939, just two short months before hostilities broke out. As was to become tradition within Grunherzgeschwader, the Gruppe took the Nurember coat-of-arms (a veritcally divided shield with a black heraldic bird on the left, and red and white diagonal stripes on the right) to represent the region the unit came from.

On September 15, 1939, I./JG 70 was redesignated I./JG 54

The initial unit designation for II./JG 54 was I./JG 138. This unit was raised in 1938 after the Austrian annexation. Naturally many Austrian nationals were recruited when I./JG 138 was formed. The Aspern coat of arms (black lion's head surmounting a white cross on a red field) was taken by the Gruppe for its identity.

I./JG 138 was briefly designated I./JG 76 before finally becoming II./JG 54 on April 6, 1940.

The III./JG 54 has its roots in Prussia. Initially I./JG 21, the members were drawn from the Jesau region in Prussia. The modified Jesau coat-of-arms (a shield with a Jesau cross with three diving aircraft on a red background, with a white outline on the shield) was adopted as the Gruppe's own.

On July 15, 1939, I./JG 21 was redesignated III./JG 54. However, the bureaucratic nature of the young Luftwaffe was such that it was over a year before records would reflect the new designation. Consequently, III./JG 54 fought in Poland and France as I./JG 21.


Kommodoren of JG 54 :

Major Martin Mettig; 2 Feb 40 to 25 Aug 40.
Oberst Hannes Trautloft; 25 Aug 40 to 5 Jul 43.
Major Hubertus von Bonin; 6 Jul 43 to 15 Dec 43.
Oberstleutnant Anton Mader; 28 Jan 44 to Sep 44.
Oberst Dieter Hrabak; 1 Oct 44 to 8 May 45.
Aircraft for : Otto Kittel
A list of all aircraft associated with Otto Kittel. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name.
SquadronInfo

Fw190




Click the name above to see prints featuring Fw190 aircraft.

Manufacturer : Fokke-Wulf
Production Began : 1940
Retired : 1945

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.

Me109




Click the name above to see prints featuring Me109 aircraft.

Manufacturer : Messerschmitt
Production Began : 1937
Retired : 1945
Number 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.