Bf 109 E-7 7./JG 26 Camo and Cockpit Color (2 Viewers)

jchester404

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Hello, I'm in the middle of planning the color scheme for my Muncheberg Bf 109 e-7 model kit (7./JG 27) and I'm getting hung up on the colors: RLM 74/75/76 or RLM 71/02/65.

It's to my understanding that the Luftwaffe didn't officially switch to their grey colors until November 1941, but have been reading that it's highly possible that 74/75/76 has been used unofficially prior to that date.

Was reading about Muncheberg's time in Malta in March 1941, so it's before the official switch...

I ran across this thread discussing it: J. Müncheberg Bf 109E-7 white 12 camo color ???

That's a 15 year old thread. Is there any information out there that can confirm the 7./JG 26's ever used 74/75/76? Would be safe to assume that they could have?

And then the cockpit being either 02 or 66 or 02 with 66 from shoulders up.

Any definitive answers out there? Thanks!

Edit: I found this:

"It appears that the E-7 sub-type marked the introduction of the 74/75/76 camouflage, at least at one or the other of the factories producing 109s at Erla, Regensburg or Wiener-Neustadt. I have seen color call-outs for Müncheberg's airplanes as both 71/02/65 and 74/75/76. Since it's known he flew two different 109E-7s during the Mediterranean deployment, it may be that both callouts are correct and refer to different aircraft; "white 12" was the second airplane, which would make it newer and more likely to have come from the factory in the final colors."

From: Tamiya 1/48 Bf-109E-7 - Bf 109 Joachim Müncheberg - iModeler
 
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It's hard to know exactly isn't it? I found this thread here: Bf109E cockpit colour . Some information in there leads me to believe it could also be RLM 66 or to make it even more complicated, RLM 02 from shoulders down and RLM 66 on what's visible through the cockpit.

I might just go with RLM 66 to stay with the grey theme of 74/75/76.

Oh but wait! Can't forget about the wheel well and struts. I've read that despite the cockpit and camo changing to the grey scheme, the wheel wells and struts stayed RLM 02!
 
Personally, I believe that Muncheberg's E-7 probably had the grey camo scheme (not necessarily RLM 74/75) because JG26 was known to have experimented with field applied grey colors during the BoB. This is well documented, and there are original color photos that show schemes that are definitely not 71/02. There is speculation that these experimental shades and patterns are what led to the official RLM 74/75/76 scheme, but there is no evidence or documentation to back it up. A lot of official documents were destroyed by the end of the war, and we will probably never find all the missing puzzle pieces, but it is known that certain Jagdwaffe units we're using grey camouflage shades by late 1940. Likewise, just because a 190E was still flying in 1941 or 42, didn't mean that it would've been repainted in the new official scheme at a depot. Aircraft would likely have whatever color scheme they started with (or whatever "custom", field-applied camo applied at unit level). For example, some early production Friedrichs had the 71/02 scheme from the factory, and still had those colors in the summer of 1941. Sorry for the long winded post, but I'm a bit of a Luftwaffe camo nerd 😆
 

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