
Ju52 squadron skinpack of 6./KGzbV1 Eastern Front & MTO 1942

A semihistorical skinpack containing 12 (the complete staffel) fully marked Ju52 based as well as possible on historical photographs.
Generics, nomarks and swastika only skins enclosed. During 1942 the unit served in both theatres by retaining it's (eastern front) paintscheme.   

The skinpack is compatible with all game versions.              



WWII luftwaffe transport units organisation:


Prior to 1st of may 1943 there were KGzbV - Kampfgeschwader zur besonderen Verwendung (meaning combat wing for special purpose) and KGrzbV - Kampfgruppe zur besonderen Verwendung (meaning combat group
for special pruposes). A KGzbV was a wing consisting of a Geschwaderstab (wing staff) and several groups. Each of the groups consisted of a Gruppenstab (group staff) and four operational 
staffeln (squadrons). A KGrzbV didn't belong to a wing and therefore consisted of its staff and the four squadrons. The nominated aircraft strength of a Ju52 transport group was 53 aircraft.
5 of them served with the group staff (staff flight) and 12 each with the four squadrons.
Additionally there were a lot more of smaller transport units which served with (and belonged to) organisations like the various Luftflotte, Fliegerkorps, Fliegerfhrer etc.
I. e. the most of the Fliegerkorps had their own Transportstaffel ?./Fliegerkorps, a single Ju52 squadron but with a nominated strength of 16 aircraft. These smaller units were tasked with
supplying/supporting 
the organisation they belonged to. There were exceptions when there was a lack of available transport aircraft, i. e. Transportstaffel II./Fliegerkorps served with the regular KGzbVs and KGrzbVs 
in the MTO from late 1942 onwards, when the Afrikakorps/Panzerarmee Afrika required lots of supplies on their retreat to/in Tunisia.

Except the Poland campaign in 1939 and until early 1940, when there were real KGzbV2 and KGzbV172 additonally - each with several Ju52 groups - there was only KGzbV1 acting as a full wing with four groups.
From KGzbV172 just I./KGzbV172 remained, therefore sometimes called KGrzbV172, until 1st of may 1943. KGzbV2 was reduced to it's wing staff and controlled some KGrzbVs during large scale operations i. e.
the crete invasion. A KGrzbV3 - wing staff only - existed formally too and was controlling some KGrzbVs equally to KGrzbV2.
             
The KGzbVs and KGrzbVs were reorganized on 1st of may 1943, resulting in the creation of 5 Transportgeschwader (TG meaning transport wing). The KGzbVs were simply renamed to TGs (i. e. KGzbV1 was simply renamed
to TG1) but the KGrzbVs lost their independence and were made parts (groups) of a newly formed TG (i. e. TG3 was newly formed by renaming KGrzbV9 to I./TG3, KGrzbV50 to II./TG3, KGrzbV102 to
III./TG3 and I./KGzbV172 - the last remaining group of it's wing - to IV./TG3). Additionally there were a handful remaining TGrs meaning Transportgroups, the equivalent of the former KGrzbVs.
In january of 1944 a further reorganisation was made by removing all staff aircraft from the TGs (wings) and peplacing them with lighter aircraft types. From then on each TG was consisting of only
three operational squadrons with 16 aircraft each.
 

General Paintschemes: 

All the Ju52 front line units served with the standard rlm 70/71/65 splinter camo (pattern A and B, mirrored ones and lots of irregular patterns too). Like all luftwaffe transport units they never adopted a tropical paintscheme. The handful
of known tropical camos were experimental and limited to some few individuals. During the snow period washable white winter paint was applied over the standard camo, mostly covering the camo completely but
sometimes creating individual winter patterns as well. 
Ju52 with dark green or sometimes blackened undersurfaces are well known throughout the whole war, they usually were drawn from school or training units. These units were constantly thinned out from personell and aircraft 
to replace losses of frontine units. Yellow theatre markings on wings under and fuselage (tail band) for service at the eastern front, white ones for the MTO. 
The very most Ju52 serving in the MTO had yellow engine undercowlings.


Tactical tail markings:

As there were permanent losses within the transport units there was a permanent requirement of replacement aircraft and crews. These were constantly drawn from the various school- and training units but as well by
shifting aircraft from one unit to the other. Additionally there were temporarely units formed when there was a urgent need of more transport capacity. The aircraft to form these were drawn from the same sources.
There in fact was a permanent switching of aircraft amongst the transport units. 
All these aircraft were fitted with their own factory or unitcodes, school- or training unit markings or and emblems, or such of their former or disbanded units.  
Instead of permanently overpainting and recoding replacement aircraft, which was a time consuming task especially during periods of constant losses, the tactical tailcodes were introduced in late 1941 on the eastern front.
The first unit using them was a temporarely unit called 'Einsatzgruppe Kupschuss' which painted the three digit code i. e. K2E in large characters on the vertical tail rudder. K was the unitletter and stood
for the first letter of the unit commander's last name which was Kupschuss. The number 2 stood for the 2.Staffel and the E was the individual aircraft letter. 
The system was adopted rapidly especially by all units serving in the MTO and prooved an easy way to identify the true unit an aircraft actually served with. Even aircraft with their assigned unitcodes received their
matching tailcodes. So if you see a pic showing a transport aircraft
with such an tailcode it doesn't matter which fuselage codes are painted on. The tactical tailcode alone is surely identifying the unit the aircraft belonged to. There were some exceptions
when i. e. letter H was used by two different units at the same time or a replacement rudder was fitted, but these exceptions were very rare. 
Some units (i. e. II./KGzbV1 and TG4) used a completely different form of tailmarkings. The tailcodes were most important during the period from late 1942 to spring 1943 and found their way
back to the eastern front when units moved from the MTO to this theatre. After the reorganisation of the transport units on 1st of may 1943 the tactical tailcodes slowly lost their importance but were anyway
used for long by many units, additionally to their fuselage codes.
Due to the excellent research of Rudolf Hecke the very most of the tactical tailcodes and the units their were assigned to are known today.

An example: 1Z+KQ with tactical tailcode D4Q in april 1943 - both unitcodes and tactical tailcodes are identyfing the same unit. 16./KGzbV1 was part of IV./KGzbV1 which was assigned the tailcode letter D.
16.Staffel was the fourth squadron within IV.group and therefore the tailcode number was a 4. Finally the tailcode letter K was used for the individual aircraft letter.
1Z+KQ with tactical tailcode N3A would identify the actual unit as 3rd squadron of I./KGzbV172 and the aircraft was flown by the staffelleader (A). The fuselage codes just representing the unit
the aircraft once came from.

Tail rudder markings like triangles or discs were of different meanings. They were used as unit markings (i. e. triangles of KGrzbV102 or KGrzbV105) or to designate (glider) towing hook fitted   
aircraft (i. e. discs of I./LLG1) or staffel markings (i. e. discs/rectangles KGrzbV50). 


                  
      

The unit:
                  
KGzbV1 (Kampfgeschwader zur besonderen Verwendung 1 = combat wing for special purpose 1) consisted of four groups, each with four staffeln (squadrons) and a  group staff flight (stab).
Each staffel had a strength of 12 a/c, the staff usually had 5 a/c. KGzbV1 additionally had a wing staff (wing headquarters) which had a maximum of three or four own aircraft. 
These were coded 1Z+?A, the individual aircraft letter was blue.  
6.Staffel belonged to II./KGzbV1, together with 5th, 7th and 8th squadron. The emblem of II./KGzbV1, worn on both sides of the nose, consisted of two 'coat of arms shields'. One displayed the red brandenburg eagle
an the other the double headed black eagle of the austrian-hungarian monarchy - both on white background. Izt was introduced in mid 1941. During 1942 6th Staffel had an own nose emblem, a cartoon pilot riding on a winged railway waggon - on a blue cloud
shaped background.   
The assigned unit codes of II./KGzbV1 were 1Z+?C-N-P-R-S for the staff and the four squadrons, the questionmark stands for the
individual and coloured a/c letter. Staffelcolours were green-white-red-yellow-blue (stab-5.-6.-7.-8.Staffel). The II./KGzbV1 used tactical tail markings which differed completely from the common ones:
There were just two numbers. The large one indicating the staffel and the small one the position of the individual a/c letter within the aphabet. I. e. large 6 with a small 2 meant 6th Staffel and the second 
aircraft within, a/c letter B = fuselage code 1Z+BP.     

I tried to skin all known paintscheme variations like different camo patterns, light blue and dark undersurfaces etc.

History:

II./KGzbV1 belonged to the oldest luftwaffe transport wing KGzbV1. It served right from the beginning of the war, taking part in nearly all campaigns. The unit
saw service at the balkans and crete campaign operations and the eastern front campaign. From may 1942 onwards II./KGzbV1 was tasked with supporting the advance to stalingrad and the caucasus in the southern 
sector of the eastern front.
During october 1942 the unit moved to Brunswick/Germany and then transferred to Athens/Greece for supplying Rommel - who was in full retreat across the Cyrenaika at this time. Missions to and from Derna, Benghazi, Crete
are known. Historical pics of II./KGzbV1 serving during late 1942 in the MTO are showing the aircraft in unaltered eastern front paintscheme.  
On 22.12.1942 II./KGzbV1 was ordered back to Germany to prepare for service in the Stalingrad airlift. The unit suffered heavy losses at Stalingrad and therefore was temporarely disbanded in february 1943.
On around may 1st 1943 the luftwaffe transport units were completely reorganized and the KGzbVs and KGrzbVs became Transportgeschwaders (transportwings) or part (groups) of
such. Refitted/reformed II./KGzbV1 was redesignated II./TG1 then, our 6.Staffel therefore became 6./TG1 - by retaining the fuselage codes. 
      


Credits/Sources:

Foo'bar, Imme and millekmh for using their templates or parts of them

II./KGzbV1- Geschichte einer Transportgruppe by Kameradschaft ehemaliger Transportflieger e.V.
Transporter Vol.1 and 2 by Martin Pegg (classic publications)
'Transporter' wer kennt sie schon... by Karl Kssler
jet&prop aviation magazine - Rudolf Hecke, Karl Kssler
luftwaffe im focus magazine
Luftwaffe Experten Message Board - 'ebay listings', esp. Peter Evans, Gran Larsson, Chris Simmonds  
Luftarchiv.de


Most of all a very lot of thanks to Gerhard Stemmer (researcher and book author, co-author of Jochen Prien)
for his most valuable detailed informations which aren't available in any books


As always the skins are free for noncommercial use only. Any reupload requires my permission.
Hope you enjoy these works and your feedback is much appreciated!

ATB
Cheruskerarmin


www.axis-and-allies-paintworks.com

mailto  cheruskerarmin@freenet.de
