nt (Gordon) wrote in message ...
It is said that when
TA152s were in the air no Me262s were ever lost.

Not all Ta 152s were used in that role. JV 44s Fockes were 4 190D-9s
and a single 190D-11.

seems ridiculous to expect a mere handful of 190s to be able to protect
"Turbos", when every single "silberplatz" had been identified and targeted by
the Allies!

Uh, haven't you heard of the famous "Galland Circus"? The aircraft
were all painted red underneath with white striping so that the field
flak gunners wouldn't shoot down the Doras in an engagement with
Allied fighters. The confirmed aircraft are three D-9s (Red 1, Red 3,
and Red 13) plus one D-11 (v58) Red 4. At least two other D-9s were
flown by two other pilots arriving right before the end. Of the 4
primary craft, two pilots were aces with 104 and 15 kills
respectively. Another D-9 pilot had 2 and the D-11 pilot none.
Apparently, none of the aircraft were lost during operations and no
record of a 262 lost when the "Platzschutzstaffel" was operating.

As far as performance was concerned the Ta 152 in 1945 was inferior to
the latest Mark of Spitfire under 30,000 ft. Between 30,000-35,000 ft
the aircraft were equal. Above 35,000 ft the Ta 152 was superior all
the way up to 50,000 ft!

Which pilot logged a flight to 50k in a Ta 152? Curious to know is all.

Don't have that info as far as Luftwaffe pilots were concerned;
however, Russian NII VVS tested the Ta 152 up to that height. For
simplicity sake let's just say "above 35,000 ft"... as we know the
aircraft had the ability to climb easily up to and beyond 45,000 ft.
It was designed for this purpose as a bomber interceptor.

p.s. The Ta 152 was also fitted with a LGW-Siemens K23 autopilot to
reduce pilot fatigue.

Hmmmm. Most flights by this point in the war were not that long and the K22
and K23 notations I have seen in conjunction with single engine fighters is to
enhance their foul weather performance, as I see this autopilot included in the
"Schlechtwetterjäger" variants of various late war fighters.

Most WW2 aircraft reference manuals I have on the Ta 152 feature the
K23 with no special notations.

Rob

Gordon
====(A+C====
USN SAR Aircrew

"Got anything on your radar, SENSO?"
"Nothing but my forehead, sir."