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Bf.109E-4 of 1./JG27 Libya, Summer 1941. Available on my SkyDrive at: https://skydrive.liv...0047E8D5705!105 Filename: White_3.zip
Hans-Joachim Marseille (13 December 1919 – 30 September 1942 One of the most successful fighter pilots, he was nicknamed the "Star of Africa". Marseille claimed all but seven of his 158 victories against the British Commonwealth's Desert Air Force over North Africa, flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter for his entire combat career. No other pilot claimed as many Western Allied aircraft as Marseille.
Marseille joined the Luftwaffe in 1938 at the age of 20, and graduated from fighter pilot school just in time to participate in the Battle of Britain, where he scored his first seven kills. A charming person, he had such a busy night life that sometimes he was too tired to be allowed to fly the next morning and as a result, JG27 which relocated to North Africa in April 1941.
Under the guidance of his new commander, who recognised his potential, Marseille quickly developed as a fighter pilot. He reached the peak of his career on September 1st, 1942, when during the course of three combat sorties he claimed 17 enemy fighters shot down, earning him the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds. Twenty-nine days later, he was killed when he was forced to abandon his fighter due to engine failure. After exiting the smoke-filled cockpit, Marseille's chest struck the vertical stabilizer of his aircraft, either killing him instantly or incapacitating him so that he was unable to open his parachute.
