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| THIS ITEM IS INCLUDED IN OUR BUY ONE GET ONE HALF PRICE OFFER ! Choose any two prints in this special offer and the lower priced item is half price. (Any free bonus prints already supplied with an item are separate and will also be included !) Hundreds of items across our websites are included in this offer! |
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| Extra Details : In Defence of the Homeland by Graeme Lothian. (P) | ||
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| Signatures on this item | |
| *The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare. | |
| Name | Info |
  Oberleutnant Walter Schuck (deceased) *Signature Value : £70 | Initially with JG3, Walter Schuck was posted north to 7./JG5 in April 1942. On 15 June 1944 he chalked up his 100th victory during a day when he shot down 6 aircraft. Two days later he had his most successful day, achieving 12 victories in twenty-four hours, a feat never surpassed in JG5. On 1 August, he assumed command of 10./JG5. Walter Schuck transferred to fly the Me262 as Staffelkapitan of 3./JG7, and achieved 8 further victories flying the new jet. His final tally was 206 air victories. He was awarded the Knights Cross with Oak Leaves. Walter Schuck died on 27th March 2015. |
| Unteroffizier Ottomar Kruse (deceased) *Signature Value : £45 | Pilot, 8./JG26. Having started flying prior to the war, he was appointed as an flight instructor, but risked a court martial in turning down this appointment, in favour of becoming a fighter pilot. On 18th August 1944 Kruse landed at a race-track with combat damage, and was told by a Labour Service officer he was in Arras. During one mission, he scored two confirmed victories, earning him the Iron Cross. He had claimed a P51 of 354 Fighter Group at Rambouillet and on the 25th of August a P38 of the 474 Fighter Group near Beauvais (pilot James Austin). On the 16th of September 1944 he was flying Fw190A-8 171505 and was shot down at Nutherveld at 1810hrs by a P47 of 50FG, and became a POW. He died on 9th October 2009. |
  Walter Wolfrum (deceased) *Signature Value : £60 | Walter Wolfrum first saw combat in the Crimea with 5/JG52. He was shot down three times, and wounded twice before scoring his first victory. With his score at 70 he was again wounded, but returned to take command of 1/JG52 in May 1944, taking part in the fiercely fought defence of the Ploesti oilfields. he was again wounded, but returned to command 1/JG52 until the end of the war. he had flown 423 missions, achieved 137 victories, and was awarded the Knights Cross. Sadly, Walter Wolfrum passed away on 26th August 2010. |
| The Aircraft : | |
| Name | Info |
| 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. |
| Artist Details : Graeme Lothian | ||||||||
| Click here for a full list of all artwork by Graeme Lothian | ||||||||
 Graeme Lothian Graeme Lothian is an artist whose ability has seen him apply his talent to many different subjects - military, aviation, naval and landscape art. Having spent time in the army, taking on adventures such as parachuting, the discipline he has obtained from his experiences has been key to allowing him to take on his first love - painting - full time. Graeme first took on painting full-time by producing paintings of WW2 aircraft, such as Spitfires and Messerschmitts, but over his career in art, now spanning over two decades, has also produced many military and naval pieces too. More recently, he has undertaken a masive project of painting the River Thames, from its source, through London and beyond, producing over 50 paintings in this series, as well as a book. Graeme Lothian describes himself as a landscape painter. The paintings may have a Tiger, Steam Train, Spitfire or Kentish Oasts in them, but they're still landscapes. Graeme started painting in 1978 in oils, a medium he has stayed with since then. Joining the Parachute Regiment and Airborne Forces at the beginning of the 1980s, a parachuting accident curtailed his career and he returned to his first love - art. In the early 90s he formed a partnership with the late great Air Vice-Marshal Johnnie Johnson CB CBE DSO(two bars) DFC(bar) the top scoring Allied fighter pilot of WWII. Embarking on a career as an aviation artist, travelling all over Britain and Europe obtaining the signatures for his prints. Personally meeting the most famous aviators and top aces of both sides of the last war. Graemes first book An Artist on the Thames came out in 2004. His second, An Artist in London, which has taken 5 years to complete, is due out in the autumn of 2012. In between, he printed an Everest painting carrying the signatures of Sir Edmund Hillary and Sir Chris Bonnington. Graeme had solo exhibitions in 1981, 1989 in Sydney, Australia, 2007, 2008. In 2009, Graeme was one of only 56 other artists to exhibit at the internationally acclaimed and prestigious BP Portrait Awards at the National Portrait Gallery, London. In 2010 Graeme went to Afghanistan as the artist to the Joint Forces Medical Group (JFMG). He covered everything medical in Helmand including many hours in the hospital at Camp Bastion watching the surgeons operating. The subsequent paintings and artwork were displayed at the Royal Society of Medicine, Wimpole Street, London. He returned to Afghanistan as the official artist to 20 Armoured Brigade and 101 Logistic Brigade's Herrick 15 winter tour 2011-2012. This time he was covering first the logistics and then the infantry soldier, taking him to places such as Nad e Ali, Babaji, Nahr e Saraj and Gereshk. 20 Armoured Brigade published an art book, 'Soldiers Flowers', showing art from their serving personnel on the tour. Graeme, subject to confirmation, is due back in Helmand again, this time as artist to 4 Mechanized Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Bob Bruce on their Herrick 17 winter tour, 2012-2013. Born in Sri Lanka, Graeme has painted all over the world including Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Nepal, Syria, India and most recently Oman and Jordan. His originals hang all over the world and to date has had over 80 limited edition art prints published.
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Kruse, Ottomar 
(signed in person)
