Background
World War 11 came to Scandinavia on the 30th
November 1939 when the Soviets invaded Finland.
This Soviet move was a direct result of a non-interference
pact between Stalin and Hitler signed in August, 1939. This
so called Winter War was to last 4 months, and ended with
a peace treaty in which Finland was forced to cede territory
to increase the buffer zone around the Soviets' second city
of Leningrad.
In this background, Hitler launched Operation
Weserubung, the invasion of Norway, on the 9th April, 1940.
Strategically, the occupation of Norway enabled him to block
threats against the German Baltic coast, secure a route
for high grade Swedish iron ore and Finnish nickel, obtain
access to Norwegian natural resources and to counter
against British control of Scandinavia and the North Atlantic.
Having so secured his northern flank, Hitler launched
Operation Gelb, the invasion of France, Belgium and the
Netherlands on the 10th May, 1940. For a while, the German
success in the Low Countries and in France lessened the
strategic importance of Norway, but with the commencement
of Operation Barbarossa - the German invasion of Soviet
Russia on the 22nd June, 1941, Scandinavia assumed
a greater strategic importance. The Finns joined the
Germans and launched their own offensive against Russia
in July, 1941 to re-capture ceded territory in Karelia.
For the next 4 years, Norway was the base of
operations by the Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine
against the all-important supply convoys to Murmansk,
which the Germans failed to capture or to isolate.
Against this background, Jagdgeschwader 5 (JG-5) Eismeer
{Ice Sea) was formed in January, 1942 to carry out aerial
operations in this northern region:
I.Gruppe was based in Sola-Stavanqer to defend
against Allied attacks on German shipping.
11 & III Gruppen were based in Petsamo in northern Finland
in support of operations over Murmansk and Karelia.
IV Gruppe was created later in 1942, based at Trondheim
as air activities increased against the Arctic convoys to
Murmansk.
By January, 1943, I & IV Gruppen were in southern
Norway, at the airbases at Lista, Sola, Kjevik and Herdla,
with June, 1943 seeing JG-5 at its maximum strength with
14 Staffeln, comprising 12 Staffeln of singled-engined
fighters equipped with Bf-109s and Fw-190s, one Bf-110
Zerstorerstaffel and an armoured-up Fw-190A Jabo unit.
In late 1943, however, I & III Gruppen left Norway and
Finland for good, fighting the rest of the war elsewhere.
By the end of the war, JG-5 had amassed over 3,000
victories at a cost of 300 pilots lost over the 3 years of
operations. Well known aces include Heinrich Ehrler
(208 victories) and Waiter Schuck (206 victories), both
of whom flew Me-262 jets with JG-7 at war's end.
In this, Kondor's latest print, is Barry Spicer's superbly
picturesque depiction showing in the reflected late Winter
light, a rofte of Gustavs circling over Sola -Stavanger
looking for a break in the persistent ground fog, in late 1944.
The lead aircraft is a Bf-109 G-14 flown by
Ofw Heinz Halstrick of 16/JG-5 of IV Gruppe.
Ofw Halstrick's aircraft carries his personal emblem
comprising "Kolle alaaf', a traditional Cologne greeting, below
the city emblem of Koln, his home town, and the Jagerpfeil.
Ofw Halstrick flew with IV JG-5 from the summer of
1943 until the end of the war acquiring an impressive
tally of 13 victory claims and the destruction of one ship.
Print Specifications
Main Print:
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"Gustav's Over Sola-Stavanger"
Limited Edition
Limited to 420 Prints, Certificate of Authenticity provided
Full colour, 785mm (width) x 585mm (height)
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"Gustav's Over Sola-Stavanger"
Limited Edition Print
signed by Artist and numbered
Limited to 350 Editions
Price: US$130.00 plus shipping
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"Gustav's Over Sola-Stavanger"
Limited Edition Print
signed by Artist and numbered
Limited to 35 Proofs
Price: US$195.00 plus shipping
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"Gustav's Over Sola-Stavanger"
Limited Edition Print
signed by Artist and numbered
Limited to 35 Remarques
Price: US$250.00 plus shipping
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