Jagdgeschwader 54 Bf 109 G-6/R6 fighters intercepting USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress bombers in 1943

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 variants visible appear to be G-6 variants that replaced the pair of 7.92mm MG 17 machine guns in the engine cowling with a pair of 13mm MG 131 machine guns.

0:13 Ammunition belts for the MG 151/20 cannon are prepared, most of them appear to be yellow high explosive rounds with a relatively low number of black armor piercing rounds. Apart from the MG 131 machine guns, standard armament was a MG 151/20 cannon firing through the propeller hub. Most aircraft featured in the footage are also equipped with the Rüstsatz 6 kit that added two more cannon in underwing gondolas.

The added weight and drag of this installation hurt performance, however the increase in firepower made the aircraft more effective in the bomber destroyer role. Armor piercing shells were effective against vital elements of the bombers like the engines and crew, however these represented relatively small targets relative to the aircraft structure and hits were less likely. It was therefore deemed more effective to pack as much explosive as possible in shells to attack the aircraft structure itself, tearing open fuel tanks and damaging flying surfaces.

0:38 As the Bf 109's inertia starter is cranked, the "Beule" blisters over the MG 131 breeches are evident. Later 109 models replaced these blisters with more streamlined bulges along the length of the cowling.

1:12 Debris coming off the bomber bears witness to the effect of high explosive shells, and this was frequently a danger to the attacking aircraft as well. It was not unknown for fighters to be brought down after striking parts shot off their quarry.

1:27 The aircraft being targeted is Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress 42-29859 "The Annihilator", possibly the only such aircraft that can be positively identified in gun camera footage from what appears in the footage itself. The aircraft was shot down on May 14th 1943 during a mission to bomb Courtrai airfield in Belgium and was piloted by Captain William P. Forsythe, commander of the 510th Bomb Squadron that contributed five aircraft to the mission.

Waist Gunner S/Sgt Leroy D. Donaldson and Ball Turret Gunner S/Sgt Albert L. Jensen were killed in action while the rest of the crew bailed out to be taken prisoner. A crew member can be seen bailing out as the attacking aircraft continues to fire on the bomber that would eventually come down at Dadizele near Ypres in Belgium. It had been around four miles short of the target before coming under attack, and this would be its first and only combat mission. In the final frames the H-TU squadron code on the bomber fuselage can be discerned confirming the identification.

It's worth noting that the bomber crews on this mission reported being attacked by Focke-Wulf Fw 190s rather than Bf 109s. Of the eighteen 351st Bomb Group Flying Fortresses deployed, apart from 42-29859 509th Bomb Squadron B-17F 42-29862 was also shot down by fighters after bombs were dropped. On this aircraft Tail Gunner S/Sgt Robert H. Hilton was killed while the rest of the crew was taken prisoner. This was the group's first successful combat mission, with the mission on the previous day having been aborted due to a combination of factors.

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