ODD DISAPPEARANCE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 26 July 1943, Page 3

ODD DISAPPEARANCE

OF GERMANY’S BEST FIGHTER PLANE FEW FOCKE WULFS SEEN FOR FORTNIGHT. ON WEST EUROPEAN FRONT. (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright LONDON, July 25. The Germans’ best fighter plane, the Focke Wulf 190, has virtually disappeared from the Western front, says the Press Association’s aeronautical writer. Air Ministry announcements for nearly a fortnight have not mentioned Focke Wulfs, only a handful of which were seen during last week’s BritishAmerican sweeps over Europe. Enemy fighters which our planes shot down recently have all been the Messerschmitt 109. There are two explanations for what seems the virtual withdrawal of the Focke Wulfs from the Western Front air war. First,Field-Marshal Goering may be reserving his best fighters for defensive fighting, specially in the event of invasion of the coast of northern France. Secondly, the Focke Wulf may be switched to other areas. There is no evidence that the Focke Wulfs have been transferred elsewhere, and it is generally believed that Goering is saving them for the time when he is likely to need them most desperately.