Armin Faber | |
|---|---|
 Faber's Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-3 of III/JG 2 at RAF Pembrey, June 1942 | |
| Allegiance |  Nazi Germany |
| Branch | Luftwaffe |
| Years of service | 1940–1942 |
| Rank | Oberleutnant (Wehrmacht) |
| Unit | Jagdgeschwader 2 |
| Battles / wars | World War II |
OberleutnantArmin Faber was a GermanLuftwaffe pilot inWorld War II who mistook theBristol Channel for theEnglish Channel and landed hisFocke-Wulf Fw 190 (Fw 190) intact atRAF Pembrey in South Wales. His plane was the first Fw 190 to be captured bythe Allies and was tested to reveal any weaknesses that could be exploited.[1]
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In June 1942,Oberleutnant Armin Faber wasGruppen-Adjutant (performing administrative and personnel paperwork duties as well as flight duties) to the commander of the III fighterGruppe ofJagdgeschwader 2 (JG 2, Second FighterWing) based inMorlaix inBrittany. On 23 June, he was given special permission to fly a combat mission with 7thStaffel; a unit that flew Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighters.
The Fw 190 had only recently arrived with front line units at this time and its superior performance had caused the Allies so many problems that they were considering mounting acommando raid on a French airfield to capture one for evaluation.
7thStaffel was scrambled to intercept a force of sixBostonlight bombers returning from a bombing mission; the Bostons were escorted by three Czechoslovak-manned RAF squadrons,310 Squadron,312 Squadron and313 Squadron commanded byAlois Vašátko.[2] All the Bostons returned safely while a fight developed over the English Channel with the escorting Spitfires, which resulted in the loss of two Fw 190s and seven Spitfires, including that ofAlois Vašátko, who was killed when he collided with an Fw 190 (the German pilot bailed out and was captured).[3]
During the combat, Faber became disoriented and separated from the other German aircraft. He was attacked by SergeantFrantišek Trejtnar [cs] of 310 Squadron. In his efforts to shake off the Spitfire, Faber flew north overExeter in Devon. After much high-speed manoeuvring, Faber, with only one cannon working, pulled anImmelmann turn into the sun and shot down his pursuer in a head-on attack.[3]
Trejtnar bailed out safely, although he had a shrapnel wound in his arm and sustained a broken leg on landing; his Spitfire crashed near the village ofBlack Dog, Devon.[4] Meanwhile, the disoriented Faber now mistook the Bristol Channel for the English Channel and flew north instead of south. Thinking South Wales was France, he turned towards the nearest airfield – RAF Pembrey. Observers on the ground could not believe their eyes as Faber waggled his wings in a victory celebration, lowered the Focke-Wulf's undercarriage and landed.[5]
The Pembrey duty pilot, Sergeant Jeffreys, identified the aircraft as German while it was landing and he ordered his men to signal it to park in the dispersal area. As the Fw 190 slowed, he jumped onto its wing and took Faber prisoner with aflare gun; as Pembrey was a training station, Jeffreys had no other weapon to hand.[6] Faber was "so despondent that he attempted suicide" unsuccessfully.[7]
Faber was later driven toRAF Fairwood Common for interrogation under the escort of Group CaptainDavid Atcherley. Atcherley, fearful of an escape attempt, aimed his revolver at Faber for the entire journey. At one point the car hit a pothole, causing the weapon to fire; the shot only narrowly missed Faber.[8]
As aprisoner of war, Faber was sent toCanada where he attempted to escape from the prisoner camp. He was repatriated just before the end of the war due to ill health.[9]
Faber's plane was a Fw 190A-3 with theWerknummer 313. It was the only Fw 190 fighter to be captured intact by the Allies during the war. All other captured Fw 190s were either of the long-range bomber or fighter-bomber types.
Group CaptainHugh Wilson, the pilot mainly responsible for test flying captured enemy aircraft, was asked to fly313 from RAF Pembrey to RAF Farnborough under the guarantee not to crash. This was an impossible guarantee to give, so the aircraft was dismantled and transported via lorry instead.[7]
At Farnborough, the Fw 190 was repainted in RAF colours and given the RAF serial numberMP499 and a 'P' for prototype. Testing and evaluation commenced on 3 July 1942 at theRoyal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) atRAF Farnborough. Roughly nine flying hours were recorded, providing the Allies with extremely valuable intelligence.
After ten days it was transferred to theAir Fighting Development Unit atRAF Duxford for tactical assessment, where it was flown in mock combat trials against the newSpitfire Mk.IX, providing the RAF with methods to best fight the Fw 190A with their new fighter. The Fw 190 was then transferred toNo. 1426 (Enemy Aircraft) Flight. The Fw 190 was flown 29 times between 3 July 1942 and 29 January 1943.[10] It was then partially dismantled and tests were carried out on its engine's performance at Farnborough.[10] It wasstruck off charge on 18 September 1943[11] and scrapped.[10]
TheShoreham Aircraft Museum displays the armoured-glass windscreen of Faber's Fw 190, together with part of its control panel. The museum also holds some wreckage fragments of František Trejtnar's Spitfire. In 1991, Armin Faber visited the museum and presented it with his officer's dagger and pilot's badge.[4] The quick release buckle of the parachute František Trejtnar used that day is owned by an aviation-themed cafe at The Moravian Museum inBrno, in the Czech Republic.[12]
