Black"6" was Built in October of 1942 by Erla Maschinenwerk of Leipzig, airframe No 10639 then took the Identity of Black"6",and together with other Bf 109G-2s from the same factory were collected by pilots from the 3rd Wing of the 77th Fighter Group, or III JG77. Some days later the aircraft arrived in Cyrencia(Libya) and immediately went into action in support of Rommel's drive East along the North African coast. In early November Black"6" was damaged and withdrawn from service for repairs. There followed the epic Battle of El Alamein, after which the German Wehrmacht   was forced to retreat at a very fast pace. 10639 was abandoned after the removal of some equipment, including the armament, and was soon found by the engineering group of No.3 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force, at this time they were under the Command of Squadron leader Bob Gibbes. Sqn Ldr Gibbs was intending to take 10639 back to Australia as a war Trophy, so she was made serviceable by using the spares from all the other Bf 109's that were spread around the Desert Airfield. But this plan was shattered when they recieved an order to deliver Black"6" for testing, as it proved to be the first Gustav to be captured intact. It was then tested extensively in the Middle East before being shipped to England where it joined No.1426 Enemy Aircraft Flight at Collyweston in Lincolnshire. Again 10639 was to change identity, now in an R.A.F. camouflage and given the No. RN228 she was to spend the rest of the war being evaluated against new Allied Fighter Types.

In 1972 permission was given to restore the Aircraft to it's original condition and to airworthiness if it was possible, An initial survey indicated a fairly simple schedule could achieve the latter, But, as an accurate restoration was the main aim, a much more in depth project was begun. 10639 was in very good condition, but souvenir hunters had left their mark over the years, one of the biggest problems for the dedicated restoration team was finding the original parts that had been taken. The work continued for 19 years, then Black"6" was rolled out again. After all the tests were completed at R.A.F. Benson 10639 was flown to Duxford, where she would start Display flying which would last for 7 years. During this time Black"6" was to become a very popular aircraft, the sound of the Daimler Benz engine, the originality and probably the fact that she was THE ONLY ONE of her type would have helped. Then on the 12th October 1997 at Duxford her flying career came to a sad end, due to an error in judgement Black"6" ended her last flight upside down in a field.  As a member of the team that looked after her over those years at Duxford, I can only say that I am glad the pilot escaped un-injured, had he lost his life the Black"6" story would not have such a good ending.

Since the begining of 1999 the rebuild of 10639 has been underway, the dedicated team that worked on her for all those years are back, and I know they will succeed in getting Black"6" back to her former glory.

	These pictures were taken at Duxford shortly after the crash, the wings and all removable parts were taken off whilst Black 6 was upside down on a trailer. Here crew members are in the process of getting her back up the right way.

	These photo's show the damage to the Fuselage, external and internal.
	At first it was thought that the damage was a lot worse. The rear fuselage and tail section would have to be replaced from the cockpit back, a new spinner and propeller and repaired or new canopy. Other superficial damage to the wings etc could be done in house at Duxford.

The Repair Begins