Amazing pictures of Shot Down Luftwaffe Planes during the Battle of Britain

During the Battle of Britain, it is estimated that the Royal Air Force shot down 1887 German planes. Some planes crashed nose-first into the ground and were completely obliterated but other pilots managed to crash land and their planes remained relatively intact.

These planes were prized trophies for propaganda reasons but also to learn more about the German planes and technology. Last but not least, the remains were recycled back into new planes for the RAF, because the crashed planes were full of metals that Britain desperately needed to survive.

The crashed planes were photographed and cataloged and then removed, here are 22 of the best images we could find!

The_Battle_of_Britain_HU72684
Troops guard the wreck of Heinkel He 111P (W.Nr 1582: G1+FR) of 7./KG 55, which was shot down during an attack on Great Western Aerodrome (now Heathrow) and crash-landed at High Salvington near Worthing, 16 August 1940. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU73449
Civilian staff investigate the fuselage of a Messerschmitt Bf 109E4, ‘Red 2’, of 3./LG 2, in the grounds of a technical college, 1940. Note the ‘Mickey Mouse’ staffel emblem on the rear fuselage. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU72438
RAF personnel inspecting Heinkel He 111P (coded G1+FA) of Stab/KG 55 which was brought down at Hipley in Hampshire, 12 July 1940. It has been camouflaged to prevent the Luftwaffe attempting to destroy the remains. The bomber was shot down by ‘B’ Flight of No. 43 Squadron over Southampton Water. [Via]

The_Battle_of_Britain_HU67701
Messerschmitt Bf 109E-1 of Oberleutnant Paul Temme, Gruppe Adjutant of I/ JG 2 ‘Richtofen’, which crashed near Shoreham aerodrome in Sussex on 13 August 1940. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU89068
RAF personnel inspecting the burnt-out wreckage of a Junkers Ju 88 reconnaissance aircraft of 4.(F)/122 on Cockett Wick Farm, St Osyth near Clacton-on-Sea in Essex. The aircraft was shot down on 20 July 1940 by No. 56 Squadron Hurricanes. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU88413
A soldier peers into the cockpit of a downed Messerschmitt Bf 109E. This is probably Bf 109E-1 (W.Nr. 3576) ‘Red 13’ of 7./JG 54, flown by Uffz. Zimmermann, which crashed near Lydd in Kent on 27 October 1940. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU73444
The remains of Junkers Ju 88A-1 (W.Nr. 2142: 3Z+DK) of 2./KG 77 on public display at Primrose Hill in London, 10 October 1940. The bomber had been hit by AA fire and crash-landed on Gatwick racecourse on 30 September. [Via]

The_Battle_of_Britain_HU70689
Soldiers guard the smouldering remains of Junkers Ju 88 (W.Nr. 4136: 3Z+BB) of I/KG 77 which crashed at Hertingfordbury, Hertfordshire on 3 October 1940. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU71114
Civilians and RAF airmen inspect the burning remains of a Heinkel He 111 which was shot down by RAF fighters over the north east coast of Scotland and crashed on a house, July 1940. [Via]

The_Battle_of_Britain_HU73745
Troops and civilians pose with Junkers Ju 88A-1 (B3+BM) of 4./KG 54, which belly-landed on Marsh Farm, Earnley, Sussex, on the evening of 21 August 1940. It had been intercepted by No. 17 Squadron Hurricanes during an attack on RAF Brize Norton. [Via]

The_Battle_of_Britain_HU73719
RAF personnel and soldiers inspect Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (W.Nr. 1988) ‘Black 7’ of 5./JG54, which belly-landed at Broom Hill, near Lydd, Kent at 9.30am on 25 October 1940. Oberleutnant Schypek was captured. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU72439
The fuselage of a Heinkel He 111 bomber, being transported by road to a scrap yard, October 1940. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU50153
Locals watch as troops and police inspect Messerschmitt Bf 109E-1 (W.Nr. 3367) “Red 14” of 2./JG52, which crash-landed in a wheatfield at Mays Farm, Selmeston, near Lewes in Sussex, 12 August 1940. Its pilot, Unteroffizier Leo Zaunbrecher, was captured. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU73560
Messerschmitt Bf 109E-1 (W.Nr. 3465) ‘White 2’ of 4./JG 52, flown by Feldwebel Paul Bosche, which force-landed on Little Grange Farm, Woodham Mortimer, Essex on 8 October 1940. [Via]

The_Battle_of_Britain_1940_HU106837
Schoolgirls sitting on part of a Nazi bomber which crashed near their farmhouse. [Via]
780px-The_Battle_of_Britain_HU72542
Soldiers collecting for the Spitfire Fund use the fuselage of a Heinkel He 111 as a focus of interest for locals in a street ‘somewhere in south east England’, 10 October 1940. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU67704
Soldiers pose with Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (W.Nr. 5587) ‘Yellow 10’ of 6./JG 51 ‘Molders’, which crash-landed at East Langdon in Kent, 24 August 1940. The pilot, Oberfeldwebel Beeck, was captured unhurt. [Via]
The_Battle_of_Britain_HU72441
RAF personnel examine the wreck of Heinkel He 111H (G1+LK) of 2./KG 55 on East Beach, Selsey in Sussex, shot down by P/O Wakeham and P/O Lord Shuttleworth of No. 145 Squadron, 11 July 1940. [Via]
Crashed_Fiat_BR20_in_Britain_c1940
A crashed Italian Fiat BR.20M bomber in Britian. Italy formed the “Corpo Aereo Italiano” with 13° and 43° Stormi (80 BR.20Ms) in September 1940. They flew attacks on twelve days between 24 October and 10 January 1941, losing three aircraft to enemy fire, and 17 for other reasons. [Via]

Crashed_Fiat_CR42_near_Lowesoft_1940
An Italian Fiat C.R. 42 Falco fighter (85-16, s/n MM.6976, 18° Gruppo/85a Squadriglia/Stormo 56°) which had crashed at Lowestoft, Suffolk (UK) on 1430 hrs, 11 November 1940. The pilot, Sergente Antonio Lazzari, evaded three Hawker Hurricanes until the variable pitch gear of the propeller jammed, leaving one of the three blades at a different pitch to the rest. Lazzari decided to land. Upon landing he ran over a railway line which caused the aircraft to crash into a field. Lazzari was was unhurt. [Via]
Wrecked_German_aircraft_in_Britain_1940
Wrecked German aircraft (Me 109E, He 111 and Ju 88A) in Britian, 1940. [Via]

Joris Nieuwint

Joris Nieuwint is a battlefield guide for the Operation Market Garden area. His primary focus is on the Allied operations from September 17th, 1944 onwards. Having lived in the Market Garden area for 25 years, he has been studying the events for nearly as long. He has a deep understanding of the history and a passion for sharing the stories of the men who are no longer with us.

@joris1944 facebook.com/joris.nieuwint