Messerschmitt Me-109G of the "Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force"

After the capitulation of Italy in September 1943 the Regia Aeronatica was split into two parts. The Northern part kept flying alongside the German Luftwaffe as the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana, or ANR. The Southern forces joined the Allies as the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force.

Both air forces had a great number of Italian and German planes in service at the time. Although the Allies tried to re-equip the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force with new US aircraft, it had to fall back on its "old" mounts to keep flying during the first months. And so it was that a number of Me-109 aircraft were repainted and flew on the side of the allies during 1944 and 1945.

The Me-109's were retained by the new Italian Air force until 1949 when they were retired and replaced with P-51's and P-47's from US surplus stocks. The aircraft depicted is a Me-109 G-10 as flown during 1947.

The model

The model is a Academy Me-109 G-10.