(Plane on left)
Freeman AAF September 1945
Ray White via Lou  Thole 

This Hs 129 is the aircraft earlier identified as EB-105.  It was at Freeman Field at the end of September 1945 when ex-Luftwaffe aircraft were on public display.  It was still at Freeman Field on 17 May 1946.  It was allotted for storage at Davis-Monthan AFB in Arizona but crashed at Gallatin, Tennessee, on 24 July 1946 while being ferried to Davis-Monthan by Lt Kenneth P. Almond.  The aircraft ran out of fuel due to suspected tank leakage and was slightly damaged during the subsequent forced landing. 

It was taken to No. 803 Special Depot on 05 August 1946.  When the Orchard Place storage depot was required for other purposed during the Korean War, FE-4600 was put up for disposal as scrap.  The nose section was bought from the scrap yard by Earl Reinhart in June 1951 and it remained in storage at his home in Mundelein, Illinois, until 1966.  It then went on display at the Victory Air Museum, Mundelein, Illinois, which was formed by Earl Reinert and Paul Polidori. 

It remained on display until the Museum was dispersed following the death of Paul Polidori in a flying accident in 1985.  In May 1986 the cockpit was purchased by Martin J, Mednis of Sidney and taken to Australia.  It is now being restored for display in his 'Der Adler Luftwaffe Museum'.

August 3, 2006
Hello,

Just been browsing through your great website and thought that you may appreciate the following correction.

Re: Your 3 references for the Henschel Hs129

1) In two spots you reference this machine by the Evaluation codes  EB-102 and EB-103, both of these are incorrect, the aircraft's true designation, and one that appears on every side shot photograph of this aircraft at Freeman Field was EB-105

This reference is painted on the tip of the dorsal tailfin and on a plate inside the cockpit.

2) Henschel Hs129B2  serial FE-4600  IS  EB-105  (German werk nummer 0385)

How do I know this? I own the remains of this aircraft and have spent over 20 years researching its history, I have a mountain (small) of USAAF documents which back this to the hilt.

Due to wartime clerical errors there was confusion as to the number, a letter and telegram from the WAR DEPARTMENT AAR Materiel Command Wright Field, Dayton Ohio states the correct serial of EB-105. This correspondence is dated 5th June 1944.

This aircraft was captured at El Aouina Airfield in Tunisia in May 1943, it had been serving with Luftwaffe unit 8.(Pz)/Sch. G2.

Regards,
Martin Mednis
Sydney, Australia