More good reading:

The most secret Luftwaffe unit, which became known to allied intelligence only after world war 2 ended.

The story of Luftwaffe wing 200 - http://www.2worldwar2.com/kg200.htm

Speaking of air forces in WW2, which squadrons had the most kills on both sides?

That's a tough one to pin down.

Read this link about JUST the U.S. Navy's Carrier Squadrons and you'll see what I mean...
http://www.acepilots.com/usn_sqns.html

It's even hard comparing just top pilots.

German pilots were 'fly till you die' which is why some of their top aces have well over 200 kills.

Allied aces were rotated out (before they wound up dead) so they could be used for propaganda, morale, and war bonds purposes back home.

And the system for tallying up kills differed as well: German pilots had to have their kills confirmed at the time by another pilot while in the air...

I'll give it some thought and research, but if anyone else has some info I'd welcome their info.

Thank you, that clears up alot.
Why did they change their designations, was it so the enemy couldn't say "its the flying Irish, shoot them down first!" or for another reason?

And I heard the top German pilot was grounded by Goring for fear that his death would cause a serious drop in morale before being reinstated is this correct?

And I thank you for your though, input and time!

Don't thank me. Thank you for the chance to flex my grey matter.

My brain needs the exercise:
I'm floundering in debauched dissipation because I paint d*mn fugly people for a living.
And wh*ring my art to the masses for money is a sad and pathetic way to make a living.

Chit-chatting history reminds me what it was like having self respect and respectability.

As for the rest, I found this link in my faves.
It might help shed a little more light...
http://www.google.ca/url?sa=U&start=2&q=http://www.acep...n/ger_aces.html&e=42

And this won't help any, but it's a fascinating read all the same: http://www.elknet.pl/acestory/beurling/beurling.htm

All pilots are nuts in my book.
That guy was just a little nuttier than most.

Yea, I'd say the same for sure. When you can say thay you laughed, "yahooed", chuckled and called people "goddam screwballs" during combat, then I would say that you are just a bit different from the rest.

So you are an artist, was the picture in your signature done by you by any chance? And as long as you are making decent money, then is by no means pathetic.

Don't be so hard on yourself, imagine working in a sewage treatment plant for a living, now that is a sh*tty job!

And I enjoyed the links a lot, pretty informative to say the least!

The sig's not my work.
It's a genuine WW 2 recruiting poster used by the Brits & Canadians.
Seemed appropos to the forum.

As for the rest:
I've got the "lifestyle to which I'd always desired to become accustomed."
So I know just how lucky I am. And grateful to be so blessed.

Sorry for the mistake about the signature, I really have not seen a lot of recruitment posters of that era.

What do you do anyway, sketching, drawing, painting or everything? I like drawing but am no cracker jack, I have to be very relaxed or else my drawings come out bad and sometimes when I mess up a picture I get very frustrated, so frustrated in fact that I just give up and that is not good because sometimes I draw to get my anger OUT and feel better, not to feel worse.

For me history is one of the most interesting things to talk about because it also can teach you and helps the horrors of it not be forgotten!

Lest we forget the bloodshed made by people for the right and what they believe are the right causes.

My artsy stuff has changed alot over the years.
My dad was always doing wildlife and scenery in oils and watercolours as a hobby.
So I guess I get it from him.
My art was like that. But it wasn't selling.
So I changed gears and went all-digital.
Which is great, cause it cuts down on my overhead (no canvas, no art supplies) and if I pooker something, I can just delete & repeat.

The trick is painting what people want paintings of. And people will pay for paintings of themselves, their loved ones, or whoever:
Wedding, Anniversary, Baby, Family, Graduation, etc. So far portraiture is paying off.

Clients email me their pics. I do up digital paintings. And they're suitably amazed because I'm a lefty who mouse-paints right-handed.

And this system frees me from the added hassle and cost of framing, matting, and shipping paintings. Clients can just go to a print shop for all that.

And on the side I still do landscapes, abstracts, etc. I'll stir myself to put a piece or two in local gallery exhibits. From time to time some model or model-wannabe will sit for a portrait and that's kind of fun. (Who doesn't like hotties?)

As for history, it's the old saying:
"A smart man learns from his mistakes. A truly wise man learns from the mistakes of others."
And the acquisition of knowledge is a passion.
You never know what'll come in handy. Or when.

To me, ignorance isn't bliss.
Knowledge is power.

Yea that is good if it is working for you, hell why bring all of the other stuff when all you need is a comp, that you can just edit your mistakes out of, I agree with you there and just let them go somewhere else for all of the fancy stuff.

And you mentioned a lack of self-respect before, well anyone who can make a career out of art deserves both the respect of themselves and the respect of others. Too many people I have encountered that were good artists in drawing, have been disappointed by the fact that getting in is tough s**t like being beaten in demand by a bunch of scrubbles that is called something like "the oppressed man" would be an example. So cheers to you for getting a career out of it and I mean it.

It's the old business maxim: Find a niche, and exploit it.

Still, something that much fun just doesn't feel like 'real work'.