It is indeed an A-2.
I believe the werk nummer (Full Wrk Nr. 123 425) is in the correct range for an A-2 also.
fw190.hobbyvista.com/a-2c.htmThe above list is derived from the official German records and of some interest is the reason for the loss of this aircraft being given as "forced landing due to poor visiblity" rather than the engine failure cited in the article appended below.
The major problem with the initial operational versions of the FW-190, the A-1 and A-2, was engine overheating, particuarly the rear bank of cylinders. This was largely solved on the A-3 by providing cooling louvers in the engine accessory section side panels.
The source immediately below shows the differences between the various early FW-190A models and, interestingly, makes the claim that the louvers were actually introduced on the A-2 version. Many sources cite the cooling slots as an identification feature distinguishing the A-2 from the A-3 but there also are many pictures of A-2s with them. I believe they were a retrofit as pictures of A-2s on the production line do not show them but pictures of them in service often do show them. There are actually some variations also, possibly indicating field mods.
ipmsstockholm.org/magazine/2004/11/stuff_eng_fw190_01.htmIt would appear that those A-2s that survived long enough were retrofitted with the A-3 style louvered side covers as a measure to alleviate the serious engine overheating problems that had initially caused the type to be rejected for service. I have pictures in front of me of FW-190A-2s equipped both with and without the cooling louvers as I write this. It makes sense that any FW-190A-2 type aircraft continuing in service would be retrofitted with such a critical mod, given the type's history of engine problems.
There are also reports of the A-2's BMW 801C-2 engine being routinely replaced with the A-3's more powerful BMW 801D at depot maintenance centers when engine change was required. This makes sense also because supplies of the earlier engine likely dried up quickly once the more powerful version became available. It will be of some interest to see if the engine on this aircraft is one of the original BMW 801C's or if it is the 801D. I'm betting on the latter. These mods would have virtually upgraded the A-2 to A-3 standard.
As this aircraft had previously suffered enough damage in an accident while flying with another unit (several of the previous unit markings are visible on the airplane) to require extensive repair at a depot, it is not out of the question to assume it received all upgrades at that time. The article at the end of this post also mentions that various parts of the aircraft have different werk nummern on them indicating that it was used (and repaired) quite a bit.
The A-3 version superseded the A-2 and had a BMW 801D of 1770 HP compared to the A-2's BMW 801C-2 of 1560 HP. Changes to the engine on the 801D primarily involved upping the compression ratio and changing the blower gear ratios so it was likely a plug and play retrofit.
Initially, the FW-190 A-2 and A-3 were externally identical, save for the cooling louvers and slightly different (stronger) cowling latches.
Superseded fighter types, like the A-2 after the A-3 became available, were sent to places like Norway where the action was not exactly fast paced and where any opposition was relatively rare compared to the hotter war zones.
(The few Bf-109Ts, the T referring to the "Trager" or carrier borne version of the Bf-109 E, wound up serving most of the war up there in Norway for that very reason. They had longer wings than their E model counterparts and the first 7 Bf-109T-1s had provision for folding them. The balance of 60 aircraft were completed as non navalized T-2s. Their hooks and catapault spools were removed to save weight and they did not have the folding wings. The first seven may also have been similarly modified.
These oddball aircraft were pressed into service as land based fighters by1/JG77 and 3/JG77 in Norway as soon as it became obvious that the "Graf Zeppelin", Germany's only aircraft carrier, was not going to be put into service. Their long wings proved a real help in coping with Norway's rather short strips but they were largely replaced after a while by Bf-109Es. However, some may have served almost the entire war there. One Bf-109T was reportedly even found at the Messerschmitt factory at Augsburg at war's end. Go figure.)
"Fw 190A-2 Yellow 16 rises from the deep"
"December 15, 1943 Fw-190A2 'Yellow 16' took of from the airfield Herdla in Norway. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot experienced engine trouble and had to make a controlled emergency landing on the water near the village of Solsvika west of Bergen. Almost 63 years later, on November 1, 2006, the aircraft got air under its wing again, when it was raised from a depth of 60 meters after a 5 hour recovery operation.
"Local enthusiast knew about this aircraft but the Royal Norwegian Navy vessel KNM Tyr first plotted the exact location on May 11, 2005. The enthusiast formed the “Working Group Fw 190 A2 – Gelbe 16” and began preparations to raise the wreck from the water. Connections with local museums was established and the group gained a mandate from the Norwegian Defence Museum regarding handling and administration of the aircraft which would see it recovered and eventually displayed at its former airfield of Herdla in connection with Herdla Museum.The Working Group was formed by: Geir Tangen, Halvor Sperbund, Ole Sælensminde, Svein Ove Agdestein, Olav Helvik and Ivar Nordland.
"Between May 2005 and June 2006 units from Royal Norwegian Navy led by LtCdr Wiggo Korsvik (Mine & EOD Diving Command with assistance from Royal Norwegian Navy Diving School) conducted several diving expeditions to the aircraft to discern the condition of the wreck and the surrounds in preparation for the lifting of the aircraft. To prevent theft and to gain a picture of the quality of the wreck, the two MG17 guns, along with some cockpit equipment and hatches were recovered. Activity also included the mounting of lifting equipment on the aircraft. From June until September a civilian diving team led by Mr Didrik Venge completed the remainder of the work to rig the aircraft.
"Wednesday November 1, the aircraft was raised. The operation went exactly as planned. The aircraft was lifted onto the former ferry Flekkerøy and transported to the Naval Base Haakonsvern near Bergen. The Naval Base will be hosting the Working Group whilst cleaning and preservation is undertaken up until March 2007. The aircraft will be separated in 6 – 8 main components and place in containers with fresh water to prevent corrosion. When the aircraft parts are cleaned and preserved they will be transported to Herdla museum to make a static display as it is today. There is no plan at the moment to restore the aircraft.
"Fw190 A-2 werk.nr.5425, ‘Yellow 16’ served with 12./JG.5. The pilot was rescued by local fisherman and handed over to German authorities, which in turn released a prisoner held for illegal use of a radio. Several Werk nr have been found on the parts recovered so the actual Werk nr is still open for question. It also have had several tactical markings like, two times Black 6 and one white number before servicing as Gelbe 16, indicating an old war horse that had served with several units. One of the black 6 numbers may be from its time from 11./JG 5 at Sola where it had a accident and had to go through extensive repair. The pilot’s name is at the moment not known but several sources indicate that Kurt Kundrus of 12./JG 5 was the pilot of Gelbe 16 that day. He was later killed while flying with JG 3. The group is looking for information and history regarding 12./JG in Norway, and any help on this matter will be greatly appreciated.
Olve Dybvig odybvig@online.no"
