Did you know that a unique World War II fighter will be recovered from a lake in the future?
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A Bf 109 of the Hungarian Royal Air Force and its pilot
(Photo: unknown photographer)
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We have published an article on the Bf 109, Nazi Germany’s staple World War II fighter, just a few days ago. (Read our earlier article) Through sheer coincidence, an exciting piece of news cropped up literally the following day: a unique Bf 109 is going to be recovered in the near future from Lake Balaton, the largest lake of Hungary and Central Europe at large.
The plane is special for being the last still existing Bf 109, even as a wreck, to have been manufactured in Hungary based on a German license. The fighter, along with 17 others from the Hungarian Royal Air Force, took to the air on July 2, 1944, on a doomed mission to intercept 620 heavy bombers and 300 escort fighters of the U.S. Fifteenth Air Force. The lopsided battle ended with the death of three Hungarian pilots and this particular plane crashing into the lake and sinking.
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Already retrieved pieces of the plane
(Photo: RepTár Aviation Museum, Szolnok)
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Preparation to recover the wreck began in 2020 when divers of the Hungarian Defence Forces reconnoitered its location and retrieved some easily movable pieces. Work on lifting the wreck out of the water began in early October 2023, with the Defence Forces constructing a 40-ton pontoon that will serve as a diving base and workshop during the operation. This will be the first time since 1952 that a Bf 109 is recovered from the lake, with around a dozen other German and Hungarian specimens still somewhere down there.
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The military pontoon on Lake Balaton
(Photo: Hungarian Defence Forces)
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Veterans Day Promotion
$500 discount on all tours
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WWII veterans celebrated in Normandy
(Photo: Author’s own)
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On the occasion of the upcoming Veterans Day, we are offering all our available tours with a discount of $500 if you book and pay in full until November 11, 2023. Note that this offer applies only in case of new bookings, and it cannot be combined with other special promotions. If you have any questions related to this promotion or our tours, feel free to contact our travel consultants at info@beachesofnormandy.com
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