A British soldier examines captured Messerchmitts at Wunstorf Airfield, 1945

A British soldier examines a row of partially complete Messerschmitt Me 109G fuselages in a hangar at Wunstorf airfield, captured by elements of the 5th Parachute Brigade, 6th Airborne Division, 7 April 1945. The aircraft have been disassembled and their paintwork stripped as part of a refurbishment that was never completed.

After Operation Varsity on 24 March 1945 the battalion advanced into Germany and by 7 April had reached Petershagen, in between Osnabrück and Hanover. It continued to proceed east by motor transport and encountered enemy forces defending Wunstorf airfield at around 14:30 hours, although earlier reconnaissance reports had indicated that it had been abandoned, resulting in the ambush of the leading elements of B Coy.

During the battle, in which the 13th Battalion was also engaged, the 7th Battalion lost 6 killed, and 21 wounded, most from the initial ambush of the four leading trucks of B Coy.The airfield was captured with 19 ME 109s, 4 FW 109s, 2 JU 88s, 2 JU 52s and much other valuable equipment.