Bear Trap by Robert Bailey features Fw190s of JG 51 attacking a Russian convoy.

October 1943. Eastern front, Northern sector near Smolensk. Horst Petzschler's FW-190 of JG 51 covers Hans Rudel's Stuka attack against a Russian tank/truck convoy as it crosses a clearing in the forest.  German tanks and anti-tank guns have also ambushed the convoy. 

By the autumn of 1943 the Eastern front was in a desperate predicament for Germany.  Crippled with a Fuhrer who insisted upon making battle plans with a disregard for his generals' warnings, the German army endured unbelievable hardships. In addition to facing another brutal Russian winter, battling on two fronts was draining her ability to combat her foe to the East.

Russia, supported by bustling war factories safe in the Ural Mountains, had allies who were sending war materials to her growing army and air forces. The tide of battle had taken a bad turn for the Wehrmacht. But despite the mounting pressure and defeats, the Germans put up a stiff resistance as they retreated further west toward their homeland. The superior training, from Field Marshall, down to the regular foot soldier, allowed the Germans to withdraw in an orderly fashion across natural obstacles that otherwise could have proved disastrous. Supported by an overtaxed Luftwaffe, the German army put up a valiant fight. Air cover and ground attack units of the German air force had spent many years working out their mutually supportive roles that had their origins in the Spanish Civil War.

In Robert Baileys painting, Bear Trap, German field artillery has surprised an advancing Russian armoured column near the town of Smolensk during October, 1943. Panzers clash with Russian T-34s. In the foreground, a T-34 is still racing forward, a blazing wreck. Around the perimeter of the forest clearing are dug-in German positions, firing upon the Russians. Above the ground battle, Stukas from Schlachtgeschwader 2 (Oberst Hans Ulrich Rudel), escorted by Focke Wulf 190s of JG-51 (Horst Petzschier), pound the Russian armour with cannon and bombs, effectively halting the advance of their foe. Near the horizon, Yak-9s swarm into the fray, and a Sturmovik spots a Ju-52 which is dropping supplies to a German unit in a nearby battle. As the Russians reel in the shock of the ambush, the Germans have resisted the charge of the Russian Bear, if only in a momentary victory. 

Robert Bailey's Limited Edition, Bear Trap, is signed by two renowned Luftwaffe Aces, Horst Petzscler and Feldwebel Oskar Bösch.

This print is being offered at a special promotional price - normal price would be £195.