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This little 2.5" x 2.5" photo is up for sale on eBay and I was curious if any of our WWI aviation history buffs had seen it before. And who are the pilots? I believe third from the left is Leutnant Josef Jacobs.
This likely is not a new photo to someone in the know like Jim Miller, but I've not seen it before.




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Nice photo and good eye Lou. It does resemble Jacob's and with "gun to head" that is what I would say but I am hardly expert.
I love all the period aviation photos. You can learn a lot by a study of them. Unfortunately not too many clues here such as buildings, aircraft, signs, etc. If you can positively ID one usually the rest of the story falls in place. But the more I look at it I think you are right about Jacob's
What is that contraption looking thing over the back of the pilot who is bending over?

Never seen it, no. And it seems to be an original, so may never have been published yet.

The second from left looks familiar to me - we'd had to search through all the German aces...

I don't recognize any of them.

Unless it costs a million bucks, what are you waiting for?

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Hasse, I am going to bid on it.

Olham, second from the left looks very familiar to me as well but I can't place him at the moment.

Duke, that thing you are asking about is the end wall, (sans siding), of a shed-style hanger, much like the middle hanger you see at Boistrancourt.

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Ah. Very good.

Second from left familiar to me too, lol.

Martin Kaymer,...Pro German Golf Player.

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Who knows Aris, might be a long lost relative.

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Or perhaps he is just aging gracefully.

Could be Jacobs... this profile shot of him really looks close. I'm leaning towards that it is.





Most likely with Jasta 22 or Jasta 7 ... if it is him. Jasta 22 in winter of 1916-17 then Jasta 7 winter of 1917-18

Very good OvS!
That Sanke photo of him was just the shot I was thinking of. It sure looks like Jacobs.
Can anyone tell the rank from the shoulder tab of the one bending over?

Probably a Leutnant.

A little quick Photoshop work. Even allowing for the different angle of each face and looking at the noses, and the lower-lip-to-chin, I'd say it's two different people.

Very impressive except I think you have the wrong guy.

I will guess the comparison is with the guy in the pilots cap?
Suspected Jacobs is third from the left.

The third from left is not Jacobs IMHO.
Perhaps you should concentrate on the second from left - he should be easier to find
and looks, as I said, familiar somehow.

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Well Olham my friend, we'll have to agree to disagree about that pilot being Jacobs. Still haven't figured out the 2nd from the left and it's got me bugged because I know I've seen his photo before.

Also, I did not win the auction as this little pic went for more than I was willing to part with. But we at least have the image for our collective libraries.

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It's also possible that none of those pilots are so-called famous aces.

I don't recognize any of them. But that doesn't mean a thing.

Too bad you lost the bid! I actually hate bidding on eBay. All too often it happens that in the final seconds of the auction somebody bids a ridiculous amount of money and beats everybody else. But sometimes you can get lucky!

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Hasse, you may well be correct that there is no one 'famous' in the photo. But then again ...

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After looking at several of my WW1 "Jasta" books I still cannot find any similarities with those guys in the pic. Definitely they are not Pour le Merite recipients,...

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Aris, I know from my own painful experiences over the years concerning research such as this, it is definitely too early to be saying definitely not.

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