On this day, 8 November 1942, Lt. Walther Nowotny claimed a I-15 and a MiG-3 in two separate missions reaching a total of 59 victories. In so doing he also claimed the 300rd victory returned by the 1.Staffel. He would add only two more victories during the winter months.

It was not until 7 March 1943 that Nowotny would score again, this time an Il-2. However in mid-March when together with his wingman he joined with two Experten Anton Döbele and Rudolf Rademacher to form one of the most feared formations in the Luftwaffe. In the "Nowotny Schwarm", his scoring really took off. And during the summer and autumn of 1943 Walter Nowotny was a real one-man air force in the skies over the Eastern Front.

In June he shot down 41 aircraft, ten of them on June 26. In August another 49 Abschüsse followed with nine on the 13th and seven on the 21st. The next month "Nowi" claimed another 45, ten alone on September 1. In October he amassed another 31 air victories including his 250th. On 19 October, he became the eighth recipient of the Brillanten. Finally on 12 November 1943, despite poor weather, Walter Nowotny would fly his last combat mission on the Eastern Front. Flying towards the Nevel area where the Red Army had broken through the German lines, Nowotny like so many times before attacked an Il-2 Sturmovik and shot it down for his 255th victory.

The Nazi propaganda machine then turned Nowotny into a "superstar" of the Luftwaffe. He had received the highest military awards available: Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten and was withdrawn from combat activity by the High Command.

Nowotny's machine has a near complete application of temporary water-based white paint over its original camouflage scheme, most probably the patchy pattern of olive green, light green and sand. "White 8" sports both Gruppe and Geschwader emblems and full armament with four 20mm cannons, perfect for dealing with the heavily armored Il-2 Sturmovik - the "cement-bomber".