This is akin to saying that JG 54 was a better unit in the fall of 1944, simply because they were equipped with FW 190 D-9s - widely regarded as an excellent fighter plane. However, in comparison to 1940, JG 54 in the fall of 1944 was a unit filled out with half-trained replacement pilots who had no business being in a frontline unit. Hans Dortenmann, a veteran JG 54 pilot evaluating recently "graduated" student pilots, described the state of Luftwaffe pilot training in late 1944 perfectly: "My God, what are they teaching these guys?"