The Luftwaffe in Camera: 1939-1945

TfIE

LUFT

AFFE

IN CAMERA 1939-1945 ALFRE D

PRICE

THE

LUFTWAFFE IN CAMERA 1939-1945

ALFRED

PRICE

-

By the same author:

0/Darkness Aircrrifl versus Submarine The Last Year 0/the L1ffiwqffe L1ffiwqffe Handbook Battle o/Bntain: The Hardest Day, 18 August 1940 Battle o/Britain Day, 15 September 1940 The Spiifire Story Spi!fire at Uilr (three volumes) Battle over the Reich Blitz on Britain Harrier at Uilr Pal1LLvia Tornado Air Battle Central Europe The History o/US Electronic Uilrfore (two volumes) Instruments

Written in co-operation with Jeff EtheU:

Target Berlin World Uilr II Fg i hting Jets One Day in a Long Uilr Air Uilr South Atlantic

First published

1997 and 1998 2009

This edition first published The History Press

Mill, Brimscombe Port Srroud. Gl ollcestershire. GlS lQG

The

C O NTE NTS Introduction Acknowledgements

The right of Alfred Price co be identified as the Amhor of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act

1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic. mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval SY5[em, without me permission in writing

fiom the Publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data. A catalogue record for chis book is available ISBN

from the British Library.

978 0 7524 5102 2

Tp y esetting and origination by The Hiscory Press Primed in Great Britain

21

Poland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Holland, France, September 1939 to June 1940 The Battle of Britain, July to December 1940

23 55

The Night Blitz on Britain, August 1940 to May 1941

101

The Holding Campaign in the West, 1941 to 1942

113

The Home Front, 1941 to 1942

133

The Mediterranean Theatre, 1941 to 1942

155

The Eastern Front, 1941 to 1942

173

The Eastern Front, October 1942 to May 1944

197

The Mediterranean Front, October 1942 to May 1944

223

The Western Front, October 1942 to May 1944

235

In Defence of the Fatherland, October 1942 to May 1944

267

The Final Year, May 1944 to May 1945

303

Advanced Aircraft, Secret Weapons

353

www.theruscorypress.co.uk

10 Alfred Price, 1997. 1998, 2000,2009

7

Appendices A. Luftwaffe Flying Units

371

B. Luftwaffe Unit Role Prefixes

373

C. Equivalent Wartime Ranks

375

Index

377

INTRO D U CTI O N

�

iS book depicts, in photographs

taken during the Second World

and occupied. The only serious setback

War, the Luftwaffe in its many

for the Luftwaffe during this period was

aspects. At the start of the war, the period

the Battle of Britain in the summer of

September 1939 to September 1942 saw

1940.

Then, despite a long and hard­

the force play a major part in securing a

fought series of actions, the Luftwaffe

spectacular run of victories for German

failed to secure the air superiority over

arms.

southern Britain that was an essential

At the start of the war the Luftwaffe was

prerequisite for invasion. Yet, although

one of the largest air forces in the world,

the Luftwaffe incurred serious losses

and it was certainly the best equipped and

during the attacks on Britain, its reserves

trained. In each of the combat roles the

of aircraft and crews were sufficient to make good the gaps in its ranks. As a

aircraft types operated by the Luftwaffe were usually far superior to any enemy

result the Luftwaffe emerged from the

counterparts facing them. The sole

Battle of Britain as strong as it had been

exceptions were the Spitfire fighter and the

at the start of the campaign.

Wellington bomber operated by the Royal

In June 1941 German forces launched

Air Force. The performance of these planes

yet another all-out Blitzkrieg offensive,

was roughly equivalent to those of the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the Heinkel He

this time against the Soviet Union. At

111

respectively, although neither British

type was yet available in large numbers.

Arado Ar 234 bomber of IIlrd Gruppe of Kampfgeschwader 76 (III.lKG 76) on the landing approach at Burg bei Magdeburg in the autumn of 1944. KG 76 Arch.iv

Yugoslavia and Greece were all defeated

first it seemed this would be merely a re-run of what had gone before. The German Army fought a series of large­

In a series of carefully prepared

scale enveloping actions, capturing

Blitzkrieg offensives the German Army,

millions of prisoners and vast quantities

with powerful air support, achieved

of military hardware. The Luftwaffe

breathtaking territorial gains over a

destroyed thousands of Soviet planes on

twenty-month period. First Poland, then

the ground and in the air.

Denmark and Norway, then Holland, Belgium and

France, and finally

W hen it took part in a Blitzkrieg offensive, the Luftwaffe was expected to

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A M E RA 1939- 1 945

8

I

TROD e T I O N

9

provide the maximum possible support

So the losses in aircraft destroyed and

a succession of thrusts that took it almost

units in reserve to meet emergencies. The

for the army. By f lying high daily

damaged on the Eastern Front alone

to the gates of Cairo.

bulk of its forces were concentrated on

sortie rates, and mounting low-altitude

exceeded production by about 20 per cent. Of course, many damaged aircraft

In the late spring of 1942 the ground dried out after the long Russian winter

the Eastern Front, but to achieve this it

bombing and strafing attacks, it brought

had had to cut to the bone the number

the full weight of its fire power to bear

were repaired and put back into service.

and spring thaw, allowing a resumption

of combat units in the West and in the

on enemy ground forces. L osses in

But that took time and the reserve of

of large-scale operations. W hile the

Mediterranean area.

aircraft and crews were accepted, and

combat aircraft, assembled in aircraft

German Army made final preparations

As serious as the severe numerical

acceptable, provided the campaign could

parks before the campaign, was soon

to resume its offensive, Luftwaffe units

deficiencies in its strength, the Luftwaffe

be brought to a rapid and victorious end.

exhausted.

began concentrating in the theatre in readiness to provide support. After

had to face the approaching obsolescence

At the start of the campaign in the East

Only when the harsh Russian winter

of many of its combat aircraft types.

the Luftwaffe discovered a perplexing

forced

end to large-scale air operations

a long hard fight the German Army

In September 1942 most of these were

difference between this action and those

in that theatre, did the Luftwaffe get a

occupied the Crimea. In June the

developed versions of designs that had

fought earlier, however. In previous

respite. Then the depleted combat units

Panzers resumed their thrust eastward,

entered service before the war. The

campaigns the enemy troops had 'gone

could be withdrawn, in rotation, to rest

heading for the valuable oilfields in the

Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Bf 1l0, the

to ground' when they came under air

and re-form. Losses fell sharply, allowing

Caucasus area. Once again there were

Junkers Ju 87 and Ju 88 and the Heinkel

attack. The Soviet soldiers, in contrast,

units to be restored to full strength with

rapid initial advances, though not quite

He Ill, which equipped the lion's share

stood their ground and loosed off at their

new and repaired aircraft. By February

so rapid as those in the previous year.

of the combat units, were near the end of

tormentors with any weapon that came

1942

And yet again the Luftwaffe suffered

their development lives.

to hand. In any one engagement there

However, it was a cruel portent of what

was only a very small chance that rifle

could be expected when large-scale

In September 1942 the territory

or light machine-gun fire would bring

operations resumed on the Eastern Front

occupied by German forces reached its

down an aircraft. But, such was the pace

later in the year. In December 1941 the

greatest extent. The area under their

should have yielded sizable numbers of modern machines, had gone awry.

of air operations, there were thousands of

USA entered the war on the side of the

control extended from Brittany in France

The Messerschmitt Me 210 was to

these encounters each week. As a result

Allies. The US government moved rapidly

to the Volga River in Russia, from the

replace the Bf 110 in the long-range

Luftwaffe losses began to mount.

to build up its forces and switch the nation's

orth Cape of Norway to the desert

fighter, night fighter, fighter-bomber

At the end of the first hundred days of the offensive the Luftwaffe found

vast industrial capacity into armament production. Nevertheless, more than a year

Although the Luftwaffe was still an

Ju 87 as a dive-bomber. Yet the new

itself in serious trouble. Over that

would elapse before US forces posed any

impressively strong fighting force, the first

plane's handling characteristics proved

period it had suffered an average daily

significant direct threat to the Luftwaffe.

cracks in its edifice had begun to show.

to be so bad that the programme had

an

the immediate crisis had passed.

heavy cumulative losses.

sands of Egypt.

Two important new combat aircraft production

programmes,

which

and reconnaissance roles, and also the

loss of sixteen planes destroyed and ten

The hiatus in operations on the

In terms of combat aircraft its numerical

to be abandoned. The Heinkel He 177

damaged. Cumulatively, such a daily

Eastern Front in the winter of 1941-42

strength was a little larger than a year

four-engined heavy bomber had gone

loss sustained over so long a period had

allowed the Luftwaffe to strengthen its

earlier, but the sum of its commitments

into service with one Gruppe, but its

disastrous consequences. The Luftwaffe

forces in other theatres. An influx of

was now far greater. The force was

teething troubles were so severe that

lost just over 1,600 aircraft destroyed

combat units into the Mediterranean

required to provide air support in three

the t y p e had to be withdrawn for

and a further 1,000 damaged, a total of

area early in 1942 led to a rapid upsurge

major but distant theatres of operations.

extensive modifications. The only

2,600

aircraft put out of action. That

in activity there. Malta came under

In addition there was a large and growing

major new types to enter service since

number was just short of the 2 , 770

heavy air attack, and the highly effective

home defence effort which tied down

the beginning of the war were the Focke

combat planes it sent into action at

blockade came close to starving the

a quarter of its total fighter strength

Wulf Fw 190 fighter and the Dornier

the start of the campaign. In the same

islanders into submission. In North

(including almost all its night fighters).

Do 217 medium bomber; neither type

period the German aircraft industry

Africa the revitalized F liegerkorps

In truth the Luftwaffe was now seriously

was available in large numbers. In

produced about 2,200 combat planes.

Afrika supported the German Army in

overextended, with scarcely any combat

the absence of the replacement types

T H E L FTWAFFE

10

r T

I NTROD eTI O N

C A M E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

II

theatres of operations, in the east, in the

not end until it had been ejected from

was slipping behind its adversaries in

west, and in the Mediterranean, placed

Egypt and Libya. At the same time the

equipment. In stark contrast, each of

each of the main components of air

severe strains on its limited resources.

Luftwaffe initiated a large scale airlift, to

the opposing air forces was introducing

power - in the quantity and quality

There were few combat units in reserve.

rush troops and equipment to establish

new

of its aircraft and in the quantity and

Thus if a critical situation arose in one

blocking positions in Tunisia. In the

planned for them, most Luftwaffe f lying

By the summer of 1942 the Luftwaffe

units had to soldier on with their ageing

combat planes

that had long

quality of its crews. Yet although the

theatre, it could be reinforced only at the

face of the strengthening Allied naval

The problems facing the Luftwaffe

future looked bleak for the Luftwaffe

expense of one or both of the others.

blockade, these forces had to be supplied

did not end there. Since the start of

in the medium and the long term,

There were other serious problems. Most

the campaign in the East, the losses in

in the short term there were some

German front-line units still operated the Bf

Then in mid-November, as the brutal

aircrew had exceeded those being turned

grounds for optimism. In September

109, the Bf 110, the Ju 87 or the He Ill,

Russian winter neared its climax, the Red

out by the training organization. The

1942 the decisive battle for the city of

pre-war designs near to or at the end of their

Army launched a major offensive on the

reserve of trained crews was exhausted

Stalingrad was still going well for the

development lives. The opposing air forces

southern part of the front. In a large pincer

and many units were now under-strength

Germans. The action had drawn in

on each front were numerically stronger and

movement it succeeded in isolating the

in flying personnel. Other pressures on

huge Soviet forces and these were being

they were fielding more modern aircraft.

entire German 6th Army at Stalingrad.

the training organization exacerbated

systematically destroyed.

From the

The Luftwaffe m ight have been able to

Rather than allow the beleaguered troops

the difficulty. The Soviet offensive, early

German High Command there were

overcome these deficiencies in part, had it

to fight their way out of the trap, Adolf

in 1942, left German troops surrounded

confident assertions that, with the huge

produced capable new pilots and crews to

Hitler ordered them to hold their ground

at two points. A large airlift had to be

losses it had already suffered, the Red

replace those lost in actioIL But this was not

- the Luftwaffe would supply them by

mounted to supply them, using Junkers

Army was on the brink of collapse.

the case. Its overworked, understaffed and

air. It was a calamitous decision. Already

under-resourced flying training organisation

committed to moving men and supplies to

development lives ahead of them.

by air also.

Ju S2s and instructor pilots drafted in

If a victory could be secured on the

from the flying training schools. These

Eastern Front, the picture would change

was quite unequal to the demands now

Tunisia, the Luftwaffe had now to initiate

operations lasted until May, when the

completely. Then the Luftwaffe could

being made on it. As a result, from the end

a second and much larger airlift in Russia.

aircraft and instructors were returned.

redeploy large forces to the Western

of 1941, the quality of training given to new

Faced with weather conditions that were

But, during the following three months,

and

crews had declined steadily.

the Mediterranean theatres

to

often atrocious, the Stalingrad airlift failed.

As a result of these deficiencies, by the

Even on good days it was unable to deliver

the hectic pace of air operations in all

stabilize the situation there. And, having

theatres led to a serious depletion of

established

the

autumn of 1942 the Luftwaffe found itself

the 7S0-ton minimum daily requirement

the Luftwaffe reserve of aviation fuel.

Luftwaffe would be able to build up its

slipping behind its opponents in each of

to maintain the 6th Army as an effective

Cutbacks were ordered in non-essential

fighting strength.

f lying, and again it was the training schools that suffered.

a

breathing

space,

In October 1942 the area of territory under German occupation was at the

the four main ingredients of air power -

fighting force. On 2 February 1943 the last

the quantity and quality of its aircraft and

of the starving, shivering, under-supplied

the quantity and quality of its crews.

German troops in the pocket surrendered.

So long as the battle fronts remained

The operation cost the Luftwaffe some 490

The diversion of aircraft and instructors,

greatest it would ever be: it ran from

coupled with the fuel shortage, disrupted

Brittany in France to the Volga river in

reasonably static the Luftwaffe could

transport aircraft and bombers operating in

the training of crews to fly multi-engined

Russia, from the North Cape of Norway

maintain its position. This did not last

the transport role-

aircraft. Front-line bomber and long-range

to deep inside Egypt. In each of its

long, however. During the third week

Meanwhile, in North Africa, the Axis

reconnaissance units felt the effects of these

campaigns so far the German Army, with

in October, British and Commonwealth

forces were squeezed into a narrowing

changes immediately. For the rest of the

powerful support from the Luftwaffe, had

forces in Egypt launched a powerful

strip of Tunisia under pressure from both

been victorious.

offensive at El Alamein. A few days

the east and the west. The Luftwaffe put

war there would be a steady deterioration in the training given to new crews. From this

Yet although the Luftwaffe was still

later Allied forces landed in Algeria and

up a good fight, but its opponents were

point, each time an experienced crew was

impressively strong, it was seriously

Morocco, and began advancing eastward

superior in numbers and equipment and

lost a unit's combat effectiveness fell by a

overstretched.

provide

towards Tunisia. The Africa Korps began

they enjoyed the advantage of secure lines

support for three major but distant

a lengthy fighting withdrawal that would

of supply. The outcome of the campaign

small but measurable amount.

The need to

INTROD CTIOI

T H E L U FTWA F F E I N CAM E RA 1 939- 1 945

12

was never

III

doubt, and in May 1943

Axis resistance in

orth Africa came to

an end. The twin catastrophes at Stalingrad and

13

fg i hters, and again the city lived up to its

went on the defensive. So ended the last

the Messerschmitt aircraft factory at Regensburg and the ball-bearing

fearsome reputation as a target. Sixty B-

all-out offensive by German troops in that

production centre at Schweinfurt. Both

17s were shot down, five more crashed or

theatre.

targets were in the south of Germany, far

crash-landed in England and twelve were

German ground forces on the Eastern Front

Tunisia cost the Luftwaffe severe losses

In the Mediterranean theatre, too,

beyond the reach of the available escort

damaged beyond repair.

in men and equipment. Yet although the

things were going badly for the Luftwaffe.

force had taken hard knocks, it retained

On 10 July Allied troops landed in Sicily,

fighters. The newly strengthened German fighter defences reacted forcibly, causing

Air Force again restricted itself to

enormous strength. Adolf Hitler decided

compelling it to divert forces there . In

heavy losses. Of the 376 B- 17s that set out

shallow-penetration attacks, those for

that the decisive action on the Eastern

September Allied forces landed in Italy, and

from England, sixty were lost.

which its fighters could provide full­

In the weeks that followed, the 8th Air Force confmed its attacks to less distant

allocated the highest priority to a further

targets for which its escort fighters could

expansion of its long-range fighter force,

provide protection along much of the

and extending its reach. Towards the end

Front in 1943 was to be a giant set-piece

that nation changed sides in the conflict.

battle at Kursk in the central sector.

Germany had lost her only major ally in

During the early part of July, forces were

Europe. Yet, for the Luftwaffe, the most ominous

concentrated in readiness for the attack.

Following that action the U S 8th

route protection. At the same time it

The Luftwaffe deployed 1,830 aircraft to

development during 1943 was the

of

route. And as larger and better drop tanks

of 1943 the first examples of the Merlin­

support the offensive, leaving about 670

events over the German homeland. The

became available, the fighters were able to

engined P-S 1B Mustang fighter arrived

to cover the remainder of the theatre.

effectiveness of the RAF night-bomber

accompany bombers progressively further

Forewarned by intelligence sources of what

offensive had grown out of all recognition

into Germany.

in Europe. Carrying two 7S- U S gallon drop tanks, this remarkable fighter had

was afoot, the Red Air Force moved some 2,900 aircraft to bases within range of the

during the first half of the year. Following

In a milestone raid on 4 October,

destructive attacks on targets in the Ruhr

Flying Fortresses attacked Frankfurt

battle area. That service had come a long

industrial area, in July a series of heavy

way since the dark days of 1941, and now

attacks razed large areas of the city of

am Main. More than 200 Thunderbolts escorted the raiders along much of the

increasing numbers of American escort

many of its units operated modern aircraft as good as or superior to their German

Hamburg. During the same period the

route and only eight bombers were lost.

fighters accompanying bombers deep

U S 8th Air Force had grown in strength

Near Cologne the P-47s caught some

into Germany. Two or three times each

counterparts.

and it was making progressively deeper

forty Bf 1 10s moving into position

week the Luftwaffe day-fighter force

incursions to strike at German industrial

to launch rockets at the bombers.

did battle with a numerically superior enemy operating aircraft of superior

and suffering heavy losses. For the first

targets by day. The need to protect the Fatherland

The escorts shot down about fifteen, without loss to themselves. From then

performance. For the defenders this

time on the Eastern Front the Luftwaffe

from enemy

attacks assumed

on the unwieldy twin-engined bomber­

period was an unmitigated disaster. At

concentrated a large proportion of its

The battle opened on S July, with both air forces flying high sortie rates

air

turn

the range to escort bombers to Berlin and beyond. The first four months of 1944 saw

paramount importance, and required the

destroyers were restricted to operations

the time Generalmajor Adolf Galland,

combat strength to support a major

stiffening of the home defence fighter

east of the line Bremen- Kassel­

Luftwaffe Inspector of Fighters, wrote:

battle, but it was unable to establish air

and flak forces. To that end several

Frankfurt, to stay out of the reach of the

superiority. On the ground, German troops

day-fighter Gruppen were withdrawn

escorts. It was the first tangible sign that

' Between January and April 1944 our

made slow progress before they became

from

the Luftwaffe was losing control of the

day-fighter

bogged down in the 'hedgehog' defensive

Mediterranean, stripping those theatres

airspace over its homeland.

pilots. They included our best Staffel,

system established by the Soviets. On

of effective air defence. At the same

Gruppe and Geschwader commanders.

1 1 July the Red Army launched a powerful

time the night-fighter force underwent

During the second week in October the 8th Air Force launched a new series

Each incursion of the enemy is costing

the

Eastern

F ront

and the

arm

lost more than a thousand

counter-offensive north of Kursk, hurling

a steady expansion, imposing a further

of deep-penetration attacks, culminating

us about fifty aircrew. The time has come

German ground forces in that area on to

drain on resources.

in a second attack on Schweinfurt on 14

when our force in within sight of collapse.'

the defensive. Further strong counter-attacks

On 17 August 1943 the U S 8th Air

October. The ball-bearing plants suffered

halted the German advance south of Kursk.

Force launched its most ambitious

heavy damage. Again the bombers came

This was a grim battle of attrition,

operation to date: twin strikes on

under sustained attack from German

in which both sides suffered serious

By 23 July, having suffered huge losses,

14

losses. On 6 March 1944, for example,

15

I N T RO D U C T I O N

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CA�I ERA 1 9 3 9- 1 945 retaliatory attacks on Great Britain. The

coming ashore, this might delay the

had been misled regarding the jet plane's

776 heavy bombers and 644 escorts

bombardment opened on 21 January with

establishment of defensive positions by

ability to carry bombs. Adolf Galland

took part in the fIrst large-scale daylight

an attack on London involving over 400

several hours. If German troops could

said the jet fIghter was urgently needed

attack on Berlin. Sixty-nine bombers and

sorties, with many bombers flying twice.

counter-attack before the Allies were

to stiffen the homeland's defences, but he

eleven escort fIghters were lost and 716

There was a further attack on the capital

ready to meet them, it might be possible

was cut short with a sharp tirade.

US aircrew were killed, wounded, taken

in January, seven in February and three

to hurl the invaders into the sea (given

prisoner or interned (in Sweden). The

in March. From mid-March the attacks

the near-disaster that would occur at

that Hitler made Goring personally

Luftwaffe lost sixty-six fIghters destroyed

shifted to other British cities including Hull,

Omaha Beach on D-Day, this analysis

responsible for seeing that the Me 262

The

upshot

of

the

meeting

was

or damaged beyond repair, twenty-fIve

Bristol, Portsmouth and Plymouth, before

was not far-fetched). During the early

went into service in the fighter-bomber

pilots killed and twenty-one wounded.

the raids finally petered out in May. The

months of 1944 the Me 2 62 fighter­

role as soon as possible. Aircraft on the

Afterwards, both sides easily replaced the

German bomber force took heavy losses

bomber featured prominently in the

production lines were to be converted

aircraft lost from stocks in hand. The US

during this, its fInal attempt to mount

Fuhrer's counter-invasion plans.

to carry bombs and these would have

8th Air Force had replacement pilots and

strategic attacks using manned bombers.

In the spring of 1944 the RAF and

priority for the precious jet engines.

crews in theatre to replace those lost. As

The best hope of defeating the US

USAAF units based in Britain began

Testing of the fighter version could

if to drive home that point, on 8 and 9

daylight attacks on Germany was the

softening-up operations in preparation

continue, but only if this did not delay

March US bombers returned to Berlin

Messerschmitt

for the long-planned invasion of France.

deliveries of the fIghter-bomber version.

Me 2 62 jet

fighter,

in similar strength. For the Luftwaffe,

an aircraft still at the trials stage.

Among the first targets hit were the

Exactly two weeks after the stormy

the position regarding replacement crews

This revolutionary aircraft had the

Luftwaffe airfields in northern and central

meeting at Berchtesgaden, on 6 June,

was quite different. The forty-six pilots

performance to outrun the US escort

France. The raids drove the Luftwaffe

Allied

lost to the service on 6 March included

fighters, and its armament of four 30-

from these areas, giving Allied bombers

Normandy and established beachheads.

the freedom to attack targets at will.

The Me 262 played no part in that battle

troops

stormed

ashore

in

several experienced and successful men,

mm cannon was sufficiently powerful to

and their replacements would be of far

tear apart a heavy bomber. Large-scale

On 23 May Hitler summoned Goring

- less than forty had been delivered to the

lower calibre.

manufacture of airframes had begun

and senior Luftwaffe officers, including

Luftwaffe and all were serving with trials

in the spring of 1944, even before the

Generalmaj or

The battle against the RAF night raids

Adolf

Galland,

to

units. In truth, the jet plane was not yet ready to go into action in any

role.

took a quite different course. During

Jumo 004 gas turbine that powered it

Berchtesgaden to discuss the latest aircraft

the autumn of 1943

the Luftwaffe

was ready for mass production. A crash

production programme. When the Me

Initially the Luftwaffe's reaction to the

night-fighter force had continued its

programme was launched to improve

262 was mentioned, the Fuhrer asked

invasion was minimal. That force set in

expansion.

the engine's reliability and increase its

casually how many could carry bombs.

motion its plan to transfer several fighter

short running life.

General-feldmarshal Erhard Milch, in

Gruppen to airfIelds in France. As usual

As the RAF launched a

programme of deep-penetration attacks on targets in Germany, the Luftwaffe

The Luftwaffe wanted the Me 262

charge of aircraft production, replied that

when the Luftwaffe faced a new crisis,

introduced new radar equipment and

as a home defence interceptor, but

none could do so - the aircraft was being

the move was at the expense of another

new tactics. That gave the defenders the

Adolf Hitler had other ideas. In answer

manufactured solely as a fIghter. Milch

area - in this case the home defence

chance to hit back, and they did so in

to an earlier question, designer Willi

made matters worse when he said the

fIghter force. In the weeks that followed

no uncertain terms. This phase in the

Messerschmitt had assured him that

aircraft needed design changes to enable it

the German units operating in the west

action culminated on the night of 3 0

the aircraft could be modified without

to carry bombs, and these would delay its

suffered fearful losses at the hands of the

entry into service.

March, when Bomber Command lost

diffIculty to carry bombs. Hitler wanted

95 bombers out of 795 sent to attack

the Me 262 as a high speed fighter­

Nuremberg. It was the greatest ever loss of heavy bombers during a single action.

powerful Allied air forces. Overwhelmed, his

the Luftwaffe was incapable of providing

bomber, to help defeat the long-expected

composure. Bitterly disappointed at losing

cover for the sorely tried German army.

Allied invasion of northern Europe. If

what he considered to be an important

As one of its soldiers who fought in

On

hearing

this,

Hitler

lost

of

these aircraft could deliver bombing

counter-invasion

was

France complained: 'If the aircraft above

1944, the Luftwaffe launched a series of

and strafing attacks on Allied troops

extremely angry when he discovered he

us were camouflaged, we knew they were

Also during

the

early months

weapon,

he

I NT RO D C T I O

T H E L FTWA F F E I N C A M E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 945

16

17

British. If they were silver, we knew they

before reaching the coast of England.

withdrawn from the Eastern Front, and

switched their attack to the German oil

were American. And if they weren't there

A further third were shot down or

less than 400 single-seat fighters were left

industry. A devastating series of raids

crashed on open country in southern

to defend the entire theatre. As a prelude

on refineries caused a slump in the

England. The remaining third impacted

to the main offensive, hundreds of Soviet

production of motor and aviation fuels. In

in the Greater London area, causing

bombers and ground attack planes carried

April, before the attacks began, monthly

Schenk with nine aircraft, was deployed

widespread

out destructive attacks on German artillery

production of aviation fuel had peaked at

to

jet

casualties. V igorous Allied attempts to

positions. Outnumbered by six to one or

175,000 tons. In September, it was down

engines were unreliable and the plane's

locate and destroy the well-camouflaged

more over the battle area, the depleted

to a paltry 7,000 tons. Coming during

serviceability rate was poor, but at least

V.1 launching sites in France had little

German fighter force was powerless to

a period of intensive air operations, this

intervene.

at all, we knew they were German!' At the end of July the first Me 262 fighter-bomber

u n i t,

Kommando

Chateau dun in France.

The

damage

and

s e rio u s

the Fuhrer had the counter-invasion

success. The attacks on the French

force he craved. Duped by an elaborate

rail system, part of the air interdiction

Allied deception plan, Hitler feared the

programme in support of the Battle of

opened,

the German counter-attacks

by imposing sudden and harsh constraints

Normandy landings were a diversion

France, proved far more effective in

without effective artillery support were

on almost every aspect of Luftwaffe

throttling of new supplies led to severe

When the Soviet ground offensive

depletions of Lufrwaffe fuel stocks. Only

and the main blow was still to fall in the

reducing the rate of launching. The

uniformly unsuccessful. That left the

flying was disaster averted. Day-fighter

Pas de Calais area. If there was a second

delivery of missiles to firing units

German infantry unsupported, facing

operations in defence of the homeland

invasion, the Me 262s were in place

became increasingly haphazard, and

powerful Soviet armoured thrusts. As

were the only ones allowed to continue at

ready to meet it. But there was no second

sites that had fired their stocks of

the defences crumbled, the Red Air

their previous level. Most bomber flying

invasion. As Allied troops thrust deep

missiles sometimes had to wait days for

Force switched to bombing and strafmg

was curtailed and many of these units

into France in August, the jet fighter­

the next batch to arrive. In August the

the retreating columns. The effect was

were disbanded. Reconnaissance flights

bombers withdrew to Germany having

advancing Allied ground troops started

devastating. Faced with massive enemy

were limited, and offensive operations in

achieved little. Soon afterwards the unit

to overrun the launching sites, and

superiority in each arm, the German front

support of the army were permitted only

was expanded to Gruppe strength (1./

the rate of firing declined rapidly. On

line collapsed at several points. Withdrawal

in 'decisive situations'. The night-fighter

KG 51), and it would mount desultory

1 September the last flying bomb was

turned

quickly

force had its sortie rate much reduced and

operations in the months to follow.

launched from France. The initial phase

degenerated into rout. The Red Army

the flying hours allocated to pilot training

operation

of the bombardment was over. In the

swept wesrwards, retaking large tracts of

were cut further.

during the Battle of France requires

months to follow a few of these missiles

territory the Germans had overrun so

mention. In mid:June it began a large­

were air-launched against England from

spectacularly in 1941. When the offensive

suddenly discovered that it had more

scale bom-bardment of London using

converted Heinkel He 111 bombers,

finally ground to a halt, in October

fighters

V.1

One

further

Luftwaffe

to

retreat,

which

At the same time, than

it

the Luftwaffe

could

use.

Using

onslaught

and others were fired from ramps m

1 944, at some points the Red Army had

dispersed facilities, the German aircraft

began in earnest on the 15th of the

Holland. These final shots achieved

advanced 300 miles. These advances left

industry was concentrating

month. From then until the end of

little, however.

Germany's military position on the Eastern

manufacture of single-engined fighters.

Front irretrievably weaker than before.

During

flying

b o mbs.

The

August, between 120 and 190 missiles

While these events had been taking

S e p t e m b er,

on

October

the and

were launched at the capital each day.

place in the west, on the Eastern Front

Moreover three of her ersrwhile allies

November 1944 i t turned out more than

The RAF moved fighter and balloon

the Red Army had opened its main

- Finland, Rumania and Bulgaria - had

8,500 Bf 109s and Fw 190s. Production

units into Kent and Sussex to meet

summer offensive in the central sector

been compelled to sue for peace and allow

comfortably exceeded losses and made

the threat, and belts of AA guns were

on 23 June. The Soviet planners knew

occupation by Soviet forces.

it possible to add an extra Staffel, the

positioned along the coast. When the

the German infantry and armoured units

Grievous thpugh it was, even that

new defences were in place they took

were in a weakened state, and relied

blow was not the most serious to hit the

same time,

a heavy toll of the incoming missiles.

on concentrations of artillery to hold

Luftwaffe during the summer of 1944.

of supplies, the Luftwaffe assembled a

Of the flying bombs launched, about

the defence together. They also knew

Once Allied troops were established

moderate reserve of aviation fuel. The

one-third crashed or were shot down

that several fighter Gruppen had been

in France, the strategic bomber forces

force was gathering itself for one further

fourth, to each fighter Gruppe. At the by ruthless husbanding

Jl\TROD eT l O N

T H E L FTWA F F E I N CA�I E RA 1 93 9 - 1 945

18

Meanwhile what of the Me 262, on

massive onslaught against the enemy, at

which the Luftwaffe had lavished such

a time and place of its choosing.

19

to be operating jet aircraft became the

bomber role, though the small tonnage of

subject of repeated bombing attacks.

bombs carried by raiding forces limited its

The blow fell on the morning of 1

great hopes? Although the turbojet engine

By April 1945 the Luftwaffe had taken

January 1945, with a large-scale attack on

still suffered from technical problems, in

delivery of more than 1,000 Me 262s, but

rocket fighter served as a target defence

Allied forward airfields in France, Belgium

September 1944 the design of the Jumo

only about 200 were serving with combat

interceptor but due to its short radius of

and Holland by about 900 fighters and

004 was 'frozen' to allow mass production

units. The largest air action involving Me

action, about 25 miles, it too was of limited

fighter-bombers. The raiders achieved

to

month,

262 fighters took place on 10 April 1945.

value. The cheap and simple Heinkel He

complete surprise and at six airfields they

Adolf Hitler rescinded his order giving

Yet even on that day only 55 jets took

162 jet fighter saw action during the final

were successful, destroying numerous

priority of production to the fighter­

off, to engage a force of more than 2,000

days of the war but it was too late to have

aircraft on the ground. At nine other

bomber version of the Me 262. Several

US heavy bombers and escorts attacking

any impact.

airfields the attacks were less successful,

commentators have blamed Hitler's order

targets in the Berlin area. The Me 262s

During April and the early part of

and in three cases the raiders failed to find

for the long delay in bringing the jet

destroyed ten B-17s and seven escorts, but

May 1945 the Allied ground forces

their intended targets. Due to the strength

fighter into operational service in quantity.

in securing this unimpressive score they

thrust deep into Germany from the

begin.

Also

during

that

effectiveness. The Messerschrnitt Me 163

of the Allied fighter and AA defences,

Examination of German records reveals

tOok a fearful drubbing: twenty-nine Me

east and west. Luftwaffe combat units

however, the raiders suffered heavy losses.

that this was not the case, however.

262s were destroyed in air combat, more

were squeezed into narrowing pockets

All told the Allies lost about 200

Because the turbojet engine entered mass

than half of those committed. Twenty­

in Bavaria and Austria in the south,

aircraft destroyed and approximately

production at about the same time as

one jet fighter pilots were killed and seven

and Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark in the North. At the time of the cease­

100 damaged. Allied pilot losses were

Hitler revoked his edict, the latter did not

wounded. Given the overwhelming odds

less than twenty. Following the arrival of

cause any large-scale diversion of aircraft

facing them, it is not surprising that the jet

fire the force still possessed some 3,500

replacement aircraft, the Allied combat

away from the fighter force.

fighters failed to secure decisive results.

combat aircraft, but most of them sat

fighter

The Me 262 was not the only German

in camouflaged hideouts with empty

couple of weeks. The operation cost the

version of the Me 262 was leaving the

jet aircraft type to see combat. The larger

fuel tanks. The Luftwaffe had fought

Luftwaffe dear, however. That service

production lines in reasonable numbers

Arado Ar 234 proved highly successful as

valiantly against steadily lengthening

lost 237 pilots killed, missing or captured,

and thereafter there was no shortage of

a reconnaissance aircraft, operating with

odds, and had suffered heavy losses in

units were back to full strength within a

From

October

1944

the

and 18 wounded. Among these were

these aircraft. Yet despite the top priority

near-impunity over Allied territory in

the process. W hen it succumbed, it was

three

six

status accorded to bringing the jet fighter

western Europe and Italy. This type also

overwhelmed by pressures over which it

Gruppe commanders and eleven Staffel

into action in force, it was March 1945

went into action in small numbers in the

had little control.

commanders, experienced combat leaders

before this began to happen. Several

that were impossible to replace. Surviving

factors conspired to bring about this

German records do not give the number

delay. Me 262 serviceability was poor,

of aircraft lost, but from the pilot losses

mainly but not exclusively due to the

it seems reasonable to assume they were

problems with its engines. Bad weather

Geschwader

commanders,

around 300. Thus the Luftwaffe lost more

during the winter of 1944-5, and Allied

aircraft than it destroyed, and it lost more

fighter sweeps deep into Germany when

than ten times as many pilots as the Allies.

the weather was fine, disrupted the

The operation left the German piston­

pilot conversion training programme.

engined day-fighter force worse off than

Systematic air attacks on the German

ever, bereft of several capable leaders

road, rail and canal systems imposed

and combat pilots. Some Gruppen never

hold-ups in the delivery of fuel, spare

recovered from the losses suffered that

parts and equipment to the units. And

day.

on top of all that, any airfield discovered

A C K N OW L E D G E M E NT S

I

t would have been impossible to assemble the material for this book had it not been for the generosity of those who so kindly allowed me the use of their photographs. In particular I should like to thank Hanfried Schliephake, Gerhard Sch6pfel, Robert

Michulec, Giinther Unger, Hajo Hermann, Oskar Romm, Willi Herget, Fritz Stehle, Gunther Heise, Kurt Scheffel, Bernard Jope, Hans-Georg Batcher, Otto Schmidt, Horst G6tz, Julius Neumann, Helmut Wenk, T heodor Rehm, Robert Kowalewski, Werner Schr6r, Helmut Mahlke, Diether Lukesch, Horst Schultz, Werner Haugk, Wolfgang Dierich and Helmut Bode. To all of these gentlemen, I tender my grateful thanks.

POLAN D , D E N MARK , N O R WAY , B E L G I U M , H O LLAN D , FRAN C E SEPT E M B E R 1 93 9 T O JUNE 1 9 40

24

T H E L FTWAFFE I N C A M E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

Junkers Ju 87s of 1st Gruppe of Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 (I.lStG 77), together with a Fieseler Storch, under camouflage at their forward base at Oppeln in Silesia, during the fmal week of August 1939, as Luftwaffe crews awaited the final order to go to war. Scheffel

A pair of Stukas of I.lStG 77 taxiing out from Oppeln to attack a target in Poland on the morning of 1 September 1939, the first day of the war. Scheffel

POLA D , D E 'l\'I A R K ,

O RWAY, B E LG I U 1 , H O L L A N D , F RAN CE

25

A Henschel Hs 123 ground attack aircraft. Despite its outdated appearance, this rype proved effective for strafing ground targets and providing close air support for German troops during the campaign in Poland. via Schliephake

Heinkel He 46 short-range reconnaissance and army co-operation planes, pictured before the war. Thanks to the air superiority achieved by the Luftwaffe over Poland, this low performance aircraft was able to operate effectively throughout the campaign.

26

T H E L FTWA F F E I N CAl\I E R A 1 93 9- 1 945

Mes erschmitt B f 109Cs ofJagdgruppe 102 (JCr 102), summer 1939.

POLAND, D EN M A R K , NO RWAY, B ELG I U M , H O LL A N D , FRANCE

27

28

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CAMERA 1 93 9-1945

A pilot boards a Bf 109E bearing the 'Scalded Cat' insignia ofJagdgeschwader 20 for a scramble take-off, summer 1939. A mechanic had started the engine before the pilot reached the cockpit.

Bf 109E ofJG 27, early in the war. The oversized wing markings served as an additional aid to recognition, following a series of unfortunate incidents when aircraft were engaged in error by 'friendly' forces. Both sides lost aircraft to this cause. via Schliephake

POLAND, D EI {AR K , NO RWAY, B E LG I U M, H O L LAND , FRA C E

29

Ground crewmen reloading the wing and engine-mounted 7.9 mm machine-guns of a Bf lO9C of IIIrd Gruppe ofJagdgeschwader 51 (lILaG 51) . Scrupulous cleanliness was necessary for this operation, since any grit or dirt adhering to the row1ds might cause a stoppage during firing.

Formation pair take·offby Bf 10ges ofJG 51.

T H E L FTWAFFE

30

IN

Aufnahme '10m 24. 9. 39

MaO.tab .twa '" .

'"

31

Genlt5,Abt. Okiober11MO

Zielgebiet I I London

Sild Nr.684 SK 74

POLA D , D E N � [ A R K , N O RWAY, B E L G I M , H OLLAN D , FRANCE

CM[ERA 1 93 9- 1 94 5

1 : 1 8 800 .

-

Domier Do 17P reconnaissance aircraft of Aulklruungsgruppe 22 (Aulkl.Gr 22). Operating from bases in western Germany, this unit flew numerous sorties to photograph defended areas in France, Holland and Belgium in preparation for the German offensive in May 1940. Its aircraft also operated over Great Britain, taking pre-strike photographs of targets.

Reconnaissance photograph of the Bromley-by-Bow and Poplar areas of London, taken during a mission flown on 24 September 1939. The photographic aircraft was probably a Do 17P. At the bottom of the photograph the River Thames and the West India Docks can be clearly seen.

32

T H E L FTWAFFE IN CAM E RA 1 93 9- 1 945

POLAND, D E N M A R K , NO RWAY, B E LG I M , H O L LA N D , F RAN CE

33

The Italian-built Fiat CR 32 was the main fighter type used by the Austrian Air Force, before that service was incorporated into the Luftwaffe in 1938. From then on these aircraft served in the advanced trainer role. via Michulec

By the beginning of the war the Heinkel He 70 reconnaissance aircraft had passed out of front-line service , but continued to serve in small numbers as trainers and courier planes.

The Gotha Go

145 initial

trainer served in large numbers at Luftwaffe flying schools.

34

T H E L FTWA F F E I N C M ! E R A 1 939- 1 945

Loading a practice tOrpedo into the weapons bay o f a n H e

PO LAN D , D EN � ! A R K , NO RWAY, B E LG I U � I , H O LLAl D, F RANCE

1 1 5 during the rype's operational

evaluation at the LUftwaffe test centre at Travemiinde on the Baltic. This relatively slow aircraft was the main tOrpedo bomber rype in the Luftwaffe during the early war years. Due to the poor reliability of the German air-dropped torpedoes at that rime the rype achieved little in the role. The He

115 served more effectively in the minelaying and maririme reconnaissance roles . via

Michulec

Heinkel He

1 1 5 floatplane passes low over German warships on exercise.

35

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

36

Engines rumUng,

an

H e 1 15 is lowered down to the water before a flight. via Michulec

P O LA N D , D E N M A R K , NO RWAY, B E LG I U �I , H OL L A N D , FRANCE

37

Dornier Do 1 8G flying boat being lowered on to its beaching trolley. This maritime reconnaissance type was obsolescent at the beginning of the war, and in 1941 most of those remaining were relegated to the air-sea rescue role. via Michulec

38

T H E L FTWA F F E I N CAlIl E R A 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

POLA N D , D EN�IA R K , NO RWAY , B E LGI lIf, H O LLAN D , FRANCE

39

I

Heinkel He l l ls o f KG 1, probably a t their main base a t Grei.fswald during the first winter of the

He 1 1 1s of KG 26 during operations from Lake Tonsvannet near Trondheirn, during the campaign

war.

in Norway. von Lossberg

40

TH E L FTWAFFE I N C A M E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

POLA 10, D EN M A R K ,

1

O RWAY, B E L G I M , H O LLAN D , F R A CE

41

+-

Junkers Ju

87 dive bombers of Lehrgeschwader 1 . Although the unit's title implies that it had a

training role, in fact it was a high-grade fighting unit, with experienced crews who were tasked with developing tactics for use with each of the main combat types.

Loading an SC 250 (550-pound) bomb on the fuselage rack of a Ju 87.

42

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A M E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

Practice formation flown by J u 87s o f Tragergruppe 1 8 6 (Tr.Gr 186), spring 1940 . This unit had been formed to operate from the German aircraft carrier Grtif <eppelil� which was then being

PO LAN D , D EN � I A R K , NO RWAY, B E LG I � I , H O LLAND , F R A N C E

43

litted out at Kiel. This Gruppe flew combat missions alongside other units, and when the carrier programme was cancelled it became a normal front-line unit. Bode

44

T H E L FTWAFFE

In 1938 the embryonic German paratroop force

I

was

three-engined machine war.

was

orway. Paratroops

.

l A R K , N O RWAY, B ELG I � I , H O LLAND , F RAI CE

45

incorporated into the Luftwaffe, which controlled

all airborne operations from then on. The first use of these units in action the invasion of Denmark and

POLA N D , D E

CA�[ E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

are

was

on 9 April 1 940, during

seen here leaving their Junkers Ju 52. The

the main workhorse of the Luftwaffe air transport force throughout the

onnally it carried up to twelve fully equipped parao"OOps, or up to

3,300 pounds of cargo. via

Michulec

During the campaign in

orway the LuftwaITe also transported army units into airfields captured

by the paratroops. Here men from a mountain division don their kit before moving away from their aircraft. via Michulec

German paratroops wave greetings to one A section of a dozen paratroops parade in frOnt of their Ju 52 transport, before boarding the aircraft for a practice jump. via Michulec

of the Stukas that provided them with such effective support during the airborne assault on Holland.

46

T H E L FTWAFFE I N C A � I E RA 1 9 3 9 - 1 945

PO LAN D , D E N �I A R K , NO RWAY, B E L G I � [ , H O LLAND , FRAI CE

47

A road convoy under attack in France, viewed from the nose of a Dornier Do 1 7.

Ground strafmg was a dangerous business for friend and foe alike. O n 17 May

1940 this D o 1 7 o f

II.lKG 7 6 was strafing a French road convoy when a n ammunition truck exploded violently. The German bomber suffered extensive damage, but the pilot, Unteroffizier Otto Stephani, was able to make a normal landing at his base at Vogelsang. The Dornier never flew again. via Rehrn

Do 17 of lInd Gruppe of KG 76, fitted with 20 Raab

mm

cannon in the nose for strafing ground targets.

48

T H E L FTWAFFE I N CMI E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

POLA N D , D EN M A R K , N O RWAY, B E L G I M , H O LLAND , FRA C E

49

Ripple take-off by a Staffel o fJ u 87s. Operational missions often took the Stukas close t o the limit of their radius of action. To make the most of the aircraft's limited range it was important to assemble the formation as soon as possible after the leader took off. Where range was critical the aircraft were

SC 250 bomb (550-pounder) viewed immediately after release from a Ju 87. Having pushed

towed or taxied into position in line abreast at the down-wind end of the airfield, with the leader on

the bomb clear of the airscrew disk, the special crutch mechanism has been pushed back by the

the far left. There the engines were

warmed

up, shut down, and the tanks topped off. At the briefed

airflow and now hangs below the fuselage.

time the engines were restarted, the leader commenced his take-off run and the other aircraft followed in rapid succession. The aircraft took off parallel headings to keep out of the slips tream and any dust raised by the one ahead. Once the leader was airborne he made a slow turn on to the target heading, flying slowly to allow the rest of the aircraft to move into their assigned places in formation behind

him. Once the formation had assembled, the leader increased power and began the climb to attack altitude.

Ju 87s often had to operate from ill-prepared field landing grounds and it was fairly common for an aircraft to dig in a wheel on landing and end up standing on its nose. This aircraft of LlStG 77 assumed the undignified position after landing at Le Mesul-Angat in Normandy. Scheffel

Ju 87s of LlStG 77 camouflaged at their dispersal points at Courcelles, near St Quentin during the campaign in France. Scheffel

50

T H E L U FTWA F F E I N CA�I E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

POLAND , D EN � I A R K , N O RWAY, B EL G I � I , H O LLAN D , F RANCE

51

Luftwaffe personnel examine a Spitfire o f No. 74 Squadron, which had been abandoned intact at Calais Marck airfield. Barbas

Wrecked French military aircraft at the airfield at Escarmain, following its capture by German forces. Unger

Aircrew of KG 76 inspect the wreck of an RAF Hurricane that lay abandoned at their airfield at Beauvais. Rernm

52

T H E L U FTWA F F E IN CA�I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 45

POLA N D , D EN M A R K , l':O RWAY, B E LG I U � I , H O LLA N D , F RANCE

53

A direct hit on one of the ships taking part in the Dunkirk evacuation on 1 June 1940, during an attack by Stukas of I./StG 77. Scheffel

Officers of KG 76 outside Notre-Dame Cathedral, Paris on a sightseeing tour following the victorious conclusion of the campaign in France.

During the campaign reconnaissance units.

111

the West the Henschel Hs 1 2 6 equipped almost all short-range

TH E B ATTLE O F B R ITAI N JULY T O D E C E M B E R 1 9 4 0

56

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 939- 1 945

T H E B ATTLE O F B R I TA I N

57

Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring, second from left, was co=ander of Luftflotte 2 during the Battle of Britain. In the First World War he served in the army and rose to become adjutant of a brigade. An extremely capable administrator, he transferred to the Luftwaffe in 1 933 and became head of its administrative office. In the years to follow he advanced rapidly and by the summer of 1940 he was in co=and of Luftflotte 2, the largest of these formations. From his headquarters in Brussels he controlled all units based in Holland, Belgium and France east of the Seine. A German officer of the old school, Kesselring was firm but always courteous with subordinates and greatly respected. To the left of Kesselring is GeneraiJeschonnek, Chief of Staff of the Luftwaffe. On his right are General Speidel, Chief of Staff of Luftflotte 2, and General Bruno Loerzer, co=ander of Fliegerkorps II. von Lossberg

Generalfeldmarschall Hugo Sperrie, right, co=ander of LuftIlotte 3 during the Battle of Britain. His formation comprised Luftwaffe units based in south-west Germany and France west of the Seine. In the First World War he served in the Imperial Hying Service, and transferred to the army after the conflict. In 1935 he moved to the new Luftwaffe and the following year co=anded the Legion Kondor, sent to fight in the Spanish Civil War. In contrast to Kesselring, Sperrle was an aloof figure and a stickler for protocol. Hitler referred to him as 'one of his most brutal-looking generals'. via Dietich

58

T H E L[;FTWA F F E I N CA�I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 945

59

T H E BATTLE O F B R ITAI N

ewly delivered replacement Bf 109 'Emils' for JG the markings and colour scheme used by the unit.

26,

France,

1 940.

They are being painted in

Bf 109 pilots of IIIrd Gruppe,Jagdgeschwader 26. From left to right: Leumant Ludewig, Leutnant Heinz Ebeling, Oberleutnant Gerhard Sch6pfel, OberleutnantJosef Haib6ck and Leutnant Hans Nauman. Sch6pfel

Officers of IILlJG 26 discussing the unit's next mission, outside the headquarters caravan at the airfield at Caffiers, near Calais. Seated second from left is the unit commander, Major Adolf Galland. To his immediate left is Gerhard Sch6pfel. Sch6pfel

The Heinkel He 59, an obsolete torpedo bomber floatplane, operated in the air-sea rescue role during the Battle of Britain. Initially these aircraft were painted in white all over and carried prominent red cross markings to indicate their non-combatant role. The RAF did not recognize

this status, however, and pilots were ordered to attack the floatplanes on sight. Thereafter, the Heinkels were camouflaged and carried machine-guns for self-protection. via Schliephake

62

T H E L U FTWAFFE I

I

CAl\IERA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B R I TA I N

63

Aircrew of KG 76 eying out one of the rubber dinghies fitted to their aircraft, dw-ing preparations for the Battle of Britain. In 1940 the sea-survival equipment issued to Luftwaffe aircrew was far better than that provided by the RAF. Rehm A camouflaged He 59 floatplane flies low over a rescue launch dw-ing an exercise. During the Battle of Britain the two worked in concert to rescue aircrew from both sides.

64

T H E BATTL E O F B R ITA I N

T H E LU FTWA F F E I N CA�I E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

,

Intelligence Hoax. Before the war the Lufrwaffe had rejected the Heinkel He 100 in favour of developed versions of the Bf 109. The Heinkel fighter of 1940 nine He 100s were employed in a

remarkable

was

offered for expon, however. In the spring

hoax intended to convince the Allied intelligence

services that the He 1 13, a new high-performance fighter, had entered service. The aircraft were photographed in lines, bearing bogus unit markings and victory bars. The hoax

was

successful, and

during the Battle of Britain RAF pilots reported numerous combats with 'He 113s'. Strangely, although several of these fighters were claimed shot down, no wreck of one Schliephake

was

ever found in Britain. via

.

65

66

T H E L U FTWA F F E IN C MI E RA 1 93 9- 1 94 5

T H E BATTLE O F B R ITAI

67

Bf 110D fitted with the fixed bulged extra fuel tank under the fuselage. This variant served with Ist Gruppe of Zerstiirergeschwader 76 (IJZG 76) operating from Aalborg in Denmark during the battle. The unprotected extra tank posed a serious fire hazard and following the disastrous action on 15 August, when the unit lost one·third of the Bf 1 10Ds sent into action, this variant saw little further service. via Schliephake

The Messerschmitt B f 110 was the most effective twin·engined fighter type t o see action during the early part of the war. This example belonged to Zerstiirergeschwader L With a normal radius of action of 340 miles, it promised to be useful as an escort fighter. However, during the Battle of Britain the units suffered heavy losses when they were forced into dogfights with the more manoeuvrable RAF fighters.

68

T H E LUFTWA F F E I N C A M E RA 1 939- 1 945

Smoke rising over Dover harbour, following the desouctive dive-bombing attack on the port by Ju 87s on the morning of 29 July.

T H E B ATTLE O F B RI TA I N

Bomb damage at Manston. This was the only Fighter Command airfield to b e put out of action for any length of time during the Batde of Britain, but it was not one of the all­ important Sector stations. The wrecked aircraft in the foreground was a Magister trainer.

69

70

T H E LU FTWA F F E II\' CAt-'I E R A 1 93 9- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B R I TA !

71

I

�.-

Do 17s of I.IKG 76 climbing for an attack on a target in Great Britain. 'Schwarm' battle formation of B f 109Es of II.(JG 27, with the aircraft almost in line, abreast and flying well spaced out, early in the Battle of Britain. Neumann

Ten Hurricanes are seen climbing into position to engage the German formation over Kent on the afternoon of 16 August. They are viewed from a Do 17 of KG 76. The fighters almost certainly belonged to No. 1 1 1 Squadron, which delivered a head-on attack on the German formation shortly afterwards. A Hurricane collided with one of the Domiers and both aircraft crashed near Marden. There were no survivors from either machine. Unger

72

T H E LU FTWAFFE IN C A M E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B RITAI

A close-up of the marking carried by the Dorniers of 2. Staffel of KG During the Battle o f Britain most Luftwaffe fighter units operated from hastily prepared lancling

73

t

76 during the attacks

on Great Britain in the summer of 1940. Rehm

grounds in northern France. Although these had no permanent facilities, in the warm summer weather engineering work could be carried Out in the open with little difficulty. A Bf 109E of Ill! JG

26 has an engine change at CafEers, near Calais (above) . A Bf 1 l0C ofL/ZG 76 has an engine

change at Laval, near Le Mans (below).

Hauptmann

Karl Ebbinghausen, commander of Il!JG 2, pictured in his personal Bf 109.

He was killed in action with British fighters on 1 6 August.

74

T H E L FTWAFFE 1 :'-1 C A � I E RA 1 939- 1 945

T H E B ATTLE O F B R I TA I N

75

On 18 August, Kampfgeschwader 76 attempted an ambitious attack against Kenley airfield.

FIrst, a dozen Junkers Ju 88s of the lind Gruppe were to dive-bomb the hangars and installations. Then twenty-seven Do 17s of the 1st and IIIrd Gruppen were to crater the airfield and knock out the ground defences. Fmally, nine Do 17s of the 9th Staffel were to deliver a low altitude attack to finish off any important buildings still standing. Banks of thick cloud over France delayed the form-up of the high-flyingJu 88s and Do 17s, however. As a result the 9th Staffel attacked first, and suffered the wrath of the defences. Of the nine bombers, four were shot down, two more crash landed in France and the rest returned with battle damage.

9th StafTel Dornier flying below 100 feet over Kent. The town in the background is Seaford.

Do 17s of KG 76 taking ofT from Cormeilles-en-Vexin near Paris for the attack on Kenley.

Aircraft of 9th Staffel seen skirting round Beachy Head at low altitude, before crossing the coast.

The northern edge of Kenley airfield, picrured during the attack by the 9th Staffel. Cannon shells fired from one of the bombers are seen exploding around a gun position in the background. The Spitfire in the revetment, from o. 64 Squadron, suffered minor damage.

76

T H E L FTWAffE I

T H E BATTL E O f B R I TA I N

C A M E R A 1 939- 1 945

77

D o 1 7 o f I./KG 76 shot down by Pilot Officer Alan Eckford o f No. 3 2 Squadron during the high­ altitude attack on Kenley airfidd, 18 August. The bomber crashed near Oxted in Surrey.

the destructive attack o n 1 8 August. Wrecked hangars at Kenley, pictured immediately after . within two hours of the raId. By the Despite this damage the airfield was back in limited use were once agam at full operauonal following morning the station's two fighter squadrons capability.

During the Battle of Britain the Luftwaffe mounted an intensive 3'/,-week campaign against Fighter Command airfidds in southern Britain. On each day that the weather allowed, two or more airfidds came under attack. Yet, despite the large effort, the attacks failed to prevent effective operations from any Sector station for more than a few hours. Moreover, during this entire campaign, front-line

RAF single-engined fighter units lost fewer than twenty aircraft destroyed on the ground. In a

rare

success, during the combined high- and low-altitude attack on Kenley on 18 August, four Hurricanes of No. 615 Squadron were destroyed (one is seen here) and three damaged on the ground.

78

T H E L FTWAFFE I N C M I E R A 1 939- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B R ITAl I

79

On the afternoon of 1 8 August four Gruppen with 109 Ju 87 dive bombers attacked Gosport, Ford and Thomey Island airfield and Poling radar station. Five RAF squadrons engaged the force, shooting down sixteen of the Stukas and causing damage to a further six.

This Ju 87 from II.IStG 77 made a forced landing at Ham Manor Golf Course, near Angmering.

That evening the Home Guard men left the crash site, and by next morning souvenir hunters had stripped the aircraft bare.

I.IStG 77, attacking Thomey Island, bore the brunt of the losses. Of the twenty-eight aircraft it sent into action, ten were destroyed and six damaged. ThisJu 87 belonging to the unit crashed at West Broyle near Chichester.

Lucky to be alive! Unteroffizier Karl Meier, a radio operator with I.IStG 77. During the attack on Thomey Island his aircraft was attacked by British fighters. He suffered eight hits on his body from British machine­ gun rounds, but escaped with only flesh wounds. Selhom

80

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CAM E R A 1 93 9- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B R ITAI N

An anti-aircraft shell bursting below a Heinkel I I I o f KG 5 3 as it headed for North Weald airfield during the late afternoon of Royal

1 8 August 1940.

avy personnel emerging from their shelters at the Fleet Air Arm airfield at Ford in Sussex

to fight the fires caused by the dive-bombing attack. 1birteen aircraft were destroyed and twenty­ six damaged on the ground, but most were outdated torpedo bombers used for training and were of no relevance to the main battle.

A German recOlmaissance photograph showing smoke rising after the attack on Ford.

Hauptmann Horst Tietzen, the commander of 5.1G 51, with his personal Bf 109E bearing eighteen victory bars on the tail. On the afternoon of

18 August 1940, when his victory

score stood at twenty, he was shot down and killed during an action with Hurricanes of No.

501 Squadron. via Ring

81

82

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A M E RA 1 9 39- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B RI TA I N

83

I /

"

,

,

He 1 1 1s of KG 1 during the Battle of Britain.

- /

•

•

Smoke rising at Camber, near Lydd in Kent on the afternoon of 1 1 September 1 940. In the A He 1 1 1 releases a string of l I D-pound high-explosive bombs. These small weapons were

background the wrecks of two Heinkel He I I I bombers, one from KG 1 and the other from KG

suspended in the bomb bay nose-up, and after release they tumbled into the nose-down position_

26, bum themselves out after being shot down during an attack on London.

T H E BATTLE O F B R I TA !

T H E L U FTWA F F E I N CAM E RA 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

84

A He

85

I I I of KG 1 being inspected after it made a crash landing in southern Britain.

Dornier D o 17s in battle formation. This formation was designed t o b e easy to fly, while providing crews with the greatest possible concentration of defensive fire-power in the all-important rear sector.

�

� '" �

�

�

� � �

� .)t..

.)t.. .)t..

�

� �

)It

)It )l(

'"'" �

'"

'"'" '"

..

During the daylight attacks on London the escorting Bf 109s had to operate at the limit of their radius of action. Several of these fighters were lost when they ran out of fuel, and this one only just made it back to the coast of France. via Willis

86

T H E L U fTWAFFE I N C M I E RA 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

T H E B ATTLE Of B RITAIN

87

The huge fires started among warehouses at the Surrey Docks on 7 September served as a beacon for the follow-up attack that night. The fIres were still burning the following morning, and it required 130 fire pumps to bring the conflagration under control.

H e I I I o f K G l over West India Docks, during the heavy attack o n that part o f London o n the afternoon of 7 September 1940.

From the roof of a building in Beet Stteet, smoke is seen rising from the many fires resulting from the bombing of the dockland area of London, 7 September 1940.

T H E L FTWAFFE I N CAM E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

90

T H E BATTLE O F B RITAI

1

91

These images illustrate the weakness of the .303-in machine-guns fitted to British fighters, when used against enemy bombers. On 15 September this Do 17 of KG 76 crash-landed in France with more than 200 hits. That number of hits indicates that at least two British fighters fired most of their

ammunition

into the bomber from short range. On the original print of the close-up

photograph more than fifty bullet strikes are visible. via

Rehm

This badly damaged Do 1 7 from II.lKG 3 made it back to Belgium on one engine after the action on 15 September, but was wrecked in the ensuing crash landing. Schultz

92

T H E L FTWAFFE J

T H E BATTL E OF B R I TA I N

C A M E R A 1 93 9 - 1 945

Bf 1 10s ofSchnellkampfgeschwader 2 1 0 (SKG 2 1 0). This fighter-bomber unit had been formed to introduce the new Messerschmitt Me 2 1 0 into service when it became available. However, during the Battle of Britain it operated the earlier type.

JunkersJu

Ground crewmen of SKG 2 1 0 await the order to load 550-pound bombs on the unit's Bf 1 1 0s.

88 of KG 54, in its camouflaged pen at St Andre in France. via Michulec

93

94

T H E L UFTWA ffE I N C A M E R A 1 939- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B R ITA I N

95

Bf 109Es loaded with 550·pound bombs. During the final phase of the Battle of Britain these aircraft delivered numerous attacks on London and other targets in southern Britain.

Bf 109Es of II.lJG 53 preparing to take off from the grass airfield at Dinan in western France.

96

97

T H E BATTLE O F B R I TA I N

T H E L FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

Major Helmut Wick, facing can1era, had a meteoric rise during the Battle of Britain. In July 1 940, as an Oberleutnant, he commanded 3. StafTel ofJG 2. In September, as a Hauptmarm, he took command of 1st Gruppe. In October, with the rw of Major, he assumed command of the Geschwader. Helmut Wick was killed on 28

ovember in a dogfight

with Spitfires of

o. 609 Squadron,

when his victory score stood at fifty­ six. via Frappe

Oberst Werner Molders, commander of JG 5 1 , was the top-scoring German fighter ace in the Battle of Britain. His victory total passed the fifty mark in October 1940, and reached sixty in the following February.

Major Gunter Lutzow, left, commander of JG 3 during the latter part of the Battle of Britain.

Major Adolf Galland, commander ofJG 26 during the latter PaJ·t of the Battle of Britain, seated in

On 18 September 1940 his victory score stood at fifteen. To his right is HauptmaJID WUhelm

his personal Bf 109. Note the non-standard telescopic sight mounted in the windscreen. GallaJ1d's

Balthasar, commander of IIIrd Gruppe, whose victory score topped the forty mark when he was

victory score reached forty on 25 September 1940.

wounded in action on 4 September 1940.

+

98

TH E L FT\\,A FFE I N eMI ERA 1 939- 1 945

T H E BATTLE O F B R ITA I N

99

Junkers Ju 86P high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft. This advanced aircraft featured a pressurized cabin and was powered by rwo highly supercharged djesel engines, enabling it to operate at altitudes above 37,000 feet, where it was immw1e from fighter interception during the early war years.

An unusual shot of Spitfires over Snodland, Kent, taken from the Messerschmitt Bf 1 10 reconnaissance aircraft the Spitfires were climbing to intercept, 2 1 December 1940. Twenty-three Spitfires from Nos 64 and 6 1 1 Squadrons took part in the interception which ended in a long chase Out to sea. After suffering severe damage and with a dead

Spoils of war. Royal All- Force personnel pwnping pen·ol from aJu 88 of KG 54 that crash-landed

gunner, the Messerschmitt escaped and made an emergency landing at Mardyk near

near Tangmere into a pl�vate

Dunkirk. via Escher

car

belonging to one of them. Such nllsuse of captured enemy

material was illegal, but usually those in authority turned a blind eye to it. Lloyd

d

TH E NI G HT BLITZ O N B R I TA I N AUG U S T 1 9 4 0 T O

M AY

1 94 1

102

T H E N I G H T B LITZ ON B R I TA I N

THE L FT\\"AFFE IN CAl\I ERA 1 9 39- 1 945

Arrnourers CatTy out final adjustments on a 550·pound bomb mounted under the fuselage of a He 1 1 1 . Note the compressed cardboard 'screamers' fitted to the fins of the bomb, intended to increase the weapon's effect on enemy morale.

'Knickebein' transmitting station situated at Mount Pin�on, near Saint La in northern France. The station radiated a natTOW radio beam at high power, which was accurately aligned on the target to be attacked. The beam signals were picked up by the standard airfield approach receivers eatTied by all German bombers, and no special equipment was necessat}' for crews to use this system.

A He I I I with a

5,500-pound SC 3500 'Max', the heaviest type of bomb in normal use by the Luftwaffe .

•

1 03

1 04

T H E N I G HT B LITZ ON B RITAL

T H E L FTWA F F E I N CAJ\I E R A 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

1 05

With four SSO-pound bombs carried externally on the underwing racks under the inner wing, a A crew o f KG 4 boarding their H e 1 1 1 for

an

Ju 88 taxies out for a night attack.

attack on Great Britain. The aircraft is loaded with

two 2,200-pound bombs.

Ground crewmen of KG 1 crank the inertia starter handle to start the starboard engine of aJu 88 of

A He 1 1 1 with two 2,200-pound bombs under the fuselage, taking off for a night mission.

KG 1 , before a night attack on Great Britain.

•

1 06

T H E N I G HT BLITZ ON B R I TA I N

TH E LU FTWA F F E I N CA�I E R A 1 939- 1 945

107

Warehouses burning at S t Katherine's Dock, following the heavy attack on the night of

1 1/12 September 1940.

A sombre-looking Winston Churchill inspecting the gutted works o f the Silvertown Rubber Company at Wmchester Street, 8 September 1940.

Bomb damage in Leicester Square, in front of the headquarters of the Royal Automobile Association, on the morning of 17 October 1940. The vehicles in the foreground had suffered damage that was beyond even the repair skills of that famous organization .

•

1 08

T H E N I G HT B LITZ ON B R I TA I N

T H E L fTWAFFE I N C A M E R A 1 93 9- 1 94 5

H e 1 1 I s of Kampfgruppe 1 0 0 (KGr 100), the special night-attack unit wruch operated from

1 09

Feldwebel Horst Gatz of KGr 100 in the cockpit of rus He 1 1 1 . Note the 'VIking Srup'

Vannes in Brittany. These aircraft carried receivers for the X- Gerat beam bombing system,

emblem of the unit painted on the fuselage. Goetz

employing two additional aerial masts mounted on top of the rear fuselage. The system enjoyed only moderate success dw-ing attacks on Great BI�tain, however.

This Heinkel of KGr 100 returned to France after suffering damage during an attack on Great Britain. It made a forced-landing on the beach in Brittany, but before it could be moved the incoming tide and the Atlantic rollers made short work of it. via Trenkle

•

THE

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

1 10

I G I-IT B LITZ O N B R I TA I N

I II

Annourers loading 2,200-pound parachute mines on the fuselage racks o f a He 1 1 1 . I n addition to their intended role of rendering waterways hazardous for shipping, these thin-cased weapons were often fitted with impact fuses for use against land targets.

He 1 1 1 of I1UKG 26, a night-attack unit that employed the Y-Gerat beam bombing system (note the additional aerial aft of the cockpit). This device proved no more successful than the X-Gerat during attacks on targets in Great Britain, however. The man in front of the aircraft (above) and in the cockpit (below) is Major Viktor von Lossberg, the Gruppe commander. von Lossberg

TIlls He 1 1 1-8 from IIJKG 27 was running in to deliver a low-altitude night attack on Yeovil when it struck a rnist-<XlVered hill near Lutworth Cove, 22 May 1941. The bomber carried a fender attachment mOW1ted in front of the nose and wings to ward off barrage balloon cables. The fender weighed about 550 poW1ds and required a similar weight of lead in the

rear

fuselage

to scrve

as

a coW1ter-baJance. The additional

weight and drag of the installation reduced the performance of the aircraft and impaired handling. The device

was

W1popular with crews, and after a shon time it was removed from front-line aircraft.

•

1 12

TH E L UFTWAFFE I N CA 1 E R A 1 93 9 - 1 945

TH E H O LD I NG C AM PAI G N I N TH E WE ST 1 9 4 1 TO 1 9 4 2 Propeller change o n a Heinkel H e I I I o f K G 4 a t a n airfield in France. Note the use of the mobile crane captured from the RAF. via Michulec

1 14

T H E LU FT\\'AFFE I N CA�I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 94 5

T H E H O L D I NG C A � I PA I G N I N T H E WEST

1 15

A Bf 109F flown by the commander of IIlrd Gruppe of JG 2, early in 1 94 1 . Note the unit's 'Cock's Head' insignia on the engine cowling.

An early production Bf 109F-1 flown by Major Werner Molders, commander of J G 5 1 , a t St Orner in northern France. The fifty·six victory bars on the rudder indicate that the photographs were probably taken in February 1 94 1 . via Schliephake

Bf 109F of one of the Geschwader based in the west, either JG 2 or JG 26. In the background is its camouflaged individual hangar, painted to look like a farm building.

c

1 16

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N CAl\I E RA 1 93 9- 1 945

T H E H O LDll G C A M PA I G N I

T H E WEST

1 17

During 1 940 and '4 1 Focke Wulf Fw 200 Kondor aircraft of KG 40 flew far out into the Atlantic, plying between Bordeaux in France and Stavanger in Norway. At that time the Royal Navy was desperately short of escort vessels and the aircraft were able to attack convoys with little risk to themselves. Jope

Armourers loading an 250·kg bomb on the rack under the port outer engine of an Fw 200. Jope

1 18

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C M I E R A 1 93 9- 1 94 5

T H E H O L D I N G CA�I PA I G N I N T H E W E S T

1 19

Mission tally painted on the rudder of the Fw 200 flown by Leumant Buchholz of I.IKG 40, listing thirteen sorties flown over Britain and ten attacks on ships. via Schliephake

mission. O n the A crew of KG 4 0 don lifejackets before boarcting their Fw 200 for an overseas of aircraft. Jope far left is Hauptmann Bernhard Jope, one of the leading exponents of this type

Inside an Fw 200 during an overseas mission. Note the large 66 imp gal fuel tank, one of tlu'ee such tanks that could be installed in the fuselage for extended range missions. via Selinger

1 20

T H E H O L D I NG C M I PA I G N I N T H E W E S T

T H E LU FTWA F F E I N C A M E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 945

Initially the BMW

8 0 1 engine fitted to the Fw 190 was prone to overheat and sometimes

catch fire, as happened to this aircraft. Several aircraft were lost to this cause and for a time pilots were forbidden to fly over the sea beyond gliding range from the coast. The fust unit to become operational with the FW 1 90 was II.(JG 26, based at Moorseele in Belgium, in the summer of 1 9 4 1 . The new German fighter immediately demonstrated a clear edge in combat capability over the Spitfire V, its retained in the West to contain the larger

RAF contemporary, enabling the small force

RAF attacking forces.

The second Gruppe to receive the Fw 1 90 was III.(JG 26, commanded by Major Gerhard Schopfel, which began re-equipping in September 1 94 1 .


: C A � I E R A 1 9 39- 1 9 45

Junkers Ju 88C long-range fighters of V.!KG

40,

a unit tasked with providing protection for

T H E W E S T E R N FRONT

239

Ju 88Cs head out to sea.

U-boats passing through the Bay of Biscay to reach their hunting ground in the Atlantic. A four­ aircraft Schwarm ofJu 88s lined up before take-off from their base at BordeauxiMerignac.

U-boats in the Bay of Biscay area were often the subject of attacks by Allied aircraft, making the presence of the German heavy fighters in their area extremely welcome.

r

240

T H E L FTWAFFE

1 1\

C A � [ E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

T H E W E S T E R N FRONT

24 1

Coastal Command Liberator under attack from Ju 88s. The well-armed four-engined aircraft often proved a doughry opponent during these encounters.

Dramatic shots taken fromJu 88Cs during actions against

RAF aircraft over the Bay of Biscay: tracer rounds streaking towards an RAF SW1deriand Dying boat under attack.

The Sunderland was forced down on the water. Sinking and with one wing awash, the crew inflate dinghies and prepare to abandon the aircraft.

242

T H E LUFTWA F F E

J:-I

CAl\I E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

T H E W E S T E R N FRONT

243

Hs 293 under the starboard wing of a Do 2 1 7 of II.lKG 100. During long-range missions, the aircraft carried a drop tank wlder the port wing to serve as a counterbalance.

Due to delays in bringing the He 177 and theJu 290 into operational service, the Fw 200 Condor was not replaced in the maritime reconnaissance role until well into 1944. via Schliephake

Henschel Hs 293 radio·controlled glider bomb. After launch, the rocket motor under the fuselage boosted the missile to speeds around 370 m.p.h. Then, its fuel exhausted, the missile coasted the rest of the way to the target.

Fw 200 with an Hs 293 under each outer engine.

r

244

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CA�I E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

Stills from a remarkable cine film taken by a Royal

avy officer, showing an Hs 293 heading

towards his warship. The glider bomb missed, though not by much!

/

.

T H E W E S T E R N FRONT

245

The frigate HMS Egret was the first warship sunk by an air-launched guided missile. On 27 August 1943 she was struck amidships by an Hs 293; the detonation set off depth charges in her magazine and she sank with heavy loss of life.

246

T H E LUFTWAFFE

1 1\

CA I E R A 1 939- 1 945

T H E WESTERN FRONT

247

In the months leading up to the Allied invasion of France. the main Luftwaffe airfields in western Europe came under heavy and sustained bombardment. These three photos show Ju SSC fighters and Fw 200s wrecked at BordeauxlMerignac airfield during a damaging attack on 27 March 1944 by 123 B-17 Flying Fortresses. Trenkle

248

T H E LU FTWA FFE I. CA�I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 45

Three photographs taken during the briefmg of crews of I.IKG 2 for the attack on London on the night of 23/24 February 1944. The bl;e£i.ng took place at the unit's forward base at Melunl Vilaroche south of Paris. The Gruppe despatched thirteen Do 2 1 7s on this mission. Here Major Schonberger, the Gruppe commander, is seen giving the main briefing.

T H E W E S T E R N FRONT

Crews taking notes during the Gruppe co mmander's briefing.

249

250

T H E LUFTWAFFE IN C M I E R A 1 939- 1 945

Hauptmann Kurt Seyfarth briefing crews of I.IKG 2.

THE W E T E R N FROi\'T

The unit's target that night was Millwall docks and the adjacent warehouse area.

25 1

252

T H E LU FTWA FFE

IN

T H E W E T E R N F RONT

C A M E R A 1 939- 1 945

D o 2 17M belonging to K G 2 taxies out for a night raid.

Do 2 17M of KG 2.

Close-up of the nose of a Do 2 17M. Note the balloon cable cutting blade running horizontally round the leading edge of the cockpit glazing.

253

2 54

T H E W E T E RN FRONT

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CA�I E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 9+5

(Above and f4!J Heinkel He

255

177 heavy bombers of I.lKG 100, picrured at the time of the attacks on

London and other British cities during the early months of 1944. The aircraft was fitted with an unusual coupled engine

arran

gement with two motors in each nacelle driving a single propeller

via a gear box. Initially the system had given considerable trouble, but by the beginning of 1944 its problems had largely been solved. As a result the heavy bomber was at last able to perform

effectively, after reaching full scale service nearly two years late.

256

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CMI E RA 1 939- 1 945

T H E WESTER, FRONT

257

Groundcrewmen of I.IKG 76 arming a Ju 88 in readiness for an attack on England. The weapon

is an AB 1000 container, fitted with 620 incendiary bombs. After the container was released from the aircraft over the target, the layers of incendiaries were released at pre-set intervals to scatter them over a wide area. He 177s o f I.IKG 40 also took part in these raids o n England a t that time.

259

T H E LU FTWAFFE IN CAld E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 9 45

T H E W E S T E R N F RONT

Annament NCO supervising the adjustment of the fusing system of the AB I OOO incendiary bomb

With the bomb container in place under the wing of theJu 88, the aircraft is refuelled for the next

258

container.

mission.

260

TH E L FTWAFFE I N C A M E R A 1 93 9- 1 94 5

Junkers Ju 1 8 8 bombers of the pathfinder unit I.IKG 66, which marked targets for the raiders during the 1944 attacks on England. A1trogge

T H E W E S T E R N F RONT

26 1

Ju 88S of I.IKG 66. This variant was fitted with nitrous oxide injection, which boosted engine power and enabled it to attain altirudes around 33,000 feet over the target. Trenkle

262

T H E L FT\\'A FFE I N CA r- I ERA 1 93 9 1 94 5

Lucky escape for crew o f an H e 177 crew which returned from England, after one o f their bomber's fuel tanks was blown Out without setting the aircraft ablaze,

T H E WESTERN F RONT

263

TIlls Ju 88 of I.IKG 54 was damaged by AA fire over London on the night of 18/19 April 1944, The aircraft crash,landed at the RAF night-fighter base at Bradwell Bay in Essex,

Fw 190 fighter-bomber of the ubiquitous SKG 10, which served on each of the major battle fronts

and from time to time flew missions against England. Wenk

266

T H E L FT\\,AFFE I :\" C A � I E R A 1 93 9- 1 945

IN D E FE NC E O F TH E F AT H E R L A N D OCTOBER 1 942

Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (centre o f group o f inspecting officers, holding baton) reviewing pilots and ground crews of I I I.lJG 26 in France shortly before the invasion. To the right of the army commander is Oberst Josef 'Pips' PrilIer, the Geschwader commander. To the right and slightly behind PrilIer is the commander of III. Gruppe, Major Klaus Mietusch.

-

MAY

1 944

268

IN

TH E LUFTWA FFE I N CAJ-I ERA 1 939- 1 945

D U E C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

269

From massive concrete operations bunkers, such a s this carefully camouflaged example near Grove in central Denmark, the LuftwalTe directed its fighters during the great day and rught battles over Germany. The top of the bunker was over

foot thick.

60 feet high, with a bombproof roof 15 o photograph

can

adequately convey the sense of high drama, bustle and urgency of a fighter

operations room while an action was in progress. This artist's impression comes close, however. (1) sat near the rear of the 'stalls' with his broadcast officer on his

The Chief Operations Officer

right. In front of him sat the fighter liaison officers, in telephone contact with the fighter bases. The air situation picture was flashed on to the rear of the translucent map (5, 6) by female auxiliaries using light projectors.

270

T H E L FTWAFFE

1 ;,\

C A � I E R r\ 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

Huge flak towers were erected t o stiffen the defences a t maj or CItIeS, like this one I n the Friedrichshain district of Berlin. The lower level of the building served as a civil defence headquarters, and below that was a large public air raid shelter.

IN

D E FE N C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA ' 0

271

'Flak you could walk on' was a term often used loosely, but this picture taken from a B-24 during the attack on Berlin on 6 March 1944 shows how fierce the flak could get. Although the gunners shot down few aircraft, they inflicted damage on many of them.

272

T H E L FTII'AFFE I N CAld E RA 1 93 9- 1 945

I N D EF E N C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA 1' O

lO.5-cm guns mounted on railway flats firing a salvo.

During the latter part of the war the Luftwaffe made use of captured AA weapons to stiffen the defences of the homeland. This Russian 8.5-em gun had been rebored to take the standard German 8.8-em round. The object on the end of the barrel was a cover.

273

274

T H E LU FTWAFFE I;\' eMI E R A 1 9 39- 1 94 5

I N D E FE :-.1 C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA ;\' O

275

Fighter Ace Oberleumant Heinz Knocke of Il.(JG 1 1 pictured with his Bf 109G-6 in the spring of 1944, when the unit was based at Wunstorf. Knocke

B f 109G-2 ofJG 1 1 based atJever late in 1 943, fitted with underwing launchers for two 2 1 -crn air­ to-air rockets for use against US heavy bomber formations_

276

T H E LUFTWA F F E IN CA�I ERA 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

I N D E FENCE O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

277

Bf 109G flown by Hauptmann Ludwig Franzisket, commander of LaG 2 7 during the early months of 1944.

With its high-powered engine and small wing, the Bf 1 0 9 'Gustav' did not suffer foolish or inexperienced pilots gladly. If he opened the throttle too quickly during take-off, the powerful engine torque could lift the starboard wing before the fighter attained flying speed. In that case the aircraft was liable to roll upside down and smash into the ground under full power, giving the pilot little chance of escape. via Schliephake

Bf 109G-6s of HIrd Gruppe Jagdgeschwader 27 waiting at readiness at Wiesbaden-Erbenheim in 1944. Schroer

278

T H E LUFTWAFFE IN C A � I E RA 1 93 9- 1 94 5

I N D E FE N C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

279

Damaged Bf 109G trailing glycol smoke, after being hit in the cooling system during an attack by a US escort fighter. Soon after tlUs picture was taken the fighter finished ofT the 'Gustav·. USAF

An Fw 190 delivers the coup de griice to a damaged

B-1? forced out of formation, after the attack

on the aircraft plant at Oschersleben on l l January 1944. USAF

280

1 1\

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A � I E RA 1 93 9- 1 94 5

D U E C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

28 1

"

Fw 190 lighter ofJG 1 , bearing the distinctive black and white stripes carried by the unit's aircraft in the spring of 1 944. From time to time Luftwaffe day-lighter units painted their engine cowlings in distinctive colours (yellow, white or red) or with distinctive pattenlS (stripes or checkerboard) to assist identification in combat. Despite persistent Allied reports to the contrary, such markings did rwt signify that the aircraft belonged to a 'crack' unit or that it was the personal mount of a lighter ace. Stripes on the nose of the Gennan lighter might or might not denote that the pilot was an ace - it depended on who happened to be flying it on that particular day. That Allied pilots should atn�bute a higher starus to their opponents than they deserved is understandable, however. Nobody wanted to admit having been frightened by anything but the best the enemy had available.

Ceremony at Berchtesgaden on 5 May 1 944, to present the Ritterkreuz with Oakleaves to successful Luftwaffe lighter pilots. From the left Oberstleutnant Gunther Radusch, Leutnant Anton Hafner. Major Rudolf Schanert and Major WUhelm Herget (shaking hands with Hitler).

282

T H E LU FTWAFFE 1 :-1 CA�I ERA 1 9 3 9- 1 94 5

IN

D EF E N C E O F T H E FAT H ER L A N D

Messerschmitt B f 1 l 0G bomber-destroyers o f Z G 2 6 . Each aircraft carries launchers for four 2 1 -cm rockets under the outer wings.

Fitting a 2 1-cm rocket into the underwing launcher tube of a Bf 1 10.

Bf 1 l0Gs of ZG 76.

283

284

T H E LUFTWAFFE I N CAr-l ERA 1 9 39- 1 945

I i D EF E N C E OF T H E FAT H E R LAND

285

-- I" _

,

Bf 1 10s of III.IZG 26 moving into position to attack a formation of US heavy bombers (in the background) heading to attack targets at Cottbus, Rostock and Sorau on 1 1 April 1944. The unit concentrated its attacks on the 13th and 45th Bomb Wmgs and accounted for most of the twenty-five bombers lost by these Wmgs during the attack. Kogler Rare photograph of a Bf 1 1 0 of ZG 76 carrying a modified 37-mm anti-aircraft gun mounted under the fuselage. The cumbersome installation seriously affected performance, and it saw little use in action. Haugk

286

T H E LU FTWAFFE I :\, CAt-1 ERA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

IN D EF E N C E OF T H E FATH E R LA N D

287

lliustracing the fate that awaited Gemlan bomber-destroyer units if they were caught by US escort fighters. A remarkable series of photographs taken by P-47 pilot Lieutenant Paul Conger of the 56th Fighter Group, during the action over the Frisian Islands on 1 1 December 1943. USAF

Me 410 fitted with a 50-mm converted tank gun in the nose, pulled away after delivering an attack on a US bomber fonnation.

288

T H E L FTWAFFE I N C M I E R A 1 939- 1 945

IN

DEFE ICE O F THE FAT H E R LA N D

•

Me 410 bomber-destroyers ofII.lZG 26.

Stylised wasp insignia on the nose of a Messerschmitt Me 410 bomber destroyer, indicting that the aircraft belonged to Zerstiirergeschwader 1 (ZG 1).

289

290

T H E L U FTWAFFE I i': CA�I ERA 1 9 39- 1 945

I i': D E FE N C E O F T H E FAT H ER L A N D

29 1

Bf 1 10 night-fighters of IIIrd Gruppe of Nachgagdgeschwader 5 (IILNJG 5) operating from

K6nigsberglNeumark in the su=er of 1943. Wolf

Close-up of 2 1 -cm rocket launchers, fitted to an Me 4 10.

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N CA�I E R A 1 93 9 - 1 945

292

(j 7 Bf 1 10 night-fighter fitted with the so-called Schriige Musik installation, a pair of 20-mm cannon fixed to fire obliquely upwards from the rear of the cabin.

IN

D E F E N C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

293

To reduce the glare from the engine exhausts, the Bf 1 10 night-fighter was fitted with hefty flame dampers. Although they were effective for their intended purpose, the installation reduced the aircraft'S performance.

294

T H E L U FT\\AFFE I N CA�I E R A 1 93 9 - 1 945

IN

D EF E 1\ C E O F T H E FAT H E RLA1\O

Fw 190 employed on Wi/de Sau single-engined night-fighter operations, to attack RAF bombers illuminated over the target by searchlights or fires on the ground.

Oberst Hajo Hermann, originator of the Wzlde Sau concept of operations.

295

296

I N D EF E N C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

T H E L FTWA F F E I N C M I E R A 1 93 9- 1 945

Lancaster bomber seen from above, silhouetted against cloud illuminated by searchlights, photographed during a night attack on Berlin. The Wilde Sail night-fighters' task was to engage bombers illuminated in this way.

297

1944, with the large aerial array for the new S -2 radar and a smaller array for the separate FuG 2 1 2 radar in the centre.

Bf HOG pictured early in

298

1 1\

T H E LU n"'AFFE I :" CA�I E R A 1 93 9- 1 94 5

B f ! l OGs fitted with a later version o f the

D E F E 1\ C E O F T H E FAT H E R LA N D

S -2 radar, with which the FuG 2 1 2 was no longer

required. The aerial on the wing tip of one of the aircraft fed the 'Flensburg' homing system, enabling the night-fighter to home in on the emissions from the 'Monica' tail warning radar carried by RAF bombers.

Bf l lOG night fighters of

[IG 5.

299

300

[ ;-.I D EF E 1\ C E O F T H E FAT H E RLAND

T H E L FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 945

301

AJunkers Ju 52 fitted with a magnetic loop system for exploding magnetic mines from the air. via Schliephake

AJunkersJu 88G fitted with S

-2

airborne interception radar.

During the large-scale daylight operations over Germany, night­ fighters were often ordered into the air to fly behind US heavy bomber formations and finish orr damaged aircraft. When they were caught by escorting fighters, however, these aircraft suffered particularly heavy losses. Here aJu 88G night fighter is seen turning steeply to avoid fighter attack.

An important part of the German passive defensive system against night attacks was the erection of decoy targets. This elaborate example was built near the Skoda works near Pilsen in Czechoslovakia.

TH E FI NAL Y E AR M AY

1 9 4 4 TO

M AY

1 945

304

T H E L FTWA F F E I N CA�I E R A 1 93 9 - 1 945

T H E F l l A L YEAR

305

An Me 262 tips a wing to show the 1 8° sweepback angle of the wing. The fighter's design was frozen before the German wind tunnel work on the use of sweepback to delay the effects of compressibility, and was not influenced by it.

Three of the main players in the controversy regarding the operational use of the Me 262. Left, Adolf Hitler. Partially hidden by the latter is Generalfeldmarschall Erhard Milch, who was sacked from his post as head of aircraft production for failing to ensure that the Me 262 was modified for use as a fighter-bomber. Shaking hands with the Fuhrer is General Adolf Galland, the InspectOr of Fighters, who made unsuccessful attempts to get him to reverse his decision. via Ethell

306

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 939- 1 945

White hope of the Luftwaffe during the fmal year of the war, the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. These photographs depict 'White 10', an early production aircraft belonging to Erprobungsstelle 262 based at Lechfeld, and were taken in the spring or summer of 1944.

T H E F I l\AL Y E A R

307

308

T H E LUFTWA F F E I N C A l\ I E R A 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

T H E F I NA L Y E A R

309

The two-cannon armament and bomb racks under the nose identify these aircraft as a Me 262 Ground crewman pulls the lanyard to start the small two-stroke piston engine built in the nose cone of the jet engine. The piston engine served as the starter motor for the Jumo 004 turbojet.

Flames gush from a Jumo 004,

as

the turbine builds up speed after the start. Although Junkers

engineers strove to improve the engine's reJiabiliry and its running life, these problems limited the effectiveness of the Me 262 for the remainder of the war.

fighter-bombers of Kampfgeschwader 5 1 . The aircraft on jacks is having the undercarriage retraction system tested.

310

T H E LU FTWA F F E I I C r\ I\ I E R A 1 9 39- 1 9 45

THE FINAL YEAR

A pair of Me

Close-ups of the bomb installation on the Me two 550-pounders. via Schliephake

262. The nonnal load carried by the aircraft

was

262 fighter-bombers of KG 5 taking off to attack Allied positions.

31 1

312

THE

L FTWA F F E I

I CA�! E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

THE

Fit A L Y EA R

313

The rocket-propelled Messerschmitt Me 163 fighter was the first jet-propelled aircraft to enter operational service in any nation, in May

1 944. Although it had a sparkling turn of speed

and excellent climbing performance, the fighter had a pitifully short raclius of action and that constrained its military effectiveness. These examples belonged to JG 400, the only combat unit The so-called 'Deichelschlepp' (pole-tow) system was designed to enable the M e 262 t o carry a 1 , 1 00-lb bomb mounted under a wing from a V. l missile. Mter take-off the wheeled dolly fell away. The method imposed a severe penalty on the jet fighter-bomber's performance, however, and it was never used in action.

to receive the rype. via Ethell

,

�I

314

T H E LU FTWA F F E 1 1\ CA�I E R A 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

T H E FINAL YEAR

315

Due to the weight of Allied air attacks on airfields in France, Luftwaffe fighter units were forced to operate from field landi.ng grounds. If the latter were located they came under immediate attack, and a unit's survival depended on its ability to camouflage itself effectively.

Instrument panel in the M e 1 6 3 , showing the simple conrrols necessary for this rocket fighter.

316

THE L

FT\\,A F F E I N C A J\ I E RA

T H E F I :,\, A L Y E A R

1 9 3 9- 1 945

317

TIlls Bfl 09G-6, still wearing the red fuselage band of the Reich Air Defence force, belonged to one of the units rushed to reinforce the defences of France after the invasion. On 2 1 July 1944 its pilot became disorientated in bad weather and made an unscheduled landing at the RAF airfield at Manston in Kent. The captured fighter took part in comparative trials against the Spitfire LF

IX, the Spitfire XN and the P·S I C Mustang, before it was destroyed in a crash in the following ovember.

The Mistel comprised an unmanned Junkers 88 fitted with a 7,800-pound warhead in place of the crew compartment. The combination was flown by a pilot sitting in a Bf 109 Qater an Fw 190) mounted rigidly on top of the bomber. The pilot aligned the combination on the target, switched

in the bomber's automatic pilot and then fired explosive bolts to release the lower component which continued straight ahead until (hopefully) it impacted on the target. Although the weapon was used in action in small numbers, there is no record of it having secured any noteworthy success.

318

THE

T H E F I :\ A L Y E A R

L U FT\\·AFFE I N CAl\I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 45

A remarkable photograph taken through trees surrounding the airfield at St Dizier by a member of the French Resistance, showing a Mistel at one of the dispersal points.

319

In the late spring of 1944 the Luftwaffe introduced the so-called Sturrngruppen, units operating Fw 190s fitted with additional armour and two 30-mm cannon. Flown by volunteer pilots, these aircraft were to hold tight formation and close on US heavy bomber formations from behind, braving the heavy retw-n fire. From a range of about 100 yards they would open a withering fire on their prey. UnterofflZier Bosch of IV.I(Sturm) JG 3 is seen boarding his aircraft at Schongau. Note the large slab of toughened glass fitted on the side of the canopy, indicating that this was one of the modified aircraft.

An Fw 190 of IIl(Sturm)JG 300.

320

THE L

T H E FINAL YEAR

FTWAFFE I N C A l\ I E R A 1 9 39- 1 9 45

32 1

A B-17 and a B-24 seen under attack from short range by Srurmgruppe Fw 190s. When these aircraft were able to reach a firing position belUnd a bomber formation they often carried out great execution.

,

.

Close·up of the wing of a Srurmgruppe Fw 1 90, showing the srubby barrel of the 30-mm cannon. The magazine for each weapon held only fifty-five mgh explosive rounds, hence the need to close to short range before opening me with these low velocity weapons.

322

THE L

T H E F I N A L Y EA R

FTWA F F E I N C M ! E R A 1 9 39- 1 9 4 5

323

V.1 flying bomb pictured shortly after launch.

V. 1 being manhandled on to the launching ramp.

Each Stunngruppe operated with two Gruppen o f lightly armed B f 109G fighters, t o escort it through the screen of US escort fighters. 1ltis aircraft belonged to IILaG 3, assigned to the escort of IV. (Sturm)/ JG 3. Romrn

Three successful Stunngruppe pilots. On the right is Oberst Walther Dalli, commander ofJG 300

Camouflaged V. 1 launching site at Vignacourt near Abbeville in France, photographed in JWle

and a leading exponent of these tactics. In the centre Hauptmann Wtlhelm Moritz, commander

1944. The only 'give-away' among the apparently innocuous-looking cluster of farm buildings are

of IV. (StunnlO'G 3. On the left is Leutnant Oskar Romrn, also from that unit, who was credited

the launching ramp in the top right comer, aligned on London, and the similarly aligned compass

with the destruction of three B-24s during the Sturrngruppe action on 27 September 1944. Romm

setting building at the lower right.

32+

T H E LC FT\\'A F F E 1 ;,\ CA:'I E R A 1 9 3 9

1 945

T H E F I ;'\AL Y EA R

325

The Focke Wulf Fw 190D entered service i n the summer o f 1944. This sub-type o f the famous fighter was fitted with the Jumo 2 1 3 in-line engine, resulting in lengthened nose contours. The performance of the Fw 190D was similar to that of the best Allied fighters of the late war period.

In the summer of 1944, KG 1 went into action in full Geschwader strength with

H� 177 heavy

bombers. The unit operated for a few weeks on the Eastern Front, before the fuel farrune brought a rapid end to its activities. von Riesen

326

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N C A �I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 45

T H E F i t AL YEAR

327

The airfield at Volkel in Holland pictured after a daylight attack on 3 September 1944 by more than a hundred Lancaster bombers. Despite severe damage to the facilities, aircraft could still leave the base. Some bomb craters had been filled in, then painted to look Oil refinery at Harburg wrecked by air attack. By August 1944 the Allied strategic bomber attacks had caused a fuel famine that paralysed large parts of the Luftwaffe, starting with the bomber force. An attack by the eighty He 177s of KG 1 required about 480 tons of aviation fuel, equal to

an entire day's production from the hard-hit German oil industry in August 1944.

as

if they were still

there. An aircraft (circled) is seen taking ofT from the long straight taxiway across the centre of the photograph.

328

T H E LU FTWA F F E I N C A � I E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 94 5

THE

329

F I NAL Y E A R

Cherbourg harbour, photographed from an

Ar 234 in August 1944.

J u 8 8 wrecked in one o f the hangars a t Volkel. Sommer

The airfield at Glatton near

orwich, home

of the B-24s of the -I.58th Bomb Group, In time of war a salvaged and repaired aircraft is as important

as

a new one. Here a Luftwaffe

salvage crew picks up a late model Bf 109G after it had been forced down during an air combat over Denmark.

photographed from an

Ar 234 of Kommando Sperling on 1 1 September 19-1.4.

330

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N C A � I E R A 1 9 3 9

1 94 5

Arado Ax 234 recOImaissance aircraft of Kommando Sperling picrured at Rheine in western Germany in the autumn of 1944. These high speed aircraft ranged with impunity over France, Holland, Belgium

THE FINAL YEAR

331

and southern England, photographing targets at will. To enable the aircraft to take off with full tanks, they were towed to the take-off point before starting engines for the mission. Gotz

332

TH E L C FTII'A F F E I N C A � I E R.\ 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

T H E F I ;'\ A L Y EA R

II On 5 October 1 94-1, the Gertnan night· fighter force lost its leading ace. Oberst Helmut Lent, the commander of UG 3. suffered fatal u�uries when his Bf 1 10 crashed as he attempted a single·engUle During the late spring of 1944 Mosquito night·fighters of No. 100 Group of the RAF began flying long·range night escort missions deep into Gertnany. This Ju 88G night·fighter carries rear·looking radar, to give warning of enemy aircraft approaching from behind.

landing. At the tinle of his death Lent was credited with 102 night ruld 8 day victories. Hermann Goring attended his funeral, and is seen raising his baton in salute to the coffill.

Bf 1 1 0 night·fighter on fire, after being hit by rounds from a Mosquito of No. 100 Group.

333

334

T H E LL" FTWA F F E I :" C A �I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

THE

Fll AL YEAR

335

The huge Blohm und Voss

222 flying boat, here seen in winter camouflage, was used to feny troops and supplies to German bases in Norway during the final months of the war.

Major Walter Nowotny, an Austrian fighter ace, amassed 255 victories on the Eastern Front. In July 1 944 he assumed conunand of the Me

262 Test Kommando and this

unit was renamed after him. In September he led Kommando was killed during an air combat on 8 November 1944.

owotny in action. but

T H E LU FTWAFFE I

336

C A � I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 45

T H E FI NAL YEAR

337

Me 262 fighters belonging to Ergamungs (Replacement Training) Jagdgeschwader 2 operating The Me 262 was helpless against fighter attack once the pilot had throttled back and was committed to landing,

as

in the case of this aircraft framed in the gunsight of a US fighter. Early

jet engines like the Jumo 004 were slow to accelerate from idling. If the German pilot had opened

his throttles to avoid the attack, most likely the Me 262 would hit the ground before it gained sufficient speed to climb away

at Lechfeld in the autumn of 1944. Poor serviceabiliry slowed the pace of training and greatly extended the time required to bring pilots to combat readiness.

338

T H E LU FTWAFFE I N CAll i ERA 1 9 3 9 - 1 9 4 5

T H E FI NAL YEAR

339

Ju 8SG night-fighter of NJG 100 being prepared to go on standby for a night mission. via Obert

A small number of M e 262 jet fighters were converted for the night-fighter role by the installation of Neptun radar.

340

T H E L U FTWAFFE

1;\1

CAld E RA 1 9 3 9 1 945

T H E FI;\IAL Y E A R

Arado Ar

341

2 3 4 bombers o f IIIrd Gruppe Kampfgeschwader 76, photographed a t Burg bei

Magdeburg in the autumn of 1944 when the unit was working up for operations. KG 76 Archiv

Ju SSG night-fighter fitted with the Berlin centimetric wavelength radar, with the scanner inside a streamlined nose cone. A few aircraft went into action with this equipment during the final weeks of the war.

342

T H E LUFTWAFFE I N C A � I ERA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

T H E FI NAL Y E A R

343

When making a heavy weight take ofT from a standard service airfield, the AI 234 needed the assistance of two liquid fuel booster rockets mounted under the outer wings. In this photograph an

aircraft is seen getting airborne with rocket assistance, leaving a dense trail of smoke behind it.

A groundcrewman straddles the Jumo turbojet.

004 of an AI 234, to show the small diameter of the

344

T H E LU FTWA FFE I N CMI E RA 1 939- 1 945

Kettenrad tractor used to tow a n Ar 234 back to its dispersal after a flight.

T H E FIi'."AL Y E A R

345

Bomber ace Major Hans-Georg Batcher (second from right) commanded IlUKG 76 when the unit re-formed with A:r 234s. On the far right is Hauptmann Diether Lukesch, the commander of the 9th StaffeJ which was the first unit to take the new bomber into action. KG 76 Archiv

346

T H E L U FTWA F F E I N C M I E R A 1 9 3 9- 1 9 4 5

T H E F I NAL YEAR

347

Me 262 ofJagdgeschwader 7, with a rack for twelve 55-rum air-to-air rockets mounted wlder each wing. Erst used in action in March 1945, these unguided weapons were ripple-fired in one burst at a single target.

By mid-1944 the Focke Wulf Fw 1 9 0 had replaced the Ju 87 in most ground attack units . These examples belonged to Sdtlachtgeschwader 10 (SG 10) based at SopodPuszta in Hungary inJanuary 1 945. via Obert

Me 262 ofJG 7 being refuelled at Perleberg near Berlin in April 1945.

350

T H E L U FTWAFFE I N CA�1 ERA 1 939- 1 945

T H E F I ;.1A L YEAR

35 1

A newly completed Me 262 leaving the heavily camouflaged assembly plant at Leipheim near U1m. Although more than 1,200 Me 262s were delivered to the Luftwaffe by the end of the war, only a small proportion of these were available for operations at any one time. via Hans Selinger Me 262 ofJG 7 fitted with a pair of 2 1 -cm rocket launchers under the nose. The installation was not a success and it is believed that this was the only aircraft to carry it.

352

T H E L FTWAFFE IN C A � I E R r\ 1 9 39- 1 945

A D VA N C E D A I R C R A F T , S E C RET WEAP O N S

Dramatic combat photograph taken from a P-5 1 Mustang, showing an Me 262 under attack while it was engaging another Mustang. While the jet fighter maintained high speed it was a difficult target for the Allied piston-engined fighters. Once a jet fighter slowed down to engage in a turning fight with Allied fighters it was at a disadvantage, however. Several of the German jet fighters were shot down in combat. USAF

354

T H E LU FTWAFFE IN C M I E RA 1 93 9- 1 94 5

Heinkel He 162 jet fighters ofJG 1 , which began operations with the type shortly before the end of the war. Demuth

ADVA :-I C E D A I RC R A FT, S E C R ET WEAPONS

355

356

T H E L FTWA F F E I N C A M E R A 1 9 39- 1 945

AO\·A T C E D A I RC RAFT, S E C R ET WEAPONS

357

-----�

Underground production of He 162 fusdages, in a disused salt mine at Tarthun near Magdeburg.

Rare photograph of an airborne He 162 in Gemlan markings.

358

T H E L FT\\'AFFE I N C A � I E RA 1 93 9- 1 945

A DVANC E D A I RC R A FT, S EC R ET W EAPO S

359

The rocket-propelled Bachem 349 atter point-defence interceptor took off vertically from a special railed launcher. After a vertical climb, it levelled Out at the target's altirude and the pilot fired his battery of rockets in a single attack mn. Then the pilot bailed out, and he and the rear fuselage housing the rocket motor came down on separate parachutes. The first operational unit was deployed at the very end of the war, but the weapon never went into action. Given the difliculties of training pilots to operate the interceptor (every launch would have been an operational launch), it was unlikely to have achieved any significant results in combat. via Heise Filling the Natter's fuel tanks prior to a launch. The operation required scrupulous cleanliness, for the smallest amount of dirt or foreign matter coming into contact with the concentrated hydrogen peroxide could lead to an explosion.

360

T H E L FTWAFFE I

I

C A M E RA 1 9 3 9- 1 945

ADVA N C E D A I RC RAFT, S E C R ET WEAPONS

36 1

General view of the Natter on its launcher during refuelling.

Leaving a trail of smoke from the solid fuel boosters, and super-heated steam from the liquid fuel sustamer motor, a Natter accelerates rapidly away from the launching ramp.

362

T H E L FT\\'AFFE I � C M I E R A 1 9 39- 1 94 5

AD\'A l' C E D A I RC RAFT, S E C R ET W EAPON

363

The Henschel Hs 1 17 Schmetterling surface-to-air missile, planned to make its initial service deployment in the late spring of 1945. The German first generation anti-aircraft guided missiles were naive in concept, and in their initial service versions they were unlikely to have been effective.

In each case the missile had to be command-guided throughout its flight by a human

operator using a joystick controller. The missiles had no system for homing on their targets, and they lacked proximity fuses to detonate the warhead when in the vicinity of the target. Thus, to achieve a kill, these weapons had to score a direct hit. If darkness, cloud or haze prevented continuous optical tracking of the target, there was titde chance of a successful engagement. As a separate problem, the relatively simple radio command guidance system fitted to the Schmetterling and Wasserfall surface-to-air weapons would have been vulnerable to electronic jamming.

The Wasserfall surface-to-air missile was a scaled-down version of the A-4 (V.2) bombardment rocket and was to have gone into service late in 1945.

The Ruhrstahl X-4 arr-to-arr missile (here and overleaf) carried a 44-pound warhead and had an effective maximum range of about 3,000 yards. These examples are picrured fitted to an Fw 190

trials arrcraft. After launch the missile unreeled thin wires from bobbins on two of the wing tips.

366

T H E L FTWAFFE

11

ADVA N C E D A I RCRAFT,

CMI E RA 1 9 39- 1 94 5

The wire guidance system of the X-4 required that the missile be

guided

E C R ET W EAPON

367

throughout its night

by the pilot of the launching fighter. During that time the fighter had to fly straight and level behind the target. If the pilot wished to evade attack, he had to abandon the missile attack. Given the near cenainry of interference from enemy escort fighters if the X-4 was used in action, it is unlikely that the weapon could have been very effective.

To steer the X-4 missile in flight, the pilot operated a small joystick in the cockpit. This produced the appropriate electronic command signals, which were transmitted down the wires to the missile.

The end: He 162 jet lighters ofJG 1 picrured on waiting to surrender to British troops.

5 May 1945, lined up at Lech in Schleswig-Holstein,

ApPE NDIX A L U F T WA F F E F LY I N G UN ITS The Staffel

During the early part of the

war

the Staffel (plural Staffeln) had a nominal srrength of nine

aircraft, and it was the smallest combat flying unit in general use in the Luftwaffe. The Staffeln within a Geschwader were designated using Arabic numbers. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd Staffeln belonged to the Ist Gruppe, the 4th, 5th and 6th belonged to the lInd Gruppe and 7th, 8th and 9th Staffeln belonged to the IIIrd Gruppe. If there was a Nth Gruppe (there were a few of these during the early part of the war), it comprised the lOth, 1 1 th and 12th Staffeln. The Gruppe

The Gruppe (plural Gruppen) was the basic flying unit of the Luftwaffe for operational and adminisrrative purposes. Initially it was established as three Staffeln, each with nine aircraft, and a Staff Fllght with three, making thirty aircraft in all. After a prolonged period in action a Gruppe could be considerably smaller than that, however. The Geschwader

The Geschwader (plural Geschwader) was the largest flying unit in the Luftwaffe to have a fixed nominal srrength, initially three Gruppen with a total of ninety aircraft, and a Staff unit of four, making a total of ninety-four aircraft. Originally it had been intended that the Gruppen of each Geschwader would operate from adjacent airfields, but under the stress of war this idea had to be abandoned. The Fliegerkorps and the Luftflotte

The Fllegerkorps (Air Corps) and the larger Luftflotte (Air F1eet) varied in size, and the number of Gruppen assigned to them depended on the importance of their area of operations.

Ap P E N D IX B L U F T WA F F E U N I T ROLE PRE FIXE S Luftwaffe Geschwader, Gruppen and Staffeln carried the following prefiXes (abbreviated prefiXes in brackets) to denote their operational roles:

AufkHirungs- (Aufkl.)

Reconnaissance

Bordflieger- (Bordfl.)

Equipped with floatplanes for operation from warships

Erprobungs- (Erpr.)

Operational Trials Unit

Femaufklarungs- (FA)

Long-Range Reconnaissance

Jagd- m

Fighter

Jagdbomber- Gabo)

Fighter-Bomber

Kampf- (K)

Bomber

Kampf- z b V (KzbV)

Zllr

besondenn Verwendung, literally 'bomber for special

purposes', meaning Transport Kustenflieger- (Ku.F1)

Unit engaged in coastal operations

Lehr- (L)

Tactical Development Unit

Minensuchs- (MS)

Mine Search (aircraft fitted with equipment to explode magnetic mines from the air)

Nachtjagd- (NJ)

ight Fighter

Nahaufklarungs- (NA)

Short-Range Reconnaissance

Schlacht- (S)

Ground Attack

Schnellkampf- (SK)

High-Speed Bomber

Seeaufklarungs- (Seeaufkl.)

Sea Reconnaissance

Seenot- (S

Air-Sea Rescue

Sturzkampf- (St)

Dive bomber

Trager- (T)

Unit formed to operated from aircraft carrier

Wettererkundungs- (Weku)

Weather Reconnaissance

Zerstorer- (2)

Twin-engined fighter

Ap P E N D IX C E QU I VA L E N T W A RT I M E R A N K S Luftwaffe

RAF

USAAF

Generalfeldmarschal

Marshal of the RAF

(no equivalent)

Generaloberst

Air Chief Marshal

General (4 star)

General der Flieger

Air Marshal

General (3 star)

Generalleutnant

Air Vice-Marshal

General (2 star)

Generalmajor

Air Commodore

General ( 1 star)

Oberst

Group Captain

Colonel

Oberstleutnant

Wing Commander

Lieutenant Colonel

Major

Squadron Leader

Major

Hauptmarm

Flight Lieutenant

Captain

Oberleutnant

Flying Officer

1st Lieutenant

Leutnant

Pilot Officer

2nd Lieutenant

Stabsfeldwebel

Warrant Officer

Warrant Officer

Oberfeldwebel

Flight Sergeant

Master Sergeant

Feldwebel

Sergeant

Technical Sergeant

Unterfeldwebel

(no equivalent)

(no equivalent)

Unteroffizier

Corporal

Staff Sergeant

Hauptgefreiter

(no equivalent)

Sergeant

Obergefreiter

Leading Aircraftman

Corporal

Gefreiter

Aircraftman First Class

Private First Class

Flieger

Aircrafttnan Second Class

Private Second Class

IN DEX Aircraft types (German) Arado Ar 196 140, 141, 168 Ar 234 6, 19, 329, 330, 341, 342, 343, 344, 345 Bachem Ba 349 Natter 308 Blohm und Voss

Gotha Go 145 32 Heinkel He 46 25 He 59 60, 63 He 70 33 He 162 119, 354, 356, 357, 368 He 111 7, 9, 11, 16, 38, 39, 82, 83,

Bv 138 126, 127, 143, 170

85, 86, 103, 104, 105, 108, 109,

Bv 141 154

110, 111, 112, 139, 157, 186,

Bv 222 169

188, 189, 190

Domier Do 17 30, 31, 38, 39, 46, 47, 7 l , 74, 76, 84, 90, 91, 157, 176, 177 Do 18 37 Do 24 130, 161, 228 Do 217 122, 123, 148, 229, 243, 248, 252, 253, 284, 285, 291,

He 115 64 He 177 9, 136, 138, 221, 242, 255, 256, 262, 325, 326 Henschel Hs 123 25 Hs 126 53 Junkers

292, 293, 297, 298, 299, 332,

Ju 52 10, 44, 167, 301

333

Ju 86P 99, 128

Fieseler Fi 156 185 Focke Wulf Fw 189 183 Fw 190 120, 121, 124, 129, 199,

Ju 86R 128 Ju 87 9, 11, 24, 40, 41, 42, 48, 49, 68, 78, 79, 123, 134, 135, 158, 160, 177, 194, 195, 198, 199, 218 Ju 88 9, 74, 93, 99, 104, 105, 123,

202, 211, 216, 217, 231, 232,

128, 147, 176, 177, 179, 180, 187,

264, 279, 280, 294, 317, 319,

201, 208, 209, 210, 212, 220,

320, 321, 324, 346

224, 233, 238, 239, 240, 241,

Fw 200 116, 117, 118, 119, 138, 191, 205, 242, 243, 247

247, 257, 259, 261, 263, 300, 328, 339, 340

Ju 188 260 Messerschmitt

German Allied Air Forces

379

INDEX

T H E L U FTWA F F E IN CA�I E RA 1 9 39- 1 945

378

Pichler, Hans 196

Hungary 213, 346

Schopfel, Gerhard 58, 59, 121

KG 76 6, 46, 47, 50, 52, 62, 71, 73, 74, 76, 90, 209, 233, 257, 245

Italy 227, 231

Sperrle, Hugo 57

KG 100 189, 229, 243, 255

59, 64, 70, 72, 73, 81, 85, 94,

Finland 17

TIetzen, Horst 81

LG 1 41

95, 97, 114, 115, 162, 163, 164,

Rumania 17, 174, 179, 213, 214

Udet, Ernst 138, 139

LG 2 196

Wick, Helmut 97

NJG 1 220, 339

Bf 109 7, 9, 11, 17, 26, 28, 29, 58,

165, 174, 177, 186, 191, 192,

Guided missiles

196, 198, 207, 212, 213, 214,

Fritz X 229, 230

217, 225, 233, 274, 275, 276,

Hs 293 242, 243, 244, 245

Freya 150

NJG 3 147, 333

277, 278, 317, 322, 328

Ruhstahl X-4 364

Lichtenstein 147

NJG 4 146

Luftwaffe radar systems

NJG 2 128

Schmetterling 362

Wassermann 150

NJG 5 291, 299

134, 146, 148, 156, 162, 16�

V.1 Flying bomb 16, 312, 323

Wiirzburg 151

SKG 210 92

184, 190, 282, 283

Wasserfall 362, 363

Wiirzburg Giant 150, 151

StG 3 171

Bf 110 9, 11, 13, 66, 67, 72, 92, 98,

Me 163 19, 313, 314

Luftwaffe units

Me 210 9, 92, 134, 135, 138, 213

Himmelbett 144, 150

Me 262 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 304,

Hitler, Adolf 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 18, 57,

305, 306, 308, 309, 310, 311, 312, 335, 336, 337, 338, 347, 348, 350, 351, 352

138, 139, 281, 304, 378

Indomitable,

HMS, 171

Me 410 287, 288, 289, 290 Aircraft types (non-German)

Knickebein beam attack system 102

Boeing B-17 13, 19, 247, 279, 321, 324 Consolidated B-24 214, 215, 271,

JG 2 73, 97, 115, 124, 129

ZG 1 288 ZG 26 156, 162, 167, 282, 285

JG 26 29, 72, 97, 115, 120, 121, 162, 266

Kenley 74, 75, 76, 77

JG 27 28, 70, 163, 164, 165, 225, 277 JG 51 29, 81, 96, 114, 199, 202,

London 14, 16, 30, 83, 85, 86, 95, 248, 255, 263, 323

160, 194

JG 4 214 JG 7 348, 250

Me 321 190

StG 77 24, 48, 49, 53, 78, 79, 158,

Geschwader

216, 217

ZG 76 67, 72, 282, 284 Independent Gruppen Aufkl.Gr 11 184 Aufkl Gr 22 31, 180 Bordfliegergruppe 196 168 Kii Fl Gr 306 127 Kii Fl Gr 406 126

JG 52 174

KGr 100 108, 109

JG 53 94, 163, 186, 198, 233

Tr Gr 186 42

Balthasar, Wilhelm 96

JG 54 175, 191, 192

Seeaufkl Gr 125 170

Fokker T VIII 142

Batcher, Hans Georg 345

JGr 102 26

Seeaufkl Gr 126 142

Hawker Hurricane 50, 71, 76, 81

Bekker, Ludwig 145

KG 1 38, 83, 85, 86, 104, 325, 326

Loire 142

Ebbinghausen, Karl 73

KG 2 122, 157, 248, 250, 252,

North American P-51 Mustang 13,

Galland, Adolf 13, 15, 59, 97, 139,

321, 322, 329 Fiat CR 32 32, 219

316, 352 Supermarine Spitfire 7, 50, 75, 97, 98, 120, 125, 128, 316

Luftwaffe personalities

304

KG 3 39, 91, 176, 179, 208

Gildner, Paul 145

KG 4 104, 112, 157

Gotz, Horst 169

KG 26 39, 83, 111

Jeschonnek, Hans 56 Crete 160

253

Kammhuber, Josef 96 Kesselring, Albert 166

Manston (airfield) 69, 316 Mines (air dropped) 110, 143, 157, 301 Paratroops 44, 45

KG 27 110 KG 40 116, 118, 119, 122, 205, 238, 256

SD-2 bomb 177 Sevastopol 194, 195

Deutsche Luft Hansa 169

Lent, Helmut 333

KG 51 16, 179

Dover 68

LOrzer, Bruno 56

KG 53 81

X-Geriit beam bombing system 108, I I I

Liitzow, Gunther 96

KG 54 93, 99, 224, 263

Y-Gerat beam bombing system I I I

Flak 151, 152, 270, 271

Marseille, HansJoachirn 166

Ford 80

Molders, Werner 96, 114, 139

Friesenland, seaplane tender 126

Neumann, Edouard 165

T

HERE

is much ro find intriguing about Hitler's Luftwaffe. During six short years, it rose

from almost nothing ro become the terror of Europe. At the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1 939, it was the most powerful air force in the world. The aircraft were

state-of-the-art and the crews were numerous and highly motivated. During the first two and a halI years of the war, the Luftwaffe made possible the German Army's series of lightning vicrories. Its only serious setback came in the summer of 1 940 during the Batrle of Britain, when the RAF foiled its attempt ro establi h air superiority over southern England as a prelude ro invasion. Then, gradually but inexorably, the air forces of Germany's enemies became stronger than her own. On each battlefront in turn, the Luftwaffe was forced onro the defensive despite trying ro overcome its many problems with great ingenuity and courage. To the end, it could never be discounted in the Allied calculations. When the war ended in May 1 945 the Luftwaffe possessed some 3,500 combat aircraft. It had fought valiantly against ever-lengthening odds, but when the end came the Luftwaffe was overwhelmed by pressures beyond its control. Author Alfred Price spent several years rouring Germany and interviewing Luftwaffe veterans. The majority of phorographs in this book came from their personal albums. Taken rogether, they provide a unique picrorial record of this important phase in twentieth-century hisrory.

£ 1 8.99