Caudron CR. 714 in the Battle for France - GC 1/145 ('Les Polonais de Varsovie')

..the following is based on Grzegorz Slizewski's book  "The Lost Hopes - Polish fighters over France " with some important corrections and additional material from Comas/Ledet 'The Caudron Fighters' published by Lela Presse and the highly recommended book "Les aviateurs polonais en France" (B. Belcarz, Artipresse).

On 17 February 1940 French Air Minister Guy La Chambre signed an agreement with Polish General Sikorsky to establish a Polish fighter Group comprising two escadrilles in the Armee de l'Air. This would naturally be established from the DIAP (Depot d'instruction de l'Aviation Polonaise - Polish air training centre) then based in Lyon. On the opening day of the German offensive in the West, 10 May, the Poles of CG 1/145 were in Lyon with just a handful of Ms 406s and CR. 714s.  'Defence flights' for the city were quickly formed and the aircraft relocated to Mions outside Lyons - from where the air raid warnings sounded from the city could just about be heard (radios were defective). Eager to fight with whatever types the French could supply, the Poles had been accumulating training time on the CR. 714 even before the 'official' establishment of the first 'French' Polish fighter squadron. The first Caudrons arrived at Lyon-Bron during March 1940. But it was not originally envisaged that they would be deployed in combat. The French knew full well that the light-weight Caudron powered by its small Renault engine would be severely outclassed by Luftwaffe types, so had used the type as a cheap 'training' machine. But in the end there were no other types available in numbers. By 21 May some 16 machines had been taken on strength and the Groupe had relocated to Villacoublay, south of Paris (part of the 23rd Groupement de chassse) and close to the Caudron factory at Guyancourt for further deliveries. The French Minister of Air, Guy La Chambre, inspected GC 1/145 ('Les Polonais de Varsovie') on 25 May. The aircraft were being delivered straight from the production line and presented a litany of defects forcing the minister to  suspend all flying on the "Cyclone". He was told about the aircraft's poor climb rate, a weak landing gear and its faulty lowering mechanism, as well as an imperfect propeller pitch-changing device, engine cowling 'ballooning' during dives and unreliable dashboard instruments. While the Minister's reaction was perhaps the proper one, it served to deprive the Polish pilots in France of the only aircraft available to them. The French Air Ministry had originally ordered the Armee de l'Air to equip the Poles with the Bloch 152, aircraft which were not available. Despite Polish pilots having more hours on the Ms 406 they were not offered these aircraft either far less the D.520 - types for which they were probably not considered 'suitable'. The very next day, they elected to continue flying the defective Caudrons. On 2 June the squadron moved to the airfield at Dreux, some 30 km west of Paris. There were no facilities on the field and it was not until the ground echelon arrived that the aircraft could be dispersed and carefully camouflaged around the airfield. Two days later, the Poles finally received the long-awaited radios. Up to that point, they scrambled at the signal of an automobile horn. To beef up GC II/10, on 5 June the squadron was ordered to patrol in the Rouen area. This was done by Flight "B". Half an hour later, Flight "A" was moved to Bretingy-sur-Orge, south of Paris, with the task of defending the French capitol. The next day, the squadron was charged with the same duties.

In the evening of June 6, the squadron was attached to the 42eme Groupement de Chasse, defending a sector of the Seine Valley between Vernon and Meulan.

Two three-aircraft reconnaissance flights on the route Meulan-Magny-en-Vexin-Fleury-sur-Andelle-Vernon and along the Seine were the squadron's only activity on 7 June. The next day found the squadron with twenty-one serviceable aircraft. The remaining thirteen required much attention from the ground crews. Some were being generally checked after forced landings, while multiple tasks were performed on others; changing a stabilizer or rudder, replacing Plexiglas in a cockpit, a carburettor, parts of an electrical installation, and so on. That day "A" Flight was assigned to GC II/10. At 15:54 a section of five aircraft, led by kpt. Wczelik, took off to patrol over the Vernon-Meulan area. South of Rouen, the Poles attacked a group of about twenty Messerschmit 110 Cs of III./ ZG 26 escorting a group of Stukas. After several months of inaction the Poles were spoiling for a fight. They landed at 17:10. Officers Wczelik and Czerwinski claimed victories, but none of the other pilots saw the enemy aircraft crash. Commander Kepinski recognized only one of them as probable but soon after, around the area of that clash, the wreck of a single Me-110 was found, all five Polish pilots receiving a victory share as was usual French practise.

 por. Tadeusz Czerwinski  kpt. Wczelik, ppor. Aleksy Zukowski, ppor. Jerzy Godlewski and kpr. Piotr Zaniewski were credited with one Bf 110 each - for one aircraft shot down.  Belcarz points out that the only Bf 110 losses were over the German-Swiss border zone while in Comas/Ledet one notable French historian argues that the German loss does not appear in most recognised sources (including Vasco and Cornwell) since it was not reported until later in the year. The squadron suffered no losses, but most of the aircraft were shot-up and temporarily unserviceable.

At Bernay, on 9 June the squadron joined up with Flight "B", to fly a sweep at full strength over the front-line area. Eighteen aircraft took off at 2:30 p.m. Led by maj. Kepinski were Commandant de Marmier, kpt. Laguna, kpt. Wczelik,por. Zdzislaw Zadrozinski, por. Jan Obuchowski, por. Julian Kowalski, ppor. Czeslaw Glowczynski, ppor. Jerzy Czerniak, ppor. Lech Lachowicki-Czechowicz,ppor. Jerzy Godlewski, ppor. Bronislaw Skibinski, sierz. Jan Palak, plut. Andrzej Niewiara, plut. Mieczyslaw Parafinski and kpr. Edward Uchto. Over Vernon, the squadron attacked an enemy formation of about 50 Dornier Do 17s escorted by about 20 Bf 109s. Due to  radio malfunction the attack was poorly coordinated.

 Czeslaw Glowczynski recalled;

 ".. My radio didn't work so I wasn't aware of any warnings. I soon noticed a group of about 30 Bf 109s, some 3,000 feet below. Since our leader didn't react. I come close to him and waggled my wings. I pointed down; he nodded to indicate that he had seen them and continued straight and level. I gave him a sign that I would attack. I thought that at least a part of our group would follow me in this attack, but I found myself alone, with the exception of my wingman, ppr. Czerniak. Our position was advantageous since we attacked from above, with the sun behind us. At top speed, I swept down on the rearmost Bf 109. The swiftness of my attack caused the whole German formation to break up. One of them went down steeply, smoking heavily. Immediately, I went after another one, which, after few bursts, crashed in a forest south of Rouen. I was then shot at from behind. Several bullets came near my head and shattered my instrument panel. I managed to force land on a front-line strip at Evreux. Czerniak got one Bf 109 as well, and he landed with me. It took the whole evening to fix my machine and I returned to the unit the next day.."

 Jerzy Czerniak recalled;

 "... The weather was beautiful and flying in the direction of our assigned zone of operation, we were climbing slowly. At 12 or 15 thousand, we started to look for game. For over thirty minutes, the flight was uneventful, and looking at Czeslaw, I could tell that he was greatly disappointed that there were no Huns around. That's when I saw aluminium flashes  glinting below us. I gave Czeslaw a sign, and we altered our course a little to put the sun directly behind us. Next, Czeslaw dived and I followed him, releasing the safety catch on my armament in case there was a scrap. And there was  one. We closed on the Messerschmitts and Czeslaw coolly positioned himself right behind one of them and opened fire. Others maneuvered themselves behind Czeslaw who continued spraying his wiggling victim. All this time, I flew behind my colleague, observing the scene. One Messerschmitt started to shoot at him and that's when I intervened. I jumped at the German and gave him a burst right in the cockpit. He must have got it since he flipped over, going down. I served him another portion and stayed with him till he crashed into a French farmer's yard.."

(p55 Comas/Ledet - The Caudron fighters)

 Ppor. Glowczynski was credited with one Bf 109 destroyed and one damaged, while ppor. Czerniak got one Bf 109 destroyed. Plut. Parafinski also scored, destroying a Bf 109, while kpt. Wczelik and sierz. Markiewicz shared one Dornier 17 destroyed. Two planes crashed south of Andelys and others near Louviers. This time, the squadron suffered a loss of three pilots. Killed in action were por. Obuchowski, ppor. Lachowicki-Czechowicz and kpr. Uchto. por. Kowalski was slighty wounded, while ppor. Godlewski force landed at Villacoblay. The rest of the pilots landed at 3:50 p.m. A few aircraft were unserviceable. Godlewski tried to join his unit on a new plane but nose-dived during the takeoff. He come out of the accident unscathed, but couldn't catch up with the squadron. The Poles clashed with the Emils of II./JG 27 (some sources state III./JG 26). The pilots from this unit claimed three Moranes shot down. Credited with victories were: Gruppenkomandeur Hauptmann Werner Andres, Feldwebel Karl Witzel and Feldwebel Karl-Heinz Bendert. In reality, the Luftwaffe lost three Bf 109s. Leutnant Hans Bosch ( Hptm. Andres wingman ) and Feldwebel Karl-Heinz Kranich become POWs. Leutnant Hermann Kugler went missing. Slightly wounded, Hptm. Andres force landed near Creil...

Below;  when CG 1/145 evacuated the airfield at Dreux they left behind some fifteen Caudrons. The reverse of the image below - an expired Ebay.de auction - is captioned, 'Dreux 22 July 1940'. Compare with the image on page 180 of  "Les aviateurs polonais en France" (B. Belcarz, Artipresse). First machine visible "1" is the aircraft assigned to plut. Markiewicz.

Above; reproduced on p55 of the Comas/Ledet title and p181 of the Belcarz ' Les aviateurs polonais en France', three 2e escadrille machines at Dreux on 22 June 'white 10 and 'white 13' with 'white 7' in the background. 'White 13' was flown by the future 56th FG ace Boleslaw Gladych. 

1/145 pilots had 12 victories 'officially' confirmed (Bf 110s, Do 17s and four Bf 109s) for the loss of 3 Caudron pilots KIA. Ppor. Jerzy Godlewski -officially MIA- reached England and joined 72 Sqd

"The Caudron fighters - the Cr. 714 and variants" authored by Matthieu Comas and Michel Ledet 

"Les aviateurs polonais en France" (B. Belcarz, Artipresse).

And a rare page-view look into the huge Belcarz book on the Cr. 714 "Cyclone" - details of the cockpit/instrument panel

Dr Belcarz founder of Stratus and Mushroom recently succumbed to cancer RIP

French use of Luftwaffe aircraft - Ju 88 in French service

Seen on eBay offered by a seller with a huge ‘archive’. These images show a Junkers Ju 88 G-6 used for ramjet propulsion tests and appear to be images from Pierre Dumollard’s « Junkers Ju 88 et 188 Français » as seen at the CEV (Centre d’Essais en Vol or Flight Test Centre) at Melun Villaroche during the early 1950s. Ju 88 G-6 s/n 3 made some 200 flights with the ARS 600 ram jets before being retired in 1955, including the ’accidental’ flight no. 6 - following a fault with his oxygen supply the pilot put the aircraft into a dive and reached a speed of Mach 0.7 (around 840 km/h). During 1953 André Turcat - future Concorde test pilot - also flew this aircraft at Mach 0.7 at 10,000 mètres altitude; according to author Dumollard, «  the limits of the Ju 88s performance had been reached » ! The type was replaced by a Gloster Meteor NF.11 which had the advantage of using the same fuel as the ramjet.

By the time it was retired from service the French had utilised the Ju 88 for nearly twice as long as the Germans and compared it very favorably with similar types such as the B-26 - the Ju 88 had a " shorter take off run, higher top speed , better rate of climb and could carry a bigger load for a similar range.."

More Ju 88 and Ju 188 in French service on this blog here

A brief history of the French 'Stuka' - Loire Nieuport LN 401/411 of the Aéronautique Navale - French naval air arm dive bomber

Above; a freshly-built 'pre-series' LN 411 dive bomber - the so-called French Stuka - seen in St Raphael after its first flight. The Germans gave authorisation to the French to complete assembly of 24 LN 411 bombers which were on the construction line in Issy-les-Moulineaux in June 1940.

A contemporary of the Blackburn Skua, the "French Stuka" was a small gull-winged, single-engine 'strike' dive bomber conceived for the French naval air arm as the Loire-Nieuport 40;  the navalised variant was the LN 401 intended for service on the French carrier Béarn and fitted with a landing hook, buoyancy 'cells' inflated with CO2 and foldable wings, while the LN 411 was a land-based variant planned to equip regular Armée de l'Air bomber units. In the end the Armée de l'Air rejected the type - its 600hp Hispano-Suiza engine meant that the aircraft was slow and underpowered. The 411 were thus also taken on strength by the Marine. Both versions served in the dive bomber squadrons of the Navy, AB 2 and AB 4. L'Aéronautique Navale -the air arm of the French navy - la Marine Française - had four escadrilles or squadrons of "strike bombers" - each of twelve aircraft; escadrilles AB 1 and AB 3 were equipped with the Chance Vought 156 F while escadrilles AB 2 and AB 4 thus flew the Loire Nieuport 401 and 411.

As the French carrier, the Béarn, was engaged in the task of transporting warplanes purchased in the USA back to France, the LN 401s were never involved in shipboard operations, being shore-based throughout their career. Escadrille AB 4 converted from the LN 401 to the LN 411 in April 1940, its LN 401s being distributed among Escadrille AB 2, the conversion unit at Lanvéoc-Poulmic, and the war reserve at Cherbourg. By 10 May 1940, AB 2 and AB 4 each had its full complement of 12 aircraft, the former being based at Berck and the latter still completing its operational training, at Cherbourg-Querqueville. AB 2 had undertaken its first sorties when the LN 411s of AB 4 joined it at Berck on 17 May. Two days later, ten aircraft were lost to flak during an attack by 20 aircraft from both escadrilles on the crossroads at Berlaimont against German tank columns driving on northern French ports. The 10 that survived the sortie to reach Berck were all so badly damaged that on the following day only three aircraft could be mustered for an attack on the Origny Bridge over the Oise, one of these being lost. On 21 May another aircraft was shot down to leave the two escadrilles with one airworthy machine.

Two views of the LN 401 flown by Lieutenant Vilbert of AB 2 and downed by flak when attacking German armoured columns advancing on Cambrai on the evening of 19 May. This was one of a number of these machines brought down by anti-aircraft fire in the particularly ill-fated action against German armour at the Berlaimont road junction

Personal accounts of LN 411 pilots in action are rare; Admiral Francis Lainé, then fighter pilot and squadron leader in the Aéronavale, related an account of flying the LN 411 in action in the Battle of France in the review Icare # 60, "L'Aéronavale - les marins pilotes témoignent".

 In November 1939, as first lieutenant and experienced fighter pilot, Lainé was appointed to command AB 4. But, at Lanvéoc-Poulmic, the airbase theoretically dedicated to the AB 4, only 2 pilots were appointed to his squadron without any aircraft: Some "experts", at the Ministère de la Marine, expected seriously the impossible - that this unit be operational before mid-June 1940. As Prudhomme in his history of the type explains the dive bombing sight was never fitted in these machines. Nevertheless, Lainé managed to fly 14.5 hours in January 1940, "among them, a magnificent gift of my excellent friend Jean Lorenzi, squadron leader of the AB 2, who allowed me to fly 0 hours 25 and two landings with his own Loire-Nieuport 401." Succeeding also to transferring the AB 4 to Orly airbase, very close to the Nieuport plant of Issy-les-Moulineaux where the LN 411 were manufactured, aircraft and pilots were operationally ready in April 1940. The training was done at Cherbourg-Querqueville. It consisted of vertical dives from 4 000 m to 800 m, also in dives at 60° or 45° from 1 200 m to 300 m with concrete bombs then with operational bombs. Another training sortie type flown were fighter missions, firing live munitions. During the final training sorties flown on May 17 there was a fatal crash, the pilot unable to pull up his LN 411 from the dive. The full squadron went to Berck, to join the AB 2.

On May 19, both units (AB 2 and AB 4, some 20 Loire-Nieuports) received the order to attack German armored columns seen close to Berlaimont and were airborne at 18:30. The route chosen to reach the target was straight from Berck to Berlaimont, flying over the town of Arras. Rommel's VIIth Panzer Division had already started crossing the crossroads and the Vth were to follow..

 Admiral Lainé recalled: "I was very proud to lead these 20 well armed fighter-bombers into combat. This was probably the most 'interesting' command I had in the forty three years I was in the French Navy." The two squadrons flew at low altitude in seven sections, with 100 m between them. The "low altitude" of between 300 m and 600 metres saw the top speed of the LN 401 and 411 down to just 320 kph and their cruise speed to 250 kph. During the 20 last kilometers, the Loire-Nieuport dive-bombers were 'shadowed' by a "Henschel 126".  At 10 km from the target the French formation climbed to 1200 m. At 19:30, CO Lainé dove first, followed by the rest of the wing, exactly over the Berlaimont crossroads. He was "warmly welcomed" by  intense AA fire. Defensive fire was so dense he believed that two of his comrades were brought down straight away. Lainé’s Loire-Nieuport was also hit by a shell which destroyed his radio-transmitter. In fact, Petty officer Téoulet had been killed instantly by a German shell, his LN 411 flew some 20 kilometers further on before crashing with his yellow painted bomb still intact. Petty officer Goasguen was downed and killed, apparently not by enemy fire at all, but by French anti-aircraft fire  as he was preparing to land on his own airfield. Lainé, looking backward, saw the other sections diving tidily and, suddenly, a huge black cloud caused by the smoke of multiple bomb explosions, anti-aircraft fire and by the fire of those tanks and buildings hit by the bombs. The black cloud quickly shrouded the whole town. Lainé: "I saw a large tank park, the perfect target for some bombs, which could have caused tremendous damage, but now, I had no means to report this to any of my pilots." Thirty two years latter, remembering his actual mood as he flew northward at very low altitude, he was filled with anger: "To see my comrades brought down like that made me mad!". So he proceeded to shoot up anything that moved: "The gunners of a dreadful Flak 88 mm cannon, and a German motorcyclist rolling around like a shot rabbit." Captain Vuilliez stated elsewhere that all the LN 401 and 411 of this mission escaped from the dive bombing of the Berlaimont crossroad, but that that the flak took its toll on the return flight so the losses increased gradually. At 20:30, four LN 411 of  escadrille AB 4 landed at Berck, "all more or less damaged by the Flak fire, but, also, I’m afraid, riddled by fragments issued from the explosions of their own bombs released too late…"  Among the five other LN 411 bombers of this squadron, one was destroyed by French anti-aircraft fire, one by German Flak close to the attacked crossroad, the three others had belly landed with their pilots alive (2 POW). In escadrille AB 2  the petty officer Pascal was killed in flight and crashed close to his target. Three LN 401 belly landed, their pilots becoming POWs. Only one machine from the two squadrons, the LN 401 of ensign Faivre was attacked by four Bf 109 Emils. Evading most of their passes, the French pilot succeeded in putting down in a rough field south of Cambrai and exited his aircraft unharmed. From the 11 Loire-Nieuport 401s of  AB 2, six had returned home. According to author Arnaud Prudhomme in his history of the type, six bombs had come down squarely on the crossroads which was engulfed in a huge traffic jam.  German casualties at the crossroads may have amounted to as many as 400 KIA and WIA. Two full days were needed for reorganizing and repairing this division brought to a standstill.

 The following day, May 20, all the available dive-bombers of the three naval attack squadrons AB 1 (equipped with 11 Chance-Vought 156 Vindicators), AB 2 and AB 4 (with only 3 Loire-Nieuports serviceable, the others being repaired), were sent out on a new mission - the destruction of a bridge at Origny-Sainte-Benoîte (about 40 km south of Berlaimont). The Vindicators of AB 1 took off from a distant airfield (Alprecht), so they had to rendezvous above Berck where the Loire-Nieuports were based.

Having reached Berck airfield, the aircraft of AB 1 flew directly to the bridge at Origny, without waiting for three Loire-Nieuports which were still climbing. It is reported that the engines of these aircraft began to overheat in an attempt to catch up with the Vindicators forcing their pilots to slow down.  (French aviation blogger Drix states on his page that the American and the French dive-bombers shared the same empty weight of 2135 kg so while the engine of the Vindicator delivered 825 hp, given factors such as a twin-bladed prop, larger wing area and less streamlined fuselage and cowl it is doubtful whether the Vindicator was indeed faster than the Loire-Nieuport.) The Vindicators, now alone, were attacked by twelve Bf 109 Emils. Caught by surprise and their poor weak armament insufficient protection, five of the French machines were instantly downed, including the 3 section leaders. Two Vindicators, having evaded the Messerschmitt attack, flew to the target and unsuccessfully bombed the bridge.  The AB 1 squadron leader Mesny returned safely at home but his comrade was downed inside the French lines, his gunner being KIA.

 The Loire-Nieuport garnered a mixed reputation. Positive assessments were expressed by her pilots who relied on their fighter-bombers: Admiral Louis Cassé emphasised that dive-bombing required good pilot training. He also highlighted production difficulties with the bomb sight.

Criticisms of the LN fighter-bomber family came mainly from the French themselves unsurprisingly. Among them was Jacques Mordal, a Navy medical officer, on the staff of Admiral Auphan in late 1942 in Vichy. Thirty-two years later, he wrote the introduction for the Icare magazine  review of the Aéronavale en 1940. He was of the opinion that the LN 401 /411 was 100 kph slower than the Vindicator and the high loss rate demonstrated that the Loire-Nieuport dive-bomber was not suitable  for attacking terrestrial targets…which of course it was not. A negative assessment was also expressed by CC Corfmat, who was one of the first French pilots to fly the Vindicator. In his report on the Battle of France, given to Vichy authorities at the end of 1940, he expressed "the requirement to replace the obsolete Loire-Nieuport with American machines". He said also the Loire-Nieuport was too frail and worn out.

Admiral Lainé, who conducted the 'successful' attack on Berlaimont was a supporter of the LN 411,  underlining the good visibility offered to the pilots, allowing good bombing accuracy. After the war, for a parliamentary commission, he was less inclined to praise the machine. He repeated the criticisms of Captain Corfmat about the too light construction of the Loire-Nieuport.  On May 21 petty officer Moulinier flew a solo fighter sortie: he succeeded in inflicting heavy damage on a Dornier 17 bomber, setting one engine on fire, but was hit by the German rear gunner. Moulinier made a successful emergency landing. Nevertheless, during the afternoon of the same day, he was able to fly his repaired Loire-Nieuport and to land in safety at Cherbourg-Querqueville at 19:15... This action, as also the CAP managed by the AB2 to protect the Calais-Marck airbase, demonstrated the self-confidence of the pilots flying this fighter-bomber. Captain Vuilliez, in his book, after having gathered the testimonies of a number of LN 40, 401 and 411 pilots, were laudatory about them. The operational results were better than those of the Vindicator: In the Netherlands, the Loire-Nieuport and the Vindicator flew respectively 27 and 21 sorties. In totally similar conditions, for a apparently similar bombing efficiency, none of the LN was missing, one of them even destroying a He 111 bomber...

The last delivery of Vindicators was transferred  to the British government a few hours before De Gaulle flew to London, there to broadcast his 'famous' call to continue the fight.  After training and some trials, the British refused to use the Vindicator, preferring to assign the crews to Fairey Swordfish. The only combat operation flown by the Vindicator in U.S. Navy service was the Battle of Midway during the Pacific War. Again, these aircraft suffered high losses while failing to achieve strikes on the Japanese ships. Maybe, the nicknames found by the USMC crews, "Vibrator" and "Wind indicator", suggest how these aircraft was unfitted to the dive-bombing role. France had also ordered  the completely obsolete Curtiss Helldiver XSBC-3 and, by pure chance, the Douglas Dauntless which was an excellent aircraft but, unfortunately, this machine was not delivered in time for the battle...

Below ; from left to right, wrecks of pre-series LN.40s, the first variant of the type, which was used to train new crews on the type; n°5 "AB 2.12", n°4 "AB 2.11" and n°3 "AB 2.9". The LN.40 n°3 and n°4 were involved in accidents on 7 April 1940. Both were cannibalised to repair other Loire Nieuport dive-bombers. The three were abandoned at Berck on 21 May 1940 when AB 2 departed this field

Above;  LN 401 the navalised variant - note the arrestor hook

Subsequently, in anticipation of Italy's entry into the war, the survivors of these two units were shifted to airfields in southern France, most notably at Hyères-Palyvestre on 4 June 1940. Some sources confirm only eight of 36 LN 411 dive bombers arrived in southern France after their heavy losses. A strength report of the French naval air arm dive bomber squadrons cites the following

AB 2 at Hyères with 8 LN 401/411 of which six were serviceable
AB 3 at Cuers Pierrefeu with 12 Chance-Vought 156 F, all serviceable
AB 4 at Hyères with 8 LN 401/411 on strength of which six were serviceable

From 4 June to 25 June AB 2 and AB 4 carried out reconnaissance and bombing sorties over Italy as well as maritime convoy escort missions. Note that on 15 June 1940 following a strafing attack by 27 Fiat CR 42  biplane fighters of the 150th (or 151) gruppo, six CV 156 F bombers were destroyed on the ground. In addition during the night of 18-19 June, following a raid on Novi-Ligure, 2 LN 411 of AB 4 failed to return to base (pilots M. Billien and SM. Riquier).Towards the end of June the remaining LN 411 bombers crossed the Mediterranean with the intention of reaching Algeria. En route three aircraft were forced through engine problems to crash land en route - LN 401, n° 2, flown by SM. Le Moal and LN 411, n° 20, piloted by le M. Meheut, both from AB 2, crash-landed near the locality of Portixeddu on Sardinia (see below) due to loss of oil pressure while two days later on 27 June,  LN 411, n° 8, piloted by le SM. Mehault of AB 4, also force-landed with oil pressure problems, this time on the small island of Asinara, north-west of Sardinia.

See here for more pics

http://fandavion.free.fr/LoireNieuportLN411.htm

Clostermann & Demozay - 'modest and exemplary heroes' . Two controversial French aces

Above; Probably one of the most famous Tempest photos ever taken!  The date is 27 August 1945,   Pierre Clostermann's last day in the RAF, and he is seen here on his new JF-E NV 724 (note no 'Le Grand Charles' inscription but with the addition of the white cross of Lorraine on the radiator. This aircraft made a wheels-up landing on 10 November 1945 at Fassberg). Photo reproduced here with the kind permission of 'Avions' magazine. See the latest issue 'Avions' (no. 227) for the best and most authoritative recent account of Clostermann's RAF career and more especially his combat record.


Clostermann's NV 724 was the last of his JF*E Tempests. Although barely visible in this washed-out repro note the scoreboard ahead of the cockpit - 23 confirmed and nine probables. Perhaps best known today as the author of one of the finest of all WWII flying memoirs with over 3 million copies sold, "Le Grand Cirque - The Big Show", Pierre Clostermann's record has in recent years been the subject of some considerable controversy and re-evaluation. The doyen of French aviation historians Christian-Jacques Ehrengardt wrote in his 1999 history of French fighter pilots; " the official archives are there to prove it, only 12 victories of Clostermann's can be identified with certainty....in Clostermann's case 'probable victories' would tend to mean 'improbable.."

In the subsequent court case (Clostermann sued during the year 2000!) the offending book was pulped and substantial damages awarded. Indeed Clostermann spent the latter years of his life seeking to redress and re-establish the 'official' record, even writing in to Scale Aircraft Modelling back in 1982 to rebutt accusations that he had over-claimed his number of actual aerial victories and that he was now wearing a medal (the D.S.O.) to which he was not entitled. Clostermann responded thusly:

" ..As to my claims, they never changed. They were painted on my Tempest, (see accompanying photo,  NV724, JF.E of 3 Sqn., circa July 1945, showing the twenty-three black crosses representing his accredited confirmed 'kills', and the nine white outline only crosses for 'probables' and 'ground kills') and are substantiated by the following citations and letters. My two DFC citations, by Air Marshal Slessor and AOC 83 Group Sir Harry Broadhurst, are enough for me - "DFC 26/8/44 This officer has displayed outstanding courage and devotion to duty throughout his operational career in the course of which he has destroyed at least 11 enemy aircraft and damaged other military objectives". "Bar 28/5/45 since being awarded the DFC this officer has participated in 70 new operational missions during which he has destroyed a further 12 enemy aircraft. Throughout, Lieutenant Clostermann has displayed outstanding courage and ability, and has proved to be a source of inspiration to all". 23 black crosses and 23 confirmed by my DFC citations. I never personally asked for anything else.... "

Having covered Clostermann's record in detail in previous issues of Avions magazine ( nos 100 and 151, a commemorative issue devoted to Clostermann's life) 'Avions' editor and friend of Clostermann, Christophe Cony examined Clostermann's wartime record in detail over 42 pages in issue 227 of 'Avions'. Cony writes;

" When I first met Clostermann in 2004 we spent a lot of time discussing Spitfires, Tempests and air combat, but he was unable to respond with any certainty to one of my questions about his exact victory tally...

" Understand ", he said to me, " that during the war I just carried out my job as a fighter pilot. I fired on enemy aircraft. But after that I had nothing to do with the attribution of victory confirmations. That's why I can't say with any certainty what my final victory tally might have been. All I know is that the British validated 23 claims for aircraft destroyed as confirmed. That total is all I've ever claimed. And nothing else.."

Cony continues;

"..That's why I believe that 'Cloclo' might have appreciated this latest study in which I have detailed for the first time his complete wartime record and how he earned his victories. I have done so by thoroughly examining all the sources - his two logbooks, including the Tempest logbook, the ORBs of the five squadrons he flew in and the existing combat reports. This article is the result of more than ten years of research. Many surprises, but also many mysteries solved!.."

Modellers should note that Clostermann flew at least four Tempests - only one of them, SN222, carried the inscription 'Le Grand Charles' despite what you can read almost anywhere on the internet. Clostermann's JF-E NV 724 in July 1945 as seen in the photo above is thus a postwar machine with "parade" markings. For a wartime version wearing similar markings, use NV 994, minus the kill markings, the "Grand Charles" inscription, rudder crest and cross of Lorraine. The spinner is black and the upper wing roundels should have the yellow outline (as seen on a period photo). Closterman shot down 2 FW-190 D-9's  on April 20 1945 with this aircraft. For more on this encounter on this blog go here

In their previous Clostermann special (issue 151) Cony refers to 'The Big Show' as a 'roman' - or novel - and no attempt was made to detail his score. In 'Avions' No. 100 Clostermann's score was given as 24 confirmed and nine probables, making Clostermann the leading French ace of WWII. His 'official' score as promulgated by the French Air Force historical service (formerly SHAA, now SHD) is still 33 victories.

Thierry Dekker artwork from 'Avions' No. 151 reproduced here with the permission of editor Michel Ledet and the artist

Above; S/Ldr Jean Demozay (second from the left) leaning against the prop of one of 91 Squadron's Spit Vbs, September 1941, Hawkinge, Kent. (photo credit via Peter Hall of Ashford, Kent. Peter's history of 91 'Nigeria' Sqn in the Osprey Aviation 'Elite' series is still the best English-language reference on Demozay)

If Clostermann was an enigma then French ace Jean Demozay was a riddle wrapped in a mystery!  Editor of the now sadly defunct 'ACES' magazine Many Souffan  published a lengthy bio of France's second ace in issue no. 9 of 'ACES'  having previously published an in-depth review of his career in 'Avions' magazine and a multi-part series in Replic before that.  

 Demozay's story - if you don't know it- is pretty incredible. He had attempted to join the French Air Force pre-war but had been turned down. He thus never joined the l'Armee de l'Air and  never trained as a pilot - apparently he just 'pretended' he had when he was finally sent to the RAF's 'Advanced Air Strike Force' in September 1939 in Reims in northern France as an interpreter - his English was fluent as he had spent a number of his teen years at boarding school in Southsea near Portsmouth where a family friend was a teacher. His first flights were in the liaison Magister used by No. 1 Squadron and it was the British pilots that taught him to fly circuits in their off-duty hours. He claimed he need a bit of refresher training, his pre-war pilot's licence having long since lapsed ( another big 'fib'). He was subsequently one of the first French 'pilots' to reach the UK after the fall of France arriving on 17 June 1940 having piloted a Bristol Bombay twin and a complement of passengers across the Channel. At the time he didn't even possess a (car) drivers licence, let alone any flying qualifications! He then managed to wangle his way into operational training unit 5 OTU which as luck would have it was commanded by his 'old' Squadron CO 'Bull' Halahan, proving the old adage 'its not what you know...'. He started his first 'real' flight training course on 20 June 1940 - but really there is no way he should have been there. His CO in 'E flight' 5 OTU was another former 1 Squadron Hurricane ace, Pilot Officer 'Boy' Mould, the first RAF pilot to shoot down a Luftwaffe aircraft over France on 30 October 1939. Demozay finished his training in October 1940 and joined 1 Sqn at Wittering and flew several sorties before 31 October 1940 - the 'official' Battle of Britain cut-off date. As such he was one of just thirteen French pilots that officially participated in the Battle of Britain and his name is inscribed on the memorial wall at Capel-Le-Ferne, between Folkestone and Dover. As for his achievements in combat - well it is a matter of record that he commanded 91 'Nigeria' Squadron at Hawkinge and there is a street named after him in the village..officially he returned some 19 victories although many of his claims were made when flying alone out over the Channel and over France...

This well known image of Jean 'Moses Morlaix' Demozay was taken on 16 November 1941 at Hawkinge. At this time Demozay had around 11 victories and four probables. One month previously he had been awarded the DFC, presented to him by Leigh Mallory Trafford. A few months later he received a bar and a DSO. The Spitfire behind him is the Mk V of his S/L J N Watts Farmer W3175/ DL.W. Under his wings you can see (from L to R) the ribbons of Ordre de la liberation (Green & black) the 7 palms of his Croix de Guerre and his new DFC

Marcel Doret Dewoitine D.520 'Groupe Doret'

Screen captures from rare ina.fr footage depicting Dewoitine test pilot and pre-war aerobatic champion Marcel Doret  - here briefing his pilots in the lighter overall - leading a small unit of Free French Dewoitine D.520-equipped pilots supporting the assault on German 'Atlantic pockets' following the liberation of France during late 1944. Established as early as July 1944 'Groupe Doret' was a FFI fighter unit (Forces Francaises de l'Interieur) formed in south-western France at Tarbes-Ossun ( an 'escadrille' under former Morane Saulnier chief pilot  Cliquet) making use of stocks produced for and abandoned by the retreating Germans. In Toulouse especially stocks of some forty machines were hangared and these could quickly be made flight worthy. A second 'escadrille' was thus established at Blagnac under SNCASE chief pilot Galy (Duny and Cuny 'Le Dewoitine D.520'). Apparently Cliquet flew the first sortie on 24 August 1944 in D.520 No. 526. While these machines had no aerial adversaries to contend with their missions consisted of  training and recce flights as well as attempting to 'neutralise' German flak positions in and around the 'Atlantic pockets' where large contingents of German forces were holding out. Between 16-19 October the Doret D.520s escorted Dauntless dive bombers operating over Royan and la Pointe de Grave.

The first Dewoitine D.520 fighter constructed for the French resistance was this machine coded '1' delivered to the 1st Groupe de Chasse 'Doret', a unit established by the 'resistance forces of the interior' (FFI) in the Toulouse region. Both the SNCASE (Dewoitine) and the Morane-Saulnier factory at Tarbes had been manufacturing D.520s for the Germans since 1943, but following the Allied landings in southern France (Provence) during August 1944, Morane Saulnier diverted construction to the newly established GC 1 of the FFI. The pictures were apparently taken on 24 August 1944 and the pilot seen in front of the aircraft at Tarbes-Ossun below is capitaine de réserve Jean Cliquet. Note the cross of Lorraine on the rudder and the wing roundels.

Pictures via Michel Ledet at Avions magazine. 'Avions' is the leading French aviation bi-monthly and a special photo report on the D.520 over 20 pages appeared in issue No. 162 (March/April 2008). Back issues are available from http://www.avions-bateaux.com/

Below; D.520 (number black 28) was exhibited in Paris in March 1945 and very probably belonged to the Groupe Doret. Photo via Phil Canonne

More Dewoitine D.520 posts on my blogs;

D.520 in combat action vs. the Bf 109 E
http://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2010/03/d520-vs-me-109-e-battle-of-france.html

Air war in Syria and Iraq, May- June 1941
http://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2015/12/air-war-in-syria-and-iraq-may-june-1941.html

Vichy Air Force D.520s of GC III/6 en route to Syria 1941
http://falkeeinsgreatplanes.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/vichy-d520s-of-gc-iii6-en-route-to.html


Dewoitine D.520 in the débacle
http://falkeeinsgreatplanes.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/dewoitine-d-520-in-debacle-french.html

Jagdfliegerverbände Teil 13/ III & Lela Presse news, Focke Wulf Fw 200 Jean-Louis Roba, latest Luftwaffe books

Latest volume in the huge ‘Luftwaffe fighter unit‘ series from Jochen Prien....Volume 13 part 3, nearly 700 A-4 pages covering Jan-Sept 1944, entitled "Operations in the West". This massive tome covers all fighter units operating in the West up to 06 June 1944 ( pages 1 to 204) with the bulk of the book devoted to the period 6 June-30 September, " Abwehreinsatz gegen die Invasion ". Alongside the 4. and 5. JD fighters of JG 2 and 26, the daily chronology covers such lesser known Bf 109 and Fw 190-equipped units as NAG 13, JG 105, JG 107, JGr. Süd, JGr. 200, SAGr. 128, 5. (F)/123 and the Ju 88 Cs of ZG 1. The period covered in this latest tome is of course characterised by ever-growing and ultimately overwhelming Allied superiority, culminating in the D-Day landings - usually referred to as the 'invasion' - and the liberation of France. Taking one date at random - Thursday 2 March 1944 -  there were countless RAF and USAF aircraft in the skies both of northern France (9th AF and 2nd TAF raids against airfields and V-1 installations), towns of western Germany (US 8th AF raid Frankfurt am Main) and southern France (F-5 recce sorties), countered by the Gruppen of JG 26 and JG 2. Losses among the  Luftwaffe fighter units were enormous  - 2 March 1944 saw the death in action of the Kommodore JG 2 Obslt. Egon Mayer - his successor Major Kurt Ubben would be KIA just over one month later. The strain of relentless combat in the face of overwhelming odds can be seen etched on the face of 34-year old Hptm. Wolfgang Neu (photo second from right top below), Staffelkapitän 4./JG 26, seen on his return from a sortie at the controls of his FW 190 A-7. He was Kapitän of 4./JG 26 from early 1944 until his death on 22 April 1944, shot down over the Eifel during combat. He had tallied 12 victories, including seven four-engine bombers. While Fw. Günther Jahn - top left, a member of Bühligen's Geschwaderstab - was KIA on 24 July as Staffelführer 10./JG 2 strafing Allied positions around Caen.

One of the most successful pilots in the West during early 1944 was the Staffelkapitän of 5./JG 26 Ofw. Adolf Glunz - on 22 February he claimed three B-17s and a 78th FG  P-47 as well as two further Herauschüsse. Most successful pilot during the 'Invasion' period was Hptm. Theo Weißenberger (Kommandeur I./JG 5) with 25 Luftsiege. He returned his 199th and 200th victories on 25 July - although as the authors point out on page 441, a good number of his 25 'invasion victories' cannot be confirmed from Allied records. The presence of such 'super' aces ( to coin a phrase) makes it possible (just) to argue that constant front-line action made the most of the limited resources available to the Jagdwaffe -  by 1944 they were easily capable of anticipating every opponent's manoeuvre in the sky such was their level of experience. At the same time the average Allied fighter pilot would perhaps only fly or have flown 50-100 sorties before being rotated away from the front. ".. Just how good could they be ? "  However the skill level of the pool of German pilots presented stark contrasts  -  so many good pilots were KIA in the first six months of 1944 in the West that most Gruppen were left with only a handful of aces and a small number of experienced but not yet 'expert' pilots, while the vast majority had just hours flying experience and were desperately pressed into service without sufficient training.  Elsewhere coverage extends to all the other units that arrived in France to combat the 'Invasion' and is equally as comprehensive - and that includes 4./JG 52, 7./JG 51 and 9./JG 77..

It is difficult to do justice to a work of this nature in just a few lines of blog comment, that much is obvious and I apologise to the authors for my hopelessly inadequate appreciation. Suffice to say, the production values of this latest Prien/Stemmer/Bock volume are top-class, the text and detailed coverage is second-to-none and the photo content is as comprehensive as you would expect..quite stunning. Aside from one or two well-known images, it is obvious that a huge effort has been made to only use 'new' photos and highlights are many; the series of Hans-Ulrich Jung's 7./JG 3 Bf 109 G-6/AS and the Werfer-equipped Fw 190s of III./JG 2 are especially noteworthy.

Ordering via https://www.jagdgeschwader.net/


Eichenlaubträger Hauptmann Weißenberger, Gruppenkommandeur in einem Jagdgeschwader bei einer Nachbesprechung. Prop.-Kp. Lw.KBZ 15 Film-Nr.: 8279/10 Bildberichter: Schödl 4.10.44

Available at www.caraktere.com now is CJ Ehrengardt's Aérojournal 'special' on the Armée de l'Air May-June 1940. While in the immediate post-war period the defeat in May-June 1940 was largely and almost wholly attributed to the failure of the French Air Force - incapable of winning any sort of air superiority over the Luftwaffe's fighters or of holding up the Panzers with the Bre 691s of the ground-attack arm - the work of certain historians during the 1970s went too far in the other direction - the notion that the activities of the French air force inflicted losses that contributed to the victory of the RAF during the Battle of Britain - despite the fact that nearly 2,000 Armée de l'Air aircraft were abandoned on the ground to the Germans! As C-J Ehrengardt relates the reality lies somewhere between the two extremes..

Despite the cover composition - a JG 51 Emil downing a GC I/3 D.520 - the text does not focus on fighter combat, but is divided into three main subject areas;

1/ Autopsy of a débacle
2/ 'One way ticket to Hell' - the Breguets of the assault arm
3/ Armée de l'air training schools

Nicely complementing this treatment and also recently published by caraktere is CJE's 'Encyclopedia of French fighters 1939-42'..

Latest in the Batailles Aériennes quarterly series from Lela Presse is a new title starting a series of issues devoted to the Luftwaffe over Malta. Again, very nicely done and recommended. No idea who author 'Pol Glineur' is - could well be another of Jean-Louis Roba's pseudonyms..Go to the publisher's website here for a sample extract in pdf.

Also due imminently is Roba's new volume on the Fw 200. 320 pages, 660 photos, more info at avions-bateaux.com including a pdf sample extract here

Publisher's offer  - orders placed before 23 May dispatched post free!

Latest Chris Goss title in the Frontline 'Air War Archive' series is this neat photo monograph devoted to the Dornier Do 17. While the type was the Luftwaffe's principal light bomber at the outbreak of war, helping to spearhead Germany's Blitzkrieg in Poland and then France and the Low Countries, heavy losses at the hands of Fighter Command in the Battle of Britain saw the type largely superseded by the Ju 88 so that by the summer of 1941 and the invasion of the Soviet Union, KG 2 was the only Dornier Do 17-equipped bomber unit. This book is a compilation of decent wartime images nicely reproduced over 136 pages in a slightly larger than A-5 softback format at a very reasonable price complementing the volumes already published in this series on the Bf 109, He 111 and Ju 88. The images are assembled under five headings, most notably ' Early development and pre-war deployment', 'The Attack on Poland' , 'War in the West', 'The Battle of Britain and the Blitz' and 'After the Blitz, 1941 and Beyond'. While there is a four-page text introduction detailing the major variants including the Kauz nightfighter versions (although only two photos of these particular rare birds), the photo captions comprise the bulk of the text, ranging from one or two lines to a good half-page. You probably won't be surprised to read that a lot of the images depict crashed and wrecked machines – but surprisingly perhaps such shots do show a fair amount of close-up detail, even where aircraft identity is not always confirmed. Coverage post-1941, when the type was serving in various secondary roles, amounts to just a handful of pages..