Junkers Ju 188 A-3, III./KG 26, Gardemoen/Norway, May 1945

 

This III./KG 26 Junkers Ju 188 A-3 was photographed in Gardemoen/Norway, May 1945, following German surrender to British forces. Note the WNr. 0326 under the cockpit and what looks to be the variant designation. This Ju 188 was equipped with the FuG 200 Hohentwiel airborne naval search radar. III./KG 26 converted to the Ju 188 A-3 in December 1944 and in early January 1945, with 37 Ju 188s on charge, the unit was transferred to Bardufoss in northern Norway. From here the Gruppe flew a number of attacks against Allied shipping up until late February. Returning to Gardemoen, 30 kms north of Oslo, the unit did not see much action due to fuel shortages. Their final mission of the war was to help evacuate wounded soldiers from the Kurland pocket, after which most aircraft returned to Norway. Reposted from the ongoing Petrick archive ebay sell-off....

new from Lela Presse - KG 54 Death's Head Geschwader history in two volumes, Luftwaffe in Romania

  

New from Peter Taghon through Lela Presse is a two volume history of the Death's Head Geschwader, KG 54, one of the Luftwaffe's most 'famous' bomber wings.  Volume I covers the Polish campaign to France and the Battle of Britain. Gruppen of  KG 54 were deployed on the Eastern Front, against Malta and in support of Rommel's Afrika Korps. A 16-page PDF extract is available on the publishers web site here. This superb 398-page large format volume was released at the end of last year with volume II due on 31 January. Free postage if ordered before the publication date...

Volume II opens with the Totenkopf facing the Allied invasion of Sicily before undergoing various withdrawals in mainland Italy. The Totenkopf left the Mediterranean for good at the end of 1943 to return to the West. The Geschwader was then deployed to operate over the UK as part of the bloody ‘Steinbock’ operation. Casualties were so high that II./KG 54 was disbanded in April 1944. Two months later, the Geschwader - now comprising just two Gruppen - faced the Allied landings in Normandy on missions that were just as costly in terms of men and equipment.

Fighting tooth and nail, KG 54 returned to the Reich where, in September 1944, it became a fighter unit equipped with the famous Me 262 jet. However, the jet still suffered from serious ‘teething issues', and KG (J) 54 (despite having been reinforced with a second Gruppe) was barely able to inflict more than pinpricks on the vastly superior Allied air forces. The unit was decimated. On 8 May 1945, the surviving personnel of the skull and crossbones Geschwader surrendered, their numbers then being mainly dispersed in Austria and Czechoslovakia. Volume II is another near 400-page volume with over 650 photos, 17 colour profiles and period documents. Table of contents follows..

The latest issue of BATAILLES AÉRIENNES has arrived! N°111 covers the history of the Luftwaffe in Romania, covering units such as JG 52, JG 77, JG 4, JG 301, various short and long-range recce units, SG 2, NJG 6 and NJG 100, all deployed at various intervals to cover the Ploesti oilfields. The artwork is by Eric Schwartz - the cover profile shows Kommandeur Ubben's III./JG 77 Gustav. This 96-page A-4 issue features around 200 photos, 8 high quality profile artworks and is also available as a digital download in PDF format. Just 10 euros! (for the downloadable version). Go here to order..

 

Sonderkommando Blaich 'raid' on Fort Lamy, January 1942 - 'anecdote' or feat of arms?

Two views of Theo Blaich and his Messerschmitt Me 108 "Taifun" prior to his departure on his pre-war 'Afrika Rundflug' (which took place during December 1938). 

Below, Blaich's Taifun with the Staffelabzeichen of the so-called "Sonderkommando Blaich"probably painted following the raid on Fort Lamy for the purposes of German propaganda.

Theo Blaich was a pre-war adventurer and 'explorer' - a German 'Lawrence of Arabia' - responsible for planning and executing one of the 'longest' bombing raids of the war - the 'spectacular' attack on Fort Lamy (capital N'Djamena in Free French Chad). Often described as a 'feat of arms' ('Husarenstreich' in German) it was, in the view of this blog, a fairly derisory effort mounted by a single He 111 that has been 'sensationalised' ever since, some even comparing it to the Doolittle raid! An 'exploit' perhaps - but one of limited impact as a more 'objective' look at the efforts of the Sonderkommando based on the German and French sources would surely conclude. The ECPA- D in Paris has a large amount of material that can be previewed - over 55 taken by PK reporter Fritz Dettmann on the raid alone..

African explorer and plantation owner, Theodor Blaich was already a civilian pilot and owned his own personal Bf 108 when he enlisted in the Luftwaffe. Serving as a 'technical advisor' to Rommel and his Afrika Korps, Blaich's 'Sonderkommando' was set up to counter the Long Range Desert Group but had so little impact that  there has been little or nothing written about it in English. Blaich's sole He 111 was a II./KG 4 machine (WNr. 4145) fitted out with a supplementary fuel tank (normal fuel capacity 4285 litres) enabling the machine to fly a 2500 km round trip carrying a pay load of just sixteen SC 50 bombs. The Fort Lamy raid was launched from Bir Misciuro ('Campo Uno') 600 km south of Hun on 21 January 1942.

Below; Heinkel He 111 mit Staffelabzeichen "Sonderkommando Blaich" and in the background, Blaich's car and Me 108 "Taifun", all featuring the Staffel emblem.

According to a recent video " the raid destroyed all oil stocks and 10 aircraft.."  Yet photos of the scenes appear to show plenty of intact oil barrels with the columns of smoke some distance from the photographer.  A recent article has an account from one French eye witness describing how base personnel man-handled barrels away from the scene of the fires ....in addition no a/c installations were hit and no aircraft were lost. The official 'bilan' (balance sheet) was 400,000 litres of fuel destroyed while 200,000 litres were saved directly from the fires. In fact according to figures published by Alain Godec, Free French fuel reserves stocked in and around Fort Lamy totalled some 2,500,000 litres!

Left; map of  the 'raid' against Fort Lamy flown on 21 January 1942 - from Alain Godec's article. 

As the Heinkel turned for home, columns of smoke rose up into the skies and the one imagines the crew looking down on the scenes with something approaching satisfaction. The anti-aircraft defences at Fort Lamy eventually reacted but the Heinkel crew were unaware of any defensive fire. In fact the Germans had been fortunate to 'hit' the target at all - they got lost on the way to Fort Lamy, running into a sandstorm an hour after take off. The meteorologist at Hun (Houn - 60 kms south of Tripoli) - who had forecast fine conditions for the raid - was apparently a British secret agent. Blaich and his crew also got lost on the way back, running out of fuel and eventually having to put down in the desert some 200 kms from Campo Uno. In fact  as Mark Felton explains his video (see below) while the Italians' 'path-finding' for the mission was a total failure, they did eventually locate the German raider(s) 'Funkpeilung' from their 3W transmitter in the desert after some five days under 36 C temperatures and rescued them. According to wikipedia, " while the attack on Fort Lamy caused only minor damage to installations and light casualties it did destroy vital fuel supplies. It reduced the supplies for the Free French Forces and the RAF in the region by half (according to Allied sources). The raid also caused the French general Philippe Leclerc to strengthen the anti-aircraft defences at Fort Lamy and to start hit-and-run operations against the Italian forces in Fezzan region.." Yet the raid on Fort Lamy had no bearing on LeClerc's 1942 campaign - which it was intended to hinder - and rather illustrated the Luftwaffe's inability to mount any kind of meaningful strategic operation. Blaich later commanded NSGr.7 (from October 1944 I think) and was awarded the DKiG (German Cross in Gold).  There were no awards handed out for the Fort Lamy 'attack'.

The PK reporter Fritz Dettmann who accompanied the raiders also authored the book 'Mein Freund Marseille' - which may go some way to explaining the 'propaganda success' enjoyed subsequently by Blaich.  You could possibly describe the raid as a 'feat of arms' ..but hardly a success. 

Theo Blaich (seen left) died in 1975.  His obituary was published in Jägerblatt and was written by Ed Neumann. There was not much detail on Blaich's life unfortunately -  he died aged 75 (born 1900), adventurer and explorer he spent time in his teens flying and travelling, mostly to central America - owned banana plantations in the Cameroons West Africa during the mid to late 20s - on the outbreak of war enlisted in the Luftwaffe with his own aircraft.

On the French side there were claims made about the efficacy (or not) of Fort Lamy's anti-aircraft defences. French writer  Alain Godec commented;

  ".. the officer commanding the guns did not see the German aircraft despite claims that they had clearly identified the aircraft on the approach. One gunner claims that the Bofors guns could not hit the aircraft because it was flying at 3500m (as compared to 1500m in the official report) and even says that the bombing was done North to South. The rumours among the Free French in Chad indicate that the crews were either having a nap or were playing cards, apparently unconcerned given that there were so many aircraft movements. When you look at the picture in Carrell's book depicting at least one bomb exploding with the river Chari in the back-ground  you can clearly see that the altitude was not 3500m (beyond Bofors guns range) but much lower. You can also simulate this on Google Earth..."

 

"..Select N'Djamena and play with the altitude. One thing I forgot to say is that the aircraft type and nationality was only discovered later on. The report mentions that the bombing "was done at 1235 GMT by a twin-engine bomber camouflaged by large orange and brown stripes without any markings". The nationality of the aircraft was only discovered when the two unexploded bombs were examined and destroyed three days later. In a local Fort-Lamy newspaper, an article reports that "Fort-lamy was bombed by an unknown aircraft and that the bombs were of a German make.." 

Below; refuelling Blaich's He 111 at 'Campo Uno' from drums carried by the accompanying Italian SM. 81 'Pipistrello'  prior to launching the 21-22 January raid. According to a German-language article on the raid (Flugzeug 5/86), the Italians were to accompany the raiding Heinkel and act as 'pathfinders'.  The Heinkel missed Fort Lamy by some 200 kms and only found the target by following the rivers Schari/Lougone. The crew landed in the desert -lost- some 200 kms from Campo Uno on the return leg of the mission. With diminishing water rations the crew were located after some five days in the desert.

Below; Blaich at the controls of a Me 108 having just landed at Campo Uno. Standing alongside him is the Count San Severino, Italian desert 'specialist'..

Above; 'colorized' (?) screen capture from the Mark Felton video below. A single click to view here

Lehrgeschwader 1 by Peter Taghon, Lela Presse - new Luftwaffe books

The second part of  Peter Taghon's Lehrgeschwader 1 history is published by Lela Presse in French.

Deployed in the Mediterranean in early 1941 against the British, LG 1 had very quickly gained the respect of its opponents (whether Navy or Army), having earned during these bloody battles the formidable nickname of 'Helbig's flyers' (after one of its best officers - see below). But, in September 1942, III./LG 1 was 'temporarily' assigned to the USSR and detached from the rest of the Geschwader, re-designated III./KG 6. I./KG 55, also operating the Ju 88 at the time, became the new III./LG 1. While this Gruppe was disbanded in May 1944, I. and II/LG 1 flew their missions until the end of the war, leaving Italy to be deployed over Normandy at the time of the 'invasion' in June 1944 and then over the Reich both in the West (Battle of the Bulge) and in the East (facing the Soviet steamroller). The remnants of LG 1 were not de facto dissolved until the beginning of May 1945. Throughout this latter period of the war, the Geschwader flew mainly on various variants of the Ju 88 (A-5, A-4, A-14, S-3). While other Kampfgeschwader were equipped with more modern aircraft (Ju 188 or Do 217), LG 1 fought to the end on machines that could be considered outdated. And while the other KGs were disbanded or switched to fighters, Lehrgeschwader 1 was one of the very few Luftwaffe units to make it through the six years or so of the war as a pure bombing unit.




Posted by Kevin Huckfield on TOCH;


  "...Volume 2 of the LG-1 book has just arrived and it is just as good as the first volume and about one and a half times the size in terms of pages. Features some 600 photos over 288 pages and 25 artworks by Thierry Dekker. The page quality is very good allowing for good images and the book is packed with narrative, photos and paperwork of all kinds, more so than the original German language versions. It also includes Annexes for such things as LG-1 Ritterkreuzträger, LG-1 related Werknummern, personnel etc...."

A ten-page PDF extract from the book is available from the publisher's website here

The first volume of this two-part unit history is reviewed elsewhere on this blog here

Two photos offered on ebay taken on July 5, 1941, on the airfield at Eleusis, on the occasion of the award of the Ritterkreuz to Hptm. Gerhard Kollewe Gruppenkommandeur II./LG 1 (below, on the right) presented by the Kommodore Friedrich-Karl Knust, on the left in the image below. Similar ceremonies were held on 30 August 1941 for the presentation of the Ritterkreuz to Ofw. Franz Schlund (radio operator in Helbig's crew) and 8 September 1941 when the Staka 8./LG 1 Hptm. Hermann Hogeback received his RK.

from 'Helbig flyers - I./LG 1 im Mittelmeer und Afrika' by Gerd Stamp


"....The year 1941 was drawing to a close. If it had been too hot in summer, it was now too cold. We stood and froze in front of our accommodation building, which with its squarish shape was reminiscent of a cigar box. The personnel of the entire Gruppe stood in an open square: the Stab, first, second and third Staffeln, the technical company and the intelligence section.. Expectant faces and frozen fingers marked the spot. I was shivering unashamedly. The cutting northwest wind, which came down from the Parnassus, did not make for pleasant thoughts. Suddenly commands, and an announcement - the Kommodore was to address us. The wind snatched the words from his mouth. I stood opposite and heard only torn fragments:

" . . . a few days ago . . . the old commander v e r a b s c h i e d e t . . took his leave. Today I am introducing the new K o m a n n- deur . . .an old member of the Geschwader . . . look back on great achievements . . . Expect the same in the future .."

 My thoughts started to wander. Hopefully it wouldn't be long now. Then, more commands barked out, car doors slamming and he was gone. Then someone else stood in our midst. Again I heard only snatches of the words;

" . . . Take over the group . . . add more to the successes achieved . . . I won't ask anyone to do anything that I wouldn't do myself!"

But now it was really too cold for me. I felt Hoffmann and "Fähnlein" (Gerd Brenner) freezing next to me, and with these thoughts the command to stand down came.

So that was Joachim Helbig.(below, centre)

I still had a fleeting memory of him from France when he was once in our command post. A thick fur waistcoat, impossibly crumpled cap that kept his smooth slick-backed hair in check, a pair of mischievous eyes that constantly flitted to and fro. . . . and always some apt remark on the tip of his tongue. At first he was called "Capitaine Fit". The name came from the "Pelikan", a bar in Orleans, which even at the mention of its name evoked longing memories in all its former patrons..."

Junkers Ju 88 Aces - a selection of Ju 88 'ace' photos - Helbig, Hogeback, Storp, Fischer , Schweickhardt

Hptm. Erwin Fischer (right of the sign) with Glas Sekt on the occasion of the 3000th Feindflug  of Aufklärungsgruppe 121. Note the white swan emblem of the unit, Ju 88 D coded 7A + NH

Despite having published at least three volumes on Junkers Ju 88 Kampfgeschwader in their 'Combat Units' series, Osprey editor Tony Holmes decided we needed at least one Ju 88 volume in the 'Aces' series. However on the evidence of this volume I would say to him that we probably need a few more of these as well. This is an excellent volume on the Junkers Ju 88, presenting an overview of the aircraft and the men who flew it in each of the roles it undertook; bomber, intruder, night-fighter, long-range day fighter and reconnaissance. Many of the more 'famous' Ju 88 pilots are covered such as Baumbach, Helbig, Herrmann and Heinz Rökker along with some of the lesser known. The profiles are some of the best I have seen in an Osprey book and the content highly readable and informative. However, it is not strictly an "aces" volume as it does not specifically look at those who claimed 5 or more kills whilst flying the Ju 88. If you are thinking of buying it because of the title, you may perhaps be disappointed. That being said, if you have any interest in the type and the exploits of its crews then buy it - it is a taster or as Robert himself referred to it " a toe-dipper". To cover all noteworthy Ju 88 "ace crews", in all the roles in which the aircraft undertook, would take several similar sized volumes. For example, Hermann Hogeback is only mentioned in a couple of photo captions and he would certainly qualify as the Ju 88 bomber "aces of aces" (with 500+ operational sorties and being one of only three Ju 88 pilots to receive the Knights Cross with Swords). Erwin Fischer is the only reconnaissance pilot to receive the Knights Cross with Oak Leaves (as far as I am aware) and he is not even mentioned in the text...

Above; Ju 88 A-4 WNr. 142338 coded 'F1+GS' flown by the Gruppenkommandeur III./KG 76 Hptm. Heinrich Schweickhardt. The coat of arms of the city of Heidelberg recalls Schweickhardt's birth place. He was flying this aircraft when he went missing during a transfer flight on 9 January 1943.

Hptm. Heinrich Schweickhardt (1914-1943) awarded the RK as Staffelkapitän 8./Kampfgeschwader 76, (Ritterkreuz 04.02.1942, Eichenlaub (138) 30.10.1942)

Appointed Kommandeur III./KG 76 in March 1942 Schweickhardt and his crew went missing during a flight from Catania to Athen-Tatoi on 9 January 1943 after a radio message from about noon saying he was having engine trouble. This was after combat about 100 km west of Zakynthos or Zante. The aircraft was a Ju 88 A-4 WNr. 142338 coded 'F1+GS'. Posthumously promoted to
Major, credited with around 400 missions.



Below; Junkers Ju 88 A-6 1./(F)123 (4U+SH) after a recon mission flown by Ofw. Bach, Perugia Italy. Chased by Allied fighters the pilot flew so low over the sea that the propellers struck the water and shattered. Fortunately the wooden propellers broke evenly which allowed the engines to keep running and Bach made it back to his base in Perugia at a some what reduced speed..

Two views of I./KG 77 machines. Note the white winter finish applied even to the prop blades in the lower picture

below; torpedo-carrying Ju 88 of I./KG 26 taking off from Bardufoss in March 1945 to attack a Murmansk convoy. Note the Schiffssuchradar - shipping search radar FuG 200 Hohentwiel. To the right of picture Oberst Ernst Kühl is seen saluting the departing aircraft. 

Chris Goss has a different caption in his Frontline " Junkers Ju 88 - the twilight years"  which reads as follows;   A Ju 88 of I./KG 26 taxying out at Bardufoss to attack an Allied convoy, RA 64, on 20 February 1945. In the crew is Oberst Ernst Kühl who had recently been given command of a Fliegerdivision based in Narvik. He was holder of the Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub and had flown 315 combat missions, most of them with KG 55.

Below; interesting cockpit views and a rare portrait of Werner Baumbach at Munich Riem during 1942..

Junkers Ju 88s of KG 26 being readied for sorties out over the Med from Sicily. Note the twin under-slung torpedoes in the first image below, each weighing approx 750 kg, of which 200 kg was explosive. To launch the weapons the Ju 88 pilot had to maintain a speed of 180 km/h at an altitude of forty metres. In theory the torpedo could be dropped up to two kilometres from the target but in practise a more realistic range was barely 800 metres. However at distances such as these the Ju 88  pilots were very much aware they would likely find themselves in a maelstrom of defensive fire.

On 22 December 1942 Ju-88s from III.Gruppe KG 26 torpedoed and damaged the British troopship Cameronia. Strikes were made all along the African coast. Allied air attacks cost the unit four aircraft on 8 February 1943 when the unit's base at Cagliari-Elmas, Sardinia was bombed. In July 1943 the unit also contested "Operation_Husky", the Allied invasion of Sicily. On 12 August the unit struck at Allied shipping in the western Mediterranean losing 10 machines for little result.

Below; Kommandeur I./LG 1 Hptm. Joachim Helbig seen in Catania, Sicily during 1941. He was awarded the Eichenlaub during January 1942 after some 200 sorties..

Deployed early on in the Mediterranean, LG 1 would soon prove to be one of the most formidable and feared opponents of the Royal Navy. Under the orders of Kommandeur Helbig, the "Helbig flyers" of I./LG 1 as they were dubbed were responsible for sending many Allied ships to the bottom. Notable actions included the sinking of three large transport vessels Clan Campbell, Clan Chattan and Rowallan Castle from the convoy MW 9, during attacks on 13–14 February 1941. On 22 May 1941 during the Battle for Crete, LG 1 Ju 88 pilot Gerd Brenner finished off the RN cruiser HMS Fiji with heavy loss of life. III./LG 1 also damaged the Australian destroyer Waterhen on 9 July 1941, sinking it on 11 July. The Geschwader supported the Afrika Korps effectively in Libya and Egypt until 1942. Bombing raids were made on the Suez Canal, Cairo during this time. On 11/12 May 1942 I.(K)/LG 1 again led by Helbig were responsible for sinking HMS Kipling, HMS Jackal and HMS Lively in the Gulf of Sollum. Helbig below on the right..

Below; Iro Ilk Staffelkapitän of 1./LG 1 during 1943 and bomber ace at the controls of his Ju 88. Both Ilk and his close friend in LG 1 Gerd Stamp were awarded the Knight's Cross with I./LG 1 for audacious attacks on British shipping in the Med, before going on to fly single engine night fighters with the wilde Sau. Ilk was shot down and killed by Spitfires as Gruppenkommandeur III./JG 300 on 25 September 1944. Post-war Stamp achieved high rank in NATO and married Ilk's widow.

Having carried out intruder attacks over Britain with some success for almost a year, the Ju 88 Cs of I./ NJG 2 were transferred to the Mediterranean and the western desert of North Africa in late 1941.  Ju 88 C-4 " R4+EL" (3./ NJG 2) came to grief during the transfer flight to Sicily and made an emergency landing near Naples. Crash landed by Flugzeugführer Fw Robert Lüddecke (front) on 22 November 1941 at Capodichino-Naples. Lüddecke had returned three night victories - Nachtluftsiege - at the time of the incident.

Below; seen far left Ritterkreuzträger Hptm. Hermann Hogeback, Kommandeur III./LG 1 on the occasion of a commemoration of the 5000th sortie flown by the Gruppe, Stalino, September 1942.

Three bomber aces of KG 6 with around 1,000 sorties between them, Hptm. Rudolf Puchinger, Staka 8./KG 6, Kommodore Walter Storp and Kommandeur III./KG 6 Hermann Hogeback.

Partial view of a formation of V./KG 40 Ju 88 C-6 heavy fighters seen over south-western France during early 1943. Nearest to the camera is Ju 88 C-6 "F8+RY" with Oblt. Kurt Necesany at the controls, while behind this aircraft is "F8+NY"

Diving Eagle of KG 30 seen on Herrmann's Ju 88 A-4. Early in World War II, Herrmann flew bombing missions in the invasion of Poland and the Norwegian campaign. By 1940 he was Staffelkapitän 7./KG 4 re-designated 7./KG 30 at the end of the Battle of Britain. In February 1941 his Gruppe was transferred to Sicily, from where it attacked Malta then fought in the Battle of Greece. In one attack Herrmann sank the ammunition ship Clan Fraser in the port of Piraeus. The explosion sank 11 ships and made the Greek port unusable for many months. He was appointed Kommandeur III./KG 30 and flew missions against Russia. He was a controversial figure in 'right-wing' circles post-war.

"..Herrmann was one of the most deadly Luftwaffe pilots of the Second World War and one of its most innovative air tacticians; a committed Nazi determined to fight to the end, he even formed a special unit of fighter pilots whose task was to ram Allied bombers out of the air..."

 ..from his obituary published by the British 'Daily Telegraph' in 2010. Read it in full here

The above is intended to serve as an introduction to the two Ju 88 photo volumes compiled by Chris Goss in Frontline's 'Air War Archive' series..while Volume one focused on the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain, Volume two, "the Twilight years- Biscay to the Fall of Germany" covers the activities of Ju 88 Gruppen in Russia and the Mediterranean and looks at reconnaissance and torpedo operations. Heavy fighters also receive a chapter  - 'Battle over the Bay' covers the little-known ZG 1 - and there is a small section at the end on the Misteln..