09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hello/Bonjour,

Two burial cards or Gräberkarteikarten found on the Fold3 website question me.

The Oberfeuerwerker PALFNER Klaus and Flieger DALLAMAHSL Johann belonging to the Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix are killed on September 9, 1940 at a place given as being an airfield but there is no airfield at this place - the nearest being at Quimper (Pluguffan). The place of death is the Flughafen Ploneour-Lanvern (about 20km south south-west of Quimper). A landing strip? I am thus looking for any information regarding these two deaths and Wetterkungdunsstaffel.

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

VDK says Flughafen Plonevur. Would appear to be an accident and no sign of any air attack

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Bonjour Chris,

I had also checked to see if these deaths were due to an air raid but it is the airfield's name who is quite strange.

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

There are three cards for this death date and the search term Morlaix:
Dallamaßl, Johann (G-C 036/0052)
Palfner, Klaus (G-A 669/0332)
Dollamahsl, Johann (G-A 076/0875)

The first and the third are the same gay, whose name on VDK is Dallamahsl, Johann. The names above are probably misreads by the program used by fold3 to "read" the images.

The two last cards have "Unfall" written in the death details, indicating it was an accident.

All say that it happens in a Flughafen that fold3 reads as "Ploneour-Lanvern". A Flughafen is a seaplane station. There was one in Lanveoc, and VDK says that Dallamahsl was killed in Lanveoc. There is sadly little possibility that the Lanvern above could be a misread Lanveoc, as all card have the burial place written is Lanveoc, with a clear difference in writing with Lanvern.

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hello Laurent,

Thank you for your answer. Yes, I read that it was an accident but it is the place of death that is intriguing. You will note that each headings are clear as well as the entry for each of these headings (Ort des Todes for Place of death = Flgh. Ploneour-Lanvern) and (Lage und Nr. des Grabes, also Grablage for Location and No. of grave also Grave location = Ehren Friedhof. Brest[Süd]-Lanveoc), and these places are several kilometres away. So I really don't think there is a mix with the place names.

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Lanveoc was called by the Luftwaffe Brest-Süd, which was the home base of Wekusta 2 Ob.b.d.L. since July 1940.

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hello Merlin,

Then, probably men belonging to this unit because the Wettererkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix doesn't tell me anything. Thank you for this message.

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

My guess is that these men were Luftwaffe "ground troops" rather than airmen, and were probably killed in a road accident. Maybe you can find something in French gendarmerie reports ?

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hello Laurent,

I thought about this assumption and I will check someday if there is a Gendarmerie report in the archives, but where most cards only mention the name of the place, why did they wrote Flughafen? A road accident does not justify it. A nice enigma.

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Flughafen.

Doesn't that translate literally into English as Airport.

In English we say airfield or airport; in German is there not only Flughafen?

Correct me if I'm wrong, please...

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hello John,

I know Flughafen, Flugplatz, Feldflugplatz, Einsatz-Hafen (E-Hafen), Fliegerhorst...

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

These could prove useful to some. The definitions come from German documents and from the wartime British Air Ministry.

Classifications (Airfield Types)
Abholplatz: airfield used for the collection and delivery of aircraft.
Absprunghafen: advanced landing ground.
Abstellplatz: parking area (for aircraft not it use).
Arbeitsplatz: practice airfield (almost always associated with flight school training).
Aussenliegeplatz: remote dispersal or outlying parking area.
Ausweichflugplatz (or Ausweichplatz): satellite, dispersal strip or alternate landing ground (minor – usually no services).
Behelfsflugplatz: auxiliary airfield.
Einsatzhafen: operational airfield (minor – limited services; used mainly for fighters, dive-bombers and ground attack aircraft). Ranked I for 1st Class and II for 2d Class.
Feldflugplatz: field airstrip, advanced airfield or satellite airfield (minor – limited services; used mainly by single-engine aircraft). The Allies called this an advanced landing ground (ALG).
Fliegerhorst: air station, aerodrome, airdrome or air base (major – full services).
Flughafen: airport (major – full services).
Flughafen (See): seaplane station (major – full services).
Flugplatz: airfield (major – full services).
Gefechtslandeplatz: tactical landing ground (minor – limited services or no services).
Hilfsflugplatz: auxiliary airfield.
Industriehafen: factory airfield.
Landeplatz: landing field or landing ground (minor – limited services or no services).
Leithorst: controlling air base (major – full services).
Liegeplatz: parking point; in the case of seaplanes, anchorage.
Nebenplatz: satellite airfield or landing ground (minor – limited services or no services).
Notlandeplatz: emergency landing field or emergency landing ground (minor – no services).
Rückhaltehorst: airfield used as a support base for a particular area or sector.
Schattenplatz: satellite airfield or landing ground (minor – limited services or no services).
Scheinflugplatz: dummy airfield used to deceive the enemy.
Seefliegerhorst: seaplane station.
Seeflugstützpunkt: seaplane base or anchorage.
Seeflugstützpunktkommando: seaplane base detachment.
Segelflugplatz: glider field.
Sportplatz: sports field for civil aircraft, sports ground/playing field.
Teilkommandantur: branch component of a Fliegerhorstkommandantur.
Übungsflugplatz: practice or training airfield (minor – limited services or no services).
Verhehrsflughafen: civil airfield (ranked I for 1st Class and II for 2d Class).
Verkehrslandeplatz: civil landing ground.
Werkflugplatz: factory or depot-level repairs airfield.
Winterflugplatz: winter airfield (airfield on packed snow or on a frozen lake).
Zivilflughafen: civil airport.
Zwischenlandeplatz: transit airfield.
[Note: on 1 April 1944, the Fl.H.Kdtr. designations A and E and the Fl.Pl.Kdo. designations A, B and C were terminated and replaced with Fl.H.Kdtr. A(o) and Fl.H.Kdtr. E(v).]

L.

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hello Larry,

I never imagined that there were so many words, so many designations! Very useful answer.

Best regards,
Frederic

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Larry

A very useful list indeed. Quite a few as Frederic already noticed... :)

My own interpretation of the important ones, I guess based both on what I have read and the similarity between some German and Swedish words, are

Fliegerhorst - a major military airfield - not supposed to be used by civil aircraft
Flughafen - a major civil airfield - not supposed to be used by military aircraft
Flugplatz - major field - used in more general terms and could be either of the above and perhaps a combination of both.

The addition of See of course identifies a place where basically only water landing capable aircraft were handled.

Cheers
Stig

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Hi Stig,

Your interpretations are correct except on one point, I think: some of the larger civilian airports (Flughafen) were used by both civil and military, or were divided into a civil side and a military side. Otherwise, your additional information is very useful in better understanding the purpose of some of these.

L.

Re: 09.09.1940 - Wetterkungdunsstaffel Kdo Flughafenbereich Morlaix
 

Thanks Larry

I suppose every term can be a bit, should we say, "floating"?
Perhaps not even Hermann knew the exact answer?? :)

Cheers
Stig