Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Dear all

I have two questions today :

1)on 25 June 1944 Charles Mc Cockle, Robert E. Riddle and Carl H Brown (31st Fighter group, ) claimed each a victory in the South of France. I am looking for the combat reports of these claims.
I asked to the 31st fighter group (31st Fighter Group Contact Form) for these combat reports, but got no feedback.

these reports would be very helpful to understand what happened exactly that day, and this is in connection with Werner Bauch death on Bf109, see: http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=67323

2)Was an Amercan aircraft shot down that day ? the German archives claim “one aircraft- type unknown”: is this true ? Obviously, this is also in connection with the above fight.

Thanks for your inputs, guys.

Gilles

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

With just 'south of France' as reference, the only USAAF fighter loss in that area for which a MACR was filed was for P-38J 43-28774 of 82nd FG/95th FS with Lt Melvin E. Weidbusch KIA. Toulon area.

Also see https://catalog.archives.gov/id/4779...objectPage=106 and https://catalog.archives.gov/id/4779...objectPage=422

Leendert

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Thanks Leendert. It is difficult finding information on this very day.
BR
Gilles

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Dear all

thanks to the support of everyone, I have been able to rebuild what happened that day and how Werner Bauch was killed.
Here is the story :

25 June 1944

On that day, a massive American air armada of more than 650 aircraft attack strategic targets in southern France. B-17s bomb the rail yards and port facilities at Sète, while four groups of B-24s target installations at Sète, Balaruc-les-Bains, and the Avignon railway yards. They are escorted by dozens of P-38s Lightning from the 82nd Fighter Group and P-51s Mustang from the 31st Fighter Group.
Around 9:30 a.m., the first engagements begin. They are difficult to reconstruct because of widespread confusion, incomplete reports, and conflicting accounts. Victory claims on both sides do not match the actual losses, illustrating how difficult it is to retrace these air battles accurately.

Nevertheless, thanks to archival research and the assistance of specialized aviation history enthusiasts, it is possible to reconstruct the broad outline of the events of June 25, 1944.

A P-38 Dives After Climbing Bf 109s

At approximately 9:35 a.m., Lieutenant Melvin E. Wiedbusch (credited with three victories), flying P-38J Lightning serial number 43-28774, reports enemy fighters climbing through the clouds toward the formation of the 95th Fighter Squadron. His wingman, Jack Jooley, later recalled:
"I was flying as Lieutenant Wiedbusch's wingman in Lieutenant Butler's flight, escorting bombers to their targets at Sète/Balaruc, France. We were on the right side of the bomber formation and had reached the Toulon area, flying inland about twenty miles from the coast. A cloud layer covering seven to eight tenths of the sky lay beneath us at an altitude of approximately 10,000 to 11,000 feet.
Suddenly, Lieutenant Wiedbusch reported enemy fighters below us climbing through the cloud layer. He dived toward them and I followed, but I leveled off above the clouds.
Lieutenant Wiedbusch got onto the tail of a Me 109 at close range. The last time he was seen, he was diving almost vertically into the clouds while firing at the enemy aircraft. He failed to return when the squadron regrouped, and we never heard a distress call from him over the radio. It is possible that he was unable to recover from the dive at such a low altitude."
Lieutenant Wiedbusch was indeed reported missing in action and is now buried at the American Cemetery in Draguignan.

Confused Dogfights Unfold

The Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6s of JG 200 climb to intercept the American aircraft. Werner Bauch is among them.
At around 10:00 a.m., combat breaks out near Avignon with P-51s of the 31st Fighter Group. German Freya and Würzburg radar stations operated by 9./Ln.Rgt. 51 track the engagement in real time and report a victory over an "unknown aircraft type," which is credited to Werner Bauch. It may have been Wiedbusch's P-38.
On the American side, three victories are claimed by Lieutenant Robert Riddle (who achieves the "ace" status that day), Lieutenant Carl H. Brown, and Colonel McCorkle.

In reality, however, only one Bf 109 crashes: Werner Bauch's. Another manages to belly-land with its pilot wounded.
On the Luftwaffe side, two B-24s are claimed by Fw. Lünsmann and Ogefr. Horst Rippert, the latter becoming famous 64 years later when he claimed in 2008 to have shot down the P-38 flown by writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.


The above text will be part of an article to be published soon.

Again, thanks all for your support with a special mention to Adriano, Nick, nogo99 and others..

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Dear friend Gilles,
As I suggested, the P-38J from Wiedbusch may have crashed due to compressibility during this vertical dive towards the 109's below. There were several cases of P-38 crashing due to that problem, some reported on books about the type.
Of course, Bauch could have claimed it as well, since he is credited with one victory that day.
I guess that the clue to who claimed Bauch (on the American side) was to discover on the Logbooks who saw the German pilot bailing out. I have tried out for you, but we got no joy...Maybe some American members of this Board can track down the relatives of those three American pilots from the 31st FG....that would help getting a better view of the combats of that day.
Humbly yours
Adriano

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Also see (in German) https://www.forum-der-wehrmacht.de/i...-1944-jgr-200/

Fw. Karl Bernhardt (1./JG 200) in Wnr. 440267 is listed as the Bf-109G pilot who made the crash landing?

Lt Wiedbusch (0-753769) was 'dropped from the rolls' on 28 June 1944 by his squadron after being reported missing some days before. See https://catalog.archives.gov/id/4779...ect-thumb--427

Leendert

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Leendert : Karl Bernhardt could be the second Bf109 that day but I have no information on that.

Adriano : you are right, the best would be to find the reports from the P-51's pilots but so far, we did not succeed, neither you or me. If someone has a clue, I take it.

Anyway, let me thank you all for your support and help in that story.

Adriano, a special mention for your friendship & passion.

Gilles

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Gilles

I am not going to intervene in who-got-who, since that is mostly a best guess affair.
However JGr lost three aircraft that day, most likely all of them to 31FG unless the two Staffeln
split up and went different ways. Do we know that?

31FG claimed in the Aix-en-Provence area (just north of Marseille)
82FG claimed their probables in the Toulon area
The two places are not really too far away so could be connected but the two units most likely protected
their own defined bomber unit(s).

The three losses were:
2./JGr 200 Uffz Werner Bauch Bf 109G WNr unknown KIA
1./JGr 200 Fw Karl Bernhardt Bf 109G-6 WNr 440267 WIA
1./JGr 200 Ogefr Georg Klauka Bf 109G-6 WNr 441303 KIA

At least previously Bauch was reported as having also crashed in the Aix-en-Provence area making him
some distance away from where 82FG made their claims, hence my belief Bauch fell in combat
with the 31FG.

Lt Wiedbusch is reported as coming down near Cuers (which is NE of Toulon) and quite far away where
Bauch came down.
I can't really see how these two losses can be connected, since the distance between listed
places are too far away from each other.

Adriano makes a good point on why Wiedbusch failed to recover and is a good theory.

B Rgds
Stig

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Leendert
How have you managed to find this particular frame?
Franek

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Re Stig's #8 with name of Georg (or Gerhard?) Klauka, also see Nic's website here https://www.ghostbombers.com/JG200/june_1.html at bottom. 'He would die in combat two days later', which would make it 25 June 1944 indeed.
On this page however it says he had had an accident and died of burns? See bottom of https://www.ghostbombers.com/JG200/june_2.html

Leendert

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Hi Leendert,

Matti's information (which is most probably the best ) is :

1944-06-28, 1./JG 200, Bf 109 G-6/U4, 441303, 13 weiße, Fl.Pl. Aix les Milles
Flugzeugführer Obgfr Klauka, Gerhard (* 1920-09-17, EM 68417/526), tot
Beim Start ausgebrochen um 18.00 Uhr. Bruch 95 %".


so, I would bet that Gerhard Klauka crashed at take off and died on the 28 June 1944..

hope this helps.

Gilles

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Ahhh

I was just quoting the losses from Fred Trendle's Point Blank Band 6/II.
Matti is basically always correct, so sorry about that.

B Rgds
Stig

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Gilles, thanks for clarification. Volksbund has Ofgr. Klauka on 28 June 1944 indeed with cause of death the accident described. He's buried at Dagneux nr Lyon.

Leendert

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Hi Stig

I have not answered yet your message and I shall try now to bring some elements :

As you said, it was a messy fight, with aircraft buzzing around and it is very difficult to understand who fought who.

yes, I agree, we can think that the JG200 Bf109 met the 31st FG.

A remark : I was not able to locate the exact crash site of Melvin's P-38. It is noted "in the vicinity of Cuers" but where exacty ? incertitude, again..

Now, I would like to share with you a tentative & interesting scenario made by Nick /Nogo99, that I thank for his help, based on a departure from Aix les Milles (whereas the real take off may have been from Avignon ? another unclear parameter for me), that would make sense, see hereunder,

Again, this is pure speculation, but probably close to the truth.

Best regards

Gilles

According to this model, the Bf 109 G-6/U4 departs from the Aix-Les Milles airfield. The sortie is conducted under the control of Jafü Süd, utilizing the overlapping radar network of 9./Ln.Rgt. 51 and adjacent stations.

At 09:34, a verified encounter occurs with Melvin E Wiedbusch's P-38 (43-28774), approximately 100 km from the Avignon sector. During this engagement, it is a verified fact that Melvin's aircraft is either shot down or crashes while diving too steeply (wingman witness Jack D. Jolex) on Werner Bauch. This could explain why 9./Ln.Rgt. 51 made the claim—the aircraft simply disappeared from their radar—and why Werner did not identify the aircraft type, as he may never have actually seen it go down. Following the separation, the Bf 109 remains within the seamless coverage of the German radar grid, as documented by historical Jagdräume maps covering the coast and the Rhône valley. It is highly probable that ground controllers at Jafü Süd, observing a new, larger threat—the USAAF 31st Fighter Group approaching the Avignon marshaling yards—immediately re-vector the aircraft toward this sector.

The timeline and distance correlate precisely with this dual-engagement hypothesis. At 09:56, exactly 22 minutes after the initial combat, it is verified that the 31st FG intercepts Bf 109s near Avignon.

Traversing a 100 km distance within a 22-minute timeframe requires an average speed of approximately 273 km/h (170 mph). In contrast, a Bf 109 G-6 in uninterrupted cruise flight (approx. 450 km/h) would cover this distance in merely 13 to 14 minutes. The 8 to 9-minute differential aligns perfectly with the time required to execute the combat maneuvers during the encounter with Melvin, disengage from the area, receive new radio vectors, and adjust course toward Avignon.

Arriving in the Avignon sector at 09:56, the aircraft would theoretically be operating with depleted fuel reserves after an extended sortie and a preceding combat encounter. Positioned in close proximity to its base at Aix-Les Milles, the aircraft may have been entering a Return To Base (RTB) profile. The Bf 109 is then intercepted by the numerically superior 307th Fighter Squadron.

At this exact verified time (09:56), verified USAAF claims are officially filed by Lt. Robert Riddle (achieving Ace status), Lt. Carl H. Brown, and Col. McCorkle flying P-51's. The Bf 109 sustains catastrophic damage during this attack, forcing Werner Bauch to bail out. It is a verified fact that his parachute caught fire during the egress or subsequent descent (french witnesses), resulting in his verified death and marking the fatal conclusion of the sortie.

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

Sounds like a reasonable scenario Gilles

So the two Staffeln from JGr 200 were sent to intercept two different bomber groups, based on
the assumption no other German fighters were around.

Such a scenario also would show the lack of aerial defence the Germans had in southern France.

It would also indicate that 2./JGr 200 was later sent to help out the fighters from 1./JGr 200
in their area of defence, which incidentally, did not make Bauch any good.

B Rgds
Stig

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

I have Fw. Karl Bernhardt as being WIA on 29.06.1944.

Re: Combat reports of 31st FG on 25 JUne 1944 in France
 

This is rapidly turning into a discussion for the Luftwaffe part of the forum.


The following Bundesarchiv sources have only one Bf 109 casualty on 25 June:


RL 2-III/1044:
25.6. JG 200 1 man dead
28.6. 1./JG 200 1 man dead
29.6. 1./JG 200 1 man dead


RL 2-III/823:
25.6. 1 man dead (on operations) by enemy action
28.6. 1 man dead (non-operational) without enemy action
29.6. 1 man injured (on operations) by enemy action


RL 2-III/854:
25.6. 1 aircraft lost on operations, enemy aircraft gunfire
28.6. 1 aircraft damaged (not on operations) human error
29.6. 1 aircraft lost on operations, enemy aircraft gunfire


All my information points to these three casualties being Bauch, Klauka and Bernhardt respectively.


German reports deciphered by the Allies are contradictory:


CX/MSS/T227/154

Signed Jafü South Ic: Situation report of 25/6
Own ops: 21 FARN ((Me 109))
Successes: 2 a/c shot out of formation, 6 a/c effectively shot up
Losses: 2 Me 109. 1 pilot killed, 1 pilot wounded.


CX/MSS/R.235(C),11
Report No. 954 of 2/7, from Jafü SOUTH, IA:
Ref: Jafü SOUTH IA’s No. 940 of 25/6.
Subject: Supplement to monthly report of Jafü SOUTH FRANCE for June (25–30/6).
Operated on scrambles: 59 a/c, victories 2 4-engined a/c shot out of formation: 3 4-engined a/c and 3 S.E. a/c effectively shot up.
Losses: 1 Me 109 shot down, pilot killed. 1 Me 109 made forced landing, pilot injured (battle losses over our own territory).