HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

Hello

In search of information about the fate of a missing family member, I found this older post.

http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showth...5403&styleid=4

Lieutenant Helmut Afflerbach, pilot of the JU 88 W. No. 1776 4D + DA of the Kampfgeschwader 30 is my great-uncle.
I have a lot of information about his military CV but unfortunately absolutely no idea what happened to him, his comrades and his machine.

Last message of enemy flight on Murmansk on April 26, 1942 not returned ...

Who can help me get more information.

Maybe Knut Larsson?

Thank you and greetings from Germany

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

Hi Lars

I can offer the following extracted from my forthcoming book 'AIR WAR OVER THE ARCTIC; The defence of Murmansk and the Allied Convoys 1941-1942.'

Shortly after 17:00, four P-40 Tomahawks of 20-GvIAP were scrambled from Murmashi airfield following an attack by a single Ju88 from Erpr.St/KG30 flown by Oblt Helmut Afflerbach. The intruder was pursued and engaged by Kapt Georgii Gromov, whose aircraft received a bullet strike on its armoured windscreen, before the Russian pilot's gunfire caused the bomber's starboard engine burst into flames. It seems that Gromov was joined by St/Ljt Nikolay Ûrilina and Mikhail Bychkov. 4D+DA went into a descent and crashed a few kilometres north of Monchegorsk. The crew were all killed. A second Ju88, 4D+KH flown by Hptm Jacob Schmidt, the Staffelkapitän, also failed to return, and was apparently shot down by German ground fire (541.Flakbatterie) in the area of Perejmy. Again there were no survivors.

I would certainly like to hear from you - my email address is: briancullauthor@gmail.com

Cheers
Brian

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

Hello,

Thank you very much for the information.
Really shocking ... :(
How do you know all this?

Can you say what happened to my great-uncle? Are there graves?
Have dog tags been found?
Is it the wreck in the Norwegian Museum or do you know where it is?

I have a lot of pictures and objects that I would like to provide for the book.


Many thanks already

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

St/Ljt Nikolay Ûrilina this is not correct. His last name was Yurilin.

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

The JU 88s associated with the Norwegian Museum:

https://luftfartsmuseum.no/fly/junkers-ju-88-a-4-2/

Neither one was Afflerbach's plane.

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

According to the diary written by a Soviet witness, on 26 April 1942 German bombers flew harassment missions all day against Murmansk, sending one bomber each time. Soviet defences claimed 5 shot down (note: 3 real losses)
See: http://blockhaus.ru/forum/topic/2292...manske/page-34 (Google translate it well enough)

Another Russian source says two Ju 88 of KG 30 were lost (third one was from a recce unit), one by fighters and one by AA fire as said by Brian above, except that the AA unit was not German, but a Soviet one, Batteri 541. Also a Hurricane was shot down (against 6 claims by German fighter pilots).
https://eismeerjager.livejournal.com/4809.html

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

Laurent,

Thank you very much for the link to the Russian blockhaus.ru forum. The information provided there by user 'dad67' in post number 669 concerning Luftwaffe losses on 26 April 1942 is worth translating and posting on this forum:

"A reconnaisance Ju 88 D-1 (WNr. J88.001501, code G2+SH) of 1.(F)/124 disappeared in Varanger fjord. The pilot Ofw. Hermann Rummler, navigator Fw. Fritz Grillmeier, radio operator Fw. Karl Altgassen and mechanic Uffz. Johannes v.d. Oelsnitz went missing. Possibly, they were shot down by 541 OZAD (Independent Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion).

A Ju 88 A-4 (WNr. J88.142067, code 4D+KH) of Stab I./KG30 failed to return from a mission to bomb Murmansk. The pilot, Gruppenkomandeur Hptm. Jakob Schmidt, navigator Ofw. Karl Lamparter, radio operator Ofw. Georg Milbrandt and gunner Ofw. Walter Priener went missing.

A Ju 88 A-4 (WNr. J88.001776, code 4D+DA) of Erpr./KG30 was shot down in the area of the settlement of Murmashi by Captain G. V. Gromov, flying a P-40B [Tomahawk] of 20 GIAP. It fell north of Monchegorsk airfield. The pilot Olt. Helmut Afflerbach, navigator Uffz. Konrad Lahmann, radio operator Uffz. Erwin Schalleck and gunner Uffz. Heinz Reinke went missing."

Kind regards,

Dan

Re: HELP! JU88 A4 4D-DA Kampfgeschwader 30, Helmut Afflerbach
 

(WNr. J88.001501, code G2+SH)

(WNr. J88.142067, code 4D+KH)

(WNr. J88.001776, code 4D+DA)


No, no and no. Caution. I think this website info no longer be valid.
W.Nrs.s are presented in fictitious way, quite wrong way.
Presenting this without thought or editing, gives raise to serious doupts on your knowledge.

Ed