How many Luftwaffe crews were in Spain?
 

Hi
I wonder, may someone had such data, how many Luftwaffe crews were "trained" during the combat tour in Spain 1939-1939?

Fighter pilots? A few hundreds?
Bomber crews? A few hundreds?
Reccon crews? A few hundreds?

Second. How many combat missions were done by Germans during their combat tour in Spain 1936-1939?


Fighters?
Bombers?

Regards,
Mirek Wawrzyński

Re: How many Luftwaffe crews were in Spain?
 

Hi Mirek!
I found some Legion Condor statistics in "Luftwaffe - działania bojowe" by Marek Murawski.

Pilots were send on 9 months combat tour (except instructors)
About 20 000 mens served on Legion (but only 6 500 simunaltaneously)
Total mortal losses: 298 airmens (173 - KIA, 97 - accidents, 28 - other causes)

A huge number of 125 officers and 250 NCO's passed throught J/88 figter squadron (39 of them recievied a Knight Cross).

Missions of leading aces:
Olt Harder - 297 combat sorties
Lt Galland - 280
Lt Pingel - 150
Lt Oesau - 130

bregs,

Marcin

Re: How many Luftwaffe crews were in Spain?
 

Thanks for this inforamtion, I do not have this book.
BTW there was almost 300 Soviet fighter pilots, who fought between 1936-1938 against "Franco" aviation.

So the difference between amount of fighting fighter pilots (German v. Russian) was not so big. Almost very similar (?).

Of course Soviet advisors (about 3.000 were there) did not fought as a common "infranty". There were in command post (advisors) or were higher commanders like "Walter - gen. K. Świerczewski", :-). He was a commander of republican brigade during Civil War.

I do not include soldiers of international brigades, where many communist from the world, and not only (like G. Orwell), did serve in 1936-1938.

Thanks for the info, :-)
MirekW

Re: How many Luftwaffe crews were in Spain?
 

There is at least a major difference betw. german nd soviet involvment, is that german are just fighting, soviets are fighting nd also nd above all hv "political" action, I let you thing what is "political" action in the mind of the leftists

rt

Re: How many Luftwaffe crews were in Spain?
 

Hi
In my opinion the both side had the same political involvement, no differences in general - to get power.
German did not go to Spain only for pure idealistic reason. For 'Nice eyes of Spanish women" - rubbish.

This was a political fight of power - fashist v. communists movements.
So, when you say that German had only fight it is strange for me and of course out of main topics for my post.
Sorry but the "right wing/nationalistics forces" had exactly the same political reason to be there as the "left wing": communists, ararchist, trockists, socialist ect.
Both side had fought for power over the world.

Regards
MirekW

PS
I do not want to be more involved in political exchange opinion. It is nonsens in this forum, which is far away from such political involments - and this is good as for me here.