Quote:
Originally Posted by CJE
So?
How can we understand the "KG zbV" designation?
"Provisional for the duration of the war" :-))
|
To be honest, I think the clue is in 'Kampfgeschwader zbV'. What was the bV? Well, transporting stuff, rather than bombing places, which, when you come to think of it, is rather special.
I wouldn't be surprised to see that the crews of the Junkers were on whatever perks/status/etc. if any there was for KG crews, instead of JG crews (maybe an extra Pervitin pill a day?) They maybe underwent similar training too, being on multi-engined planes (guessing here). Was there much cross-crewing during the early years?
I really struggle to accept a translation as 'provisional' (German vorlaeufig or Aushelfs-?), since that mucks up the purpose of the formation with either the status and/or the expected duration of the formation, and the three are rather distinct items. Of course a special purpose maybe of rather short duration, but it may not be, as in this case.
But what do I know...
All the best
Andreas