[Richard Goyat]

Hi Bill,

If I recall correctly, I already gave you some of the information you are looking for (maybe on another forum). However I’ll try to add a few details and a couple of new answers for 28 July, 3 August, 6 August, and 16 August 1944. Things for 11 September and 12 September 1944 are slightly more complex, so I’ll answer a little later.

a) 28 July 1944. The Luftwaffe wasn’t up in force that day. Units known to have been ordered up were I./JG 300 (Bf 109s), II./JG 300 (Fw 190s), II./JG 27 (Bf 109s) and I./JG 302 (Bf 109s). However, these two latter units were ordered to alter course to the South, so that only I. and II./JG 300 flew on North, engaging combat in the Naumburg area (South of Merseburg) at about 10:05-10:15. This links with the 358th FS claims, but I can’t identify the 109 claimed by Capt. Marshall half an hour earlier and 90 km to the west of Naumburg.

b) 3 August 1944. In an afternoon mission, five out of eleven Bf 109s of I./JG 300 escorting Fw 190s of IV.(Sturm)/JG 3 clashed with P-51s at about 15:30-15:40 near Tübingen (South-West of Stuttgart), while III./JG 53 saw combat against P-51s in the Pforzheim area at about 15:00. III./JG 53 lost two Bf 109s destroyed and a third damaged in a belly landing. I./JG 300 losses that day were two Bf 109s destroyed in aerial combat and two more damaged during a combat sortie (that is not necessarily by enemy fire) while known IV./JG 3 losses were ten Fw 190s destroyed and one damaged. Note however that both I./JG 300 and IV./JG 3 flew two missions that day and that several of the aforementioned losses were suffered during the morning fight. The precise breakdown between the morning and afternoon losses isn’t known with certainty (at least to me). The names of the Geman pilots lost are mentioned in the following books:

— “Pik-As”, Geschichte des Jagdgeschwaders 53, Teil 3 (Das Ende in Italien 1944, Rumänien-Ungarn 1944/1945, Einsatz zur Verteidigung des Reiches 1943-1944); Jochen Prien, Struve's Buchdruckerei und Verlag, Eutin, 1991.

— Jagdgeschwader 300 “Wilde Sau”, A Chronicle of a Fighter Geschwader in the Battle for Germany, Volume 1, June 1943-September 1944, Jean-Yves Lorant & Richard Goyat, Eagle Editions, 2005.

— IV./Jagdgeschwader 3, 1943-1945, Jochen Prien, Struve's Buchdruckerei und Verlag, Eutin, 1996

c) 6 August 1944. 355th FG most probably encountered the Bf 109s of I./JG 3. Lt. Folger was almost certainly shot down by Uffz. Richard Kärcher of 1./JG 3, while the German Gruppe lost four Bf 109 G-6/AS in aerial combat (all pilots killed). Their names are mentioned in the book:

— Messerschmitt Bf 109 im Einsatz bei Stab und I./Jagdgeschwader 3, Jochen Prien und Gerhard Stemmer, Struve's Buchdruckerei und Verlag, Eutin, 1997.

d) 16 August 1944. Yes, Uffz. Probst of 2./JG 3 rammed Lt. Riggs’ P-51. Uffz. Probst apparently survived the collision unhurt. He was flying a Bf 109 G-6/AS. I./JG 3 losses that day were 6 Bf 109s destroyed in aerial combat and two damaged (one in aerial combat). Four pilots were killed and one wounded (this latter was Richard Kärcher...). For more details and the names of the killed pilots, see:

— Messerschmitt Bf 109 im Einsatz bei Stab und I./Jagdgeschwader 3, Jochen Prien und Gerhard Stemmer, Struve's Buchdruckerei und Verlag, Eutin, 1997.

Sincerely

Richard Goyat