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Re: Eagle Days: Life and Death for the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain
Good post, Nick, and points well made.
However, the Nachtjagd was formed in June 1940 after some light incursions in the far north of Europe. See the chapter on the Nachtjagd in the book by myself and Peter Cornwell, 'Zerstörer, The Messerschmitt 110 and its units in 1940'. The formation of NJG 1 at the back end of June 1940 did not have a major impact on the daylight Battle of Britain.
And it is not in dispute that there were occasional raids on the Lw airfields in France.
As for the flak units, they had no influence over the day-to-day fighting over eastern/southern England during the Battle of Britain. For the life of me, I cannot understand how anyone can bring them into the equation of the Battle of Britain.
And I agree re 1930s Germany. Those young Lw flyers in 1940 had lived their teenage years in the Third Reich and been subject to the constant pressure/indoctrination of the regime.
As for this: '...Plus, it's hard to fight for one's country without also fighting for the people in charge...' I agree. As one ZG 26 pilot said under interrogation, 'My country, right or wrong'. Applies to combatants of all nations.
Good discussion, Nick.
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