[ChrisM]

Chris, sorry to come back to all this, but is there any indication in the information you hold that Flakowski was a member of KG 76 in 1939 and 1945 also?

If this is so, or even if it is not, could I try your patience and that of other forum members by throwing up some general questions and asking for opinions.

1. Would it be unusual for a Luftwaffe officer to remain attached to one squadron throughout the war?
2. Is it likely/probable/possible that he was flying operationally throughout the whole period? (He was thirty in 1940).
3. If he was, what sort of odds did he beat in order to survive as bomber aircrew, if indeed he did survive?
4. In 1940 he is described as "commander of a bomber group". He is doing this as a Hauptmann. Is it reasonable to assume that his responsibility in RAF terms would be for a flight, rather than the whole squadron or any larger formation?
5. Is the likelihood that he was a pilot?
6. Is his lack of progression in rank between 1939 and 1945, bearing in mind the losses around him, surprising? Does it perhaps indicate a land-based or non-operational job – training, intelligence etc. - after 1942?

Very many thanks for any opinion which may be forthcoming.

Chris