[Larry deZeng]

Here are the last 6 months of the Staffel, which was hard-pressed to keep busy due to the catastrophic fuel situation. Andy M. may have some additional details on his site as Jeremy said:

October – December 1944: flew infrequent routine missions that rarely exceeded 5 per week; the few losses during October and November were due to non-operational crashes and accidents.
1 December 1944: Staffel reported 7 Me 410 A-3/B-3 on strength.
10 December 1944: Me 410 B-3 (F6+MK) shot down by P-47s near Mariana Mantovana, 100%, 2 KIA.
29 December 1944: Me 410 B-3 (F6+GK) FTR - probably shot down by night fighters near Ancona, 100%, 2 KIA.
8 February 1945: Me 410 B-3 (F6+KK) shot down by Spitfires east of Comacchio while flying slowly at low level along the coastal highway, 100%, 2 K1A.
23 February 1945: Me 410 B-3 (F6+NK) shot down by P-47s 24 km south of Ghedi following a recce along the front lines south and west of Parma, 100%, 2 K1A.
10 March 1945: Me 410 A-3 shot up and damaged (50%) during a low-level Allied attack on Ghedi.
14 March 1945: Staffel ordered disbanded this date, but this was not put into effect until several weeks later.[1]
20 March 1945: flew its last operational sortie this date - No. 3,326.[2]
4 April 1945: disbanded this date at Ghedi II.[3]


FpN: (L 30493)


Staffelkapitän:
Maj. Roman Schneider (August 1939 - ? )
Oblt. Gerhard Schwartz ( - ) 5/40
Hptm. Friedrich Hoppe (c.September 1941 - June 1942)
Hptm. Dirk Lütjens (c.July 1942 - c.October 1943)
Hptm. Matthias Weinand (c.November 1943 - February 1945)
Hptm. Hans Bayer (?) (February 1945 - February 1945)
Hptm. Waldemar Felgenhauer (February 1945 - April 1945)


[1] BA-MA/Freiburg: Signatur RL 4 II/32.

[2] Beale, D'Amico and Valentini-AWI.

[3] NARA/WashDC: RG 242/T-321 roll 53 frames 003ff; ULTRA Signal KO660.