Quote:
Originally Posted by ZhekaB
October 1944 air battle over East Prussia
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Hello Zheka,
It is good to have you here as a new member.
Concerning your question about the Luftwaffe order of battle in East Prussia in this period, the answer may be known to Andrew Arthy. My own comment would be that your list appears to be broadly correct, but some of the units concerned operated over Kurland and not East Prussia, while some other units may be missing from your list.
Turning to the
types of German aircraft flown, the Schlachtgeschwader were flying the Fw 190 F-8 sub-type, almost exclusively. The exception was I./S.G. 1, which was still flying the Ju 87 D-5. The units of JG 51 and 52 in East Prussia were equipped with the Bf 109 G-6, though small numbers of the Bf 109 G-14 version appeared in service with JG 51 during the second half of October. The only Messerschmitt 110s which could have been theoretically present would have been Bf 110 G-4 of a Nachtjagdgeschwader. Other members here will have more specific knowledge, but I cannot see any evidence of any Bf 110 flights or losses over East Prussia at this time. The Me 210 had disappeared from the last frontline units in early 1944. A reconnaissance unit, 1.(F)/122, may have flown the Me 410 in this area, but again there appears to be no evidence of losses.
Evgeny has answered
question 1 of your numbered points. I can see in sources available to me that Klaus was still listed as the commander of 6./S.G. 1 at the time when he was shot down, so it appears the identity of the pilot is confirmed.
In response to
point 2 I can comment that this Fi 156 appears to have been an aircraft of 28./Fl.Verb.G.2 – Flugzeugverbindungsgeschwader 2. This squadron had been previously designated Kurierstaffel 11.
Point 3, Zakharov’s claim, cannot be matched to any known German loss.
Gerhard is an expert and he has given you his definitive answer about the
Fw 190 D-9. I will add that my understanding is that the ‘Dora’ first appeared on the Eastern front when II./J.G. 6 and Stab/J.G. 11 were redeployed from the West in late January and early February 1945. The D-9 never flew over East Prussia. I suggest that skilled Fw 190 F-8 pilots, perhaps flying aircraft with unusual camouflage, could have confused their Soviet opponents. There would have been Soviet intelligence bulletins concerning the existence of a ‘long-nosed’ Focke-Wulf, possibly originating with the Allies. It is probable that this was a fairly mundane case of confirmation bias, with Soviet fighter pilots looking to find unusual Fw 190s even where there were none.
May I ask for your e-mail address, Zheka? I would like to ask you a question about Soviet sources.
Regards,
Dan