[Seaplanes]

Thanks for everybodys interest in the He 115, one my absolute favourite Luftwaffe planes. There has been mention about the very last formal He 115 unit in WW2, and here is some of the story:

Seekommando (He 115) Friedrichshafen:
Until recently, the existence of this unit was not commonly known. It was apparently formed ad hoc on 8. October 1944 with the purpose of flying supplies to the French Atlantic coastal cities, then still under German control. The formal formation of the unit was given in a directive from Gen.Qu. 6.Abt. on 26. October 1944. Its base was at Friedrichshafen on the north shore of the Bodensee in southern Germany, the same location as the main Dornier factory. During the period from 8. October 1944 to 4. January 1945, the unit made only two successful supply missions and two missions uncompleted. Two He 115’s were lost and one aircraft sank during operations. The latter apparently happened during a supply mission to La Rochelle in the morning of 27.12.1944. During landing the floats received several hits by Flak and the aircraft partially sank. However, the crew and cargo were all rescued safely. The unit was finally disbanded on 29. January 1945. At this time the Seekdo. (He 115) Friedrichshafen had one He 115 ready for operations in Friedrichshafen, and one He 115 with damaged floats stranded in St. Nazaire. The personnel strength stood at two three-man crews and 12 technical and support personnel, most of whom went to the He 111 equipped T.Gr.30, a unit also involved in the supply missions to France.


I can add that on 11. January 1945, He 115B/C W.Nr. 2251 (ex. Fl.Erg.Gr. (See)) crashed in Friedrichshafen due to bad weather conditions. Ofw. Werner Käpf (pilot) injured and Oblt. Heinz Phillipp (observer) killed.


In addition, the 3./K.G.200 also operated a couple of He 115's in Finland.