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Old 4th August 2009, 15:56
Larry deZeng Larry deZeng is offline
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Re: Need info -- Obfw (later Lt.) Franz Steigleder

Andre -

Prien says the following about 10./NJG 1:

Quote:
Formed August 1940 (possibly at Düsseldorf) with Bf 109Es left over after III./NJG 1 began converting to the Bf 110. As a single-engine night fighter Staffel, it transferred to Holland in October 1940 and merged with 11./NJG 1 to form Jagdstaffel Holland. On 6 October 1940, 10./NJG 1 reported a Bf 110 E-1 belonging to it crashing while attempting to take off from Vlissingen/Holland.
[Source: Prien, Jagdgeschwader 1/11, pages 19-20].
Ten years after Dr. Prien wrote the above in 1993, our own Jaap Woortman supplemented and corrected Prien’s information with the following:

Quote:
On or about 7 September 1940, personnel from Stab III./NJG 1 and 7./NJG 1 left Eindhoven with their Bf 109Ds for the conversion to Bf 110s. This unit was the former IV.(N)/JG 2 and II./NJG 1 from July 1940. Not everyone was suitable for night-flying in multi-engine aircraft, so the pilots with insufficient training assembled with their Bf 109s at Souburg, close to Flushing/Holland. The name of this assemblage of pilots became 10./NJG 1 because Staffeln 1.-9./NJG 1 already existed. Once training began at Souburg, they flew the first Dämmerung-Nachtjagd trials under the technical guidance of Dr. J.A. Schraeder, the fighters having been outfitted with special equipment. The radar unit provided for this was a Freya set belonging to Luftgau-Nachr.Rgt. 6 at Domburg, which was only a short distance from Souburg. According to the postwar recollections of Dr. Schraeder, these trials were not successful. In December 1940 10./NJG 1 was renamed 1./JG 1.
[Source: Woortman, Jaap – posted on 12 O’Clock High web site, 28 March 2004].
So what happened next? A new Staffel was set up in December 1940 to take the place of the former 10./NJG 1. It was named Geschwader-Ergänzungsstaffel/NJG 1 and was the former Versuchsnachtjagdstaffel after the latter had converted from Bf 109s to Bf 110s. Some 9 months later, when the Ergänzungsgruppe/NJG 1 was set up, the Geschw.Erg.St./NJG 1 was renamed 10./NJG 1 and became part of the new Erg.Gr.

There still seem to be some minor inconsistencies between the Prien and Woortman accounts, but I’ll leave it to them to iron these out.

Larry
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