Hptm. Wilke, III. J.G. 53

[byron-]

Hptm. Wilke, passed from greek airfields as a "planegroup-leader III./J.G. 53" several times. (Dec.1941, Jan. 1942 , 05.42-11.42 )

Any more infos about this officer would be appreciated

[Larry deZeng]

I almost gave up, Byron, because you didn't spell the name correctly. The only pilot by the name of W I L K E in JG 53 was an Unteroffizier. Here is who I think you are referring to:

WILCKE, Wolf-Dietrich. (DOB: 11.03.13 in Schrimm near Posen). (RES, DKG). 1934 joined the army, served in a Cavalry Rgt. 1935 trf to the Luftwaffe, as an Oberfähnrich. 01.04.36 promo to Lt. (n.d.) trf to JG 132. c.10.37 trf to JFS Werneuchen as an instructor. 1939 served with the Legion Condor in Spain. 01.07.39 Oblt., trf from I. of J/88 Legion Condor to III./JG 53. 03.10.39 Oblt., appt Staka 7./JG 53 (to 18.05.40). 18.05.40 POW – in Bf 109 E-3 shot down by French fighters W of Rethel and bailed out; aircraft crashed at LaGravière, Doux.01.07.40 promo to Hptm. 07.40 re-appt Staka 7./JG 53 (to 12.08.40). 13.08.40 Hptm., appt Kdr. III./JG 53 (to 18.05.42). 06.08.41 Hptm., awarded Ritterkreuz, Kdr. III./JG 53. 19.05.42 trf to JG 3. 12.08.42 Hptm./Maj., appt Kommodore JG 3 (to 23.03.44). 09.09.42 Hptm., awarded Eichenlaub, Kommodore JG 3. 03.11.42 Maj., awarded DKG, Kommodore JG 3. 23.12.42 Maj., awarded Schwerter, Kommodore JG 3. 01.02.43 promo to Obstlt. 01.12.43 promo to Oberst. 23.03.44 KIA - shot down by P-51 Mustangs near Schöppenstedt by Braunschweig). Credited with 162 air victories in 732 combat missions.

Larry & Doug

[byron-]

Thanks very much Larry and sorry about the trouble i caused with the uncorrect name.
I took it from the wardiary of the "Befehlshaber Südost", as one can see, there are a lot of name-errors there as well.

[Larry deZeng]

Originally Posted by byron-

Thanks very much Larry and sorry about the trouble i caused with the uncorrect name.
I took it from the wardiary of the "Befehlshaber Südost", as one can see, there are a lot of name-errors there as well.

Right you are, Byron. Since 1977, I have researched my way through millions of pages of Heer and Luftwaffe KTB'er und Anlagen and if there is one thing that sticks out above all else, it's that the wartime Germans were TERRIBLE spellers!

Larry

[byron-]

I think Larry, the same thing happens with other nations too.
You can not imagine, how twisted german names i found in official military books of the greek headquarters.

It is till now not easy (and very expencive) to find the right people in order to translate a military book. A perfect knowledge of the language is far not enough.

Apart from that, the soldier or officer who was responsible to keep the war diary, was not necessarily a linguist or an educated man.

In particular, the name Wilke, thats what my feeling tells, would be properly written without a "c". But obviouly, there are no rules in the german language how names have to be written.

best regards,
it was 36° Celsius today, we have a longer weekend, most of us escaped
to the beaches

[Larry deZeng]

Beautiful photo...........I hope that's a photo of YOUR garden overlooking the bay in front of YOUR home!

Cheers,

Larry

[Stig Jarlevik]

Byron

As a punishment for posting such a photo you owe us all a ticket to lovely Greece

Cheers
Stig

[byron-]

No Guys,

that is not my home, i'm living on a hill 300 m high of the sea off Salonica.
But one can visit Greece this year for very interesting prices.

A Norwegian friend called me yesterday from Crete (Agia Marina near Maleme), him, his wife and three children, **** Hotel all included + air
tickets for € 1.200 total.

In Salonica, for some days of April/May 1941, was based the 7th. Seenotstaffel.
Attached a picture of that time (taken from the roof of the white tower) and one of today. Look at the seaside on the right hand. Some houses there do not exist any more, only the big hall.

cheers

Byron

[Larry deZeng]

Interesting photos, Byron. The "Weisser Turm" (white tower) looks like part of a medieval fortress or fortification. Do you know when it was built? I notice that the mole or breakwater that gave some protection to the Seenotstaffel's seaplanes is no longer there. Did Aegean storms gradually destroy it?

[pelagonia]

Dear Byron,

The he 59 photo is quite nice, although I think I have already seen it. I keep following your threads, hoping to see some new Luftwaffe photos from Greek-based units. But it seems they are very hard finds to come by. Are you planning to write a book on this subject? That would be wonderful! I am Italian, and can help you in translating some material from our language, just in case you need it. Skaronw kai liga ellhnika, by the way...