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Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces Please use this forum to discuss the German Luftwaffe and the Air Forces of its Allies. |
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#1
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Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
Were there any combat reports of He-115 seaplanes being used a lot in action from 1943 to the end of WWII for Germany in May of 1945? I know the He-115s were used a lot in 1939,1940,1941,and 1942.
Edward L. Hsiao |
#2
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
hello edward,
the german wikipedia for "He 115" says the following: Quote:
regards ghost
__________________
I won't let you dig around in my brain,
I won't let you steal my little show!? dr. koch - "1984" |
#3
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
The Kriegsmarine Operations Staff War Diary includes this item:
9 October 1944(That is the postwar translation available at https://archive.org/details/wardiarygermann621944germ ULTRA briefly mentions a number of other He 115 flights from Friedrichshafen to the Atlantic "fortresses" in the period October 1944–January 1945. |
#4
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
Quote:
Here is an account of an encounter between the air group of the USS Ranger and a He 115 in late 1943: Operation Leader - The German View http://www.airgroup4.com/german.htm This incident was also mentioned by Neil Page on his blog: "On 4 October 1943 aircraft from the USS Ranger attacked German shipping along the coast of Norway under the code name ‘Operation Leader’. Lt(jg) Boyd N. Mayhew was piloting one of a patrol of four VF-4 F4F-4 Wildcats which intercepted and shot down He 115 B (WNr. 1866) K6+MH of 1./406." http://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2010/0...-vol-2-of.html If you are interested in losses, specifically, there is this excellent online loss list for the Luftwaffe's maritime units: http://www.luftwaffe-zur-see.de/Seel...n/Jahr1943.htm An engagement between Fleet Air Arm Hellcats and He 115s was mentioned in a thread on this forum dating from 2007: "According to this book Ritchie was flying JV132/E-F that day as well as on 14 May, when he was credited with 1.5 He 115s destroyed, the shared one together with Lt Cdr Stan Orr. They were engaging five He 115s. Two were shot from the sky and the rest were strafed until sunk after having made emergency landings on the sea." http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=8173 Quote:
Kind regards, Dan
__________________
My research paper - How were German air force resources distributed between different fronts in the years 1941 to 1943 - http://www.ww2.dk/Luftwaffe Research.html |
#5
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
Edward-you need to define 'a lot in action'. Do you mean massed attacks like in 1942?
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#6
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
He.115 flies more or less regularly at Far North to smoke-covering mission over german convoys til June 1944 at least.
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#7
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
Dear Sir,
No I'm not talking about mass formation of He-115s in actions at all. Just the use of He-115s in action when in comes in twos,threes,fours during 1943-1945. By the way,does the He-115s ever been launched from seaplanes tenders? Edward L. Hsiao |
#8
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
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. Last edited by Seaplanes; 19th July 2019 at 13:24. |
#9
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
Oberleutant zur See Karl Barth of 3./Ku.Fl.Gr. 506 was the only known He-115 to win the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. He won it on Feb. 16,1940. I can't think of any others He-115 pilots that did win the Knight's Cross.
Edward L. Hsiao |
#10
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Re: Heinkel He-115s used in 1943,1944, and 1945
"Neil page as K6+MH and luftwaffe zur see as K6+KH
post 4# "This incident was also mentioned by Neil Page on his blog: "On 4 October 1943 aircraft from the USS Ranger attacked German shipping along the coast of Norway under the code name ‘Operation Leader’. Lt(jg) Boyd N. Mayhew was piloting one of a patrol of four VF-4 F4F-4 Wildcats which intercepted and shot down He 115 B (WNr. 1866) K6+MH of 1./406." http://falkeeins.blogspot.com/2010/0...-vol-2-of.html If you are interested in losses, specifically, there is this excellent online loss list for the Luftwaffe's maritime units: http://www.luftwaffe-zur-see.de/Seel...n/Jahr1943.htm |
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