SG 1 at Garz/Usedom airfield 1945?

[Schlageter]

Hello all,

I have a question regarding the presence of SG 1 at Garz/Usedom airfield in 1945. According to Michael Holm's site and Lexikon der Wehrmacht both Stab and III./SG 1 were based at Garz/Usedom, in February and March 1945 respectively. This is contrary to Doug Stankey's and Larry de Zeng's works, which have only III./SG 1 placed at Garz/Usedom ("Dive Bomber and Ground Attack Units of the Luftwaffe"), while the more recent "Airfields of the Luftwaffe" does not mention any unit of SG 1 there at all!

Can anybody clarify, whether units of SG 1 were based at Garz/Usedom and if yes, when exactly.

Thank you very much in advance!

Best Regards

Michael

[Merlin]

Hello Michael,

the III./SG 1 was based according to a Flugbuch from 7.Mar.45 to 6.Apr.45 at Kolberg. During that time frame some missions were flown from Garz.

The Stab/SG 1 was at that time based in the Berlin area.

[Recceswind]

Hello,

Another III./SG 1 Flugbuch lists no flights from Garz in 1945. BTW: Kolberg was taken by the Polish Army on March 18, 1945. As far as I know, III./SG 1 left that town on March 5.

Greetings

[Schlageter]

Thank you very much for your replies!
I would be very interested in scans of the aforementioned Flugbücher of SG 1 pilots, is it possible to acquire them? Or could you please provide me with a listing of the utilized airfields of III./SG 1 after its departure from Kolberg?

Thank you very much for your help!

Best regards

Michael

[KrisJG3]

Originally Posted by Recceswind

Hello,

Another III./SG 1 Flugbuch lists no flights from Garz in 1945. BTW: Kolberg was taken by the Polish Army on March 18, 1945. As far as I know, III./SG 1 left that town on March 5.

Greetings

You have right they escaped on beginig of March 1945 from this airfield near Kolberg (Bagicz = germ.: Bodenhagen):
http://www.polot.net/?p=109

"...W marcu 1945r. Niemcy ogłaszają ewakuację lotniska. Niszczą część obiektów; niektóre hangary, warsztaty, zbrojownię. W dniu 5.03.1945r. lotnisko zajmują czołgi sowieckie. Nienaruszone pozostały wszystkie budynki koszarowe, wieża lotów, kasyno oficerskie, dom oficera, budynek ambulatorium, budynek komendantury, kotłownie, stacje pomp. Informacje są niepewne, ponieważ po bytności sowietów nie zachowało się wiele dokumentów. ..."

" ... In March of 1945 . Germany announce the evacuation of the airport. They destroy some objects , some hangars , workshops, armory . On 5.03.1945r airport occupied Soviet tanks . Remained intact all the barracks , flight tower , casino officers , house officer , outpatient building , headquarters building , boiler , pump stations . the information is uncertain , because the Soviets did not stay preserved many documents. ... "

First attacked Russian with tank units but battle of Kolberg was made by Polish Army and finished on 18.03.1945 - Airfield Bagicz/Bodenhagen there is on East side of Kolberg (very near).

[Larry deZeng]

Hi Michael Schlageter -

Please be careful making assumptions about entire units based on the entries in several Flugbuecher, especially fighter and ground attack units and most especially during the latter part of the war. These units more often than not operated from more than one airfield at a time so identifying one particular airfield as the unit's "base" is often difficult to do, given the mass destruction of documents. In labeling a particular airfield as a unit's "base", it would be necessary to know with certainty that the Gruppenstab was there along with its administrative and signal facilities. Having a couple of Flugbuecher that show an aircraft and pilot from the Gruppenstab at an airfield on a given date doesn't cut it. This frequent lack of certainty is endemic with many Luftwaffe units and the researcher is forced to rely on secondary sources such as Flugbuecher, POW statements, published material, etc. Even ULTRA intercepts are shaky because an isolated signal stating that such and such unit "will be moving to Kolberg at 2100 hours" does not meant that it necessarily did.

L.

[Schlageter]

Hello Larry,

thanks a lot for your input! That is a very important fact you brought up which should taken into consideration when looking at Luftwaffe bases in the last months of the war.

Best

Michael

[Larry deZeng]

Hi Michael,

Here is the source info for the Stab:


Stab/SG 1

………..
7 Feb 45: withdrew to Hexengrund/8 km NNW of Gdingen (Gdynia). M.Holm-op cit.
1 Mar 45: now at Oranienburg/25 km NW of Berlin (1. Fliegerdivision). AFHRA Maxwell: decimal 512 (British Air Ministry) German document Ia Nr. 280/45.
29 Mar 45: Fürstenwalde/50 km ESE of Berlin engaged against the Oder bridgeheads under 4. Fliegerdivision/Luftflotte 6. T-321 roll 50 frame 876 (Lfl.6 documents).

As you can see, the two from March come from original Luftwaffe documents.

Every little bit helps!

L.

[Schlageter]

Larry, thanks a lot for that helpful information!

Stab/SG 1 ended the war in Flensburg; do you know which bases were used after Fürstenwalde (must be in the second half of April 1945)?

Thanks a lot in advance and best regards

Michael

[Larry deZeng]

Michael -

No, but the Geschwaderstab was almost always (read 95% of the time) co-located with one of its Gruppen. You can look at the information below and make your own guess which of the three Gruppen it accompanied during April 1945. My guess would be I. Gruppe because it and the Geschwaderstab were both at Fürstenwalde at the end of March and the first part of April. Remember, the Luftwaffe units deployed along the Oder Front did not move around much between the second half of March and 16 April when the Russians began their massive offensive to take Berlin. That was because of the fuel shortage and the relative stability along the Oder Front at that time.

I./SG 1
29 Mar 45: still at Fürstenwalde.
Apr 45: at Berlin-Gatow until 26 April engaged in the final defense of the capital. In addition to its normal fighter-bomber missions, the Gruppe was even called upon to drop supply containers over the city. After 26 April, withdrew west via airfields in Mecklenburg. [Jet & Prop magazine – Heft (issue) 3/1996:52.]
May 45: transferred to Flensburg in Schleswig-Holstein and disbanded there during the first week of May. [Dierich-op cit.]


II./SG 1
29 Mar 45: Werneuchen. [T-321 roll 50 frame 876 (Lfl.6 documents.]
26 Apr 45: at Flensburg in Schleswig-Holstein. [T-321 roll 114 frame 023.]
May 45: disbanded at Flensburg at the beginning of May. [Dierich-op cit.]


III./SG 1
29 Mar 45: Oranienburg (1. Fliegerdivision). [AFHRA Maxwell: decimal 512 (British Air Ministry) German document Ia Nr. 280/45; T-321 roll 50 frame 876 (Lfl.6 documents.]
Apr 45: at Barth, Neubrandenburg and Wismar, all north and northwest of the Berlin area. [Dierich-op cit.]
5 Apr 45: FW 190D from the Gruppenstab FTR from operations in the Zelliner area/65 km ENE of Berlin, 100%, pilot MIA.
26 Apr 45: now at Flensburg-Weiche in Schleswig-Holstein. [Dierich-op cit.]
May 45: disbanded at Flensburg-Weiche at the beginning of May. [Dierich-op cit.]

L.