Siegfried Freytag's 1./JG-77- Shot down over Malta

[Andreas Brekken]

Dear Jochen

As you know, we have both probably been through all loss records available from the archives, and have a feel for how they are written.

In this case I feel it is I that have the most concise interpretation, and as you state there is nothing in the GQM report to substantiate that this aircraft were ditched near Malta, I just cannot agree:



The location in the original GQM report, running number 68 of August 1st 1942 says that the location of the loss is:

bei La Valetta

I just cannot see how you can read that as:

Comiso

I do not want to list the several thousand losses (for all locations) that are similar in context here, but they are usually reported as:

Bruchlandung infolge Feindbeschuss
Bauchlandung infolge Feindbeschuss (F.unverletzt)
Notlandung infolge Flakbeschuss

etc etc etc

and the locations are given as

Fl.Pl.Comiso
Comiso
Nähe Comiso
nördl.Comiso
südl.Comiso

etc etc etc in other regions and in connection with other airfields

I am not saying that we should believe that all reports are 100% correct with regards to location reported, but in this case the location given as WHERE the aircraft made an emergency landing is

bei La Valetta

and there is no mention of the location Comiso at all.

And I do believe that until further information surfaces (I am talking the loss of 27.7 here), it seems that this aircraft, Bf 109F-4 WNr 13040, and pilot made an emergency landing at a location that the unit 3./J.G.77 reported as in english

near La Valetta

Assuming we are talking Valetta on Malta here (as there are several other places in Italy called La Valetta), I cannot change this record to read

Comiso

Sorry :-)

In my opinion, the only way to end this discussion is to find out if the Seenotdienst in this area rescued a pilot on this date. As far as I know a lot of the KTB's of J.G.77 are still available from the archives and might bring some info on this issue. Anyone know if the Seenotdienst KTB's for this period/area are still existing?

So, we have to find out if it was Siegfried Freytag the hard way... the person in question survived the war and his Flugbuch might eventually turn up.

Best regards,
Andreas