Was there an order to destroy aircraft force landed in enemy territory?

[leonventer]

Hi Hallvor,

In September 1940, the Luftwaffe issued a service regulation covering this subject, namely:

• D.(Luft) 4601: "Beschreibung und Bedienungsvorschrift für die Vernichtungsmittel von Landflugzeugen bei Notlandung auf Feindgebiet."

It's an illustrated, 12-page manual describing the equipment and procedures for destroying an aircraft forced down in enemy territory. This was done using either the Sprengbüchse 24 or geballte Ladung, together with a 2m-long fuse that provided a delay of 1.5 to 3.5 minutes.

Dimensions and weights:
- Sprengbüchse 24: 74 x 54 x 197 mm : 1.3 kg : 1 kg TNT
- geballte Ladung: 162 x 74 x 197 mm : 3.8 kg : 3 kg TNT

There's no mention of specific aircraft types. To avoid the possibility of sabotage, the fuse was to be taken along only on combat flights, and then removed from the aircraft after each mission.


FYI, for a listing of all Luftwaffen-Dienstvorschriften, visit this site:http://www.superborg.com. You'll see D.(Luft) 4601 listed on the following page: http://www.superborg.com/dluft4400.htm

Hope that helps,
Leon Venter

[Icare9]

Regardless of "Standing Orders" why would the crew NOT destroy their aircraft if at all possible? It's common sense to deny the enemy anything that may help them.
They were obliged to as PoW's to make life difficult, so it makes sense to apply it to their equipment too.

[Hallvor]

Thanks for the replies, and especially to you, Leon!

The reason I was asking was because of this thread: http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=21085

An eye witness thought that the surviving Germans set fire to the landed Heinkel He 111. Since this was in April 1940 and predates the official order, it may have been just an unwritten rule to destroy the aircraft as much as possible if forced to land. Unless there is something older than "Beschreibung und Bedienungsvorschrift für die Vernichtungsmittel von Landflugzeugen bei Notlandung auf Feindgebiet", that is.

Anyway, it only makes sense to destroy it as much as possible.

[Clint Mitchell]

I believe I have read somewhere as well that maps etc were also burnt/destroyed as best as possible or tried to on some occasions.

[James A Pratt III]

I have read at least one account of a USAAF airman after his bomber crashlanded firing a .45 automatic into the planes Norden bombsight to destroy it.

[edwest]

From an account I read, possibly in Luftwaffe im Focus, the pilot and co-pilot of a bomber were given a new radar. The electronics for the radar inside the plane had an explosive charge installed next to it. Prior to exiting the aircraft during an emergency, the ignitor was activated in some unspecified fashion. For some reason, they wanted to make sure the explosive charge would go off.

They got permission to test an example of the explosive pack at an airfield. The ignitor was activated and it was thrown into a bomb crater a safe distance from any structures or other personnel, and they hit the dirt. They waited and waited. Nothing. They cautiously approached the bomb crater and decided not to disturb the pack. Then they got a hand grenade and threw it into the bomb crater. The grenade exploded and the demolition pack landed right in front of them. There was no mention of what happened next.



Ed