Heinrich Ehrler KIA 4-4-1945

[Happy Warriors]

Fascinating post. I have an avid interest in this incident and the downing of Lt. Mains Liberator.

I live a couple of miles from the old airfield at Seething and have been working on a documentary film project about the 2nd AD and 448th BG for some time. The Lt. Mains / Me262 attack will be an important sequence in the film. I have spoken with Harold Dorfman (USAF Ret.) who took the famous photo of Lt. Mains aircraft in its death dive. I have also interviewed Edward Paretti who was tail gunner on the Torrance crew that day and was credited with a 262 kill.

Furthermore i have since been in contact with a gentleman who researched Alden Hershisher's story and which ultimately lead to Alden's remains being repatriated to the U.S very recently. I don't think that i ever heard reference to any ramming but i could be wrong. There are so many sources and angles that it can make your head spin.

I do have copies of all the mission reports from the 448th crews that day and need to sit down and go through them, deciphering the handwritten notes. I have long thought that it would be cool to attempt to recreate the battle, to try and plot the aircraft using all these sources.

Anyway I don't know if that helps you but as I say this incident resonates with me.

Please visit http://happywarriors.co.uk/

Always good to hear from fellow enthusiasts with thoughts, ideas, anything.

Cheers,
Evan

[Leo Etgen]

Hi guys

Rather interesting discussion on the death of Major Ehrler. I have always seen that he died on 4 April 1945 while ramming an opponent after having claimed his final two victories although as has been alluded to earlier there is some doubt as to if this really did happen. Concerning the events described above, I should point out that all accounts state that he was killed in action against USAAF B-17 four-engined bombers and not USAAF B-24 four-engined bombers. According to Theo Boiten and Martin Bowman in Battles with the Luftwaffe: The Bomber Campaign Against Germany, 1942-45 the only Me 262 pilots that claimed B-24 bombers that day were Leutnant Rudolf Rademacher (102 victories, RK) of 11./JG 7 and Leutnant Fritz Müller (22 vctories) of III./JG 7. Both pilots brought down their victims with R4M rockets and it appears that Rademacher was the pilot that downed B-24M (44-50838) while Müller downed B-24H (42-95298) as he saw six men bail out of his victim and the first bomber had only one survivor.

Horrido!

Leo

[Reiner]

Hi

The remains of Lt Alden Hershiser was found by local researchers in 2006. In 2007 he was recovered and in 2010 identified.

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009...emains_fi.html

Rene

[Horst Kube]

Here is a link to Heinrich Ehrers crash site

http://www.aircrewremembrancesociety.com/luft1945/Ehrler.html

just sroll down.

Schuck confirms that Ehrler was KIA on 4th of April 1945. When he and Weissenberger signed the official death documents, they did not look if the date written on the paper (6th of April) was correct. At those times anyway no combat pilot had the time or was interested to give back the document to the Gefechtsstand for correcting an error in the date.

To the date, 4th of April fits a story of a ground crew member, an Oberfeldwebel of Stab/JG 7: It was obvious that Ehrler was a broken man after he had been accused to be responsible for the sinking of the "Tirpitz". Although he was innocent for this tragedy he was sentenced and imprisoned in Aakershus/Norway. Released to front probation he immediately went to his friend Theo Weissenberger, Kommodore of JG 7. On 27th of February 1945 he arrived at Brandenburg-Briest (see also Boehme, Jagdgeschwader 7). In the following weeks Ehrler fell more and more in depressions and could not get over the disgrace he had to endure and experienced. Before his take-off on 4th of April Ehrler gave a silver ring to the Oberfeldwebel with the words: "you have always been my true and reliable armourer. Take this ring, I don't need him anymore..." After Ehrers death the Oberfeldwebel knew what he had wanted to tell him. It is said that this ring was a present from Weissenberger to Ehrler. Inside are shown the date of arrival 27.2.1945 and the initials H.E. - no other pilot of JG 7 had the same initials H.E. The top shows the crest of JG 7, see attached photo.

All the best,
Horst