Crew names He.111 of KG 26

[flyvrak]

Finally got some names of the crew which made a forced landing on lake Grøvelsjøen, Norway:
http://ktsorens.tihlde.org/flyvrak/groevelsjoen.html

However I am still missing the surname of four of them. Hope someone here will be able to fill the gaps.

kind regards KjellS
www.flyvrak.info

[steve sheridan]

Hi Kjells,
according to your site for the 29.5.40 Oblt Hans-Ludwig Von Plato was killed in 1H+LK at Mortens Fjord, Skjomen ?

I would welcome any confirmation of this loss, and the details of the following crew:
Uffz Bernhard Schulte,
Ofw Otto Poser,
Fw Heinz-Heinrich Hatlapa,
Fw Franz Henkel

Best regs,
Steve.

[flyvrak]

Hei Steve
Hmmm. Yes you are right. According to the "Namentlichte Verlustmeldung" von Plato were killed 29.05.1940. He was then Oblt. and still beobachter.

The other crew you mentions went down at Bukkevatnet in Narvik area.http://ktsorens.tihlde.org/flyvrak/bukkevatnet.html
This crew has also been mentioned as crew of the Grøvelsjø plane in some papers.

regards Kjell

[Peter Cornwell]

Steve/Kjells,

Amen to that. I currently have the following:

29 May 1940: 2./KG26 Heinkel He111H-4 (5682). Shot down by F/Lt P.G. Jameson of No.46 Squadron during anti-shipping sortie over Rombaksfjord and Beisfjord near Narvik. Crashed and exploded on mountainside at Mortensfjord 3.15 a.m. FF Uffz Heinz Simon, BO Oberlt Hans-Ludwig von Plato, BF Fw Erich Füssel, and BM Obergefr Ferdinand Stiller all killed. Aircraft 1H+LK 100% write-off.

2 June 1940: 1./KG26 Heinkel He111H Both engines damaged in attacks by F/Lt A. Williams and Sgt H.H. Kitchener of No. 263 Squadron near Ballangen, south-west of Narvik, during sortie to attack Bardufoss 12.30 p.m. Belly-landed and burned out at Bukkevatnet. FF Oberfw Otto Poser, HB Fw Hans-Heinrich Hatlapa, and BM Fw Franz Henkel all captured unhurt, BF Uffz Bernhard Schulte captured slightly wounded. Aircraft 1H+BH 100% write-off.

[steve sheridan]

Thanks Kjell and Peter for the confirmation of Ofw Poser and crew.
I too had this one listed as the Grovelsjoen loss.

Peter do you have anything for Kjell's 1H+CK W.Nr 5607 ?

Best regs,
Steve.

[Peter Cornwell]

Steve,

Only as follows:

2./KG26 Heinkel He111H-3 (5607). Believed one engine damaged in attacks by F/Lt A. Williams and Sgt H.H. Kitchener of No. 263 Squadron east of Narvik 12.30 p.m. Attempted to reach Stavanger but belly-landed low on fuel just inside the Norwegian border on Lake Grøvelsjøn, 15 km east of Elgå. Crew all believed unhurt. Aircraft 1H+CK 100% write-off.
This crew was picked up by an He115 of 2./KüFlGr.506 from Hommelvik two days later.

[steve sheridan]

Peter, thank you for the extra details.
Im very grateful.

Best regs,
Steve.

[steve sheridan]

Morning Kjell, interesting images from Jurgen Schulz, do you have any further information on Helmut Nord and his crew, or know whether his Flugbuch survives.
From what you have written on your website Nord survived the war, and id be interested to see where his career took him later?

Best regs,
Steve.

[flyvrak]

Good evening Steve.

No Flugbuch excists, I'm afraid. Only a few letters to his wife.
Helmut Nord worked as Flight instructor in France some time after the war. He has also flown a Me 262 in Tschechien (Prague).

He and his crew also made ANOTHER forced landing on a frozen lake in Norway, I was told.
The only candidate I can think of at the moment, is an He 111 of KG.4 (5J+HM) which landed on lake Mjøsa in southern Norway on 19.04 1940
May be the crew of that plane is known?

regards Kjell
www.flyvrak.info

[Peter Cornwell]

Kjell,

The crew of the 5J+HM is not known to me I'm afraid. But please help me understand how Helmut NORD would have been flying with 4./KG4 on 19 April 1940 and with 2./KG26 on 2 June 1940 ? In my experience this is most unlikely.