Lost JU 88 24 March 1945

[RodM]

Originally Posted by Matti Salonen

I have Lt Kurt Mittendorf as a pilot of 3C+AR and Ogfr Werner Lefkes dead. Could anyone confirm this?

Matti

Hi Matti,

you gave the name of the pilot as "Lt. Kurt Mittendorf". May I ask the source of this information?

As you'll know, ULTRA (HW 5/688 CX/MSS/R.511/C/24) records:

"From III/(C%NJG.4) on 28/3:- Subject: Personnel and QM. Return: A) ((Date and time)) 24/3/45, unknown. B) ((Unit)) 7 Staffel. C) ((Place)) Unknown. D) ((Nature of flight)) special operation. E) ((Reason for crash)) Unknown. F) ((A/c type)) Ju.88 G-1. G) ((Works no. 712283. H) ((Marking)) 3C AR. I) 100%. J) Replacement. Yes. K) Personnel casualties: Lt. (smudge) Pilot, Oegfr. LEFKES, WERNER (smudge), Uffz. STIFTER, ERICH, W/T Operator, Gefr. BLEVER, JOHANN, mechanic (aircrew) missing. L) Unknown".

The pilot's name was not given, but from a III./NJG4 operations report also in ULTRA (HW 5/682 T.500/96), his name was either Lt. Mittendorf or Lt. von von Mylius.

From written and photographic sources, I know the pilot died in the crash. Sometime later, the Americans cut open the cockpit and recovered his body.

Photographic evidence also shows two other crew members died in the crash or the immediate aftermath. Testimony states one or two wounded men were shot and a fourth man taken prisoner.

Oegfr. Werner Lefkes (b. Viersen 7/9/1924) is buried in in an unmarked grave somewhere within the Kriegsgräberstätte at Wesel-Diersfordt.

Uffz. Erich Stifter (b. Brunn/CSR 22/4/1922) was listed in a supplement to the DRK-Vermisstenbildliste in the 1960s.

At least three men should be buried, presumably in Wesel-Diersford, but the Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgräberfürsorge e.V. website currently only lists one. Also, we don't know the fate of Gefr. Johann Blever.

Cheers

Rod