Walter Ohlrogge (5/JG3) and missing claims

[Johannes]

Hi Michel

I'll look into this for you.

The earlier typed-out mikrofilms for each staffel are basically photographs of A4 sheets, not all staffel's have survived, and they don't run in order, but are numbered, so could run like 1,4,2,3,5,7,6 e.t.c, but being numbered you can workout if any are missing.......and sometimes a sheet is missing. With the daily hand written mikrofilms the claims have anerk numbers for each staffel, so again it's possible to workout if anythings missing.

Regarding Obermaier/Prien, Obermaier's work was the best of it's time, but with the mikrofilms cracks are showing. Some pilots included unconfirmed claims it their claims, others did not, hence differences in totals. The mikrofilm entries used by Prien in his books in modern times are almost faultless, I would say one in 5000 may be incorrect, this is excluding those for II./JG2 in Africa, I would say they were mis-sorted in excel as all the details are there, but the pilots to each claim are incorrect.

Obermaier used abschuüßeliste, flugbücher, Abschüßtafel and even wartime communications i.e Hartmann's 200th on 26th February 1944 not 2nd March 1944. He also gave some pilots a total that was actually taken from the points system.

Personally I give Ohlrogge sixty-five confirmed claims all in Russia between 25th June 1941 and 5th September 1942, after this date his wounds seem to have kept him from further combat, but he did train others.

There is no proof there is two missing, certainly not two confirmed. Often claims are mentions in communications or in writing a few days later than the actual claim, and it get duplicated as two claims.

Basically don't believe Obermaier's totals, and especially those in the West within a grand total.

Kind Regards

Johannes