Luftwaffe Claims/Losses September '39 - June '40

[James A Pratt III]

The book Fledgling Eagles covers the air war in the west Sept 1939 to 9 may 1940 and the air war over Denmark and Norway.

online the is Luftwaffe in Norway Luftwaffe.no which has a Luftwaffe lost list
Luftwaffe-zur-see has a lost list of Luftwaffe seaplanes and martime units.

[Broncazonk]

I've been working through the history of this and according to Williamson Murry in Strategy for Defeat, from May to September, 1940, the Luftwaffe twin-engine fighter force (Bf 110) lost between 94% - 96% of it's initial aircraft strength, that is: were destroyed from all causes. (In comparison, Ju 87 (Stuka) losses were 50%.)
.
The ~95% loss rate [in less than 5-months] on this twin-engine airframe would seem to be clear definitive proof of something. No? I mean, what the hell??
.
Why did the RLM/Luftwaffe stick with the Bf 110 day fighter, only to stumble around for several years with the even worse Bf 210 and then go back to the Bf 110?
.
A lot of good Luftwaffe pilots died over this absurdity...
.
Bronc

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by Broncazonk

I've been working through the history of this and according to Williamson Murry in Strategy for Defeat, from May to September, 1940, the Luftwaffe twin-engine fighter force (Bf 110) lost between 94% - 96% of it's initial aircraft strength, that is: were destroyed from all causes. (In comparison, Ju 87 (Stuka) losses were 50%.)
.
The ~95% loss rate [in less than 5-months] on this twin-engine airframe would seem to be clear definitive proof of something. No? I mean, what the hell??
.
Why did the RLM/Luftwaffe stick with the Bf 110 day fighter, only to stumble around for several years with the even worse Bf 210 and then go back to the Bf 110?
.
A lot of good Luftwaffe pilots died over this absurdity...
.
Bronc

You might also be interested in the OKW statistics at the bottom if this page, for the period 10 July—10 October 1940.

[John Vasco]

Originally Posted by Broncazonk

I've been working through the history of this and according to Williamson Murry in Strategy for Defeat, from May to September, 1940, the Luftwaffe twin-engine fighter force (Bf 110) lost between 94% - 96% of it's initial aircraft strength, that is: were destroyed from all causes. (In comparison, Ju 87 (Stuka) losses were 50%.)
.
The ~95% loss rate [in less than 5-months] on this twin-engine airframe would seem to be clear definitive proof of something. No? I mean, what the hell??
.
Why did the RLM/Luftwaffe stick with the Bf 110 day fighter, only to stumble around for several years with the even worse Bf 210 and then go back to the Bf 110?
.
A lot of good Luftwaffe pilots died over this absurdity...
.
Bronc

You do realise that within that period several hundred Bf 110s were built?

As for this: '...A lot of good Luftwaffe pilots died over this absurdity...', how much do you know about the Bf 110...?

[Broncazonk]

Originally Posted by John Vasco

You do realize that within that period several hundred Bf 110s were built?

As for this: '...A lot of good Luftwaffe pilots died over this absurdity...', how much do you know about the Bf 110...?

How much do you know about the Bf 110?

Well, I know that 95% of them were destroyed in under 5-months in 1940. I know that...

Bronc