[La Kampfgeschwader 54. L'escadre à la tête de mort - Tome II] Nouveau La Kampfgeschwader 54. L'escadre à la tête de mort - Tome II

[FalkeEins]

Originally Posted by Nick Beale

the high-level discussion in the Luftwaffe (memos in various Bundesarchiv files) about how much of a future the bomber arm still had in 1944 given the supply of replacement crews and the lack of new aircraft types coming through — and that's before the fuel started to run out.

I'd have thought 'Steinbock' virtually finished it off. And ops over Normandy applied the 'coup de grâce' - KG 54 lost around 50 Ju 88s during this period (often with crews) with a similar number of Ju 88s damaged. There's an interesting account from a TG 1 pilot in Peter's book - from finishing his instrument training on Ju 52s he was posted to KG 40 where he didn't fly as the Geschwader was then being disbanded before arriving at I./ KG(J) 54 and going straight onto the 262.

[Nick Beale]

I'd have thought 'Steinbock' virtually finished it off.

No argument about that, it's just that in the High Commnads eyes its days as a viable force appear to have been numbered even before Steinbock proved so costly.