Ghostbombers updates

[ju55dk]

Addition to flights by 4/NJG 3. Flugansagen von FLUKO Aalborg.
23/4-45 2353 start Ju 88 B4+OA zum Alarm nach Flieder. 0043 landung.
23/4-45 2354 start Me 110 zum Alarm für Flieder. Landung 0138.

Jörn

[Siko54]

Originally Posted by Nick Beale

Added this morning:

• Geschwader Bongart: addtions to the sections on orirgins; March 1944; 8, 9,10, 12 and 20 June; 8, 18 and 26 July; 12, 13, 17 and 18 August; translated excerpts from a Wehrmacht handbook on anti-partisan warfare, covering the role of the Luftwaffe (quotations from this also added as monthly chapter headings); changes to pagination and navigation.
• LLG 1 and Kommando Schäfer: additions for July and September 1944.
• Jagdgruppe 200 in Provence: more about the unit's origins.
• Kommando Kunkel: additions to the sections on organisation, June and July 1944.
• Einsatzommando KG 51 in France: more about February, 22 July and 9 August 1944.
• SG 4 in Italy: addition to June 1944.
• SG 4 in Normandy: addition to 12 June 1944.
• Operation Dragoon: more about 2./SAGr. 128 on 20 August 1944; finally corrected the spelling of Biscarrosse, 27 years after starting on this project.

Thanks Nick - always good to see more about Jagdgruppe 200

[Nick Beale]

Marking 18 years since the site went live, this morning I’ve posted these updates and additions to Ghost Bombers:

• Kampfflieger Vol. 4 (page 339): a ten-page/9,500-word article on Luftwaffe night bombing over Normandy in the period between the American Operation COBRA and the German Unternehmen Lüttich (27 July–8 August 1944).
• Kampfflieger Vol. 4: more about reconnaissance operations associated with the December 1943 raid on Bari.
• Ghost Bombers, the Moonlight War of NSG 9: additional details of operations in April 1945.
• Invasion watch: an extract from a medal citation referring to the sighting of the invasion fleet by Maj. Kurt Dahlmann of I./SKG 10.
• Stab JG 77 war diary: more about JG 77's operations with the Macchi C.205 in November and December 1943.
• Nachtjagdstaffel Norwegen: additional information on flights in April 1945, thanks to Jörn Junker and situation reports from by the Bundesarchiv.
• I./JG 2 in Italy: my translation of a contemporary magazine article about Siegfried Lemke's experiences on 19 March 1944.
• NAG 6 and the Me 262: additions about results on 2 February, an Fw 190 operation on 31 March and missions with the Fw 190 and Me 262 during April 1945.
• NAG 1 and the Me 262: additions about operations on 7 & 10 April 1945.
• 1940 losses: additions for late October.
• Schlachtflieger: details added to "The Stuka on the Scrapheap" about the evacuation of Bonn-Hangelar.
• Kommando Koch: added a deciphered signal of 26 October 1940 mentioning Hptm. Koch.

[Russell]

Nick

Happy anniversary for your site, always interesting,

Regards

Russell

[Jan Bobek]

Amazing stuff, Nick
Thank you

[Nick Beale]

Added to my site this morning, taking it to 783 pages:

• Nachtjagdstaffel Norwegen: expanded account of operations flown in 1945.
• Kommando Koch: more about jamming during the Channel Dash and the situation on Malta in July 1942.
• Geschwader Bongart: a proposal to deploy KG 200's Kommando Schäfer against the allies in Normandy in June 1944.
• Kampfflieger Vol. 4: a brief extract from a postwar assessment of X. Fliegerkorps' use of guided weapons against bridges; German evaluations of the Kettenhund jammer; production figures for the Starnberg jammer and data on Düppel reflective strips; an assessment of LG 1's performance in January 1945.
• III./SG 4 in Normandy: another tribute to the defenders of radar station »Distelfink«.
• The Luftwaffe and Saint-Exupéry: expanded to take account of additional material from the Bundesarchiv; also an examination of the myth that reconnaissance pilot Robert Heichele shot the French author down.

[Nick Beale]

Added to my site this morning, taking it to 788 pages:

• Flieger Geschwader z.bV. 7: activities, locations and aircraft of the unit's elements during 1944.
• Listening and Jamming: additions about a Luftwaffe/Kriegsmarine discussion and the loss of an electronic reconnaissance Mosquito, both in August 1943.
• The Bf 109 H with 5.(F)/123: an addition about Leichte Flak Abteilung 757.
• Air raid damage: Ju 88 G-6's of II./NJG 2 falling victim to an an attack in January 1945.
• Geschwader Bongart: actions at Morvan (7 August 1944) and Crux-la-Ville (12 August 1944), with thanks again to Philippe Cannone.
• Jagdgruppe 200: minor alteration about early victories by JGr. Süd and (thanks to John Manrho) the name of the witness to Fw. Guth's victory on 30 July 1944.
• Markings and camouflage: an addition about standardising Me 262 camouflage (27 March 1945).
• SG 4 in Normandy: addition regarding the Ritterkreuz awarded to the CO of the Distelfink radar station

[Nick Beale]

Added to my site this morning, bringing it up to 794 pages:

• Listening and jamming: more about German radar and sonar decoys and measures to camouflage U-boats against radar; Luftwaffe thinking on the deployment of active radio countermeasures at sea (October 1943); the Werneuchen test establishment's thoughts on maritime tactical signals reconnaissance (November 1943); more about fitting out Ju 188s and 388s for electronic reconnaissance (Summer 1944).
• Kommando Koch: more about the use of smoke buoys to defend the Portofino convoy against air attack on 3–4 November 1942.
• Geschwader Bongart: notification to Armeegruppe A on 19 June 1944 that air support was available from Bongart and procedures for calling it in; more about Kdo. Schaefer (air-landing troops of II./KG 200); a Resistance attack on the Toulouse factory of a Junkers sub-contractor.
• Kampfflieger Vol. 4: addition to convoy KMS-31 (11 November 1943) about KG 26's early experiences with the FuG 200 Hohentwiel search radar; new articles about convoys UGS-46 (11–12 July 1944) and UGS-48 (31 July–1 August 1944); more about the Kettenhund jammer; reported interference with Neptun-R radars during the Bristol raid of 14–15 May 1944.
• Markings and camouflage: a memo about removing yellow identification paint in the West (26 June 1944); revised ambulance aircraft markings (19 December 1944).
• Operation Dragoon: a brief report from ground troops on the Bf 109 of II./JG 77 lost on 19 August 1944.
• NSG 9: Oberbefehlshaber Südwest's remarks on the bombing of German airfields (18 November 1944); more about proposals to protect NSG 9 by jamming Allied radars; Ob. SW's remarks on two nights' operations in January 1945.
• Kommando Götz: Ob. West's diary entry for the first Ar 234 reconnaissance operation, on 2 August 1944; and an aborted operation on 17 September 1944.
• 1940 losses: more about signals Ju 52 NR+AK, damaaged on 27 October.
• Jagdgruppe 200: small additions to 5, 17, 25 July 1944 ; orders to ground troops in Southern France about assisting bailed-out German pilots.

[Nick Beale]

I’ve posted these updates and additions to Ghost Bombers today:

• Invasion Watch: The Kommandeur of NAGr. 13's view of tactical reconnaissance aircraft and tactics; additional summaries of reconnaissance results on 26 & 27 April and 8 & 24 May 1944.
• Sonderstaffel Kaatsch: more about operations on 18–22, 24, 25, 27, 29 & 30 August; and 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 25–27 & 29 September 1944. Includes a map showing two sorties flown on the evening 5 September and what was sighted.
• Geschwader Bongart: more about anti-partisan operations by III./KG 100; more on Bongart's operations on 18 June; 9 & 20 August (thanks again to Philippe Canonne); and 4 Setpember 1944.
• Kommando Schäfer: an addition about the disbandment of LLG 1 and LLG 2.
• Listening and Jamming: more about radar detection of the U-boat Schnorchel.
• The Bf 109 H with 5.(F)/123: a Luftwaffe complaint about friendly Flak firing on its aircraft.
• Kampfflieger Vol. 4: more about German intentions for the bombing of Paris on 26/27 August 1944 and intelligence on events in the city afterward.
• Kommando Olga: guidelines issued in November 1944 for the unit's operations.
• Operation Dragoon: additions about Luftwaffe operations on 14, 18 and 19 August 1944.

[Nick Beale]

I've updated my site today:

• Complete Works: updated to include my 24,000-word piece, "Sonderstaffel Einhorn and III./KG 200: from Self-sacrifice to Surrender", in the forthcoming Axis Wings compendium.
• Kommando Rastedter: additions about a Ju 188 flight on 21 November 1943; 192 Squadron's "Goldmark" radar investigation flights; U-boats turning back with defective radar-warning sets; and the Schornsteinfeger radar-absorbent coating for U-boats.
• Invasion Watch: Ob. West's advice to OKL on 4 January 1944 about reconnaissance over the Channel; and Genltn. Koller's comments of 7 May 1944 on reinforcement of the units available in France.
• Markings and Camouflage: a German report from July 1944 on the wreck of a Bf 109 G-6 of 6./JG 53 in Normandy.
• SG4 in Normandy: additions for 6 June and 12 June 1944.
• Nachtjagdstaffel Norwegen: an addition about events on 25 February 1945.

Please note that I'm in the porocess of moving it to a new host, so there may be some downtime during the week.