searching for details on, I./ZG 76 Hauptmann Werner Restemeyer

[retje]

Hello All,

Does anyone have some detailed information for me on, I./ ZG 76 Gruppenkommandeur Hauptmann Werner Restemeyer ?

It would be nice to have some information from, his Personal file, and maybe an Photo

I need the information for a book, what I am writing.

Regards,

René

[Larry deZeng]

I was hoping someone else might chime in and help with this, René, but no one did:

RESTEMEYER, Werner. 01.09.38 appt Staka 2./JG 134. 01.11.38 appt Staka 2./ZG 142. 01.05.39 appt Staka 2./ZG 26. 09.09.39 Hptm., trf from JFS Schleissheim to II.(J)/Trägergruppe 186. 11.10.39 Hptm., appt Staka 4./Träger Gr. 186 (to 12.39). 12.39 re-appt Staka 2./ZG 26 and briefly Kdr. (acting?) I./ZG 26. 14.12.39 WIA – in Bf 110C hit by return fire from an RAF bomber near the island of Borkum. 10.05.40 Hptm., Kdr. I./ZG 76. 29.05.40 shot up by Hurricane and landed at Trondheim-Vaernes/Norway. 15.08.40 Hptm., Kdr. I./ZG 76, KIA - in Bf 110D shot down into the sea by Spitfires off County Durham/N England while flying escort for a bomber raid on Newcastle upon Tyne. 01.06.41 posthumously promo to Maj.

[retje]

Hello Larry,

Thank you for helping.

Interesting, werdegang of Werner Restemyer.

regards,

René

[Chris Goss]

...and I have never seen a photo of him with I/ZG 76 but plenty of his predecessor

[retje]

Hello Chris,

Yes it would be a long shot to find any pictures of him, at least I could try, you never know, who is read the tread.

Regards,

René

[northeagle]

Hi Rene,
Oh ye of little faith.....should find him here.
http://norav.50megs.com/photo3.html
I notice one of the postings states that his aircraft crashed onto the Durham coast: this is wrong and I have seen it in Mason's 'Battle Over Britain'.
He was escorting a raid by KG 26 to attack the airfield at Dishforth, Yorkshire. Restemeyer was the first to fall when they were intercepted by 72 Squadron: this was some 30 miles northeast of Holy Island which is some 50 miles north of County Durham.
I did write an article on this which appeared in Flypast issue August 2006 and it also explained why there was a crew of three in Restemeyer's Me 110.

Best Wishes.
Robert.

[Chris Goss]

Interesting. The Bf 110 photo is not from Bundesarchiv but came from Fritz Volk, the radio operator of Ul Kettling's Bf 110 (which this shows). I was in touch with Volk and am still in touch with Kettling and some years ago also wrote about this raid for Flypast from Kettling's viewpoint and a KG 26 pilot also shot down on this mission. Would be interested in knowing your sources within Bundesarchiv as the Bf 110 photo is clearly not theirs!

[retje]

Hello Robert,

wow, realy great.. Thank you for the Photo and the info. I'll wil try to get an Flypast issue August 2006 to read your article.

Regards,

René

[Larry deZeng]

Robert wrote in part:

He was escorting a raid by KG 26 to attack the airfield at Dishforth, Yorkshire. Restemeyer was the first to fall when they were intercepted by 72 Squadron: this was some 30 miles northeast of Holy Island which is some 50 miles north of County Durham.

Could it be, Robert, that the Mason account and your account are both correct? Perhaps the initial interception occurred 30 miles northeast of Holy Island, was drawn out over a number of miles, and R's Bf 110 was eventually splashed by the Spits off County Durham? Is the evidence empirical that his aircraft actually went into the sea c.30 miles NE of Holy Is.? Mason's fine, ground-breaking work published by McWhirter Twins Ltd. in 1969 no doubt has many errors in it considering what he had to work with back 40 years ago. I wonder what the more recent (1988?) volume 1 of The Blitz Then and Now has to say about it? I have volumes 2 and 3 or this work, but not volume 1.

Larry

[Peter Cornwell]

RESTEMEYER's loss is not included in The Blitz Then & Now Vol.1 as it falls outside the criteria we adopted for inclusion i.e. 'only those German aircraft which fell in or close to Britain'. Thus, if an aircraft did not come down in the UK or no crew were recovered from an aircraft that crashed in the sea they were not included. More complete coverage of Lw losses for the period can be found listed in the earlier work The Battle of Britain Then & Now (1980).