3.NaGr 1 Query

[sidney]

I post this query on behalf of Laurent Grobben. He tried to become a member, but apparently the TOCH membership is for the time being suspended, so...

According to the Michael Holm's ww2.dk website, the Staffel was formed late in the day, in November 1944 at the Fliegerhorst Twente in the Netherlands. It was equiped with a mix of Bf 109 G-5, G-6 and G-8 aircraft. The Staffel was disbanded in March 1945.

His query is as follows:

"Hello, can anyone tell me a bit more or has pictures of the following aircraft:

Bf109 G-6 Wrkn.230115
Bf109 G-6 Wrkn.230146; Schwarze 64
Bf109 G-6 Wrkn.230500; Schwarze 65

As far as I could find these aircraft have flown from Fliegerhorst Twente, and I would like to make scale models of the aircraft which were based there. If anyone knows about other Bf109G-6 aircraft or has pictures, or camouflage patterns from this Fliegerhorst it could help me.

Regards Laurent"

He is also quering whether the Staffel aircraft wore a unit band on the aft fuselage.

Any assistance will be appreciated,
Sinisa

[Nick Beale]

230115 was in Gelsenkirchen-Buer on 24 December 1944; "away from airfield" on the 26th and 29th it was in Niedermendig and reported as unserviceable there on 31 December 1944. It was still there on 2 January and given up to 3./NAG 13 on 3 January.

230146 was lost on 14 February 1945, pilot Ltn. Metzler.
230500 was lost on 11 February 1945, pilot Ofhr. Pieper.

3./NAG 1 used black numbers (carried over from its origin as 5.(F)/123, I believe). It is unlikley to have carried a tail band, since reconnaissance units do not seem to have used them. 3./NAG 13 used yellow numbers.

[sidney]

Thank you, Nick. Much appreciated.

I told him already that the usage of the tail band is not likely for that reason, but it is good to have it confirmed.

Regards,
Sinisa

[Larry deZeng]

A few more Staffel details in the event Herr Grobben is interested:

3./NAGr. 1
(Unit Code Q1+)

Formation. (November 1944)
Formed on or about 22 November 1944 at Gelsenkirchen-Buer/North Rhine-Westphalia (ex-5.(F)/Aufkl.Gr. 123) and equipped with the reconnaissance version of the Messerschmitt Bf 109G fighter.

Germany. (November 1944 - April 1945)
22 November 1944: flew reconnaissance over the Nijmegen bridges in Holland under Stab/(F) 123 (Luftwaffenkdo. West).
24 November 1944: ordered to transfer from Gelsenkirchen-Buer to Twente airfield in Holland.
21 December 1944: transferred from Twente to Niedermendig on approximately this date to fly tactical recce during the Ardennes offensive (Battle of the Bulge).
24 December 1944: flew reconnaissance in the Elsenborn-Malmedy area.
26 December 1944: at Niedermendig with 15(11) Bf 109s. Returned to Twente around mid-January.
22 January 1945: of two Bf 109s dispatched from Twente to fly photo reconnaissance over the Arnhem area, one was shot down by RAF Typhoons near Eibergen.
January 1945: the Staffel reported it flew a total of 31 operational sorties along the Western Front during the month of January.
February 1945: following are a few losses reported during the first half of the month and these help illustrate the Staffel’s activity and casualties.
5 February 1945: Twente under Stab/NAGr. 1.
6 February 1945: Bf 109 G-5 crashed on take-off from Twente, 70%.
6 February 1945: Bf 109 G-14 shot down by a fighter north of Venlo, 100%, pilot MIA.
10 February 1945: Bf 109 G-6 shot down by a fighter over Lochem/Holland, 100%, pilot KIA.
14 February 1945: Bf 109 G-6 failed to return from a recce sortie - no details, 100%,
pilot MIA.
7 March 1945: transferred from Twente to Breitscheid/38 km north-west of Giessen for operations under Stab (F)/123.
30 March 1945: in transfer from Langenhagen to Goslar with orders to commence reconnaissance in the Kassel area, which it began the next day.
9 April 1945: reported 7(3) Bf 109s on strength.
11 April 1945: transferred to Reinsdorf/13 km south-east of Jüterbog.
22 April 1945: Staffel ordered disbanded by OKL this date.

FpN: 3./NAGr. 1 (L 53620).

Staffelkapitän:
Oblt. Karl-Heinz Goldberg ( ? - April 1945)

[Sources: G.Tessin - Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Zweiten Weltkrieg 1939-1945, Teil 14: Die Luftstreitkräfte (Osnabrück, 1980); N.Kannapin - Die deutsche Feldpostübersicht 1939-1945, 3 Bde (I – III) (Osnabrück, 1980-82); PRO London: DEFE 3 ULTRA signals HP7452, HP7949, BT297, BT497, BT3375, BT6677, BT9031, BT9259, KO310; BA-MA Freiburg: RL 2 III Meldungen über Flugzeugunfälle…..(Loss Reports – LRs); BA-MA Freiburg: Signatur RL 2 III (Gen.Qu./Org.Abt.) document Qu.2 Nr.20657/45; BA-MA Freiburg: Signatur RL 40/Kart; Archiv Gruppe 66 magazine, No. 7/vol. 2, p.25; M.Holm-website ww2.dk.]

L.

[sidney]

Larry,

Thank you for the detailed response, much appreciated. Monsieur Laurent will surely be interested in any info he can get.

As far as I could understand, his primary area of interest is aircraft modelling, so he was looking for some period photos, but... considering that the Staffel was formed late in the war, the photographic evidence of the Staffel camouflage would seem less likely.

Regards,
Sinisa