Hungarian Ground Attack Squadrons

[bearoutwest]

Hello All. It's time to seek assistance from your collective knowledge.

A friend's father flew for the Hungarian Air Force during the Second World War. The gentleman has never spoken in any great detail to his family about his flying during the war. My friend is seeking some background information on his father's flying career.

This is what we have been able to piece together so far.
- The pilot's name is Savanyo.
- Trained pre-war.
- Flew in a Bf109E ground attack squadron on the Eastern Front.
- Transferred from the East to the Italian/Austrian border from March to June/July 1943*. (My friend is uncertain whether this was a personal transfer of his father; or a squadron transfer.)
- The squadron was based about 30 miles from the Austrian-Italian border. This seemed to have been for a prolonged period of time. His father recalls being staged through Wiener Neustadt. We surmise possibly to collect new aircraft.
- On or about 5.Oct.1943*, pilot Savanyo was shot down near the Semmering Pass by a P-38 Lightning. We are uncertain what aircraft he was flying at the time. He spent the next 9-10 months in hospital and then some time as a POW.
- There is a possibility that the dates were mixed up, and this may have occurred in 1944.

We would both like to know a little more background to the story.
- What Hungarian ground attack squadrons flew Bf109Es?
- What Hungarian units were based near the Austrian/Italian border, and for what purpose? Aircraft collection? Reformed units undergoing operational training?
- Would such Hungarian units have flown operationally against Allied raids, while based around the Austrian/Italian border?
- Does anyone know what US P-38 pilots/units made claims against single engine aircraft near the Semmering Pass in early October 1943 (or 1944)?
Over to you.
TIA for you efforts.
...geoff

[Dénes Bernád]

Originally Posted by bearoutwest

- What Hungarian ground attack squadrons flew Bf109Es?

There was only one such squadron, equipped with a motley of Bf 109Es, used for training purposes in Hungary (not Austria), during the Summer/Autumn of 1944.

To the best of my knowledge, most of these old aircraft retained their original Luftwaffe markings and were not used operationally.

However, your man could have flown bomb-carrying Bf 109F-4Bs in fighter-bomber/ground attack missions on the Eastern Front in 1942/1943.

If you would give us the pilot's first (in Hungarian last) name, rank, as well as birth date and place, that could help finding out more details about him.

[Csaba B. Stenge]

bearoutwest,

I don't want to disappoint you, but this story is wrong in all of its important elements (name, areas, type, etc). I know the name of all of the Hungarian Ground Attack pilots (and knew personally most of the survivors as well). Don know any name which sounds only similar to this. There were no Hungarian Bf 109E operational units (and even training units as well, Hungarians used German Emils of the German schools during the Bf 109 re-training). Not a single Hungarian combatant unit stationed at Austria and flew sorties from there till the end of the war. There were no wounded Hungarian fighter pilot against US planes with this name as well.


It is possible, that he flew at the Luftwaffe, instead of the Hungarian Air Force? Or the whole story is just a tale?