LW Genst.Gen.Qu.6 - Recording of Operational Losses

[RodM]

Hello,

I have a question for any of our more learned friends on this forum concerning the apparent abnormality in the criterion used by the Luftwaffe in classifing material losses. From what I can tell, the Luftwaffe (at least in the last 12 months of the war) classified losses as:

1. Due to Enemy Action (could be Operational or Non-Operational, with no distinction made between the two)
2. Non due to Enemy Action - Operational
3. Non due to Enemy Action - Non-Operational

..with 'operational' as defined as being an operational flight or sortie.

Is my assumption given under 1-3 correct? If so, it creates one huge problem in studying Luftwaffe operations because it becomes very difficult if not impossible in many cases to distinguish between losses due to enemy action on operational flights and non-operational flights.

As an example, an aircraft on a non-operational flight between airfields may be shot down by enemy fighters, or an aircraft on an operational flight may be shot down as a result of enemy action, or an aircraft parked on an airfield may be destroyed during a bombing or strafing attack - all were categorised as being destroyed as a result of enemy action, yet only one of the three examples was actually engaged on an operational flight.

One of the reasons I mention this is because of the wild disagreement between various 'official' Luftwaffe statistics on losses for the year 1944 - some some of the discrepencies can be explained, others cannot...and I wonder if the difference could be between operational and non-operational losses.

Cheers

Rod

[Andreas Brekken]

Hi, Rod

Your assumptions are partly correct and partly incorrect.

The main distinction with regards to losses goes between losses due to enemy action and losses where enemy action was not considered as part of the reason for the loss.

The German terms being:

d u r c h F e i n d e i n w i r k u n g

and

o h n e F e i n d e i n w i r k u n g

This main division is then subdivided in 17 more specific loss categories for the losses due to enemy action and 4 subdivisions for the losses where enemy action was not involved.

All losses due to enemy action would be considered as operational losses, if you were enaged by the enemy, your flight was an operational one by default.

If you were interested in the operational losses in the air only you would have to remove categories 10-15 from the equation, the categories that contain losses on the ground due to bombing, strafing and gunfire from artillery, tanks or infantry (and probably ships...)

The subdivisions for the non-enemy inflicted losses distinguish between operational and non-operational flights.

Thus a grand total would consist of summary loss categories 1-9, 16-17, 20-21 if one was to make a sum of all losses of aircraft on operational sorties.


Regards,
Andreas B

[RodM]

Hi Andreas,

thanks for your comprehensive reply. May I ask if you have a list of the categories associated with the numerical codes? I ask because the daily strength returns as provided in ULTRA decrypts often provide details under the numerical codes, without detailing what the codes stand for.

I am also trying to understand the German origin for meanings that don't make sense in contemporary English translations of German statistical loss reports, two examples being:

'observed by the enemy' / 'not observed by the enemy' (this is found in translations of Enigma transcripts)

'enemy contact' / 'no enemy contact' (this is found in a translation of a table prepared by OKL FüSt Ic/Fremde Luftwaffe West and relates only to aircraft destroyed or damaged by enemy action)

Cheers

Rod