Spitfires over Berlin : The Air War in Europe 1945 PDF
Preview Spitfires over Berlin : The Air War in Europe 1945
FURIOUS AERIAL COMBAT DURING THE LAST DAYS OF WW2 SPITFIRES OVER BERLIN THE AIR WAR IN EUROPE 1945 Dan Sharp DEATH THROES OF THE LUFTWAFFE HEINKEL HE 162 JET FIGHTER’S ONLY ‘KILL’ US MUSTANG PILOT MURDERED BY CIVILIANS 9 9 6. £ 9 - 9 6 - 8 2 1 9 0 9 - 1 - 8 • PIPER L-4 ‘DOGFIGHT’ WITH FI 156 STORCH • THE KOMET’S LAST COMBAT MISSION 7 9 • DISGRACED GERMAN PILOT’S DEADLY ROCKET FLIGHT • TOP 20 FIGHTERS OF 1945 N: B S I Swiss movement, English heart Swissmade/26jewelautomaticmovement/38hourpowerreserve/ Balancewheelviewingwindow/OldradiumSuperLuminovaTMhands andindices/Diameter:44mm/Calibre:SellitaSW200-1 BEGINNING OF THE END TheSupermarineSpitfirewasmanythingsbutitwasneverasuccessfullong-rangefighter.Therefore, justasthesightofshort-rangeMesserschmittBf109sflyingrightoverLondonhadsymbolisedthe terrifyingextentofAdolfHitler’spowerin1940,sotoodidtheappearanceofSpitfiresoverBerlinin1945 heraldthehourofhisfinaldefeat. SpitfiresOverBerlin:TheAirWarinEurope1945tellsthestoryofthelastfourmonthsoftheSecond WorldWarthroughtheexperiencesofairmenonbothsidesoftheconflict.Manymythsandhalf- truthshavegrownuparoundtheeventsofthosefinalmonths–likethe‘finaldogfight’ofthewarthat supposedlytookplacebetweenanL-4HGrasshopperandaFi156Storch.Infactthiswasfarfromthe war’slastaerialcombat. FromastartingpointjustbeyondGermany’sbordersonJanuary1,theBritishandAmericanairforces cutthroughtheLuftwaffe’sflaggingstrengthfromthewest,whiletheRussianshammereditfromthe east,untilbothsidesmetandSpitfiresencounteredYaksovertheGermancapital.Yeteventhen,Bf109s, Fw190sandMe262scontinuedtoflysortiesuntilthebitterendontheeveningofMay8. SettingouttowritethestoryoftheclosingchapteroftheairwarinEurope,Iwassurprisedtodiscover thatwhilesometaleshadbeentoldbeforeindividually,andseveraloverviewshadbeenwritten,no onehadpreviouslybroughtacollectionofstoriestogethertoillustrateallthediverseoperationsand activitiestakingplacerightacrossthewarzoneatroughlythesametime. Infact,insomecases,suchasdestructionofB-17G42-31333‘WeeWillie’,theoperationsof350 Squadron’sSpitfiresoverBerlinin1945andthecallousmurderofP-51pilotCaptainChesterE CoggeshallJr,verylittleseemedtohavebeenwrittenbeforeinanydetail. Andonefactseemstohavebeenentirelyoverlookedbyhistory:whodidscoretheverylastaerial victoryofthewarinEurope?Differentclaimshavebeenreportedbutcanwenowsayconclusivelywho didtheshootingandwhowasshot. Thispublicationisnotafullhistoryoftheperiod–ratheritseekstogiveaflavourofthefuriousand destructivedaysofaerialcombatthatledtotheLuftwaffe’s,andGermany’s,outrightdefeatonallfronts. Theactionsofthosewhofoughtwithbraveryanddeterminationattheendtobringthebloodiestair wartheworldhaseverseentoitsfinalconclusionshouldneverbeforgotten. Dan Sharp SpitfiresOverBerlin 003 006 Luftwaffereborn–theGermanairforceatthebeginning 048 YaksoverKönigsberg–March31,1945:Normandie-Niemen of1945 joinsthelastbattleforEast Prussia’scapital 012 All-outattack–January1,1945:OperationBaseplate 056 Ramthem!–April7,1945:Kommando‘Elbe’isunleashedonthe EighthAirForce 024 Dicingwithpiggybacks–February3,1945:TheDoubleNickel’s Mistelencounter 062 Kingoffighters–thebestsingle-seatersof1945 032 FightingjetswithSpitfires–February14,1945:FlightLieutenant 074 WhenWeeWillieranoutofluck–April8,1945:BoeingB-17G TonyGazedestroysaMesserschmittMe262.BySquadron 42-31333isdestroyed LeaderCliveRowley 082 World’sfastestMesserschmitt–April9,1945:Hans-Guido 040 ThefatalmistakeofLotharSieber–March1,1945: Mutke’scontroversialdive Bachem-WerkM23testflight 004 SpitfiresOverBerlin CONTENTS FRONTCOVER: SpitfireoverBerlinbyMark Postlethwaite.PilotOfficer DesWatkinsflyingSpitfireXIV RB155of350Squadronshoots downaFocke-WulfFw190over theoutskirtsofBerlinonthe eveningofApril20,1945.For thefullstoryseepage98. AUTHOR:DanSharp CONTRIBUTORS:AndrewArthy,CliveRowley DESIGN:atg-media.com REPROGRAPHICS:JonathanSchofieldandSimonDuncan PUBLISHER:DanSavage MARKETINGMANAGER:CharlottePark COMMERCIALDIRECTOR:NigelHole PUBLISHEDBY:MortonsMediaGroupLtd,MediaCentre, MortonWay,Horncastle,LincolnshireLN96JR. Tel.01507529529 THANKSTO:SergeBonge,GregLance-Watkins, JohnMooney,PATS,MarkPostlethwaite,AlexanderPower, JohnSharratt,JKurtSpence,MarkStylingand StephenWalton PRINTEDBY:WilliamGibbonsandSons,Wolverhampton ISBN:978-1-909128-69-9 ©2015MortonsMediaGroupLtd.Allrightsreserved. Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedor transmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronic ormechanical,includingphotocopying,recording,or anyinformationstorageretrievalsystemwithoutprior permissioninwritingfromthepublisher. ABOVE:AFocke-WulfFw190F-8ofII./SG1fires rocketsatSoviettanksamidtheruinsofBerlin duringthelastdaysoftheSecondWorldWar. BasedinTutow,110milestothenorth,theunitwas heavilyinvolvedinthesiegeoftheGermancapital. PaintingbyMARKPOSTLETHWAITE 084 CanadiansagainsttheKomet–April10,1945:Leutnant 104 DeaththroesoftheLuftwaffe–April24,1945:Germanair FriedrichKelbachievesthelastrocketfightervictoryofthewar operationstwoweeksfromthewar’send.ByDrAndrewArthy 088 TheGrasshopperthatkilledaStork–April11,1945:Piper 110 Theringmaster’sgrandfinale–April26,1945:JV44andAdolf L-4HvFieselerFi156Storch Galland’slastbattle 090 Pistonenginezenith–April14,1945:OberfeldwebelWilli 118 Volksjägervictory–May4,1945:HeinkelHe162pilotLeutnant ReschkedestroysaHawkerTempestV RudolfSchmittclaimsaTyphoon 094 Twoshotstothehead–April16,1945:ThemurderofCaptain 124 Finaldogfight–May8,1945:Whoscoredthelastvictoryofthe ChesterE‘Coggie’CoggeshallJr airwarinEurope? 098 SpitfiresoverBerlin–April20,1945:350(Belgian)Squadron’s 126 Aftermath–May9,1945,andbeyond magnificentsevenincombat SpitfiresOverBerlin 005 LUFTWAFFE REBORN LUFTWAFFE REBORN THE GERMAN AIR FORCE AT THE BEGINNING OF 1945 Intensive bombing had crippled the German aircraft industry by the summer of 1944 as the Third Reich crumbled on all fronts. But even as disaster threatened, the genius of Armaments and War Production Minister Albert Speer was bringing about a near miraculous revival of the Luftwaffe… R omefelltotheAlliesonJune4,1944,andtwo dayslatertheNormandylandingsofD-Day heraldedthebeginningoftheSecondWorld War’sendgame. Withinmonths,theWesternAllieshadbrokenthe deadlockaroundtheirlandingsitesontheFrenchcoast andwereadvancingrapidlyinland,withtheSoviets simultaneouslydrivinginhardfromtheeast. V-1flyingbombsandthenV-2missilesbeganhitting targetsinBritain,butGermany’sairforcewasstruggling toopposethoseoftheBritish,AmericansandSoviets. InFrance,airfieldsheldsincetheBlitzkriegof1940were quicklyswallowedupbytheAlliedadvance. Hundredsofaircraftthathadbeennewlydeliveredto frontlineLuftwaffeunitshadtobeabandonedduringthe summerof1944andunitssufferedcasualtiesaspilots wereshotdownattemptingtoswitchairfields. AlongthewesternfringesofGermany,survivingairand groundcrewarrivedatairstripsinachaoticjumbleofbadly under-strengthgroupsandsquadrons.Tonsofequipment hadbeendestroyedorleftbehind–notjustaircraftbut alsovehicles,spareparts,toolsandawidevarietyofother valuablegear. Itwasamessanditwasmadeworsebythefactthat theGermanaircraftmanufacturers,concentratedat27 easilyidentifiableandwellknownproductioncentressuch asMesserschmitt’sAugsburgplantandFocke-Wulf’s Bremenfactory,hadbeenrepeatedlyhitbythebombers 006 SpitfiresOverBerlin MAINPICTURE:Smokerisesfromthesiteof Focke-Wulf’sMarienburgaircraftfactoryduringaUSAAFraid onOctober9,1943.As1944arrived,theraidsgrewin frequencyandintensitybutplanswerealreadybeingdrawn uptoblunttheireffectivenessandallowarenaissanceof wartimeaircraftproductioninGermany. SpitfiresOverBerlin 007 LUFTWAFFE REBORN RIGHT:Atthebeginning of1944theLuftwaffewas beginningtorunoutofaircraft astheAlliedbombingcampaign razedallthemajorGerman manufacturingfacilities.Itwas ArmamentsandWarProduction MinisterAlbertSpeer,formerly AdolfHitler’sarchitect,who cameupwithawaytothwart theAlliesanddramatically increaseproduction.Heis picturedhereontheright, walkingwithHitler.. ABOVERIGHT:With componentsbeingmoved aroundGermanyinacomplex balletofproduction,assembly linesforboththeFw190,as picturedhere,andtheBf109 multipliedexponentially. BELOWRIGHT:Rows ofMesserschmittBf109G-6 fightersareassembled.The G-6wasmassproducedin numbersthatdwarfedalmost everyotheraircrafttypein Germany. ofboththeUSAAFandtheRAF.Fromtheautumnof companiesthatostensiblydidsomethingelse–suchas 1943onwardsthose27centreshadbeenbombedagain furnituremakersandcigarettemachinemanufacturers. andagaininaconcentratedeffortbytheAlliestodestroy Bycarefullyorchestratingthisvastwebofsmallerscale Germany’saircraftmanufacturingcapability. producers,Speerwasabletonotonlyrestoreproduction Seeingthecatastrophicdamagetheyhadcausedand topre-bombinglevelsbutalsotoactuallyincreaseit. giventhenumberofGermanfightersthathadbeenshot Atotalof3821newcombataircraftweredeliveredin down,destroyedonthegroundorcaptured,theBritish September1944,thehighestmonthlyfigureeverachieved andAmericanscametobelievethattheLuftwaffewasa bytheGermanaircraftindustry. spentforce. Notonlyhadproductioncapacitybeenincreased,it ButtheyhadreckonedwithoutAlbertSpeer,the hadalsobeenconcentratedontheaircraftmosturgently ministerresponsibleformanagingGermany’swartime neededforGermany’sdefence–single-seatfighters.Four economy,andhisMinistryofWarProduction.Herealised outofeveryfiveofthenewmachineswereMesserschmitt BELOW:Dispersingaircraft thattherewasahighlycomplexbutalsohighlyeffective Bf109sandFocke-WulfFw190s. productiontosmallworkshops waytopreventtheAlliesfromdestroyingaircraftfactories– TypessuchastheAradoAr196maritime suchasthisinbackwater bydispersingthemtolargenumberofmuchsmallersites. reconnaissanceaircraft,theDFS230andGothaGo242 townsandvillagesgavethe LuftwaffealltheMesserschmitt Mostofthe27centresremainedbuttheywererapidly gliders,troublesomeHeinkelHe177bomber,thereliable Bf109sandFw190sitcould supplementedbymorethan700additionalplantsset JunkersJu52transportandtheJu290long-range handleandthensome. upintunnelsandcaves,forestsandonthepremisesof transportwereremovedfromproductionschedules.These werefollowedinSeptemberbyevenfrontlinetypessuch astheHenschelHs129andJu87Stukagroundattack aircraft,theMesserschmittMe410heavyfighterandthe venerableHeinkelHe111bomber. Narrowingproductiondowntolittlemorethantwo typeshaditsdrawbackstoohowever.Withsupplylines gearedincreasinglytowardsjustBf109andFw190 components,itwasdifficulttogetadvancedtypesinto massproduction. Just18ofthenewAradoAr234jetbomber/ reconnaissanceaircraftwerebuiltinSeptember1944, alongwith35MesserschmittMe163rocket-powered interceptors,91MesserschmittMe262jetfightersand28 HeinkelHe219Uhunightfighters. Therewereotherproblemsthatgavecauseforconcern too.Germany’spetrochemicalindustrywasanotherregular targetforAlliedbombingraidsandalthoughtheLuftwaffe hadaccumulatedsignificantreserves–ithad580,000 tonsoffuelinMay1944–thesewerequicklydepletedby ongoingoperationssothatbySeptember1944ithadjust 180,000tonsremaining. Oneseeminglyminorproblemthatwasalsobecoming amajorheadachewastheweaknessofGermanaircraft tyres.Unabletoreceiveimportedrubber,Germanywas forcedtorelyonlowgradesyntheticandreclaimedrubber tyreswhichweremorepronetoburstundertheweightofa heavyaircraft.Thisproblemwasparticularlyacutewithjet aircraft,whichhadahigherlandingspeed. Inspiteofallthis,however,Germanynowhada formidablefighterforceatitsdisposalonceagain. 008 SpitfiresOverBerlin THEGREATBLOW weretobebroughtintocontactwiththeapproaching ABOVE:TheHeinkelHe177, ThesuddeninfluxofBf109sandFw190sintheautumn bomberformation. Germany’sonlyheavybomber, of1944meantalloftheLuftwaffe’sdepletedfighterunits “Second,duringthefly-inandthereturnoftheenemy wasaxedtomakemoreroom onproductionlinesfortheBf fromFrancecouldberebuiltwithspareaircrafttoholdin aboutanother150fightersoftheLuftwaffeCommand 109andFw190. reserve.Butthiswasjustthebeginning.Byshortening Westweretobesentup.Third,inthesecondaction thetrainingcoursesofnewpilotsanddrawinginpilots another500fightersweretobebroughtintocontactwith fromdissolvedbomber theenemy. andheavyfighterunits, He called this operation ‘The Great “Fourth,about100 thesingle-seatfighter nightfighterswereto Gruppenwereexpanded Blow’ and was somewhat surprised screentheborders fromthreeStaffelnto when the Luftwaffe’s high command towardSwedenand four. Switzerlandtocatch Inmid-November approved its implementation almost damagedorstraggling BELOW:Thesheerspace 1944,theLuftwaffe’s without question. singlebombers.Fifth, onGermany’sproductionlines unitshad3300 toshootdownan occupiedbytheBf109made itdifficultformanufacturers serviceablefighters approximatetotalof togetnewtypesbroughtinto available,comparedtojust1900twomonthsearlier. 400-500four-enginedbombersagainstalossofabout400 service–ultimatelytothe Astonishedbythisrapidreversalinhisfortunes,the aircraftandabout100-150pilots. detrimentoftheLuftwaffe Luftwaffe’sGeneralofFighters,GeneralmajorAdolfGalland, “Thiswasgoingtobethelargestandmostdecisive whenitfacedadvancedAllied types.Veryfewdevelopments cameupwithadaringplanthathebelievedwouldputa airbattleofthewar.OnNovember12,1944,theentire wereviewedasimportant stoptotheruinousUSAAFdaylightbombingraidsthat fighterarmwasreadyforaction:18fighterwingswith3700 enoughtoriskthedisruptionof weresteadilycripplingGermany. aircraftandpilots.AfightingforcesuchastheLuftwaffe 109production. Withasufficientlyoverwhelmingforceoffighters deployedallatonceinidealconditions,hehopedto inflictdevastatingdamageontheAmericanbomber fleet.Ifenoughbomberscouldbedestroyedallin onego,hereasoned,theAmericansmightrethink theirstrategyandwouldcertainlyhavetocallahalt tooperationsforsometimewhilereplacementswere broughtoverfromtheUS. Hecalledthisoperation‘TheGreatBlow’andwas somewhatsurprisedwhentheLuftwaffe’shighcommand approveditsimplementationalmostwithoutquestion. Inhisautobiography,TheFirstandtheLast,Galland wrote:“TheGreatBlowhadbeencarefullyplannedand workedoutinalldetails.Allcommodoresandcommanders werecalledtogetherforarehearsalatTreuenbrietzen, duringwhichfourorfivedifferentactionandapproach flightswerepractisedwithallvariations. “Itwaswhollyagreedthatintheframeoftheplanned actionthefollowingpointshadtobeachieved.First,inthe firstactionatleast2000fightersin11combatformations SpitfiresOverBerlin 009 LUFTWAFFE REBORN ABOVE:TheLuftwaffe’s generaloffighters, GeneralmajorAdolfGalland, picturedright,wasamazedby thehugenumbersofaircraft suddenlybeingdeliveredto hisunitsduringtheautumn of1944andquicklycame upwithaplanhebelieved wouldseehisrebuiltforces strikeacripplingblowagainst theUSAAFEighthAirForce bomberfleet.Thiswouldgive hadneverpossessedbefore.Morethan3000ofthese armytostrikeadecisiveblowonthegroundagainstthe Germanindustryachanceto recoverandmightevenforce wereexpectingTheGreatBlow. BritishandAmericansinthewest,withthefighterforce theAmericanstostopdaylight “Nowitwasaquestionofawaitingfavourableweather. providingaerialcoverandsupport.OperationWachtam bomberraids. Goodweatherwasoneoftheessentialsforthismass Rheinor‘WatchontheRhine’wouldinvolvesevenPanzer action.Itwasadifficultdecisiontoholdbackthedefensive divisions–some200,000men. RIGHT:Anotherofthe manytypesretiredasaircraft fighters,whichwerestandingbyinthefaceoftheair Itsobjectiveswereprimarilytocapturethestrategically productionwasfocusedon armadasdroppinggiganticbombloadsdaily.Butcontrary importantharbourofAntwerpandtodriveawedge justtwomainfighterswasthe tomypreviousexperiencetheleaderskeptcalmanddid betweentheBritishandAmericangroundforces. HenschelHs129ground- notinsistonvainandcostlyforcedaction.” Whenthetanksbegantoroll,theLuftwaffe’sfighters attackaircraft.Ithadearned afearsomereputationasa GallandbelievedthatbythisstagetheAllieshadan wouldsimultaneouslylaunchanattackontheAllies’ tank-busterbutAlbertSpeer inklingofwhatTheGreatBlowentailed,particularlysince forwardairbasestoputthemoutofaction.Thiswas believeditwassimplyno largenumbersofLuftwaffefighterswerenowbeingsentup OperationBodenplatteor‘Baseplate’.Nexttheywould longerpossibleforGermany onadailybasisfortrainingflights,butheheldhisnervein providewhatamountedtoanairexclusionzoneoverthe tohavedozensofdifferent machinesinproductionat readinessfortheidealmomenttostrike. battlefieldtopreventAlliedaircraftfromharassingthe once. TheeventsofNovember2,1944,provedtobehis advancinggroundforcesandgivecloseairsupportwhen undoinghowever.Thatday1174bombersand968 necessaryduringtheoperation. fightersfromtheUSAAF’sEighthAirForce,splitintofive WhenGallandwasinformedthatTheGreatBlowhad groups,attackeda beencancelledin selectionofoilindustry When Galland was informed that favourofWatch BELOW:GeneralmajorAdolf andrailtargetsacross ontheRhine,he Gallandwasaskilledand The Great Blow had been cancelled Germany.Itwasafairly washorrified.What flamboyantfighterpilotwho wasalsoahugefanofMickey typicalmissionforthe in favour of Watch on the Rhine, he seemed,onpaper, Mouseandcultivatedanimage Americans. tobeasensibleand was horrified. ofcigar-chompingbravado TheLuftwaffeput reasonableuseofhis whichmadehimpopularwith upalargefighterforce rebuiltfighterforce hismen.HisGreatBlowplan todestroyalargeportionof toopposethem–490fightersfrom10Gruppen.The was,heknew,arecipefordisaster. theAmericanbomberforce Germansinitiallyhadsomesuccess;armouredbomber- Hewrote:“InthemiddleofNovemberIreceivedan resultedinhugereservesof killerFw190SturmbocksofIV.(Sturm)/JG3shotdown alarmingorder,thewholeimpactofwhichIcouldnot fightersbeingbuiltup–only 11bombersfromthe91stBombGroupanddestroyed foresee.Thefighterreservesweretobepreparedforaction forHitlertofindadifferentuse forthem. anothertwobyrammingthem.II./JG4downedanother onthefrontwhereagreatlandbattlewasexpectedinthe ninebombers,thistimefromthe457thBombGroup. west.Thiswasincredible! Inbothinstances,Americanescortfightersthen “Thewholetraininghadbeenaimedatactioninthe showedupandinflictedheavycasualtiesontheunwieldy defenceoftheReich.Allnewpilotsshouldhavehad attackers.Therehadbeen61Sturmbockaircrafttaking sometraininginthetotallydifferentconditionsatthe partinthedefensivemissionand31ofthemwereshot front,butpetrolshortagepreventedthis.Theexperience downbyP-51Mustangs.Intotal,theLuftwaffedestroyed andstandardoftheunitleadersandpilotscouldbe 40ofthe1174bombersand16ofthe968fighters,fora regardedasjustpassableforthedefenceoftheReich, lossof120ofitsownfighters. butforactionatthefronttheywereabsolutelyoutofthe TheFührerhimselfreviewedthesefiguresatlength question. fourdayslater,onNovember6,andconcludedthatthe “Besides,thesquadronshadnowwithoutexceptiona outcomeofthedefensiveactionhadbeen“thoroughly strengthof70aircraftandwerethereforemuchtoolarge unsatisfactory”.Itseemedcleartohimthatrepeatingthe fortheairfieldsatthefront.OnNovember20thetransfer exerciseonamuchgreaterscalebyallowingGalland’s tothewestwasorderedregardlessofmyscruplesand GreatBlowtoproceedwaslikelytoseemuchgreater objections.” lossesforasimilarlyineffectualresult. Thebeginningoftheattackhadbeenslatedfor Instead,heapprovedanotherplandrawnupbyhis November27butwasdelayedformorethantwoweeks generalswhichinvolvedusingGermany’ssimilarlyrebuilt whilesufficientfuelreservesweregathered. 010 SpitfiresOverBerlin
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