1943-11-11,bf109G-6,410268, Oudenhoorn (Voorne Putten)

1943-11-11,1500,bf109G-6,410268,2./JG 3, Fw. H.Reiff

Mission

Mission: Defence of the Reich

November 11, 1943 - German industrial centre of Münster is raided by U.S. bombers. (source: The Britannica Archive)

Mission No. Page No. Target Date - Bomb Tonnage Dropped

28 82 Münster, Germany 11 Nov1943 Railway Funktion 200 x 500 pound General Purpose

Combats & Casualties

RAF & US Fighter Commands

1943

with Annotated Text

ISSUE I

11. November 1943

VIII Bomber Command 127: MÜNSTER & WESEL

347/59: 4 lost

VIII Fighter Command 177: Bomber-Support

401 sent: 8-1-2 air: 2 lost

On 11 th November 1943, VIII Bomber Command dispatched the 1st and 3rd Bomb-Divisions against targets in Western Germany. 1st Division, consisting of three CBWs, upon reaching the enemy coast, at first attempted to locate a break in the cloud and finally aborted due to weather and equipment malfunctions.

355 th and 78th 'A' FGs, which were to provided Penetration-Support to this Division, successfully rendezvoused off the Dutch coast and remained with the bombers during their search for an entry point, and on the return to the English coast. 4 th FG, which was to pick up the 1st Division on its target run, only saw one box of bombers turn back and the Group proceeded to the rendezvous. After orbitting the Rendezvous Point and proceeding to target area, the Group finally returned to home base. 78 th 'B' FG penetrated beyond the Rendezvous Point before turning back and reported seeing another Group of P-47s, probably 4 th Group, flying out.

The 3rd Division, whose target was Münster, was partially abortive due to equipment malfunction. Two of the three CBWs bombed the vicinity of the target. 352 nd and 353rd FGs, which were detailed to support the Penetration of the 3rd Division report the bombers were 8-10 minutes late, but a successful rendezvous was made on the Dutch coast. 352 nd FG escorted the bombers as far as Enschede. 353rd FG escorted the bombers to the target and as far as the vicinity of Elst-Nijmegen on the withdrawal. In this area heavy attacks on the bombers commenced and combats ensued, resulting in the destruction of three E/A for no loss. 353 rd FG called for assistance due to the number of the attacking force, and more P-47s, probably of 56th FG, were seen to join in the fight.

55 th FG, detailed as Target-Support to the 3rd Division, rendezvoused with the lead CBW, and established radio contact with the bombers. Group then took up escort of the bombers who orbitted in the Channel before the lead CBW aborted, and returned to England supported by 55 th Group. 56th FG successfully rendezvoused with the remaining two CBWs of bombers at Münster as planned. In the combats which followed, 5 of the enemy were destroyed for the loss of 2 P-47s and their pilots. Two squadrons of this Group left the bombers near Nijmegen and the third continued to 15 miles east of Dordrecht. 356 th FG, which also was to rendezvous at the target, arrived on time and orbitted for some time before locating the bombers. As one Group was already over the bombers, the 356 th FG swung in below, and though combats were observed to starboard, this Group did not engage.

Due to the extreme cloud conditions over the Continent and the fact that the bombers were slightly off schedule, considerable difficulty was experienced in making rendezvous and in maintaining position relative to the bombing force. Judging by the reports of the Groups, it would seem that the bombers had some cover at all points on their route, although the bombers did not appear to be aware of this and even the Groups were not always sure that another Group was in the immediate vicinity. In one case, the bombers and their escort were separated by a layer of cirrus-cloud. Radar indicated a reaction by 18 enemy aircraft from the Zuider Zee and Lille areas.

VIII Bomber Command # 127: 1st ATF 3rd BD

Ramrod 312/I

Rail-yards MÜNSTER

13.00k: 167/58 B-17 Fortress: 4 lost

Penetration-Support:

US 67 th FW 352nd FG 53 P-47 Thunderbolt 12.42-15.06 FO 177 0 - 0 - 0 n/a No casualty H-BS: Münster

US 66 th FW 353rd FG 48 P-47 Thunderbolt 12.36-15.43 FO 177 3 - 0 - 0 E/A No casualty H-BS: Münster

Claim 11.11.43 Lt.Col. G.E. Duncan 353 rd FG 351st Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 Me 109G 13.42-14.35: Numansdorp?

Claim 11.11.43 Lt.Col. G.E. Duncan 353 rd FG 351st Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 13.42-14.35: Münster

Claim 11.11.43 Capt. W.C. Beckham 353 rd FG 351st Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 13.42-14.35: Dülmen

Target & Withdrawal-Support:

US 66 th FW 55th FG 63 P-38 Lightning 12.50-14.53 FO 177 0 - 0 - 0 n/a No casualty H-BS: Münster

Withdrawal-Support:

US 67 th FW 356th FG 50 P-47 Thunderbolt 12.48-15.43 FO 177 0 - 0 - 0 n/a 1 Cat.Em Lost H-BS: Münster

Cat.E m 11.11.43 2/Lt. Dolor A. Martin: KIA 356th FG 359th Sqn. P-47D-5 42-8668 Poss. Narcosis: Arnhem

US 65 th FW 56th FG 53 P-47 Thunderbolt 12.43-15.42 FO 177 6 - 0 - 1 E/A 2 Cat.Em Lost H-BS: Münster

(A) 56 th FG, Major Gabreski leading. (B) 53 P-47s up 12.43 down 15.42 hrs: two down Ludham, two down Martlesham Heath, one down Bungay. (C) 11 aborts: four as escort. (D) Field Order #177 Withdrawal Support: Rear Elements. (E) Two P-47s lost, one damaged Cat. AC. (F) nil. (G) Casualties: see above List. (H) Combat claims: see above List. (I) Group made landfall-in near Zandvoort at 13.35 hrs. at 26,000 feet and proceeded on course to the Rendezvous Point. Made orbit and rendezvoused at 14.05 hrs. , to the north of Münster at 30,000 feet. The 61st Squadron, positioned itself on the left of the bombers, the 63rd Squadron in the rear. At the rendezvous, the 62nd Squadron dove through a cloud layer and sighted 25-30 enemy fighters which resulted in engagements as follows. White Flight Leader destroyed two FW 190s in rapid succession. Blue Flight Leader and his flight attacked four FW 190s in a Lufbery, Blue leader, Blue 3 and Blue 4 each destroying one. These encounters took place down to 22,000 feet. Two of the FW 190s listed carried belly-tanks. Bombers were accompanied to Nijmegen by 61st and 63rd Squadrons, and to 15 miles east of Dordrecht by the 62nd Squadron. Smoke-pots were noted in the target area. Bombing results not observed. Lead bomber seen smoking and heading downwards at 20º angle, protected by P-47s near Utrecht. Several E/A observed flying off to the side of the bombers making no attempt to attack. Flak, accurate as to height, but poor as to direction over Utrecht and The Hague. Accurate and intense Flak at Münster. Lieutenant Van Meten seen to bale-out 30 miles west of The Hague. Radio contact with bombers was poor, one squadron failing to make contact. Radio garbling intermittent over enemy territory, but less intense than previously.

Cat.E m 11.11.43 1/Lt. Wayne J. O' Connor: KIA 56th FG 63rd Sqn. P-47D-6 42-74722 UN-O FW 190s: Coesfeld

Cat.E m 11.11.43 2/Lt. Malcolm Van Meter: KIA 56th FG 62nd Sqn. P-47D-6 42-74626 LM-Z Mech: North Sea

Claim 11.11.43 Capt. W.V. Cook 56 th FG 62nd Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 Bocholt

Claim 11.11.43 Capt. W.V. Cook 56 th FG 62nd Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 Bocholt

Claim 11.11.43 Capt. E.W. O'Neill 56 th FG 62nd Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 Münster

Claim 11.11.43 Lt. G.G. Goldstein 56 th FG 62nd Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 Münster

Claim 11.11.43 F/O J.W. Icard 56 th FG 62nd Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 FW 190 Münster

Claim 11.11.43 Capt. L.A. Schreiber 56 th FG 62nd Sqn. 0 - 0 - 1 FW 190 Münster

Claim 11.11.43 Capt. S.V. Burke 56 th FG 63rd Sqn. 1 - 0 - 0 Me 109G N.W. Münster

US 65 th FW 4th FG 52 P-47 Thunderbolt 12.59-15.40 FO 177 0 - 0 - 1 FW 190 No casualty H-BS: Wesel

Claim 11.11.43 F/O J.L. Raphael 4 th FG 336th Sqn. 0 - 0 - 1 FW 190 14.10: W. Hoek-van-Holland (this is a FW-190 and therefore cannot be the plane of Reiff)

VIII Bomber Command # 127: 2nd ATF 1st BD

179

Ramrod 312/I

WESEL

13.00 z: 175/- B-17 Fortress: abandoned

Besides these missions on the 11th. other missions were flown B-26's to AUDINGHEN and Rhubarbs by Mustangs and Typhoons over France.

http://www.lesbutler.ip3.co.uk/tony/tonywood.htm

Crew

Reiff, Hans FhjFw 54

8/JG-3 (5/42 S.U.),

2/JG-3 (11/43 in West),

2/JG-3 (12/44) Bf 109F in S.U.,

Bf 109G-6 Wk# 410268 "Black 3" crash 11/43 Holland), WIA 11November, 1943 during aerial combat

Bf 109G-10 Wk#461179 "Blk 3" DK-G(4/28/43), EP, EK 1 & 2, Wound Badge(11/11/43),

Fighter Operational Clasp KIA 2 December, 1944 in Wk# 461179 during aerial combat with a P-47.

His first known Soviet victory, two MiG-1's 10 km E of Volchansk on 20 May, 1942.

A Yak-4 on 30 June.

Two Yak-4's on 9 July.

An R-10 on 11 July.

A P-2 on 26 July.

A LaGG-3 SW of Kalatsch on 29 July.

An R-5 SW of Achtuba on 24 August.

Two Il-2's on 30 August; one E of Tundutov, the other N of Sarepta.

A MiG-3 on 31 August.

A MiG-3 18 km NW of Stalingrad on 3 September.

A MiG-3 5 km N of Lloninskaya on 4 September.

A Pe-2 3 km E of Antipovka on 14 September.

A MiG-3 1 km NW of Bhf. Kotluban on 22 September.

A MiG-3 and a LaGG-3 in the Kotluban area on 30 September.

A LaGG-3 5 km NE of Stalingrad on 5 October.

A LaGG-3 5 km S of Solodinski on 6 October.

A MiG-1 5 km N of Kasputin Yar. on 30 October.

Two MiG-3's 5 km E of Krassnoye-Chuduk on 6 November.

Two Il-2's and a Pe-2 in the Pitomnik/Kalatsch areas on 27 December.

A MiG-3 50 km N of Morosowskaya on 31 December. A

n Il-2 1 km N of Baranensk on 26 February, 1943.

His 47th & 48th, a MiG-3 and an A-20 on 1 April, 1943.

No 51, a P-39 on 15 April, 1943.

Two Il-2's on 1 May, 1943.

Hans Reiff

He survived this crash as he is killed in a crash on 2-12-1944.

Kennelijk heeft hij deze crash overleefd en komt op 2-12-44 om het leven in een luchtgevecht. Zie hieronder en zie foto.

Mission: Defence of the Reich

Date: 2nd December 1944

Unit: 2 Staffel/Jagdgeschwader 3

Type: Messerschmitt Bf 109G-10

Werke/Nr. 461179

Code: 3 + (Black)

Location: Hachborn, Germany

Pilot: Feldwebel Hans Reiff Killed

REASON FOR LOSS:

This aircraft was was shot down in combat with U.S.A.A.F. fighters.

Note: Hans Reiff was awarded the German Cross in Gold on the 28.04.1943 whilst serving with the 8th Staffel.

Reiff, Hans victories 54 (48) JG 3

54 REIFF Hans FhjFw. DK 3

KIA on 2.12.44 in Luftkampf with P-47s.

Unit

2./JG 3

Jagdgeschwader 3

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jagdgeschwader 3 (JG 3) Udet was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. The Geschwader operated on all the German fronts in the European Theatre of World War II. It was named after Ernst Udet in 1942.

History

Campaign in the West (1940)

Jagdschwader 3 "Udet" was formed on 1 May 1939 in Bernburg/Saale from JG 231. JG 3 was one of the Luftwaffe's fighter units that took part in the Battle of France. A particularly fruitful period over France occurred from 14–17 May 1940. Allied bombers had attempted to prevent the German armour from crossing the Meuse and sent waves of inadequately protected bombers to do the job. As a result 90 Allied bombers were shot down and the 14 May became known as the "day of the fighters" within the Luftwaffe. I./JG 3 destroyed seven fighters without loss on this day. On 15 May five were destroyed, again for no losses. On 17 May an entire formation of 13 Bristol Blenheims were shot down by I./JG 3. A total of 19 Allied aircraft were shot down by I./JG 3 alone on that day. The unit claimed some 179 aircraft shot down. Oberleutnant Lothar Keller was top claimant with 10 kills, and I./JG 3 Gruppenkommandeur Maj. Günther Lützow scored 9. I./JG3 was the most successful Gruppe, with 88 enemy aircraft destroyed for ten Bf 109s lost while six pilots were killed and one wounded.

JG 3 later flew intensively in the Battle of Britain. On 21 August 1940, Oberstleutnant Lützow was appointed Kommodore of JG 3. He recorded 8 more victories during the aerial battles over England. Lützow was awarded the Ritterkreuz on 18 September. By the end of 1940 its most successful pilots were Oblt. Erwin Neuerberg (11 claims) and Lt Helmut Neckel (9 claims). The Geschwader lost some 51 pilots killed or POW July-December 1940. I Gruppe alone had destroyed exactly 50 enemy machines, but in exchange of 32 Messerschmitts of which 20 were lost to enemy action. Ten pilots were killed or missing while a further 11 were captured..

Campaign in the East (1941)

The Geschwader took place in Operation Barbarossa from 22 June 1941 onwards, and during the offensive against the Soviets JG 3 claimed its 1,000 aircraft destroyed on 30 August. Lützow became the second Experte to achieve 100 victories, when he downed three Russian fighters near Moscow on 24 October. Lützow was then grounded. On 27 June 1941, Hauptmann Gordon Gollob was made Gruppenkommandeur II./JG 3. He claimed 18 victories in August and achieved 37 victories in October, including 9 aircraft shot down covering over the Perekop Isthmus on 18 October and 6 aircraft on 22 October. He was awarded the Eichenlaub on 26 October for 85 victories. He led II./JG 3 until November 1941. In the period 22 June - 5 December 1941 the unit destroyed 1,298 Soviet aircraft, in return for 58 losses in aerial combat and 10 aircraft on the ground.

II Gruppe; Sicily and Malta (1942)

II./JG 3, under the command of Hauptmnn Karl-Heinz Krahl was transferred to Comiso on Sicily in January 1942 to bolster JG 53 and the Regia Aeronautica which were carrying out sustained attacks against Malta. At this time the unit was equipped with Bf 109F-4 Trops. On 14 April Hptm. Krahl, who was credited with 24 victories, was shot down and killed by anti-aircraft fire as he attempted a low altitude attack on ground targets on Malta. Oberleutnant Kurt Brändle was posted in from 5/JG 53 to take his place. At the end of April II Gruppe departed Sicily for a brief stay in Germany before being redeployed to the Eastern front.

Reorganisation and the Battle for Stalingrad(1942)

In mid-September, I./JG 3 were ordered back to Germany for rest and refit. However, a number of I. Gruppe pilots remained in Russia serving with III./ JG 3. After refitting with Bf 109F-4 fighters, I./JG 3 was ordered to relocate to bases in Holland in December 1941. On 6 January 1942, it became II./JG 1, with a new I. Gruppe being raised.

By early 1942 JG 3 was awarded the honour name "Udet" (after Ernst Udet) and was then often simply referred as "Jagdgeschwader Udet" thereafter. In May 1942, Lützow led most of JG 3 back to Russia and commenced operations in the Kharkiv area. There followed intensive operations through the Crimea, and in the drive towards Stalingrad. Again JG 3 was one of the Luftwaffe's top units, fighting on the Southern Front, reaching 2,000 claims on 28 May 1942. On 12 August, Major Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke was appointed Kommodore of JG 3.

In June 1942, II Gruppe was transferred back to the East where it joined in the advance on the Stalingrad front, suffering heavy losses. During the Battle of Stalingrad, Stab./JG 3 were based at Pitomnik Airfield, where Wilcke directed all day fighter operations over the city. During the summer offensive of 1942, the Geschwaderstab/JG 3 recorded 137 victories, of which Wilcke claimed 97. On 19 September, Leutnant Wilhelm Lemke was awarded the Ritterkreuz for 59 Victories.

When Russian forces encircled Stalingrad, the Geschwaderstab/JG 3 was transferred to Morozovskaya-Öst, outside the pocket. JG 3 then provided the famous Platzschutzstaffel which defended the besieged 6th Army in Stalingrad until late 1942. Six volunteer pilots of II./JG 3 formed a defence Staffel within the rapidly contracting Stalingrad perimeter, and despite often only having 2 or 3 Bf 109's serviceable, in the last 6 weeks of the siege claimed some 130 Soviet aircraft shot down.

Continued fighting in the East, and home defence (1943)

II./JG 3 was relocated to the Kuban bridgehead in February 1943. Oblt. Wolf-Udo Ettel proved the 'star' of JG 3 around this time, claiming 28 kills in March 1943, 36 in April, and 20 in May. Intensive operations around the Kerch peninsula followed in April. In July 1943 II. and III./JG 3 at this time were part of Luftlotte 4 and flew in Operation Zitadelle, the tank offensive launched around the Kursk salient. On 5 July 1943 alone the II gruppe claimed 77 Soviet aircraft from a total claimed of 432, Oblt. Joachim Kirschner claiming 9 kills and Gruppenkommandeur Hpt. Kurt Brändle claiming 5.

As Allied bombing raids in Germany increased during mid 1943 each of the gruppen of JG 3 were in turn recalled to Germany to defend the homeland on so called Reichsverteidigung (Defense of the Reich) duty. I. /JG 3 moved back to Germany in April 1943, but did not go operational until June 1943. Equipped with the new Bf 109G-6 Kanonenboote with two 20mm cannon in underwing gondola, I./JG 3 were slowly worked up as a 'bomber-killer' unit. This long training period paid dividends as the gruppe started to shoot down impressive numbers of USAAF bombers without the heavy losses incurred by many Jagdgeschwadern thrown into the battle with less preparation. Lt. Franz Schwaiger was by this time I./JG 3's current top scorer with 56 claims.

By late summer 1943 III./JG3 were also flying the Bf 109G-6 and Bf 109G-6/R6. On its return to Germany, the Stab/JG 3 was based at Mönchengladbach. On 4 December 1943, Hpt. Wilhelm Lemke (131 kills) was killed in combat with P-47s of the 352nd Fighter Group.

As with most Reich Defence fighter units, JG 3 suffered heavy losses through early 1944 against the increasing numbers of USAAF escort fighters, losing many irreplaceable experten. On 15 March 1944, Hpt. Emil Bitsch (108 kills) was shot down and killed by 352nd Fighter Group P-47s. On 23 March 1944, Wilcke led JG 3 in an attack on a USAAF bomber formation near Braunschweig. During combat, Wilcke shot down a P-51 for his 162nd victory, but was then shot down and killed by fighters of the 4th Fighter Group. On 19 April 1944, Oblt. Otto Weßling (83 kills) was shot down and killed in combat near Eschwege. Wilcke's successor as Geschwaderkommodore of JG 3 was Major Friedrich-Karl "Tutti" Müller, the CO of IV. /JG 3. The 140-kill experte was however killed in a landing accident at Salzwedel on 29 May 1944.

Battering Rams (1944)

With the increased pressure caused by the American bombing raids through late 1943 and early 1944, a new method of attacking the bombers was proposed by Major Von Kornatski, an associate of Adolf Galland; simply for specially armoured fighters to get in as close to the bombers as possible before opening fire, even (as a last resort) deliberately ramming the bomber. It was dangerous and, to most experienced aces, foolhardy, but predicted results were such that a special Staffel was formed to test the tactical viability. Sturmstaffel 1 was the first experimental unit to fly the so-called Sturmböcke (Battering Rams) Focke-Wulf Fw 190 aircraft and was attached to JG 3. Such was their success that in April-May 1944 the Sturmstaffel was expanded into a specialised bomber 'killer' gruppen, IV./JG 3, led by Hauptman Wilhelm Moritz. Sturmstaffel 1 was redesignated 11./JG 3 in May 1944. On 12 February 1944, Major Müller was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of IV.(Sturm)/JG 3. He claimed three USAAF four-engined bombers on 8 March to record his 120th-122nd victories.

On 7 July 1944 a force of 1,129 B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force set out from England to bomb aircraft factories in the Leipzig area and the synthetic oil plants at Boehlen, Leuna-Merseburg and Lützkendorf. This formation was intercepted by a German Gefechtsverband composed of IV.(Sturm) Gruppe JG 3 escorted by two Gruppen of Bf l09s from Jagdgeschwader 300 led by Major Walther Dahl. Dahl drove the attack to point-blank range behind the Liberators of the 492nd Bomb Group before opening fire. 492nd Bomb Group was temporarily without fighter cover. Within about a minute the entire squadron of twelve B-24s had been annihilated. The USAAF 2nd Air Division lost 28 Liberators that day, the majority to the Sturmgruppe attack. IV./JG 3 lost nine fighters shot down and three more suffered damage and made crash landings; five of the unit's pilots were killed.^[5]

Flying modified Fw 190A-R8's with extra armour and wing-mounted 30mm MK-108 cannons, IV.(Sturm)/JG 3 became both renowned with the Lufwaffe and feared by the USAAF bomber crews. Oblt. Werner Gerth, Staffelkapitän 14./JG 3, was shot down 11 times and was finally killed when his parachute failed to open after ramming a B-17 (his 27th claim). Due to their added weight (some 400 lbs) and lack of speed, the Sturmböcke aircraft had to be escorted by conventional fighters.

II. and III. gruppe, JG 3 were thrown into the Operation Overlord air battles over the Normandy beach-head in June 1944, and, with the other 23 Gruppen committed were decimated by the hordes of Allied fighters present. On 10 August, 10.(Sturm)/JG 3 was renamed 13.(Sturm)/JG 3. On 16 August 1944, 13./JG 3 Staffelkaptän Oblt. Ekkehard Tichy (25 kills) was killed when he rammed a B-17; Tichy had lost an eye a year earlier but had continued flying combat missions. By 5 September 1944, when the Gruppe was withdrawn from the battle, III/JG 3 alone had lost a staggering 56 pilots killed or missing, 23 wounded and 4 POW, while claiming some 54 Allied aircraft shot down. Just the Gruppenkommandeur, 3 Staffelkapitäne and 4 replacement pilots had survived the three months over the invasion front.

On 5 December 1944, Major Moritz was relieved from command of IV./ JG 3 due to a complete nervous breakdown.

Jet fighters and the final offensives (late 1944-1945)

In November 1944 II./JG 3 was separated from the Geschwader in order to re-equip with the Me 262 jet fighter and become part of the first jet fighter Geschwader, Jagdgeschwader 7. A newly formed II./JG 3 was raised from a former bomber unit at the end of 1944; this new Gruppe was transferred to the East in early 1945 to counter the Soviet air offensive. Hopelessly outnumbered, and hampered by lack of fuel, II./JG 3 fought on until the collapse of the Reich.

Some 6,400 air victories were claimed by JG 3 by this time.

During Operation Bodenplatte, the massed attack on Allied airfields on 1 January 1945, Jagdschwader 3 was one of the few German fighter units to carry out their operations successfully despite fielding the smallest German force that day. The 22 Fw 190s committed destroyed 43 Typhoons and Spitfires and damaged 60 more in a 20 minute attack on the 2nd TAF airfield at Eindhoven (JG 3 claimed 116 destroyed). However the loss of 16 pilots was a serious blow to the unit. Six were captured, 6 were killed while four were posted as missing. Six pilots returned, three of them were wounded.

In February 1945, IV./JG 3 moved to the Eastern Front, undertaking freie-Jagd and ground attack missions on the Oder front.

Commanding Officers

Geschwaderkommodoren

• • Obslt. Max Ibel 1.5.39

  • Obst. Karl Vieck 26.9.39

  • Obst. Günther Lützow 21.8.40

  • Major Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke 12.8.42

  • Major Friedrich-Karl "Tutti" Müller 24.3.44

  • Major Heinrich Bär 1.6.44

  • Major Werner Schröer 14.2.45

Gruppenkommandeure

I./JG 3

• • Major Otto Heinrich von Houwald, 1 May 1939

  • Hauptmann Günther Lützow, 3 November 1939

  • Oberleutnant Lothar Keller , 24 August 1940

  • Hauptmann Hans von Hahn, 27 August 1940

  • Hauptmann Georg Michalek, 1 March 1942

  • Major Klaus Quaet-Faslem, 31 August 1942

  • Hauptmann Joachim von Wehren, 1 February 1944

  • Hauptmann Josef Haiböck, 8 February 1944

  • Major Dr. Langer , 25 February 1944

  • Hauptmann Helmut Mertens, 14 April 1944

  • Hauptmann Ernst Laube, 1 July 1944

  • Hauptmann Horst Haase, 30 October 1944

  • Hauptmann Albert Wirges, 27 November 1944

  • Oberleutnant Alfred Seidel, December 1944

II./JG 3

• • Hauptmann Erich von Selle, 1 February 1940

  • Hauptmann Erich Woitke, 1 October 1940

  • Hauptmann Lothar Keller, 24 November 1940

  • Hauptmann Gordon Gollob, 27 June 1941

  • Hauptmann Karl-Heinz Krahl, 21 November 1941

  • Major Kurt Brändle, 15 April 1942

  • Hauptmann Heinrich Sannemann , 3 November 1943

  • Hauptmann Wilhelm Lemke, November 1943

  • Hauptmann Heinrich Sannemann , 4 December 1943

  • Hauptmann Detlev Rohwer, February 1944

  • Hauptmann Heinrich Sannemann , 30 March 1944

  • Hauptmann Hermann Freiherr Kapherr, 22 April 1944

  • Leutnant Leopold Münster , 24 April 1944

  • Hauptmann Gustav Frielinghaus, 1 May 1944

  • Hauptmann Hans Ekkehard Bob, 25 June 1944

  • Hauptmann Herbert Kutscha, July 1944

  • Hauptmann Gerhard Baeker, 25 November 1944

III./JG 3

• • Hauptmann Walter Kienitz, 1 March 1940

  • Hauptmann Wilhelm Balthasar, 1 September 1940

  • Hauptmann Walter Oesau, 11 November 1940

  • Hauptmann Werner Andres, 1 August 1941

  • Oberleutnant Herbert Kijewski , 1 September 1941

  • Major Karl-Heinz Greisert, 18 May 1942

  • Major Wolfgang Ewald, 23 July 1942

  • Major Walther Dahl, 20 July 1943

  • Major Karl-Heinz Langer, 21 May 1944

IV./JG 3

• • Major Franz Beyer, 1. June 1943

  • Hauptmann Heinz Lang , 11 February 1944

  • Major Friedrich-Karl Müller, 26 February 1944

  • Hauptmann Heinz Lang , 11 April 1944

  • Major Wilhelm Moritz, 18 April 1944

  • Hauptmann Hubert-York Weydenhammer, 5 December 1944

  • Major Erwin Bacsila, 5 January 1945

  • Oberleutnant Oskar Romm, 17 February 1945

  • Hauptmann Gerhard Koall, 25 April 1945

  • Hauptmann Günther Schack, 1 Mai 1945

References

• 1. ^ Prien & Stremmer 2002, p. 56.

  2. ^ Prien & Stremmer 2002, p. 62.

  3. ^ Prien & Stremmer 2002, p. 84

  4. ^ Bergström 2007, p. 116.

  5. ^ Weal 1996, p. 78.

  6. ^ Prien & Stemmer 2002, p. 349.

  7. ^ Manrho & Putz 2004, p.279.

• • Bergström, Christer (2007). Barbarossa - The Air Battle: July-December 1941. London: Chervron/Ian Allen. ISBN 978-1-85780-270-2.

  • Hayward, Joel S. (2001). Stopped at Stalingrad: The Luftwaffe and Hitler's Defeat in the East 1942-1943. University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-1146-0

  • Manrho, John & Putz, Ron (2004). Bodenplatte: The Luftwaffe's Last Hope–The Attack on Allied Airfields, New Year's Day 1945. Hikoki Publications. ISBN 1-902109-40-6

  • Prien, Jochen & Stemmer, Gerhard (2002). Jagdgeschwader 3 "Undet" in World War II. Atlgen, Germany: Schiffer Military History. ISBN 0-7643-1681-8

  • Weal, John (1996). Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Aces of the Western Front. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-85532-595-0.

JG3 fields

Probably did not serve with 2/JG3 but with II/JG3. ´2´ indicates Staffel 2 where II indicates II gruppe. The last was stationed at Amsterdam Schiphol airport in the Netherlands at the time .

He pulled over the ME 110 that he had just shot down and came in behind another. This rear gunner was really excited and shooting like mad. They must have been very poor gunners because Duncan held his fire until he pulled up to about 250 or 300 yards then gave him a good long squeeze. (He found later that he had picked up one .303 slug in the right side of his engine from this gunner.) The Me-110 immediately burst into flames and pieces flew everywhere.

By June 7, 1944, he had accumulated 15.5 kills; on the 12th, he knocked down three Bf-109's. He claimed his last on July 5, and two days later flew the ill-fated mission described in the opening paragraphs. After being shot down, he did evade the Germans, and hooked up with the Dutch Resistance. When the Americans liberated Holland in April, 1945, he rejoined his Group.

He stayed in the Air Force after the war, among other assignments serving as White House liaison, NORAD, and with air divisions in Korea and Japan. He retired as a Colonel. His decorations include a DSC, Silver Star, DFC with 7 OLC's, Air Medal with 3 OLC's, the French Croix de Guerre, and the British DFC

Acknowledgements:

My thanks to http://www.acepilots.com for their permission to use the article on Col Glenn E. Duncan, DSC, DFC.

http://aad.archives.gov/aad/record-detail.jsp?dt=466&mtch=88&cat=WR26&tf=F&sc=11675,11660,11679,11667,11669,11676,11672,11673&q=duncan&bc=,sl,fd&rpp=10&pg=1&rid=17216&rlst=104,6501,17216,18948,18949,29427,34496,59789,60998,61006