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Zerstörergeschwader 2
''Zerstörergeschwader'' 2 (ZG 2—2nd Destroyer Wing) (lit. ''destroyer wing'') was a Luftwaffe heavy/destroyer Fighter Aircraft-Wing (air force unit), wing of World War II. Formation ''Zerstörergeschwader'' 2 (ZG 2—2nd Destroyer Wing) was formed with one ''Organization of the Luftwaffe (1933–1945)#Gruppe, Gruppe'' (group) before the war. Initially, no ''Stab (Luftwaffe designation), Geschwaderstab'' (headquarters unit), II. ''Gruppe'' (2nd group) nor III. ''Gruppe'' (3rd group) was formed. I. ''Gruppe'' (1st group) was formed by renaming I(l). ''Gruppe'' (1st group) of Jagdgeschwader 137, ''Jagdgeschwader'' 137 (JG 137—137th Fighter Wing) to I. ''Gruppe'' of ''Zerstörergeschwader'' 231 (ZG 231—231st Destroyer Wing) on 1 November 1938 flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109 D-1 single engine fighter. On 1 May 1939, I. ''Gruppe'' of ZG 231 became I. ''Gruppe'' of ZG 2. During this entire time, the ''Gruppe'' was commanded by ''Hauptmann'' Johan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heavy Fighter
A heavy fighter is a historic category of fighter aircraft produced in the 1930s and 1940s, designed to carry heavier weapons, and/or operate at longer ranges than light fighter aircraft. To achieve performance, most heavy fighters were twin-engine, and many had multi-place crews; This was in contrast to light fighters, which were typically single-engine and single-crew aircraft. In Germany, they were known as ''Zerstörer'' ("destroyer"). The heavy fighter was a major design class during the pre-World War II period, conceived as long-range escort fighters or heavily-armed bomber destroyers. Most such designs failed in this mission, as they could not maneuver with the more conventional, single-engine fighters, and suffered heavy losses. Most notable among such designs was the Messerschmitt Bf 110, which suffered great losses during the Battle of Britain. An exception was the American Lockheed P-38 Lightning, which proved an effective heavy fighter; even against smaller, lighter, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the end of World War II in 1945. It was one of the most advanced fighters when it first appeared, with an all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. It was called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces, even though this was not the official German designation. It was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser who worked at Bayerische Flugzeugwerke during the early to mid-1930s. It was conceived as an interceptor, although later models were developed to fulfill multiple tasks, serving as bomber escort, fighter-bomber, day-, night-, all-weather fighter, ground-attack aircraft, and reconnaissance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Radom
Radom is a city in east-central Poland, located approximately south of the capital, Warsaw. It is situated on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been the seat of a separate Radom Voivodeship (1975–1998). Radom is the fourteenth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in its province with a population of 206,946 as of 2021. For centuries, Radom was part of the Sandomierz Province of the Kingdom of Poland and the later Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Despite being part of the Masovian Voivodeship, the city historically belongs to Lesser Poland. It was a significant center of administration, having served as seat of the Crown Council which ratified the Pact of Vilnius and Radom between Lithuania and Poland in 1401. The Nihil novi and Łaski's Statute were adopted by the Sejm at Radom's Royal Castle in 1505. In 1976, it was a center of the June 1976 protests. The city is home to the biennial Radom Air Show, the largest air sho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Łódź
Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of canting arms, canting, as it depicts a boat ( in Polish language, Polish), which alludes to the city's name. As of 2022, Łódź has a population of 670,642 making it the country's List of cities and towns in Poland, fourth largest city. Łódź was once a small settlement that first appeared in 14th-century records. It was granted city rights, town rights in 1423 by Polish King Władysław II Jagiełło and it remained a private town of the Kuyavian bishops and clergy until the late 18th century. In the Second Partition of Poland in 1793, Łódź was annexed to Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia before becoming part of the Napoleonic Duchy of Warsaw; the city joined Congress Poland, a Russian Empire, Russian client state, at the 1815 Congress of Vien ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a separate culture featuring diverse architecture, folk costumes, dances, cuisine, traditions and a rare Lesser Polish dialect. The region is rich in historical landmarks, monuments, castles, natural scenery and UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The region should not be confused with the modern Lesser Poland Voivodeship, which covers only the southwestern part of Lesser Poland. Historical Lesser Poland was much larger than the current voivodeship that bears its name. It reached from Bielsko-Biała in the southwest as far as to Siedlce in the northeast. It consisted of the three voivodeships of Kraków, Sandomierz and Lublin. It comprised almost 60,000 km2 in area; today's population in this area is about 9,000,000 inhabitants. Its landscap ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luftflotte 4
''Luftflotte'' 4For an explanation of the meaning of Luftwaffe unit designation see Luftwaffe Organisation (Air Fleet 4) was one of the primary divisions of the German Luftwaffe in World War II. It was formed on March 18, 1939, from Luftwaffenkommando Österreich in Vienna. The ''Luftflotte'' was redesignated on 21 April 1945, to ''Luftwaffenkommando'' 4, and became subordinated to Luftflotte 6. It was the Luftflotte 4, that was responsible for the bombing campaign of Stalingrad, where ca. 40,000 civilians died. This Luftwaffe detachment was based in Romania, Bulgaria, Southeast Poland, Hungary, Ukraine and Russian occupied territories, for supporting Axis forces; with command offices in Morczyn, Hungary, during 26 June 1944, Eastern Front. See Organization of the Luftwaffe (1933–1945) for explanation of abbreviations used below. Strategic reconnaissance *2.(F)/11 ( Jasionka) *2.(F)/22 ( Focşani) *2.(F)/100 (Lublin) Transports (special duties) *14 St./Transportgeschwader 4 (O ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
8th Air Corps (Germany)
__NOTOC__ 8th Air Corps (''VIII. Fliegerkorps'') was formed 19 July 1939 in Oppeln as ''Fliegerführer z.b.V.'' ("for special purposes"). It was renamed to the 8th Air Corps on 10 November 1939. The Corps was also known as ''Luftwaffenkommando Schlesien'' between 25 January 1945 and 2 February 1945 and was merged with ''Luftgau-Kommando VIII'' on 28 April 1945 and redesignated ''Luftwaffenkommando VIII''. Commanding officers * Generaloberst Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen, 19 July 1939 – 30 June 1942 * General der Flieger Martin Fiebig, 1 July 1942 – 21 May 1943 * General der Flieger Hans Seidemann, 21 May 1943 – 28 April 1945 See also * Luftwaffe Organization The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ... References * {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 A008 Military ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wolfram Freiherr Von Richthofen
Wolfram Karl Ludwig Moritz Hermann Freiherr von Richthofen (10 October 1895 – 12 July 1945) was a German World War I flying ace who rose to the rank of ''Generalfeldmarschall'' in the Luftwaffe during World War II. Born in 1895 into a family of the Prussian nobility, Richthofen grew up in prosperous surroundings. At the age of eighteen, after leaving school, he opted to join the German Army rather than choose an academic career, and joined the army's cavalry arm in 1913. On the outbreak of the First World War, Richthofen fought on the Western Front, winning the Iron Cross Second Class. In 1915 he was posted to the Eastern Front, where he stayed until 1917. The Richthofen family produced several notable personalities that would become famous during the First War. His cousins, the brothers Lothar and Manfred, both became flying aces and encouraged him to join the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' (German Imperial Air Service). He did so, and joined Manfred's '' Jagdgeschwader 1'' (Fig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Günter Schwartzkopff
Günter Schwartzkopff (5 August 1898 – 14 May 1940) was an officer in the Luftwaffe during World War II. He was the namesake of the Bundeswehr General Schwartzkopff barracks in Hamburg which was renamed the in ''Generalleutnant-Graf-von-Baudissin-Kaserne'' June 1994. Schwartzkopf was an important figure in the development of the dive-bomber arm in the pre-war Luftwaffe. He is credited with the title "Father of the '' Stuka''. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 24 November 1939 and posthumously promoted to ''Generalmajor''. He was killed on 14 May 1940 after his Junkers Ju 87 was shot down during the Battle of France. Early life and career, World War I Schwartzkopff was born on 5 August 1898 in Forbach (now Poznan) in the German Empire. In October 1914, he joined the military service in the ''Heer'' as a ''Fahnenjunker'' (officer cadet), serving with ''Infanterie-Regiment Nr.'' 41, an infantry regiment of the 1st Division. Schwartzkopff joined the '' Flie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Junkers Ju 87
The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka (from ''Sturzkampfflugzeug'', "dive bomber") was a German dive bomber and ground-attack aircraft. Designed by Hermann Pohlmann, it first flew in 1935. The Ju 87 made its combat debut in 1937 with the Luftwaffe's Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 and served the Axis in World War II from beginning to end (1939–1945). The aircraft is easily recognisable by its inverted gull wings and fixed spatted undercarriage. Upon the leading edges of its faired main gear legs were mounted ram-air sirens known as ', which became a propaganda symbol of German air power and of the so-called ''Blitzkrieg'' victories of 1939–1942, as well as providing Stuka pilots with audible feedback as to speed. The Stuka's design included several innovations, including automatic pull-up dive brakes under both wings to ensure that the aircraft recovered from its attack dive even if the pilot blacked out from the high g-forces. The Ju 87 operated with c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sturzkampfgeschwader 77
''Sturzkampfgeschwader'' 77 (StG 77) was a Luftwaffe dive bomber wing during World War II. From the outbreak of war StG 77 distinguished itself in every Wehrmacht major operation until the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942. If the claims made by StG 77 are accurate, it inflicted more damage to enemy ground forces than any other wing. It operated the Junkers Ju 87 dive-bomber exclusively in the combat role. The Dornier Do 17 and Messerschmitt Bf 110 were both used in the air reconnaissance role. Founded in May 1939 StG 77 entered the war with only two of the usual three groups assigned to a Luftwaffe combat wing. It supported the invasion of Poland in September 1939 which opened the conflict. In May and June 1940 it operated in the interdiction, close air support and anti-shipping role supporting Army Group A and Army Group B in the Battle of the Netherlands, Battle of Belgium and Battle of France. In June 1940 a third group was added. Beginning in July 1940 it foug ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
