''Jagdgeschwader 302 (JG 302)'' was a ''

Luftwaffe 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 ...

'' fighter-

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. ''JG 302'' was formed on 1 November 1943 in Stade, Germany with a theoretical establishment of ''

Stab STAB or stab may refer to: *Stabbing, penetration or contact with a sharp object *Stab, Kentucky, US *Stab (b-boy move), a breakdance technique *Stab (music), an element in musical composition *Stab (Luftwaffe designation), during World War II, a ...

'' and three ''Gruppen'' (groups) known as a "''

Wilde Sau ''Wilde Sau'' ( Lit. wild sow; generally known in English as "Wild Boar") was the term given by the ''Luftwaffe'' to the tactic used from 1943 to 1944 during World War II by which British night bombers were engaged by single-seat day-fighter airc ...

''" (wild boar) single-seat night fighter unit. After re-equipping with the Focke-Wulf 190 A-8, ''I./JG 302'' was redesignated ''III.''/''

JG 301 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 301 (JG 301) was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. The order to form JG 301 was issued on 26 September 1943 and formed on 1 October 1943 in Neubiberg with ''Stab'' and three ''Gruppen'' (groups) as a "Wilde Sau" (wild ...

'' on 30 September. ''JG 302'' made a known total of at least 348 air victory claims

Operations 1944

The unit's primary mission, when formed in late 1943, was to intercept

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

(RAF)

heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...

s at night, flying modified single-engined day fighters. Eventually ''JG 302'' also engaged

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

(USAAF) bombers by day. Initially, the pilots recruited were a mix of former bomber pilots and instructors, experienced in night and instrument flying. During the night of 22 November, ''Hauptmann'' Heinrich Wurzer (26 victories, 24 by day, all with ''JG 302'') shot down a RAF Lancaster bomber for his first victory and on 14 January 1944 was appointed ''

Staffelkapitän ''Staffelkapitän'' is a position (not a rank) in flying units ( ''Staffel'') of the German Luftwaffe that is the equivalent of RAF/USAF Squadron Commander. Usually today a ''Staffelkapitän'' is of ''Oberstleutnant'' or ''Major'' rank. In the '' ...

'' of ''1./JG 302''. On 6/7 February 1944 the Soviet Long-Range Bomber Force (ADD) launched a series of large scale air raids against

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

. Thus, early in 1944 elements of I./JG 302 were temporarily transferred North to ''Nachtjagd-Kommando Helsinki'' to assist in the city's defence. On 12 February 1944, 12

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 an ...

G-6/R6 night-fighters of ''I. Gruppe'' arrived at Malmi airfield from Jüterbog in Germany. Using the "Wilde Sau" method, ''I./JG 302'' shot down two Soviet aircraft on 16/17 February. On 26/27 February the unit shot down another four bombers. In April 1944 ''I./JG 302'' lost three planes in flying accidents and had had just seven fighters operational. The unit returned to Germany for Reich defence duties on 15 May 1944. On 16 April 18 Bf 109G-6s of ''I gruppe'' intercepted USAAF bombers over

Plattensee Lake Balaton () is a freshwater lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the largest inflow of water to the lake, and th ...

. Some six bombers, two

P-51 The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

s and a

P-38 The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twi ...

were claimed for three JG 302 fighters downed. On 2 July ''I./ JG 302'', led by Hptm. Richard Lewens, attacked 603

B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

s of the 15th Air Force, attacking targets near

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

; they were escorted by 270 fighters. Combats ranged from Budapest into Southern Slovakia. ''I./ JG 302'' claimed 19 B-24s and two P-51s, but lost 12 Bf 109s and 10 crewmen killed in the battle. Unteroffizier

Willi Reschke Willi Reschke (3 February 1922 – 5 July 2017) was a Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II, credited with 27 aerial victories in 70 missions. In 1999, Reschke recounted his wartime experiences i ...

was JG 302's most prolific ace, scoring 14 of his eventual 26 combat claims with JG 302. He achieved his first success when he shot down two B-24s over Budapest on 2 July. Reschke rammed a B-24 on 7 July when his guns malfunctioned, successfully baling out of his stricken fighter. On 8 July 1944 I./JG 302 took off from Götzendorf under Hpt. Heinrich Würzer to intercept 15th Air Force heavy bombers over

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

and

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. The unit claimed nine B-24s and three

B-17 The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...

s, with I./ JG 302 losing one pilot killed and four wounded. On this day Hpt. Wurzer shot down two B-24s. However, he was wounded in the right arm during this combat and had to make an emergency landing with his Bf 109 G-6 near the Götzendorft airfield. On 25 July 1944 420 B-17s and B-24s bombed the tank factories in

Linz Linz ( , ; cs, Linec) is the capital of Upper Austria and third-largest city in Austria. In the north of the country, it is on the Danube south of the Czech border. In 2018, the population was 204,846. In 2009, it was a European Capital of ...

while other bombers hit the

Villach Villach (; sl, Beljak; it, Villaco; fur, Vilac) is the seventh-largest city in Austria and the second-largest in the federal state of Carinthia. It is an important traffic junction for southern Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. , the po ...

marshalling yards. Nearly 200 Luftwaffe fighters opposed the attacks, drawn from ''II./

JG 27 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 27 (JG 27) "''Afrika''" was a fighter wing of the Luftwaffe during World War II. The wing was given the name "Africa" for serving in the North African Campaign predominantly alone in the period from April 1941 to Septemb ...

, Stab, I. and II./

JG 300 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 300 (JG 300) was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. JG 300 was formed on June 26, 1943 in Deelen as Stab/Versuchskommando Herrmann, from July 18, 1943 as Stab/JG Herrmann and finally renamed on August 20, 1943 to Stab ...

'' and ''I./ JG 302''. 16 bombers were downed, while the USAAF bombers and escort fighters claimed over 60 fighters shot down. ''I./ JG 302'' lost four killed, two wounded, and 12 planes lost for six bombers claimed destroyed. On 24 August, Reschke claimed a further B-24 but shortly afterwards, during an attack on a second, his aircraft was hit by return fire, and he baled out when P-51 fighters attacked his Bf 109. Hpt. Wurzer was appointed ''Gruppenkommandeur'' of ''I./JG 302'' on 28 August 1944. In September ''I./JG 302'' was reformed as ''III./JG 301'' and re-equipped with the Fw 190 A-8. A new commander, ''

Ritterkreuz Knight's Cross (German language ''Ritterkreuz'') refers to a distinguishing grade or level of various orders that often denotes bravery and leadership on the battlefield. Most frequently the term Knight's Cross is used to refer to the Knight's Cr ...

'' holder Hpt. Wilhelm Fulda (one victory), was appointed to lead the unit.

Commanding officers

*''Major'' Ewald Janssen, November 1943 – February 1944 *''Major''

Kurd Peters Kurd Peters (7 August 1914 – 24 July 1957) was a German officer ( Major) in the Luftwaffe during World War II, and a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. He was credited with four aerial victories in Defense of the ...

, February 1944 – June 1944

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * * Reschke, Willi (2011). ''Chronik Jagdgeschwader 301/302 "Wilde Sau"'' (in German). Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch Verlag. . {{Knight's Cross recipients of JG 30X Fighter wings of the Luftwaffe 1933-1945 Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations disestablished in 1944