![Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-401-0204-25,_Robert_Ritter_v](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-401-0204-25%2C_Robert_Ritter_v._Greim.jpg)
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the
aerial-warfare branch of the German ''
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
'' before and during
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 ...
.
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
's military air arms during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the ''
Luftstreitkräfte
The ''Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte'' (, German Air Force)—known before October 1916 as (Flyer Troops)—was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-language sources it is usually referred to as the Imperial German Air Service, alt ...
'' of the
Imperial Army and the ''
Marine-Fliegerabteilung'' of the
Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
which banned Germany from having any air force.
During the interwar period, German pilots were trained secretly in violation of the treaty at
Lipetsk Air Base
Lipetsk Air Base (also given as Lipetskiy, Lipetsky, Lipetsk-2, Shakhm 10, and Lipetsk West) is an air base in Lipetsk Oblast, Russia located 12 km northwest of Lipetsk. It is the combat training center of Russian Air Force, analogous to the ...
in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. With the rise of the Nazi Party and the repudiation of the Versailles Treaty, the ''Luftwaffe''s existence was publicly acknowledged on 26 February 1935, just over two weeks before open defiance of the Versailles Treaty through
German rearmament
German rearmament (''Aufrüstung'', ) was a policy and practice of rearmament carried out in Germany during the interwar period (1918–1939), in violation of the Treaty of Versailles which required German disarmament after WWI to prevent Germa ...
and conscription would be announced on 16 March. The
Condor Legion
The Condor Legion (german: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of military personnel from the air force and army of Nazi Germany, which served with the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legio ...
, a ''Luftwaffe'' detachment sent to aid
Nationalist forces in the Spanish Civil War, provided the force with a valuable testing ground for new tactics and aircraft. Partially as a result of this combat experience, the ''Luftwaffe'' had become one of the most sophisticated, technologically advanced, and battle-experienced air forces in the world when
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 ...
broke out in 1939. By the summer of 1939, the ''Luftwaffe'' had twenty-eight ''
Geschwader
This is a list of words, terms, concepts, and slogans that have been or are used by the German military. Ranks and translations of nicknames for vehicles are included. Also included are some general terms from the German language found frequently i ...
''
(wings). The ''Luftwaffe'' also operated ''
Fallschirmjäger
The ''Fallschirmjäger'' () were the paratrooper branch of the German Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first German paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations. Throughout World War II, the commander ...
''
paratrooper
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World ...
units.
The ''Luftwaffe'' proved instrumental in the German victories across Poland and
Western Europe
Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context.
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...
in 1939 and 1940. During the
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
, however, despite inflicting severe damage to the
RAF
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 ...
's infrastructure and, during
the subsequent Blitz, devastating many British cities, the German air force failed to batter the beleaguered British into submission. From 1942, Allied bombing campaigns gradually destroyed the ''Luftwaffe''s fighter arm. From late 1942, the ''Luftwaffe'' used its surplus ground support and other personnel to raise
''Luftwaffe'' Field Divisions. In addition to its service in
the West
West is a cardinal direction or compass point.
West or The West may also refer to:
Geography and locations
Global context
* The Western world
* Western culture and Western civilization in general
* The Western Bloc, countries allied with NATO ...
, the ''Luftwaffe'' operated over the Soviet Union, North Africa and Southern Europe. Despite its belated use of advanced turbojet and rocket-propelled aircraft for
the destruction of Allied bombers, the ''Luftwaffe'' was overwhelmed by the Allies' superior numbers and improved tactics, and a lack of trained pilots and aviation fuel. In January 1945, during the closing stages of the
Battle of the Bulge
The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...
, the ''Luftwaffe''
made a last-ditch effort to win air superiority, and met with failure. With rapidly dwindling supplies of
petroleum, oil, and lubricants after this campaign, and as part of the entire combined ''
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
'' military forces as a whole, the ''Luftwaffe'' ceased to be an effective fighting force.
After the defeat of Germany, the ''Luftwaffe'' was disbanded in 1946. During World War II, German pilots claimed roughly 70,000 aerial victories, while over 75,000 ''Luftwaffe'' aircraft were destroyed or significantly damaged. Of these, nearly 40,000 were lost entirely. The ''Luftwaffe'' had only two commanders-in-chief throughout its history:
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...
and later ''
Generalfeldmarschall
''Generalfeldmarschall'' (from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; en, general field marshal, field marshal general, or field marshal; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several ...
''
Robert Ritter von Greim
Robert ''Ritter'' von Greim (born Robert Greim; 22 June 1892 – 24 May 1945) was a German field marshal and First World War flying ace. In April 1945, in the last days of World War II, Adolf Hitler appointed Greim commander-in-chief of the ''L ...
for the last two weeks of the war.
The ''Luftwaffe'' was deeply involved in
Nazi war crimes
The governments of the German Empire and Nazi Germany (under Adolf Hitler) ordered, organized and condoned a substantial number of war crimes, first in the Herero and Namaqua genocide and then in the World War I, First and World War II, Second Wo ...
. By the end of the war, a significant percentage of aircraft production originated in
concentration camps
Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...
, an industry employing tens of thousands of prisoners. The ''Luftwaffe''s demand for labor was one of the factors that led to the deportation and murder of hundreds of thousands of Hungarian Jews in 1944. The ''
Oberkommando der Luftwaffe
The (; abbreviated OKL) was the high command of the air force () of Nazi Germany.
History
The was organized in a large and diverse structure led by Reich minister and supreme commander of the Air force (german: Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaf ...
'' organized
Nazi human experimentation
Nazi human experimentation was a series of human experimentation, medical experiments on large numbers of prisoners, including children, by Nazi Germany in its Nazi concentration camps, concentration camps in the early to mid 1940s, during Wo ...
, and ''Luftwaffe'' ground troops committed massacres in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
, and
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
.
History
Origins
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-2004-0430-501, Jagdstaffel 11, Manfred v](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-2004-0430-501%2C_Jagdstaffel_11%2C_Manfred_v._Richthofen.jpg)
The Imperial German Army Air Service was founded in 1910 with the name ''Die Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches'', most often shortened to ''Fliegertruppe''. It was renamed the ''
Luftstreitkräfte
The ''Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte'' (, German Air Force)—known before October 1916 as (Flyer Troops)—was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-language sources it is usually referred to as the Imperial German Air Service, alt ...
'' on 8 October 1916. The air war on the Western Front received the most attention in the annals of the earliest accounts of military aviation, since it produced aces such as
Manfred von Richthofen
Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of ...
and
Ernst Udet
Ernst Udet (26 April 1896 – 17 November 1941) was a German pilot during World War I and a ''Luftwaffe'' Colonel-General (''Generaloberst'') during World War II.
Udet joined the Imperial German Air Service at the age of 19, and eventually ...
,
Oswald Boelcke
Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
, and
Max Immelmann
Max Immelmann (21 September 1890 – 18 June 1916) '' PLM'' was the first German World War I flying ace.Shores, 1983, p. 10. He was a pioneer in fighter aviation and is often mistakenly credited with the first aerial victory using a synchr ...
. After the defeat of Germany, the service was dissolved on 8 May 1920 under the conditions of the
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
, which also mandated the destruction of all German military aircraft.
Since the Treaty of Versailles forbade Germany to have an air force, German pilots trained in secret. Initially, civil aviation schools within Germany were used, yet only light
trainers
Sneakers (also called trainers, athletic shoes, tennis shoes, gym shoes, kicks, sport shoes, flats, running shoes, or runners) are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but which are now also widely used f ...
could be used in order to maintain the façade that the trainees were going to fly with civil airlines such as
Deutsche Luft Hansa
''Deutsche Luft Hansa A.G.'' (from 1933 styled as ''Deutsche Lufthansa'' and also known as ''Luft Hansa'', ''Lufthansa'', or DLH) was a German airline, serving as flag carrier of the country during the later years of the Weimar Republic and th ...
. To train its pilots on the latest combat aircraft, Germany solicited the help of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, which was also isolated in Europe. A
secret training airfield was established at Lipetsk in 1924 and operated for approximately nine years using mostly Dutch and Soviet, but also some German, training aircraft before being closed in 1933. This base was officially known as the 4th squadron of the 40th wing of the Red Army. Hundreds of ''Luftwaffe'' pilots and technical personnel visited, studied and were trained at Soviet air force schools in several locations in Central Russia. Roessing, Blume, Fosse, Teetsemann, Heini, Makratzki, Blumendaat, and many other future ''Luftwaffe'' aces were trained in Russia in joint Russian-German schools that were set up under the patronage of
Ernst August Köstring
Ernst-August Köstring (20 June 1876 – 20 November 1953) was a German diplomat and officer who served during World War II.
Life
Born in Imperial Russia in 1876, Ernst August Köstring grew up in St Petersburg (or MoscowVladimir Vinokurov. T ...
.
The first steps towards the ''Luftwaffe''s formation were undertaken just months after
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
came to power.
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...
, a
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
ace, became National ''Kommissar'' for aviation with former Luft Hansa director
Erhard Milch
Erhard Milch (30 March 1892 – 25 January 1972) was a German general field marshal ('' Generalfeldmarschall'') of Jewish heritage who oversaw the development of the German air force (''Luftwaffe'') as part of the re-armament of Nazi Germany fo ...
as his deputy. In April 1933 the
Reich Aviation Ministry (''Reichsluftfahrtministerium'' or RLM) was established. The RLM was in charge of the development and production of aircraft. Göring's control over all aspects of aviation became absolute. On 25 March 1933 the
German Air Sports Association
The German Air Sports Association (''Deutscher Luftsportverband'', or DLV e. V.) was an organisation set up by the Nazi Party in March 1933 to establish a uniform basis for the training of military pilots. Its chairman was Hermann Göring and its v ...
absorbed all private and national organizations, while retaining its 'sports' title. On 15 May 1933, all military aviation organizations in the RLM were merged, forming the ''Luftwaffe''; its official 'birthday'. The
National Socialist Flyers Corps
The National Socialist Flyers Corps (german: Nationalsozialistisches Fliegerkorps; NSFK) was a paramilitary aviation organization of the Nazi Party.
History
NSFK was founded 15 April 1937 as a successor to the German Air Sports Association; the ...
(''Nationalsozialistisches Fliegerkorps'' or NSFK) was formed in 1937 to give pre-military flying training to male youths, and to engage adult sport aviators in the Nazi movement. Military-age members of the NSFK were drafted into the ''Luftwaffe''. As all such prior NSFK members were also Nazi Party members, this gave the new ''Luftwaffe'' a strong Nazi ideological base in contrast to the other branches of the ''
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
'' (the
''Heer'' (Army) and the ''
Kriegsmarine
The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
'' (Navy)). Göring played a leading role in the buildup of the ''Luftwaffe'' in 1933–36, but had little further involvement in the development of the force after 1936, and Milch became the "de facto" minister until 1937.
The absence of Göring in planning and production matters was fortunate. Göring had little knowledge of current aviation, had last flown in 1922, and had not kept himself informed of the latest events. Göring also displayed a lack of understanding of doctrine and technical issues in aerial warfare which he left to others more competent. The Commander-in-Chief left the organization and building of the ''Luftwaffe'', after 1936, to Erhard Milch. However Göring, as a part of Hitler's inner circle, provided access to financial resources and materiel for rearming and equipping the ''Luftwaffe''.
Another prominent figure in German air power construction this time was
Helmuth Wilberg
Helmuth Wilberg (1 June 1880 – 20 November 1941) was a German officer of Jewish ancestry and a ''Luftwaffe'' General of the Air Force during the Second World War.
Military career
Wilberg joined the 80. Fusilier Regiment "von Gersdorff" (''K ...
. Wilberg later played a large role in the development of German air doctrine. Having headed the ''
Reichswehr
''Reichswehr'' () was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army () was dissolved in order to be reshaped ...
'' air staff for eight years in the 1920s, Wilberg had considerable experience and was ideal for a senior staff position. Göring considered making Wilberg
Chief of Staff
The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...
(CS). However, it was revealed Wilberg had a Jewish mother. For that reason, Göring could not have him as CS. Not wishing his talent to go to waste, Göring ensured the
racial policy of Nazi Germany
The racial policy of Nazi Germany was a set of policies and laws implemented in Nazi Germany under the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler, based on a specific racist doctrine asserting the superiority of the Aryan race, which claimed scientific legi ...
did not apply to him. Wilberg remained in the air staff, and under
Walther Wever helped draw up the ''Luftwaffe''s principle doctrinal texts, "The Conduct of the Aerial War" and "Regulation 16".
Preparing for war: 1933–1939
Wever years, 1933–1936
![Bundesarchiv Bild 141-1941, Walther Wever](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Bundesarchiv_Bild_141-1941%2C_Walther_Wever.jpg)
The German officer Corps was keen to develop
strategic bombing
Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in total war with the goal of defeating the enemy by destroying its morale, its economic ability to produce and transport materiel to the theatres of military operations, or both. It is a systematica ...
capabilities against its enemies. However, economic and geopolitical considerations had to take priority. The German air power theorists continued to develop strategic theories, but emphasis was given to army support, as Germany was a continental power and expected to face ground operations following any declaration of hostilities.
For these reasons, between 1933 and 1934, the ''Luftwaffe''s leadership was primarily concerned with tactical and operational methods. In aerial terms, the army concept of ''
Truppenführung
' ("''Handling of Combined-Arms Formations''") was a German Army field manual published in 2 parts as : Part 1, promulgated in 1933, and Part 2 in 1934.
The original German text, which is notable for its clarity, was prepared by a group led by C ...
'' was an operational concept, as well as a tactical doctrine. In World War I, the ''Fliegertruppe's'' initial, 1914–15 era ''
Feldflieger Abteilung Feldflieger Abteilung (''FFA'', Field Flying Company) was the title of the pioneering field aviation units of what became the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' (German air service) by October 1916, during World War I.
Composition
The use of aircraft as a tact ...
'' observation/reconnaissance air units, each with six two-seater aircraft apiece, had been attached to specific army formations and acted as support.
Dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact througho ...
units were considered essential to ''Truppenführung'', attacking enemy headquarters and lines of communications.
''Luftwaffe'' "Regulation 10: The Bomber" (''Dienstvorschrift 10: Das Kampfflugzeug''), published in 1934, advocated air superiority and approaches to ground attack tactics without dealing with operational matters. Until 1935, the 1926 manual "Directives for the Conduct of the Operational Air War" continued to act as the main guide for German air operations. The manual directed OKL to focus on limited operations (not strategic operations): the protection of specific areas and support of the army in combat.
With an effective tactical-operational concept, the German air power theorists needed a strategic doctrine and organization. , a serviceman (not pilot) in the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' during World War I, and later an experienced pilot with Lufthansa, was a prominent theorist of air power. Knauss promoted the
Giulio Douhet
General Giulio Douhet (30 May 1869 – 15 February 1930) was an Italian general and air power theorist. He was a key proponent of strategic bombing in aerial warfare. He was a contemporary of the 1920s air warfare advocates Walther Wever, Billy ...
theory that air power could win wars alone by destroying enemy industry and breaking enemy morale by "terrorizing the population" of major cities. This advocated attacks on civilians. The General Staff blocked the entry of Douhet's theory into doctrine, fearing revenge strikes against German civilians and cities.
In December 1934, Chief of the ''Luftwaffe''
General Staff
A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...
Walther Wever sought to mold the ''Luftwaffe''s battle doctrine into a strategic plan. At this time, Wever conducted war games (simulated against France) in a bid to establish his theory of a strategic bombing force that would, he thought, prove decisive by winning the war through the destruction of enemy industry, even though these exercises also included tactical strikes against enemy ground forces and communications. In 1935, "''Luftwaffe'' Regulation 16: The Conduct of the Air War" was drawn up. In the proposal, it concluded, "The mission of the ''Luftwaffe'' is to serve these goals."
Corum states that under this doctrine, the ''Luftwaffe'' leadership rejected the practice of "
terror bombing
Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in total war with the goal of defeating the enemy by destroying its morale, its economic ability to produce and transport materiel to the theatres of military operations, or both. It is a systematic ...
" (see
''Luftwaffe'' strategic bombing doctrine).
According to Corum, terror bombing was deemed to be "counter-productive", increasing rather than destroying the enemy's will to resist. Such bombing campaigns were regarded as diversion from the ''Luftwaffe''s main operations; destruction of the enemy armed forces.
Nevertheless, Wever recognised the importance of
strategic bombing
Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in total war with the goal of defeating the enemy by destroying its morale, its economic ability to produce and transport materiel to the theatres of military operations, or both. It is a systematica ...
. In newly introduced doctrine, ''The Conduct of the Aerial Air War'' in 1935, Wever rejected the theory of Douhet and outlined five key points to air strategy:
#To destroy the enemy air force by bombing its bases and aircraft factories, and defeating enemy air forces attacking German targets.
#To prevent the movement of large enemy ground forces to the decisive areas by destroying railways and roads, particularly bridges and tunnels, which are indispensable for the movement and supply of forces
#To support the operations of the army formations, independent of railways, i.e, armored forces and motorized forces, by impeding the enemy advance and participating directly in ground operations.
#To support naval operations by attacking naval bases, protecting Germany's naval bases and participating directly in naval battles
#To paralyze the enemy armed forces by stopping production in the armaments factories.
Wever began planning for a strategic bomber force and sought to incorporate strategic bombing into a war strategy. He believed that tactical aircraft should only be used as a step to developing a strategic air force. In May 1934, Wever initiated a seven-year project to develop the so-called "
Ural bomber
The Ural bomber was the initial aircraft design program/competition to develop a long-range bomber for the Luftwaffe, created and led by General Walther Wever in the early 1930s. Wever died in an air crash on June 3, 1936, and his successor Alber ...
", which could strike as far as into the heart of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. In 1935, this design competition led to the
Dornier Do 19
The Dornier Do 19 was a German four-engine heavy bomber that first flew on 28 October 1936. Only one prototype flew, and it was converted to a transport in 1938. The other two were scrapped.
The ''Luftwaffe'' had a shortcoming in the lack of a ...
and
Junkers Ju 89
The Junkers Ju 89 was a heavy bomber designed for the ''Luftwaffe'' prior to World War II. Two prototypes were constructed, but the project was abandoned without the aircraft entering production. Elements of its design were incorporated into lat ...
prototypes, although both were underpowered. In April 1936, Wever issue requirements for the 'Bomber A' design competition: a range of with a bomb load. However Wever's vision of a "Ural" bomber was never realized, and his emphasis on strategic aerial operations was lost. The only design submittal for Wever's 'Bomber A' that reached production was
Heinkel
Heinkel Flugzeugwerke () was a German aircraft manufacturing company founded by and named after Ernst Heinkel. It is noted for producing bomber aircraft for the Luftwaffe in World War II and for important contributions to high-speed flight, with ...
's ''Projekt 1041'', which culminated in the production and frontline service as Germany's only operational heavy bomber, the
Heinkel He 177
The Heinkel He 177 ''Greif'' (Griffin) was a long-range heavy bomber flown by the ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. The introduction of the He 177 to combat operations was significantly delayed, by both problems with the development of its ...
, on 5 November 1937, the date on which it received its
RLM airframe number.
In 1935, the military functions of the RLM were grouped into ''
Oberkommando der Luftwaffe
The (; abbreviated OKL) was the high command of the air force () of Nazi Germany.
History
The was organized in a large and diverse structure led by Reich minister and supreme commander of the Air force (german: Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaf ...
'' (OKL; "Air Force High Command").
Following the untimely death of Walther Wever in early June 1936 in an
aviation-related accident, by the late 1930s the ''Luftwaffe'' had no clear purpose. The air force was not subordinated to the army support role, and it was not given any particular strategic mission. German doctrine fell between the two concepts. The ''Luftwaffe'' was to be an organization capable of carrying out broad and general support tasks rather than any specific mission. Mainly, this path was chosen to encourage more flexible use of air power and offer the ground forces the right conditions for a decisive victory. In fact, on the outbreak of war, only 15% of the ''Luftwaffe''s aircraft were devoted to ground support operations, counter to the long-held myth that the ''Luftwaffe'' was designed for only tactical and operational missions.
Change of direction, 1936–37
Wever's participation in the construction of the ''Luftwaffe'' came to an abrupt end on 3 June 1936 when he was killed along with his engineer in a
Heinkel He 70
The Heinkel He 70 ''Blitz'' ("lightning") was a German mail plane and fast passenger monoplane aircraft of the 1930s designed by Heinkel Flugzeugwerke, which was later used as a bomber and for aerial reconnaissance. It had a brief commercial car ...
Blitz, ironically on the very day that his "Bomber A" heavy bomber design competition was announced. After Wever's death, Göring began taking more of an interest in the appointment of ''Luftwaffe'' staff officers. Göring appointed his successor
Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring (30 November 1885 – 16 July 1960) was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' of the Luftwaffe during World War II who was subsequently convicted of war crimes. In a military career that spanned both world wars, Kesselring beca ...
as Chief of Staff and
Ernst Udet
Ernst Udet (26 April 1896 – 17 November 1941) was a German pilot during World War I and a ''Luftwaffe'' Colonel-General (''Generaloberst'') during World War II.
Udet joined the Imperial German Air Service at the age of 19, and eventually ...
to head the Reich's Air Ministry Technical Office (''Technisches Amt''), although he was not a technical expert. Despite this Udet helped change the ''Luftwaffe''s tactical direction towards fast medium bombers to destroy enemy air power in the battle zone rather than through industrial bombing of its aviation production.
Kesselring and Udet did not get on. During Kesselring's time as CS, 1936–1937, a power struggle developed between the two as Udet attempted to extend his own power within the ''Luftwaffe''. Kesselring also had to contend with Göring appointing "yes men" to positions of importance. Udet realized his limitations, and his failures in the production and development of German aircraft would have serious long term consequences.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1984-112-13, Ernst Udet](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1984-112-13%2C_Ernst_Udet.jpg)
The failure of the ''Luftwaffe'' to progress further towards attaining a strategic bombing force was attributable to several reasons. Many in the ''Luftwaffe'' command believed medium bombers to be sufficient power to launch strategic bombing operations against Germany's most likely enemies; France,
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
, and
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
. The
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
presented greater problems. ''
General der Flieger
''General der Flieger'' ( en, General of the aviators) was a General of the branch rank of the Luftwaffe (air force) in Nazi Germany. Until the end of World War II in 1945, this particular general officer rank was on three-star level ( OF-8), e ...
''
Hellmuth Felmy
Hellmuth Felmy (28 May 1885 – 14 December 1965) was a German general and war criminal during World War II, commanding forces in occupied Greece and Yugoslavia. A high-ranking Luftwaffe officer, Felmy was tried and convicted in the 1948 Hostag ...
, commander of ''
Luftflotte 2
__NOTOC__
''Luftflotte'' 2For an explanation of the meaning of Luftwaffe unit designation see Luftwaffe Organisation (Air Fleet 2) was one of the primary divisions of the German Luftwaffe in World War II. It was formed 1 February 1939 in Braunsch ...
'' in 1939, was charged with devising a plan for an air war over the British Isles. Felmy was convinced that Britain could be defeated through morale bombing. Felmy noted the alleged panic that had broken out in London during the
Munich crisis
The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...
, evidence he believed of British weakness. A second reason was technical. German designers had never solved the issues of the
Heinkel He 177
The Heinkel He 177 ''Greif'' (Griffin) was a long-range heavy bomber flown by the ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. The introduction of the He 177 to combat operations was significantly delayed, by both problems with the development of its ...
A's design difficulties, brought on by the requirement from its inception on 5 November 1937 to have moderate dive-bombing capabilities in a 30-meter wingspan aircraft. Moreover, Germany did not possess the economic resources to match the later British and American effort of 1943–1944, particularly in large-scale mass production of
high power output aircraft engines (with output of over least 1,500 kW (2,000 hp). In addition, OKL had not foreseen the industrial and military effort strategic bombing would require. By 1939 the ''Luftwaffe'' was not much better prepared than its enemies to conduct a strategic bombing campaign,
with fatal results during the
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
.
The German rearmament program faced difficulties acquiring raw materials. Germany imported most of its essential materials for rebuilding the ''Luftwaffe'', in particular rubber and aluminum. Petroleum imports were particularly vulnerable to blockade. Germany pushed for synthetic fuel plants but still failed to meet demands. In 1937 Germany imported more fuel than it had at the start of the decade. By summer 1938, only 25% of the requirements could be covered. In steel materials, industry was operating at barely 83% of capacity, and by November 1938 Göring reported the economic situation was serious. The ''
Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' (OKW), the overall command for all German military forces, ordered reductions in raw materials and steel used for armament production. The figures for reduction were substantial: 30% steel, 20% copper, 47% aluminum, and 14% rubber. Under such circumstances, it was not possible for Milch, Udet, or Kesselring to produce a formidable strategic bombing force even had they wanted to do so.
The development of aircraft was now confined to the production of twin-engined medium bombers that required much less material, manpower and aviation production capacity than Wever's "Ural Bomber". German industry could build two medium bombers for one heavy bomber and the RLM would not gamble on developing a heavy bomber which would also take time. Göring remarked, "the ''Führer'' will not ask how big the bombers there are, but only how many there are." The premature death of Wever, one of the ''Luftwaffe''s finest officers, left the ''Luftwaffe'' without a strategic air force during World War II, which eventually proved fatal to the German war effort.
The lack of strategic capability should have been apparent much earlier. The
Sudeten Crisis
The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...
highlighted German unpreparedness to conduct a strategic air war (although the British and French were in a much weaker position), and Hitler ordered the ''Luftwaffe'' be expanded to five times its earlier size. OKL badly neglected the need for transport aircraft; even in 1943, transport units were described as ''Kampfgeschwadern zur besonderen Verwendung'' (Bomber Units on Special Duties, KGzbV). and only grouping them together into dedicated cargo and personnel transport wings (''Transportgeschwader'') during that year. In March 1938, as the ''
Anschluss
The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938.
The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...
'' was taking place, Göring ordered Felmy to investigate the prospect of air raids against Britain. Felmy concluded it was not possible until bases in
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
and the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
were obtained and the ''Luftwaffe'' had heavy bombers. It mattered little, as war was avoided by the Munich Agreement, and the need for long-range aircraft did not arise.
These failures were not exposed until wartime. In the meantime, German designs of mid-1930s origin such as the
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 ...
,
Heinkel He 111
The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after th ...
,
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 Con ...
Stuka, and
Dornier Do 17
The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing a ...
, performed very well. All first saw active service in the
Condor Legion
The Condor Legion (german: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of military personnel from the air force and army of Nazi Germany, which served with the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legio ...
against Soviet-supplied aircraft. The ''Luftwaffe'' also quickly realized the days of the biplane fighter were finished, the
Heinkel He 51
The Heinkel He 51 was a Nazi Germany, German single-seat biplane which was produced in a number of different versions. It was initially developed as a Fighter aircraft, fighter; a seaplane variant and a Ground-attack aircraft, ground-attack ...
being switched to service as a trainer. Particularly impressive were the Heinkel and Dornier, which fulfilled the ''Luftwaffe''s requirements for bombers that were faster than 1930s-era fighters, many of which were biplanes or strut-braced monoplanes.
Despite the participation of these aircraft (mainly from 1938 onward), it was the venerable
Junkers Ju 52
The Junkers Ju 52/3m (nicknamed ''Tante Ju'' ("Aunt Ju") and ''Iron Annie'') is a transport aircraft that was designed and manufactured by German aviation company Junkers.
Development of the Ju 52 commenced during 1930, headed by German Aeros ...
(which soon became the backbone of the ''Transportgruppen'') that made the main contribution. During the Spanish Civil War Hitler remarked, "Franco ought to erect a monument to the glory of the Junkers Ju 52. It is the aircraft which the Spanish revolution has to thank for its victory."
Dive-bombing
![Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-646-5188-17, Flugzeuge Junkers Ju 87](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-646-5188-17%2C_Flugzeuge_Junkers_Ju_87.jpg)
Poor accuracy from level bombers in 1937 led the ''Luftwaffe'' to grasp the benefits of dive-bombing. The latter could achieve far better accuracy against tactical ground targets than heavier conventional bombers. Range was not a key criterion for this mission. It was not always feasible for the army to move heavy artillery over recently captured territory to bombard fortifications or support ground forces, and dive bombers could do the job faster. Dive bombers, often single-engine two-man machines, could achieve better results than larger six or seven-man aircraft, at a tenth of the cost and four times the accuracy. This led to Udet championing the dive bomber, particularly the
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 Con ...
.
Udet's "love affair" with dive-bombing seriously affected the long-term development of the ''Luftwaffe'', especially after General Wever's death. The tactical strike aircraft programs were meant to serve as interim solutions until the next generation of aircraft arrived. In 1936 the
Junkers Ju 52
The Junkers Ju 52/3m (nicknamed ''Tante Ju'' ("Aunt Ju") and ''Iron Annie'') is a transport aircraft that was designed and manufactured by German aviation company Junkers.
Development of the Ju 52 commenced during 1930, headed by German Aeros ...
was the backbone of the German bomber fleet. This led to a rush on the part of the RLM to produce the
Junkers Ju 86
The Junkers Ju 86 was a German monoplane bomber and civilian airliner designed in the early 1930s, and employed by various air forces on both sides during World War II. The civilian model Ju 86B could carry ten passengers. Two were delivered to S ...
,
Heinkel He 111
The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after th ...
, and
Dornier Do 17
The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing a ...
before a proper evaluation was made. The Ju 86 was poor while the He 111 showed the most promise. The
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
convinced Udet (along with limited output from the German munitions industry) that wastage was not acceptable in munition terms. Udet sought to build dive-bombing into the
Junkers Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast ...
and conveyed the same idea, initiated specifically by OKL for the
Heinkel He 177
The Heinkel He 177 ''Greif'' (Griffin) was a long-range heavy bomber flown by the ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. The introduction of the He 177 to combat operations was significantly delayed, by both problems with the development of its ...
, approved in early November 1937. In the case of the Ju 88, 50,000 modifications had to be made. The weight was increased from seven to twelve tons. This resulted in a speed loss of 200 km/h. Udet merely conveyed OKL's own dive-bombing capability request to
Ernst Heinkel
Dr. Ernst Heinkel (24 January 1888 – 30 January 1958) was a German aircraft designer, manufacturer, '' Wehrwirtschaftsführer'' in Nazi Germany, and member of the Nazi party. His company Heinkel Flugzeugwerke produced the Heinkel He 178, th ...
concerning the He 177, who vehemently opposed such an idea, which ruined its development as a heavy bomber. Göring was not able to rescind the dive-bombing requirement for the He 177A until September 1942.
Mobilization, 1938–1941
By the summer of 1939, the ''Luftwaffe'' had ready for combat nine ''Jagdgeschwader'' (fighter wings) mostly equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf 109E, four ''
Zerstörergeschwader'' (destroyer wings) equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf 110 heavy fighter, 11 ''
Kampfgeschwader
{{wiktionary
Kampfgeschwader are the German-language name for (air force) bomber units. In WW1, they were air squadrons, while in WW2, they were air wings.
History First World War
During World War I, ''Kampfgeschwader'' were specialized bomber ...
'' (bomber wings) equipped mainly with the Heinkel He 111 and the Dornier Do 17Z, and four ''Sturzkampfgeschwader'' (dive bomber wing") primarily armed with the iconic
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 Con ...
B ''Stuka''. The ''Luftwaffe'' was just starting to accept the
Junkers Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast ...
A for service, as it had encountered design difficulties, with only a dozen aircraft of the type considered combat-ready. The ''Luftwaffe''s strength at this time stood at 373,000 personnel (208,000 flying troops, 107,000 in the Flak Corps and 58,000 in the Signals Corps). Aircraft strength was 4,201 operational aircraft: 1,191 bombers, 361 dive bombers, 788 fighters, 431 heavy fighters, and 488 transports. Despite deficiencies, it was an impressive force.
However, even by the spring of 1940, the ''Luftwaffe'' still had not mobilized fully. Despite the shortage of raw materials, ''Generalluftzeugmeister'' Ernst Udet had increased production through introducing a 10-hour working day for aviation industries and rationalizing production. During this period 30 ''Kampfstaffeln'' and 16 ''Jagdstaffeln'' were raised and equipped. A further five ''Zerstörergruppen'' ("Destroyer groups") were created (JGr 101, 102,126,152 and 176), all equipped with the Bf 110.
The ''Luftwaffe'' also greatly expanded its aircrew training programs by 42%, to 63 flying schools. These facilities were moved to eastern Germany, away from possible Allied threats. The number of aircrew reached 4,727, an increase of 31%. However, the rush to complete this rapid expansion scheme resulted in the deaths of 997 personnel and another 700 wounded. 946 aircraft were also destroyed in these accidents. The number of aircrew completing their training was up to 3,941, The ''Luftwaffe''s entire strength was now 2.2 million personnel.
In April and May 1941, Udet headed the ''Luftwaffe'' delegation inspecting the Soviet aviation industry in compliance with the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact
, long_name = Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
, image = Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H27337, Moskau, Stalin und Ribbentrop im Kreml.jpg
, image_width = 200
, caption = Stalin and Ribbentrop shaking ...
. Udet informed Göring "that Soviet air forces are very strong and technically advanced." Göring decided not to report the facts to Hitler, hoping that a surprise attack would quickly destroy the USSR.
["Боевые операции люфтваффе", Москва 2008 г., изд. Яуза-пресс, по "Rise and fall of the German Air Force", Лондон 1948 г., пер. П.Смирнов, ] Udet realized that the upcoming war on Russia might cripple Germany. Udet, torn between truth and loyalty, suffered a psychological breakdown and even tried to tell Hitler the truth, but Göring told Hitler that Udet was lying, then took Udet under control by giving him drugs at drinking parties and hunting trips. Udet's drinking and psychological condition became a problem, but Göring used Udet's dependency to manipulate him.
[Who is who in the Third Reich (Кто был кто в Третьем рейхе. Биографический энциклопедический словарь. М., 2003)]
''Luftwaffe'' organization
''Luftwaffe'' commanders
![Defendants in the dock at the Nuremberg Trials](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Defendants_in_the_dock_at_the_Nuremberg_Trials.jpg)
Throughout the history of
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
, the ''Luftwaffe'' had only two commanders-in-chief. The first was
Hermann Göring
Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...
, with the second and last being ''
Generalfeldmarschall
''Generalfeldmarschall'' (from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; en, general field marshal, field marshal general, or field marshal; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several ...
''
Robert Ritter von Greim
Robert ''Ritter'' von Greim (born Robert Greim; 22 June 1892 – 24 May 1945) was a German field marshal and First World War flying ace. In April 1945, in the last days of World War II, Adolf Hitler appointed Greim commander-in-chief of the ''L ...
. His appointment as commander-in-chief of the ''Luftwaffe'' was concomitant with his promotion to ''
Generalfeldmarschall
''Generalfeldmarschall'' (from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; en, general field marshal, field marshal general, or field marshal; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several ...
'', the last German officer in World War II to be promoted to the highest rank. Other officers promoted to the second highest military rank in Germany were
Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring (30 November 1885 – 16 July 1960) was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' of the Luftwaffe during World War II who was subsequently convicted of war crimes. In a military career that spanned both world wars, Kesselring beca ...
,
Hugo Sperrle
Wilhelm Hugo Sperrle (7 February 1885 – 2 April 1953), also known as Hugo Sperrle, was a German military aviator in World War I and a Generalfeldmarschall in the Luftwaffe during World War II.
Sperrle joined the Imperial German Army in 1903. ...
,
Erhard Milch
Erhard Milch (30 March 1892 – 25 January 1972) was a German general field marshal ('' Generalfeldmarschall'') of Jewish heritage who oversaw the development of the German air force (''Luftwaffe'') as part of the re-armament of Nazi Germany fo ...
, and
Wolfram 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 fa ...
.
At the end of the war, with
Berlin surrounded by the Red Army,
Göring suggested to Hitler that he take over leadership of the Reich. Hitler ordered his arrest and execution, but Göring's SS guards did not carry out the order, and Göring survived to be
tried at Nuremberg.
Sperrle was prosecuted at the
OKW Trial, one of the last twelve of the
Nuremberg Trials
The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies of World War II, Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II.
Between 1939 and 1945 ...
after the war. He was acquitted on all four counts. He died in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
in 1953.
Organization and chain of command
At the start of the war the ''Luftwaffe'' had four ''Luftflotten'' (air fleets), each responsible for roughly a quarter of Germany. As the war progressed more air fleets were created as the areas under German rule expanded. As one example,
''Luftflotte'' 5 was created in 1940 to direct operations in Norway and Denmark, and other ''Luftflotten'' were created as necessary. Each ''Luftflotte'' would contain several ''Fliegerkorps'' (Air Corps), ''Fliegerdivision'' (Air Division), ''Jagdkorps'' (Fighter Corps), ''Jagddivision'' (Air Division) or ''Jagdfliegerführer'' (Fighter Air Command). Each formations would have attached to it a number of units, usually several ''Geschwader'', but also independent ''Staffeln'' and ''
Kampfgruppen
In military history, the German term (pl. ; abbrev. KG, or KGr in usage during World War II, literally "fighting group" or "battle group") can refer to a combat formation of any kind, but most usually to that employed by the of Nazi Germ ...
''.
''Luftflotten'' were also responsible for the training aircraft and schools in their operational areas.
A ''Geschwader'' was commanded by a ''
Geschwaderkommodore'', with the
rank
Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as:
Level or position in a hierarchical organization
* Academic rank
* Diplomatic rank
* Hierarchy
* ...
of either major, ''
Oberstleutnant
() is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Lieutenant colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedis ...
'' (
lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
) or ''
Oberst
''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...
'' (
colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
). Other "staff" officers within the unit with administrative duties included the adjutant, technical officer, and operations officer, who were usually (though not always) experienced aircrew or pilots still flying on operations. Other specialist staff were navigation, signals, and intelligence personnel. A ''Stabschwarm'' (headquarters
flight
Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...
) was attached to each ''Geschwader''.
A ''Jagdgeschwader'' (hunting wing) (JG) was a single-seat day fighter ''Geschwader'', typically equipped with Bf 109 or Fw 190 aircraft flying in the fighter or fighter-bomber roles. Late in the war, by 1944–45,
JG 7 and
JG 400
Jagdgeschwader 400 (JG 400) was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. JG 400 was formed on 1 February 1944 in Brandis with '' Stab'' only for the Messerschmitt Me 163 rocket fighter, as the only military aviation unit of any size in history ...
(and the jet specialist
JV 44
__NOTOC__
''Jagdverband'' 44 (JV 44) was a German air unit during World War II. It was formed during the last months of World War II to operate the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter.
The commander of JV 44 was General Adolf Galland, the former ...
) flew much more advanced aircraft, with
JG 1 working up with jets at war's end. A ''Geschwader'' consisted of groups (''Gruppen''), which in turn consisted of ''Jagdstaffel'' (fighter squadrons). Hence, Fighter Wing 1 was JG 1, its first ''Gruppe'' (group) was I./JG 1, using a
Roman numeral
Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, eac ...
for the ''Gruppe'' number only, and its first ''Staffel'' (squadron) was 1./JG 1. ''Geschwader'' strength was usually 120 – 125 aircraft.
Each ''Gruppe'' was commanded by a ''Kommandeur'', and a ''Staffel'' by a ''Staffelkapitän''. However, these were "appointments", not ranks, within the ''Luftwaffe''. Usually, the ''Kommodore'' would hold the rank of ''Oberstleutnant'' (lieutenant colonel) or, exceptionally, an ''Oberst'' (colonel). Even a ''Leutnant'' (second lieutenant) could find himself commanding a ''Staffel''.
Similarly, a bomber wing was a ''Kampfgeschwader'' (KG), a night fighter wing was a ''Nachtjagdgeschwader'' (NJG), a dive bomber wing was a ''Stukageschwader'' (StG), and units equivalent to those in RAF Coastal Command, with specific responsibilities for coastal patrols and search and rescue duties, were ''Küstenfliegergruppen'' (Kü.Fl. Gr.). Specialist bomber groups were known as ''Kampfgruppen'' (KGr). The strength of a bomber ''Geschwader'' was about 80–90 aircraft.
Personnel
The peacetime strength of the ''Luftwaffe'' in the spring of 1939 was 370,000 men. After the mobilization in 1939 almost 900,000 men served, and just before
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
in 1941 the personnel strength had reached 1.5 million men.
The ''Luftwaffe'' reached its largest personnel strength during the period November 1943 to June 1944, with almost three million men and women in uniform; 1.7 million of these were male soldiers, 1 million male
''Wehrmachtsbeamte'' and civilian employees, and almost 300,000 female and male auxiliaries (''
Luftwaffenhelfer
A ''Luftwaffenhelfer'', also commonly known as a ''Flakhelfer'', was any member of the auxiliary staff of the German ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. Such terms often implied students conscripted as child soldiers.
Establishment
''Luftwaf ...
''). In October 1944, the anti-aircraft units had 600,000 soldiers and 530,000 auxiliaries, including 60,000 male members of the ''
Reichsarbeitsdienst
The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major organisation established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate it with Nazi ...
'', 50,000 ''Luftwaffenhelfer'' (males age 15–17), 80,000 ''Flakwehrmänner'' (males above military age) and ''Flak-V-soldaten'' (males unfit for military service), and 160,000 female ''Flakwaffenhelferinnen'' and ''RAD-Maiden'', as well as 160,000 foreign personnel (
Hiwis
Hiwi (), the German abbreviation of the word ''Hilfswilliger'' or, in English, auxiliary volunteer, designated, during World War II, a member of different kinds of voluntary auxiliary forces made up of recruits indigenous to the territories of Ea ...
).
Spanish Civil War
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-H25224, Guernica, Ruinen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-H25224%2C_Guernica%2C_Ruinen.jpg)
The ''Luftwaffe''s
Condor Legion
The Condor Legion (german: Legion Condor) was a unit composed of military personnel from the air force and army of Nazi Germany, which served with the Nationalist faction during the Spanish Civil War of July 1936 to March 1939. The Condor Legio ...
experimented with new doctrine and aircraft during the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
. It helped the ''
Falange
The Falange Española Tradicionalista y de las Juntas de Ofensiva Nacional Sindicalista (FET y de las JONS; ), frequently shortened to just "FET", was the sole legal party of the Francoist regime in Spain. It was created by General Francisco F ...
'' under
Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...
to defeat the Republican forces. Over 20,000 German airmen gained combat experience that would give the ''Luftwaffe'' an important advantage going into the Second World War. One infamous operation was the bombing of
Guernica
Guernica (, ), official name (reflecting the Basque language) Gernika (), is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the mu ...
in the
Basque country. It is commonly assumed this attack was the result of a "terror doctrine" in ''Luftwaffe'' doctrine. The raids on Guernica and
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
caused many civilian casualties and a wave of protests in the democracies. It has been suggested that the bombing of Guernica was carried out for military tactical reasons, in support of ground operations, but the town was not directly involved in any fighting at that point in time. It was not until 1942 that the Germans started to develop a bombing policy in which civilians were the primary targets, although
The Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
on London and many other British cities involved indiscriminate bombing of civilian areas,
'nuisance raids' which could even involve the machine-gunning of civilians and livestock.
World War II
When World War II began in 1939, the ''Luftwaffe'' was one of the most technologically advanced air forces in the world. During the
Polish Campaign
The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week afte ...
that triggered the war, it quickly established air superiority, and then air supremacy. It supported the German Army operations which ended the campaign in five weeks. The ''Luftwaffe''s performance was as OKL had hoped. The ''Luftwaffe'' rendered invaluable support to the army, mopping up pockets of resistance. Göring was delighted with the performance. Command and control problems occurred, but flexibility and improvization in both the army and the ''Luftwaffe'' solved these problems. The ''Luftwaffe'' was to have in place a ground-to-air communication system, which played a vital role in the success of 1940's ''
Fall Gelb
The Manstein Plan or Case Yellow (german: Fall Gelb) also known as Operation Sichelschnitt (german: Sichelschnittplan, from the English language, English term sickle cut), was the Military operation plan, war plan of the German Army (Wehrmacht), ...
''.
In the spring of 1940 the ''Luftwaffe'' assisted the ''
Kriegsmarine
The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
'' and ''Heer'' in the
invasion of Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
. Flying in reinforcements and winning air superiority, the ''Luftwaffe'' contributed decisively to the German conquest.
In May and June 1940, the ''Luftwaffe'' contributed to the unexpected German success in the
Battle of France
The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...
. It destroyed three Allied Air Forces and helped secure the defeat of France in just over six weeks. However, it could not
destroy the British Expeditionary Force at Dunkirk despite intense bombing. The
BEF escaped to continue the war.
![Spitfires camera gun film shows tracer ammunition](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Spitfires_camera_gun_film_shows_tracer_ammunition.jpg)
During the
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
in summer 1940, the ''Luftwaffe'' inflicted severe damage on Britain's
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 ...
, but did not achieve the air superiority that Hitler demanded for
the proposed invasion of Britain, which was postponed and then canceled in December 1940. The ''Luftwaffe'' ravaged British cities during
the Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
of 1940–1941, but failed to break British morale. Hitler had already ordered preparations for
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...
, the invasion of the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
.
In spring 1941 the ''Luftwaffe'' helped its
Axis
An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis
* Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
partner, Italy, secure victory in the
Balkans Campaign and continued to support Italy or the
Italian Social Republic
The Italian Social Republic ( it, Repubblica Sociale Italiana, ; RSI), known as the National Republican State of Italy ( it, Stato Nazionale Repubblicano d'Italia, SNRI) prior to December 1943 but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò ...
in the
Mediterranean, Middle East and African theaters until May 1945.
In June 1941 Germany invaded the Soviet Union. The ''Luftwaffe'' destroyed thousands of Soviet aircraft,
yet it failed to destroy the
Red Air Force
The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...
altogether. Lacking strategic bombers (the very "Ural bombers" that General Wever had asked for six years before) the ''Luftwaffe'' could not strike at Soviet production-centers regularly or with the needed force. The
Axis and Soviet air operations during Operation Barbarossa
Axis and Soviet air operations during Operation Barbarossa took place over a six-month period, 22 June – December, 1941. Aviation played a critical role in the fighting on the Eastern Front during this period, in the battles to gain and maintai ...
consumed vast numbers of men and planes. As the war dragged on, the ''Luftwaffe'' was eroded in strength. German defeats at the
Battle of Stalingrad
The Battle of Stalingrad (23 August 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II where Nazi Germany and its allies unsuccessfully fought the Soviet Union for control of the city of Stalingrad (later re ...
in 1942 and in the
Battle of Kursk
The Battle of Kursk was a major World War II Eastern Front engagement between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in the southwestern USSR during late summer 1943; it ultimately became the largest tank battle in history. ...
in 1943 ensured the gradual decline of the ''Wehrmacht'' on the
Eastern Front.
British historian
Frederick Taylor asserts that "all sides bombed each other's cities during the war. Half a million
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
citizens, for example, died from German
bombing during the invasion and occupation of Russia. That's roughly equivalent to the number of German citizens who died from Allied raids."
The ''Luftwaffe'' defended
German-occupied Europe
German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...
against the growing offensive power of
RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the strategic bombing of Germany in World War II. From 1942 onward, the British bo ...
and, starting in the summer of 1942, the steadily building strength of the
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 ...
. The mounting demands of the
Defence of the Reich
The Defence of the Reich (german: Reichsverteidigung) is the name given to the strategic defensive aerial campaign fought by the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany over German-occupied Europe and Germany during World War II. Its aim was to prevent the d ...
campaign gradually destroyed the ''Luftwaffe''s fighter arm. Despite its belated use of advanced turbojet and rocket-propelled aircraft for bomber-destroyer duties, it was overwhelmed by Allied numbers and a lack of trained pilots and fuel. A last-ditch attempt, known as
Operation Bodenplatte
Operation Bodenplatte (; "Baseplate"), launched on 1 January 1945, was an attempt by the Luftwaffe to cripple Allied air forces in the Low Countries during the Second World War. The goal of ''Bodenplatte'' was to gain air superiority during th ...
, to win air superiority on 1 January 1945 failed. After the ''Bodenplatte'' effort, the ''Luftwaffe'' ceased to be an effective fighting force.
German day- and night-fighter pilots claimed more than 70,000 aerial victories during World War II. Of these, an estimated 745 victories were attributed to
jet fighters
Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...
.
Flak
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
shot down 25,000–30,000 Allied planes. Broken down according to the different Allied forces, about 25,000 were American planes, about 20,000 British, 46,100 Soviet, 1,274 French, 375 Polish, and 81 Dutch as well as aircraft from other Allied nationalities.
The highest-scoring day-fighter pilot was
Erich Hartmann
Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993) was a German fighter pilot during World War II and the most successful flying ace, fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He flew 1,404 combat missions and participated in ...
with 352 confirmed kills, all of them on the Eastern front against the Soviets. The leading aces in the west were
Hans-Joachim Marseille
Hans-Joachim Marseille (; 13 December 1919 – 30 September 1942) was a German Luftwaffe fighter pilot and flying ace during World War II. He is noted for his aerial battles during the North African Campaign and his Bohemian lifestyle. One o ...
with 158 kills against planes from the British Empire (
RAF
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 ...
,
RAAF
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
, and
SAAF), and
Georg-Peter Eder
Georg-Peter ''"Schorsch"'' Eder (8 March 1921 – 11 March 1986) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator and fighter ace during World War II. He is credited with 78 aerial victories achieved in 572 combat missions, including 150 combat missi ...
with 56 kills of aircraft from the
USAAF
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 ...
(of a total of 78). The most successful night-fighter pilot,
Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer
Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer (16 February 1922 – 15 July 1950) was a German Luftwaffe night-fighter pilot and the highest-scoring night fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. A flying ace is a military aviator credited with shootin ...
, is credited with 121 kills. 103 German fighter pilots shot down more than 100 enemy aircraft for a total of roughly 15,400 aerial victories. Roughly a further 360 pilots claimed between 40 and 100 aerial victories for round about 21,000 victories. Another 500 fighter pilots claimed between 20 and 40 victories for a total of 15,000 victories. Part of the reason German pilots scored such high victory totals was that they were in combat for the duration of the war-unlike the Allies, who rotated their flyers out of combat after a certain amount of time, German pilots flew until they were killed, captured or too badly wounded to keep flying. It is relatively certain that 2,500 German fighter pilots attained ace status, having achieved at least five aerial victories.
These achievements were honored with 453 German single and twin-engine (
Messerschmitt Bf 110
The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engine (Des ...
) day-fighter pilots receiving the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The Knight' ...
. 85 night-fighter pilots, including 14 crew members, were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
Some bomber pilots were also highly successful. The
''Stuka'' and ''Schlachtflieger'' pilot
Hans-Ulrich Rudel
Hans-Ulrich Rudel (2 July 1916 – 18 December 1982) was a German ground-attack pilot during World War II and a post-war neo-Nazi activist.
The most decorated German pilot of the war and the only recipient of the Knight's Cross with G ...
flew 2,530 ground-attack missions and claimed the destruction of more than 519 tanks and a battleship, among others. He became the most highly decorated German serviceman of the Second World War. The bomber pilot
Hansgeorg Bätcher
Hansgeorg Bätcher (13 January 1914 – 23 April 2003) was a highly decorated pilot in the Luftwaffe and with more than 658 combat missions the leading bomber ace during World War II. He was a recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross wi ...
flew more than 658 combat missions, destroying numerous ships and other targets.
''Luftwaffe'' losses, on the other hand, were high as well. The estimated total number of destroyed and damaged for the war totaled 76,875 aircraft. Of these, about 43,000 were lost in combat, the rest in operational accidents and during training. By type, losses totaled 21,452 fighters, 12,037 bombers, 15,428 trainers, 10,221 twin-engine fighters, 5,548 ground attack craft, 6,733 reconnaissance planes, and 6,141 transports.
According to the General Staff of the ''Wehrmacht'' the losses of the flight personnel until February 1945 amounted to:
[Hahn, Fritz. Waffen und Geheimwaffen des deutschen Heeres 1933–1945. Band I. Infanteriewaffen, Pionierwaffen, Artilleriewaffen, Pulver, Spreng- und Kampfstoffe – Koblenz: Bernard & Graefe Verlag, 1986 — ]
*KIA: 6,527 officers and 43,517 enlisted men
*WIA: 4,194 officers and 27,811 enlisted men
*MIA: 4,361 officers and 27,240 enlisted men
total: 15,082 officers and 98,568 enlisted men
According to official statistics, total ''Luftwaffe'' casualties, including ground personnel, amounted to 138,596 killed and 156,132 missing through 31 January 1945.
Omissions and failures
Lack of aerial defense
The failure of the ''Luftwaffe'' in the
Defence of the Reich
The Defence of the Reich (german: Reichsverteidigung) is the name given to the strategic defensive aerial campaign fought by the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany over German-occupied Europe and Germany during World War II. Its aim was to prevent the d ...
campaign was a result of a number of factors. The ''Luftwaffe'' lacked an effective air defense system early in the war.
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
's foreign policy had pushed Germany into war before these defenses could be fully developed. The ''Luftwaffe'' was forced to improvize and construct its defenses during the war.
The daylight actions over German-controlled territory were sparse in 1939–1940. The responsibility of the defense of German air space fell to the ''Luftgaukommandos'' (air district commands). The defense systems relied mostly on the "flak" arm. The defenses were not coordinated and communication was poor. This lack of understanding between the flak and flying branches of the defense would plague the ''Luftwaffe'' throughout the war.
Hitler, in particular, wanted the defense to rest on anti-aircraft artillery as it gave the civilian population a "psychological crutch" no matter how ineffective the weapons.
Most of the battles fought by the ''Luftwaffe'' on the Western Front were against
the RAF's "Circus" raids and the occasional daylight raid into German air space. This was a fortunate position since the ''Luftwaffe''s strategy of focusing its striking power on one front started to unravel with the failure of the invasion of the Soviet Union. The "peripheral" strategy of the ''Luftwaffe'' between 1939 and 1940 had been to deploy its fighter defenses at the edges of Axis occupied territory, with little protecting the inner depths.
Moreover, the front line units in the West were complaining about the poor numbers and performance of aircraft. Units complained of lack of ''Zerstörer'' aircraft with all-weather capabilities and the "lack of climbing power of the Bf 109".
The ''Luftwaffe''s technical edge was slipping as the only formidable new aircraft in the German arsenal was the
Focke-Wulf Fw 190
The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' (" Shrike") is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, ...
. ''
Generalfeldmarschall
''Generalfeldmarschall'' (from Old High German ''marahscalc'', "marshal, stable master, groom"; en, general field marshal, field marshal general, or field marshal; ; often abbreviated to ''Feldmarschall'') was a rank in the armies of several ...
'' Erhard Milch was to assist Ernst Udet with aircraft production increases and the introduction of more modern types of fighter aircraft. However, they explained at a meeting of the Reich Industrial Council on 18 September 1941 that the new next-generation aircraft had failed to materialize, and production of obsolete types had to continue to meet the growing need for replacements.
The buildup of the ''
Jagdwaffe
''Jagdwaffe'' (german: Fighter Force), was the German ''Luftwaffes fighter force during World War II.
Aircraft
The ''Jagdwaffe'' used many aircraft, including the Messerschmitt Bf 109, Bf 110, Me 163, Me 262, Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Ta 152, and He ...
'' ("Fighter Force") was too rapid and its quality suffered. It was not put under a unified command until 1943, which also affected the performance of the nine ''Jagdgeschwader'' fighter wings in existence in 1939. No further units were formed until 1942, and the years of 1940–1941 were wasted. OKL failed to construct a strategy; instead, its command style was reactionary, and its measures not as effective without thorough planning. This was particularly apparent with the ''
Sturmböck'' squadrons, formed to replace the increasingly ineffective twin-engined ''Zerstörer'' heavy fighter wings as the primary defense against USAAF daylight raids. The ''Sturmböcke'' flew Fw 190A fighters armed with heavy 20 mm and 30 mm cannon to destroy heavy bombers, but this increased the weight and affected the performance of the Fw 190 at a time when the aircraft were meeting large numbers of equal if not superior Allied types.
Daytime aerial defense against the USAAF's strongly defended heavy bomber forces, particularly the
Eighth Air Force
The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Force ...
and the
Fifteenth Air Force, had its successes through the calendar year of 1943. But at the start of 1944,
Eighth AF commander Jimmy Doolittle made a major change in offensive fighter tactics, which defeated the ''Luftwaffe''s day fighter force from that time onwards. Steadily increasing numbers of the superlative
North American P-51 Mustang
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter aircraft, 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 ...
single-engine fighter, leading the USAAF's bombers into German airspace defeated first the
Bf 110 ''Zerstörer'' wings, then the
Fw 190A Sturmböcke.
Development and equipment
![Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-668-7161-31A, Flugzeug Heinkel He 177](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-668-7161-31A%2C_Flugzeug_Heinkel_He_177.jpg)
In terms of technological development, the failure to develop a long-range bomber and capable long-range fighters during this period left the ''Luftwaffe'' unable to conduct a meaningful strategic bombing campaign throughout the war. However, Germany at that time suffered from limitations in raw materials such as oil and aluminum, which meant that there were insufficient resources for much beyond a tactical air force: given these circumstances, the ''Luftwaffe''s reliance on tactical mid-range, twin-engined medium bombers and short-range dive-bombers was a pragmatic choice of strategy. It might also be argued that the ''Luftwaffe''s ''Kampfgeschwader'' medium and heavy bomber wings were perfectly capable of attacking strategic targets, but the lack of capable long-range escort fighters left the bombers unable to carry out their missions effectively against determined and well-organised fighter opposition.
The greatest failure for the ''Kampfgeschwader'', however, was being saddled with an aircraft intended as a capable four-engined heavy bomber: the perpetually troubled
Heinkel He 177
The Heinkel He 177 ''Greif'' (Griffin) was a long-range heavy bomber flown by the ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. The introduction of the He 177 to combat operations was significantly delayed, by both problems with the development of its ...
, whose engines were
prone to catch fire in flight. Of the
three parallel proposals from the Heinkel engineering departments for a four-engined version of the A-series He 177
by February 1943, one of these being
the Heinkel firm's ''Amerikabomber'' candidate, only one, the
He 177B, emerged in the concluding months of 1943. Only three airworthy prototypes of the B-series He 177 design were produced by early 1944, some three years after the first prototype flights of the
Avro Lancaster
The Avro Lancaster is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same specification, as well as the Short Stirlin ...
, the most successful RAF heavy bomber.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1978-043-02, Focke-Wulf Fw 200 C Condor](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1978-043-02%2C_Focke-Wulf_Fw_200_C_Condor.jpg)
Another failure of procurement and equipment was the lack of a dedicated
naval air arm. General Felmy had already expressed a desire to build a naval air arm to support ''Kriegsmarine'' operations in the Atlantic and British waters. Britain was dependent on food and raw materials from its Empire and North America. Felmy pressed this case firmly throughout 1938 and 1939, and, on 31 October 1939, ''
Großadmiral
Grand admiral is a historic naval rank, the highest rank in the several European navies that used it. It is best known for its use in Germany as . A comparable rank in modern navies is that of admiral of the fleet.
Grand admirals in individual n ...
''
Erich Raeder
Erich Johann Albert Raeder (24 April 1876 – 6 November 1960) was a German admiral who played a major role in the naval history of World War II. Raeder attained the highest possible naval rank, that of grand admiral, in 1939, becoming the f ...
sent a strongly worded letter to Göring in support of such proposals. The early-war twin-engined
Heinkel He 115
The Heinkel He 115 was a three-seat World War II ''Luftwaffe'' seaplane. It was used as a torpedo bomber and performed general seaplane duties, such as reconnaissance and minelaying. The aircraft was powered by two 960 PS (947 hp, 720&n ...
floatplane and
Dornier Do 18
The Dornier Do 18 was a development of the Do 16 flying boat. It was developed for the ''Luftwaffe'', but ''Luft Hansa'' received five aircraft and used these for tests between the Azores and the North American continent in 1936 and on their ma ...
flying boat
A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...
were too slow and short-ranged. The then-contemporary
Blohm & Voss BV 138
The Blohm & Voss BV 138 ''Seedrache'' (Sea Dragon), but nicknamed ''Der Fliegende Holzschuh'' ("flying clog",Nowarra 1997, original German title of the Schiffer book. from the side-view shape of its fuselage, as well as a play on the title of t ...
''Seedrache'' (seadragon) trimotor flying boat became the ''Luftwaffe''s primary seaborne maritime patrol platform, with nearly 300 examples built; its trio of
Junkers Jumo 205
The Jumo 205 aircraft engine was the most famous of a series of aircraft diesel engines produced by Junkers. The Jumo 204 first entered service in 1932. Later engines of this type comprised the experimental Jumo 206 and Jumo 208, with the Jumo ...
diesel engines gave it a 4,300 km (2,670 mi) maximum range. Another Blohm und Voss design of 1940, the enormous, 46-meter wingspan six-engined
Blohm und Voss BV 222 ''Wiking'' maritime patrol flying boat, would see it capable of a 6,800 km (4,200-mile) range at maximum endurance when using higher-output versions of the same
Jumo 205 powerplants as used by the BV 138, in later years. The
Dornier Do 217
The Dornier Do 217 was a bomber used by the German ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II as a more powerful development of the Dornier Do 17, known as the ''Fliegender Bleistift'' (German: "flying pencil"). Designed in 1937 and 1938 as a heavy bomber ...
would have been ideal as a land-based choice but suffered production problems. Raeder also complained about the poor standard of aerial torpedoes, although their design was the responsibility of the ''Wehrmacht'' combined military's naval arm (the ''Kriegsmarine''), even considering production of the Japanese
Type 91 torpedo
The Type 91 was an aerial torpedo of the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was in service from 1931 to 1945. It was used in naval battles in World War II and was specially developed for attacks on ships in shallow harbours.
The Type 91 aerial torped ...
used at
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
as the ''Lufttorpedo'' LT 850 by August 1942. (See both:
Yanagi missions
The , or more formally the , were a series of submarine voyages undertaken by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the Second World War, to exchange technology, skills and materials with Japan's Axis partners, principally Nazi Germany. Thes ...
and
Heinkel He 111 torpedo bomber operations)
Without specialized naval or land-based, purpose-designed maritime patrol aircraft, the ''Luftwaffe'' was forced to improvize. The
Focke-Wulf Fw 200
The Focke-Wulf Fw 200 ''Condor'', also known as ''Kurier'' to the Allies (English language, English: Courier), was a Nazi Germany, German all-metal four-engined monoplane originally developed by Focke-Wulf as a long-range airliner. A Japanese req ...
Condor airliner's airframe – engineered for civilian airliner use – lacked the structural strength for combat maneuvering at lower altitudes, making it unsuitable for use as a bomber in maritime patrol duties. The Condor lacked speed, armor and bomb load capacity. Sometimes the fuselage literally "broke its back" or a wing panel dropped loose from the
wing root
The wing root is the part of the wing on a fixed-wing aircraft or winged-spaceship that is closest to the fuselage,Peppler, I.L.: ''From The Ground Up'', page 9. Aviation Publishers Co. Limited, Ottawa Ontario, Twenty Seventh Revised Edition, 1996 ...
after a hard landing. Nevertheless, this civilian transport was adapted for the long-range reconnaissance and anti-shipping roles and, between August 1940 and February 1941, Fw 200s sank 85 vessels for a claimed total of 363,000 Grt. Had the ''Luftwaffe'' focused on naval aviation – particularly maritime patrol aircraft with long range, like the aforementioned diesel-powered multi-engine Blohm & Voss flying boats – Germany might well have been in a position to win the
Battle of the Atlantic
The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade ...
. However, Raeder and the ''Kriegsmarine'' failed to press for naval air power until the war began, mitigating the ''Luftwaffe''s responsibility. In addition, Göring regarded any other branch of the German military developing its own aviation as an encroachment on his authority and continually frustrated the Navy's attempts to build its own airpower.
The absence of a strategic bomber force for the ''Luftwaffe'', following General Wever's accidental death in the early summer of 1936 and the end of the
Ural bomber
The Ural bomber was the initial aircraft design program/competition to develop a long-range bomber for the Luftwaffe, created and led by General Walther Wever in the early 1930s. Wever died in an air crash on June 3, 1936, and his successor Alber ...
program he fostered before the invasion of Poland, would not be addressed again until the authorization of the "
Bomber B
Bomber B was a German military aircraft design competition organised just before the start of World War II to develop a second-generation high-speed bomber for the ''Luftwaffe''. The new designs would be a direct successor to the ''Schnellbombe ...
" design competition in July 1939, which sought to replace the medium bomber force with which the ''Luftwaffe'' was to begin the war, and the partly achieved ''
Schnellbomber
A ''Schnellbomber'' (German; literally "fast bomber") is a bomber that relies upon speed to avoid enemy fighters, rather than relying on defensive armament and armor.
Concept
The concept developed in the 1930s when it was believed that a ver ...
'' high-speed medium bomber concept with more advanced, twin-engined high-speed bomber aircraft fitted with pairs of relatively
"high-power" engines of 1,500 kW (2,000 hp) output levels and upwards each as a follow-on to the earlier ''Schnellbomber'' project, that would also be able to function as shorter-range heavy bombers.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-B19957, Edgar Petersen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-B19957%2C_Edgar_Petersen.jpg)
The spring 1942 ''
Amerikabomber
The ''Amerikabomber'' () project was an initiative of the German Ministry of Aviation (''Reichsluftfahrtministerium'') to obtain a long-range strategic bomber for the ''Luftwaffe'' that would be capable of striking the United States (specifical ...
'' program also sought to produce useful strategic bomber designs for the ''Luftwaffe'', with their prime design priority being an advanced trans-oceanic range capability as the main aim of the project to directly attack the United States from Europe or the Azores. Inevitably, both the ''Bomber B'' and ''Amerikabomber'' programs were victims of the continued emphasis of the ''Wehrmacht'' combined military's insistence for its ''Luftwaffe'' air arm to support the ''Heer'' as its primary mission, and the damage to the German aviation industry from Allied bomber attacks.
Challenges in directly addressing combat pilots' issues
The RLM's apparent lack of a dedicated "technical-tactical" department, that would have directly been in contact with combat pilots to assess their needs for weaponry upgrades and tactical advice, had never been seriously envisioned as a critically ongoing necessity in the planning of the original German air arm.
The RLM did have its own ''Technisches Amt'' (T-Amt) department to handle aviation technology issues, but this was tasked with handling all aviation technology issues in Nazi Germany, both military and civilian in nature, and also not known to have ever had any clear and actively administrative and consultative links with the front-line forces established for such purposes. On the front-line combat side of the issue, and for direct contact with the German aviation firms making the ''Luftwaffe''s warplanes, the ''Luftwaffe'' did have its own reasonably effective system of four military aviation test facilities, or ''Erprobungstellen'' located at three coastal sites –
Peenemünde-West (also incorporating a separate facility in nearby
Karlshagen
Karlshagen is a Baltic Sea resort in Western Pomerania in the north of the island Usedom. Karlshagen has 3400 inhabitants and lies between Zinnowitz and Peenemünde.
In 1885, a pier was developed in Karlshagen. Today it is the most important yac ...
),
Tarnewitz and
Travemünde
Travemünde () is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of the river Trave in Bay of Lübeck, Lübeck Bay. It began life as a fortress built by Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony, in the 12th century to guard the mouth of the Trave, an ...
– and the central inland site of
Rechlin
Rechlin is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, around 100 km (60 mi) northwest of Berlin. The town's airport has a long history and was the Luftwaffe's main testing ground for new aircraft designs in Nazi Germany. ...
, itself first established as a military airfield in late August 1918 by the German Empire, with the four-facility system commanded later in World War II by ''Oberst'' (Colonel)
Edgar Petersen __NOTOC__
Edgar Petersen (26 April 1904 – 10 June 1986) was a German bomber pilot in the Luftwaffe during World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany.
Biography
Petersen was instrumental, as '' Geschwader ...
. However, due to lack of co-ordination between the RLM and OKL, all fighter and bomber development was oriented toward short-range aircraft, as they could be produced in greater numbers, rather than quality long-range aircraft, something that put the ''Luftwaffe'' at a disadvantage
as early as the Battle of Britain.
The "ramp-up" to production levels required to fulfill the ''Luftwaffe''s front-line needs was also slow, not reaching maximum output until 1944.
Production of fighters was not
given priority until 1944;
Adolf Galland commented that this should have occurred at least a year earlier.
Galland also pointed to the mistakes and challenges made in the development of the
Messerschmitt Me 262
The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germa ...
jet – which included the protracted development time required for its
Junkers Jumo 004 jet engines to achieve reliability. German combat aircraft types that were first designed and flown in the mid-1930s had become obsolete, yet were kept in production, in particular the Ju 87 Stuka, and the Bf 109, because there were no well-developed replacement designs.
Production failures
The failure of German production was evident from the start of the Battle of Britain. By the end of 1940, the ''Luftwaffe'' had suffered heavy losses and needed to regroup. Deliveries of new aircraft were insufficient to meet the drain on resources; the ''Luftwaffe'', unlike the RAF, was failing to expand its pilot and aircraft numbers.
This was partly owing to production planning failures before the war and the demands of the army. Nevertheless, the German aircraft industry was being outproduced in 1940. In terms of fighter aircraft production, the British exceeded their production plans by 43%, while the Germans remained 40% "behind" target by summer 1940. In fact, German production in fighters fell from 227 to 177 per month between July and September 1940.
One of the many reasons for the failure of the ''Luftwaffe'' in 1940 was that it did not have the operational and material means to destroy the British aircraft industry, something that the much-anticipated ''Bomber B'' design competition was intended to address.
The so-called "Göring program", had largely been predicated on the defeat of the Soviet Union in 1941. After the ''Wehrmacht''
's failure in front of Moscow, industrial priorities for a possibility in increasing aircraft production were largely abandoned in favor to support the army's increased attrition rates and heavy equipment losses.
Erhard Milch's reforms expanded production rates. In 1941 an average of 981 aircraft (including 311 fighters) were produced each month.
In 1942 this rose to 1,296 aircraft of which 434 were fighters.
Milch's planned production increases were initially opposed. But in June, he was granted materials for 900 fighters per month as the average output. By the Summer of 1942, ''Luftwaffe's'' operational fighter force had recovered from a low of 39% (44% for fighters and 31% for bombers) in Winter of 1941–1942, to 69% by late June (75% for fighters and 66% for bombers) in 1942. However, after increased commitments in the east, overall operational ready rates fluctuated between 59% and 65% for the remaining year.
Throughout 1942 the ''Luftwaffe'' was out produced in fighter aircraft by 250% and in twin-engine aircraft by 196%.
The appointment of
Albert Speer
Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer (; ; 19 March 1905 – 1 September 1981) was a German architect who served as the Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany during most of World War II. A close ally of Adolf Hitler, he ...
as Minister of Armaments increased production of existing designs and the few new designs that had originated from earlier in the war. However, the intensification of Allied bombing caused the dispersion of production and prevented an efficient acceleration of expansion. German aviation production reached about 36,000 combat aircraft for 1944. However, by the time this was achieved the ''Luftwaffe'' lacked the fuel and trained pilots to make this achievement worthwhile.
The failure to maximize production immediately after the failures in the Soviet Union and North Africa ensured the ''Luftwaffe''s effective defeat in the period of September 1943 – February 1944. Despite the tactical victories won, they failed to achieve a decisive victory. By the time production reached acceptable levels, as so many other factors had for the ''Luftwaffe'' – and for the entire ''Wehrmacht''
's weapons and ordnance technology as a whole – late in the war, it was "too little, too late".
Engine development
By the late 1930s,
airframe
The mechanical structure of an aircraft is known as the airframe. This structure is typically considered to include the fuselage, undercarriage, empennage and wings, and excludes the propulsion system.
Airframe design is a field of aerospa ...
construction methods had progressed to the point where airframes could be built to any required size, founded on the all-metal airframe design technologies pioneered by
Hugo Junkers
Hugo Junkers (3 February 1859 – 3 February 1935) was a German aircraft engineer and aircraft designer who pioneered the design of all-metal airplanes and flying wings. His company, Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke AG (Junkers Aircraft and Mo ...
in 1915 and constantly improved upon for over two decades to followespecially in Germany with aircraft like the
Dornier Do X
The Dornier Do X was the largest, heaviest, and most powerful flying boat in the world when it was produced by the Dornier company of Germany in 1929. First conceived by Claude Dornier in 1924, planning started in late 1925 and after over 240 ...
flying boat and the
Junkers G 38
The Junkers G.38 was a large German four-engined transport aircraft which first flew in 1929.EADS Two examples were constructed in Germany. Both aircraft flew as a commercial transport within Europe in the years leading up to World War II.
Durin ...
airliner. However, powering such designs was a major challenge. Mid-1930s aero engines were limited to about 600 hp and the first 1000 hp engines were just entering the prototype stagefor Nazi Germany's then-new ''Luftwaffe'' air arm, this meant liquid-cooled inverted V12 designs like the
Daimler-Benz DB 601
The Daimler-Benz DB 601 was a German aircraft engine built during World War II. It was a liquid-cooled inverted V12 engine, V12, and powered the Messerschmitt Bf 109, Messerschmitt Bf 110, and many others. Approximately 19,000 601's were pr ...
.
The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
had already gotten its start towards this goal by 1937 with two large displacement, twin-row 18-cylinder air-cooled radial engine designs of at least displacement each: the
Pratt & Whitney ''Double Wasp'' and the
Wright ''Duplex-Cyclone''.
Nazi Germany's initial need for substantially more powerful aviation engines originated with the private venture
Heinkel He 119
The Heinkel He 119 was an experimental single-propeller monoplane with two coupled engines, developed in Germany. A private venture by Heinkel to test radical ideas by the Günter brothers, the He 119 was originally intended to act as an unarme ...
high-speed reconnaissance design, and the ostensibly twin-"engined"
Messerschmitt Me 261
The Messerschmitt Me 261 ''Adolfine'' was a long- range reconnaissance aircraft designed in the late 1930s. It looked like an enlarged version of the Messerschmitt Bf 110. It was not put into production; just three Me 261s were built and used pri ...
for maritime reconnaissance duties – to power each of these designs, Daimler-Benz literally "doubled-up" their new, fuel-injected DB 601 engines. This "doubling-up" involved placing two DB 601s side by side on either side of a common vertical-plane space frame with their crankcases' outer sides each having a mount similar to what would be used in a single-engine installation, creating a "mirror-image" centrifugal supercharger for the starboard-side component DB 601, inclining the top ends of their crankcases inwards by roughly 30º to mate with the space-frame central mount, and placing a common propeller gear reduction housing across the front ends of the two engines. Such a twin-crankcase "power system" aviation engine crafted from a pair of DB 601s resulted in the maximum output DB 606 "coupled" engine design for these two aircraft in February 1937, but with each of the DB 606 "coupled" engines weighing in at around 1.5 tonnes apiece.
The early development of the DB 606 "coupled" engines, was paralleled during the late 1930s with Daimler-Benz's simultaneous development of a 1,500 kW class engine design using a single crankcase. The result was the twenty-four cylinder
Daimler-Benz DB 604
The Daimler-Benz DB 604 was an experimental German 24-cylinder aircraft engine, which did not progress beyond the initial engine testing phase and was ultimately abandoned in 1942.
Design and development
The DB 604 was unique among the DB 600 ...
X-configuration engine, with four banks of six cylinders each. Possessing essentially the same displacement of as the initial version of the liquid-cooled
Junkers Jumo 222
The Jumo 222 was a German high-power multiple-bank in-line piston aircraft engine from Junkers, designed under the management of Ferdinand Brandner of the Junkers Motorenwerke.
Such was the projected performance of the engine compared to c ...
multibank engine, itself a "converse" choice in configuration to the DB 604 in possessing six banks of four inline cylinders apiece instead; coincidentally, both the original Jumo 222 design and the DB 604 each weighed about a third less (at some of dry weight) than the DB 606, but the DB 604's protracted development was diverting valuable German aviation powerplant research resources, and with more development of the "twinned-
DB 605
The Daimler-Benz DB 605 is a German aircraft engine built during World War II. Developed from the DB 601, the DB 605 was used from 1942 to 1945 in the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter, and the Bf 110 and Me 210C heavy fighters.
The DB 610, a p ...
" based DB 610 coupled engine (itself initiated in June 1940 with a top output level of ,
and brought together in the same way – with the same all-up weight of 1.5 tonnes – as the DB 606 had been) giving improved results at the time, the Reich Air Ministry stopped all work on the DB 604 in September 1942. Such "coupled powerplants" were the exclusive choice of power for the
Heinkel He 177
The Heinkel He 177 ''Greif'' (Griffin) was a long-range heavy bomber flown by the ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. The introduction of the He 177 to combat operations was significantly delayed, by both problems with the development of its ...
A ''Greif'' heavy bomber, mistasked from its beginnings in being intended to do moderate-angle "dive bombing" for a 30-meter wingspan class, heavy bomber design – the twin nacelles for a pair of DB 606s or 610s did reduce drag for such a combat "requirement", but the poor design of the He 177A's engine accommodations for these twin-crankcase "power systems" caused
repeated outbreaks of engine fires, causing the "dive bombing" requirement for the He 177A to be canceled by mid-September 1942.
![Daimler Benz DB 610](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Daimler_Benz_DB_610.jpg)
BMW worked on what was essentially an enlarged version of its highly successful
BMW 801
The BMW 801 was a powerful German air-cooled 14-cylinder-radial aircraft engine built by BMW and used in a number of German Luftwaffe aircraft of World War II. Production versions of the twin-row engine generated between 1,560 and 2,000 PS ( ...
design from the
Focke-Wulf Fw 190
The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' (" Shrike") is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, ...
A. This led to the 53.7-litre displacement
BMW 802
The BMW 802 was a large air-cooled radial aircraft engine, built using two rows of nine cylinders to produce what was essentially an 18-cylinder version of the 14-cylinder BMW 801. Although promising at first, development dragged on and the pro ...
in 1943, an eighteen-cylinder air-cooled radial, which nearly matched the American ''Duplex-Cyclone's'' 54.9-litre figure, but with a weight of some matching that of the 24-cylinder liquid-cooled inline DB 606; and the even larger, 83.5-litre displacement
BMW 803 28-cylinder liquid-cooled radial, which from post-war statements from BMW development personnel were each considered to be "secondary priority" development programs at best. This situation with the 802 and 803 designs led to the company's engineering personnel being redirected to place all efforts on improving the 801 to develop it to its full potential. The BMW 801F radial development, through its use of features coming from the 801E subtype, was able to substantially exceed the over-1,500 kW output level. The two closest Allied equivalents to the 801 in configuration and displacement – the American
Wright ''Twin Cyclone'', and the Soviet
Shvetsov ASh-82
The Shvetsov ASh-82 (M-82) is a Soviet 14-cylinder, two-row, air-cooled radial aircraft engine developed from the Shvetsov M-62. The M-62 was the result of development of the M-25, which was a licensed version of the Wright R-1820 Cyclone.
Desi ...
radials – never had any need to be developed beyond a 1,500 kW output level, as larger-displacement, 18-cylinder radial aviation engines in both nations (the aforementioned American ''Double Wasp'' and ''Duplex-Cyclone'') and the eventual 1945 premiere of the Soviet
Shvetsov ASh-73
The Shvetsov ASh-73 was an 18-cylinder, air-cooled, radial aircraft engine produced between 1947 and 1957 in the Soviet Union. It was primarily used as the powerplant for the Tupolev Tu-4 heavy bomber, a copy of the American Boeing B-29 Superfortr ...
design, all three of which started their development before 1940, handled needs for even greater power from large radial aviation engines.
The twinned-up
Daimler-Benz DB 601
The Daimler-Benz DB 601 was a German aircraft engine built during World War II. It was a liquid-cooled inverted V12 engine, V12, and powered the Messerschmitt Bf 109, Messerschmitt Bf 110, and many others. Approximately 19,000 601's were pr ...
-based, 1,750 kW output DB 606, and its more powerful descendant, the 2,130 kW output DB 605-based DB 610, weighing some 1.5 tonnes apiece, were the only 1,500 kW-plus output level aircraft powerplants to ever be produced by Germany for ''Luftwaffe'' combat aircraft, mostly for the aforementioned Heinkel He 177A heavy bomber. Even the largest-displacement inverted V12 aircraft powerplant built in Germany, the 44.52-litre (2,717 cu. in.)
Daimler-Benz DB 603
The Daimler-Benz DB 603 was a German aircraft engine used during World War II. It was a liquid-cooled 12-cylinder inverted V12 enlargement of the DB 601, which was in itself a development of the DB 600. Production of the DB 603 commenced in ...
, which saw widespread use in twin-engined designs, could not exceed the 1,500 kW output level without more development. By March 1940, even the DB 603 was being "twinned-up"
as the 601/606 and 605/610 had been, to become their replacement "power system": this was the strictly experimental, approximately 1.8-tonne weight apiece, twin-crankcase DB 613; capable of over 2,570 kW (3,495 PS) output, but which never left its test phase.
The proposed over-1,500 kW output subtypes of German aviation industry's existing piston aviation engine designs—which adhered to using just a single crankcase that ''were'' able to substantially exceed the aforementioned over-1,500 kW output level—were the DB 603 LM (1,800 kW at take-off, in production), the DB 603 N (2,205 kW at take-off, planned for 1946) and the BMW 801F (1,765 kW (2,400 PS) engines. The pioneering nature of jet engine technology in the 1940s resulted in numerous development problems for both of Germany's major jet engine designs to see mass production, the
Jumo 004
The Junkers Jumo 004 was the world's first production turbojet engine in operational use, and the first successful axial compressor turbojet engine. Some 8,000 units were manufactured by Junkers in Germany late in World War II, powering the Mess ...
and
BMW 003
The BMW 003 (full RLM designation 109-003) is an early axial turbojet engine produced by BMW AG in Germany during World War II. The 003 and the Junkers Jumo 004 were the only German turbojet engines to reach production during World War II.
W ...
(both of pioneering
axial flow
An axial compressor is a gas compressor that can continuously pressurize gases. It is a rotating, airfoil-based compressor in which the gas or working fluid principally flows parallel to the axis of rotation, or axially. This differs from other ...
design), with the more powerful
Heinkel HeS 011
The Heinkel HeS 011 or Heinkel-Hirth 109-011 ''(HeS - Heinkel Strahltriebwerke)'' was an advanced World War II jet engine built by Heinkel-Hirth. It featured a unique compressor arrangement, starting with a low-compression impeller in the intake ...
never leaving the test phase, as only 19 examples of the HeS 011 would ever be built for development. Even with such dismal degrees of success for such advanced aviation powerplant designs, more and more design proposals for new German combat aircraft in the 1943–45 period centered either around the failed Jumo 222 or HeS 011 aviation powerplants for their propulsion.
Personnel and leadership
The bomber arm was given preference and received the "better" pilots. Later, fighter pilot leaders were few in numbers as a result of this. As with the late shift to fighter production, the ''Luftwaffe'' pilot schools did not give the fighter pilot schools preference soon enough. The ''Luftwaffe'', OKW argued, was still an offensive weapon, and its primary focus was on producing bomber pilots. This attitude prevailed until the second half of 1943.
During the
Defence of the Reich
The Defence of the Reich (german: Reichsverteidigung) is the name given to the strategic defensive aerial campaign fought by the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany over German-occupied Europe and Germany during World War II. Its aim was to prevent the d ...
campaign in 1943 and 1944, there were not enough commissioned fighter pilots and leaders to meet attrition rates;
as the need arose to replace aircrew (as attrition rates increased), the quality of
pilot training deteriorated rapidly. Later this was made worse by
fuel shortages for pilot training. Overall this meant reduced training on operational types, formation flying, gunnery training, and combat training, and a total lack of instrument training.
At the beginning of the war, commanders were replaced with younger commanders too quickly. These younger commanders had to learn "in the field" rather than entering a front-line post fully qualified. Training of formation leaders was not systematic until 1943, which was far too late, with the ''Luftwaffe'' already stretched. The ''Luftwaffe'' thus lacked a cadre of staff officers to set up new combat units with carefully selected and skilled combat personnel, and pass on experience.
Moreover, ''Luftwaffe'' leadership from the start poached the training command, which undermined its ability to replace losses,
while also planning for "short sharp campaigns",
which did not pertain. Moreover, no plans were laid for
night fighter
A night fighter (also known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor for a period of time after the Second World War) is a fighter aircraft adapted for use at night or in other times of bad visibility. Night fighters began to be used i ...
s.
In fact, when protests were raised,
Hans Jeschonnek
Hans Jeschonnek (9 April 1899 – 18 August 1943) was a German military aviator in the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' during World War I, a general staff officer in the ''Reichswehr'' in the inter–war period and ''Generaloberst'' (Colonel-General) and a ...
, Chief of the General Staff of the ''Luftwaffe'', said, "First we've got to beat Russia, then we can start training!"
''Luftwaffe'' ground forces
The ''Luftwaffe'' was unusual among contemporary independent air forces in possessing an organic
paratrooper
A paratrooper is a military parachutist—someone trained to parachute into a military operation, and usually functioning as part of an airborne force. Military parachutists (troops) and parachutes were first used on a large scale during World ...
force called ''
Fallschirmjäger
The ''Fallschirmjäger'' () were the paratrooper branch of the German Luftwaffe before and during World War II. They were the first German paratroopers to be committed in large-scale airborne operations. Throughout World War II, the commander ...
''. Established in 1938, they were deployed in parachute operations in 1940 and 1941 and participated in the
Battle of Fort Eben-Emael
The Battle of Fort Eben-Emael was a battle between Belgian and German forces that took place between 10 May and 11 May 1940, and was part of the Battle of Belgium and ''Fall Gelb'', the German invasion of the Low Countries and France. An assault ...
and the
Battle for The Hague in May 1940, and during the
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...
in May 1941. However, more than 4,000 ''Fallschirmjäger'' were killed during the Crete operation. Afterwards, although continuing to be trained in parachute delivery, paratroopers were only used in a parachute role for smaller-scale operations, such as
the rescue of Benito Mussolini in 1943. ''Fallschirmjäger'' formations were mainly used as
light infantry
Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...
in all theaters of the war. Their losses were 22,041 KIA, 57,594 WIA and 44,785 MIA (until February 1945).
During 1942 surplus ''Luftwaffe'' personnel was used to form the
''Luftwaffe'' Field Divisions, standard infantry divisions that were used chiefly as
rear echelon units to free up front line troops. From 1943, the ''Luftwaffe'' also had an armored division called
''Fallschirm-Panzer'' Division 1 Hermann Göring, which was expanded to a ''
Panzerkorps'' in 1944.
Ground support and combat units from the ''
Reichsarbeitsdienst
The Reich Labour Service (''Reichsarbeitsdienst''; RAD) was a major organisation established in Nazi Germany as an agency to help mitigate the effects of unemployment on the German economy, militarise the workforce and indoctrinate it with Nazi ...
'' (RAD) and the
National Socialist Motor Corps
The National Socialist Motor Corps (german: Nationalsozialistisches Kraftfahrkorps, NSKK) was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party (NSDAP) that officially existed from May 1931 to 1945. The group was a successor organisation to the old ...
(NSKK) were also put at the ''Luftwaffe''s disposal during the war. In 1942 56 RAD companies served with the ''Luftwaffe'' in the West as airfield construction troops. In 1943 420 RAD companies were trained as
anti-aircraft artillery
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
(AAA) and posted to existing ''Luftwaffe'' AAA battalions in the homeland. At the end of the war, these units were also fighting allied tanks. Beginning in 1939 with a transport regiment, the NSKK had in 1942 a complete division-sized transportation unit serving the ''Luftwaffe'', the ''NSKK Transportgruppe Luftwaffe'' serving in France and at the Eastern front. The overwhelming number of its 12,000 members were Belgian, Dutch and French collaborators.
War crimes and bombing of non-military targets
Forced labor
![Concentration camp prisoners at Messerschmitt factory](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Concentration_camp_prisoners_at_Messerschmitt_factory.png)
In 1943 and 1944, aircraft production was moved to concentration camps in order to alleviate labor shortages and to protect production from Allied air raids. The two largest aircraft factories in Germany were located at
Mauthausen-Gusen
Mauthausen was a Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen (roughly east of Linz), Upper Austria. It was the main camp of a group with nearly 100 further subcamps located throughout Austria and southern Germany ...
and
Mittelbau-Dora concentration camps. Aircraft parts were also manufactured at
Flossenbürg,
Buchenwald
Buchenwald (; literally 'beech forest') was a Nazi concentration camp established on hill near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within Germany's 1937 borders. Many actual or su ...
,
Dachau,
Ravensbrück,
Gross-Rosen
Gross-Rosen was a network of Nazi concentration camps built and operated by Nazi Germany during World War II. The main camp was located in the German village of Gross-Rosen, now the modern-day Rogoźnica, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Rogoźnica in ...
,
Natzweiler
Natzwiller () is a Communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin Departments of France, department in Grand Est in northeastern France.
History
Built in spring 1941 on the territory of the commune, Natzweiler-Struthof concentration camp opened fo ...
,
Herzogenbusch
, , german: Konzentrationslager Herzogenbusch
, location map = Netherlands
, map alt =
, map caption = Location of the camp in the Netherlands
, coordinates =
, known for =
, location = Vught, Netherlands
, built by = N ...
, and
Neuengamme
Neuengamme was a network of Nazi concentration camps in Northern Germany that consisted of the main camp, Neuengamme, and more than 85 satellite camps. Established in 1938 near the village of Neuengamme in the Bergedorf district of Hamburg, th ...
. In 1944 and 1945, as many as 90,000 concentration prisoners worked in the aviation industry, and were about one tenth of the concentration camp population over the winter of 1944–45. Partly in response to the ''Luftwaffe''s demand for more forced laborers to increase fighter production, the concentration camp more than doubled between mid-1943 (224,000) and mid-1944 (524,000). Part of this increase was due to the deportation of the Hungarian Jews; the ''
Jägerstab
The ''Jägerstab'' (Fighter Staff) was a Nazi German governmental task force whose aim was to increase production of fighter aircraft during World War II. Established in March 1944, it was composed of government and SS personnel, as well as rep ...
'' program was used to justify the deportations to the Hungarian government. Of the 437,000 Hungarian Jews deported between May and July 1944, about 320,000 were gassed on arrival at
Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...
and the remainder forced to work. Only 50,000 survived.
Almost 1,000 fuselages of the jet fighter
Messerschmitt Me 262
The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germa ...
were produced at Gusen, a subcamp of Mauthausen and brutal Nazi labor camp,
where the average life expectancy was six months. By 1944, one-third of production at the crucial
Regensburg
Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...
plant that produced the Bf 109, the backbone of the ''Luftwaffe'' fighter arm, originated in Gusen and Flossenbürg alone.
Synthetic oil
Synthetic oil is a lubricant consisting of chemical compounds that are artificially modified or synthesised. Synthetic lubricants can be manufactured using chemically modified petroleum components rather than whole crude oil, but can also be syn ...
was produced from
shale oil
Shale oil is an unconventional oil produced from oil shale rock fragments by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. These processes convert the organic matter within the rock (kerogen) into synthetic oil and gas. The resulting oil ca ...
deposits by prisoners of Mittlebau-Dora as part of
Operation Desert directed by
Edmund Geilenberg
Edmund Geilenberg (born 13 January 1906, Witten-Buchholz-Kaempen – died 19 October 1964, Bassum) was a German official of World War II who headed an emergency 1944 decentralization program, the ''Geilenbergstab'' or ''Geilenbergprogramm'' (Geil ...
in order to make up for the
decrease in oil production due to Allied bombing. For oil production, three subcamps were constructed and 15,000 prisoners forced to work in the plant. More than 3,500 people died.
Vaivara concentration camp
Vaivara was the largest of the 22 concentration and labor camps established in occupied Estonia by the Nazi regime during World War II. It had 20,000 Jewish prisoners pass through its gates, mostly from the Vilna and Kovno Ghettos, but also ...
in
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
was also established for shale oil extraction; about 20,000 prisoners worked there and more than 1,500 died at Vaivara.
![Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1991-061-17, Niedersachswerfen, Produktion von V1 - V2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1991-061-17%2C_Niedersachswerfen%2C_Produktion_von_V1_-_V2.jpg)
''Luftwaffe'' airfields were frequently maintained using forced labor. Thousands of inmates from five subcamps of
Stutthof
Stutthof was a Nazi concentration camp established by Nazi Germany in a secluded, marshy, and wooded area near the village of Stutthof (now Sztutowo) 34 km (21 mi) east of the city of Danzig ( Gdańsk) in the territory of the Germ ...
worked on the airfields. Airfields and bases near several other concentration camps and
ghettos
A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished t ...
were constructed or maintained by prisoners. On the orders of the ''Luftwaffe'', prisoners from Buchenwald and Herzogenbusch were forced to defuse bombs that had fallen around Düsseldorf and Leeuwarden respectively.
Thousands of ''Luftwaffe'' personnel
worked as concentration camp guards.
Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...
included a munitions factory guarded by ''Luftwaffe'' soldiers; 2,700 ''Luftwaffe'' personnel worked as guards at Buchenwald. Dozens of camps and subcamps were staffed primarily by ''Luftwaffe'' soldiers. According to the ''
Encyclopedia of Camps and Ghettos
An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into article ( ...
'', it was typical for camps devoted to armaments production to be run by the branch of the ''Wehrmacht'' that used the products. In 1944, many ''Luftwaffe'' soldiers were transferred to concentration camps to alleviate personnel shortages.
Massacres
''Luftwaffe'' paratroopers committed many war crimes in
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
following the
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete (german: Luftlandeschlacht um Kreta, el, Μάχη της Κρήτης), codenamed Operation Mercury (german: Unternehmen Merkur), was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island ...
, including the
Alikianos executions
The Alikianos executions ( el, εκτελέσεις στον Αλικιανό) was the mass execution by firing squad of mostly male civilians from Alikianos and nearby villages in Crete, Greece by German paratroopers on 24 May, 2 June and 1 Au ...
,
Massacre of Kondomari
The Massacre of Kondomari ( el, Σφαγή στο Κοντομαρί) was the execution of male civilians from the village of Kondomari in Crete by an ad hoc firing squad consisting of German paratroopers on 2 June 1941 during World War II.Heato ...
, and the
Razing of Kandanos
The Razing of Kandanos ( el, Καταστροφή της Καντάνου) refers to the complete destruction of the village of Kandanos in Western Crete (Greece) and the killing of about 180 of its inhabitants on 3 June 1941 by German occupying ...
. Several ''Luftwaffe'' divisions, including the
1st Parachute Division,
2nd Parachute Division,
4th Parachute Division,
19th Luftwaffe Field Division,
20th Luftwaffe Field Division and the
1st ''Fallschirm-Panzer'' Division, committed war crimes in Italy, murdering hundreds of civilians.
''Luftwaffe'' troops participated in the murder of Jews imprisoned in ghettos in Eastern Europe. For example, they assisted in the murder of 2,680 Jews at the Nemirov ghetto, participated in a series of massacres at the Opoczno ghetto, and helped to liquidate the
Dęblin–Irena Ghetto by deporting thousands of Jews to the
Treblinka extermination camp
Treblinka () was an extermination camp, built and operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the village of Treblinka in what is now the Masovian Voivodeship. The camp ...
. Between 1942 and 1944, two ''Luftwaffe'' security battalions were stationed in the
Białowieża Forest
Białowieża Forest; lt, Baltvyžių giria; pl, Puszcza Białowieska ; russian: Беловежская пуща, Belovezhskaya Pushcha is a forest on the border between Belarus and Poland. It is one of the last and largest remaining pa ...
for ''
Bandenbekämpfung
In German military history, ''Bandenbekämpfung'' (German; ), also Nazi security warfare (during World War II), refers to the concept and military doctrine of countering resistance or insurrection in the rear area during wartime through e ...
'' operations. Encouraged by Göring, they murdered thousands of Jews and other civilians. ''Luftwaffe'' soldiers frequently
executed
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
Polish civilians at random with baseless accuastions of being "
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
agents", in order to keep the population in line, or as reprisal for partisan activities. The performance of the troops was measured by the
body count
A body count is the total number of people killed in a particular event. In combat, a body count is often based on the number of confirmed kills, but occasionally only an estimate. Often used in reference to military combat, the term can also r ...
of people murdered. Ten thousand ''Luftwaffe'' troops were stationed on the Eastern Front for such "anti-partisan" operations.
Human experimentation
Throughout the war, concentration camp prisoners were forced to serve as
human subjects in testing ''Luftwaffe'' equipment. Some of these experiments were carried out by ''Luftwaffe'' personnel and others were performed by the SS on the orders of the OKL.
In 1941, experiments with the intent of discovering how to prevent and treat
hypothermia
Hypothermia is defined as a body core temperature below in humans. Symptoms depend on the temperature. In mild hypothermia, there is shivering and mental confusion. In moderate hypothermia, shivering stops and confusion increases. In severe h ...
were carried out for the ''Luftwaffe'', which had lost aircrew to immersion hypothermia after
ditching
In aviation, a water landing is, in the broadest sense, an Landing, aircraft landing on a body of water. Seaplanes, such as floatplanes and flying boats, land on water as a normal operation. Ditching is a controlled emergency landing on the ...
s. The experiments were conducted at Dachau and Auschwitz.
Sigmund Rascher
Sigmund Rascher (12 February 1909 – 26 April 1945) was a German ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) doctor. He conducted deadly experiments on humans pertaining to high altitude, freezing and blood coagulation under the patronage of ''Reichsführer-SS'' Hei ...
, a ''Luftwaffe'' doctor based at Dachau, published the results at the 1942 medical conference entitled "Medical Problems Arising from Sea and Winter".
[Tyson, Peter]
"Holocaust on Trial: The Experiments."
''NOVA Online''. Retrieved: 23 March 2008. Of about 400 prisoners forced to participate in cold-water experiments, 80 to 90 were killed.
In early 1942, prisoners at Dachau were used by Rascher in experiments to perfect
ejection seat
In aircraft, an ejection seat or ejector seat is a system designed to rescue the aircraft pilot, pilot or other aircrew, crew of an aircraft (usually military) in an emergency. In most designs, the seat is propelled out of the aircraft by an ex ...
s at high altitudes. A
low-pressure chamber containing these prisoners was used to simulate conditions at altitudes of up to . It was rumored that Rascher performed
vivisection
Vivisection () is surgery conducted for experimental purposes on a living organism, typically animals with a central nervous system, to view living internal structure. The word is, more broadly, used as a pejorative catch-all term for experiment ...
s on the brains of victims who survived the initial experiment. Of the 200 subjects, 80 died from the experimentation, and the others were executed.
Eugen Hagen, head doctor of the ''Luftwaffe'', infected inmates of Natzweiler concentration camp with
typhus
Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposure.
...
in order to test the efficacy of proposed vaccines.
Aerial bombing of non-military targets
No
positive
Positive is a property of positivity and may refer to:
Mathematics and science
* Positive formula, a logical formula not containing negation
* Positive number, a number that is greater than 0
* Plus sign, the sign "+" used to indicate a posi ...
or specific
customary
Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to:
Traditions, laws, and religion
* Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom
* Norm (social), a r ...
international humanitarian law
International humanitarian law (IHL), also referred to as the laws of armed conflict, is the law that regulates the conduct of war (''jus in bello''). It is a branch of international law that seeks to limit the effects of armed conflict by prot ...
with respect to
aerial warfare
Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare. Aerial warfare includes bombers attacking enemy installations or a concentration of enemy troops or strategic targets; fighter aircraft battling for control o ...
existed prior to or during World War II. This is also why no ''Luftwaffe'' officers were prosecuted at the post-World War II Allied war crime trials for the aerial raids.
The
bombing of Wieluń was an air raid on the
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
town of
Wieluń
Wieluń ( la, Velun) is a town in south-central Poland with 21,624 inhabitants (2021). Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship (since 1999), it was previously in Sieradz Voivodeship (1975–1998).
Wieluń has a long and rich history. In the past, ...
by the ''Luftwaffe'' on 1 September 1939. The ''Luftwaffe'' started bombing Wieluń at 04:40, five minutes before the shelling of
Westerplatte
Westerplatte is a peninsula in Gdańsk, Poland, located on the Baltic Sea coast mouth of the Dead Vistula (one of the Vistula delta estuaries), in the Gdańsk harbour channel. From 1926 to 1939, it was the location of a Polish Military Transi ...
, which has traditionally been considered the beginning of
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 ...
in Europe. The air raid on the town was one of the
first aerial bombings of the war.
[ About 1,300 civilians were killed, hundreds were injured, and 90 percent of the town center was destroyed. The casualty rate was more than twice as high as ]Guernica
Guernica (, ), official name (reflecting the Basque language) Gernika (), is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the mu ...
. A 1989 Sender Freies Berlin
Sender Freies Berlin (; abbreviated SFB ; ) was the ARD public radio and television service for West Berlin from 1 June 1954 until 1990 and for Berlin as a whole from German reunification until 30 April 2003. On 1 May 2003 it merged with Ostde ...
documentary stated that there were no military or industrial targets in the area, except for a small sugar factory in the outskirts of the town. Furthermore, Trenkner stated that German bombers first destroyed the town's hospital. Two attempts, in 1978 and 1983, to prosecute individuals for the bombing of the Wieluń hospital were dismissed by West German judges when prosecutors stated that the pilots had been unable to make out the nature of the structure due to fog.
Operation Retribution was the April 1941 German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
bombing of Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
, the capital of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
. The bombing deliberately targeted the killing of civilians as punishment and resulted in 17,000 civilian deaths. It occurred in the first days of the 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 ...
German-led Axis
An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis
* Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
invasion of Yugoslavia
The invasion of Yugoslavia, also known as the April War or Operation 25, or ''Projekt 25'' was a German-led attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II. The order for the invasion was p ...
. The operation commenced on 6 April and concluded on 7 or 8 April, resulting in the paralysis of Yugoslav civilian and military command and control, widespread destruction in the center of the city and many civilian casualties. Following the Yugoslav capitulation, ''Luftwaffe'' engineers conducted a bomb damage assessment in Belgrade. The report stated that of bombs were dropped, with 10 to 14 percent being incendiaries. It listed all the targets of the bombing, which included: the royal palace, the war ministry, military headquarters, the central post office, the telegraph office, passenger and goods railway stations, power stations and barracks. It also mentioned that seven aerial mines were dropped and that areas in the center and northwest of the city had been destroyed, comprising 20 to 25 percent of its total area. Some aspects of the bombing remain unexplained, particularly the use of the aerial mines. In contrast, Pavlowitch states that almost 50 percent of housing in Belgrade was destroyed. After the invasion, the Germans forced between 3,500 and 4,000 Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
to collect rubble that was caused by the bombing.
The biggest attacks at civilian targets occurred in the Battle of Britain when the large fleet of Luftwaffe attacked the British Isles and primarily hit non military targets. This resulted in over 22,000 civilians being killed and over 30,000 being wounded.
Trials
Several prominent ''Luftwaffe'' commanders were convicted of war crimes, including General Alexander Löhr
Alexander Löhr (20 May 1885 – 26 February 1947) was an Austrian Air Force commander during the 1930s and, after the annexation of Austria, he was a Luftwaffe commander. Löhr served in the Luftwaffe during World War II, rising to commander o ...
and Field Marshal Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring (30 November 1885 – 16 July 1960) was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' of the Luftwaffe during World War II who was subsequently convicted of war crimes. In a military career that spanned both world wars, Kesselring beca ...
.
See also
* ''Der Adler
''Der Adler'' (literally "The Eagle") was a biweekly Nazi propaganda magazine published by the Scherl Verlag, founded by August Scherl, with the support of the Luftwaffe High Command. From 1939 to 1944, 146 magazine issues were published in total. ...
'', Luftwaffe's propaganda magazine
* Emergency Fighter Program
The Emergency Fighter Program () was the program that resulted from a decision taken on July 3, 1944 by the Luftwaffe regarding the German aircraft manufacturing companies during the last year of the Third Reich.
This project was one of the ...
* German Air Fleets in World War II A list of ''Luftwaffe "Luftflotten"'' (Air Fleets) and their locations between 1939 and 1945.
Timeline
ImageSize = width:580 height:auto barincrement:20
PlotArea = left:80 bottom:60 top:10 right:40
AlignBars = early
DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy ...
* List of flags of ''Luftwaffe'' (1933–45)
* List of German aircraft projects, 1939-45
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
* List of German World War II jet aces
This list of German World War II jet aces has a sortable table of notable German jet ace pilots during World War II.
Background
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during a ...
* List of German World War II night fighter aces
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. German day and night fighter pilots claimed roughly 70,000 aerial victories during World War II, 25,000 over British o ...
* List of Luftwaffe personnel convicted of war crimes
This is a list of Luftwaffe personnel convicted of war crimes committed during 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 Wor ...
*
* List of World War II aces from Germany
This is a list of fighter aces in World War II from Germany. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. It is relatively certain that 2,500 German fighter pilot ...
* List of World War II military aircraft of Germany
This list covers aircraft of the German Luftwaffe during the Second World War from 1939 to 1945. Numerical designations are largely within the RLM designation system.
The Luftwaffe officially existed from 1933–1945 but training had started in t ...
* ''Luftwaffe'' serviceable aircraft strengths (1940–45)
* ''Luftwaffe'' Signal Intelligence Organization
* Military Ranks of the ''Luftwaffe'' (1935–45)
* Trial of Erhardt Milch
* Uniforms of the ''Luftwaffe'' (1935–45)
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
*
*
* Bekkerm Cajus. ''Angriffshohe 4000'' (in German). Munich, Germany: Heyne, 1964.
*
* Bergstrom, Christer. ''Stalingrad: The Air Battle: November 1942 – February 1943.'' London: Chevron/Ian Allan, 2008. .
* Bergström, Christer, ''Kursk: The Air Battle: July 1943.'' London: Chevron/Ian Allan, 2008. .
* Bergström, Christer and Andrey Mikhailov. Black Cross/Red Star-Vol. 1, Operation Barbarossa 1941. London: Classic Colours, 2003. .
* Bergström, Christer and Martin Pegg. ''Jagdwaffe: The War in Russia: January–October 1942''. London: Classic Colours, 2003. .
*
*
* Bowmen, Martin and Theo Boiten. ''Battles with the Luftwaffe: The Air War Over Germany 1942–1945''. London: Collins, 2001. .
*
*
*
*
* Bungay, Stephen. ''The Most Dangerous Enemy: A History of the Battle of Britain''. London: Aurum Press, 2000..
* .
*
* Cooper, Matthew. ''The German Air Force 1933–1945: An Anatomy of Failure''. New York: Jane's Publishing Incorporated, 1981. .
* Corum, James. "The Luftwaffe's Army Support Doctrine, 1918–1941". ''The Journal of Military History'', Vol. 59, No. 1, January 1995, pp. 53–76.
*
* Corum, James. ''The Roots of Blitzkrieg: Hans von Seeckt and German Military Reform. Modern War Studies''. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas. 1992. .
* Corum, James F. (Mueller, R. and H.E. Volkmann, eds.). "Staerken und Schwaechen der Luftwaffe". '' Die Wehrmacht: Mythos und Realitaet'' (in German). Munich, Germany: Oldenbourg Verlag, 1999.
* Crawford, Steve. ''Eastern Front, Day by Day''. London: Spellmount Publications, 2006. .
* de Zeng IV, Henry L. and Douglas G. Stankey. ''Bomber Units of the Luftwaffe 1933–1945: A Reference Source: Volume 1''. London: Midland Publishing, 2007. .
*
*
* Drabkin, Artem.''The Red Air Force at War: Barbarossa and the Retreat to Moscow: Recollections of Soviet Fighter Pilots on the Eastern Front''. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Pen & Sword Books, 2007..
* .
* Dye, Peter J. "Logistics in the Battle of Britain". ''Air Force Journal of Logistics'', Winter 2000.
* Faber, Harold. ''Luftwaffe: An analysis by Former Luftwaffe Generals''. London: Sidgwick & Jackson, 1979. .
*
* Goss, Chris. ''Dornier 17'' (In Focus). Surrey, UK: Red Kite, 2005. .
* Goss, Chris. ''The Bombers' Battle: Personal Accounts of the Battle of Britain by Luftwaffe Bomber Crews July–October 1940''. London: Crécy Publishing, 2000. .
* .
* Hayward, Joel S. '' Stopped at Stalingrad: The Luftwaffe and Hitler's Defeat in the East 1942–1943''. Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas, 2001. .
* Hall, Steve and Lionel Quinlan.''KG55''. Surrey, UK: Red Kite, 2000. . photo history of a bomber group
* Hess, William N. ''B-17 Flying Fortress: Combat and Development History''. St. Paul, Minnesota: Motorbook International, 1994.
* Holmes, Tony. ''Spitfire vs Bf 109: Battle of Britain''. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 2007. .
*
* Hooton, E.R. ''Phoenix Triumphant: The Rise and Rise of the Luftwaffe''. London: Brockhampton Press, 1994. .
*
*
*
* Hooton, E.R. ''Eagle in Flames: The Fall of the Luftwaffe''. London: Weidenfeld Military, 1997. .
*
*
*
*
* Manrho, John and Ron Putz. ''Bodenplatte: The Luftwaffe's Last Hope–The Attack on Allied Airfields, New Year's Day 1945''. Aldershot, UK: Hikoki Publications, 2004. .
* Macksey, K. ''The Memoirs of Field-Marshal Kesselring''. London: Greenhill Books, 2006.
*
*
*
* Neitzel, Söhnke. ''Der Einsatz der Deutschen Luftwaffe über der Nordsee und dem Atlantik: 1939–45'' (in German). Bonn, Germany: Bernard & Graefe, 1995. .
* .
*
*
*
* Pegg, M. ''Transporter Vol. 1: Luftwaffe Transport Units 1937–1943''. London: Classic Publications, 2007. .
* Price, Alfred. ''The Last Year of the Luftwaffe: May 1944 – May 1945''. London: Greenhill Books, 2001. .
* Probert, H. A. ''The Rise and Fall of the German Air Force 1933–1945''. official, detailed British history written in 1947
*
*
* Ruffner, Kevin. ''Luftwaffe Field Divisions, 1941–45''. Oxford, UK: Osprey, 1997.
* Scutts, Jerry. ''Mustang Aces of the Eighth Air Force''. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1994. .
* Scutts, Jerry. ''Bf 109 Aces of North Africa and the Mediterranean''. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1994. .
* Smith, Peter. ''Luftwaffe at War: Defeat in the West 1943–1945'' (Luftwaffe at War, Vol. 6). London: Greenhill Books, 1998. .
* Smith, Peter. ''Luftwaffe at War: The Sea Eagles: The Luftwaffe's Maritime Operations''. London: Greenhill Books, 2001. .
* Smith, Peter. ''Luftwaffe at War: Stukas Over Steppe, Blitzkrieg in the East 1941–1944'' (Luftwaffe at War Series, Vol. 9). London: Greenhill Books, 1999. .
* Smith, Peter and E.J. Creek. ''Kampfflieger: Bombers of the Luftwaffe: 1942–1943''. London: Classic Publications, 2004. .
*
*
* Stenman, K. ''Luftwaffe Over Finland'' (Luftwaffe at War Series, Vol. 18). London: Greenhill Books, 2002. .
*
* Tooze, Adam. '' The Wages of Destruction: The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy''. London: Allen Lane, 2006. .
*
*
"US Strategic Bombing Survey".
Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Air University Press (US Air Force), 1987. (Reprint of the Summary Reports (Europe and the Pacific) of the strategic bombing surveys conducted near the close of World War II.)
*
*
* van Creveld, M., S. Cranby and K. Brower. ''Airpower and Maneuver Warfare Air''. Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Air University Press (US Air Force), 1994.
* Vasco, John. ''Zerstorer: Luftwaffe Fighter Bombers and Destroyers 1939–1945: Volume 1''. London: Classic Publications, 2005. .
*
External links
Myths of the Luftwaffe
lecture on YouTube, via the Museum of Flight
The Museum of Flight is a private non-profit air and space museum in the Seattle metropolitan area. It is located at the southern end of King County International Airport (Boeing Field) in the city of Tukwila, immediately south of Seattle.< ...
The Nazi German Air Force 1935-1945 (Luftwaffe)
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Air force history
German military aviation
Disbanded air forces
Hermann Göring
German words and phrases