''Nachtjagdgeschwader'' 3 (NJG 3) was a Luftwaffe

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 ...

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

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

. NJG 3 was formed on 29 September 1941 in

Stade Stade (), officially the Hanseatic City of Stade (german: Hansestadt Stade, nds, Hansestadt Stood) is a city in Lower Saxony in northern Germany. First mentioned in records in 934, it is the seat of the district () which bears its name. It is l ...

from Stab./

Zerstörergeschwader 26 ''Zerstörergeschwader'' 26 (ZG 26) "Horst Wessel" was a Luftwaffe heavy fighter wing of World War II. Formed on 1 May 1939, ZG 26 was initially armed with the Messerschmitt Bf 109 single-engine interceptor due to production shortfalls with th ...

Commanding officers

''Geschwaderkommodore''

*Major

Johann Schalk Johann (Hans) Schalk (19 September 1903 – 9 November 1987) was a flying ace and high-ranking officer in the German Luftwaffe during World War II. He is credited with 15 aerial victories, 4 of which on the Eastern Front, claimed in 163 combat m ...

, 29 March 1941 – 1 August 1943 *

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 ...

Helmut Lent Helmut Lent (13 June 1918 – 7 October 1944) was a German night-fighter ace in World War II. Lent shot down 110 aircraft, 102 of them at night.For a list of Luftwaffe night fighter aces see ''List of German World War II night fi ...

, 1 August 1943 – 7 October 1944 *Oberst

Günther Radusch Günther Radusch (11 November 1912 – 29 July 1988) was a World War II German Luftwaffe pilot and wing commander. As a fighter ace, he claimed 65 enemy aircraft shot down in over 140 combat missions. He claimed one victory in the Spanish Civil Wa ...

, 12 November 1944 – 8 May 1945

''Gruppenkommandeur''

Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-659-6436-31, Flugzeuge Messerschmitt Me 110

I. Gruppe

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literally ...

, 7 October 1940 – 2 October 1941 * Hauptmann Hans-Dietrich Knoetzsch, 3 October 1941 – 30 September 1942 * Major

Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld (14 July 1918 – 12 March 1944) was a Luftwaffe night fighter flying ace of royal descent during World War II. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting dow ...

, 1 October 1942 – 31 May 1943 * Hauptmann Erhard Peters, 1 June 1943 – 14 August 1943 * Hauptmann Walter Mylius, 15 August 1943 – 13 December 1943 * Hauptmann

Paul Szameitat Paul Szameitat (19 December 1919 – 2 January 1944) was a German Luftwaffe night fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battle ...

, 14 December 1943 – 2 January 1944 * Major

Werner Husemann Werner Husemann (10 November 1919 – 2 February 2014) was a German Luftwaffe night fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, the highest award in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. ...

, 4 January 1944 – 8 May 1945

II. Gruppe

* Hauptmann Günther Radusch, 3 October 1941 – 1 August 1943 * Major

Heinrich Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...

, 15 August 1943 – November 1943 * Hauptmann Paul Szameitat, December 1943 – 14 December 1943 * Major Klaus Havenstein, 15 December 1943 – September 1944 * Hauptmann Hüschens, September 1944 – February 1945

III. Gruppe

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 ...

Heinz Nacke The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) and its variants were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded ...

, 1 November 1941 – 21 April 1943 * Hauptmann Walter Mylius, 22 April 1943 – 14 August 1943 * Hauptmann Rudolf Sigmund, 15 August 1943 – 4 October 1943 * Major Walter Barthe, 15 October 1943 – 8 May 1945

IV. Gruppe

* Major Erich Simon, 1 November 1942 – 7 October 1943 * Hauptmann Albert Schulz, 8 October 1943 – January 1944 * Hauptmann Franz Buschmann, January 1944 – July 1944 * Hauptmann Heinz Ferger, July 1944 – November 1944 * Major Berthold Ney, November 1944 – 4 March 1945 * Hauptmann Freidrich Tober, 5 March 1945 – 8 May 1945

Surviving aircraft

Two aircraft that served with

NJG 3 ''Nachtjagdgeschwader'' 3 (NJG 3) was a Luftwaffe night fighter-wing of World War II. NJG 3 was formed on 29 September 1941 in Stade from Stab./Zerstörergeschwader 26. Commanding officers ''Geschwaderkommodore'' *Major Johann Schalk, 29 March ...

are displayed together at the

Royal Air Force Museum London The Royal Air Force Museum London (also commonly known as the RAF Museum) is located on the former Hendon Aerodrome. It includes five buildings and hangars showing the history of aviation and the Royal Air Force. It is part of the Royal Air Forc ...

, one of the two sites of the Royal Air Force Museum. These are

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 ...

G Werk Nr. 730301, which was surrendered to the British at the end of the war in 1945, and

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 ...

R-1, ''Werk Nr.'' 360043, which came into British hands in 1943. Both aircraft are almost unique - each is one of only two intact survivors of their type.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{Subject bar , portal1=Aviation , portal2=Military of Germany , portal3=World War II , commons=y , commons-search=Nachtjagdgeschwader 3 Nachtjagdgeschwader 003 Military units and formations established in 1941