Citizendia

Jagdgeschwader 3
Image:JG3-Emblem.gif
Active 1939-1945
Country Germany
Branch Air Force
Type Fighter Aircraft
Role Air superiority
Size Air Force Wing
Nickname Udet
Commanders
Notable
commanders		 Heinz Bär (1. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. A fighter aircraft is a Military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other Aircraft, as opposed to a Bomber, which is designed Air superiority is the dominance in the Air power of one side's air forces over the other side's during a Military campaign. Colonel Heinz (Oskar-Heinrich "Pritzl" Bär ( 21 March 1913 – 28 April 1957) was a German Luftwaffe 6. 44 - 13. 2. 45)

Jagdgeschwader 3 (JG 3) Udet was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force. A fighter aircraft is a Military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other Aircraft, as opposed to a Bomber, which is designed Wing is a term used by different Air forces for a unit of command World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Geschwader operated on all the German fronts in the European Theatre of World War II. The European Theatre of Operations ( ETO) was an area of heavy fighting across Europe during World War II, from Nazi Germany's Invasion of Poland It was named after Ernst Udet in 1942. Colonel General Ernst Udet ( April 26 1896 – November 17 1941) was the second-highest scoring German Flying

Contents

History

Campaign in the West (1940)

Jagdschwader 3 "Udet" was formed on 1 May 1939 in Bernburg/Saale from JG 231. Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. JG 3 was one of the Luftwaffe's fighter units that took part in the Battle of France. In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries A particularly fruitful period over France occurred from 14-17 May 1940. Allied bombers had attempted to prevent the German armour from crossing the Meuse and sent waves of inadequately protected bombers to do the job. Meuse (møːz is a department in northeast France, named after the Meuse River. As a result 90 Allied bombers were shot down and the 14 May became known as the "day of the fighters" within the Luftwaffe. I. /JG 3 destroyed seven fighters without loss on this day. On 15 May five were destroyed, again for no losses. On 17 May an entire formation of 13 Bristol Blenheims were shot down by I. Events 1521 - Edward Stafford 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for Treason. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout /JG 3. A total of 19 Allied aircraft were shot down by I. /JG 3 alone on that day. [1] The unit claimed some 179 aircraft shot down. Oberleutnant Lothar Keller was top claimant with 10 kills, and I. Oberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. /JG 3 Gruppenkommandeur Maj. Günther Lützow scored 9. Günther Lützow ( 4 September 1912 - 24 April 1945) was a German Luftwaffe Fighter ace and a leader in the I. /JG3 was the most successful Gruppe, with 88 enemy aircraft destroyed for ten Bf 109s lost while six pilots were killed and one wounded[2].

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

Campaign in the East (1941)

The Geschwader took place in Operation Barbarossa from 22 June 1941 onwards, and during the offensive against the Soviets JG 3 claimed its 1,000 aircraft destroyed on 30 August. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Events 217 BC - Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1363 - Beginning date of the Battle of Lake Poyang; the forces of two Chinese rebel leaders— Chen Youliang and Lützow became the second Experte to achieve 100 victories, when he downed three Russian fighters near Moscow on 24 October. Lützow was then grounded. On 27 June 1941, Hauptmann Gordon Gollob was made Gruppenkommandeur II. Gordon M Gollob ( 16 June 1912 &ndash 8 September 1987) was an Austrian fighter pilot and Flying ace /JG 3. He claimed 18 victories in August and achieved 37 victories in October, including 9 aircraft shot down covering over the Perekop Isthmus on 18 October and 6 aircraft on 22 October. Perekop (Перекоп Or Qapı is a Village commanding the Perekop Isthmus connecting Crimea to the Ukrainian mainland He was awarded the Eichenlaub on 26 October for 85 victories. He led II. /JG 3 until November 1941. In the period 22 June - 5 December 1941 the unit destroyed 1,298 Soviet aircraft, in return for 58 losses in aerial combat and 10 aircraft on the ground[4]. Events 217 BC - Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom. Events 63 BC - Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

II Gruppe; Sicily and Malta (1942)

II. /JG 3, under the command of Hauptmann Karl-Heinz Krahl was transferred to Comiso on Sicily in January 1942 to bolster JG 53 and the Regia Aeronautica which were carrying out sustained attacks against Malta. Comiso (Còmmisu is an Italian municipality in the Province of Ragusa in Sicily. Sicily ( Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy. The Royal Air Force ( Regia Aeronautica) was the name of the Italian Air Force established as an independent service from 1923 until the Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands At this time the unit was equipped with Bf 109 F-4 Trops. On 14 April Hptm. Events 43 BC - Battle of Forum Gallorum: Mark Antony, besieging Julius Caesar 's assassin Decimus Junius Brutus in Krahl, who was credited with 24 victories, was shot down and killed by anti-aircraft fire as he attempted a low altitude attack on ground targets on Malta. Oberleutnant Kurt Brändle was posted in from 5/JG 53 to take his place. Kurt Brändle (born 19 January 1912 in Ludwigsburg, Württemberg - Killed in action 3 November 1943 west At the end of April II Gruppe departed Sicily for a brief stay in Germany before being redeployed to the Eastern front.

Reorganisation and the Battle for Stalingrad(1942)

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

By early 1942 JG 3 was awarded the honour name Udet ( after Ernst Udet) and was then often simply referred as "Jagdgeschwader Udet" thereafter. Colonel General Ernst Udet ( April 26 1896 – November 17 1941) was the second-highest scoring German Flying In May 1942, Lützow led most of JG 3 back to Russia and commenced operations in the Kharkov area. Kharkiv or Kharkov (Харків Харьков is the second largest city in Ukraine. There followed intensive operations through the Crimea, and in the drive towards Stalingrad. Again JG 3 was one of the Luftwaffe's top units, fighting on the Southern Front, reaching 2,000 claims on 28 May 1942. Army Group South (Heeresgruppe Süd was the name of a number of German Army Groups during World War II. Events 585 BC - A Solar eclipse occurs as predicted by Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. On 12 August, Major Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke was appointed Kommodore of JG 3.

In June 1942, II Gruppe was transferred back to the East where it joined in the advance on the Stalingrad front, suffering heavy losses. The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the During the Battle of Stalingrad, Stab. /JG 3 were based at Pitomnik, where Wilcke directed all day fighter operations over the city. During the summer offensive of 1942, the Geschwaderstab/JG 3 recorded 137 victories, of which Wilcke claimed 97. On 19 September, Leutnant Wilhelm Lemke was awarded the Ritterkreuz for 59 Victories.

When Russian forces encircled Stalingrad, the Geschwaderstab/JG 3 was transferred to Morozovskaya-Öst, outside the pocket. JG 3 then provided the famous Platzschutzstaffel which defended the besieged 6th Army in Stalingrad until late 1942. The 6th Army was a German Field army which saw action in World War I and World War II. Six volunteer pilots of II. /JG 3 formed a defence Staffel within the rapidly contracting Stalingrad perimeter, and despite often only having 2 or 3 Bf 109's serviceable, in the last 6 weeks of the siege claimed some 130 Soviet aircraft shot down. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout

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

II. /JG 3 was relocated to the Kuban bridgehead in February 1943. Kuban ( Кубáнь) is a geographic region of Southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe Oblt. Wolf-Udo Ettel proved the 'star' of JG 3 around this time, claiming 28 kills in March 1943, 36 in April, and 20 in May. Intensive operations around the Kerch peninsula followed in April. Kerch (Керч Керчь Keriç Old East Slavic: Кърчевъ Ancient Greek: Pantikapaion) is a city (2001 pop 157000 on the Kerch Peninsula In July 1943 II. and III. /JG 3 at this time were part of Luftlotte 4 and flew in Operation Zitadelle, the tank offensive launched around the Kursk salient. The Battle of Kursk (Курская битва refers to a series of German and Soviet operations on the Eastern Front of World War II History KurskOld2jpg|thumb|200px|Pre-1917 view of Kursk]] Archaeology indicates that the site of Kursk was settled in the fifth or fourth century B On 5 July 1943 alone the II gruppe claimed 77 Soviet aircraft from a total claimed of 432, Oblt. Events 1295 - Scotland and France form an alliance the beginnings of the Auld Alliance, against England. Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Joachim Kirschner claiming 9 kills and Gruppenkommandeur Hpt. Hauptmann Joachim Kirschner ( 7 June, 1920 &ndash 17 December, 1943) was a German World War II Luftwaffe Kurt Brändle claiming 5. Kurt Brändle (born 19 January 1912 in Ludwigsburg, Württemberg - Killed in action 3 November 1943 west

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

By late summer 1943 III. /JG3 were also flying the Bf 109 G-6 and Bf 109G-6/R6. On its return to Germany, the Stab/JG 3 was based at Mönchengladbach. Mönchengladbach (mœnçənˈglatbax is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. On 4 December 1943, Hpt. Wilhelm Lemke (131 kills) was killed in combat with P-47s of the 352nd Fighter Group. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The 352nd Fighter Group was one of the most highly decorated USAAF Fighter Groups in World War II, producing many leading aces of the war

As with most Reich Defence fighter units, JG 3 suffered heavy losses through early 1944 against the increasing numbers of USAAF escort fighters, losing many irreplaceable experten. On 15 March 1944, Hpt. Emil Bitsch (108 kills) was shot down and killed by 352nd Fighter Group P-47s. Emil Bitsch ( 14 June 1916 &ndash 15 March 1944) was a Luftwaffe Flying ace of World War II. On 23 March 1944, Wilcke led JG 3 in an attack on a USAAF bomber formation near Braunschweig. During combat, Wilcke shot down a P-51 for his 162nd victory, but was then shot down and killed by fighters of the 4th Fighter Group. The 4th Fighter Group was an American element of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF Eighth Air Force during World War II, and is On 19 April 1944, Oblt. Otto Weßling (83 kills) was shot down and killed in combat near Eschwege. Wilcke's successor as Geschwaderkommodore of JG 3 was Major Friedrich-Karl "Tutti" Müller, the CO of IV. Geschwaderkommodore is a Luftwaffe position (not rank that is the equivalent of a Royal Air Force Group Commander or USAF Wing Commander Friedrich-Karl "Tutti" Müller (born 25 December 1916 in Berlin -Lichterfelde killed in flying accident 29 May 1944 /JG 3. The 140-kill experte was however killed in a landing accident at Salzwedel on 29 May 1944. Salzwedel (ˈzaltsveːdəl officially known as Hansestadt Salzwedel, is a Town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Events 363 - Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Battering Rams (1944)

With the increased pressure caused by the American bombing raids through late 1943 and early 1944,a new method of attacking the bombers was proposed by Major Von Kornatski, an associate of Adolf Galland; simply for specially armoured fighters to get in as close to the bombers as possible before opening fire, even (as a last resort) deliberately ramming the bomber. Adolf "Dolfo" Joseph Ferdinand Galland ( 19 March 1912 9 February 1996) was a World War II German fighter It was dangerous and, to most experienced aces, foolhardy, but predicted results were such that a special Staffel was formed to test the tactical viability. Sturmstaffel 1 was the first experimental unit to fly the so-called Sturmböcke (Battering Rams) Focke-Wulf Fw 190 aircraft and was attached to JG 3. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Such was their success that in April-May 1944 the Sturmstaffel was expanded into a specialised bomber 'killer' gruppen, IV. /JG 3, led by Hauptman Wilhelm Moritz. Sturmstaffel 1 was redesignated 11. /JG 3 in May 1944. On 12 February 1944, Major Friedrich-Karl Müller was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of IV. Events 1429 - English Forces under Sir John Fastolf defend a supply convoy carrying rations to the army besieging Orleans from attack by the Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Friedrich-Karl Müller can refer to Friedrich-Karl "Tutti" Müller, German fighter pilot with JG 53 and JG 3 Friedrich-Karl "Nasen" (Sturm)/JG 3. He claimed three USAAF four-engined bombers on 8 March to record his 120th-122nd victories. Events 1618 - Johannes Kepler discovers the third law of planetary motion.

Their most notable success was on 7 July 1944, when IV. /JG 3, escorted by JG 300, attacked a wing of B-24's on a mission to Leipzig and for nine fighters lost, claimed almost all of the 28 bombers lost by the USAAF 2nd Air Division. Jagdgeschwader 300 (JG 300 was a Luftwaffe fighter - wing of World War II. This sort of fix restores section edit linkpoints to where they belong

Flying modified Fw190A-R8's with extra armour and wing-mounted 30mm MK-108 cannons, IV. The MK 108 (German Maschinenkanone - Machine Cannon was an Autocannon ( 30 mm calibre) manufactured in Germany during World War II (Sturm)/JG 3 became both renowned with the Lufwaffe and feared by the USAAF bomber crews. Oblt. Werner Gerth, Staffelkapitän 14. Staffelkapitän is a Luftwaffe position (not a rank that is the equivalent of Royal Air Force / US Air Force Squadron Leader. /JG 3, was shot down 11 times and was finally killed when his parachute failed to open after ramming a B-17 (his 27th claim). Due to their added weight (some 400 lbs) and lack of speed, the Sturmböcke aircraft had to be escorted by conventional fighters.

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

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

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

In November 1944 II. /JG 3 was separated from the Geschwader in order to re-equip with the Me 262 jet fighter and become part of the first jet fighter Geschwader, Jagdgeschwader 7. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Jagdgeschwader 7 (JG 7 Nowotny was a Luftwaffe fighter - wing of World War II and the first operational Jet fighter wing A newly formed II. /JG 3 was raised from a former bomber unit at the end of 1944; this new Gruppe was transferred to the East in early 1945 to counter the Soviet air offensive. Hopelessly outnumbered, and hampered by lack of fuel, II. /JG 3 fought on until the collapse of the Reich.

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

During Operation Bodenplatte, the massed attack on Allied airfields on 1 January 1945, Jagdschwader 3 was one of the few German fighter units to carry out their operations successfully despite fielding the smallest German force that day. Unternehmen Bodenplatte (German "Operation Baseplate" or "Operation Ground Plate" launched on January 1 1945, was an attempt by the New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The 22 Fw 190s committed destroyed 43 Typhoons and Spitfires and damaged 60 more in a 20 minute attack on the 2nd TAF airfield at Eindhoven (JG 3 claimed 116 destroyed)[5]. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The former RAF Second Tactical Air Force ( 2TAF) was one of three Tactical air forces within the Royal Air Force (RAF during and after World War Eindhoven ( is a Municipality and a city located in the province of Noord-Brabant in the south of the Netherlands, originally at the confluence However the loss of 16 pilots was a serious blow to the unit. Six were captured, 6 were killed while four were posted as missing. Six pilots returned, three of them were wounded[6].

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

Commanding Officers

Geschwaderkommodoren

Gruppenkommandeure

I. /JG 3

II. /JG 3

III. Erich von Selle ( 13 August 1908 in Königsberg – 27 February 1976 in Hamburg) was a German Luftwaffe Gordon M Gollob ( 16 June 1912 &ndash 8 September 1987) was an Austrian fighter pilot and Flying ace Kurt Brändle (born 19 January 1912 in Ludwigsburg, Württemberg - Killed in action 3 November 1943 west Hans Ekkehard Bob ( 24 January, 1917) was a German Fighter pilot, serving with the Luftwaffe. /JG 3

IV. Major Wilhelm Balthasar ( February 2, 1914 – July 3, 1941) was German WWII Luftwaffe Ace commander of Oberstleutnant Walter Gulle Oesau ( 28 June 1913 &ndash 11 May 1944) was a German World War II Major Karl-Heinz Greisert ( February 2, 1908 – July 22, 1942) was German WWII Luftwaffe Ace and a Walther Dahl ( 27 March 1916 - 25 November 1985) was a German Oberst Luftwaffe Fighter ace and /JG 3

See also

Organization of the Luftwaffe during World War II

References

  1. ^ Prien & Stremmer 2002, p. Friedrich-Karl Müller can refer to Friedrich-Karl "Tutti" Müller, German fighter pilot with JG 53 and JG 3 Friedrich-Karl "Nasen" Günther Schack (born 12 November 1917 in Bartenstein in Ostpreußen and died 14 June 2003 in Schmidt near Nideggen Organization of the Luftwaffe: The German Air Force ( Luftwaffe) of World War II had a distinct organization and command structure 56.
  2. ^ Prien & Stremmer 2002, p. 62.
  3. ^ Prien & Stremmer 2002, p. 84
  4. ^ Bergström 2007, p. 116.
  5. ^ Prien & Stemmer 2002, p. 349.
  6. ^ Manrho & Putz 2004, p. 279.

External links

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