Unternehmen Bodenplatte

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Operation Bodenplatte
Part of Battle of the Bulge, World War II
Overview of the operation.
Date 1 January 1945 Location Belgium, Holland and France Result Pyrrhic German tactical success, German strategic failure.
Belligerents
United States  United Kingdom Canada New Zealand Poland[1][2]	Germany
Commanders
	Germany Generalleutnant Joseph Schmid(Luftwaffenkommando West) Major General Dietrich Peltz (General Kommando II. Jagdkorps)
Strength
Eighth Air Force Ninth Air Force 2nd Tactical Air Force	About 1,035 aircraft, including 929 fighters and fighter bombers[3].
Casualties and losses
305 aircraft destroyed, 190 damaged;figures from Allied loss records[4] A further 25 Allied Aircraft were shot down [5]	Aircraft: 271 Bf 109s and Fw 190s destroyed and 65 damaged, 9 Ju 88s destroyed and 4 damaged 143 pilots killed, 70 as Prisoners of war, and 21 wounded[6][7][6]

v • d • e Western Front (World War II) France - Maastricht - The Hague - Fort Eben-Emael - Afsluitdijk - Hannut - The Netherlands - Battle of Zeeland - Dunkirk - Britain - Dieppe - Normandy - Dragoon - Siegfried Line - Market Garden - Aintree - Scheldt - Hurtgen Forest - Aachen - Bulge - Colmar Pocket - Nordwind - Central Europe - German capitulation

Unternehmen Bodenplatte (German: "Operation Baseplate" or "Operation Ground Plate"), launched on January 1, 1945, was an attempt by the Luftwaffe to cripple Allied air forces in the Low Countries of Europe. It was a last ditch effort to keep up the momentum of the German Army (Wehrmacht Heer) during the stagnant stage of the Battle of the Bulge (Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein). The operation was a pyrrhic success for the Luftwaffe as the losses suffered by the German air arm were irreplaceable. The losses of the Allied Air Forces were replaced within weeks. The operation failed to achieve Air superiority, even temporarily, and the German Army continued to be exposed to air attack. This operation has mistakenly been referred to as Operation Hermann (see below).

Contents 1 Bodenplatte 1.1 The plan 1.2 The units deployed and their targets 1.3 Aftermath 1.4 Y-29 2 Total Allied Aerial Losses 3 Total German Losses 3.1 Jagdgeschwader 27 3.2 Jagdgeschwader 104 (Einsatzstaffel) 3.3 Schlachtgeschwader 4 4 Galland's alternative - the "Big Blow" 5 Operation Hermann 6 References 6.1 Notes 6.2 Bibliography 6.3 External links

[edit] Bodenplatte

[edit] The plan

On 14 December GeneralLeutnant Dietrich Peltz of the Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (Luftwaffe High Command) initiated plans for a major blow against the Allied air power in northwest Europe. This plan was worked out with the help of all of the Luftwaffe's Jagd-Geschwaderkommodore. It was originally scheduled to support the Battle of the Ardennes, the German Army's offensive, which began December 16, 1944. However, the same bad weather that prevented the Royal Air Force, United States Army Air Force, and other Allied air forces from supporting the ground troops, also prevented the Luftwaffe from carrying out the attack. It was, therefore, not launched until 1 January 1945 in an attempt to help regain the momentum of the struggling ground troops, supporting the second phase of the offensive, Operation North Wind (Unternehmen Nordwind).

The plan of Operation Baseplate called for a surprise attack against 17 Allied air bases in Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. The object was to destroy or cripple as many Allied planes, hangars and airstrips as possible. Every fighter and fighter-bomber unit currently occupied with air defence along the Western Front was deployed, and additional units of Junkers Ju 88 and Junkers Ju 188 night-fighters and bombers acted as pathfinders. The strike planes themselves were mostly single-engined Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Focke-Wulf 190 fighters. It was hoped that the speed with which the attack could be carried out would offset the relatively small bomb loads such aircraft could carry. It was also hoped that by flying low and fast to the targets maximum surprise would be achieved. The attack was timed to be carried out at 0920 hours.

In a major oversight, the planners had set flight paths which took many units over some of the most heavily defended areas on the Continent; namely the V2 launch sites around The Hague. These sites were studded by large numbers of Flak units, none of which had been warned about the operation. As a result many of the German fighter units lost aircraft to "friendly fire" before the attacks could be initiated.^[8]

Another problem was the fact that many of the Luftwaffe pilots were very poor marksmen and lacked flight skills. By late 1944 there were no safe areas in which pilots could be trained without the possibility of air attack. Aviation fuel supplies were at a premium and there was a lack of experienced instructors. Many of the training units (eg JG 104) were forced to fly front-line operations in order to bolster the front-line Jagdgeschwader. Allied personnel who witnessed the attacks frequently remarked on the poor aim of the strafing aircraft, and many of the Luftwaffe aircraft shot down by Allied anti-aircraft fire were caught because they were flying too slow and too high. Wing Commander Johnnie Johnson:

"The shooting was atrocious, and the circuit at Evere reminded us of more of a bunch of beginners on their first solos than pilots of front-line squadrons."^[9]

[edit] The units deployed and their targets

In all, 1,035 aircraft were deployed^[10] from several Jagdgeschwadern (JG - fighter units) Kampfgeschwadern (KG - bomber units) and Schlachtgeschwadern (SG - ground attack units);^[11] of these approximately 900 aircraft were fighters and fighter-bombers. Facing the German aircraft were the (predominantly British) Second Tactical Air Force (2nd TAF) and the American strategic Eighth and Ninth Air Forces. Most of the airfields used by the Allied air forces had been previously built and used by the Luftwaffe, as a consequence of which the layout of them was well known.

The targets for the various units were:

Target	Luftwaffe unit (wing)	Allied forces	Effect
Antwerp-Deurne (B.70)[12](Belgium)	JG 77	Mostly Typhoon squadrons, 2nd TAF	Light damage
Asch (Belgium)	JG 11	four Spitfire squadrons, 2nd TAF; US 352nd Fighter Group (P-51s; US 366th Fighter Group (P-47s)	minimal damage
Brussels-Evere (B.56)	JG 26 and JG 54	A large number of US and 2nd TAF fighters and bombers	heavy damage
Brussels-Grimbergen (B.60)	JG 26 and JG 54	Only six aircraft were present	Medium damage
Brussels-Melsbroek (B.58)	JG 27, JG 54 and JG 4	Three reconnaissance squadrons, 2nd TAF; three bomber squadrons, US Eighth Air Force	Heavy damage
Eindhoven (B.78) (Netherlands)	JG 3	eight Typhoon squadrons and three Spitfire squadrons, 2nd TAF	Heavy damage
Ghent/Sint-Denijs-Westrem (Belgium)	JG 1	three Polish Spitfire squadrons (No. 302, 308 and 317), 2nd TAF	Heavy damage, intense dogfights
Gilze-Rijen (B.77) (Netherlands)	JG 3 and KG 51	Two Boston squadrons (N°. 88 and 342), one Mitchell squadron (N°. 226), 137 wing 2nd TAF	Medium damage
Heesch (B.88) (Netherlands)	JG 6	five Spitfire squadrons, 2nd TAF	No effect
Le Culot (Belgium)	JG 4	Thunderbolt squadrons, Ninth Air Force	Airfield not found, no damage
Maldegem (B.65) (Belgium)	JG 1	485(NZ) Sqn., Spitfire IXe, 2nd TAF	Heavy damage
Metz-Frescaty (France)	JG 53	About 40 Thunderbolts, 365th Fighter Group, Ninth Air Force	Medium damage
Ophoven (Belgium)	JG 4	Thunderbolt squadron, Ninth Air Force	Light damage
Sint-Truiden (Belgium)	JG 2, JG 4 and SG 4	Thunderbolt squadrons, Ninth Air Force	Medium damage
Volkel (B.80) (Netherlands)	JG 6	56 Sqn., 486(NZ) Sqn, Tempest, 2nd TAF. 486(NZ) Sqn in the air.	Light damage
Woensdrecht (Netherlands)	JG 77	Five Spitfire squadrons, 2nd TAF, all in the air	No effect
Ursel (B.67) (Belgium)	JG 1	Spitfire squadrons, 2nd TAF	Medium damage

[edit] Aftermath

A total of 495 Allied aircraft were damaged or destroyed. Most of the targeted airfields remained out of action for up to two weeks following the attack. Due to Allied fighter counter-attacks, and surprisingly numerous Allied anti-aircraft guns — intended to prevent V-1 attacks — the Luftwaffe lost 280 aircraft, 271 of which were fighters or fighter-bombers, with a further 69 aircraft damaged. Allied fighters claimed 62 destroyed, Allied anti-aircraft guns claimed 88, and 84 were lost to friendly fire. (Due to the secrecy required for the mission, German flak commanders had not been briefed on the mission and the crews opened fire on their own planes, both on the way to and from the targets.)

While "a bold stroke",^[13] achieving tactical surprise, it was undone by poor execution and low pilot skill.^[9] The Luftwaffe lost 143 pilots killed and missing, while 70 were captured and 21 pilots wounded, including three Geschwaderkommodore, five Gruppekommandeure, and 14 Staffelkapitäne.^[14] - the largest single-day loss for the Luftwaffe^[6] Thus, Bodenplatte was a very short-term success but a long-term failure, for while Allied losses were soon made up (within weeks), lost Luftwaffe aircraft and pilots were irreplaceable, leaving the Luftwaffe "weaker than ever and incapable of mounting any major attack again".^[15] Bodenplatte was the final major Luftwaffe offensive in World War II.

^[16]

[edit] Y-29

One notable failed attack was on the airstrip at Asch. The leader of the 487th squadron, 352nd Fighter Group, Lt. Colonel John Meyer, anticipated German activity and had a flight of twelve P-51s about to take off on a combat patrol when the attack began. They took off under fire, and with the help of eight P-47s of the 366th (already in the air), the 487th shot down 23 German fighters out of 61 attackers. Several pilots made 'Ace' status that day; two had four confirmed kills apiece. No P-51s were lost, two were damaged, and one P-51 was damaged on the ground. The 336th Fighter Group lost 3 P-47s shot down^[17], two of the pilots were uninjured, the third, 2./Lt Brunetti, was killed by a Bf 109^[5]

The unit was awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation, the only one awarded to a fighter group in Northern Europe.^[18] The 366th was credited with eight kills, and anti-aircraft guns with seven more, though some double-counting is likely. Luftwaffe records indicate JG 11 lost 28 fighters. Four German pilots (two were wounded) made it back to German-held territory, while four were captured, the remaining twenty were killed^[19]

Of the German pilots killed that day was Günther Specht, a 34 victory ace. Pilot Officer Dave Johnson had claimed he destroyed a Bf 109 over Y-29 and that the Messerschmitt had "belly landed" not far from the field. After being shot down himself, Johnson then drove over to the wreck. The Bf 109 was still intact, but the pilot was dead. Johnson claimed that the dead pilot's Identification Card named him as a Lieutenant Colonel (Oberst) Specht. The claim has been disproven by German records that indicate Specht flew Focke-Wulf Fw 190 Wknr. 205033, and that he was ranked as a Major. Johnson's actual victim that day was Oberleutnant August Engel^[20].

According to JG 11 records the following were lost^[19]:

Name	Rank	Unit	Aircraft Type	Wnr	Number	Fate	Cause
Günther Specht	Major	Stab./JG 11	Fw 190A-9	205033	Black 4	MIA	unknown
Sophus Schmidt	Unteroffizer	Stab./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	737946	unknown	MIA	unknown
Alwin Doppler	Leutnant	2./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	680728	Black 8	KIA	shot down by P-51/P-47
Heinrich Wiethoff	Fahnenjunker	3./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	171742	White 10	MIA	shot down by P-51/P-47
Günther Hoffmann	Unteroffizer	Stab II./JG 11	Bf 109K-4	331510	unknown	MIA	shot down by P-51/P-47
Herbert Huss	Unteroffizer	6./JG 11	Bf 109K-4	330474	Black 3	POW	shot down by P-51/P-47
Peter Reschke	Feldwebel	6./JG 11	Bf 109G-14	785119	Black 5	KIA	AAA/shot down by P-51/P-47
Herbert Kraschinski	Feldwebel	7./JG 11	Bf 109G-14/AS	785787	Yellow 3	KIA	unknown
Harald Schwartz	Feldwebel	7./JG 11	Bf 109G-14	785751	Yellow 5	KIA	crashed into trees evading AAA
August Engel	Oberleutnant	8./JG 11	Bf 109G-14	784958	Blue 14	KIA	shot down by P-47 of 366th FG
Franz Meindl	Oberfeldwebel	8./JG 11	Bf 109G-14	784765	Blue 11	MIA	unknown
Alfred Tempel	Feldwebel	8./JG 11	Bf 109G-14	785770	Blue 3	POW	unknown
Horst-Gunther von Fassong	Hauptmann	Stab III./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	682792	Blue 8	MIA	shot down by P-47 of 366th FG
Gunther Vowinckel	Major	Stab III./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	960552	Blue 4	MIA	unknown
Hans Fiedler	Oberleutnant	Stab III./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	739250	Yellow 9	POW	AAA Fire
Gerhard Neumann	Leutnant	Stab III./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	737932	Yellow 2	POW	shot down P-51/P-47
Armin Mehling	Unteroffizer	Stab III./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	unknown	unknown	Returned-turned over on landing	P-47 of 366th FG
Gerhard Bohm	Gefreiter	9./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	172663	White 3	MIA	P-51 of 352nd FG
Kurt Nussle	Unteroffizer	9./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	734007	White 13	KIA	shot down P-51/P-47
Walther Gattner	Unteroffizer	10./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	732208	Black 3	MIA	unknown
Xaver Giese	Oberfeldwebel	10./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	733970	Black 11	MIA	shot down P-51/P-47
Ernst Noreisch	Unteroffizer	10./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	961063	Black 10	KIA	shot down P-51/P-47
Karl-Heinz Sistenich	Oberfeldwebel	11./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	738231	Yellow 6	MIA	unknown
Robert Spreckels	Oberfeldwebel	11./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	unknown	unknown	WIA - Returned. Bailed out near Aachen	shot down P-51/P-47
Paul-Heinrich Dahne	Oberleutnant	12./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	unknown	unknown	Returned - Bailed outover German territory	shot down P-51/P-47
Hermann Barion	Unteroffizer	12./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	738271	Yellow 6	KIA	AAA Fire
Karl Hiller	Oberfeldwebel	12./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	960298	Blue 11	POW	shot down P-51/P-47
Karl Milkreiter	Unteroffizer	12./JG 11	Fw 190A-8	732210	Blue 15	MIA	shot down P-51/P-47

[edit] Total Allied Aerial Losses

Allied aerial casualties directly related to Bodenplatte^[21]:

Name	Rank	Unit	Aircraft Type	Serial	Code	Fate	Cause
Howard P. Gibboms	Flight Lieutenant	168 Squadron RAF	Hawker Typhoon	MN486	QC-D	KIA	shot down by JG 3 Fw 190s
Don Webber	Flying Officer	183 Squadron RCAF	Hawker Typhoon	EK497	HF-?	KIA	shot down in error by 352nd P-51
Waclaw Chojnacki	Flight Lieutenant	308 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MJ281	ZF-P	KIA	shot down by JG 1 Fw 190s
Stanislaw Bednarczyk	Warrant Officer	308 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MK756	ZF-?	Uninjured	shot down by JG 1 Fw 190s
Josef Stanowski	Flight Sergeant	308 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MK888	ZF-?	Uninjured	ran out of fuel
Tadeusz Szlenkier	Flying Officer	308 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MK888	ZF-?	Uninjured	ran out of fuel
Stanislaw Breyner	Sergeant	308 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MK346	ZF-K	Uninjured	ran out of fuel
Tadeusz Powierza	Sergeant	317 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MK190	ZH-P	KIA	shot down by JG 1 Fw 190s
Zenobeusz Wdowczynski	Warrant Officer	317 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MJ883	JH-R	Uninjured	ran out of fuel
Czeslaw Mroczyk	Flight Lieutenant	317 Squadron (Polish)	Supermarine Spitfire	MK948	JH-Y	Uninjured	shot down by JG 1 Fw 190s
L Rose	Sergeant	329 Squadron	Supermarine Spitfire	NH541	5A-?	Uninjured	engine trouble
David Harling	Flight Lieutenant	416 Squadron	Supermarine Spitfire	SM304	DN-?	KIA	shot down by JG 26 Fw 190D-9
Peter Wilson	Flight Lieutenant	438 Squadron	Hawker Typhoon	PD556	F3-Q	KIA	shot down by JG 3 Fw 190D-9
Ross Keller	Flying Officer	438 Squadron	Hawker Typhoon	PD503	F3-R	KIA	strafed and killed during take-off JG 3 Fw 190s
Hugh Fraser	Flying Officer	439 Squadron	Hawker Typhoon	RB281	5V-X	uninjured	damaged by JG 6 Bf 109. Wheels up landing at Volkel airfield[22]
Samuel Angelini	Flying Officer	439 Squadron	Hawker Typhoon	MN589	5V-?	KIA	shot down by JG 6[23]
Len Wilson	Flying Officer	442 Squadron	Supermarine Spitfire	NH369	Y2-F	uninjured	shot down by JG 6
Don Gordon	Flight Lieutenant	442 Squadron	Supermarine Spitfire	MH728	Y2-?	WIA	shot down by JG 6
Donald Brigden	Flying Officer	442 Squadron	Supermarine Spitfire	MK420	Y2-?	KIA	shot down by JG 6
William Whisner	Captain	487 Fighter Squadron, 352 Fighter Group	P-51 Mustang	44-14237	HO-W	uninjured	fighter crippled by JG 11 - made "wheels down" landing[24][25]
Dean Huston	First Lieutenant	487 Fighter Squadron, 352 Fighter Group	P-51 Mustang	44-14801	HO-L	uninjured	minor damage
James Hall	Second Lieutenant	366 Fighter Group	P-47 Thunderbolt	unknown	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG53 Bf 109
Dofel Brunetti	Second Lieutenant	366 Fighter Group	P-47 Thunderbolt	42-28565	unknown	KIA	shot down by JG53 Bf 109
William Schubert	First Lieutenant	367/358 Fighter Group	P-47 Thunderbolt	unknown	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG53 Bf 109
David Johnson Jr	Flight Officer	366 Fighter Group	P-47 Thunderbolt	42-76176	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG11
John Feeney	First Lieutenant	366 Fighter Group	P-47 Thunderbolt	unknown	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG11
John Kennedy	Second Lieutenant	390 Fighter Group	P-47 Thunderbolt	unknown	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG11
D.K Neil Other crew: Crew Sgt. Owen Stafford WIA; William Fletcher KIA	Lieutenant	125 Liaison Squadron	Stinson Vigilant	unknown	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG4
Pilot and Observer	unknown	27th Field Artillery	Artillery Spotter	unknown	unknown	both KIA	shot down by JG53
Pilot and Observer	unknown	XX. Art Corps	Artillery Spotter	unknown	unknown	KIA	shot down by JG53
? Harvey	unknown	A.D.L.S Flight	Auster	unknown	unknown	uninjured	shot down by JG53 (bailed out)

[edit] Total German Losses

German casualties related directly to Bodenplatte^[26]:

Unit	KIA or MIA	POW	wounded	Average number of aircraft deployed	Percentage of staff lost
I./JG 1	7	3
II./JG 1	10	1	1
III./JG 1	1	2
	18	6	1	80	31%
Stab./JG 2		1
I./JG 2	9	6	1
II./JG 2	3	1	1	1
III./JG 2	10	3	2
	22	11	4	90	31%
I./JG 3	3	5
III./JG 3	3		2
IV./JG 3	4	1
	10	6	2	70	26%
I./JG 4	3
II./JG 4	8	3	1
III./JG 4	1
IV./JG 4	6	2
	18	5	1	55	42%
Stab./JG 6		1
I./JG 6	4	1	1
II./JG 6	5	2
III./JG 6	6	3
	15	7	1	70	33%
Stab./JG 11	2
I./JG 11	4
II./JG 11	6	2
III./JG 11	9	2
	21	4		65	38%
I./JG 26	5	3	2
II./JG 26	4	4	1
III./JG 26	3	1	1
	12	8	4	160	38%
I./JG 27	6	1
II./JG 27	1	1
III./JG 27	2		1
IV./JG 27	2	1
	11	3	1	85	18%
II./JG 53	5	2	1
III./JG 53			2
IV./JG 53	5	2	1
	10	4	4	50	36%
III./JG 54	5	4	1	17	60%
IV./JG 54	2	1		25	12%
	7	5	1
I./JG 77	2	1
II./JG 77	1	1
III./JG 77	3	3
	6	5		105	10%
Est./JG 104		1		3
Total (day fighters)	150	65	19	875
Stab./SG 4	1
III./SG 4	2	1
	3	1
FlüG 1	1
NJG 1	9	2
NJG 3	3	1
NJG 101	1
	13	3
KG (J) 51	2
Total (other units)	19	4
Grand Total	169	69	19

[edit] Jagdgeschwader 27

JG 27s losses on 1 January 1945 numbered 18 pilots overall. However only 15 pilots of this unit were lost as a direct result of Bodenplatte^[27].

Name	Rank	Unit	Aircraft Type	Wnr	Number	Fate	Cause
Braun, HeinrichHeinrich Braun	Unteroffizier	2./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	331 344		KIA	shot down Spitfire
Diesing, ArnoArno Diesing	Gefreiter	4./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	331 395		KIA	shot down Spitfire
Dudeck, Hanns-HeinzHanns-Heinz Dudeck	Hauptmann (Gruppenkommandeur)	Stab IV./JG 27	Bf 109 G-14	490 644	White 3	POW	unknown
Fink, FerdinandFerdinand Fink	Unteroffizier	1./JG 27	Bf 109 G-14	462 677	White 17	KIA	shot down Spitfire
Frickmann, HeinrichHeinrich Frickmann	Unteroffizier	11./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	332 314	Yellow 4	KIA	flew into trees avoiding AAA Fire
Gäbel, GertGert Gäbel	Feldwebel	3./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	331 502	Yellow 1	KIA	shot down Spitfire
Gisevius, PetermichelPetermichel Gisevius	Unteroffizier	7./JG 27	Bf 109 G-14/AS	785882	White 1	KIA	shot down by Spitfire, 403 Sqdn
Härtlein, JohannesJohannes Härtlein	Unteroffizier	7./JG 27	Bf 109 G-14/AS	780319	White 7	POW	AAA
Heymann, ErichErich Heymann	Obergefreiter	10./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	331 377	Red 4	MIA	unknown
Mannchen, AlfredAlfred Mannchen	Feldwebel	16./JG 27	Bf 109 G-10	130 361	Blue 2	KIA	unknown
Maus, HeinrichHeinrich Maus	Unteroffizier	12./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4			wounded	unknown
Rehak, KarlKarl Rehak	Unteroffizier	13./JG 27	Bf 109 G-10	490 702	White 10	KIA	unknown
Stechow, Joachim vonJoachim von Stechow	Leutnant	2./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	331 401	Red 5	KIA	shot down Spitfire
Theisen, OttoOtto Theisen	Fähnrich	2./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	331 493	Red 8	POW	AAA
Wiese, HeinrichHeinrich Wiese	Leutnant (Staffelkapitän)	11./JG 27	Bf 109 K-4	330 285	Red 1	KIA	shot down Spitfire

A further fighter was destroyed; that of Oberleutnant Eberhard Schade (Kdr) in and unidentified Bf 109. He had collided with a Spitfire and crash landed at Rheine airfield in German-held territory^[28].

[edit] Jagdgeschwader 104 (Einsatzstaffel)

Name	Rank	Unit	Aircraft Type	Wnr	Number	Fate	Cause
Schmoll, HeinzHeinz Schmoll	Oberfähnrich	(Est.) 1./JG 104				POW	unknown

[edit] Schlachtgeschwader 4

Losses as a result of Bodenplatte^[29].

Name	Rank	Unit	Aircraft Type	Wnr	Number	Fate	Cause
Druschel, AlfredAlfred Druschel	Oberst	Stab./SG 4	Fw 190F-4	584 400		MIA	AAA Fire
Fye, RudolfRudolf Fye	Feldwebel	9./SG 4	Fw 190F-4	584 233	Brown 12	KIA	shot down by 366th FG P-47
Heinz, RichardRichard Heinz	Feldwebel	7./SG 4	Fw 190F-4	586 450	White 3	MIA	unknown
Schmieder, HansHans Schmieder	Oberfeldwebel	7./SG 4	Fw 190F-4	933 433	Yellow 14	POW	unknown

The unit lost a further 2 Fw 190F-4s destoyed. Unteroffizers George Rischbieter and Hermann Gottschalk crashlanded in German held territory, the former as a result of engine failure. Both survived uninjured^[30].

[edit] Galland's alternative - the "Big Blow"

Adolf Galland, holding the office of Commander of Germany's Fighter Force (General der Jagdflieger), argued strenuously against Operation Baseplate. Galland envisioned striking a "Big Blow" (Große Schlag) against the Allied bombers, which he saw as a greater threat and less replaceable by the enemy. Throughout 1944, Galland strove to accumulate a large reserve of men and aircraft to attack the bomber raids in massive waves. Galland argued this would cause far fewer pilot casualties then the offensive sweeps of Operation Baseplate, as German pilots forced to bail out or crash land would do so over Germany, and therefore be able to fly again. In late 1944 and early 1945, the main concern of the Luftwaffe was not a lack of aircraft, it was a serious shortage of experienced pilots.

Following the operation, Galland and other high-ranking pilots and commanders of the Luftwaffe joined in the so-called "Fighter Pilots Conspiracy", in which they protested the pointless sacrifice of so many valuable men and machines. They were also protesting against the constant barrage of abuse being unjustly thrown at the pilots of the Jagdwaffe by their Commander-In-Chief, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring. The high-ranking officers who joined in this protest were mostly removed from their positions and either sent back to combat units or sent into exile out of the front lines. Galland himself was removed by Göring as Commander of Germany's Fighter Force and, after having to endure a couple of weeks of forced leave, was reluctantly offered a posting as a front-line fighter pilot in command of an Me 262 unit, which Galland was to call JV 44.^[31]

[edit] Operation Hermann

Following the raids, the Allies retrieved several log-books from crashed German aircraft. In several of these, the entry "Auftrag Hermann 1.1. 1945, Zeit: 9.20 Uhr" was translated as "Operation Hermann to commence on 1 January 1945, at 9:20am." This led the Allies to believe the operation itself was named Hermann, and named for the Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe, Hermann Göring.^[32] In fact, the word "Hermann" was a standard term for the time of the attack, similar to the term "H-Hour" in Allied terminology.

[edit] References

[edit] Notes

[edit] Bibliography

• Bekker, Cajus. Angriffshöhe 4000. ISBN 3-453-87098-0
• Caldwell, Don.JG 26; Top Guns of the Luftwaffe. New York: Ballantine Books, 1991. ISBN 0-8041-1050-6
• Forsythe, Robert. JV 44; The Galland Circus. Burgess Hill, West Sussex, UK: Classic Publications, 1996. ISBN 0-9526867-0-8
• ,Girbig, Werner. Start im Morgengrauen. Germany: Pietsch-Verlag Paul Pietsch Verlage GmbH + Co, 1997. ISBN 3-613-01292-8
• Manrho, John, Putz, Ron. Bodenplatte: The Luftwaffe's Last Hope–The Attack on Allied Airfields, New Year's Day 1945. Ottringham, United Kingdom: Hikoki Publications, 2004. ISBN 1-902109-40-6
• Peszke, Michael Alfred. "A Synopsis of Polish-Allied Military Agreements During World War Two", Military Affairs, v 44, n3 (Oct. 1980), pp. 128-134.
• Prien, Jochen & Stemmer, Gerhard. Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" in World War II. Atlgen, Germany: Schiffer Military History, 2002. ISBN 0-7643-1681-8
• Weinberg, Gerhard. A World At Arms, Cambridge University Press: 2 edition, 2005, ISBN 978-05216182-6-7
• Zaloga, Steven J., Gerrard, Howard. Battle of the Bulge (2). London: Osprey Publishing, 2004. ISBN 1-84176-810-3

[edit] External links

• Operation Bodenplatte article from Flight Journal, giving two pilots view of the events.
• Squadron Log 1 January 1945