BOXART STORY

#7468

Wasps over the bay

Early August 1943, the Bf 110 G-2s of II./ZG 1

moved from Monte Corvino to LanveocPoulmic. Command of II./ZG 1 passed to Hptm

Karl-Heinrich Matern, Staffelkapitän of 4./ZG 1.

II./ZG 1 was to be used countering increased

Allied air traffic over the Bay of Biscay together

with Ju 88 C-6s of V./KG 40 and Fw 190s

of III./JG 2 and 1./Seeaufklärungsgruppe 128.

August 21, 1943, saw the first victory when the

Gruppe claimed a Liberator. This is believed

to be from 311 Sqn. and was flown by Wg Cdr

Jindřich Breitcetl – all eight crew perished

but Uffz Georg Planer of 5./ZG 1 was lost

in the combat.

On September 11, 1943, Mosquitoes of 307

Sqn. claimed to have destroyed a Bf 110,

probably destroyed two and damaged one.

Lt Dieter Bambauer of 5./ZG 1 was lost so was

probably the victim of Flt Sgt Zbigniew DuninRzuchowski. Five days later, II./ZG 1 intercepted

B-17s attacking targets in western France

claiming three, credited to Fw Klaus Schreuer

and Oblt Arnold Dorka of 4. Staffel and

Fw Emil Pfeiffer of 6. Staffel.

A Liberator of 53 Sqn. flown by Flt Lt Tony

Spooner was then damaged by Bf 110s between

the Scillies and Lundy Island on September

21, 1943 and three days later, the Gruppe

suffered its heaviest losses to date. Despite

Ofw Ruhland Zahn and Fw Hans Fuchs of 5./

ZG 1 each claiming a Spitfire and Ofw Heinrich

Börger and Uffz Peter Schölz of 6./ZG 1 claiming

a Mitchell and a Spitfire, four Bf 110s, including

those of Zahn, Fuchs and Oblt Arnold Dorka,

were lost to Spitfires of Nos. 66, 313 and 610

Sqn. No 98 Sqn. Mitchells were lost but 313 Sqn.

28

INFO Eduard

lost three which included Sqn Ldr Jaroslav

Himr.

II./ZG 1’s time over the Bay of Biscay would

now only last another three weeks. On the

morning of September 27, 1943, Fw Klaus

Schreuer of 4. Staffel claimed a Wellington

and 30 minutes later, 5./ZG 1 got a second

Wellington. The Wellingtons came from

No. 612 Sqn. flown by Flt Sgt Robert Hyndson

and No. 407 Sqn. flown by Wg Cdr John

Archer, the latter having gone to search for

a No. 407 Sqn. Wellington which had ditched off

the Scillies returning from the Bay.

Six days later, the Gruppe apparently claimed

a Sunderland and a Typhoon. The former was

possibly from No. 10 Sqn. RAAF captained

by Fg Off Fred Lee while the latter was

possibly a Hurricane of 1449 Flt flown by Flt

Sgt Richard Adams which was reported shot

down 35 miles south-west of the Scillies

at 0900hrs.

The end for II./ZG 1 came on October 8, 1943.

At 0735hrs, seven Spitfires of No. 453 Sqn.

took off on what was called an anti-Me

110 patrol. At 0845 they came across eight

Bf 110s and in the ensuing battle, Fg Off Harold

Parker was seen to be shot down and Flt

Lt Russell Ewins, having shot down a Bf 110,

suffered engine failure and ditched. Parker

was reported missing, but Ewins was rescued.

Another four Bf 110s were claimed destroyed

by Fg Off Patrick McDade and Plt Off Colin

Leith. At 1330hrs, eight Bf 110s got airborne

from Lanveoc-Poulmic looking for two

aircraft lost that morning. No. 610 Sqn. were

relieving a Mosquito circling Russell Ewin’s

Text: Chris Goss

Illustration: Piotr Forkasiewicz

dinghy and at 1415hrs bounced the Germans.

Fg Off Vincent Moody and Flt Sgt Bob Hussey

each claimed a Bf 110 around 1415hrs. Finally,

at 1445hrs, No. 66 Sqn. together with 453

Sqn., got airborne to escort aircraft bombing

II./ZG 1's home base. No. 66 Sqn. bounced eight

to 10 Bf 110s off Brest claiming three Bf 110s

destroyed, one probable and one damaged.

The timings for II./ZG 1’s losses are hard

to determine. There were some claims by

6. Staffel as Ofw Heinrich Börger claimed

a Mitchell, Fw Franz Meissl a Spitfire and

Uffz Anders a P-47 around 1545hrs. During

the day they lost 11 fighters with three more

suffering varying degrees of damage. Those

lost included Hptm Karl-Heinrich Matern (who

would be awarded the Ritterkreuz the following

day – he was possibly lost in the morning as

Hptm Rudolf Wangner was leading the Gruppe

later that day), Lt Hans-Bodo Busch (Adjutant)

while Lt Hans Schmidtal, who was leading

6. Staffel, was wounded. Lt Wolfgang Priebe

and his radio operator from 4./ZG 1 were

captured after being shot down by No. 610 Sqn.

and their interrogation revealed much about

the Gruppe but by then it was too late. Having

suffered such heavy losses, one more coming

on October 14, 1943, when Uffz Max Wichert

of 6./ZG 1 crashed due to engine failure off

the Ille D’Ouessant, in November, II./ZG 1, now

commanded by Ritterkreuz winner Hptm Egon

Albrecht, former Staffelkapitän of 6. Staffel,

withdrew to Wels where in July 1944 it was

disbanded to become the Bf 109-equipped

III./JG 76.

March 2023