Luftflotte 4 units were not the only ones to operate the Fw 190 F-8 in Hungary. The Royal

Hungarian Air Force received approximately 70 F-8s. In this photo of a colourfully-marked Fw 190 is seen Hadnagy (2nd Lieutenant) Lajos Varga (1918 - 2001), one of the most

successful Hungarian fighter-bomber pilots. His Fw 190 F-8 "54" is named "MICA" and

belongs to 102/2. Vadász-bombázó század "Puli".”

stroyed 51 tanks and hundreds of vehicles, and the Austrian was one

of the most experienced ground-attack pilots in the Luftwaffe.

The Fw 190 F-8 would enter service with a non-German operator in the autumn of 1944, as the Hungarian 1. Schlachtstaffel (also

known by its Hungarian designation of 102/1. vadászbombázó század)

received sixteen Fw 190 F-8s and a single G-8 at Börgönd in late

October 1944. The Staffel would commence operations from there

in mid-November, and proved to be just as effective as the German

ground-attack units in coming months.

Bad weather became a feature of the Hungarian air war in

mid-November, and several days saw limited Luftwaffe operations. For example, an SG 2 pilot described 15 November thus: “On 15

November the weather was bad again, very foggy and cloudy.” This

would become a familiar situation in coming months. The weather

did not stop Malinovsky’s troops, and on 16 November they reached

the key point of Hatvan, east-north-east of Budapest: the threat to

the city was growing. Recognising the seriousness of the situation,

and with decent weather, Luftflotte 4 dispatched 420 sorties on the

sixteenth, and the Fw 190 F-8 pilots claimed success in aerial combat

and against ground targets. Famed Stuka (and recently converted Fw

190 F-8) pilot Oberstleutnant Hans-Ulrich Rudel downed an Il-2 mH in

a combat between Hatvan and Budapest, and dozens of Soviet ground

targets were reported damaged or destroyed by SG 2 and SG 10.

In bad weather on 22 November, the Hungarian Fw 190 F-8s flew

three missions, including one in the afternoon by a dozen aircraft

against Soviet troops on Csepel Island, a large land mass in the

middle of the Danube River just south of Budapest.

A Harsh Winter

In late-November and early December, 3. Ukrainian Front burst

across the Danube 175 kilometres south of Budapest and began

driving north and north-west, towards Lake Balaton and the area

southwest of Budapest, creating another threat to the Hungarian

capital. Bad weather limited Fw 190 F-8 operations in the final days

of November, so the Heeresgruppe Süd defenders lacked close air

support at a vital time. 54 ground-attack aircraft did get airborne on

the opening day of December, and then 80 Fw 190s on 4 December.

A Stuka pilot from III./SG 2 recalled the situation in this period:

“The I. Gruppe of the Geschwader was equipped with the Fw 190 and

was based at Csor, not far from our former airfield at Varpalota. They

were supposed to provide fighter protection during our missions, as

the protection provided by Jagdgeschwader 52 could no longer be

reliably guaranteed.”

5 December 1944 was a crucial day, as 3. Ukrainian Front troops

approached the north-eastern end of Lake Balaton, and 2. Ukrainian

Front attacked north and south of Budapest. In the air, Luftflotte 4

was able to put up a remarkable (for this stage of the war, at least)

392 sorties, more than half of which were by the Fw 190 units. The

newly appointed Kommandeur of I./SG 2, Hptm. Bauer, downed a Yak9 south-west of Budapest, while I./SG 10 and the Ju 87s of III./SG

2 were also active. Soviet troop crossings on either side of Csepel

Island were also targeted, as one Fw 190 F-8 pilot recalled:

“The Soviets were about to encircle Budapest. For this purpose, they

formed bridgeheads across the Danube. If they could not be prevented from doing so, there was a danger that they would complete the

encirclement. We were used a couple of times against these Soviet

manoeuvres. On one occasion we caught them when they brought

their soldiers across the river on pontoons to form a bridgehead on

the west bank of the Danube. Tightly packed, the Ivans stood in the

floating vehicles, which were clear targets for us to spot. It was like

target-shooting. The effect must have been terrible. Many jumped

into the water in fear of death. Of course they returned fire with their

infantry weapons. We also received fire from both banks.”

The intention in late-1944 had been to convert III./SG 2 from the Ju 87

Photo: Fortepan

Photo: Fortepan

HISTORY

Soviet officers visiting Fw 190 F-8 WNr. 583606 „black 2“ of 2./SG 10. The aircraft took off

from Totvazsony on February 10, 1945 and was shot down by Flak near Alsóheténypuszta,

Hungary. Pilot and Staffelführer Oblt. Hans-Gottfried Schulz was unhurt and became a

POW. Schulz (1920 – 2012) originally served with I./JG 51. After service with Erg.St./SKG

10 in 1943 he became commander of 2./SG 10 in March 1944. After the war he served in

the Bundeswehr with rank of Oberst. Schulz is credited with 486 missions and at least 4

victories.

Table: Luftflotte 4 Fw 190 Units, 20 November 1944

Unit Type/s Strength Serviceable

Crews Ready Comments

Stab SG. 2

Fw 190 F-8

6

3

4

4

Plus a single Ju 87

I./SG 2 Fw 190 F-8

31 21 27 17

II./SG 2

Fw 190 F-8

31

26

31

25

Plus some Hs 123s

Fw 190 G-8

Stab SG 10

Fw 190 F-8

3

3

3

2

I./SG 10 Fw 190 F-8

21 14 32 27

II./SG 10 Fw 190 F-8

28 20 2 25

III./SG 10 Fw 190 F-8

23 19 33 24

13./SG 151

Fw 190 F-8

8

3

7

6

Total 151 109 169 130

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INFO Eduard - May 2021