Strana 45
Bf 110D-0, W.Nr. 3170, Lt. Felix-Maria Brandis & Uffz. Guntram Weigl, 1.(Z)/JG 77, Petsamo, Finland, September 1941
Bf 110D-0, W.Nr. 3181, 4./ZG 2, Gyancourt, France, July 1940
Felix-Maria Brandis was born on September
9, 1919, in Ahaus. He joined the Luftwaffe on
September 14, 1939. On September 1, 1941, he
was forced to land in Sweden with a Bf 110E-1
(W.Nr. 4114) when he got lost on return to the
base and run out of fuel. He returned from
internment in Sweden on September 7, 1941.
On September 16, 1941, Lt. Felix-Maria Brandis
and Uffz. Guntram Weigl flew the LN+HR (usually
flown by Ofw. Karl Munding, the two kill marks
on the rudder were his own) on combat mission
over Murmansk. Returning to Petsamo base,
they were hit by anti-aircraft fire in the left
engine over the Kola Peninsula. During the
subsequent emergency landing, LN+HR was
destroyed but its crew escaped uninjured. On the
nose of the aircraft was painted the emblem of
the Zerstörerstaffel in the form of a dachshund
with a Rata (Polikarpov I-16) in its mouth.
Felix-Maria Brandis scored a total of fourteen
victories during his time on the Eastern Front,
comprising five British opponents (including
two Fairey Albacores) and nine Soviet aircraft.
The 1.(Z)/JG 77 was deployed in northern Europe
to fight against both British and Soviet forces.
Lt. Brandis was killed on February 2, 1942, with
a Bf 110E-2 (W.Nr. 2546) LN+AR when his aircraft
crashed in bad weather while returning from
a combat flight near Olanga.
This is so far the only known example of
a Bf 110Dbelonging to II./ZG 2 equipped with
the additional fuel tank under fuselage,
so called Dackelbauch. The II./ZG 2 was created
in July 1940 from I./ZG 52 and kept its original
emblem, a white dragon in black shield.
The unit also kept its original fuselage codes
of I./ZG 52. Camouflage consisted of RLM 71, 02
and 65. Unit lost its Gruppenkommandeur, Major
Harry Carl, on August 16 after combat with RAF
fighters over the Channel. He got killed together
with his gunner Uffz. W. Maier in a crash landing
near Beauzeville, France. The commander of
the 4. Staffel was Hptm. Hans Peter Külbel,
former policeman and pre-war commander
of military flying school. On August 11, 1940,
he was appointed temporary commander of
I./ZG 2. However, on next day he was shot down
and killed alongwith his gunner Uffz. F. Budig
by RAF fighters off Portsmouth. His body was
washed ashore on September 18 near Boulogne.
Due to heavy losses the II./ZG 2 was disbanded
in September 1940, including 4./ZG 2.
KITS 07/2025
INFO Eduard
45
July 2025