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BOXART STORY
When III./JG 1 was newly established in
Leeuwarden, the Netherlands, in April 1943, it did
not have an easy start. Some airmen had been
transferred from other parts of JG 1. However,
the Stab and one full Staffel of III./JG 1 were
created from scratch. The unit was armed with
Bf 109 Gs. The first commander was Maj. Karl-
Heinz Leesmann (37 victories, Knight's Cross),
who, for health reasons, had not participated in
combat flights in the past months and had led
his previous unit on the Eastern Front "from
the ground." A good part of the new members
of III./JG 1 came directly from training units.
The unit therefore had to devote itself to intensive
training in combat operations in June and July.
At the same time, though it began to be deployed
in combat against four-engine bombers. In one
engagement with the Americans, on July 25,
1943, Maj. Leesmann was killed.
The next CO was Hptm. Robert Olejnik, who
had previously led 4./JG 1 within II./JG 1 (formerly
I./JG 3). He achieved his 40th victory on August
17, 1943, during the defense against air raids
on Regensburg and Schweinfurt, when he shot
down a B-17. Yet, III./JG 1 was one of several
units to receive harsh criticism from other
Jagdgeschwader commanders for their poor
performance that day.
Under a new CO, Hptm. Friedrich Eberle,
III./JG 1 became in November the so-called
"leichte Gruppe," or light fighter group. Their task
was to attack the fighter escorts of American
bombers, making it easier for their colleagues
in I. and II./JG 1, armed with Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A
aircraft, to engage the bomber formations.
The increasing range and effectiveness
of American fighter escorts posed a serious
problem for German airmen. Thus the Berlin
command hesitated for a long time on how
to deal with the escorts. Göring and his staff
wanted to concentrate the fighter units as
much as possible on attacking the bombers but
refused to concentrate their forces in one area.
The political directive was clear: some fighter
units were to remain in every part of the Reich to
maintain the population's morale.
In late February 1944, it was finally decided that
one dedicated Jagdgruppe would be assigned
to each fighter division (Jagddivision) within
I. Jagdkorps to combat American fighters at high
altitude. These were I./JG 3 (within Jagddivision
1), II./JG 11 (JD 2), and III./JG 1 (JD 3). These units
were named "Höhengruppen" and were armed
with Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-5 and G-6 aircraft
equipped with the GM-1 system. From April
onwards, priority was given to upgraded Bf 109
G-6/AS machines with DB 605 AS engines.
Accomplishing this task in the first half
of 1944 was extremely difficult. The German
pilots faced experienced opponents whose
aircraft outperformed even the modified
Bf 109s. Occasionally, German formations
became targets of their own flak. Enemies also
radioed false orders in German, which were
sometimes hard to distinguish from their own
command's instructions.
Among the ranks of III./JG 1 at that time were
experienced airmen such as Hptm. Lutz-Wilhelm
Burkhardt (58 v., KC), Hptm. Alfred Grislawski
(133 v., KC with Oak Leaves), and Obfw. Herbert
Kaiser (68 v., KC). However, the veterans left no
room for the motivated newcomers' illusions.
Upon arrival at III./JG 1, surprised young airmen
learned, "If you see him (the American) on the
right, bail out. If you see him on the left, bail
out." Moreover, aerial combat had reached
a brutal phase, and German airmen on parachute
became targets for American fighters both in the
air and on the ground.
In the first five months of 1944, III./JG 1 achieved
26 victories, mostly against fighter escorts.
However, enemy action resulted in the loss of
84 aircraft, and nearly 70 of its airmen were
killed or wounded. Its airbase was repeatedly
targeted by heavy bomber raids. The commander
of III./JG 1, Hptm. Eberle, was sent to a rear
ground unit in late April 1944 and was replaced
by Maj. Hartmann Grasser (103 v., KC with Oak
Leaves). Just before the start of the invasion,
Grasser was appointed to head the operational
training unit II./JG 110, which probably saved his
life.
In the first half of June, III./JG 1 ceased its
role as Höhengruppe and underwent a short
deployment in Normandy. It returned to this
battlefield after a few weeks and, during July
and August, lost 56 aircraft and 53 airmen who
were wounded, killed, captured, or missing.
In the first eight months of 1944, III./JG 1 thus lost
approximately three times its aircrew number.
The Luftwaffe no longer had a chance to win the
war over Western Europe.
Illustration: Adam Tooby
Höhengruppe
Text: Jan Bobek
INFO Eduard
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