1.(H)/10 Tannenberg

1.(H)/Aufklärungsgruppe 10 "Tannenberg"

(Unit Code: T1+)

Formation and Organization. (Nov 38 - Aug 39)

Formed 1 November 1938 at Neuhausen/East Prussia (ex-l.(H)/Aufkl. Gr .11) with He 46s and remained there through August 1939. Began conversion to the Hs 126 in spring 1939 and this was not completed until the end of October when the 4 remaining He 46s were finally replaced.

Poland. (Sep 39)

Moved forward to Oschen with 11 Hs 126s by 1 September for the attack into N Poland - supported XXI. Armeekorps, and later I. AK. Stations following the conclusion of the campaign in Poland are not known, but probably returned to Neuhausen.

Germany and Campaign in the West. (Oct 39 - May 41)

Supported I. AK/6. Armee for the advance through Holland and Belgium beginning on 10 May; Staka Oblt. Berlin was wounded by ground fire on 13 May. By 16 June the Staffel was operating from Choisel/N France, and on 30 August it was listed under Koluft/AOK 16 in support of VII. Armeekorps. By 14 November was based at Lille-Wavrin (a.k.a. La Vallée), where 3 Hs 126s, a Fw 58 and a Fi 156 were damaged on the airfield during an early winter storm. The first Fw 189s were received in early 1941 while the Staffel was still in France, one of which crashed near La Vallée during a training flight on 10 March.

Central Russia and Germany. (Jun 41 - Apr 42)

Deployment east to Poland for the attack on Russia probably did not occur until early or mid-June. Initially assigned to Koluft/AOK 4 (Heeresgruppe B Mitte) to support VII. AK/4. Armee for the drive into the Soviet Union from the Białystok area in northeast Poland, but by October it had been reassigned to support LIII. AK/2. Armee Corps for the attack on Moscow with station at Bryansk. Still at Bryansk on 23 November with Fw 189A-ls, it was ordered back to Germany in December to rest and refit.

South Russia. (May 42 - Apr 43)

Rested and again at full strength by 1 March 1942 with 9 x Fw 189A-1s, ordered to S Russia for assignment to NAGr. 7, arriving at Kharkov I on 4 May. The first combat loss occurred a few days later on 13 May when a Fw 189 was shot down by AA fire near Gushino during German preparations to attack and eliminate the Izyum salient, killing Staka Hptm. Kolin and his crew. On 20 June the Staffel reported 9(6) Fw 189s on strength. Advanced toward Stalingrad at the end of June from Kupyansk in support of 6. Armee forces, with stations at Bokovskaya/230 km NW of Stalingrad on 4 August and Oskinski/93 km WNW of Stalingrad on 19 August. Fw 189 (2T+CH) failed to return from a reconnaissance sortie along the Don on 14 September, but there were no further losses until 10 November when a Fw 189 was attacked and shot up by a Russian fighter over Kletskaya, 122 km NW of Stalingrad in the sector of the front held by Romanian forces. The Soviet Stalingrad offensive began 10 days later, and by 21 December the Staffel was operating under Nahaufklärungsgruppe Fleischmann from Morosovskaya where Oblt. Otto Skubisch returned wounded after his Fw 189 had been shot up by AA fire on this date.

The Luftwaffe reported 1.(H)/10 essentially destroyed in the heavy fighting around Stalingrad along with the rest of NAGr. 7, but aircraft and crews survived and these were based at Gorlovka/NE of Stalino on 13 February and at Stalino on 15 March, now operating under NAGr. 12. On 1 March 1.(H)/10 filed its last strength return reporting 5 x Fw 189A-1/A-2/A-3 on strength. The Staffel reported its last casualties on 25 March when two Fw 189s were shot up and damaged by AA fire while flying reconnaissance in the vicinity of Petrovskaya. At the beginning of April the remaining personnel returned to Germany for well-earned leave, and then reported to Herzogenaurach for conversion training on the Bf 109G as 1./Nahaufklärungsgruppe 12, effective 20 April 1943.

FpN: (L 11116)

Staffelkapitän:

Maj. Gerhard von Frantzius (  ? - 14 Apr 40) 9/39

Oblt. Friedrich-Wilhelm Berlin (15 Apr 40 - 14 Nov 41)

Hptm. Herbert Kolin (15 Nov 41 - May 42)

Oblt. Ulrich Graeve (May 42 - c. Feb 43)

© H.L. deZeng IV, 2021

Additional Notes & Losses

Date	Unit	Aircraft Type	Code	Wkr.No.	Notes
13 May 1942	1(H)./10	Fw 189		0181	Shotdown by AA fire at Guschine. Hptmn Herbert Kalin (StaKa?)(F), Oblt Berthold Blattner (B) and Gefr. Heinz Heuer (Bf).

Aufklärungsgruppe 10