Sonderstaffel (G.S.) 1
Sonderstaffel (G.S.) 1
Code: (W2 +)
(From 1942 as: GS-Kommando 1)
FpN:
L 24 803 (*June 1941. +14 Sep 1944).
History
Formed June 1941 at Obertraubling for assignment to Luftflotte 1 in North Russia. It transferred to Riga/Latvia during July and August 1941, and in September played a key role in the supply of German forces that invaded Saaremaa (Ösel) Island off the Estonian coast. Its mission completed, it departed Riga in November and returned to Obertraubling by way of Merseburg. It does not appear to have been used operationally again until the end of May 1943, when it was transferred to France for the airlift of parachute units to Sicily. GS-Kdo. 1 suffered heavy losses at Istres on 17 August 1943 when the airfield was hit by 180 12th Air Force B-17's operating under the command of Northwest African Strategic Air Force. Following the attack, it moved north to Dijon where it was disbanded in December 1943. The remaining He 111Z tug aircraft belonging to GS-Kdo. 1 were turned over to 4. Staffel/LLG 2. [1]
Commanding Officers
Oblt, Karl-Heinz(?) Melzer ( ? - ? )7/41
Hptm, Hans(?) Pohl ( ? - ? )7/43
Stations
Obertraubling/SE Regensburg (6/41 – 8/41)
Riga/Latvia (8/41 – 11/41)
Merseburg/S of Halle (11/41 - 1/42.)
Obertraubling (1/42 - 5/43)
Reims /NE France (5/43 - 6/43)
Istres/S.France (6/43 - 9/43)
Dijon/E.France (9/43 - 12/43)
Equipment and Returns
Bf 110Cs and Me 321 gliders (1941); He 111Zs and Me 321 gliders (1942-43).
Reported 5 He 111Zs and 10 Me 321's on strength 10 Jul, 1943 and 10 Nov. 1943.
Representative Losses – Sonderstaffel (G.S.) 1
15.8.41: Me 321 crash landed at Schroda/30 km SE of Posen (Poznań), probably while deploying to Riga, 20%.
27.9.41: 2 x Bf 110 C-4s shot down over Saaremaa (Ösel) Island, both 100%, 2 KIA and 2 MIA.
28.9.41: Bf 110 E-2 crashed at Mitau (Jelgava)/Latvia due to engine seizure, 90%.
15.7.43: He 111H bombed on the ground at Pomigliano airfield at Naples/Italy, 100%.
Also see:
(no additional names found)
Markings
Distinctions and Remarks
Sources: Schlaug.
See Also
Grossraumlastenseglergruppe Me 321
© by Henry L. deZeng IV (Work in Progress, 2023).
(1st Draft 2023)
References
- ↑ BA-MA Freiburg: RL 2 III Meldungen über Flugzeugunfälle…..(Loss Reports – LRs); BA-MA Freiburg: Flugzeug-Bereitstellungen (Aircraft Availability Status Reports – FzB) in: M.Holm-website (ww2.dk); AFHRA Maxwell: decimal K113 Karlsruhe Collection. AFHRA Maxwell: decimal 512.619 British AirMin P/W interrogations, ADI(K) series, microfilm rolls A5400-05, interrogation; AFHRA Maxwell: decimal 512.619 British AirMin CSDIC P/W Interrogation Reports in microfilm rolls A5415-18; British National Archives ULTRA signals; Kannapin, Norbert: Die deutsche Feldpostübersicht 1939-1945, 3 Bde (I – III) (Osnabrück, 1980-82); Schlaug, Georg: Die deutschen Lastensegler-Verbände 1937-1945: Eine Chronik aus Berichten, Tagebüchern, Dokumenten. Stuttgart: Motorbuch Verlag, 1985. ISBN: 3-613-01065-8. Hb. Dj. 296p. Illus. Maps. Appendices. Glossary of abbreviations. Bibliography.
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