Stab./126
Stab/Aufkl.Gr. 126
(Unit Code D1+)
Formation. (April 1941)
Formed 1 April 1941 at Travemünde/Schleswig-Holstein (new).[1]
Greece and the Aegean Sea. (May 1941 - May 1943)
May 1941: Stab transferred from Travemünde via Varna/Bulgaria to Skaramanga near Athens and assigned to Luftflotte 4; mission was to exercise command over convoy escort and anti-submarine patrols in the Aegean and Ionian Seas, and to maintain the lines of communication with the numerous German island strong points scattered throughout these waters. The Stab remained at Skaramanga and its mission changed little during the course of the war.
6 September 1941: Stab removed from its direct assignment under Luftflotte 4 and subordinated to X. Fliegerkorps with effect from this date.
1 March 1942: Gruppe reported 20 He 60, 7 Fokker T-VIII-W, 13 Ar 196A and 6 He 114 on strength (for the entire Gruppe).
1 September 1942: Gruppe had 9 He 111 H-6, 19 Ar 196 and 1 BV 138 on hand.
20 September 1942: in what must be one of the strangest mismatches in the history of the Luftwaffe, and one that remains unexplained to this day, Stab and 1.-3./Aufkl.Gr. 126 were renamed III./Kampfgeschwader 100, producing a totally unrelated mixed force of Ar 196s at Skaramanga and Heinkel He 111H bombers at Athens-Eleusis. The mission remained unchanged, convoy escort and anti-submarine patrols and then, for no apparent reason, the redesignation was cancelled in orders dated 20 January 1943, although there is evidence that this was not fully carried out until a month later.
26 April 1943: Aufkl.Gr. 126 at Skaramanga reported 31(22) Ar 196s and 1(0) BV 138 on strength under X. Fliegerkorps.
1 May 1943: Gruppe reported 31 Ar 196 and 1 BV 138 A-1 on strength.
May 1943: renamed Stab/Seeaufklärungsgruppe 126 at Skaramanga, however the order formalizing this change in designation (Gen.St.d.Lw.-Gen.Qu.2.Abt.Nr.9281/43g.Kdos.) was not issued until 13 July 1943.
FpN:Stab/Aufkl.Gr.126 (L 07199).
Kommandeur:
Maj. Hans-Bruno von Laue (1 Apr 1941 - 1 Apr 42)
Obstlt. Hermann Kaiser (1 Apr 42 - Sep 1942)
Oberst Hermann Busch (Feb 1943 - May 1943?)
Also see:
BERZ, Helmut, Lt.
MÜLLER, Ludwig von, Hptm.
SCHALLMAYER, Friedrich, Oblt./Hptm. (Staka)
© by Henry L. deZeng IV (Work in Progress).
(1st Draft 2022)
References
- ↑ J.-P.Défieux - Répertoire des Unités Aériennes de la Luftwaffe 1935-1945: Reconnaissance Aéronavale (Nanterre, privately published, n.d. (c 1988-90?); W.Dierich - Die Verbände der Luftwaffe 1935-1945: Gliederungen und Kurzchroniken – Eine Dokumentation; G.Tessin - Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht und Waffen-SS im Zweiten Weltkrieg 1939-1945, Teil 14: Die Luftstreitkräfte (Osnabrück, 1980); N.Kannapin - Die deutsche Feldpostübersicht 1939-1945. 3 Bde (I – III) (Osnabrück, 1980-82); F.Kurowski - Seekrieg aus der Luft: Die deutsche Seeluftwaffe im Zweiten Weltkrieg (Herford, 1979), pp.91, 164, 247, 249, 261; K.Gundelach - Die deutsche Luftwaffe im Mittelmeer 1940-1945, 2 Bde (Frankfurt/M., 1981), p.269; U.Balke - Kampfgeschwader 100 “Wiking”: Eine Geschichte aus Kriegstagebüchern, Dokumenten und Berichten 1934-1945 (Stuttgart, 1981), pp.230-35; PRO London: DEFE 3 ULTRA signals ML447, ML5771; M.Holm-website ww2.dk.