Stuka Hitlers Lethal Dive Bomber (Images of War)

First published in Great Britain in 2012 by PEN & SWORD AVIATION an imprint of Pen & Sword Books Ltd, 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire. S70 2AS Copyright © Alistair Smith 2012 9781783408962 The right of Alistair Smith to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the Publisher in writing. Typeset by Mac Style, Beverley, East Yorkshire Printed and bound in Great Britain by CPI Pen & Sword Books Ltd incorporates the imprints of Pen & Sword Books Ltd incorporates the Imprints of Pen & Sword Aviation, Pen & Sword Family History, Pen & Sword Maritime, Pen & Sword Military, Pen & Sword Discovery, Wharncliffe Local History, Wharncliffe True Crime, Wharncliffe Transport, Pen & Sword Select, Pen & Sword Military Classics, Leo Cooper, The Praetorian Press, Remember When, Seaforth Publishing and Frontline Publishing

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Table of Contents

Title Page Copyright Page Introduction Chapter One - Portraits Chapter Two - Training Chapter Three - Czechoslovakia Chapter Four - In Flight Chapter Five - Snow and Ice Chapter Six - Funerals Chapter Seven - Leave Bibliography

Introduction The Junkers Ju87, along with the early Panzers of the German army, was the epitomy of Blitzkrieg. Arguably the Stuka (from Sturzkampfflugzeug) is the most recognisable German aircraft of the Second World War. It is immediately identifiable, with its peculiar inverted gull wings and odd undercarriage. Most of all it is associated with the bizarre attachment of the socalled Jericho Trumpet. This terrifying, wailing siren was designed to instil fear in the enemy and make the aircraft a true weapon of horror. The Ju87 made its first operational appearance in the skies over Spain during the civil war in 1936. It would go on to be one of the primary images and weapons of the early Second World War period. By 1942 the aircraft’s inherent vulnerabilities had become all too obvious. In fact its shortcomings had become clear as early as the late summer of 1940. During the Battle of Britain the Germans had to resort to providing the Stukas with fighter cover. The Stuka was slow, it had a relatively poor defensive armament and, above all, it did not move well enough in the air. However, even after the Battle of Britain the Stuka remained a primary weapon of Germany in its campaigns in the Balkans and in North Africa. It was even used to great effect in the east, on the Russian front. Its true vulnerabilities had begun to show once the Allies had reorganised their fighter defences to such an extent that the Ju87 became easy prey. The legend of the Ju87 lived on, largely due to the fact that the Germans had not developed a credible replacement. Towards the end of the war the Ju87 still remained in the skies and in fact production did not cease until 1944. However, by this stage the primary role, that of a dive bomber, had been usurped by the Focke Wulf Fw190. This photographic album belonged to a Stuka gunner and radio operator (Bordenfunker) Erich Heine. Unfortunately we do not know a great deal about this individual but we do know that he did survive the war and that there is an implication that he was shot down over the Ukraine in 1943. He almost certainly became a prisoner-of-war of the Russians. It is probable for this reason that the photographs all seem to relate to the early stages of the war. They follow his training and his assignment to a Ju87 squadron. What is particularly remarkable is the fact that he survived. Many Stuka crewmembers had a very limited life

expectancy. The other remarkable thing about this album is that it contains photographs of perhaps the most famous Stuka ace, Hans-Ulrich Rudel. Rudel flew some 2,530 combat missions. The photographs featuring Rudel in this album are obviously of an early period, as they show him celebrating his 200th combat mission. Rudel was a prominent Nazi; he was highly decorated and would go on to claim some 2,000 targets destroyed, including a Russian battleship, hundreds of tanks, armoured trains and a host of static targets, including bridges. Rudel, by the end of the war, found himself in Bohemia and in immediate danger of falling into the hands of the Russians. He led an aerial armada in an epic escape attempt and landed at Kitzingen in Bavaria, which was then in the hands of the Americans. He would spend nearly a year as a prisoner-of-war before imigrating to Argentina in 1948. He died in 1982. This photograph album was put together by Erich Heine. He was born on 21 March 1921 and died at the age of thirty-six on 23 March 1957. We can only speculate on why he died so young. Perhaps he died during his period of imprisonment with the Russians, or more likely he died young as a result of his injuries and his treatment whilst he was a prisoner-of-war. We do know that he was shot down on 21 August 1943 over Central Ukraine and was posted as ‘missing in action’. The album contains some unique photographs of Stukas in formation. They also cover some of the training aircraft and, poignantly, photographs of the funerals of some of Heine’s comrades. The undoubted star of the photograph album is the Ju87 itself. Around 6,500 were built between 1936 and the summer of 1944. It was a simple and a robust aircraft. Remarkably, the original Ju87 prototypes, the design of which had begun in 1933, were to be powered by a Rolls Royce Kestrel engine. In fact the aircraft manufacturer bought ten for the prototypes. It was one of these prototypes that killed Junker’s chief test pilot Willy Neuenhofen along with the engineer Heinrich Kreft. It would appear to have been enemy action that led to the loss of the aircraft belonging to Erich Heine. Placing him geographically and in line with the reported loss of the aircraft over the Ukraine in August 1943, we can assume that the probable point at which he was shot down was near to Kharkov. This was in the aftermath of the cataclysmic battle of Kursk, which took place between the beginning of July and the last week of August 1943. The period from the middle of July had seen the Russians take the offensive and the Germans falling back. Stukas would have been extensively used throughout the whole operation and would have been vital in trying to blunt the Russian

armoured thrusts, that were threatening to overwhelm the German forces in the region. German aircraft losses during the battle of Kursk alone were in excess of 800. This photograph album is now owned by James Payne. The author is indebted to James for access to this album and the opportunity to research and write about these intriguing photographs, which feature such an iconic, if terrifying, aspect of the Second World War. Should readers wish to obtain their own copies of these photographs in high resolution then they should go James’s own military photo archive THROUGH THEIR EYES, at www.throughtheireyes2.co.uk.

Chapter One Portraits The album has an interesting selection of professionally posed portraits, as well as snapshots of individuals. It would appear that the vast majority of these photographs, particularly those of Erich Heine, were taken at the very beginning of his Luftwaffe career. Having been born in 1921, Erich at the outbreak of the Second World War would have been just eighteen. Exhaustive searches have not been able to identify exactly when Erich joined the Luftwaffe, but we are able to see that his training as a Stuka gunner and radio operator was very typical. However, the very first portrait that appears in the album is not of Erich himself but it is a signed photograph of Hans-Ulrich Rudel. It would also appear that from at least one other photograph in the album Erich was either at the same airbase or perhaps in the same unit as Rudel at some stage in his career. It would also suggest that the photographs were taken relatively early in Rudel’s own very illustrious service in the Luftwaffe, as there is a photograph of him and what is probably his own gunner and radio operator celebrating their successful 200th combat mission. The vast majority of the photographs of Erich show him as a basic airman, or aircraftsman. The official German rank would have been Flieger, a standard enlisted man. As a potential member of the aircrew his collar tabs are far more prominent on his Luftwaffe uniform, as they were a gold/yellow colour. Each of the enlisted ranks and the officer ranks were designated by a number of wing-shaped emblems on the collar tab. A basic aircraftsman like Erich would have had just one, whereas a senior airman or lance corporal and up to the rank of chief master sergeant, or warrant officer, would have four. These wings were also visible on the officer ranks, along with other insignia.

This is a signed photograph of Hans-Ulrich Rudel. He flew over 2,500 combat missions and it is believed that he was also the most highly decorated German serviceman of the Second World War. Rudel was also the only man that was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Gold Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. Rudel had been brought up as a Lutheran in Silesia in the immediate aftermath of the First World War. Even as a child he was very sporty and after passing his high school diploma he joined the Luftwaffe as an officer cadet in 1936. He was actually considered to be a poor flier and unsuitable as a combat pilot. As a result, he was sent to an operational reconnaissance unit. Rudel, unperturbed by his non-combat role, seized his opportunities during the Poland campaign in 1939. At that stage he was an observer and carried out a series of perilous longrange reconnaissance flights over Poland. This culminated in his winning the Iron Cross Second Class in October 1939. He took the opportunity to pester the authorities for re-assignment and they gave in and sent him to Caen in May 1940 to join a dive bomber unit. He was still rated very poorly but again his chance came in June 1941 with Operation Barbarossa. He was awarded the Iron Cross First Class in July and then in the September he and another Stuka pilot sunk the Russian battleship Marat. This was a truly ancient vessel that had been commissioned in 1915. It had been extensively remodelled in the 1920s and 1930s. Incredibly, although she was sunk, she was actually re-floated and played a key role in the defence of Leningrad. But she

met her end in the early 1950s when she was finally scrapped.

This individual is believed to be Rudel’s gunner and radio operator. He has insignia on his lapel that suggests that he is at least the rank of either senior master sergeant or chief master sergeant. We can clearly see that he is wearing an Iron Cross decoration on his left breast and below that we can see one of the many variations of the Luftwaffe flying badges. Above the Iron Cross is the Luftwaffe bomber operational flying clasp. This came into existence in January 1941 and it rewarded bomber crew, including dive bombers. A bronze version would be issued after twenty missions, a silver version after sixty and a gold one after 110 missions. It is difficult to date this photograph exactly, but assuming this individual remained with Rudel then they had already flown their 400th combat mission by December 1941. In the January of 1942 Rudel received the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross and just over a year later he became the first ever pilot of any nationality to fly 1,000 combat missions. It was a remarkable feat, regardless of Rudel’s own Nazi sympathies. The life expectancy of Stuka crewmembers, certainly as the war drew on, was exceptionally short. Despite the fact that he had been branded as a poor pilot early on in his career, it is a truly remarkable feat that he managed to accomplish over 2,500 combat missions and was still alive. It is possible that the man in this photograph is Gadermann, as he is mentioned in Rudel’s memoirs relating to an episode in 1944, although

available photographs of Ernst Gadermann do not confirm this. It is difficult to precisely date this photograph, although the assumption is that this is between June 1941 and December 1941. This photograph celebrates the 200th successful combat mission of Rudel and his rear gunner. After Rudel had flown his 1,000th sortie in February 1943 he would go on to destroy around 100 Russian tanks during the battle of Kursk in the autumn of that year. Rudel had clocked up 1,800 sorties by March 1944. In November 1944 he received a wound in the thigh but continued to fly with his leg in a plaster cast. His luck nearly ran out on 8 February 1945 when he was over enemy territory and an anti-aircraft shell hit his Stuka. Rudel was badly wounded in the foot and he crash-landed. Gadermann managed to stop Rudel’s bleeding but his injury was too severe and he had to have his leg amputated below the knee. Undaunted, he recommenced combat in late March 1945 and continued fighting against the Russians until the very end. He then led three Stukas and four Fw 190s from Bohemia to Kitzingen in Bavaria to land and then to surrender to American forces on 8 May 1945. So determined was he to fight on to the very end that he had all the other pilots wreck the aircraft on the airstrip to prevent the enemy from being able to use it.

This is another unnamed German pilot. The portrait seems to have been taken during the early part of the Second World War. The individual is wearing his Iron Cross. In the early war years winning the Iron Cross was in recognition of extreme bravery or gallantry in combat. But as the war drew on the decoration was used much more as a motivator and it was handed out in hundreds if not thousands. Also the quality of the medal deteriorated over time, due to the lack of quality metals available in the latter years of the war. In fact the Iron Cross was awarded to over 6 million individuals during the conflict. It is difficult to know which grade of Iron Cross has been awarded to this particular individual, although as he is wearing it around his neck the likelihood is that this is in fact a Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross and that he is from a much more select band. It was originally introduced in September 1939 and only 7,361 were ever issued.

This is another probable Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross recipient, although the rank of this member of the Luftwaffe is a noncommissioned officer of master sergeant rank at the very highest. In order to win this particular medal the individual had to have performed an act of extreme valour. Despite comparing photographs of early Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross recipients, it has unfortunately been impossible to positively identify this man.

One of the first portraits of Erich Heine shows him rather romantically posed, complete with flying suit, hat and goggles whilst showing his individuality by wearing a patterned scarf. Although it is difficult to tell, due to the fact that this photograph has a sepia tint, it would appear that Erich is wearing the lightweight summer version of the flying suit. This was a tan material that was worn directly over the standard flight blouse and trousers. He also has an unlined flying helmet. The winter version was of a more robust quality and incorporated a lining. This could be in either dark grey or blue, or again in tan. There was a third variant, which was issued if the aircraft was to fly over water. It would have been made of either black or brown leather, or it could have been cotton, but in all cases it would have been fleece-lined.

Erich Heine is seen here, possibly with his girlfriend. Erich is wearing a standard Luftwaffe blouse and we can see that this was still a relatively early photograph as he just has the Flieger tab on his collar. This photograph may well have been taken in the aftermath of a decoration ceremony, as Erich has an Iron Cross, although it is not possible to see the date. The Iron Cross awards had the swastika and the year they were awarded embossed on them. He also has an observer badge, but to the left is what appears to be a wound badge. From June 1940 it was decided that an individual that received either a silver or gold wound badge would automatically be awarded the Iron Cross Second Class. There were three basic versions of the wound badge: a black one for those that had been wounded either once or twice, or had been frost bitten; a silver if they had been wounded three or four times or had lost a limb or eye; and a gold for five or more wounds or blindness. During the Second World War some 5 million of the badges were awarded. The original badge, which is probably what Erich is wearing, was made from silver plated brass.

Erich Heine is posing with the same girl in this photograph beside woodland that is possibly in Czechoslovakia. He is wearing his Schirműtze (cap), his Fliegerbluse (jacket) and Langhose, which were straight-leg trousers without a taper. He would also have had a pair of straight-legged trousers with a slight taper, so that they could fit easily into boots (Tuchhose). A studio portrait of Erich taken early in his career can be seen here. Most prominent is his chest eagle, which was worn on the right-hand side. There were several different patterns of this particular badge over the course of the war and some individuals actually had their own badges commissioned. Note that the swastika is actually stitched over the top of the pocket. The Wehrmacht eagle had the swastika in both claws; however the Luftwaffe eagle had it only in one claw, with the other claw in a threatening pose.

This is a second studio shot of the young Erich Heine. Evidence would seem to suggest that Erich would go on to join Sturzkampfgeschwader 77. Two of the elements of this unit saw action in Poland on the very first day. The unit was then transferred west in anticipation of the attacks on the Lowlands and France. The unit was involved in low-level bombing attacks on the Belgian fortress of Eben Emael. At this stage some of the aircraft and crews were flying as many as seven missions every day, particularly during their contribution towards the battle of France. For a time they were involved in attacking Britain, during the Battle of Britain, and also participating in shipping raids. They were switched east to take part in the Balkans campaign in early 1941 and participated in Operation Barbarossa against Russia in June 1941. This photograph has a faint embossed stamp on the bottom left-hand corner that says ‘foto junek’, which is a Czechoslovakian surname. We know that the Kampfgeschwader 77 was actually formed at PrahaKbely in May 1939 and became operational in August 1939 at Cöniggrätz. The site of the airfield is now known as Hradec Krälovë. This is now located in the Czech Republic, close to the Polish border. The site was also the location of the most decisive battle of the Austro-

Prussian war, which took place on 3 July 1866. The area itself is of great strategic importance as it lies at the confluence of the River Elbe and the River Orlice (Alder).

This is another studio photograph, this time of Erich with a colleague. The embossed image in the bottom right-hand corner is less obvious, but again it appears that the photograph was taken in Czechoslovakia. The KG 77 first saw action operating out of Czechoslovakia against targets in Poland. They raided across a range of different targets including troop concentrations, Polish airfields and railway infrastructure. It is not possible to tell from later photographs of the Stukas to which part of the unit Erich was attached. There were eventually three groups, although at this stage in the war there were only two. The third was not added until at least 1940. Speculatively this could be Erich’s wedding, although it is certainly a celebration of some kind. Many of the early members of the Luftwaffe in the last years running up to the outbreak of the Second World War had gained experience over Spain. The Germans had rotated their aircrews and it is believed that something in the region of 20,000 Germans had seen vital air combat and gained experience prior to the outbreak of the war in September 1939. It is not known whether or not Erich was one of these men.

Chapter Two Training Officially the Luftwaffe came into existence on 1 March 1935. Prior to that, in line with the armistice agreements that had ended the First World War, Germany could not have military aircraft. Undeterred, however, the civilian training programmes were widespread and provided the cadre for future Luftwaffe units. As it was, in March 1935, when the Luftwaffe emerged as Germany’s new aviation wing, squadrons of bombers and fighters were created almost immediately. Erich would have found himself to be one of thousands that were needed for the rapidly expanding Luftwaffe in the post-Munich period. The Luftwaffe had already grown significantly and in 1939 Branch 3 of the Luftwaffe, which was responsible for training, was given the role of tactical training. Pilot training was handed over to a new department. In April 1939 the Luftwaffe was re-organised and the air fleets were created, each of which was assigned a specific area of Germany as their base. Each training school was allocated to a particular air fleet. Of course as soon as war broke out the need to continue to feed the training machine to produce pilots and crew became all the more imperative. At the beginning of the war the priority was given to training. But from 1942 this priority shifted towards operational requirements. As with all other air forces, the training involved impetuous young men. Many were over-confident and the vast majority were willing to take huge risks. There were a large number of fatal accidents. Unlike the Allied air forces, which had a tendency to allow their pilots and crew to rest between tours, this was not the situation in the Luftwaffe. They did, of course, have leave, but they were operational for as long as they survived. By 1943 pilot and crew training was barely keeping up with demand. But by 1944 training had fallen behind the availability of aircraft. In comparison, German pilots were being rushed into combat more than twice as fast as the opposition that they would encounter, particularly against the western Allies. A British or an American pilot by this stage of the war would have completed anything up to 400 hours training before entering combat. A German pilot would have been lucky to have had 160 hours. Understandably, this disparity in

training simply contributed to the downfall of the Luftwaffe. The pilots and crew were not sufficiently familiar with their aircraft, they had difficulties in adverse weather and they lacked many of the natural skills that their airborne adversaries had acquired. For young Germans with a desire to join the Luftwaffe their career would not begin anywhere near an aircraft. They would probably spend a time with the Reichsarbeitdienst (RAD) labour service. This would involve digging ditches or building roads. Someone lucky enough, if they had party connections, to be involved with the Nationalsozialistisches Fliegerkorps (NSFK) would be able to get some basic flight training with gliders. Regardless of their background, once they had joined the Luftwaffe they were sent to a Fliegerersatzabtelung (FEA). They would later be sent to a Flieger-ausbildungsregiment (FAR). This would last between six and twelve months. It would involve their basic training and an introduction to military discipline. As we will see from these early photographs of Erich’s Luftwaffe career, the vast majority of his work involved map reading and radio work. Much later he appeared to have an opportunity to get onboard training aircraft. Erich and his contemporaries were fortunate in as much as they had six to twelve months to become proficient. Later in the war these courses were cut down to as little as two months. Once the recruits had got out of basic training they would be sent to a pool where they would receive training on general aeronautical issues. What is particularly interesting is a hangover from the First World War. For general aircrew training it was in fact the observer that was the most experienced. During the First World War on German bomber aircraft the pilot was considered to be little more than a chauffeur. It was the observer that commanded the aircraft. This meant that an observer’s training could last for as long as 150 hours. He would learn about night flying, navigation, bomb aiming, radio work and gunnery. By 1942, however, this traditional system had fallen into decline and the observer’s role as captain of the aircraft was swept away and they were reduced to a much shorter course with much less responsibility.

In Erich’s album this group is identified as being the occupants of Room 204. In all probability Erich attended the Luftwaffe elementary training school based in Prague, opened in September 1939. This would make sense as Erich was later to serve in a Luftwaffe unit based in Czechoslovakia. Overall the photographs are identified by him as showing members of his Rekrutenzeit (basic training) unit, which he identifies as Regiment 42. For some of the men in his group they might have been fortunate enough to have attended the Potsdam based Institute for National Political Education. Boys studying there between the ages of fifteen and seventeen were given instruction in air photography, aeronautics, navigation and gliding. The better students would have come out with a glider’s pilot license and would have joined the Luftwaffe as second-lieutenants. The actual career of officers and aircrew in the Luftwaffe was mapped out. Young men such as Erich would have been accepted into the Luftwaffe in an NCO rank at the age of seventeen. They would be expected to commit themselves to twelve years service. This posed photograph is of some of Erich’s closer friends around the communal table in their room. Note the bunk beds to the rear. Young men like this would have attended one of these elementary schools for a period of up to twelve months. They would have been given general military training, as well as instruction in the type of aircraft that they would ultimately be using in their units. They would then pass out with an equivalent grade of leading aircraftsman. They would continue training for the next couple of years. The training of volunteers, particularly in the early stages of the war, was considerably better than those of other recruits, as they had committed themselves to a

longer period of service. At this stage acceptance into the Luftwaffe would be a formality. Once they had been accepted into the elementary flying schools they would be earmarked for specialised training for different branches of the Luftwaffe.

This is the first of a series of photographs showing the recruits posing in their flying suits. This particular photograph shows them being instructed in map reading. The Luftwaffe aircrew flight dress that they are wearing could in fact be used for both hot and cold conditions. The basic suit would be complemented by a pair of leather gauntlets. We can see their waist belts, which in active service would have had a Luger holster attached. The crew would have had a summer-weight, tan-coloured flight helmet, a throat microphone and Leitz flying goggles. Crew of two-seater aircraft would also have worn an

inflatable lifejacket. The men would have worn their Luftwaffe service uniform over this light brown, one-piece flying suit (fliegerschutzanzug). Note its zip-up pockets. This particular type of overall was available in both summerand winter-weight. There were also variants should the aircraft be flying over land or sea. Another interesting aspect of this overall was the fact that it could be electrically heated if the aircraft were flying at high altitude, or if they were operating in cold weather conditions.

In this photograph we can clearly see the head gear, which is the LKpS 100 soft helmet. These appear to be the summer flying helmet version. We can also clearly see the round ear pieces. These helmets were made from a light brown, flecked fabric. Originally the lining was made of green satin. This particular helmet came into use in around 1936 and was used for aircrew that required radio communication. Over the years there were improvements in this type of head gear. Several of the trainees are in their overalls, but are now wearing their forage caps in this photograph. These were grey/blue and made from a cotton twill material. What is particularly interesting about these caps is that they do appear to be earlier types, with proper fasteners towards the front. Officially these were side caps.

There is a reference to the Flieger Ausbildungs Regiment 42 at Salzwedel, which is actually in Saxony-Anhalt. It is not clear whether Erich was part of this group or whether he was in fact training to be a

pilot at all. One of the members of the training regiment at Salzwedel was to become a major. He was Heinz Wolfgang Schnaufer. He would go on to be the top scoring night fighter pilot of the Second World War. He was credited with 121 victories during 164 combat missions. Most of his victims were British four-engine bombers. Schnaufer was taken prisoner by the British in May 1945 and after the war he re-joined his family’s wine business. He died in July 1950 after a heavy gas cylinder from a lorry fell onto his car and hit his head. This is another shot of one of the trainees in their flying suit. The helmet had an interior fleece around the oval ear cups. The radio receivers were made by Siemens. The helmet had hooks on either side and an adjustable ring on the top to attach an oxygen mask that had three straps. The radio leads were usually rubberised and single lead. The plug itself was made of Bakelite and would have had a brass pin, although some of the other versions had four pin plugs.

This photograph goes to prove that although the men were members of the Luftwaffe, or at least potential aircrew, they were expected to carry out standard military training. We can see in this photograph that they are wearing uniforms that do not distinguish themselves too far from standard army issue. Note the ammunition pouches, which are positioned to the left of the waist belt. Unfortunately for many of the members of the Luftwaffe, who would ultimately find themselves redundant as Germany’s territorial gains shrank by mid-1944, their basic military training would mean they would be deployed as ground troops. In fact the Luftwaffe had been forced to create its own nonparachute infantry units fairly early on in the war. In December 1941, following Russian counter offensives, the Luftwaffe was told to use its own resources to protect its airfields. This meant that men that had gone through basic military training, probably many years before, were scraped into ad hoc companies and battalions and thrown into action. Many of these men would only have had the Luftwaffe basic training so they were only really of use for static defences. In the photograph album this individual is identified as Becker. Unfortunately we do not know his fate. As the war progressed men that were not immediately essential to keeping aircraft in the air were scraped up into standard ground units. This meant that supply staff, ground crew, signals and anti-aircraft units were all brought into a force that would ultimately, by the middle of 1944, consist of 400,000 men. This included 21,000 anti-aircraft guns and crews, Hermann Göring’s own parachute panzer corps, eight parachute divisions (long since used as ground-based light infantry) and twenty-two Luftwaffe field divisions. The field divisions first saw action in late 1942. They

were woefully under-armed and, of course, hugely under-trained.

This photograph is taken in a similar position to the last one and shows an individual identified as Ber tram. A large number of the Luftwaffe field divisions were destroyed in combat on the Eastern Front. Others fought with reasonable success in France, but ultimately were overwhelmed. In fact by November 1943 of the 250,000 men that had been assigned to Luftwaffe field divisions, 90,000 had been killed, wounded, captured or were missing in action. The attrition rate was so high that of the twenty-two only three were still in existence on VE Day. Radio training can be seen in this photograph. This would have been an important task, as men like Erich would have to become a gunner, an observer, a navigator and a wireless operator in a Ju87. They would be training in order to achieve the Air Radio Operator and Air Gunner’s Badge. This came into existence in January 1935. In order to acquire the badge an individual had to attend a training course and then be on five operational flights.

This is a second photograph of radio training taking place. As with many of the badges and awards given out to German military personnel during the war, the radio operator badge, or the operator and air gunner badge, whilst originally metal was reduced to a padded cloth version later in the war. The official Radio Operator and Air Gunner’s Badge was called the Fliegerschutzen-Bordfunker Und Bordmechanikerampfabzichen. The latter part of the badge title refers to being a trained mechanic, as well as an air gunner and radio operator. This is the first of several photographs that are marked as having been taken at Koniggratz. The aircraft is marked as S17 M25 and is a FockeWulf Fw58. This was a multi-purpose aircraft and its primary use was

as an advanced trainer for pilots, gunners and radio operators. This would have made it an ideal aircraft for the kind of work that Erich would later be doing as one member of a crew of two onboard a Ju87. The prototype of this aircraft made its maiden flight in 1935. It was originally designed to be an air ambulance, light transport and a navigational trainer. The version seen in this photograph is undoubtedly based on the second prototype. This one had a pair of open gun positions. One of these was in the nose and the other an open cockpit, just behind the cabin. It is from this position that we see Erich holding the swivel mount that would have held a 7.9mm machine-gun.

Erich and some of the other members of his group are familiarising themselves with the Fw58 here. Around 1,350 of these aircraft were produced and several of the aircraft were actually exported. It was also produced under licence in Brazil. One of the other ways in which the aircraft was put to use, beyond that as a light transport, air ambulance, trainer and communications aircraft, was as a sprayer. It was used to spray infected areas in Russia in order to protect German troops. The main production version of the aircraft was powered by a pair of Argus 8 cylinder air-cooled engines, each with a power of 240hp. Erich is manning the 7.92mm machinegun in this photograph. The Fw58B was also designed to carry a small number of bombs under the wings. The aircraft itself, when being used as a training aircraft, would have a pilot and observer and up to six pupils or passengers. It was capable of a maximum speed of 162mph, its cruising speed was 150mph and it had a range of less than 500 miles.

Chapter Three Czechoslovakia This group of photographs is marked in Erich Heine’s photograph album as having been taken in the Czechoslovakian city of Hradec Králové. At the time this Bohemian city was known by the German name of Cöniggrätz. It is now in the Czech Republic. The city saw a major battle in the Austro-Prussian war of 1866. The Kingdom of Prussia defeated the Austrian Empire and as a direct result an armistice was signed in Prague three weeks later. The idea of the Stuka courses that Erich Heine undertook was to give the two crew of the Stuka the necessary technical and tactical skills. As the Stuka would be used for a wide variety of different tasks, the training at least in the run up to the outbreak of the war and in the early war years was extensive. Stukas would be used against strategic and tactical targets and this included enemy armoured fighting vehicles, troop concentrations, supplies and other battlefield targets. Strategically they could be launched against built up areas, trains and tracks or bridges. The two man crew was given a range of different navigational tasks. It was usual practise to create tactical units and the crews would then be sent off to a training squadron in order to receive that tactical training. It is believed that the first Stuka dive bomber class was run in the summer of 1936 at Kitzingen in Bavaria. Over the next few years Stuka training schools were set up across Germany and the one Erich attended was based in Czechoslovakia. This type of training was the last stage before the Stuka crew would be permanently transferred to a specific Stuka squadron. Erich, being trained early on, would almost certainly have focused on dive bombing, although by around 1942 the crews were also receiving specific training on ground attack tactics. By 1943 some of these training schools had closed and the crews were sent straight for squadron training. This was as a direct result of the high losses being suffered in the Luftwaffe. Essentially it tried to fill the requirement for emergency replacements for pilots and other crew members. The state of Czechoslovakia had been dissected primarily by Germany, but also portions of it had been taken by Hungary and a small piece by Poland. By the time Erich was attending his training

course Czechoslovakia had all but ceased to exist. In fact the majority of Czechoslovakia was now officially known, as far as the Germans were concerned, as the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. Although Czechoslovakia was incorporated into Germany itself, occupation was never a particularly easy situation and the Czechs had a very organised and co-ordinated resistance movement. Most notable was the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich. The attack took place in Prague in May 1942 and was a joint operation between the Czechoslovak government in exile and the British Special Operations Executive. The attack was actually carried out by members of the Czech army in exile. As a direct result of the assassination, several hundred Czechs were randomly selected and executed and an entire village was completely wiped out.

This is the first of a handful of photographs that show Erich’s training unit on a parade through Cöniggrätz. The Czech name for the city is roughly translated as the Castle of the Queen. It probably dates back to the thirteenth century, when Elisabeth Richeza of Poland lived there for thirty years. She had been the wife of Wenceslaus II of Bohemia and Rudolph I of Habsburg. Today the city has a population of around 100,000 and is the regional capital of East Bohemia in the Czech Republic. The city is built at the junction of the Rivers Elbe and Orlice. It is famous for its architecture. In the background of this photograph the Luftwaffe column can be seen marching past a cinema and showing is the 1940 movie The Siege of the Alcazar. This was an Italian movie directed by Augusto Genina. Essentially it was a propaganda film but it won the Mussolini Cup at the Venice Film Festival as Best Italian Movie. Interestingly it was actually shot in three languages; Italian, French and Spanish. The story was based on

the siege of Alcazar by the Republicans. The siege was lifted by troops under the command of Franco. The historical events took place between July 1936 and the end of September. A group of Luftwaffe officers are posing for this photograph whilst talking and smoking at some point during the parade. The officer to the right rear of the photograph appears to be an oberfeldwebel or senior non-commissioned officer. Attending the course in 1940 would, of course, have meant that Erich had not been directly involved in the attack on Poland and almost certainly would have missed the fall of France in the middle of 1940. He would, however, have almost certainly finished his training by the time the invasion of Russia was launched in 1941.

The parade proceeds across what appears to be the U Soutoku Bridge

in Hradec Králové. This bridge crosses the Labe (Elbe) River. The river is one of the major waterways of central Europe. It rises in the northwestern part of the Czech Republic and then crosses Bohemia and through Germany into the North Sea. The bridge itself is on the inner ring road of the modern day city, to the south-west of the centre. It is close to the main connecting roads to Prague, further to the west. Stukas are deployed on the airfield at Cöniggrätz in this photograph. An unidentified twin-engine bomber can also be seen in the distance. It would appear that the aircraft simply have their factory numbers painted on them, making it difficult to identify the precise aircraft in each case. If this photograph was indeed taken in mid-1940 it would have coincided with the time when fifteen Italian pilots of the Regia Aeronautica were attending an intensive Stuka training course at the school in Graz in Austria. The first batch of fifteen pilots arrived in July 1940, with a second group arriving the following month. Ultimately these pilots would fly in operations against Malta and against Allied shipping in the Mediterranean. The innovative design of the Ju87 had automatic dive brakes under each wing. This was a precautionary measure in order to provide some protection in case the pilot blacked out during an attack dive. The Ju87 was armed with a pair of 37mm cannons and could also carry bombs.

A closer shot can be seen here of one of the Stukas on the airfield. A second Stuka can also be seen behind it, with canvas tarpaulin over the cockpit and part of the engine. Close inspection of this photograph seems to suggest that previous markings on the fuselage have actually been over-painted. Note the condition of the aircraft, particularly on the wing area, where the pilot and gunner would clamber up the wing and into their positions. Judging by the shape of the area around the wheels, this particular aircraft would appear to be a Ju87A (Anton). This was the first production version of the Stuka. It could carry just over 1100lbs of bombs if the rear gunner was not onboard. The landing struts are technically described as trousered. It has a relatively square rudder and a small radiator housing. A handful of these aircraft were used in Spain and their shortcomings, as they were under-powered, would lead to the development of the Ju87B (Bertha). Apart from the three that served with the Condor Legion, none of the other Ju87As actually saw combat. By 1939 they had been relegated to training squadrons, or were part of the arsenal of second line units in Germany itself. It is also believed that the Hungarians used the Ju87 for training purposes. This particular version of the Ju87 had a pair of machineguns in the wings and a third machine-gun that was manned by the navigator/gunner in the rear cockpit. One of the pilots or crew is standing beside a Ju87A here. The aircraft was designated as both a ground attack aircraft and a dive bomber. The Ju87A had its first flight in November 1936 and the last of the 262 aircraft that were constructed was delivered in 1938. It was powered by a Junkers Jumo 2010Da. This was a 680hp water-cooled inverted V12 engine, with a two-stage supercharger. Unloaded it could reach a maximum speed of 199mph, with a range of 620miles. Its dive speed was 279mph.

This is a rather grainy photograph of a portion of the airfield that

appears to be grass and rather rutted. Even the modern day airport has not been greatly developed. It has a 2,400m concrete runway and a secondary grass runway of 800m. Although the Ju87A was vulnerable it was immensely successful. The pull-up system was automatic and made sure that the aircraft recovered from its attack drive even if the pilot was unconscious. The fact that these aircraft are parked on fairly rugged terrain, allowed it to take off and land virtually anywhere. This was invaluable during the early stages of the war when the Ju87, in its role of attacking ground targets, could be moved up as the front developed. It actually had very little defensive armament and, if attacked from behind, it would only be the skills of the gunner in the rear cockpit that would prevent disaster. Nonetheless, the Ju87 is actually credited for the first German air victory of the Second World War. On 1 September 1939 a Polish fighter aircraft fell victim to a Ju87. One of the Stuka crew is in full kit here. He is wearing the one-piece overall, leather gauntlets, helmet with goggles and a sturdy pair of flying boots. Although it is difficult to see, these flying boots probably had zips down the side. They were known as Flieger Pelzt-stiefel. They were made from a combination of leather, rubber and sheepskin. The zips were removed from the design at some point during 1940. The quality of the materials was good at the beginning of the war, but as the war proceeded elements such as the sheepskin deteriorated and scraps were used rather than one piece. The Luftwaffe also used heated boots, which were used in conjunction with electrically heated flying suits. They had wiring and connectors to allow them to be connected to the trousers of the flying suit.

This photograph shows another crewmember, probably a rear gunner, who is wearing a padded flying suit. This looks to be a Luftwaffe early winter flight suit, KW1/33. It was made of a blue/grey fabric and lined with sheepskin. It had wind cuffs, pockets with zippers and buttons down the front made from an early Bakelite material. Some of these had quick release openings on the left torso side. The early winter flight suit was designed for overall protection when operating over land in winter conditions. This type of flight suit was phased out during 1941. A group of pilots and rear gunners are attending the Stuka training school at Koniggratz in this photograph. Many of the pupils have their notebooks and manuals and they appear to be in the midst of instruction regarding parachutes. This would have been worn on the back. German aircrew were first issued with parachutes in 1918. The popular opinion is that members of the Royal Flying Corps were not issued with parachutes, as it was suggested that they would bail out rather than fight if they came into close contact with enemy aircraft.

This group shot, includes some of the trainers on the course. Some of the trainees are carrying their parachutes. The German parachutes were considered to be some of the worst used. They were based on an original Italian design. The Germans produced a series of parachutes that had single straps between the body harness and the parachute itself. This meant that men tended to hit the ground face-down. If, unlike the Fallschirmjager, the aircrew were not wearing pads on their knees and elbows then there would clearly be landing injuries. The parachuting airman would have to roll when he landed. German paratroopers were trained to lean forward when they jumped and control their descent. This still meant that they had to reduce the

amount of equipment that each man could carry. As a result German paratroopers tended to hit the ground armed with just pistols and grenades. The other issue about German parachutes was that they would deploy with such a jolt that many of the men were injured as a result. The idea was that the deployment of the parachute at a lower altitude (approximately 40m) would mean that the crewman would be less helpless floating down on the parachute for an extended period of time. A couple of the Stuka trainees can be seen here looking out of their wooden barrack block window. One is holding a flying hat that contains a kitten. The two men in the photo are wearing their fatigue uniforms. These were known as drillichanzug, effectively fatigue-type overalls. They were made of a strong denim material and, as can be seen in the photograph, were either a white to light grey or a black, or dark blue. They were rather shapeless, buttoned jackets, that had adjustable cuffs and a turndown collar with a single, internal pocket. The trousers were also made of this strong denim material and had two side pockets. The fatigue suit was a very practical set of clothing and was used for general fatigue duties, instruction, training, and cleaning and maintenance duties. The fatigue suit was specifically designed so that it could easily be washed.

The men are readying a Stuka for take-off in this picture. All that can be made out as to the identity or ownership of this aircraft is that it is undoubtedly attached to Sturzkampfgeschwader 77, a Luftwaffe dive bomber wing that was formed in May 1939. The actual unit was based at Breslau-Schongarten in Poland in the summer of 1940. Parts of the unit had been involved in the campaign in the west and elements of it had also been involved in the battle of Britain. They had suffered considerable casualties and on 18 August 1940 part of the unit was involved in an attack on Thorney Island, losing ten Stukas and with a further six damaged. By the spring of 1941 they were involved in the campaigns in the Balkans and were, of course, ready to be launched against Russia in June 1941. This photograph shows a Stuka parked in an interesting location, amongst young fir trees. It is possible, judging by the fact that there is canvas over the right wing, that this aircraft could be undergoing repairs after a possible crash-landing. The aircraft does appear to be relatively intact, however.

A Stuka Ju87B is undergoing an engine overhaul in this photograph. We can clearly see the layout of the engine and the peculiar shape of the aircraft, with its gull wings. The Ju87B had its first flight in August 1938 and was an extremely effective dive bomber. The engine was another water-cooled inverted V12, with 1,100hp. This was the Ju87B1 and an up-powered version, the Ju87B2, had a very similar engine but was 1,200hp. With a full bomb load this aircraft had a range of 373 miles, it could carry a 500kg bomb on its centre line and four 50kg bombs on its wing racks. The wing racks can clearly be seen in this particular photograph. Other versions were used by the Afrika Korps, with long-range strap-on fuel tanks. The Ju87B would see considerable service, particularly on the Eastern Front and would also be used by the Hungarians, Romanians and Slovakians. The ungainly trouser-type design of the landing struts have been replaced with a more aerodynamic shape.

Chapter Four In Flight This rare collection of photographs shows a number of Stukas in flight. No doubt this formation flying was part of the training course that Erich Heine attended, presumably in the summer of 1940. The aircraft featured are Ju87As. These were very rugged aircraft and had metalstressed skin. The pilots considered these aircraft to be easy to handle and very responsive. However. it was not that fast. In order to use the Stuka effectively, without suffering huge losses as a result of enemy fighter action, almost complete air cover was required. The Ju87 was not that capable of protecting itself. Although it had forward firing machine-guns and another machine-gun on a flexible mount in the rear of the cockpit, it was simply too slow to engage in aerial combat. The crew had to learn a great deal about the aircraft in order to be competent. When the aircraft was engaged in a dive bombing attack the pilot would begin to respond when the target disappeared under his left wing root. At that point he would close the engine cooling vents. He would then set the propeller to a course pitch and would also have to open the air brakes and make a left turn into a dive at an angle. The pilots had red lines painted onto the panels of the canopy side of the aircraft. This would enable the pilot to judge whether he had the dive bombing angle correct. He would then also have to judge exactly when to release the bomb. The whole process needed a pilot and a rear gunner who trusted one another entirely. The dive bombing attack must have been terrifying, not just for the target but also for the two crewmembers of the aircraft. The Ju87B was much more of a front line aircraft. Initially they were constructed by Junkers in Dessau but later at the Weser plant, near Berlin. The Ju87B was used extensively during the Polish campaign. There were 322 deployed by the nine Stukagruppen.

This is a view from the cockpit of the Ju87 as it passes over a river, farmland, a village and a heavily wooded area. The Ju87 had proved to be very vulnerable during the Battle of Britain and units had suffered at least a 20 per cent casualty rate. By the middle of August the Stuka was rarely used during this stage of the conflict. Many of those in the Luftwaffe believed that the Stuka was obsolete. Nonetheless the aircraft was used to devastating effect in the following year. On 10 January 1941 Stuka mauled HMS Illustrious in the Mediterranean, a day later they sank HMS Southampton, a Royal Navy cruiser. The Stuka played a significant role during the airborne invasion of Crete in May 1941. They were instrumental in the destruction of HMS Greyhound, HMS Kelley and HMS Kashmir, as well as all destroyers and the cruiser HMS Gloucester. Erich Heine seems to have been involved in raids against the Russians in the summer of 1941. Having blasted the Russian Air Force out of the sky, the Stuka returned to its destructive best. A Ju87A can be seen in this photograph, flying straight and true. The photograph was taken from Erich Heine’s cockpit. On the Eastern Front the Ju87G-1, certainly from 1942, was primarily used for close air support. It would work in conjunction with ground forces and its heavier guns were used to break up enemy armour concentrations. The Ju87G-1 had a pair of 37mm guns, effectively cannons, fitted in under-wing pods. This was part of the process of continually upgrading and up-arming the aircraft. The Ju87D-7 had been a major step towards this, with its 20mm machine-gun cannons mounted in the wings. Also, as would be expected, as the Ju87 was developed the engine was upgraded, giving it a faster air speed, a longer range and also a greater capacity to carry armaments.

This view is from Erich Heine’s position in the cockpit of the Ju87. Stuka pilot Hans-Ulrich Rudel is of sufficient stature to be placed alongside tank killing specialists such as Michael Wittmann. Wittmann was perhaps the most famous and successful tank commander of the entire Second World War. He is best known for his operations in Tiger tanks. In fact between July 1943 and January 1944, on the Eastern Front, he destroyed fifty-six Russian armoured fighting vehicles. As far as the British are concerned it was his actions at Villiers Bocage on 13 June 1944, where he knocked out rows of vehicles belonging to the 7th Armoured Division. His action alone stopped the assault on Caen dead in its tracks. Rudel could be described as being either a Panzer or Stuka ace. He is credited with destroying over 500 Russian vehicles alone. He and his crewmen developed a tank-busting tactic that would prove to be devastating. They realised that attacking the rear of a tank, focusing on the lighter armoured area around the cooling system, made it more vulnerable. No doubt the pilots and Erich himself learned a great deal from the experience of individuals such as Rudel.

This photograph is a close-up of one of the Stukas in flight, as seen across the wing of Erich Heine’s own aircraft. Another very famous Stuka pilot was Paul-Werner Hozzel. He was a lieutenant in 1939 during the Polish campaign and led a group of Ju87s, flying out of East Prussia. Hozzel is credited with breaking the Polish fortification line along the Narwa River. He would also be involved in campaigns in Norway, France, the Battle of Britain, North Africa, Malta and then on to the Eastern Front in late 1941. In 1942 Hozzel took over command of the Immelmann wing, consisting of 200 aircraft. His unit supported the German 6th Army’s assault on Stalingrad in August 1942. He was then involved in trying to break up the major Russian offensives in the central Ukraine area towards the end of the year. His last operational command was supporting German ground forces to the south of Kursk. Hozzel would, therefore, have been in the same theatre of war as Erich Heine. Hozzel, however, would go on to become involved in logistics and staff duties. He ended the war as the chief of staff of the Luftwaffe air fleet, trapped in the Kurland pocket in Latvia.

Two Ju87As can be seen here, flying alongside Erich Heine’s Stuka. It is possible to read the identification marks of the nearest aircraft, BKAQ. When pilots such as Hozzel became operational they operated Ju87Bs. They would have to learn to operate as a team. It was common for the pilot and the gunner to not actually get along with one another. There would often be some switching around until a perfect partner was found. Sometimes the original allocation was perfect and the pair would stick together throughout the war and remain the closest of friends. Just like Erich and his pilot, they would have trained on bombing grounds with target crosses and spotting towers. The training procedure was to approach at around 500m. They would then extend the hydraulic speed brakes, which would make the target move into the bottom window in the cockpit. As soon as the target disappeared the pilot would turn the aircraft into a 70 degree dive. The aircraft would gain speed, but the driving brakes would keep the dive at a relatively steady pace. The target would be kept in the centre of the reflector sight. The pilot would have to make adjustments according to the wind direction and the aircraft’s velocity. On the altimeter there was a red marking arrow. This was set to the local altitude above the mean sea level. The pilot would then know the correct release altitude. When the bomb release button was to be pressed (which was on the control stick) a horn signal would sound. Once the release button was pressed the hydraulic recovery would kick in. This photograph shows the same group of aircraft parked in rows on the grass of the airfield. A standard or inexperienced pilot would probably release the bombs at a height of around 700m. More experienced pilots would be able to continue the dive to 500m. This

would require a great deal of nerve, but would also mean that the accuracy was greater. five hundred metres was thought to be the lowest possible altitude that could be risked in order to ensure that the aircraft could pull out of the dive in time. There were numerous examples of relatively inexperienced Stuka pilots risking lower level dives before pulling out, causing the death of both the pilot and the gunner. No doubt photographs contained in the section on funerals in the photo album attest to this level of attrition.

This is another superb shot from the cockpit by Erich Heine, this time showing at least six Stukas in formation. Initially crews being trained to fly in formation and undertake dive bombing would not use live ammunition. They would begin by dropping cement bombs. The precision was very exacting. They were required to drop the bombs within a 10m circle of the target. The training programme was

rigorous, requiring the crews to dive with and without bombs. The pilots and gunners would also fly in combat flying practice, with the squadron to which they would ultimately be assigned. The whole idea was to make the two crewmen an integral part of their machines. They would routinely train to land on difficult ground and take-off from bumpy airfields. Once the initial training phase was over they would operate with the squadron and be given a number of typical tactical scenarios. This would incorporate a full briefin, covering the target, weather, likely enemy air activity and position of enemy anti-aircraft batteries. The crewmembers would then have to work through the ammunition and bombs that they were carrying, the formation that they would fly, code designations and all of the other aspects, such as the altitude at which they would form up. Another photograph here of Stukas in flight, although this particular photograph is somewhat bleached by the action of the sun. Once the lessons had been learned from the tactical scenarios the crews would be assigned to their squadrons in order to become operational. Hozzel, for example, was involved in his first live combat mission, which began at 0425 on 1 September 1939. It consisted of forty-five Ju87s. They first made for the Vistula Bridge but discovered that the target was obscured by fog. Even though the crews were relatively inexperienced the decision was made to come in low, underneath as much of the fog as possible. One of the first aircraft that came in misjudged the situation and crash-landed into a hill. As the initial attacks got underway visibility began to improve. Meanwhile, three Stukas attacked Dirschan at 0434. Their mission was to stop the Poles from blowing up a railway bridge. The prepared demolition charges were severed from their electrical wires by Stuka dive bombing attacks. Pilots were expected to perform miracles in the Ju87. On 3 May 1940 the Ju87s were sent out into the North Sea to discover the location and then to attack Royal Navy vessels off the coast of Norway. This was an incredible feat as they would have to fly several hundred kilometres over the sea. They had very little chance of survival if the aircraft was damaged or had mechanical problems. The Ju87 was not exactly designed to stay afloat for very long and given its front weight, with the engine, it would sink fairly fast. Also the fixed landing gear would not have helped. Nonetheless, they did discover the Royal Navy vessels and peeled off to begin their attacks. They had to survive a wall of antiaircraft fire. Hozzel, when he made his attack, was barely clear of the target when there was a huge explosion. The target had disappeared under an enormous ball of smoke. After the attack the Ju87s made for the Norwegian coast and had navigational difficulties, but were relatively lucky and managed to return home with only a couple of losses. The members of the group were all awarded the Iron Cross for

their part in this engagement.

According to the photograph album this is a view that Erich Heine took from the window of a Junkers Ju86. This was a monoplane that was originally designed in the early 1930s and had its first flight in 1934. It was provisionally designated as a high-speed airliner but in fact was being considered as a medium bomber for the Luftwaffe. As it transpired, both as a result of tests and of operations in Spain, Ju86 lost out to the Heinkel He III. As a result plans to produce it en masse were reduced. Limited numbers of the aircraft were used for high altitude bombing and photo-reconnaissance. There were numerous variants, many prototypes that never made it into production. Other

versions were designed for export to countries as diverse as Chile and Sweden, or South Africa and Portugal. It was used fairly extensively not only by air forces, but also by civilian operators. The Luftwaffe used the Ju86 also as a transport aircraft. It had seats for ten passengers. The Ju86 was used against Poland in 1939 but was barely used by the Luftwaffe after this point as a bomber, although a number must have continued to be used for transport purposes. A number were later ordered to serve in a photo-reconnaissance role. The Ju86P was withdrawn from service in 1943. There is only one existing Ju86, which is in the Swedish Air Force Museum. This particular aircraft dates from 1938 and remained in service for twenty years. Five Stukas off to the left of Erich Heine’s aircraft are flying in tight formation in this shot. During the campaign in France in 1940 some Stukas were able to operate from a field to the north-west of Paris. The pilots were expected to land and take-off from cultivated fields. From this base they launched assaults on Cherbourg. They dive bombed the fortifications at Cherbourg, allowing ground forces to storm the port and capture it. Similar techniques were also used later in Russia, during the attack on Sevastopol. During the Battle of Britain the Stukas were initially assigned to try and hit RAF fighter aircraft still on the ground. In order to achieve this they had to ensure pinpoint accuracy. In one of the first attacks, on 13 August, the Stukas ran into RAF fighters and found themselves at an enormous disadvantage. Although the Germans had air cover for the Stukas the Stukas were slow and almost like flying bombs; extremely vulnerable and if hit it would certainly mean the crew would be killed. The only means of defence, even after the bombs had been dropped, was to try to escape in a tight formation with the combined fire power of the gunners trying to fend the British fighters off.

This is a final shot from the cockpit, showing seven other Stukas over the Bohemian countryside. When the Germans attacked Russia in 1941 the Russians had superiority in aircraft, so it would have been expected that the Stukas would come under enormous pressure and, as such, would be vulnerable. Despite this, after huge losses in the opening stages of the war against the Germans, the Russians seemed reluctant to commit their aircraft. For a time the worst that the Stukas had to face was anti-aircraft batteries. It is significant that in 1943 the last major German attempts to go on the offensive in Russia took place. The Germans had assembled around 1,700 aircraft. The Russians knew what damage they were capable of doing and launched bomber attacks to try to destroy as many German aircraft on the ground as possible.

After this last major German operation failed, for the majority of the rest of the war the Germans were on the defensive. The Stukas were, therefore, used to try to eliminate the possibility of Russian tank breakthroughs. It was in this period, after 1943, that Erich Heine was shot down somewhere over central Ukraine. The suggestion is that the date was 21 August.

Chapter Five Snow and Ice This group of photographs may well have been taken over the winter of 1940 to 1941, although, of course, they may have been taken a year later. The selection shows that the Stukas were perfectly capable of operating in even the most extreme conditions. Providing the aircraft had a relatively clear surface to take-off and land it was possible for the Stuka with its fixed landing gear to land in even the most difficult conditions. If the conditions of the first winter in the east were bad enough, once the Stukas had been committed to Russia in 1941 they would face one of the harshest sequences of winters for many years. Regardless of the prevailing weather, the cold and the snow, they would have to continue to support ground units. It is likely that Erich Heine was one of those involved in the push to support the 6th Army in its attack towards Stalingrad in August 1942. What we do know is that when Heine was lost in the north-east of Lutsk in the Western Ukraine on 21 August 1943 he was serving with the III Group of Sturzkampfgeschwader 77. They had been created from elements of the second group of the unit in July 1940. They were equipped with Ju87Bs until the spring of 1943. At this stage they were issued with Ju87Ds. From May 1941, or perhaps earlier, the group was stationed on the Eastern Front. At around the time that Erich Heine was lost his group could muster thirty-two Ju87s, of which just over half were fully operational. The first commander of III Group was Helmut Bode. He commanded the unit between July 1940 and August 1942. Georg Jakob took over in August 1942, remaining with the unit until the beginning of December. The unit did not receive a new commander until 1 January 1943. Franz Kieslich remained with the unit until the middle of October 1943.

This is a photograph of Erich Heine showing off what is presumably his newly-won Iron Cross. Unfortunately, although extensive searches have taken place we are not able to ascertain precisely when he received this award, nor the circumstances that led to him being given the Iron Cross. It was, however, the case that as a result of some successful air missions all pilots and crews who had accomplished their task under extreme conditions were given a wholesale award of the Iron Cross for their contribution. It is also presumed that this photograph was taken shortly after the award ceremony, as Erich is in his best uniform rather than standard fatigues or flying gear. The German build up, both on land and in the air, was massive before the invasion of Russia in 1941. As the Germans advanced into Russia the supply lines became more and more precarious. For the most part in this early stage of the war against Russia the sorties flown by Stukas tended to focus on support of ground units and the destruction of Soviet supply units and routes. Stukas operating at that time had a wide variety of different potential ammunition mixes. They would use either 250kg or 500kg bombs, some with tank-busting heads. They would also drop 250kg flammbombs, which were an early version of napalm. They could also carry a number of 50kg bombs, along with the usual machine-gun ammunition. As a rule Ju87s operating at this time would only carry a single 250kg or 500kg bomb beneath the fuselage and four 50kg bombs, two beneath each wing.

A Stuka is sitting in the snow in this photograph. The pilot appears to be warming up the aircraft prior to take-off. This one is a Ju87B, judging by the shape of the landing gear. The aircraft had a wingspan of 13.8m; its overall length was just over 11m with a height of 3.9m. It was a highly efficient dive bomber. The test flights for this variant began in the summer of 1937. After the decision to go ahead with production was approved the production rate was around sixty aircraft per month. The propeller driven sirens, although intended to intimidate, actually increased the drag and reduced the aircraft’s speed. As a result the sirens or whistles were attached instead to the bombs. There was also a long-range version produced, known as the Ju87R. It had an additional oil tank, which allowed it to have a pair of under-wing drop tanks. Again there were variations even for this; the Ju87R2, for example, had a strengthened air frame but was slower and had a lower service ceiling.

This photograph features a pair of parked Stukas, with ground crew apparently signalling. Conditions on the Eastern Front began to deteriorate towards the end of November 1941. Although there was still no snow, the assault on Moscow was beginning to slow. All of a sudden the weather turned for the worse; the churned mud froze and it was almost impossible to move on the roads. The German aircraft, including the Stuka units, were operating on open fields, which were now covered in ice. The preheating units for the aircraft’s engines had fallen way behind the advance and now could not move up. The fighting capacity of the Stuka units began to decline, as they ran out of spare parts or became unable to get the aircraft running. Sometimes the ground crew had to resort to heating up the engines over open fires. They were also forced to fly in Stuka parts in Ju52s. By comparison the Russians, perfectly aware of the harsh conditions of their own winter, carefully kept their aircraft in heated hangars. Despite this the Russian Air Force was largely uncommitted. The Stuka units were perilously short of ammunition, parts and fuel. Even when the Ju87s did get up into the sky the snow-covered ground and heavy skies made it incredibly difficult to fly. They could communicate with a ground station via a radio phone, but this was their only means of communication. A Stuka crewman is tracing a perilous path across the snow and ice towards his aircraft in this shot. During the poor weather conditions in Russia the only real alternative was to follow visible landmarks on the ground, such as railway lines. It was not uncommon if the Stukas failed to find this navigational aid and they would become lost. Snow flurries could cause the aircraft to get irretrievably lost. The winter of

1941/1942 was one of the coldest in recorded history. It was an incredibly lucky situation for the Russians, as it effectively stopped the Germans in their tracks, who were completely caught out by the appalling conditions. The weather finally began to improve slightly by January 1942, although still incredibly bad. Stuka attacks were brought in via radio phone by front-line air liaison officers. They were short sorties, particularly when Russians began to launch counterattacks and Stukas were used to try and hold off the armoured spearheads. The Stukas would take-off, attack, land, load and attack again. In some cases Russian troops had broken through to the very edges of the airfields that the Stukas were using.

This is a photograph of the inside of a Luftwaffe radio or communications truck. The Luftwaffe used a wide range of different communication methods. They used IFF (International Friend or Foe) and RDF (Radio Direction Finding). The Stukas themselves had to rely on radio phones (FuG7). These were relatively compact receivers and transmitters. The main problem with them was that they had only a range of some 50km, but that was in good weather conditions. The Germans used a wide variety of types of radio truck too, among which was the Opel Blitz, essentially a radio van, or the Einheits-Diesel with a MAN 80hp engine. Around 12,000 of these vehicles were produced and were also known as the KFZ68, although this was a generic term for various antennae trucks, including French ones made by Citroën or the Krupp Protz, which was also designated as a radio mast carrier. To use its correct term the radio truck with its closed superstructure was known as a funkmastkraftwagen (radio mast motor vehicle). This photograph is labelled in the photo album as showing a Luftwaffe individual by the name of Skoda in his full winter flying gear. These

were electrically heated winter flying suits. The winter weight onepiece flying jacket and trousers originally had high linins. They would have dark brown or black inner fleece collars. Essentially they were derived from the standard flying suit, which had large trouser pockets to the front, primarily to stow survival equipment. There was also a pocket on the right hip for a flare pistol. This particular example was designated KW1/33. They were in fact beginning to be phased out by 1941. They were fairly heavy to wear and, as can be seen in the photograph, the individual was bundled up, particularly as he has his parachute harness fitted around his chest and upper legs.

This photograph is labelled as showing the group of aircrew preparing to use an Arado AR68, presumably as part of their training programme. The Arado AR68 was designed by Walter Blume, who was a German First World War fighter ace and later an aircraft designer. He was highly decorated during the First World War, winning the Iron Cross and the Blue Max with his twenty-eight victories. The AR68 had its first flight in 1934 and was introduced in 1936. However, its life span as a fighter aircraft, as it was a single-seat bi-plane, was shortlived. It was effectively retired from front-line service as early as 1940. Essentially it was replaced by the Me109. The last known combat mission for the AR68 was as a night fighter over the winter of 1939 to 1940. Nonetheless, it remained a useful trainer. It had an open cockpit and forward firing guns and probably it was very useful for Stuka pilots, as like the Ju87 it had fixed landing gear. One of the aircrew is featured in this photograph. He is completely covered from head to foot, with his padded flying boots, winter furlined flying suit, face mask, goggles and flying helmet. No doubt if we could see his hands we would see thick gloves, or gauntlets. Officially this type of flight suit would be called Fliegerschutzanzug fur winter (land). The leather and suede boots were extremely popular and heated versions were produced to wear alongside the heated flying suits. The boots had wiring and connectors that allowed them to be connected to the trousers. Whilst bomber crews would tend to wear gauntlets, the pilots themselves would prefer thinner leather gloves so that they could more easily handle the controls. The individual in this photograph has a leather flying helmet and what appears to be Model 295 goggles. These types of flying helmets had been introduced in 1940.

This is a close-up of the top of the flying jacket, along with the flying helmet and goggles. On active service the aircrew would also have hard, leather holsters. They would usually carry Walters pistols, although it was not especially common for Luftwaffe aircrew to carry them on the Western Front, but it was certainly common on the Eastern Front.When wearing the winter flying suit it would have been impossible to retrieve the pistol from a holster attached to a belt. They would, therefore, have tended to have slipped the holster and the side arm into one of the pockets of the flying suit. Pilots and aircrew were issued with a huge variety of handguns from different sources. Many of these weapons were captured pistols, but some chose to carry their own personal side arms. The key was that Walters and Mauser HScs were small and flat; after all they did not want anything too bulky. The aircrew would also be required to have with them a Luftwaffe fliegerleuchtpistole L. This was a flare gun. The pistol was activated by pushing a release lever just under the trigger guard. This released lugs, that would then allow the pistol to be cocked. Many of these were double-barrelled. Although in the photo album this aircraft is identified as an Araldo AR68, it is more likely that this is an Araldo AR69 trainer. This was

brought into service in 1936 and examples still remained in 1945. This was only ever produced in small numbers and was specifically designed as a trainer. Although the aircraft has open cockpits, elements of the layout are not dis-similar to the Stuka. However, the most important thing was to help ensure that the pilot and his rear gunner could operate as a team, in unison, jointly sharing responsibilities.

In the photograph album this aircraft is identified as a Focke Wulf 58. It was codenamed Weihe, or Harrier. It was originally designed to be an advanced training aircraft and as such was ideal for Stuka crews. The aircraft was also used for a wide variety of other tasks including weather research, as an ambulance and as a general personnel transporter. It was powered by a pair of eight cylinder, air-cooled engines and had a maximum speed of 242km/h, with a range of 800km. Compared to the Stuka, it was a relatively large aircraft, with a length

of 14m, a wing span of 21m and a height of 4.3m. It had a single machine-gun in the nose and a second, as can be seen in the photograph, in the dorsal position. The only surviving Fw58 is in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. It was built under license in Brazil in around 1941. The Fw58 was an ideal trainer, as it had space for an instructor and pupil, primarily for machine-gun and bomb-aiming training. It also had two side-by-side seats for flying training.

Chapter Six Funerals Clearly the loss of each aircraft would mean the loss of a trained or at least partially-trained crew. One of the many reasons that the Luftwaffe became increasingly ineffective during the course of the war was a failure to train significant numbers of quality pilots and crews. The Luftwaffe tended to focus on short-term requirements and significantly failed to have a steady stream of new aircrew. At the same time they also failed to re-train experienced aircrews to use new aircraft. When the war began in September 1939 the Luftwaffe fell into the easy trap of believing that the war would be relatively short-lived. They did not overly concern themselves with training significant numbers of replacement pilots and crew. This led to a lack of sufficient training squadrons and a distinct lack of instructors. The failure to have sufficient training aircraft was a major problem. There were large numbers of non-combat aircraft available at the beginning of the war. In fact 57 per cent were front line aircraft and 43 per cent were noncombat aircraft. By the end of 1943 and into the beginning of 1944 this ratio had completely changed. Combat aircraft now comprised of 88 per cent of the Luftwaffe aircraft and just 12 per cent were noncombat aircraft. Systematically, to deal with short-term aircraft shortages, training squadrons were stripped of their aircraft. There was also the major problem of having insufficient aviation fuel to afford to allow crews to carry on training. This batch of photographs features the funerals of Stuka pilots and gunners. Some of them were presumably lost during training exercises, whilst others were lost in aerial combat. The stark fact for German aircrew was that they were never rotated in and out of combat. The US, for example, would take out experienced aircrew after they had achieved a mission target (in terms of number of missions) or achieved a certain level of kills. For German aircrew their end of a combat tour would only come as a result of their being killed, wounded to a sufficient extent that they needed convalescence, or capture by the enemy. As the war continued, due to the training deficiencies, the Germans were capable of producing sufficient aircraft, but each new pilot or aircrew was inexperienced to the extent

that they never remained alive long enough to make good combat losses. Even though German aircraft factories were efficient and still capable of producing huge numbers of aircraft, also late into the war they had seriously fallen behind the Allies. To put this into perspective, in 1944 the US alone produced 100,000 aircraft, whilst Germany managed to produce 11,000.

This first photograph of the section was taken in Czechoslovakia and shows six Luftwaffe personnel carrying the coffin of one of their fallen comrades. On the Eastern Front, even though the Luftwaffe was spectacularly successful at the beginning of operations in June 1941, they lacked the ability to carry out long-range bombing. This meant that the Luftwaffe could not strike against Russian aircraft factories further east. Even if they could have done so in a limited way the aircraft could not carry a sufficient bomb load to wreck the production facilities. After the initial attempts to clear the skies of Russian aircraft the Luftwaffe switched its role somewhat to that of close air support and intercepting incoming streams of Russian aircraft. They were also responsible for trying to stop the Russian troops from falling back. As time went on the attrition on the Luftwaffe began to bite. It is likely that even had Erich Heine not completed his full training he would have been drafted into a front-line unit very early on in his Luftwaffe career. To deal with the shortage of at least partially-trained crew training programmes were cut short. In addition to this were all the logistical nightmares of having to support Luftwaffe units that had outstripped their supply lines. Luftwaffe personnel are marching as part of the procession during the

funeral ceremony. By the end of 1941 Luftwaffe operational aircraft had dropped to an all time low in the east. Less than a third of bombers were available and only just over half of all fighters. By the middle of 1942 the Russians were beginning to produce high volume, higher quality aircraft, whilst the Luftwaffe struggled to maintain its established front-line strength. On the Eastern Front, by spring 1942, the Germans could probably muster around 2,700 aircraft. Production at home was increasing, but it still meant that they could not keep pace with losses. In the Crimea in May 1942, during the attacks on Sevastopol, the Luftwaffe was flying around 1,000 sorties each day. This was an incredible feat given the fact that most Luftwaffe aircraft were operating in the most primitive of circumstances. They were taking off and landing on hastily prepared airstrips. At this stage of the war just to keep pace with losses the Luftwaffe in the east needed a minimum of 250 new aircraft every month. Clearly a number of these losses had also meant the loss of the crew.

The signage in the background left of this photograph confirms that this is Czechoslovakia. In this photograph we can see that the Luftwaffe personnel in the foreground, carrying the coffin and the floral tributes, are wearing helmets. In the early stages of Luftwaffe’s existence they actually wore First World War period helmets, such as the M1917 and the M1918. Usually these would be reserved for ceremonial events such as funerals or military training. The likelihood is that these men are wearing M1935 helmets, which were essentially exactly the same as the ones that were issued to the army. On the left side of the helmet there was a German eagle carrying a swastika and on the right the national emblem in black, white and red. These helmets would have had a blue/grey paint finish. There are various types of eagle; the first helmets had what is known as a droop-tailed eagle. The second pattern, which this one appears to be, first appeared in 1937 and is a decal with a lacquer finish.

The coffin of one of the aircrew is seen here, with floral tributes, in front of what appears to be an outside altar. Some of the officers and non-commissioned officers of the Luftwaffe were allowed to buy themselves lightweight aluminium or even a plastic-type parade helmet. These were entirely designed for parade purposes only and not to be worn in combat. There were a number of different designs, which largely related to the shape of the peak or the neck area, as well as the positioning of the holes and rivets.

A pair of coffins is shown here, presumably of a pilot and gunner, in front of an impromptu altar, and complete with candlesticks. The altar is in front of a German battle flag. This was essentially the German war ensign, which was a replacement German battle flag that was introduced when Hitler and his party took power. The stripes in the upper right-hand corner, which used to appear on the German Imperial flag, were replaced by a single Iron Cross. Previously the flag had a white field but now it was red. Most significant was the replacement of the Prussian eagle with the swastika. The guard of honour stands beside the two coffins in front of the altar here. This altar is located outside a church in Hradec Králové. Although it is difficult to tell, this is likely to be the Church of St Antony the Hermit (Antonina Poustevnika). It is situated in Hradec Králové’s St Wenceslaus Square. The church was built by the famous Czech architect and builder, Francis Kermer (1710-1786) and dates back to 1769 to 1772. It is in the Baroque style and is, of course, a Roman Catholic Church.

The coffins are flanked by the honour guard in this photograph and they have been transferred to a Luftwaffe truck. One of the most dangerous parts of the flying courses was the blind flying sessions. Prospective bomber pilots were expected to undertake a six-week course. There were three types of certificate that a pilot could achieve upon completion of the course. If they received a first class certificate they were deemed capable of being instructors. A level two would qualify them to fly in any weather. The third type of certificate was just given out to those who had not achieved first or second class certificates. Understandably, the losses, or at least potential losses during blind flying courses were high, as were those when the pilots

were expected to fly in formation. A good example is that a student fighter pilot would be expected to follow his instructor’s aircraft at a distance of less than 100m. He would have to follow swiftly, copying every turn. He would also be expected to fly for around twenty-hours in formation. One class of sixty in 1940 suffered a nearly 50 per cent casualty rate when twenty-seven of the pilots were killed during training. In the same group two other pilots’ nerves were so shot by the experience that they were not considered for further flying training. It would appear from the next batch of photographs in this section that after a ceremony in the city the coffins were conveyed to the nearest rail head for shipment back to Germany. The standard Luftwaffe parade dress was a grey/blue. The open blouse and plain trousers matched. Underneath, a white shirt and a black tie would be worn. All ranks wore the Luftwaffe badge, with its stylised eagle holding a swastika. Pilot or observer badges were worn underneath the left breast pocket. An individual’s air force branch would be seen on the shoulder strap and collar patches. Non-commissioned officers and men would also have piping on their caps and on the edges of their jacket collars. Men from the flying branch would have yellow, flak would have red, signals would have brown, air ministry would have black, engineers pink, reservists light blue, air police green, general staff carmine and members of the Göring regiment would have white.

In the photograph album this shot is labelled with the caption ‘the commander, Oberst Baier. The badges and shoulder straps designate rank. Baier is not immediately obvious as a commander of Stab III Sturzkampfgeschwader. There were three named commanders of this unit. The first was Hauptmann Helmuth Bode, who was in command of the unit from the beginning of July 1940 to the end of August 1942. He was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross on 10 November 1941. After serving with the unit he went on to act as a liaison officer with the Bulgarians and was captured by the Allies re-enrolled in the post-war West German Air Force. Bode died in 1985. The second commander, Hauptmann Georg Jakob, was in charge of the unit between the end of August and the beginning of December 1942. He was a recipient of the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. He won this whilst he was an oberleutnant with Stab II of the unit on 27 April 1942. The Americans captured him in May 1945, but he was swiftly released. He died at the age of seventy six in 1991. The final commander was Hauptmann Franz Kieslich. He was in charge of the unit between 1 January 1943 and the middle of October the same year. He too was a Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves recipient. Like Jakob he flew over 1,000 missions. He actually won the Oak Leaves on 10 October 1944 when he was serving with Stab III of the Schlachtgeschwader 77. This is a shot of a Luftwaffe band followed by marching Luftwaffe personnel, with their rifles. The photograph is part of the funeral ceremony and they are marching through a cobbled street in Koniggratz. The most famous Luftwaffe music was played by the Musikkorps. The new look Luftwaffe marching bands were a far cry from the traditional Prussian-style marches. Not all Luftwaffe units had

their own band; a small band was allowed for particular garrisons and regimental headquarters. There was no standardised structure. The Herman Göring Regimental Band at the beginning of the war had between sixty and seventy musicians. The Reich’s Air Ministry Band mustered over fifty and a typical regimental-sized band had forty. Bands attached to air bases had around thirty musicians. Luftwaffe band members were excused normal duties until there was an order on 25 March 1944, which restricted the band sizes to twenty-eight. It was also ordered that there should only be one band for each division and all the other bands were disbanded. The men were then brought into normal units and expected to carry out regular duties. The branch colour on the collar tab was silver for band members, usually on a yellow or rust coloured background.

This photograph shows the last stages of transferring the coffins onto transport back to Germany. As the war developed in the east it became increasingly difficult for the repatriation of Luftwaffe casualties to be shipped back to Germany. Equally, the Luftwaffe had grown from just over 400,000 in 1939 to a peak of 1.7 million during 1942 and 1943. The total number of men that served in the Luftwaffe is estimated at something in excess of 3.4 million. The total Luftwaffe casualties during the war were believed to be approaching half a million and this included 165 that were killed in action. Although these figures are high, they are only one-tenth of that lost by the German army over the same period. The honour guard are marching through the main street of Koniggratz in this photograph. After relatively low casualty rates in Poland, Norway, France and the Balkans the German armed forces began to lose massive numbers of men in the east. In the period 1941 to the end of November 1944 an estimated 1.4 million Germans were killed on the Eastern Front. In contrast, in the period from D-Day to the end of November 1944 just over 66,000 Germans were killed in the west.

In the photo album this particular shot is labelled as showing Oberleutnant Gunther taking the salute, as the coffins are loaded onto the train for repatriation back to Germany. A contemporary of Erich Heine was as fortunate as he was to survive training and active duty. At the time Rudolf Singler was an non-commissioned officer. He had won his flying instructor’s award and acted as a courier pilot during the campaign against Poland. He served with Stab II and joined them in April 1940. This was sufficiently early enough to be involved in attacks on the BEF around Dunkirk and Calais and operations during the battle of Britain. His unit was sent to Romania. He too was involved in the war against Russia and operated around Kharkov for a time. He was first shot down on 5 February 1942, after flak hit the engine of his Stuka. He was lucky enough to escape with only minor injuries. He was captured on 1 May 1945 and was released at the end of April 1947. Singler flew 966 missions and was awarded the Iron Cross First Class, amongst other decorations.

Chapter Seven Leave This final section of Erich Heine’s photo collection contains a selection thats appears to have been taken at a Luftwaffe hospital. The later ones seem to have been at a training camp. The third group show, celebrations over the Christmas and New Year period 1941 to 1942. The final group illustrates a tour taken on leave, as well as encompassing some of the major sites around Koniggratz. By contemporary standards the members of the Luftwaffe were not especially well paid. A serviceman of equivalent rank in the US Air Force was paid on average three to four times as much as their equivalent in the Luftwaffe. The Luftwaffe had a very strict system of pilot training, which began to break down to some extent as the war continued. This was as a direct result of the need to replace pilots and trained aircrew at a far faster rate. Initially pilots and aircrew would be split into either bomber or fighter schools. Bomber aircrew would then be assigned to bomber duties or reconnaissance. In the case of reconnaissance they would attend a specialist school, undertake operational training and then be involved in reserve training with an operational unit. Bomber pilots would attend a combat flier school then they would follow a similar path, with operational training and reserve training with an operational unit. The Germans began the war with a relatively large glider pilot reserve. Hitler Youth were trained in glider groups at many of the airfields. Glider certificates were much sought after and this would be the way in to pilot training with the Luftwaffe. The Luftwaffe was also especially good at recruiting mechanics. Trainee mechanics were given specialised training, paid for by the government. They would carry out the training alongside operational units. Theoretically, a German fliegerkorps consisted of eighty-one aircraft. Each of these was divided up into units of twenty-seven. However, this could mean that all three units of twenty-seven could be bombers, or transports, or fighters, or some mixture of all three types. The basic unit of eighty-one aircraft would usually operate from up to nine airfields. At the smallest level was the staffel, essentially the German equivalent to a squadron. These could be scattered across several airfields.

This is a group of injured pilots and aircrew. It would certainly appear that the man in the centre front of the photograph is an amputee. The Germans set up their first main Luftwaffe hospital in Vienna on 1 February 1940. By 1943 they had sixty hospitals scattered across Germany. There was an additional eighty-five in occupied countries. The German hospitals could cope with around 32,000 casualties, but they had the ability to set up another 36,000 in temporary hospitals. The hospitals located in occupied countries could handle another 110,000 men. Typically, a Luftwaffe hospital would have 500 beds with a complement of officers, non-commissioned officers, other ranks, nurses and civilians. The total personnel to handle the 500 potential patients was 232 people. It does not appear that there was a Luftwaffe hospital in Koniggratz and the nearest was located in Prague. There was also a number in nearby Poland and, of course, with Austria close by there were several others. It is not known where this photograph was actually taken. The hospital in Prague had 500 beds, but there was another in Brno with a branch at Neuleskau with a total of 700 beds.

A rudimentary shower at training camp is featured in this photograph. This photograph was almost certainly taken fairly early on in Erich Heine’s career. When Göring took over the Luftwaffe in 1935 he was determined to create a force that was capable of fending for itself in almost any type of theatre. As a result he created luftflotten (air fleets). Erich’s unit was designated as a dive bomber formation but in fact he was part of a much larger force, which undoubtedly consisted of not only ground attack aircraft and dive bombers, but also fighters, bombers, reconnaissance aircraft and transports. These in turn were supported by flak units to protect either fixed or temporary airfields, signals and a host of logistical units. Each of these luftflotten could operate on its own or be part of a larger fliegerkorps (air corps).

Erich Heine is emerging from an air raid shelter in civilian clothes in this shot. Features such as this would have been constructed by an administrative organisation called a luftgau (air district). These were responsible for training, purchasing, repair, maintenance and supply, fuel and organising the infrastructure around main bases and airfields. Particularly on the Eastern Front the Luftwaffe had to be extremely flexible. When there were breakthrough opportunities earlier on in the war against Russia hundreds of aircraft would be shifted hundreds of miles. The luftgau would have to continue to support them. This became even more critical when the Russians launched their huge counter offensives. The luftgau would have to transform fields or shattered Russian airfields into viable airfields that could enable the aircraft to continue to fly combat sorties. The first of a batch of photographs can be seen here. They are labelled as showing the celebrations over the festive period of 1941 and the New Year of 1942. This was a time when the Germans had tasted their first failure. They had not been able to take Moscow, nor had they really broken the Russians. As recently as 2010, a clutch of colour photographs was uncovered, showing Hitler and other key German officials celebrating Christmas 1941 in Munich. Instead of having a

traditional angel or fairy at the top of the tree there was a swastika and instead of Christmas tree baubles there were Iron Crosses and other Germanic symbols. These photographs were taken by Hugo Jaeger who later sold them to Life magazine in America.

Many of the pilots and crew in this photograph look particularly glum. Goebbels made a speech on Christmas Eve 1941. He did not make a great deal of mention about the progress of the war, but rather tried to focus on the eventual victory. He promised a prosperous Germany in the post-war period but emphasised the importance of the war against Russia and the continuing struggles in North Africa. What was particularly significant about Christmas 1941 was that Britain was no longer standing alone against Germany. The Japanese had only recently bombed Pearl Harbor and, with it, they brought the United

States into the war. Germany had declared war on them as part of their agreement with Japan. The Luftwaffe’s gaze was certainly towards the east in Russia and no doubt the men in this photograph were already serving on the Eastern Front, or would soon be posted there. This is another photograph of the men enjoying beer, cigarettes and cigars in their barracks over the festive period. By comparison to Goebbels, Winston Churchill was in fact with Franklin D Roosevelt in Washington DC on Christmas Eve 1941. Churchill urged the British to temporarily forget the war and have a night of peace. After his speech Churchill returned to talks with Roosevelt in order to co-ordinate the plans to defeat Hitler’s Germany and then the Japanese.

The young Luftwaffe men are posing for the camera here. Some of the expressions betray what must have been their own uncertainty about the future. In Roosevelt’s Christmas address he had pledged the efforts of the United States to overwhelm the enemy. On 1 Januar 1942 twenty-six governments, led by Britain, the United States, Russia and China, agreed to the Declaration by United Nations. All of the signatories agreed that they would not seek a separate peace with either Germany or Japan and that they affirmed complete victory over them, thus establishing the concept of unconditional surrender. Although the Germans were not necessarily to know it at the time, they would have barely three-and-a-half years before total defeat.

Beer bottles and spirits are lined up in this photograph. On the top of the wardrobes we can see some German gas mask canisters. This was a standard piece of equipment, which was worn by all servicemen as a result of the impact of gas attacks during the First World War. There were various patterns of gas mask and these appear to be the longer model case versions, which were brought in during 1938. In actual fact there were at least five different types of gas mask case, the first of which was introduced in 1930 and was around 26cm high, with a diameter of 12cm. Each of the gas mask canisters was stamped and dated. A second model was introduced in 1935 and was 25cm high and

12cm in diameter. It had a new closing system, lacked a middle bracket and had a reinforcement ring. The shorter version came in during 1936 and this had a spring-loaded latch. The gas mask was worn over the small of the back. It was attached to a shoulder strap that had a pair of metal eyes near the lid. There was a shorter strap, with a hook, that attached to a metal eye at the bottom of the case. It was supposed to be worn horizontally. This is a sign that has been attached to the front of a civilian car. Roughly translated, it says ‘big men’s game’ and is the first of three shots that show the Luftwaffe pilots and crew in civilian clothes enjoying their leave together. The rest of the sign appears to say ‘southern German broadcasting corporation branch’, so this may have been a state-sponsored event. Radio was used as a propaganda tool in wartime Germany. It was a key part of the German propaganda message to give greater access to the speeches. A series of affordable radio sets, known as people’s radios, were produced. As early as July 1932 advertisements had been banned on the radio and most of the commercial regional stations had been nationalised. Programmes were censored and very nationalistic. It was controlled by the Reich Broadcasting Corporation as a monopoly. Ideologically unacceptable music was banned and the staple diet was propaganda, heavily-edited news, German music and classical music.

The men are lined up in a variety of civilian clothing and fancy dress costumes. This photograph appears to have been taken in the barracks area with the bus behind them. The German economy was prepared to some extent for the potential rationing and other deprivations that war would bring. On 1 September 1939 rationing came in for sugar, jam, butter, milk, cheese, fat and meat. This was extended during September to bread and eggs. Clothing was also rationed in October 1939 to reduce the demand for textiles. There was a gradual refocusing of nutrition during the course of the war. The infamous Ersatz coffee, made from acorns and barley, all but replaced the coffee bean. The quality of foodstuffs also deteriorated; jam was now made from turnips and cakes used potatoes. Tighter rationing came in during 1942 with limited amounts of foodstuffs being shipped from Eastern Europe to feed Germany. There was virtually no production of consumer goods, as the whole of German industry was focused on the war effort.

A bottle of wine or spirits can be seen slung onto the back of one of the men boarding the bus here. There was still an enormous demand for recreation, even as Germany, certainly by 1942, was coming under continuous attack by Allied bombers. At Berlin’s Olympic stadium on 20 September 1942 as many as 100,000 people attended a football game, which saw the Swedes beat the German national team 3-2. Although at this early stage of the war these men would not have been under immediate threat from the enemy by air, either in Germany or the occupied territories, as the war drew on events such as this would have been very difficult. There was wholesale evacuation of cities, even basic foodstuffs could only be obtained on the black market and newspapers and magazines only appeared on special occasions. All non-essential businesses and shops were closed by the middle of 1944. By this stage almost the entire able-bodied male population of greater Germany were serving in the military or in the police.

This is a photograph taken in the summer months, probably in the Stadtpark in Koniggratz. We can clearly see the calf-length jack boot, or marschstiefel, which were marching boots. Essentially they were very similar to those that had been worn in the First World War. They were brown and made from pebbled leather. They acquired their look by being blackened with successive layers of polish. The boots had heel irons and hobnails on the leather soles. As can be seen in this photograph, the trousers were tucked inside the jack boot. In order to save on leather the jack boots were shortened by 3cm to 4cm in 1939. By 1940, as a result of the lack of leather, only combat units were issued with the jack boot. In fact by 1941 the jack boot was not being issued to new recruits at all but instead they were issued with ankle boots, or schnűrschuhe. By 1943 this trend had cut across the majority of the German armed services. However, even towards the end of 1944 there were still jack boots available, but these tended to be only issued to infantry units or artillerymen. Erich Heine and the other individual are seen here standing in the Stadtpark in Koniggratz. The other man is simply identified as Gehring in the photo album. The Luftwaffe was issued with a standard M43 field cap, as can be seen in the photograph. It was made of field blue wool, it had a Luftwaffe eagle and cockade, which was machine

embroidered. This was precisely the same type of field cap or einheitsfeldműtze that was worn by the army and members of the Waffen SS. The notable difference was the number of buttons on the back and some variations in the flaps. Members of the Panzerkorps also wore a similar field cap, which was made from black wool. The type of cap is still worn by modern-day members of the German army, particularly mountain units.

This is the first of four photographs taken of Koniggratz. The photograph is entitled ‘sights of Koniggratz’ in the album. This particular photograph shows the River Elbe, which flows through the city, which is now in the northern area of the Czech Republic. The famous battle that took place there in July 1866 between the Prussians and the Austrians is considered to be one of the first modern battles. For the first time breach-loading rifles, rifle cannons and the telegraph as a means of communication were used in European warfare. Modern day Koniggratz, or Hradec Králové, is best-known for the manufacturing of electronics, chemicals for the photographic industry and food processing. The airfield that was being used at the time this photograph was taken had formerly been a training school for the Czech Air Force. After occupying this part of Czechoslovakia it became a signals training centre. This is labelled as being the elektrizitazwerk, a hydro-electric system over the Labe River. This system was originally designed in the period 1910 to 1912, but was completed after the First World War. It was fully-reconstructed in 1996. The plant was still in operation until the late 1920s and was extensively dismantled in the 1950s. However it was saved and is not only still in use, but also has considerable engineering heritage. The plant itself was originally illuminated with 139 spotlights.

Incredibly, there is still an open air swimming pool at Flosna, where this photograph was taken. The photograph is labelled ‘artificial wave pool’ in Erich’s album. In far more dangerous times for the Germans than this peaceful photograph taken in the early stages of the war, the Czechs were as keen as the Russians to ensure that any Germans, even slightly suspected of carrying out war atrocities, would be dealt with in a summary way. An individual from the 31 st SS Volunteer Grenadier Division had been taken prisoner by armed Czech civilians. The Germans had taken the precaution of tearing off their insignia. They had recently passed by the outdoor swimming pool featured in this photograph, having crossed the Czech frontier on 8 May 1945. The following day the Germans destroyed all their equipment and tipped it into the open air swimming pool. They found themselves amongst

thousands of refugees and displaced persons, along with many other servicemen. They put on Wehrmacht uniforms and all of them were determined not to be caught. Some, in fear of falling into Czech hands, went off into the woods and committed suicide. This is a view from the Stadtpark in Koniggratz. What we can see is the rear of the town hall and white tower to the left, and then to the right are two of the spires of the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit. The cathedral dates back to medieval times and has a slender, gothic appearance. It is still today one of the key landmarks of the city. The Hussite leader, Jan Zizka, was temporarily buried in the cathedral and it was significantly modified in the late nineteenth century, with the towers being renovated in 1901. The white tower, which can also be seen in Erich’s photograph, is in fact free-standing and was originally called the new tower. Its foundations were put down in 1509 but it was not completed until eighty years later. These two buildings look out over the central square. Much of the old town today is pedestrianised and the buildings have been renovated so that they appear as they would have been intended to look when they were first constructed. The architecture is predominantly nineteenth and early twenteth century. The rest of the town hall is a white building with two additional towers. It was built in the sixteenth century and then rebuilt in 1850.

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