Air fleet 2
|
Air fleet 2 |
|
|---|---|
| active | February 1, 1939 to September 27, 1944 |
| Country |
.svg){kind=small} German Empire
|
| Armed forces | Wehrmacht |
| Armed forces |
 air force
|
| Type | Higher command authority |
| structure | see subordinate associations |
| commander | |
| Commander | see under leadership |
The Luftflotte 2 (Lfl. 2) was an air fleet of the Luftwaffe of the Wehrmacht , established on February 1, 1939 , which was used in the Second World War and existed until September 1944.
history
The Luftflotte 2 emerged on February 1, 1939 from the Luftwaffe Group Command 2 formed in February 1938 with headquarters in Braunschweig and was responsible for northwest Germany. During the western campaign , she supported the operations of Army Group B through the Netherlands, Belgium and northern France. It was from these areas that it operated against targets in southern England during the Battle of Britain , headquartered in Brussels , before being relocated to the east in preparation for the attack on the Soviet Union . She was responsible for air support in Army Group Center and for the air raids on Moscow . In mid-November 1941 the order was issued to relocate the air fleet, including the II Fliegerkorps, to the Mediterranean area. Their commander, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring , was also given the title of Commander-in-Chief South. He moved into his new headquarters in Frascati near Rome . The air fleet was the supreme command of all air force units in the Mediterranean area until 1943. The headquarters of Air Fleet 2 was relocated to Malcesine in 1943 , then to Abano Terme , Salsomaggiore and back to Malcesine until it was dissolved in September 1944. The tasks of Air Fleet 2 were taken over by the commanding general of the German Air Force in Italy .
guide
Standard of the Commander in Chief of an Air Fleet
| Commander in chief | from | to |
|---|---|---|
| General der Flieger Hellmuth Felmy | February 1, 1939 | January 12, 1940 |
| Field Marshal Albert Kesselring | January 12, 1940 | June 12, 1943 |
| Field Marshal General Wolfram von Richthofen | June 26, 1943 | September 1944 |
| Chief of the General Staff | from | to |
|---|---|---|
| Colonel Heinz-Hellmuth von Wühlisch | February 1, 1939 | September 30, 1939 |
| Colonel Josef Kammhuber | October 1, 1939 | December 19, 1939 |
| Major General Wilhelm Speidel | December 19, 1939 | January 30, 1940 |
| Colonel Gerhard Bassenge | January 30, 1940 | July 31, 1940 |
| Major General Wilhelm Speidel | August 1, 1940 | October 9, 1940 |
| Colonel Hans Seidemann | October 10, 1940 | August 11, 1942 |
| Major General Paul Deichmann | August 25, 1942 | June 25, 1943 |
| Colonel Thorsten Christ | June 25, 1943 | September 30, 1943 |
| Lieutenant General Ernst Müller | October 1, 1943 | August 31, 1944 |
Subordinate associations
|
September 1, 1939 (Northwest Germany) |
directly subordinated | 1. (F) / 122, 2. (F) / 122, Westa 36 |
|---|---|---|
| 3rd Air Division | I./KG 54 ; II./KG 28 ; I./KG 25 | |
| 4th Air Division | I. and II./KG 55 ; I./KG 26 | |
| Luftgau Command XI | II./JG 77; II. (J) / 186 (T); I. and III./ZG 26 | |
| Luftgau Command VI | I., II. And 10./JG 26; 11./LG 2; I./JG 52 ; II./ZG 26 | |
| Air Defense Command 3 | ||
| Air Defense Command 4 | ||
| Air Defense Command 6 | ||
|
June 1940 ( western campaign ) |
directly subordinated | 2. (F) / 122; 3. (F) / 122; 4. (F) / 122; Westa 26 |
| Air Corps z. b. V. 2 | I., II. And III./KG 4 ; I., II. And III./KG 54; ASt. ZbV | |
| IV. Air Corps | I., II. And III./LG 1 ; I., II. And III./KG 30 ; I., II. And III./KG 27 ; 1. (F) / 121 | |
| VIII. Air Corps | I., II. And III./KG 77 ; I. and III./StG 2 ; I./StG 76 ; I. and III./StG 77 ; IV. (St) / LG 1; II. (S) / LG 2 ; I./JG 27 ; I./JG 1 , I./JG 21; 2. (F) / 123 | |
| Fighter pilot 2 | I. and III./ZG 26; I. and II./ZG 1; I., II. And III./JG 26; III./JG 3; I./JG 20; I./JG 51 ; II./JG 27 | |
| Fighter pilot "German Bight" | II. (J) / 186; I. (J) / LG 2; II. And IV./JG 2 | |
|
August 1940 ( Battle of Britain ) |
I. Air Corps | I., II. And III./KG 1 ; I., II. And III./KG 76 ; I., II. And III./KG 77; Teaching staff; 5. (F) / 122; 3rd (H) / 32, 4th (H) / 32 |
| II. Air Corps | I., II. And III./KG 2 ; I., II. And III./KG 3 ; I., II. And III./KG 53; II./StG 1, IV. (St) / LG 1; Testing group 210; AGr. (H) / 30 | |
| 9th Air Division | I., II. And III./KG 4; I./KG 40 ; KGr 100 , KGr 126; 3. (F) / 122 | |
| Fighter pilot 2 | I., II. And III./JG 3; I., II. And III./JG 26; I., II. And III./JG 51 ; I., II. And III./JG 52; I., II. And III./JG 54 ; I., II. And III./ZG 26 | |
| Night hunting division | I., II. And III./NJG 1 | |
|
June 1941 ( German-Soviet War ) |
directly subordinated | 2. (F) / 122; Wekusta 26; I. and III./JG 53, ErgJGr. 51 |
| II. Air Corps | 1. (F) / 122, KGr. z. b. V. 102 ; I. and II./SKG 210 ; I., II. And III./KG 3; I., II. And III./KG 53 ; I., II. And III./StG 77; I., II., III. and IV./JG 51 | |
| VIII. Air Corps | 2. (F) / 11, KGr. z. b. V. 1; I., II. And III./KG 2; II. And III./StG 1; I. and III. StG 2, II./LG 2, 10./LG 2; I. and II./ZG 26, ErgGr. 26; II. And III./JG 27, II./JG 52 | |
| I. Flak Corps | Anti-aircraft regiment 101; Flak Regiment 104 | |
|
June 28, 1942 (Mediterranean region) |
directly subordinated | A.Gr. 122; Wekusta 26; IV./KG 54 |
| Commanding general of the German Air Force in Italy | ||
| II. Air Corps | I./KG 54; II./JG 53 ; I./NJG 2 ; Kü.Fl.Gr. 606; Kü.Fl.Gr. 806; Result / Tax Act 3 | |
| X. Air Corps | I. and II./LG 1; A.Gr. 126; II./KG 100; 2. (F) / 123; Crete Hunting Command | |
| Pilot Africa | I., II. And III./StG 3 ; I., II. And III./JG 27; III./JG 53; 10. (Jabo) / JG 27; 10. (Jabo) / JG 53; 12./LG 1; Desert Emergency Relay 1; Luftgaustab z. b. V. Africa | |
| Air transport leader Mediterranean | III. and IV./KG z. b. V. 1 ; I./LLG; Maritime Transport Squadron 222; KGr. z. b. V. 400 ; KGr. z. b. V. 600; KGr. z. b. V. 800 | |
| Maritime Emergency Service Leader 2 | Distress Area Command X; Distress Area Command XI | |
| Luftgau Command Southeast | ||
|
February 1943 (Mediterranean area) |
Commanding general of the German Air Force in Italy | |
| II. Air Corps | ||
| X. Air Corps | ||
| Pilot Africa | ||
| Air Corps Tunis | ||
| Air Force Command Southeast | ||
| 2nd Air Division | ||
| 19th Flak Division | ||
| 20th Flak Division | ||
|
February 1944 (Mediterranean area) |
Commanding general of the German Air Force in Italy | |
| Pilot 2 | ||
| Fighter pilot Northern Italy | ||
| 17th Flak Brigade | ||
| Field air district command XXVIII |
See also
- Schematic war organization of the Wehrmacht on May 10, 1940
- Schematic war organization of the Wehrmacht on June 22, 1941
literature
- Georg Tessin : Associations and troops of the German Wehrmacht and Waffen SS in World War II 1939–1945. Volume 14. The Land Forces. Name associations. The air force. Flying bandages. Flak deployment in the Reich 1943–1945 . Biblio-Verlag, Bissendorf 1980, ISBN 3-7648-1111-0 .
Web links
- German Luftflotten 2,3, & 5 (English; PDF; 73 kB), LD & E / Command and General Staff College, August 13, 1940
- German Luftflotten 2,3, & 5 (English; PDF; 80 kB), LD & E / Command and General Staff College, September 14, 1940
- German Luftflotte 1939–1945 (18 pages) (PDF; 154 kB)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bernhard R. Kroener : The German Reich and the Second World War , Volume 5/1, dva, Stuttgart 1988, ISBN 3-421-06232-3 , p. 718.
- ↑ Ulf Balke: The aerial warfare in Europe 1939-1941 . Bechtermünz Verlag, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-86047-591-6 , p. 401-405 (1057 pp.).
- ↑ Ulf Balke: The aerial warfare in Europe 1939-1941 . Bechtermünz Verlag, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-86047-591-6 , p. 408-413 (1057 pp.).
- ↑ Ulf Balke: The aerial warfare in Europe 1939-1941 . Bechtermünz Verlag, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-86047-591-6 , p. 416-419 (1057 pp.).
- ^ Leo Niehorster : German Airforce, Order of Battle 2nd Air Fleet 28 June 1942 , accessed on May 5, 2015.
- ↑ a b German Luftflotte 1939–1945 (PDF; 154 kB), pp. 3–4.
Remarks
- ↑ Dismissed due to the Mechelen incident .