Sturzkampfgeschwader 77

Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 from October 18, 1943, Schlachtgeschwader 77
Squadron badge of the Schlachtgeschwader 77 from mid-1941
active	May 1, 1939 to May 8, 1945
Country	German Empire
Armed forces	Wehrmacht
Armed forces	air force
Branch of service	Air force
Type	Battle squadron
structure	Squadron staff and 3 groups
Installation site	I. Group Brieg II. Group Wroclaw
Aircraft type	Ju 87 Fw 190
Squadron commodors
First commodore	Colonel Günter Schwartzkopff

The Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 (StG 77) was a squadron of the German Air Force during World War II . The squadron identification was S2. On October 18, 1943, as part of an organizational change, it was renamed Schlachtgeschwader 77 (SG 77) . The squadron was used under this name until the unconditional surrender of the Wehrmacht on May 8, 1945.

Mission history

The Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 was formed in early May 1939 with initially two groups from various other groups. It was first used with both groups during the attack on Poland . Groups I and II then flew from the Cologne-Butzweilerhof and Aachen-Merzbrück airfields in the western campaign as part of the 8th Air Corps . During the ensuing Battle of Britain the entire squadron was in the Caen area in the places in Guise , Carillon , Flers and Maltot . After further air raids on southern England, the squadron took part in the Balkan campaign from spring 1941 . Subsequently relocated to the Eastern Front in the course of Operation Barbarossa , it flew numerous missions as part of Army Group Center in the II Air Corps . One of the first attacks was carried out on June 22, 1941 at 3:33 a.m. against the border fortress of Brest . Subordinated to the 8th Air Corps in 1942 , further deployments followed in the Battle of Sevastopol . On July 15, 1942, the squadron reported its 30,000 enemy flight. In 1943 there were further missions in the area of Air Fleet 4 in southern Russia. The squadron with its three groups took part in Operation Citadel from July 5, 1943 . Assigned to the 8th Air Corps under Luftflotte 4 , they supported the southern attack wedge in the ultimately failed attack in the direction of Kursk . On October 18, 1943, the squadron was renamed Schlachtgeschwader 77 . At the same time, the Panzerjägerstaffel of Sturzkampfgeschwader 1 temporarily joined the squadron as 10th (Pz) / SG 77, but was spun off again on January 27, 1944. From June 1944 the squadron was converted to Fw 190 . As early as May 1, 1944, the squadron had recorded its 100,000 enemy flight. At the end of the war it was still on the Eastern Front, but due to its far western location it was practically used in the defense of the Reich.

Commodore

Commanders ( commodors ) of the squadron were:

Rank	Surname	date
Colonel	Günter Schwartzkopff	June 1, 1939 to May 14, 1940
major	Clemens Graf von Schönborn-Wiesentheid	May 15, 1940 to July 20, 1942
major	Alfons Orthofer	July 25, 1942 to October 12, 1942
major	Walter Rudolf Enneccerus	October 13, 1942 to February 20, 1943
Colonel	Helmut Bruck	February 20, 1943 to February 15, 1945
Lieutenant colonel	Manfred Moessinger	February 16, 1945 to May 8, 1945

structure

A Ju 87 squadron of Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 flying in formation.

I. group

The history of the I. Group began as early as 1936. First set up as I. Group of Sturzkampfgeschwader 162 and renamed as I. Group in Sturzkampfgeschwader 165 in June 1936 , followed on May 1, 1939, the renaming as I. Group of Sturzkampfgeschwader 51 to them finally on May 15, 1939 to I. Group of Sturzkampfgeschwader 77. From October 18, 1943 it was renamed I. Gruppe / Schlachtgeschwader 77 .

Commanders

Rank	Surname	date
Captain	Werner Junck	1936
major	Günter Schwartzkopff	June 1936 to September 15, 1937
major	Oskar Dinort	September 16, 1937 to January 30, 1939
major	Karl Freiherr von Dalwigk zu Lichtenfels	February 1, 1939 to July 9, 1940
First lieutenant	Helmut Bruck	July 10, 1940 to July 25, 1940
Captain	Wilhelm Meisel	July 26, 1940 to August 18, 1940
Captain	Helmut Bruck	August 20, 1940 to February 19, 1943
major	Karl Henze	February 20, 1943 to November 14, 1944
Captain	Hans-Joachim Brand	November 15, 1944 to April 18, 1945
Captain	Egon Stoll-Berberich	April 19, 1945 to May 8, 1945

II group

The history of Group II also began early. Set up in Schweinfurt in 1937 from the II. Group of Sturzkampfgeschwader 165 , it was named II. Gruppe / Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 on May 1, 1939 . On December 28th she was named III. Group / Battle Squadron 10 outsourced. At the same time, the previous I. Group of Battle Wing 1 was incorporated as the new II Group.

Commanders

Rank	Surname	date
Captain	Count of Schönborn	June 1, 1939 to May 15, 1940
Captain	Waldemar Plewig	May 15, 1940 to August 8, 1940
Captain	Alfons Orthofer	August 15, 1940 to June 27, 1942
major	Kurt Hahn	July 1, 1942 to April 1, 1943
Captain	Helmut Leicht	April 1, 1943 to October 18, 1943
Captain	Alexander glasses	February 1944 to May 8, 1945

III. group

The III. Group of the Schlachtgeschwaders 77 was formed on July 9, 1940 from the previous II. Group of the Kampfgeschwader 76 . From October 18, 1943, it was now called III. Group in the battle wing 77 led.

Commanders

Rank	Surname	date
Captain	Helmut Bode	July 9, 1940 to August 25, 1942
Captain	Georg Jakob	August 26, 1942 to December 1, 1942
Captain	Franz Kieslich	December 1, 1942 to February 19, 1945
Captain	Gerhard Stüdemann	February 20, 1945 to May 8, 1945

literature

• Georg Brütting : Those were the German Stuka aces. 1939-1945. 4th edition. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1984, ISBN 3-87943-433-6 , pp. 269-271.

Web links

Commons : Sturzkampfgeschwader 77  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Gottfried Hamacher : "On June 22, 1941 at 3:33 am he flew the first attack on the Soviet Union, the target was the Brest fortress."
2. ↑ Military History Research Office (ed.): The German Reich and the Second World War . Volume 8: Karl-Heinz Frieser (Ed.): The Eastern Front 1943/44. The war in the east and on the secondary fronts. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt , Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-421-06235-2 , p. 91.