Eagles of the Third Reich: Men of the Luftwaffe in WWII (Stackpole Military History Series) (68 page)

CHAPTER 7: THE BALKANS CAMPAIGN

  
1
. Peter Young,
World War, 1939–45
(New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1966), p. 94 (hereafter cited as “Young”).

  
2
. Robert Goralski,
World War II Almanac, 1931–1945
(New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1981), pp. 136–41 (hereafter cited as “Goralski”).

  
3
. Ibid, p. 145.

  
4
. I. S. O. Playfair,
The Mediterranean and the Middle East
,
Volume II:
The Germans Come to the Aid of Their Ally
(London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, 1960), p. 85 (hereafter cited as “Playfair II”).

  
5
. Bekker, pp. 229–30.

  
6
. United States Department of the Army, “The German Campaigns in the Balkans (Spring, 1941),”
United States Department of the Army Pamphlet 20-260
(Washington, D.C.: Military Historical Division, 1953), pp. 20–24 (hereafter cited as “DA Pam 20–260”), p. 50.

  
7
. Ibid, p. 49; Cooper, p. 197.

  
8
. DA Pam 20-260, p. 50.

  
9
. Playfair II, p. 81.

10
. DA Pam 20-260, p. 80.

11
. Ibid, pp. 81–91.

12
. Playfair II, p. 96.

13
. Ibid.

14
. DA Pam 20-260, pp. 105–7.

15
. Karl Gundelach, “The Battle for Crete, 1941,” in H. A. Jacobsen and J. Rowder,
Decisive Battles of World War II: The German View
(New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1965), p. 102 (hereafter cited as “Gundelach”); DA Pam 20-260, pp. 107–9.

16
. Playfair II, p. 105.

17
. DA Pam 20-260, pp. 118–20.

18
. Ibid, p. 124; Gundelach, p. 117. Cooper (p. 199) put XI Air Corps’ strength at 700 Ju-52s and 80 gliders.

19
. Fourth Air Fleet, “The Invasion of Crete,” Luftwaffe report dated 28 November 1941. Translated by the British Air Ministry, 1947, and on file at the Air University Archives (hereafter cited as “Fourth Air Fleet Report, ‘Crete’”).

20
. DA Pam 20-260, p. 124.

21
. Fourth Air Fleet Report, “Crete.”

22
. Cooper, p. 199.

23
. Edwards, p. 83.

24
. Gundelach, pp. 111–16.

25
. Gundelach, pp. 117 and 120–21.

26
. Edwards, pp. 91–93.

27
. Gundelach, pp. 124–25; Edwards, p. 95; Bekker, pp. 270–76.

28
. Bekker, p. 276.

29
. Ibid, pp. 278–80.

30
. Ibid, pp. 280–82.

31
. Ibid, p. 282.

32
. Ibid, pp. 282–83.

33
. DA Pam 20-260, p. 141.

34
. Bekker, p. 548.

35
. Gundelach, p. 130.

36
. Da Pam 20-260, p. 141.

37
. Gundelach, pp. 130–31.

38
. Gen. Off.s, GAF.

CHAPTER 8: RUSSIA, 1941: THE LAST BLITZKRIEG

  
1
. Nicholas Bethell and the editors of Time-Life Books,
Russia Besieged
,
World War II series, Volume 6 (Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books, 1980), pp. 22–23 (hereafter cited as “Bethell et al”).

  
2
. Goralski, pp. 123–25.

  
3
. Adolf Hitler,
Mein Kampf
(Munich: Verlag Frz. Eher Nachf., 1925; reprint ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1971), pp. 641–47.

  
4
. Murray, pp. 70–71.

  
5
. United States Department of the Army, “The German Campaign in Russia—Planning and Operations (1940–42),”
United States Department of the Army Pamphlet 20-261a
(Washington, D.C.: United States Department of the Army, 1955), p. 22 (hereafter cited as “DA Pam 20-261a”).

  
6
. Suchenwirth MS “Command.”

  
7
. Plocher MS 1941.

  
8
. Kesselring, p. 93.

  
9
. Irving,
Milch
,
pp. 116–17.

10
. Suchenwirth MS “Command.”

11
. Ibid.

12
. Irving,
Milch
,
p. 121.

13
. DA Pam 20-261a, p. 37.

14
. Hermann Plocher, “The German Air Force Versus Russia, 1943,”
United States Air Force Historical Studies Number 155
,
United States Air Force Historical Division, Aerospace Studies Institute (Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama: Air University, 1965) (hereafter cited as “Plocher MS 1943”); Suchenwirth MS “Devel opment of the GAF”; Cooper, p. 27; Richard Brett-Smith,
Hitler’s Generals
(Novato, California: Presidio Press, 1977), p. 129 (hereafter cited as “Brett-Smith”).

15
. Brett-Smith, p. 130. First Air Division was upgraded to I Air Corps in the winter of 1939–40.

16
. “Stellenbesetzung Hoeherer Kommandeuer der Luftwaffe” (Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama: Air University Archives) (hereafter cited as “Stellenbesetzung”); Plocher MS 1941.

17
. Plocher MS 1941.

18
. Stellenbesetzung; Plocher MS 1941. Pflugbeil died in Russian captivity on May 31, 1955.

19
. Stellenbesetzung; Plocher MS 1941.

20
. Plocher MS 1941.

21
. DA Pam 20-261a, p. 42.

22
. R. J. Overy,
The Air War, 1939–45
(Briarcliff Manor, New York: Stein and Day, 1980), p. 62 (hereafter cited as “Overy”).

23
. Plocher MS 1941.

24
. Overy, p. 62.

25
. DA Pam 20-261a, p. 42.

26
. Werner Baumbach,
The Life and Death of the Luftwaffe
(New York: Coward-McCann, 1960; reprint ed., New York: Ballantine Books, 1972), p. 136 (hereafter cited as “Baumbach”).

27
. Cooper, p. 223.

28
. Hermann Plocher, “The German Air Force Versus Russia, 1942,”
United States Air Force Historical Studies Number 154
,
United States Air Force Historical Division, Aerospace Studies Institute (Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama: Air University, 1965) (hereafter cited as “Plocher MS 1942”).

29
. Brett-Smith, p. 137.

30
. Bekker, p. 552.

31
. Plocher MS 1941.

32
. Ibid.

33
. Cooper, p. 223; Plocher MS 1941.

34
. Goralski, p. 164.

35
. Cooper, p. 222.

36
. Albert Seaton,
The Battle for Moscow
(Briarcliff Manor, New York: Stein and Day, 1971; reprint edition, New York: Playboy Press Paperbacks, 1980), p. 39 (hereafter cited as “Seaton, Moscow”); Plocher MS 1941.

37
. Guderian, p. 134.

38
. Plocher MS 1941.

39
. Ibid.

40
. Ibid.

41
. Brett-Smith, p. 141.

42
. Stellenbesetzung.

43
. Plocher MS 1941.

44
. Frau von Richthofen, the widow of the baron, never consented to have her husband’s diary published in full because of the many derogatory personal references Richthofen made in it about people with whom he dealt. Lieutenant General Plocher read it and found it disappointing, as it dealt mainly with personalities and was gossipy, and it did not yield any insights into Richthofen’s military operations (Harry R. Fletcher, personal communication: December 19, 1984).

45
. Plocher MS 1941.

46
. Figures on this battle differ slightly. DA Pam 20-261a (p. 44) puts the Russian losses at 290,000 men, 2,500 tanks, and 1,400 guns captured. Lucas placed the Soviet losses at 324,000 men, but agrees with the DA pamphlet on the number of tanks and guns destroyed or captured. Seaton (p. 125) also quotes the German estimates placing Soviet losses at twenty-two rifle divisions and the equivalent of seven tank divisions and six mechanized brigades. The 3rd and 10th and the bulk of the 13th Soviet armies were destroyed, along with elements of the 4th and 11th armies. See James Lucas,
War on the Eastern Front, 1941–45
(Briar-cliff Manor, New York: Stein and Day, 1979; reprint ed., New York: Bonanza Books, 1979), p. 176 (hereafter cited as “Lucas”).

47
. Plocher MS 1941.

48
. Lucas, p. 176; Seaton, p. 130.

49
. Plocher MS 1941.

50
. Ibid.

51
. Franz Halder,
The Private War Journal of Generaloberst Franz Halder, Chief of Staff of the Supreme Command of the German Army, 14 Aug 39–24 Sep 42
(Washington, D.C.: Department of the Army, Office of the Chief of Military History, 1950), July 13, 1941 (hereafter cited as “Halder Diary”).

52
. Plocher MS 1941; Cooper, p. 227.

53
. Plocher MS 1941.