Herbert Kutscha
Herbert Kutscha | |
---|---|
Born | JG 27 | 24 April 1917
Battles/wars | See battles
|
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Herbert Kutscha (24 April 1917 – 19 September 2003 ) was a
Career
Kutscha was born on 24 April 1917 in Ratibor, present-day Racibórz in southern Poland, at the time in the Province of Silesia of the Kingdom of Prussia.[1] He began his military career as an Unteroffizier within 5. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing). He claimed his first victory during the "Phoney War" by shooting down a Royal Air Force (RAF) Vickers Wellington bomber on 14 December 1939. The bombers from No. 99 Squadron were on a mission to attack the Kriegsmarine cruisers Nürnberg and Leipzig which were returning to port after they were hit by torpedoes fired from the Royal Navy submarine HMS Salmon the day before.[2][3][4] This was followed by a Lockheed Hudson on 24 February 1940. In March 1940, Kutscha was transferred to 5./Zerstörergeschwader 1. With this unit he took part in the campaign in the West. This unit was changed to 8./ZG 1 on 26 June 1940. With this unit he participated in Battle of Britain. The unit was finally transformed on 24 April 1941 to Schnellkampfgeschwader 210. With this unit Kutscha entered the war on the Eastern Front and received the German Cross in Gold (Deutsches Kreuz in Gold) on 14 February 1942 and Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 24 September 1942.[5]
With Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet"
In 1943, the Luftwaffe planned to expand the authorized strength of every Jagdgeschwader from three to four Gruppen. On 1 June 1943,
Defense of the Reich
On 24 September, VI. Gruppe was ordered back to Germany, where the unit was initially based at Neubiberg Airfield again.
On 24 February 1944, during
With Jagdgeschwader 27 and 11
Kutscha did not convert to the Me 262, he was transferred to
On 23 February 1945, he was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of the III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 11 (JG 11—11th Fighter Wing), succeeding Oberleutnant Paul-Heinrich Dähne, who was transferred.[22]
Kutscha flew more than 900 missions. He was credited with 47 victories in air combat—44 of which were on the Western Front (at least six were four-engine bombers)—plus at least 44 aircraft destroyed on the ground. He successfully targeted dozens of different objectives, including 41 tanks, 15 locomotives, 11 artillery positions, and 157 vehicles.[1] Kutscha died 19 September 2003 in Kempten at the age of 86.[23]
Summary of career
Aerial victory claims
According to Obermaier, Kutscha was credited with 47 aerial victories claimed in over 900 combat missions. This figure includes 18 claims on the Eastern Front, and 29 on the Western Front, including six four-engine bombers.[1] Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and state that he claimed at least 39 aerial victories, potentially 45 claims. He claimed approximately 18 aerial victories on the Eastern Front, and 21 on the Western Front which includes six four-engine bombers.[24]
Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 14 Ost 51331". The Luftwaffe grid map (Jägermeldenetz) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15
Chronicle of aerial victories | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
This along with the * (asterisk) indicates an Herausschuss (separation shot)—a severely damaged heavy bomber forced to separate from his combat box which was counted as an aerial victory.
This and the ? (question mark) indicates information discrepancies listed by Cull, Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike, Bock, Mathews and Foreman.
| |||||||||
Claim | Date | Time | Type | Location | Claim | Date | Time | Type | Location |
– 5. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 77 –[5] "Phoney War" — 1 September 1939 – 6 April 1940 | |||||||||
1 | 14 December 1939 | 15:50 | Wellington | north of Wangerooge[26] | 2?[Note 1] | 24 February 1940 | 09:11 | Hudson | 40 km (25 mi) north of Ameland[26] |
– 5. Staffel of Zerstörergeschwader 1 –[5] Battle of France — May 1940 | |||||||||
10 May 1940 | —
|
Douglas | vicinity of Ypenburg | 10 May 1940 | —
|
Douglas | vicinity of Ypenburg | ||
– 8. Staffel of Zerstörergeschwader 76 –[5] Battle of France — June 1940 | |||||||||
4 June 1940?[Note 2] | —
|
Bf 109 | vicinity of Boécourt[27] | ||||||
– 5. Staffel of Schnellkampfgeschwader 210 –[5] Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 5 December 1941 | |||||||||
30 June 1941 | 04:15 | I-15 | Buschow airfield | 6 October 1941 | 07:50 | R-5 | |||
26 July 1941 | 19:45 | MiG-1 | Roslavl | ||||||
– 6. Staffel of Zerstörergeschwader 1 –[5] Eastern Front — June – July 1942 | |||||||||
30 June 1942 | 15:10 | Il-2 | 26 July 1942 | 16:21 | I-153 | ||||
– II. Gruppe of Zerstörergeschwader 1 –[5] Eastern Front — August 1942 | |||||||||
9 August 1942 | 15:52 | I-153 | 23 | 30 August 1942 | 13:22 | I-16 | |||
– 12. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –[24] Mediterranean Theater — 1 July – 28 September 1943 | |||||||||
25 | 12 July 1943 | 11:12 | Spitfire | 30 km (19 mi) south of Licata[28] | 29 | 25 August 1943 | 10:50 | B-17 | PQ 14 Ost 51331[28] vicinity of Naples |
26 | 16 August 1943 | 12:51 | B-24 | 5 km (3.1 mi) south of San Matteo[28] | 30 | 28 August 1943 | 15:55 | P-38 | PQ 14 Ost 31223[28] |
27 | 19 August 1943 | 12:37 | B-17 | south of Punta Licosa[28] | 31 | 30 August 1943 | 12:20 | P-38 | PQ 14 Ost 31273[28] vicinity of Ischia |
28 | 20 August 1943 | 13:28 | P-38 | PQ 14 Ost 41273[28] | 32 | 9 September 1943 | 13:55 | B-24 | PQ 14 Ost 5138[29] vicinity of Calabria |
– 12. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –[30] Defense of the Reich — October 1943 – 24 February 1944 | |||||||||
33 | 19 December 1943 | 11:52 | B-24 | southeast of Innsbruck[31] | 35?[Note 1] | 10 February 1944 | 11:00 | B-17[13] | Zwolle/Hardenberg |
34 | 31 January 1944 | 15:20 | P-38[13] | 36 | 21 February 1944 | 14:35 | B-17*[13] | vicinity of Holzminden | |
– 15. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 27 –[30] Defense of the Reich — 15–17 December 1944 | |||||||||
39 | 17 December 1944 | 11:02 | P-47 | east of Malmedy[32] | |||||
– Stab II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 27 –[30] Defense of the Reich — 17 December 1944 – 20 January 1945 | |||||||||
40 | 25 December 1944 | 11:57 | P-51 | west of Nürburgring[33] | 41 | 25 December 1944 | 12:00 | P-51 | west of Nürburgring[33] |
Awards
- Iron Cross (1939)
- 2nd Class
- 1st Class
- Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe in Gold with Pennant "500"
- Wound Badge in Black (25 December 1944)
- Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe on 3 November 1941 as Oberfeldwebel and pilot[34]
- German Cross in Gold on 14 February 1942 as Oberfeldwebel in the 5./Kampfgeschwader 210 (S)[35]
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 24 September 1942 as Leutnant of the Reserves and pilot in the II./Schnellkampfgeschwader 210[36][Note 3]
Notes
References
Citations
- ^ a b c Obermaier 1989, p. 152.
- ^ Rohwer 2005, pp. 10–11.
- ^ Weal 1996, p. 12.
- ^ Prien 1992, pp. 118, 122.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 709.
- ^ Prien 1996, p. 1.
- ^ Prien 1996, pp. 4–5.
- ^ Prien 1996, pp. 6–7.
- ^ Prien 1996, p. 42.
- ^ Prien 1996, p. 43.
- ^ a b Prien 1996, p. 44.
- ^ Prien 1996, pp. 46–47.
- ^ a b c d Prien 1996, p. 354.
- ^ Prien 1996, pp. 71, 337.
- ^ Prien & Stemmer 2003, p. 277.
- ^ Prien & Stemmer 2003, pp. 278, 328.
- ^ Prien & Stemmer 2003, p. 293.
- ^ Prien, Rodeike & Stemmer 1995, p. 454.
- ^ Prien, Rodeike & Stemmer 1997, p. 488.
- ^ Prien, Rodeike & Stemmer 1997, p. 489.
- ^ Prien, Rodeike & Stemmer 1997, pp. 548, 566.
- ^ Prien & Rodeike 1996, p. 1617.
- ^ a b Scherzer 2007, p. 488.
- ^ a b c Mathews & Foreman 2015, pp. 709–710.
- ^ Planquadrat.
- ^ a b Prien et al. 2001, p. 474.
- ^ Cull 2013, Chapter IV, Another Separate Little War.
- ^ a b c d e f g Prien et al. 2010, p. 136.
- ^ Prien et al. 2010, p. 137.
- ^ a b c Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 710.
- ^ Prien et al. 2008, p. 342.
- ^ Prien, Rodeike & Stemmer 1995, p. 470.
- ^ a b Prien, Rodeike & Stemmer 1997, p. 566.
- ^ Patzwall 2008, p. 130.
- ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 265.
- ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 281.
Bibliography
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- ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
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