Operational history of the Dornier Do 17
Do 17 | |
---|---|
A formation of Dornier Do 17Zs, circa 1940 | |
Role | Reconnaissance-bomber |
National origin | Nazi Germany |
First flight | Autumn 1934[1] |
Variants | Dornier 215
|
Luftwaffe service
The first Dornier Kampfgeschwader
In late 1936, the Do 17 E-1 began to be mass-produced. The first Luftwaffe units to receive the bomber were Kampfgeschwader 153 (KG 153), and KG 155. Aufklärungsgruppe (F)/122, a reconnaissance unit, began converting to the Do 17 F-1. In early 1937, KG 255 was formed, also to be equipped with the Do 17 E-1.[2] According to the Generalquartiermeister der Luftwaffe, 479 Do 17s were on strength. Some 100 more had been lost in crashes or sent to Spain.[3] On 12 March 1938, Do 17Es of KG 155 dropped pro-Nazi leaflets on Vienna, as a prelude to the city's occupation during the German Anschluss operation.[4] KG 153 received its first Do 17 E-1s on 20 September 1938 as part of a mass re-equipment program (note the significance of the date).[5] The unit was redesignated KG 3 on 1 May 1939.[6] KG 155 converted on to the type in early 1938. KG 252 was also equipped with the Do 17M, at this time to meet the threat of the Sudeten Crisis. By December 1938, it had 26 Do 17s and 17 crews. On 1 May 1939, the Kampfgeschwader was redesignated Kampfgeschwader 2.[7]
Spanish Civil War
The Do 17's baptism of fire came during the Spanish Civil War (1936–39), where it outpaced most enemy fighters and performed well. The Spanish nicknamed the Dornier the Bacalao ("Codfish"). In early 1937, mass production began on the Do 17E and Do 17F series. The Do 17 F-1 was to replace the Heinkel He 70 as a high-flying fast reconnaissance aircraft, while the Do 17 E-1 was to supplant the Legion Condor's aging Heinkel He 111B bomber.[8] However, more modern Soviet-supplied Republican aircraft were capable of intercepting the E and F variants, which prompted an upgrade of the Dornier's defensive armament.
Among the units committed to Franco's cause was Hauptmann Rudolf Freiherr Von Moreau's 4.K/88. On 6 January 1937, it was decided by Erhard Milch, Albert Kesselring and
Polish Campaign
A series of new models introduced the new enlarged nose, greatly increasing defensive firepower, finally settling on the Z models, which were widely available by 1939. During the first phase of World War II, the Do 17, along with the He 111, formed the backbone of the Luftwaffe's Kampfgruppen. From 1939 to 1940, four of the Luftwaffe's bomber groups, KG 2,
During the campaign, Do 17s of I./KG 2 took part in the
Norwegian Campaign
The only Do 17 unit known to have taken part in the
Western Europe
The first German aircraft shot down over France during the war was a Dornier Do 17P of 2(F)123, brought down by
On 10 May the Dornier units, Kampfgeschwader 2, KG 3 and KG 4, were under the command of
Battle of Britain
During the Polish campaign, the Do 17Z could use its 427 km/h (265 mph) maximum speed to stay away from most enemy fighters, and its light armament was effective. It also fought with success during the Battle of France and losses were relatively light, although when facing modern fighters like the Hawker Hurricane, the bomber proved slow in comparison and more vulnerable. When it faced British fighters during the Battle of Britain, it was shown that fast, well-armed monoplane fighters had changed the balance between bomber and fighter decidedly in favour of the latter. The Do 17 suffered in early raids.
Since the Fafnir was a low-altitude engine, the Luftwaffe responded by employing the Do 17 units in a number of terrain-following mass raids in an attempt to evade fighter opposition. The Dornier was manoeuvrable in comparison to the Heinkel and the more robust nature of radial engines made it ideal for low-level attacks, with a number of units being fitted with 20 mm cannon. An example of one of these raids was the attack on RAF Kenley on 18 August, 1940, when nine aircraft from 9th Staffel of KG 76 led by Haupt. Joachim Roth, flew at very low altitude to avoid being detected by British radar and followed part of the London to Brighton railway to find their target. Four aircraft were destroyed in the attack and the remaining five were all damaged. At least one aircraft was lost to rocket propelled parachute and cable devices. Another was damaged by exploding bombs, due to the low altitude at which it was flying.[25] The Junkers Ju 88 was now entering service in larger numbers, replacing the Do 17 at higher altitudes. The Dornier excelled at low-level attacks. However, this was becoming more and more dangerous. The British were now firing rocket-powered parachutes into the path of low-flying aircraft and dragging them from the skies. Losses were considerable.[26]
The Dornier's performance advantage at low altitude became moot on 7 September 1940, when the Luftwaffe switched to the bombing of London (known as the Blitz), requiring all-out attacks at medium altitude. Losses mounted and on 15 September 1940, the three Dornier-equipped Kampfgruppen suffered heavily, losing 20 shot down and 13 damaged.[27]
A significant event took place on 15 September 1940, now known as "
The losses for the Do 17 in August and September were considerable. In August 1940, 54 Dorniers were lost and another 20 written off due to technical problems and accidents. In September 50 more were lost, with 31 Do 17s and crews missing in action. In October another 36 Dorniers were lost.[33] Dorniers had improvised armament of eight machine guns installed to increase defensive firepower, but still were unable to counter fighter attacks.[34]
The battle continued into October as the Luftwaffe concentrated on night attacks which were carried out by units mainly equipped with the Heinkel He 111 and Junkers Ju 88, as they had bigger bomb loads, and the Ju 88 had a greater speed.[35]
The Dornier Do 17's losses in the Battle of Britain are given as between 132 and 171, the lowest losses as a ratio of the three German bomber types.[36][37]
With the introduction of the Junkers Ju 88 and the new
Balkans Campaign
Initially,
The Luftwaffe committed Luftflotte 4 to the invasion. Included in its strength were KG 2 and KG 3, the only Kampfgruppe in a force of seven equipped with the Do 17.[40] Among the German Kampfgruppen, some 110 Do 17s were committed. The first attacks on Belgrade were undertaken at 0651 in the morning of the 6 April. Among the German bombers were 102 Do 17s, carrying 18 SC 50 kg (110 lb) fragmentation bombs, and 2 AB 36 cluster bombs. Some 82 Do 17s remained operational after the first day, with only one reported loss, a KG 3 machine, WNr 2563 5K+DS.[41] The Luftwaffe and its Dorniers would find the situation similar over Greece, with little aerial opposition. KG 2 took part in the Battle of Crete. I./KG 2 lost six Do 17s and seven damaged between 6 April and 31 May.[42] III./KG 2 reported six losses and five damaged in the same period.[43] III./KG 3 also participated in the assaults on Greece and Crete.[44]
Eastern Front
After the successful conclusion of the Balkans campaign, the Luftwaffe prepared for Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. By this time, the Kampfgruppen had mostly converted to the Ju 88, and the Do 17 played a minimal part. Only two reconnaissance Staffeln, and three Kampfgruppen employed the Dornier.[45] KG 2 was the only sole fully equipped Luftwaffe wing that operated the Dornier. The Dornier's most notable action on the Eastern front occurred on 23–24 June at
The limitations of the Dornier reemerged on the Eastern Front, namely its limited bomb capacity and its range. The vastness of this new theatre meant its usage declined. As 1941 wore on, the Dornier was phased out of the bomber role. Surviving aircraft were used as test beds for new technologies and training schools, while many others were handed off to allied nations over the next two years.[33]
Total losses for Kampfgeschwader 2 on the Eastern Front in 1941 indicate three Do 17s lost in June, a further nine lost in July, nine in August, a single Dornier destroyed on the ground in September, three Do 17s in October, for a total of 24 lost in aerial combat and one on the ground. The unit was withdrawn at the end of October to convert to the Junkers Ju 88.[47]
The Do 17 continued to see action in other air forces after the mass conversion to the Ju 88 in the Luftwaffe. Of fifteen Do 17s serving with the Finnish Air Force, at least five (possibly seven) survived the end of hostilities and continued to serve until they were scrapped in 1952.[48]
Night fighter
The Dornier Do 17 also operated as a night fighter during the Defence of the Reich campaign until 1944. At least ten 17Z's were converted; one Z-7 and nine Z-10 served for less than two years in the night fighter role, where they were used in Josef Kammhuber's defensive system, known as the Kammhuber Line. They were found by their crews to be inferior to the Junkers Ju 88C.[49] The Do 215 was also used in this capacity. Some German night-fighter aces such as Helmut Woltersdorf flew the Do 17 and Do 215.
All surviving Z-10s were removed from front-line duty in summer 1942. They were either used as airframes to provide spare parts or transferred to night fighter schools.[50]
Glider tug
After being withdrawn from combat duties the Do 17s were relegated for use as glider tugs beginning in 1942 where they were used to tow gliders laden with supplies. The First Group of Air Landing Wing (I./Luftlandegeschwader – LLG) 1 arrived too late to support the encircled German troops in the Stalingrad Pocket, but they did help to supply the 17th Army as it retreated into the Kuban in early 1943 with supplies delivered by DFS 230 gliders. Five Do 17s were lost during these operations between 29 January–30 March 1943.[51] During October 1943, the Do 17s of Luftlandegeschwader 1 helped resupply, and partially evacuate the German 17th Army from the Kuban. Some Do 17s were still being used by Schleppgruppen 1 and 2 ("Glider towing unit 1 and 2") in early 1945.[52]
On 10 July 1943, I./LLG 1 mustered 52 Do 17s and 136 DFS 230 gliders at its base in
Other air forces
Royal Yugoslav Air Force
At the beginning of
Bulgarian Air Force
The
Croatian Air Force
The Independent State of Croatia was formed during the German Invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941. It formed an air unit called Hrvatska zrakoplovna legija ("Croatian Air Force Legion") on 27 June 1941 for service against the Soviets It had 160 airmen who attended German aviation schools such as Kampffliegerschule 3 on the Baltic to train on the Do 17Z. On 31 October 1941, the unit was assigned to Kampfgeschwader 3 as 10.(kroatisch)/KG 3,[63] with 15 Do 17Zs,[64] on the Eastern Front. The unit did not suffer its first fatalities until 1 December 1941, during the Battle of Moscow.[65] By the time of its withdrawal to Croatia in February/March 1942, the unit was credited with 366 combat sorties, 71 low-level attacks, four villages, 173 buildings, 276 enemy vehicles destroyed and 11 enemy aircraft shot down.[66] Another squadron was sent to the Eastern Front in July 1942, using German-owned Do 17Zs, where they were designated as 15.(kroat.)/KG 53. They were withdrawn to Croatia in November 1942.[67]
The number of Do 17s that saw action in Croatian units is hard to determine. Croatian staffeln formed part of German Kampfgeschwader as well as their own independent units and it is uncertain how many, if any, of their aircraft they brought back upon their return to Croatia. In January 1942, 11 Do 17Kas were given to Croatia. A further six Do 17s from Luftwaffe units were promised, but they were never delivered according to one source,[68] but another says that six Do 17Es were delivered in 1942.[69] On 23 September 1942,[68] or in March 1943[70] another 30 Do 17Es were sold to Croatia and a further 30 were promised but not delivered. In November 1943, another request was agreed for 79 Do 17Zs, but once again the aircraft were never delivered.[71] By December 1943, the 1st and 2nd Croat Bomber Squadrons formed part of the Croatian Air Force Legion and were to expand to a full group in size in February 1944, but it is unclear if this was more than a redesignation on paper.[72]
On 30 July 1944, a defecting Do 17Z-5, designation Z8+AH of Kroat. KGr 1, crash-landed at Cerignola, south of Foggia, Italy.[73] Later, in 1944, a Do 17F-1 was captured by Yugoslav partisans and flown into British captivity in Bari, Italy.,[74] although this has not been substantiated by later research. One source cites a total of three Do 17s that landed in Allied-occupied Italy; one Do 17Z on 13 July 1944, the Do 17Z-5 mentioned earlier on 30 July 1944, and another Do 17Z on 10 August.[75]
Further deliveries of new aircraft from Germany continued in the early months of 1945 to replace losses. These included the final dozen Do 17 medium bombers in January. The Dornier Do 17 medium bombers of the
On the evening of 6 May 1945, with Yugoslav Partisan forces advancing upon the Croatian capital city of
Finnish Air Force
In November 1941,
Fifteen Do 17s (three Z-1, three Z-2 and nine Z-3) saw service with the Finns. Ten were lost between January 1943 and January 1945, the remaining five were not scrapped until in 1952. (For a full list of the Dorniers used see:Finnish Air Force No. 46 Squadron).[81]
Royal Romanian Air Force
Ten Do 17Ms were received in April–May 1942 and were assigned to Escadrila 2 for reconnaissance missions.[82]
References
- Notes
- ^ The unit in question was 2nd Squadron of the 123rd Long Range Reconnaissance Group, or 2./(Fernaufklärungsgruppe) 123.
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- ISBN 978-1-900732-06-2.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 8.
- ^ Nowarra 1990, p. 25.
- ^ Hooton 2007 Vol. 1, p. 74.
- ^ de Zeng et al. Vol. 2 2007, p. 287.
- ^ Hooton 2007 Vol. 1, p. 78.
- ^ de Zeng et al. Vol. 2 2007, p. 311.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 9.
- ^ a b Hooton Vol. 1 2007, p. 54.
- ^ Griehl 2005, p. 14.
- ^ de Zeng 2007 Vol 2, pp. 225, 228.
- ^ Goss 2005, pp. 41, 49, 61.
- ^ Green and Swanborough 1986, pp. 49–50.
- ^ Nowarra 1990, p. 36.
- ^ Nowarra 1990, p. 37.
- ^ Nowarra 1990, p. 28.
- ^ Hooton Vol. 1 2007, p. 91.
- ^ Smith 1967, p. 7.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 53.
- ^ Hooton 2007, p. 46.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 48.
- ^ Hooton 2007, p. 63.
- ^ Hooton 2007, p. 69.
- ^ Hooton 2007, p. 73.
- ^ The Hardest Day, The Battle of Britain, 18 August, 1940, Price, Alfred, Arms and Armour Press, 1988, pp 47-120
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 66.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 60.
- ^ Hooton 1997, p. 30.
- ^ Bungay 2000, p. 325.
- ^ Those Other Eagles, Shores, (2004)
- ^ "Alfred Keith Ogilvie Battle of Britain Pilot with 609 Squadron." Archived 2003-05-09 at the Wayback Machine lycos.co.uk. Retrieved: 25 July 2009.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 68.
- ^ a b Griehl 2005, p. 11.
- ^ Griehl 2005, p. 42.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 12.
- ^ "The Battle of Britain: Aircraft Strength and Losses." tripod.com. Retrieved: 22 April 2011.
- ^ Vancata, Pavel. "Statistics of the Battle of Britain." Archived 2010-09-20 at the Wayback Machine hyperlink.cz, 1999–2001. Retrieved: 22 April 2011.
- ^ Goss 2005, pp. 86-87.
- ^ Nowarra 1990, p. 16.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 89.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 53.
- ^ de Zeng 2007 Vol 2, p. 28.
- ^ de Zeng 2007 Vol 2, p. 33.
- ^ de Zeng 2007 Vol 2, p. 42.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 90.
- ^ Bergström 2007, p. 23.
- ^ Bergström 2007, p. 119.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 16.
- ^ Smith 1967, p. 6.
- ^ Munson 1983, pp. 84, 150–151.
- ^ Schlaug 1985, pp. 129, 135, 142.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 15.
- ^ Schlaug 1985, pp. 174, 191, 213–215.
- ^ a b c Goss 2005, p. 10.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 11.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 47.
- ^ Nedyalkov 2001, p. 20.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 122.
- ^ Nedyalkov 2001, p. 26.
- ^ Nedyalkov 2001, pp. 49, 54.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 125.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 126.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, pp. 65–66.
- ^ Neulen 2000, p. 172.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 72.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, pp. 76–77.
- ^ Neulen 2000, pp. 172–173.
- ^ a b Ciglic and Savic 2007, pp. 95, 98.
- ^ Neulen 2000, p. 177.
- ^ Neulen 2000, p. 179.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 106.
- ^ Neulen 2000, p. 181.
- ^ Goss 2005, p. 96.
- ^ Smith 1967, p. 15.
- ^ Neulen 2000, p. 183.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 118.
- ^ Ciglic and Savic 2007, p. 120.
- ^ "Savic and Ciglic 2002, p. 71.
- ^ Likso and Canak 1998, p. 72.
- ^ Kalevi and Stenman 1999, p. 13.
- ^ Kalevi and Stenman 1999, pp. 50–51.
- ^ Axworthy et al. 1995, p. 290.
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