Organization of the Luftwaffe during World War II

Organization of the "Luftwaffe": The German Air Force ("Luftwaffe") of World War II had a distinct organization and command structure.

"Luftwaffe" organization

At the strategic level - "Oberkommando der Luftwaffe"

The top levels of control for the German Air Force ("Luftwaffe") resided with the German Air Ministry ("Reichsluftfahrtministerium", or RLM) and the German Air Force High Command ("Oberkommando der Luftwaffe", or OKL). These institutions were responsible for the direction of research, production, and overall maintenance of aircraft. They were directly answerable to the German Armed Forces High Command ("Oberkommando der Wehrmacht", or OKW). The OKL was at the same organizational level as the German Army High Command ("Oberkommando des Heeres", or OKH) and the German Navy High Command ("Oberkommando der Marine", or OKM).

The OKL was headed by "Reichsmarschall" Hermann Göring for most of the war. He was responsible for the overall war effort and for the amount of resources sent to a particular region. In 1945, Göring was dismissed by German dictator Adolf Hitler and Robert Ritter von Greim was placed in command of the German Air Force.

The organization of the Luftwaffe for a particular "Geschwader" (in this instance, "JG 52" at the time of the Battle of Britain in mid-1940) is shown in the chart on the right.

At the operational level - "Luftflotte" and "Fliegerkorps"

On the operational level the Luftwaffe was divided into "Luftflotten" ("air fleets"). These air fleets were self-contained units that were equipped with all types of aircraft, supply elements, maintenance staff, administration and legal departments to operate on their own. Each air fleet was responsible for a particular geographic region.

At the start of the war the "Luftwaffe" had four "Luftflotten", each responsible for roughly a quarter of Germany. As the war progressed more air fleets were created as the areas under German rule expanded. "Luftflotte 5" was created in 1940 to direct operations in Norway and Denmark, and other "Luftflotten" were created as necessary.

Each "Luftflotte" would contain several "Fliegerkorps" with specialized tasks. Each "Fliegerkorps" would have attached to it a number of units, usually several "Geschwader", but also independent "Staffeln" and "Kampfgruppen".

At the tactical level - "Geschwader", "Gruppe" and "Staffel"

"Geschwader"

Each "Fliegerkorps" had a number of "Geschwader". Each "Geschwader" was roughly equal to a USAAF wing or an RAF group, with about 100 to 120 aircraft under its command, although these numbers tended to fluctuate greatly. Each "Geschwader" had a particular task (such as fighter, bomber, or transport) and were mostly equipped with aircraft appropriate for that task, although other types of aircraft were often attached.

A "Geschwader" was commanded by a "Geschwaderkommodore", with the rank of either "Major", "Oberstleutnant" (Lieutenant Colonel) or "Oberst" (Colonel). Other "staff" officers within the unit with administrative duties included the adjutant, technical officer, and operations officer, who were usually (though not always) experienced aircrew or pilots still flying on operations. Other specialist staff were navigation, signals and intelligence personnel. A "Stabschwarm" (headquarters flight) was attached to each "Geschwader".

Types of "Geschwader"

*"Jagdgeschwader (JG)" - a fighter "Geschwader" (literally "hunting wing"), typically equipped with Bf 109 or Fw 190 aircraft flying in the fighter or fighter-bomber roles.
*"Nachtjagdgeschwader (NJG)" - a night fighter "Geschwader", typically flying radar-equipped heavy fighters such as the Bf 110 or Ju 88 against Allied bombers.
*"Zerstörergeschwader (ZG)" - "Zerstörer" (literally "destroyer"; the English equivalent is heavy fighter.) These units were usually equipped with twin-engined fighters such as the Bf 110 or Me 410 .
*"Schlachtgeschwader (SG)" - "Schlacht" (literally "battle".) These were ground attack or close air support "Geschwader", typically equipped with the Ju 87 Stuka, and later the Fw 190 ground-attack versions.
*"Sturzkampfgeschwader (StG)" - dive bomber "Geschwader". Stuka "Geschwader" initially had this designation, but were later redesignated as "Schlachtgeschwader".
*"Kampfgeschwader (KG)" - literally "battle wing", primarily a medium bomber unit, with typical aircraft being the He 111 or the Ju 88.
*"Lehrgeschwader (LG)" - a "Geschwader" created to test new equipment under operational conditions and to evaluate new tactics. These could fly several types of aircraft.
*"Transportgeschwader (TG)" - a transport "Geschwader", with typical aircraft being the Ju 52/3m or the Me 323. The "TG" designation was a result of the reorganization of the transport branch in 1943, and these units were previously designated "KG zbV" ("Kampfgeschwader zur besonderen Verwendung" or "battle "Geschwader" for special purposes").
*"Küstenfliegergruppe (KuFlGr)" - a coastal reconnaissance "Gruppe" (literally "Coastal Fliers"). These units fulfilled a similar role to the RAF's Coastal Command and were usually equipped with floatplanes such as the Heinkel He 115 and Dornier Do 18 as well as with bombers such as the Dornier Do 17. As well as providing reconnaissance these units were used to attack shipping.
*"Aufklärungsgruppe (later abbreviated "FAGr" and "NAGr")" - a long range reconnaissance "Gruppe"."Aufklärungsgruppe (F)". later changed to "Fernaufklärungsgruppe" {FAGr] were photo reconnaissance units ("Foto"); "Aufklärungsgruppe (H)" were units initially attached to the army ("Heer"), providing tactical and photo reconnaissance, and were later redesignated "Nahaufklärungsgruppe" [NAGr] . Typical aircraft were Bf 109s, Bf 110s and Ju 88s, although a wide range of aircraft types could be used, like the Focke-Wulf Fw 189.As the war progressed, the various sub-units of each numbered "Geschwader" operated separately and often on totally different fronts or theaters of war.

"Gruppen"

Each "Geschwader" was divided into several "Gruppen", usually three, and from late 1944, a fourth was added to the "Jagdgeschwadern". These "Gruppen" were roughly equivalent to USAAF groups, or RAF wings. A "Gruppe" would be designated with a Roman numeral. For example, the first "Gruppe" of "Jagdgeschwader 52" would be I/JG 52. Each "Gruppe" was commanded by a "Gruppenkommandeur", usually a "Hauptmann" (captain), who flew with a "Stabsschwarm" ("headquarters flight").

In practice the "Gruppe" became the usual autonomous operational tactical combat unit within the Luftwaffe. As with the Geschwader, the "Gruppe" included staff officers tasked with additional administrative duties, usually an adjutant, a technical officer, a medical officer and operations officer. These officers were usually (though not always) experienced aircrew or pilots appointed from the operational cadre within the unit. Each "Gruppe" comprised three "Staffeln", although by late 1944 a fourth "Staffel" was usually added to fighter units, making the established strength of the unit approximately 65 to 70 aircraft, although during the war years operational strength tended to fluctuate greatly. Personnel strength varied between 35 to 150 aircrew, and 300 to 500 ground personnel.

During the mid-war years a fourth "Gruppe" was introduced in many "Geschwader", initially as an operational training unit for new aircrew. However, these "Gruppen" soon became additional front-line units, performing the same tasks as their sister formations, while new "Ergänzungseinheiten", or operational training units, were formed and took up their tasks.

"Staffel"

Under each "Gruppe" were several "Staffeln", containing 10 to 16 aircraft each, and roughly equivalent to squadrons. Each "Staffel" would be designated with a number, so the third "Staffel" in JG 52 would be 3./JG 52. A "Staffel" was commanded by a "Staffelkapitän" (usually of "Oberleutnant" or "Hauptmann" rank). During the last two years of the war, a "Staffel" (particularly fighter units) was usually led in combat by the most experienced or successful pilot, and not necessarily by the "Staffelkapitän".

The "Staffel" usually had a few vehicles allocated to it, and a mobile repair shop to carry out minor repairs. The number of ground personnel varied depending on its type, with about 150 for a fighter unit, to 80 for a bomber "Staffel" (less personnel were required in the bomber units as many of the servicing functions were carried out by attached units provided by the local "Luftgau" or "Air District", a Luftwaffe administrative, supply, and technical support organization responsible for airfields and facilities within a geographic region, and subordinate to a "Luftflotte".)

"Schwarm", "Rotte" and "Kette"

Each fighter "Staffel" was divided into several "Schwarm" (or flight) of four aircraft. Each "Schwarm" was divided into two "Rotten" which was a pair of aircraft. The "Rotte" was the basic fighting unit, with a leader and a wingman.

The basic unit of bombers was a "Kette" of three aircraft flying in a "V" formation.

Finger-four formation and tactical flexibility

The "Schwarm" of a "Jagdstaffel" employed the "finger-four" formation, developed during the Spanish Civil War by Werner Mölders, Günther Lützow and others. This formation, where each aircraft flew in positions similar to the fingers of an open hand (thus the name) was much more flexible than the rigid three-aircraft "Vic" formation the RAF used at the start of the war. In the "Schwarm" the aircraft had plenty of space to maneuver, so they were free to scan the horizon for enemy aircraft rather than focusing on maintaining a close formation.

The "Rotte" fighting pair also added to the flexibility, as a "Schwarm" could break up into the two "Rotte" pairs without losing its fighting ability. The "Rottenführer" would attack enemy aircraft, leaving his wingman to scan for threats and protect him while he engaged the enemy.

This flexibility became apparent to the RAF during the Battle of Britain, and both RAF and USAAF fighter units would use a similar formation throughout the war.

List of fighter Geschwaders during WW2

Jagdgeschwader 1 "Oesau"

Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richtofen"

Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet"

Jagdgeschwader 4

Jagdgeschwader 5 "Eismeer"

Jagdgeschwader 6 "Horst Wessel" (formerly ZG 26)

Jagdgeschwader 7 "Nowotny"

Jagdgeschwader 11

Jagdgeschwader 26 "Schlageter"

Jagdgeschwader 27 "Afrika"

Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders"

Jagdgeschwader 52

Jagdgeschwader 53 "Pik As"

Jagdgeschwader 54 "Grünherz"

Jagdgeschwader 77 "Herzas"

Jagdgeschwader 101

Jagdgeschwader 300 "Wilde Sau"

Luftwaffe ground forces

One of the unique characteristics of the Luftwaffe (as opposed to other independent air forces) was the possession of an organic paratrooper force called "Fallschirmjäger". These were established in 1938. They saw action in their proper role during 1940–1941, most notably in the capture of the Belgian army fortress at Eben-Emael and the Battle of the Netherlands in May 1940, and during the invasion of Crete in May 1941. However, more than 4,000 "Fallschirmjäger" were killed during the Crete operation. [Mayer & Taylor, p. 95] Afterwards, these forces were only used for smaller-scale operations, such as the successful rescue of Benito Mussolini, the then-deposed dictator of Italy, in 1943.Fallschirmjäger formations were used as standard foot infantry in all theaters of the war. During 1942 surplus Luftwaffe personnel was used to form so-called Luftwaffe Field Divisions. From 1943, the Luftwaffe also had an armored paratroop division called Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring, which was expanded to a Panzerkorps in 1944.

References

*, by Len Deighton

See also

*Stab (Luftwaffe designation)
*History of the Luftwaffe during World War II

External links

* [http://users.hol.gr/~nowi/luftorg/ Luftwaffe organization]
* [http://www.feldgrau.com/articles.php?ID=41 High command of the Luftwaffe]
* [http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/2072/Abbreviations.html Luftwaffe abbreviations]
* [http://modelingmadness.com/codes/codes.htm Aircraft designations in relation to their roles]
* [http://www.ww2.dk/ The Luftwaffe 1933-1945]