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{{DISPLAYTITLE:''Jagdgeschwader'' 4}} |
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{{Infobox military unit |
{{Infobox military unit |
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|unit_name=Jagdgeschwader 4 |
|unit_name=Jagdgeschwader 4 |
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|image=JG4-ins.svg |
|image=JG4-ins.svg |
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|image_size=100px |
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|caption= |
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|dates=1942–45 |
|dates=1942–45 |
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|type=[[Fighter Aircraft]] |
|type=[[Fighter Aircraft]] |
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|role=[[Air superiority]] |
|role=[[Air superiority]] |
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|size=Air |
|size=[[Wing (air force unit)|Air force wing]] |
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'''Jagdgeschwader 4 (JG 4)''' was a German fighter [[Wing (air force unit)|wing]] of [[World War II]]. Individual elements of the unit were formed in 1942/1943. I./JG 4 was assigned in early 1943 as defensive protection of the [[Mizil]] and [[Ploiești]] oil complexes in Romania. It took part in air operations against the Allied [[Operation Tidal Wave]] on 1 August 1943. The unit took part in actions in the Balkans and Italy. |
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| ⚫ | JG 4 was then deployed in the German defensive campaign in Italy during the first half of 1944, prior to being shifted to France for the Normandy invasion. Over the [[Lake Bracciano]] area on 7 May 1944, I./JG 4 encountered [[Spitfire]]s of [[No. 72 Squadron RAF]], who claimed nine Bf 109's shot down; I ''Gruppe'' lost 4 killed and 2 wounded in the action.<ref>'Those Other Eagles', Christopher Shores, 2004</ref> During their Italian campaign, I./JG 4 lost 40 men killed or missing, 26 wounded, and 7 taken prisoner.<ref>'Storming the Bombers', Erik Mombeeck, ASBL, 2009</ref> JG 4 was withdrawn after heavy losses back to Germany in September 1944. |
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| ⚫ | During [[Operation Bodenplatte]] on 1 January 1945, JG 4, along with all other units taking part, took heavy losses. With 75 JG 4 aircraft tasked with various targets, including an attack on [[Le Culot]] airfield, I, II and IV groups were hit by heavy anti-aircraft fire and the massed formation became scattered and therefore unable to coordinate an effective attack, with only 12 or so aircraft locating or attacking any intended objective. Overall, some 26 fighters were lost and 6 damaged; with nearly half the participating aircraft lost, JG 4 suffered the highest percentage losses of all the units taking part in the operation.<ref>'Bodenplatte-The Luftwaffe's Last Hope', Manrho& Pütz, page 188</ref> The unit was disbanded in March 1945. |
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==Formation and service== |
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I./JG 4 was formed earlier on 7 August 1942 in [[Mizil]], [[Romania]] from the ''Ölschutzstaffel''/[[Jagdgeschwader 77]], with 2./JG 4 formed 1 December 1942. Stab I, 3. and 4./JG 4 were formed on 10 January 1943 at Mizil, and the I ''Gruppe'' was now complete. II. ''Gruppe'' was formed in July 1944 at [[Salzwedel]] from I./[[Zerstörergeschwader 1]] (ZG 1) and partially from ''Sturmstaffel'' 1. III. ''Gruppe'' was formed in July 1944 at [[Rotenburg an der Fulda|Rotenburg]] from III./ZG 1. IV./JG 4 was formed on 20 October 1944 at [[Finsterwalde]] from II./[[Jagdgeschwader 5]]. |
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I./JG 4 was assigned in early 1943 as defensive protection of the [[Mizil]] and [[Ploiești]] oil complexes in Romania. I./JG 4 first saw action in combat against the force of B-24 Liberators dispatched on the low-level attack against [[Ploiești]] on 1 August 1943, code-named [[Operation Tidal Wave|Operation "Tidal Wave"]], claiming 12 [[Consolidated B-24]] bombers downed. |
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The unit saw further action over the Balkans against the [[United States Army Air Forces]] (USAAF) [[15th Air Force]] heavy bombers flying from bases in North Africa and Italy. The unit was later deployed to the defence of Rome and northern Italy. I./JG 4 first saw action in combat against a strike force of B-24 Liberators dispatched on the celebrated low level attack against Ploiești on 1 August 1943 as Operation "Tidal Wave". Stab and I./JG 4 claimed twelve B-24 bombers shot down. |
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| ⚫ | JG 4 was then deployed in the German defensive campaign in Italy during the first half of 1944, prior to being shifted to |
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JG 4 were then withdrawn after heavy losses back to the Reich in September 1944. 4./JG 4 was the Rumanian ''Staffel'' ''Escadrilla 53'', which left again in December 1943. A new 4./JG 4 was formed in June 1944. In September 1944 2./JG 4 and 8./[[Jagdgeschwader 53]] exchanged designations. I./JG 4 was disbanded on March 19, 1945. |
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== Sturmgruppen 1944 == |
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''Jagdgeschwader'' 4 became one of only three Luftwaffe wings to operate the specialised 'bomber-killer' ''gruppen'' designated ''Sturmgruppe''. It was formed on 12 July 1944 at [[Salzwedel]] from I./[[Zerstörergeschwader 1]] (ZG 1) and from elements of Major [[Hans-Günter von Kornatzki]]'s ''Sturmstaffel'' 1. The gruppe was equipped with [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190 operational history#The Sturmböcke|the modified and heavily armoured FW 190A-8/R2]]. While the heavily armoured fighters proved effective against the heavy bombers of the USAAF, they proved vulnerable to the numerous escort fighters and hence suffered heavy losses. III./JG 4 was also formed in July 1944 from III./ZG 1 in [[Rotenburg an der Fulda|Rotenburg]]. In common with other fighter units engaged in [[Defense of the Reich]] operations, the ''Geschwader'' were sported unique coloured rear fuselage band markings in mid-1944, with differing color combinations unique to each wing. JG 4's marking was a black-white-black combination on the rear fuselage. |
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On 11 September 1944 II.(''Sturm'')/JG 4 escorted by III. ''Gruppe'' [[Air battle over the Ore Mountains|intercepted a USAAF bombing raid]] near [[Chemnitz]]. Attacking the 100th and 95th Bomb Groups the ''Geschwader'' claimed some 13 destroyed bombers. Intercepted by the 339th and 55th Fighter Groups JG 4 was severely mauled, and lost 21 pilots killed and 9 more were seriously injured during the mission. In October 1944 IV./JG 4 was formed from elements of II./[[JG 5]] in [[Finsterwalde]], equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf-109G and K. On 2 November the ''Sturmgruppe,'' in conjunction with IV./JG 3, intercepted American bomber formations in the [[Leipzig]] area. II./JG 4 attacked the [[457th Bomb Group]] and destroyed nine B-17s, although the gruppe lost 16 FW-190s out of 22 committed to the massed US fighter escorts. |
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From November 1944 onwards the ''Geschwader'', operating from [[Frankfurt am Main|Frankfurt]] took heavy losses flying against the Allied air offensive. Apart from for II.(Sturm)/[[JG 300]], heavy losses meant the ''Sturmgruppen'' had virtually ceased to exist by late November 1944, and with the transfer to [[Babenhausen, Hesse|Babenhausen]] in December 1944 the remnants of II./JG 4 would carry out the same fighter and ground attack operations as their sister units for the rest of their existence, and would not claim another heavy bomber.<ref>'Luftwaffe Sturmgruppen', Weal, page 106</ref> In early 1945 II. Gruppe re-equipped with the Focke Wulf Fw-190A-9 and later D-9 fighters. |
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[[File:Fw 190 A8 Wagner.jpg|thumb|right|Focke Wulf Fw 190 A-8 of 5./JG 4, flown by ''[[Gefreiter]]'' Walter Wagner during [[Operation Bodenplatte]].]] |
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| ⚫ | During [[ |
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By late January 1945 JG 4 was deployed in Guben-Jüterbog until the end of the war in May. |
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On 21 January 1945 the four ''gruppen'' of JG 4 were switched to ''Luftlotte'' 6 on the Eastern Front and pitchforked wholesale into ground-attack missions, for which the unit was ill-equipped and pilots untrained. By early February 1945 II.(Sturm)/JG 4 were located at [[Cottbus-Neuhausen Airport|Neuhausen]]<!-- see de:Flugplatz Neuhausen --> under Major Gerhard Schroeder in defence of [[Cottbus]]. |
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Although nearly 400 vehicles were claimed destroyed, losses during the month inevitably emasculated the unit, with some 57 aircraft lost, with 26 pilots killed or missing and 14 wounded.<ref>The Last Year for the Luftwaffe, Alfred Price, page 142</ref> |
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I./JG 4 was dissolved during March 1945 and the remustering of the unit personnel as infantry followed. Elements of JG 4 flew their last sorties against the Soviet armies and air forces around Berlin and in late April 1945 the unit withdrew to the Schleswig-Holstein area and disbanded on 8 May 1945. |
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==Commanding officers== |
==Commanding officers== |
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* Major Gerhard Schöpfel, 15 June 1944 – 6 August 1944 |
* Major [[Gerhard Schöpfel]], 15 June 1944 – 6 August 1944 |
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* ''Oberstleutnant'' [[Gerhard Michalski]], 7 August 1944 – 8 May 1945 |
* ''Oberstleutnant'' [[Gerhard Michalski]], 7 August 1944 – 8 May 1945 |
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==See also== |
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[[Organization of the Luftwaffe during World War II]] |
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== References == |
== References == |
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Revision as of 22:35, 20 October 2018
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2016) |
| Jagdgeschwader 4 | |
|---|---|
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| Active | 1942–45 |
| Country |  Nazi Germany |
| Branch |  Luftwaffe |
| Type | Fighter Aircraft |
| Role | Air superiority |
| Size | Air force wing |
Jagdgeschwader 4 (JG 4) was a German fighter wing of World War II. Individual elements of the unit were formed in 1942/1943. I./JG 4 was assigned in early 1943 as defensive protection of the Mizil and Ploiești oil complexes in Romania. It took part in air operations against the Allied Operation Tidal Wave on 1 August 1943. The unit took part in actions in the Balkans and Italy.
JG 4 was then deployed in the German defensive campaign in Italy during the first half of 1944, prior to being shifted to France for the Normandy invasion. Over the Lake Bracciano area on 7 May 1944, I./JG 4 encountered Spitfires of No. 72 Squadron RAF, who claimed nine Bf 109's shot down; I Gruppe lost 4 killed and 2 wounded in the action.[1] During their Italian campaign, I./JG 4 lost 40 men killed or missing, 26 wounded, and 7 taken prisoner.[2] JG 4 was withdrawn after heavy losses back to Germany in September 1944.
During Operation Bodenplatte on 1 January 1945, JG 4, along with all other units taking part, took heavy losses. With 75 JG 4 aircraft tasked with various targets, including an attack on Le Culot airfield, I, II and IV groups were hit by heavy anti-aircraft fire and the massed formation became scattered and therefore unable to coordinate an effective attack, with only 12 or so aircraft locating or attacking any intended objective. Overall, some 26 fighters were lost and 6 damaged; with nearly half the participating aircraft lost, JG 4 suffered the highest percentage losses of all the units taking part in the operation.[3] The unit was disbanded in March 1945.
Commanding officers
- Major Gerhard Schöpfel, 15 June 1944 – 6 August 1944
- Oberstleutnant Gerhard Michalski, 7 August 1944 – 8 May 1945
References
- Mombeek, Éric. Chasseurs d'assaut: l'histoire de la Jagdgeschwader 4. Lela presse, 2002. ISBN 2-91401-710-3
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