Hi,
I'm looking for any and every data about a certain Luftwaffen Feld Bataillon Klass.
This unit is quoted to be fought at Starobelsk attached to the 19. Pz Div. The unit commander was a Major Klass, and the battalion existed 12/42 to 2/43. Could be connected with Lw Feld Div 2, but that is suspicious to me.
Any info would be fantastic!
Thanks in advance,
Best,
Abel
Lw Feld Bn Klass
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Abel Ravasz
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Below is the only Luftwaffe officer in the rank of Hauptmann or above by the name of Klaß:
KLASS, Josef. (DKG). 01.01.42 (RDA originally 01.04.42) promoted to Maj.(Tr.O./Ln.).
This tells us that he was a Luftnachrichten officer and that he was a Truppenoffizier. It also gives you his first name, his rank and the fact that he was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold. But I have no idea which unit he belonged to. The DKG was awarded on 01.01.45 for service performed as an "Abteilungskommandeur einer Flugmeldemeßabteilung" (air defense radar detachment or battalion).
--Lorenz
KLASS, Josef. (DKG). 01.01.42 (RDA originally 01.04.42) promoted to Maj.(Tr.O./Ln.).
This tells us that he was a Luftnachrichten officer and that he was a Truppenoffizier. It also gives you his first name, his rank and the fact that he was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold. But I have no idea which unit he belonged to. The DKG was awarded on 01.01.45 for service performed as an "Abteilungskommandeur einer Flugmeldemeßabteilung" (air defense radar detachment or battalion).
--Lorenz
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Abel Ravasz
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- Posts: 228
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- Location: Hungary/Slovakia
Hi Lorenz,
thanks for the swift reply.
This request below is the only document to mention the unit, let's see what do we get from it.
Other thing. Do You have any data about the 2./Ln.Fu.H.Abt. Don? Was it part of the LuNa Reg 38? Any chance of tracking down Klass' unit with the addition of this data?
Thanks again,
Best,
Abel
thanks for the swift reply.
This request below is the only document to mention the unit, let's see what do we get from it.
Indeed, there was no Lw Feld Div in the area of ops of the 19. Pz Div. Could this grouping be an ad-hoc unit of Lw ground personnel?3. Ab 20.11.1942 bzw. ab 05.12.1942 bis 14.10.1943 wurde mein Vater nach Charkow zur 2./Luftnachrichten Funkhorchabteilung Don versetzt (evtl. war diese der Heeresgruppe Don und im Rahmen dieser kurzzeitig der Heeresgruppe B unterstellt gewesen).
In den Unterlagen meines Vater’s steht, dass die 2./Ln.Fu.H.Abt. Don zum 8. Fliegerkorps gehört
hatte.
- vom 05.12.1942 bis 24.12.1942 wurde er im Grossraum Charkow und bei Bjelgorod als
Verbindungsoffizier zwischen einer Luftwaffen-Feld-Division und der 19. Pz.-Division eingesetzt.
Mein Vater sagte, dass diese Luftwaffen-Feld-Division der 19. Panzer-Division zur Unterstützung unterstellt gewesen war, weil sich die 19. Pz.-Division im Wiederaufbau bzw. in der Bereitstellung befunden hätte.
- Vom 25.12.1942 bis 06.02.1943 wurde er bei dieser Luftwaffen-Feld-Division und zwar beim Lw.-Bataillon Klass / Kampfgruppe Klass (Major Klass), zur Unterstützung der 19. Panzer-Division bei Starobelsk und Bjelgorod als Truppenoffizier zum Erdkampf eingesetzt.
Wegen der schweren Verluste wurde die Einheit dieser Luftwaffen-Feld-Division nach dem 06.02.1943 scheinbar wieder aufgelöst.
Am 13.02.1943 wurde meinem Vater von Major und Abteilungskommandeur Klass für den Erdkampfeinsatz bei Starobelsk das EK II verliehen.
Other thing. Do You have any data about the 2./Ln.Fu.H.Abt. Don? Was it part of the LuNa Reg 38? Any chance of tracking down Klass' unit with the addition of this data?
Thanks again,
Best,
Abel
A.R. -
Here is a summarized history of the unit:
Ln.-Funkhorch-Abt. Don
Formed fall 1942 from all or elements of the Stab III./Ln.-Rgt. 32, which was located on Sicily in fall 1942 in support of II. Fliegerkorps. It is unclear whether the Abteilung Stab was formed there of in the Don River sector to the east of Kharkov. It consisted of a Stab and just two companies.
History
Deployed in Kharkov and Starobelsk in northeastern Ukraine to provide signals intelligence support to Luftwaffenkdo. Don (Stab in Kharkov with an advanced command post at Starobelsk). The Abteilung was caught up in the fighting in the Rossosh – Starobelsk – Volchansk area following the Soviet Stalingrad counteroffensive that began on 19 November 1942. Between 14 and 22 January 1943 it reported 4 killed, 34 wounded and 2 missing at Novo Markovka. After the front stabilized in spring 1943, it remained in South Russia in support of I. Fliegerkorps, and probably moved with it to Crimea in April 1943. In October 1943 the Abteilung was disbanded with its Stab becoming Stab/Führer-Flugmelde-Abt..
FpNs: Stab (L 42681)
1.Kp. (L 49342)
2.Kp. (L 51570)
Kommandeur:
Maj. Josef Klass (fall 42 - Mar 43)
Obstlt. Hermann Brühl (Mar 43 - Sep 43)
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Lw.-Btl. Klaß was an ad-hoc or provisional formation thrown together in the heat of the crisis around Starobelsk, and that it consisted of a hodge-podge of sundry Luftwaffe personnel of every type and description that were rounded up in that area. There were similar Lw. battalions being hastily assembled all along the front at that time. Many of them were overrun and wiped out in the Rossosh area to the northeast of Starobelsk.
Finally, 2. Kompanie was formed from scratch in fall 1942 and its FpN did not belong to some previous unit. Where exactly the personnel came from I cannot say.
--Lorenz
Here is a summarized history of the unit:
Ln.-Funkhorch-Abt. Don
Formed fall 1942 from all or elements of the Stab III./Ln.-Rgt. 32, which was located on Sicily in fall 1942 in support of II. Fliegerkorps. It is unclear whether the Abteilung Stab was formed there of in the Don River sector to the east of Kharkov. It consisted of a Stab and just two companies.
History
Deployed in Kharkov and Starobelsk in northeastern Ukraine to provide signals intelligence support to Luftwaffenkdo. Don (Stab in Kharkov with an advanced command post at Starobelsk). The Abteilung was caught up in the fighting in the Rossosh – Starobelsk – Volchansk area following the Soviet Stalingrad counteroffensive that began on 19 November 1942. Between 14 and 22 January 1943 it reported 4 killed, 34 wounded and 2 missing at Novo Markovka. After the front stabilized in spring 1943, it remained in South Russia in support of I. Fliegerkorps, and probably moved with it to Crimea in April 1943. In October 1943 the Abteilung was disbanded with its Stab becoming Stab/Führer-Flugmelde-Abt..
FpNs: Stab (L 42681)
1.Kp. (L 49342)
2.Kp. (L 51570)
Kommandeur:
Maj. Josef Klass (fall 42 - Mar 43)
Obstlt. Hermann Brühl (Mar 43 - Sep 43)
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Lw.-Btl. Klaß was an ad-hoc or provisional formation thrown together in the heat of the crisis around Starobelsk, and that it consisted of a hodge-podge of sundry Luftwaffe personnel of every type and description that were rounded up in that area. There were similar Lw. battalions being hastily assembled all along the front at that time. Many of them were overrun and wiped out in the Rossosh area to the northeast of Starobelsk.
Finally, 2. Kompanie was formed from scratch in fall 1942 and its FpN did not belong to some previous unit. Where exactly the personnel came from I cannot say.
--Lorenz
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Abel Ravasz
- Contributor
- Posts: 228
- Joined: Sun Jan 12, 2003 5:44 am
- Location: Hungary/Slovakia
Hi Lorenz,
thank You very much for this input! You've solved this mystery in no time and have provided me with all of the info I needed! Thanks!
But reading Your post, another thing jumped up in my mind.
I have noticed, that a very high number of Luftwaffe battalions (Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 4./IV, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 5./VI, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 4./VII, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 8./VII, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 9./VII, II./Flak-Regiment 43) was lost in fighting for Rossosh.
Your post has made my apetite grow to know more about the "overrun and wiped out" units and most of all - what had happened at Rossosh? Battles at the airfield? An ad-hoc Lw group formed? Or ?
Thanks again for Your superb answer,
And hoping for an additional reply,
Best,
Abel
thank You very much for this input! You've solved this mystery in no time and have provided me with all of the info I needed! Thanks!
But reading Your post, another thing jumped up in my mind.
I have noticed, that a very high number of Luftwaffe battalions (Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 4./IV, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 5./VI, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 4./VII, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 8./VII, Luftwaffen-Bau-Bataillon 9./VII, II./Flak-Regiment 43) was lost in fighting for Rossosh.
Your post has made my apetite grow to know more about the "overrun and wiped out" units and most of all - what had happened at Rossosh? Battles at the airfield? An ad-hoc Lw group formed? Or ?
Thanks again for Your superb answer,
And hoping for an additional reply,
Best,
Abel
Abel wrote:
Regarding Rossosh, I have never seen a detailed account of what exactly occurred there, but it is referred to in passing in these two works:
Hayward, Joel S. A. Stopped at Stalingrad: The Luftwaffe and Hitler’s Defeat in the East 1942-1943. Lawrence (KS): Univ. Press of Kansas, 1998. [This book is almost entire based on Generaloberst Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen's personal diary - he was OB of Luftflotte 4 at the time].
Plocher, Hermann. The German Air Force Versus Russia, 1942. USAF Historical Studies: No. 154 (New York, 1968).
There is also voluminous reference to it in the Luftwaffe loss reports, with page after page after page of casualty listings for numerous Luftwaffen ground units and ad hoc Lw.-Btle., many of which give Rossosh as the location. These listings begive around mid-January 1943 and continue into June 1943 due to late identification and reporting of the casualties. There were a good 12,000 Luftwaffe Bodenorganisation, Ln.- and Flak personnel just in the square Rossosh south to Millerovo west to Starobelsk and north to Veluiki. More were rushed in from outside that square, especially from the Kharkov-Belgorod area. What happened around Rossosh is an exciting and tragic story begging to be told, but there are probably few participants who are still alive.
--Lorenz
Thanks for your comments and I am glad I was able to help.Your post has made my apetite grow to know more about the "overrun and wiped out" units and most of all - what had happened at Rossosh? Battles at the airfield?
Regarding Rossosh, I have never seen a detailed account of what exactly occurred there, but it is referred to in passing in these two works:
Hayward, Joel S. A. Stopped at Stalingrad: The Luftwaffe and Hitler’s Defeat in the East 1942-1943. Lawrence (KS): Univ. Press of Kansas, 1998. [This book is almost entire based on Generaloberst Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen's personal diary - he was OB of Luftflotte 4 at the time].
Plocher, Hermann. The German Air Force Versus Russia, 1942. USAF Historical Studies: No. 154 (New York, 1968).
There is also voluminous reference to it in the Luftwaffe loss reports, with page after page after page of casualty listings for numerous Luftwaffen ground units and ad hoc Lw.-Btle., many of which give Rossosh as the location. These listings begive around mid-January 1943 and continue into June 1943 due to late identification and reporting of the casualties. There were a good 12,000 Luftwaffe Bodenorganisation, Ln.- and Flak personnel just in the square Rossosh south to Millerovo west to Starobelsk and north to Veluiki. More were rushed in from outside that square, especially from the Kharkov-Belgorod area. What happened around Rossosh is an exciting and tragic story begging to be told, but there are probably few participants who are still alive.
--Lorenz
-
Abel Ravasz
- Contributor
- Posts: 228
- Joined: Sun Jan 12, 2003 5:44 am
- Location: Hungary/Slovakia