Lawrence Paterson - Eagles Over the Sea, 1935–42: The History of Luftwaffe Maritime Operations

EAGLES OVER THE SEA
19351942

A History of Luftwaffe Maritime Operations

Lawrence Paterson

This book is dedicated to Fast Eddie Clarke.

One of a kind.

Copyright Lawrence Paterson 2019

First published in Great Britain in 2019 by

Seaforth Publishing,

A division of Pen & Sword Books Ltd,

47 Church Street,

Barnsley S70 2AS

www.seaforthpublishing.com

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN 978 1 5267 4002 1 ( HARDBACK )

ISBN 978 1 5267 4003 8 ( EPUB )

ISBN 978 1 5267 4004 5 ( KINDLE )

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing of both the copyright owner and the above publisher.

The right of Lawrence Paterson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Pen & Sword Books Limited incorporates the imprints of Atlas, Archaeology, Aviation, Discovery, Family History, Fiction, History, Maritime, Military, Military Classics, Politics, Select, Transport, True Crime, Air World, Frontline Publishing, Leo Cooper, Remember When, Seaforth Publishing, The Praetorian Press, Wharncliffe Local History, Wharncliffe Transport, Wharncliffe True Crime and White Owl

attempt at creating a Fleet Air Arm, but also the metamorphosis of those units and other more orthodox bomber formations that gravitated towards specialising in maritime strikes using either torpedo, mine or bomb. Likewise, the story cannot begin at 1939 and the outbreak of war. Nor can it really be told from 1935 and the unveiling of both the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine to the world, but a brief look as far back as the First World War is necessary to give a sense of where the entire impetus for German naval aviation began. Thus, one book became two. This volume splits the story in late 1942, and will pick up where I left off in the second volume to follow.

There are many people I would like to thank for help and support during the researching and writing. First, my wife Anna Paterson, who has enough work to do in her jobs as a professional proof reader and editor without me hassling her for advice. My kids James and Megan are always very supportive of whatever hare-brained scheme I come up with next, as is my mother, Audrey Mumbles Paterson and Don Mr Mumbles. That kind of familial support can never be overstated.

I am also indebted to all at Seaforth Publishing, with their constant hard work and willingness to let me get on with whatever comes up. I have dealt with Rob Gardiner and Julian Mannering since the days when they were Chatham Publishing, and have the highest regard for everything that they do and the great books they manage to create out of pages of jumbled manuscript.

This is my first foray into the world of the Luftwaffe, and it was quite an eye-opener. As always, the more you learn the more you realise you dont know. As well as pages and pages of original documents available through the National Archives of the UK and USA and the Bundesarchiv in Germany, there is also a phenomenal amount of knowledge freely shared by people on the internet, for which I am very grateful. It is easy to sneer at internet sources, as for every gem there is the equivalent lump of coal (if not more than one), but it can be a very valuable resource for connecting with people who have made the study of certain subjects one of their lifes great passions. As with printed books, there is never any replacement for your own independent verification, but it can be a fantastic starting point, if not more. There are myriad forums discussing the Luftwaffe and its role in the Second World War, dealing with everything from strategic operations to the minutiae of uniforms and decorations. Though I am often just a bystander in many of these conversations, they have been both informative and enlightening and push your deeper research in directions that may not have seemed so obvious before. I will list some of the most informative in the Bibliography, though the list will be by no means complete.

Likewise, thank you to the many authors who have written fascinating books about the Luftwaffe, without whom I would not have known where to begin.

Anti-submarine warfare.

Befehlshaber der U-Boote , Commander-in-Chief, submarines.

Beobachtungsdienst des feindlichen Funkerverkehrs , Kriegsmarine radio monitoring and cryptographic intelligence service.

Shipboard air units, or, alternatively, the pilot of such an aircraft.

OKH Oberkommando des Heeres , Army High Command.

OKL Oberkommando der Luftwaffe , Air Force High Command. Properly established during February 1944, previously designated the Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaffe ( Ob.d.L. : C-in-C Luftwaffe).

Oberkommando der Kriegsmarine , Naval High Command.

Oberkommando der Wehrmacht , Armed Forces High Command.

Fliegerdivison Early-war subdivision of a Fliegerkorps . Kept in use for certain specialised formation.

Theatre air commander, e.g. Fliegerfhrer Atlantik.

Largest operational level subdivision of Luftflotte . Numbered consecutively with Roman Numerals, e.g. IX. Fliegerkorps .

Fhrer der Seeluftstreitkrfte , Commander of maritime combat aviation.

F.d.U Fhrer der U-boote , early-war designation for Commander submarines.

Luftwaffe equivalent to an RAF Group or a USAAF Wing.

Luftwaffe equivalent to an RAF Wing or a USAAF Group (plural Gruppen )

Independent bomber formation of Gruppe size.

Flight of three aircraft.

Commander of a unit, particularly in Luftwaffe use for Gruppe commander.

In the Luftwaffe a Geschwader commander, not an actual rank.

Luftwaffe equivalent to the Fleet Air Arm.

German Air Force from 1935 onwards. The term operational Luftwaffe is used here to separate orthodox Luftwaffe units from the Kstenflieger and other naval flying units.

Luftwaffe Air Fleet equivalent to an American numbered Air Force. Numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals, e.g. Luftflotte 4.

Air-dropped mine.

German Navy between 1935 and 1945.

Regional command of Kriegsmarine security forces such as minesweeping, submarine hunters, patrol boats and so on, e.g. Marinegruppen- kommando West . Abbreviated to MGK .

Commander-in-Chief, Luftwaffe, the military post

held by Hermann Gring.

Pre-war German Navy, renamed Kriegsmarine in 1935.

Reichsluftfahrtministerium , Reich Air Ministry; civilian office headed by Hermann Gring.

Roughly the Luftwaffe equivalent to an Allied Squadron (plural Staffeln )

Squadron Commander, abbreviated to Staka .

Equivalent Rank Table