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Feldwebel Ernest Giefing
Ernest Giefing was born on February 7th, 1924 in Stockerau, Austria. After graduating from flight school he joined the training unit Jagdschule 107 in July, 1943 and later joined Jagdschule 107 as a flying instructor. Five months later, Giefing was posted to Jagdgeschwader 2 Richthofen (JG2) followed by a posting to JG7 in December 1944. Ernest Giefing held the rank of Flight Sergeant by the end of the war, having flown approximately 75 combat missions including 12 in Me262 jets, and gaining four confirmed aerial victories, two in the Me262 and two flying the Me109. Ernest Giefing was shot down four times, the fourth time on March 24th, 1945 - the day of his last combat mission.
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Jet Hunters by Robert Taylor. On 10th April 1945, thirteen hundred bombers of the Mighty Eighth set out to destroy the last of the Luftwaffe's jet force. But, unknown to the bomber crews and their fighter escort, the enemy jets were already airborne and waiting to spring their deadly trap. As the war in mainland Europe entered its final, bloody phase, the German Armies defending Berlin fought on with a savage determination, slowly disintegrating before the mighty weapon of war unleashed against them. What remained of the Luftwaffe was mercilessly pounded from the air, their airfields hammered relentlessly. Aircraft, fuel, spare parts, ammunition and pilots all in short supply but still they fought on, with deadly effect. At the forefront of the German offensive and pivotal during the defence of the Reich, were the highly advanced jet fighters of the Luftwaffe, and in particular the legendary Me262. B17s of the First Air Division with streaming contrails in the cold clear air as they turn for home. Several Me262s have already torn through the massed formation, but a P-51 from the escorting 356th Fighter Group has quickly spotted his target and presses home his attack. The hunter becomes the hunted as the Mustang pilot, Wayne Gatlin, skillfully positions himself behind the Me262 ready for the kill. Throughout the final stages of the war there were many examples of the determination and skill of Allied pilots flying slower piston-engined fighters triumphing over the cream of the Luftwaffe in their highly advanced but often temperamental jet fighters. |
The Long Short Days by Robert Taylor. It was known as the Jagdverbande, the fighter arm of the Luftwaffe, and by June 1940 it boasted some of the world's greatest fighter pilots. With tactics honed to perfection, these battle-seasoned veterans dominated the skies of Europe. But as the war progressed, the Luftwaffe fighter pilots faced another battle, the increasingly desperate war of attrition as the Allied air forces slowly, but inevitably, ground the German war machine into defeat. By early 1945 Allied air supremacy was overwhelming. And yet despite overwhelming odds, from within their ranks came the most successful air Aces ever to fly in combat - names such as Hans-Joachim Marseille, the top-scoring fighter pilot in the West, the legendary Erich Rudorffer who scored more multiple victories than any other pilot and of course the Fighter General, Adolf Galland, who achieved all of his 104 victories in the West. In total more than 100 Luftwaffe fighter pilots are known to have scored 100 or more victories, and 568 Jagdverbande flyers were holders of the Knight's Cross, Germany's highest awarded military honor. Robert Taylor's stunning painting, beautifully captures a group of Bf109Gs from III./JG26, as they return to their forward base after a long fighter sweep along the Channel coast in early 1944. In his unmistakable style, and with inordinate skill, Robert deftly evokes a moment of rare tranquility amidst the carnage of war as the lengthening sun glints across the frozen landscape during the short days of winter. |
Running the Gauntlet by Robert Taylor. Though some 1400 of Germanys remarkable Me262 jet aircraft were built, fewer than 300 ever saw action during its short 10 month combat career, the 550 mph fighter-bomber arriving in service too late to make any impression on the course of the war. Most famous of all Me262 units was Jagdverband 44, commanded by General Adolf Galland. Instructed by Hitler to set up a small defensive fighter unit to make the most of the new Me262, Gallands JV44 attracted other top-scoring pilots, including top aces Macky Steinhoff and Walter Krupinski, and the unit soon became dubbed Gallands Squadron of Experts. Though doing their best to repel daylight attacks on jet production plants in Southern Germany, JV44 were fighting a losing battle. During a raid on 9 April 1945 the unit lost nine aircraft - a pattern that was to continue. Also, American fighter pilots, unable to catch the 262 in the air, found success taking the jets out as they took off or landed, catching them while at their most vulnerable. With the Allies driving deeper and deeper into Germany, production of aircraft, spares, fuel, and ammunition, steadily dried up. The point came when JV44, Gallands now legendary Squadron of Experts, finally ground to a halt. Running the Gauntlet shows Me262s of JV44 returning to base in southern Germany, having come under attack from P-51 Mustangs of the 353rd Fighter Group. Almost out of fuel and ammunition, the Me262s have little option but to complete their landing sequence, hoping fervently they are not bounced by American fighters loitering in the area. They are out of luck on this occasion, and although Galland has organised a unit flying Focke-Wulf Fw190D-9s to provide air cover in the area of the airfield, they too have been caught by the 353rd Fighter Groups surprise attack. At the relatively slow speed required on final approach, the Me262s handling is sluggish and the pilot is having enough trouble without the attentions of a bunch of P-51 pilots. At this point the JV44 Me262 remains unscathed, and with the arrival of the Fw190s, there is the possibility this particular jet pilot will survive the day. |
| Feldwebel Ernest Giefing Aircraft details |
 Me109 Manufacturer : Messerschmitt Built : 33984 | Me109 Willy Messerschmitt designed the BF109 during the early 1930s. The Bf109 was one of the first all metal monocoque construction fighters with a closed canopy and retractable undercarriage. The engine of the Me109 was a V12 aero engine which was liquid-cooled. The Bf109 first saw operational service during the Spanish Civil War and flew to the end of World War II, during which time it was the backbone of the Luftwaffe fighter squadrons. During the Battle of Britian the Bf109 was used in the role of an escort fighter, a role for which it was not designed for, and it was also used as a fighter bomber. During the last days of May 1940 Robert Stanford-Tuck, the RAF ace, got the chance to fly an Me109 which they had rebuilt after it had crash landed. Stanford-Tuck found out that the Me109 was a wonderful little plane, it was slightly faster than the Spitfire, but lacked the Spitfire manoeuvrability. By testing the Me109, Tuck could put himself inside the Me109 when fighting them, knowing its weak and strong points. With the introduction of the improved Bf109F in the spring of 1941, the type again proved to be an effective fighter during the invasion of Yugoslavia and during the Battle of Crete and the invasion of Russia and it was used during the Siege of the Mediteranean island of Malta. The Bf109 was the main fighter for the Luftwaffe until 1942 when the Fw190 entered service and shared this position, and was partially replaced in Western Europe, but the Me109 continued to serve on the Eastern Front and during the defence of the Reich against the allied bombers. It was also used to good effect in the Mediterranean and North Africa in support of The Africa Korps. The Me109 was also supplied to several German allies, including Finland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Slovakia. The Bf109 scored more kills than any other fighter of any country during the war and was built in greater numbers with a total of over 31,000 aircraft being built. The Bf109 was flown by the three top German aces of the war war. Erich Hartmann with 352 victories, Gerhard Barkhorn with 301 victories and Gunther Rall with 275 kills. Bf109 pilots were credited with the destruction of 100 or more enemy aircraft. Thirteen Luftwaffe Aces scored more than 200 kills. Altogether this group of pilots were credited with a total of nearly 15,000 kills, of which the Messerschmitt Bf109 was credited with over 10,000 of these victories. The Bf109 was the most produced warplane during World War II, with 30,573 examples built during the war, and the most produced fighter aircraft in history, with a total of 33,984 units produced up to April 1945. Bf109s remained in foreign service for many years after World War II. The Swiss used their Bf109Gs well into the 1950s. The Finnish Air Force did not retire their Bf109Gs until March 1954. Romania used its Bf109s until 1955. The Spanish Hispanos flew even longer. Some were still in service in the late 1960s. |
 Me262 Manufacturer : Messerschmitt Built : 1400 | Me262 The Messerschmitt Me-262 Swallow, a masterpiece of engineering, was the first operational mass-produced jet to see service. Prototype testing of the airframe commenced in 1941 utilizing a piston engine. General Adolf Galland, who was in charge of the German Fighter Forces at that time, pressured both Goring and Hitler to accelerate the Me-262, and stress its use as a fighter to defend Germany from Allied bombers. Hitler, however, envisioned the 262 as the aircraft which might allow him to inflict punishment on Britain. About 1400 Swallows were produced, but fortunately for the Allies, only about 300 saw combat duty. While the original plans for the 262 presumed the use of BMW jet engines, production Swallows were ultimately equipped with Jumo 004B turbojet engines. The wing design of the 262 necessitated the unique triangular hull section of the fuselage, giving the aircraft a shark-like appearance. With an 18 degree swept wing, the 262 was capable of Mach .86. The 262 was totally ineffective in a turning duel with Allied fighters, and was also vulnerable to attack during take off and landings. The landing gear was also suspect, and many 262s were destroyed or damaged due to landing gear failure. Despite its sleek jet-age appearance, the 262 was roughly manufactured, because Germany had lost access to its normal aircraft assembly plants. In spite of these drawbacks the 262 was effective. For example, on April 7, 1945 a force of sixty 262s took on a large force of Allied bombers with escort fighters. Armed with their four nose-mounted cannons, and underwing rockets the Swallows succeeded in downing or damaging 25 Allied B-17s on that single mission. While it is unlikely that the outcome of the War could have been altered by an earlier introduction or greater production totals for this aircraft, it is clear to many historians that the duration of the War might have been drastically lengthened if the Me-262 had not been too little too late. |
| Feldwebel Ernest Giefing Squadron details |
JG2 Country : Germany | JG2 Jagdgeschwader 2 was formed from parts of Jagdgeschwader 131 "Richthofen" on 1 May 1939 in Döberitz and its first commander was Oberst Robert Ritter von Greim. At the outbreak of the war JG 2 was tasked with defence of the Reich and based in the Berlin area under Luftgaukommando III. Stab and II. Gruppe were equipped with the Bf 109E and were located at Döberitz with 10.(N) staffel flying the Bf 109D in Straussberg. 10.(N) Staffel was one of the first night fighter units formed in the Luftwaffe. Later this staffel was expanded into IV.(N) Gruppe. This Gruppe gained the Luftwaffe’s first night kill over the RAF Bomber Command on the night of 25/26 on April 1940 when Ofw Förster shot down a Handley Page Hampden. The unit saw little combat until the Western offensive against France and the Low Countries from 10 May 1940 onwards. During the campaign against France, JG 2 was tasked with escorting raids and defending German airspace to the south of Heinz Guderian's Panzer forces which were encircling the French and the British Expeditionary Force further north. Leutnant Helmut Wick, who later became part of a trio of outstanding aces (including Adolf Galland from Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26) and Werner Mölders from Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51)) in the Battle of Britain, attained his first and the Geschwader's second kill on 22 November 1939, a French Curtiss Hawk Model 75. The first victory for the JG 2 was scored by Oberfeldwebel Kley (3. Staffel) at the same day. JG 2 took part in the Battle of Britain, operating Bf 109Es over the South Coast of England and the English Channel from bases in Cherbourg and Normandy. Major Helmut Wick emerged as one of the Battle’s top Luftwaffe aces, claiming 31 kills for a personal total of 56, before being killed (MIA) in action versus Spitfires of No. 609 Squadron in November 1940. Wick was seen to bail out successfully but was not found by German Air/Sea Rescue attempts. The Spitfire who dispatched him was immediately shot down by Oberleutnant Rudolf Pflanz. Ofw. Schnell, Ofw. Machold and Olt. Hans "Assi" Hahn also claimed heavily during this period, with 16 kills each. Some 42 JG 2 pilots were killed or made POW during the battle. |
JG7 Country : Germany | JG7 Nowotny was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II and the first operational jet fighter wing in the world. It was created late in 1944 and served until the end of the war in May 1945, and it operated the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter exclusively. JG 7 was formed under the command of Oberst Johannes Steinhoff, with Kommando Nowotny (the initial Me 262 test wing ) renumbered III./JG 7. Under the command of Major Erich Hohagen III./JG 7 was the only element of JG 7 ready to operate against the Allies. Throughout its existence JG 7 suffered from an irregular supply of new aircraft, fuel and spares. With such a radically new aircraft, training accidents were also common, with 10 Me 262s being lost in six weeks. The technical troubles and material shortages meant initial tentative sorties were only in flight strength, usually no more than 4 or 6 aircraft. Flying from Brandenburg-Briest, Oranienburg and Parchim, the Geschwader flew intermittently against the huge USAAF bomber streams. By the end of February 1945 JG 7 had claimed around 45 four-engine bombers and 15 fighters, but at this stage of war this success rate had no affect whatsoever on the Allied air offensive. During March JG 7 finally began to deliver larger scale attacks against the heavy bomber streams. 3 March saw 29 sorties for 8 kills claimed (one jet was lost). On 18 March III./JG 7 finally managed their biggest attack numerically thus far, some 37 Me 262s engaging a force of 1,200 American bombers and 600 fighters. This action also marked the first use of the new R4M rockets. 12 bombers and 1 fighter were claimed for the loss of 3 Me 262s. The total numbers of aircraft shot down by JG 7 is difficult to quantify due to the loss of Luftwaffe records, but at least 136 aircraft were claimed, and research indicates as many as 420 Allied aircraft may have been claimed shot down. |
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