Free Luftwaffe Fighter Aces by Mike Spick Page B

difficult to intercept, but their pilots were for the most part resentful of being relegated to the role of bomb truck. Not as well trained as the specialists of
EprGr 210
, they achieved little. Other daylight activity, such as fighter sweeps, continued, albeit at a much reduced pace. As autumn progressed, poor weather not only restricted flying: it turned the temporary landing grounds of the
Jagdflieger
to mud. As 1940 drew to a close, it became obvious to all of them that they had suffered a defeat, although the full implications of this would not be apparent for some considerable time.

    Fig. 11. Galland’s Favoured ‘Up and Under’ Attack
The vast majority of Adolf Galland’s victories came by this means. A steep plunge from astern was followed by an attack coming up in the blind spot astern and below. While not specifically stated, this was best made from a few degrees to the right: the average fighter pilot, his left hand on the throttle and his right on the stick, could look over his left shoulder more easily than his right.
The
Experten
    Fighter pilots differ from most other warriors in that there is a practical, as opposed to a subjective, yardstick by which their deeds can be measured. This is the number of aerial victories they score. To pre-empt comments about overclaiming, the author wishes to stress that a victory is not necessarily a kill: it is a combat in which an enemy aircraft appears to be hit, and goes down in such a manner as to make the successful pilot believe that it is a total loss.
    The heavy fighting during the Battle of Britain provided many combat opportunities, and the scores
of the
Experten
—who, it must be said, were a small proportion of the whole—almost took on the aspect of a race. Mölders, the leader at the end of the French campaign, was wounded and out of action for about three weeks from late July, during which time Balthasar passed his score. Only when the latter was wounded early in September did Mölders recover his lead. Meanwhile Galland and Helmut Wick had been catching up fast.
    Mölders’ score reached 40 on 20 September, followed by Galland five days later and Wick on 6 October. Wick managed to edge into the lead on 28 November but was shot down that same day, his final score at 56. The last day of the year saw Galland in the lead with 58, three ahead of Mölders. Then came Walter Oesau with 39, while Hans-Karl Mayer reached 38 before his death in action on 17 October. Among many others were Hermann-Friedrich Joppien (31, of which five were in France), Joachim Müncheberg (23) and Gerhard Schöpfel (22). The least successful of the
Jagdgeschwader
was
JG
52,
surprisingly as it contained Gerhard Barkhorn (later to score 301 victories in the East but whose Battle of Britain score was nil) and Günther Rall (who achieved little over England but whose final score was 275, also in the East).

    Fig. 12. Schöpfel’s Combat, 18 August 1940
Gerd Schöpfel, leading
III/JG 26
in Gallands absence, spotted the Hurricanes of No 501 Squadron near Canterbury. Waiting until they had their backs to the sun, and leaving his
Gruppe
on high, he plummeted down and picked off both weavers and two others without being spotted. Only when hit by wreckage and oil from his fourth victim did he break off the attack.
    The leading Bf 110 pilots were Hans-Joachim Jabs of
II
/
ZG 76
and Eduard Tratt of
I
/
EprGr 210,
both of whom claimed 12 victories in the battle. Jabs, possibly the greatest Bf 110 pilot of all, had previously scored six in France, while Tratt’s feat was remarkable in that he was flying
Jabo
sorties at the time. With an eventual score of 38, Tratt became the top-scoring
Zerstörerflieger
of the war.
     
    HELMUT WICK Apart from natural ability, Helmut Wick had other advantages. His instructor during advanced training had been the great Werner Mölders, who was also his
Staffelkapitän
in
I
/
JG 53
from March 1939. Shortly after the beginning of the war he was transferred