Download German Air Armament in the Second

“The Air Force went to war as a torso” – this way
it was expressed by the Chief of Staff of the Air
Force Johannes Steinhoff in an article in 1969.
A crippled Air Force, which was not good „for a
multi front war against great powers“. Deficits
and wrong decisions with respect to the material equipment of the Air Force became visible
already in the campaign against France. The
defeat of the Luftwaffe by the Royal Air Force in
the Battle of Britain and finally in the war against
the Soviet Union revealed the real extent of the
disaster.
Besides the military failures the ongoing interference of the German Air Ministry in the
production processes of the aviation industry
proved to be contraproductive. Light metal alloys, different types of steel and plastic materials
as Plexiglas were the most important materials
in aircraft construction. These materials were
subject to quotas given by the Ministry of
Göring or the Reich Ministry of Economic Affairs, respectively. However, due to permanently
changing priorities, they were made available
sometimes in greater and sometimes in lesser
volumes.
Chaos continues –
German Air Armament in the Second
World
The influence of Hermann Göring was added
to this. The Reichsmarschall and Commander in
Chief of the Air Force permanently interfered in
technical developments, changes to types and
production processes. Running procurement
programs were changed permanently and not
infrequently terminated again after preparations
for the start of series production finally had been
completed.
1 Stuka: The dive bomber as a symbol of the Blitzkrieg
A Junkers Ju 87 drops bombs in a dive.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History – Berlin-Gatow Airfield
2 Heinkel He 111 H attack formation of battle squadron 26, 1940
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History – Berlin-Gatow Airfield
3 Adolf Hitler in Paris
Following the successful end of the campaign in the
West Adolf Hitler visits Paris together with Albert
Speer and is depicted in a propagandistic manner
by Heinrich Hoffmann.
National Archives, NARA 540180
The Hungarian Aircraft Manufacturers
In 1938, the Aircraft and Motor Company Manfréd Weiss started the serial production of its
indigenous design WM-21 “Sólyom”, a bomber
and reconnaissance biplane; a total of 128 aircraft of this type were manufactured. In 1939,
they ventured to design the fighter aircraft
WM-23 “Ezüstnyíl” (English: Silver Arrow), based
on the Heinkel He 112. After the crash of the
only prototype in mid-July 1942, the program,
however, was discontinued. In 1943, the Aircraft
and Motor Company Manfréd Weiss started the
license production of the engines DB-605D and
of VDM propellers.
transport aircraft. Due to delayed construction,
the first Ju 52 left the workshops as late as end
of March 1944.
In 1938, the Aviation Department of the Hungarian State Iron, Steel and Machine Works MÁVAG
was vested the right to manufacture the WM-21
“Sólyom”. In 1944, the company was included in
the fighter program, which, however, could not
be implemented due to the war’s events. The
Aviation Department of the Györ Wagon and
Machine Works produced a total of 127 FockeWulf Fw 58 “Weihe” twin-engine multirole aircraft from 1940 on. In 1941, the works built the
prototype of the trainer aircraft “Levente”, and
within the scope of the fighter program, they
received the order to manufacture the Messerschmitt Me 109F fighter aircraft. The Hungarian
Air Force got 240 out of the around 600 aircraft
of this type that had been manufactured by July
1944.
3 Map of the planned expansion of the Danube Aircraft Works AG.
The Danube Aircraft Works started manufacturing the heavy fighter and ground-attack aircraft
Messerschmitt Me 210, of which one aircraft was
produced per day in 1944. About 170 out of the
around 270 aircraft manufactured there went to
the Hungarian Air Force. On 14 July 1944 it was
decided to switch the line of production towards
the Me 109 fighter aircraft. The Pestszentlõrinc
Industrial Workshops were established as a
manufacturing site for the Junkers Ju 52/3m
1 László Rekettyés, test pilot in Győr, on the bow of his
»favorite godchild«.
2 Repair of engine of a Fiat Cr.42 fighter aircraft in
Győr Waggon and Machine Factory in 1939.
4 Aerial photography taken after the bombing of the
Danube Aircraft Works AG on 13 April 1944 ...
5 ... and the destruction as seen from the ground.
6 American bomber B-24 »Liberator« attacking the
Manfréd Weiss Works on 27 July 1944.
Endre vitéz Németh was born in Nagykároly in
1919. When the town was ceded to Romania
in 1920, his family resettled to Budapest. From
1936 to 1939 he received military education and
training at Ludovica Academy (an officer school
in Budapest). After that, he was assigned to the
Hungarian Air Force as an observation officer
in the 1st Independent Long Range Reconnaissance Regiment which was equipped with Heinkel He 70 aircraft.
Endre vitéz Németh conducted his first operational flights within the scope of the military
operations against Yugoslavia in April 1941.
He achieved his first air victory on the Eastern
Front on 2 July 1942; until 13 August 1942, he
managed to shoot down another seven aircraft.
In spring 1943 he was retrained from the Heinkel
He 111-P2 aircraft to the new Junkers Ju 88-D2
type, which he then flew as a pilot. He flew his
last mission on 26 April 1943. Until the end of
the war Endre vitéz Németh served as a flight
instructor. After World War II, he emigrated to
Canada with his family, where he worked as
head of the representation office of the Ford Motor Company in Vancouver until his retirement.
First Lieutenant Endre vitéz Németh
(1919 – 2007)
1 Trainer aircraft Bücker Bü131 preparing for take-off.
2 Group picture of reconnaissance pilots before a mission somewhere on the Eastern Front.
3 Staff of the reconnaissance squadron in front of a
Heinkel He 70 K, winter 1941/1942
4 Lieutenant Endre v. Németh’s wedding photo
5 Reconnaissance Heinkel He 70 K immediately before
the start. (Source: Fortepan)
Showcase:
1 Awards and personal memorabilia of Lieutenant
vitéz Endre Németh.
The events on the Eastern Front in winter 1941/
1942 dispelled the faith in a swift victory over
the Soviet Union. The Wehrmacht had to make
every possible effort to continue operations.
On 9 January 1942 László Bárdossy promised
that Hungary would do its utmost and go and
fight against the Soviet Union. Thus, the Hungarian Second Army was established, which moved
out in summer 1942. After fierce fighting, it
moved into defensive positions along the Don
River.
In January 1943, the heavy Soviet offensive resulted in the defeat of the Hungarian troops. The
country was shocked; conservative circles held
Bárdossy responsible for the situation that had
arisen. Miklós Kállay, who succeeded Bárdossy
in office, wanted to find a way out of the war by
pursuing a see-saw policy. While the country
continued to fulfill its commitments to Germany,
he initiated secret negotiations with England
and the USA.
Hungary during World War II
The number of industrial workers increased
significantly between 1938 and 1943. The rural
population was subject to rigid provisions regulating the delivery of their products from 1942
on. In 1941, ration stamps for flour and bread
were introduced in Budapest and its hinterland;
prices were rising, the lack of goods became
increasingly noticeable. A significant part of the
grain harvest and strategically important raw
materials such as bauxite were exported to Germany. When the anti-Jewish laws were passed in
1941 and 1942, the Kállay government still could
reject Hitler’s radical demands concerning the
Jewish population. Thus, almost 100,000 Jews
from the neighboring countries took refuge in
the allegedly secure Hungary.
1 Advance of border troops in the valley of the Prut
River on 2 Juli 1941.
2 All-terrain vehicle 1938 M Botond drags a 50 mm
anti-tank gun 1938 M in the operational area in June
1942.
3 German assault gun StuG III passes Hungarian hussars who move through the village Tim, after 2 Juli
1942.
4 Grave of Sergeant Albert Sterk and his comrades in
the Hungarian military cemetery Jekaterinowka in
August 1942.
5 Hungarian row of trucks in the Ukraine in the winter
of 1943/1944
6 Hungarian soldiers march to the front line in front of
the Hungarian Artillery Monument in January 1945
Most pilots of the first aviation group received
their baptism of fire in Carpatho-Ukraine and in
Yugoslavia. On the Eastern Front, they fought
from June to November 1941; during this period, they flew almost 1,500 missions and shot
down 30 enemy aircraft. Their own casualties
amounted to 17 officers and 15 nonrated men;
in terms of air vehicles, the group lost 25 close
reconnaissance aircraft, 14 fighter aircraft and 11
bomber aircraft.
Air Brigade 2 faced heavy fighting from May
1942 on. During the Don catastrophe, which
began on 12 January 1943, also the air arm suffered heavy losses. In total, they lost 36 men
killed, 46 missing, 56 wounded and 32 soldiers
with frostbite. Almost 50 percent of the aircraft
and three fourths of the other material were
destroyed. Air Brigade 102, which was newly
structured in February and at last had modern
German air craft types at its disposal, was placed
under German command the whole year.
The Fights of the Hungarian Air Force
on the Eastern Front and for the
Defense of their Homeland
After Hungary’s occupation by the Wehrmacht
in March 1944, it became increasingly obvious
that the Allied bomber formations would also
target Hungarian towns now. Therefore, 101st
Fighter Wing “Puma” was set up on 1 April 1944
for home air defense, which later was increased
to the size of a fighter regiment. The first bombing raid on Budapest on 3 April 1944 claimed
more than 1000 lives and numerous injured. The
last bombardment was conducted on 22 March
1945.
During their missions, Hungarian fighter pilots
shot down 61 four-engine and 32 twin-engine
Allied bomber aircraft as well as 14 fighter aircraft. Their own losses amounted to 31 pilots
and 78 aircraft. From September 1944 on, the
Hungarian Air Force limited itself to the support of land forces in the defense against the
advancing Red Army. In May 1945, pushed back
on German territory, they destroyed their last
remaining aircraft.
1 Fighter aircraft of the type Reggiane Re.2000 »Héja«
of the I/1st Squadron »Dongó« on the airfield Stary
Oskol on the Eastern Front in summer 1942.
2 German and Hungarian officers get out of a transport aircraft Junkers Ju 52 somewhere on the
Eastern Front in summer 1942.
3 The commander of the 1st independent Fighter
Group, captain Aladár vitéz Heppes of Belényes with
a Bergmann machine gun over his shoulder after
the outbreak near Ilowskoje in winter 1943.
4 Lieutenant Dániel László before starting at Veszprém
Airfield in July 1944.
5 Dive bomber Junkers Ju 87 D with Hungarian cockade. In the background is a German machine of the
same type.
6 Messerschmitt Bf 109 G 6 of the »Puma« Squadron
are preparing for battle to fight Allied aircrafts attacking Hungarian cities in summer 1944.
Against the background of Allied air raids on the
German armaments production, the German
government decided to relocate a part of the
aircraft production to Hungary. This decision
involved qualitative improvements for the Hungarian aviation industry and the development of
the air arm of the country. On 6 June 1941, the
Government Contract on the Messerschmitt Program was signed in Berlin. Under this contract,
an effective aircraft production was to be developed in Hungary, which at that time still was
without reach of the Allied air raids. Its production surpluses were to be delivered to Germany.
The Hungarian aviation industry was vested with
the right to manufacture the Messerschmitt Me
109F fighter aircraft and the twin-engine combat aircraft (heavy fighter and ground-attack
aircraft) Messerschmitt Me 210 as well as the aircraft engines DB-605A and DB-605B. The aircraft
produced were distributed between Germany
and Hungary at a ratio of 2:1. Later, the armaments cooperation was extended to include the
transport aircraft Junkers Ju 52/3m, for which
the Germans delivered the engines and other
components. The production of the airframe, the
assembly and the testing of the completed Ju 52
were accomplished in Hungary.
The Messerschmitt Program
1 Technical inspection of a Fighter aircraft Messerschmitt Bf 109 G 6 from Hungarian production
before a test flight
2 Power sources of Messerschmitt aircrafts were made
by the Hirth Engine Works.
3 In a factory floor of the Wagon and Machine Works
Me 109 cells lined up, 1944.
4 Destroyer Messerschmitt Me 210 from Hungarian
production with integrated 40 mm machine gun 34
M and rocket launcher.
5 Junkers Ju 52 and fuselages lined up in a factory
floor of Pestszentlőrincer Industry Works AG (PIRT).
6 A Junkers Ju 52 on the Eastern Front, winter 1943/
1944
From 20 to 25 February 1944 American and
British bomber formations carried out heavy air
strikes against selected targets of the German
armaments industry. Operation »Big Week«
should deal a hard blow to air armament largely
eliminating it. However, the success of the
massive attacks was only short lived. Already
in March 1944 the output of German aircraft
production was 200 aircraft above the production of January. In the following time production
rates increased more and more.
The losses among experienced and combat
tested pilots and crews were much more severe
for the Air Force as temporary drops in aircraft
production. It was not possible at will to shorten
the training of a fighter pilot to operational readiness - unless at the cost of quality. However, this
was the action taken by the Air Force in order to
fill the aircraft. New pilots completed courses in
flight training schools in ever decreasing times
in order to encounter thoroughly and professionally trained allied fighter pilots in the air.
The Air Force increasingly fights a
loosing battle
Allied dominance of the skies over Germany
increased week by week. At the beginning of the
war Hermann Göring had boastfully declared,
he wanted to be called »Meier«, should enemy
aircraft ever violate the borders of the German
Reich. As this was not unusual anymore he was
heavily blamed by Hitler. „Your pig sty of an Air
Force!“. The reprimanded Göring expressed his
bitterness calling the fighter pilots cowards.
1 »Target: Germany«
American B-17-bombers during an air raid
U.S. Army Air Force, 1944
2& 3 Aerial photographs of Regensburg during and
after an air raid on the aircraft plants
U.S. Army Air Force, 1944
4 Destroyed fighter aircraft Bf 109 G
Allied air raids destroyed numerous operational
aircraft on the ground.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History – Berlin-Gatow Airfield
5 Destroyed wonder weapon on the ground
The new rocket-propelled fighter aircraft Me 163
was among the wonder weapons, as they were
propagated by the NS-Regime, which would enable
an »ultimate victory« of Germany.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History – Berlin-Gatow Airfield
During the first years of the war life for people in
Germany remained largely normal and unspectacular. That changed when the tide turned after
the defeat in Stalingrad and the fall of the 6th
Army, when the Wehrmacht was put more and
more on the defensive on all fronts. Immediately
after the disaster at the Wolga Joseph Goebbels
propagated on 18 November 1943 in the Berlin
Sports Palace employment of the whole civilian
population for the continuation of the war.
At the height of his speech the Reich Minister for
Public Enlightenment and Propaganda shouted
to the about 3,000 »national comrades«: “Do
you want total war?” To this very day the subsequent storm of enthusiasm of the frenetically
applauding crowd is considered as an eloquent
testimony for the blinding infatuation of people
with the National Socialist ideology. The NSleadership considered the thundering »Yes« as
consent of the population to the continuation
of the war.
»Do you want total war?« –
Mobilization at the home front
The regime mobilized all means of production
and the whole work force for the announced
»ultimate victory«. After Hitler first had shown
a negative attitude towards the employment of
German Women in the armaments industry this
personnel reserve was increasingly resorted to.
At the »home-front« all men at the age between
16 and 65 years and all women at the age from
17 to 45 years were drafted into service in the
armaments industry or within the defense of the
Reich. Working hours were extended to up to 14
hours per day.
1 German Woman working on the engine block of a Bf
109, Propaganda photo
Due to ideological reasons Hitler initially did not
want to employ German women in the armaments
industry. However, soon young women replaced the
workers who were sent to the front. Together with
foreign forced laborers they accounted for a large
proportion of the work force in the enterprises.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History Dresden
2 „Do you want total war?“
The Reich Minister for Public Enlightenment and
Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels propagated “Total
war” under use of all available means and reserves
on 18 November 1943 in the Berlin Sports Palace.
German Historical Museum
3 Journal »News from Military District IV«
The entire civilian life at the “home front” was
geared towards the continuation of the war. The
journal “News from Military District IV” was reporting about total war. The front page depicts a young
woman working under the guidance of a Wehrmacht soldier.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History Dresden
The legal basis of labor service was laid by Article II/1939 on national defense, which entered
into force in 1939. Under the aspect of military
service, this system was designed to ensure the
military fitness of those elements of society that
were assessed as politically unreliable and the
utilization of their labor. Communists, members
of national and ethnic minorities (Gypsies, Romanians, Serbs, Slovaks and Ruthenians) as well
as Jews were conscripted for the companies to
be set up.
In spite of the cruelties which individual company commanders committed misusing their
power, the labor service cannot be regarded as
an instrument for the systematic extermination
of groups of the population. It was as late as
spring 1941 that the Jews were deprived of the
right to carry arms and wear insignia of rank.
The labor service companies mainly constructed
roads and airfields and drained swamps both
inside the country and in the hinterland of the
troops fighting on the Eastern Front. Their casualties were approximately proportional to those
of the troops fighting on the front.
Labor Service
1 György Erdős, who was of Jewish origin, had been
drafted as simple soldier in 1936. Since 1941 he had
to carry on as forced laborer without military rank
and the right to carry a weapon.
(Forrás: HDKE)
2 Forced laborers in Szinérváralja in 1939.
(Forrás: HDKE)
3 The 201/5th labor service company at work. In
Székelyhíd the men had to destruct the fortifications made by Romanians and collected barbed
wire for reusable wire rolls. (Székelyhíd October
1940)
(Forrás: HDKE)
4 Winter quarters of labor service in Dolha in December 1940.
(Forrás: HDKE)
5 The big red letters »Zs«, indicating the Jewish origin
(first letter of the Hungarian word »Zsidó« for Jew/
Jewish) in the identification papers of Béla Deutsch.
(Forrás: HDKE)
6 Forced laborer Sándor Widder with yellow star, after
March 1944.
(Forrás: HKDE)
As in many other German industrial sectors
foreign forced laborers and concentration camp
prisoners were used in the field of air armament.
Thus German workers drafted for military service
should be replaced and the highly increased demand for workers should be met. Forced laborers and concentration camp prisoners were used
in all sectors of local industry but also in the
occupied territories. Between seven and eleven
million people had to perform forced labor for
Germany during the Second World War.
The working slaves came from all countries occupied by the Wehrmacht, on the greater part
however from the Soviet Union and Eastern
Europe. Their use was a lucrative business for
German enterprises enabling enormous savings
in terms of personal costs. Also the state earned
a lot from the exploitation of the cheap and
oppressed laborers by charging rental fees for
concentration camp prisoners.
»Extermination through work« –
Exploitation in the service of warfare
With respect to the Jewish prisoners, the »extermination through work« was a deliberately calculated contribution towards the »final solution
of the Jewish question«. It was not until it turned
out in the further course of the war that the procurement of forced laborers became increasingly difficult and guidance was issued according to
which the mortality rate among forced laborers
and concentration camp prisoners in the arms
industry had to be reduced if possible.
1 Female forced laborer
The clothing indicates probably an Eastern European origin. From the very beginning women from
occupied territories in the East were employed in
the armaments industry.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History Dresden
2 Arrival of forced laborers in Augsburg
Augsburg was an important center of the aircraft
industry. Forced laborers were deported from the
occupied territories to the German Reich. They were
only left what they could carry with them.
Bundeswehr Museum of Military History Dresden
3 The value of the forced laborers
With the advancing annihilation of the Jews there
were less and less forced laborers available. The
letter indicates that the bad situation of the concentration camp prisoners with respect to food and
clothing caused severe a decline of the labor performance. It was necessary to improve conditions in
order to ensure progress of work.
(National Archives, Washington)
After the defeat in the Battle of Stalingrad the
defeat of the Axis Powers became increasingly
clear. In this situation Hungary sought to terminate the alliance with Hitler and started negotiations with the Western Allies. When Hitler heard
about that he initiated the occupation of the
country by German troops. After the change
of allegiance by Romania in summer 1944 the
German war economy had lost important crude
oil deliveries. Therefore access to Hungarian oiland bauxite reserves was highly important to
the German Reich.
Due to significant the territorial gains through
the Vienna Arbitration Decisions of 1938 and
1940 there were than 700,000 Jews in Hungary.
Until the country was occupied by the Germans
the Government in Budapest had prevented
the deportation of the Jews in order to be able
to use them for own purposes, for example in
unarmed construction parties within the Army.
About 40,000 out of 50,000 Jews, who were sent
to do labor service at the Eastern Front lost their
lives during the withdrawal from the advancing
Red Army.
The occupation of Hungary and the
fate of the Hungarian Jews
Following the Wehrmacht also SS-Obersturmbannführer Adolf Eichmann, head of the »Jews
Section« of the Central Security Office of the
Reich, came to Budapest. Eichmann should perform the »final solution of the Jewish question«
also in Hungary. He got support from the Hungarian Authorities which proceeded according
to German instructions: Registration, marking,
deprivation of rights, expropriation, ghettoisation, forced labor and deportation About
100,000 Hungarian Jews came to Germany to
perform forced labor, the remaining were largely
murdered in the extermination camps.
1 Telegraph message of 16 April 1944
The document confirms the cooperation oft the
Hungarian authorities and politicians with respect
to the deportation of the Hungarian Jews. The
50,000 Jews were followed by another 50,000, sent
to the German Reich for forced labor. The remaining
about 600,000 Hungarian Jews were taken to the
extermination camps within a very short time.
Political archive of the Foreign Office
2 Urgent letter to the Foreign Office
Political Archive of the Foreign Office
3 Urgent letter of 29 April 1944
The first transport of “2 000 able bodied Jews” from
Hungary to Auschwitz started shortly after the telegraph message to the Foreign Office. In Auschwitz
women and men were selected directly at the ramp.
Those who seemed to be unable to work were directly taken to the gas chambers.
Political archive of the Foreign Office
4 Telegram of Edmund Veesenmayer, Minister and
Reich Commissioner in Hungary
The figures mentioned in the telegram refer only to
Jews from the Budapest area. Already in June 1944
Veesenmayer had reported to Berlin: „Transport of
Jews from the Carpathian mountains and Transylvania (…) altogether 289,357 Jews in 92 trains with 45
cars each completed“.
Institute of Contemporary History, Munich
5 Deportation of Jews from Budapest
The deportation of Hungarian Jews speeded up
after the German occupation. The Hungarian authorities cooperated efficiently with SS-Oberstrumbannführer Adolf Eichmann
(Federal Archieves, Bild-101I-680-8285A-25)
After Allied troops had landed on Sicily in
July 1943, the Hungarian government started
consulting the Western Allies with respect to
a peace settlement. Hitler, who was informed
of these activities by the German intelligence,
feared to lose access to raw materials which
were important for war such as crude oil and
bauxite should Hungary withdraw from the war.
Therefore he ordered the Wehrmacht to occupy
the country in March 1944. Regent Miklós Horthy was allowed to remain in office; however, he
was forced to appoint a German-friendly government and military leadership.
The occupation placed Hungary completely under German control in political, military and economic terms. The Hungarian armaments industry was subordinated to German interests. After
the expropriation of their Jewish owners, the
Manfréd Weiss Works continued their operations
under the designation of Himmler Works. Moreover, the deportation of Hungarian Jews began,
many of whom died in the extermination camps
and as forced laborers in German armaments
companies. After Romania had switched sides
to join the Soviet Union on 23 August 1944, the
German troops increasingly were forced onto
the defensive. Horthy wanted to seize the opportunity to make another attempt to opt out of
the forced alliance with Germany.
The German Occupation, the Attempt
to Withdraw and the Seizure of Power
by the Arrow Cross Party
The poorly organized action took place on 15
October 1944. The German-friendly Hungarian
General Staff refused allegiance to the Regent.
After the Germans had occupied Buda Castle,
Miklós Horthy abdicated and was interned in
Germany until the end of war. Ferenc Szálasi
became new Prime Minister, who established
the reign of terror of the Arrow Cross Party and
ordered total mobilization. There was fierce
fighting on Hungarian territory even during the
last months of the war. World War II claimed the
lives of about 900,000 Hungarians, out of them
about 500,000 Jews. 900,000 were taken prisoner of war. 40 percent of the national property
and large parts of the traffic infrastructure were
destroyed.
1 Propaganda poster as reaction to the bombardment
by the Allies after the occupation of Hungary by
German troops on 19 März 1944.
2 A heavy tank Tiger II breaks into the courtyard of the
castle during the siege of Buda Castle district.
3 Tiger II tank in the Buda Castle on 15 October 1944.
4 The confiscated weapons of the Life Guard battalion
which defended the Buda Castle, 15 Oktober 1944.
5 Ferenc Szálasi, leader of the Arrow Cross Party, came
to power after the unsuccessful attempt to opt out
of the forced alliance with Germany.
6 Ferenc Szalasi’s meeting with Adolf Hitler in Berlin
on 4 December 1944.
In spring 1944 the production of fighter aircraft
was given top priority in armaments planning.
In order to increase production the so-called
»Fighter aircraft staff« was established on 1
March 1944 by the German Air Ministry and
the Ministry of Armament and War Production,
which was headed by Albert Speer. Members
of the managing body were experts from the
armaments industry and senior officials of the
ministries involved. It was headed by Karl-Otto
Saur, the head of the Technical Office of the Armaments Ministry.
Just a few days earlier the destruction of production facilities by allied air strikes during the »Big
Week« had brought home the vulnerability of
German aircraft production to those responsible.
Therefore another task of the Fighter Aircraft
Staff was to protect German air armament
against the background of the overwhelming
allied dominance of the skies. In order to protect
them from the bombs the production facilities
important to the war effort were spatially divided and relocated to underground bunker sites,
mines or forest areas.
Protection and pooling of productive
forces – the »Fighter aircraft staff«
A negative result of decentralized production
and the large scale employment of conscripted
unskilled workers were increasing production
failures in the aircraft. From the middle of 1944
onwards corresponding reports from units of
the Air Force cumulated. Pilots complained
about technical failures and about an in many
cases poor manufacturing quality. The problem
was aggravated through shortages with respect
to the availability of spare parts.
1 The Fighter Aircraft Staff
The document records the hierarchical placement
of the Fighter Aircraft Staff and defines its responsibilities.
Federal Archive-Military Archive, BA-MA RL10/5862-5863
2 Telegraph message to Himmler
With this telegraph message SS-Commander Heinrich Himmler was requested to provide concentration camp prisoners for the construction of bunkers
and underground plants. Within the framework of
this arms project also many Hungarian Jews were
employed from 1944 on.
National Archives Washington
3 Messerschmitt Me 262 in the plant in the forest
Kuno I
The Photograph shows part of a camouflaged production line for the jet aircraft Me 262, which was
situated in the forest. The assembled aircraft took
off from the highway nearby to their airbases.
US Army Photograph
4 Albert Speer together with concentration cam prisoners
The photograph depicts the visit of the Minister for
Armaments, Albert Speer, (on the far right) in the
concentration camp Mauthausen on 15 July 1944,
which was part of the Reich Works Hermann Göring
nearby Linz.
German Historical Museum
5 Hidden aircraft production
An American soldier inspects the hidden production
line for the jet aircraft Messerschmitt Me 262.
US Army Photograph
6 Relocation of production to underground facilities
The document of the Fighter Aircraft Staff of July
1944 shows the armaments which were produced
or planned to be produced in underground facilities.
Federal Archive-Military Archive, BAMA RL7/1214
1 On 20 March 1941 Béla Ede Zettl and the Hungarian
Optical Works MOM start tests with a machine gun
with a high rate of fire. The unanimous view of experts on the first test: »Very promising!« Computer
model of the 8-mm cartridge Zettl MOM.
(Source: András Hatala)
2 The Weapons Department sees a future for the
weapon. In May 1943 the responsibility for the
weapons development goes to the Air Force.
Schematic diagram of the German implementation of the 15 mm »machine gun« Zettl MOM with
cartridge.
(Source: András Hatala)
3 Computer model of the second version of the
German 15 mm ammunition called HF15, which
in October 1943 was separated from the Hungarian experiment with 8 mm ammunition and kept
strictly confidential.
(Source: András Hatala)
4 Hungarian cartridge with eight cartridges Zettl
MOM used in firing tests 1944
(Source: Bill Woodin, USA)
5 Although the experiments with the ammunition
HF15 lined with expectations, the war ended them
prior to the deployment of a prototype. Concept of
the weapon’s arrangement.
(Source: Fritz Hahn, German Secret Weapons 1939-1945)
6 Reconstruction of the cartridge Zettl MOM on 2
August 1943.
7 Attachment for memorandum No. 3317 about the
new ammunition principle developed in Hungary
presented in Kummersdorf on 27 August 1943.
Pictures
8 Page 3 of the memorandum No. 3355 by Company
Mauser about a meeting with the General of the Air
Defense on 15 October 1943 in Berlin about possible uses of the new cartridge to use Zettl MOM
Responding to the devastating air raids of the
allied forces during the »Big Week« in February
1944 the Fighter Aircraft Staff decided in May
1944 to build bomb-proof production facilities. Aircraft for the Air Force should be built in
gigantic, in part underground bunker sites, undisturbed by the bombing. Landsberg am Lech,
Mühldorf am Inn, and Bedburg in the Eifel and
Prag were planned sites for these production facilities. It was planned to build three large-scale
buildings of this type nearby Landsberg. However, until the end of the War only two-thirds of
the bunker with the camouflage name »Weingut
II« were completed.
The facility »Weingut II« was planned with a
length of more then 400 meters, a width at its
foot of 86 meters and a height of 25 meters
at the apex. The »Organization Todt« (OT), an
organization with military structures for the realization of large building projects, was responsible for the construction management. Jewish
concentration camp prisoners worked in twelvehour-shifts under the most difficult conditions
on the bunker. The working slaves were accommodated under terrible conditions in sub camps
to concentration camps in the surroundings of
Landsberg and Kaufering.
Bomb proof aircraft factory –
the Bunker »Weingut II«
Altogether about 21,000 people were employed
on the huge construction site, among them
several thousand Hungarian Jews. These were
selected for this work after arrival in the extermination camp Ausschwitz. Every day people were
injured and died at the construction site. About
6,500 forced laborers did not survive the drudgery. Some lost their lives in an especially tragic
way: When casting the walls they fell between
the formworks and were buried in concrete alive.
1 Bunker building Weingut II
Clearly visible in the foreground: concentration
camp prisoners in striped camp uniforms.
Military history collection Weingut II, Landsberg am Lech
2 Formworks for the concrete bunker
The bomb proof-bunker was planned with a length
of 400 meters, a width at its foot of 86 meters and a
height of 25 meters at the apex.
Military history collection Weingut II, Landsberg am Lech
3& 4 Situation in the camp
The monthly report about diseases and absences
among the concentration camp prisoners as well as
the hygiene situation in the camp creates the impression as if the prisoners were feeling well given
the special circumstances. In reality about 6,500
Jews died in a short time during the construction
of Weingut II. The so-called infirmary was a place
where the death-doomed stayed until the transportation to Auschwitz.
Dachau Trials, Pros. Ex. 128
5 Protocol from the Fighter Aircraft Staff (Milch protocols)
During a meeting in the Fighter Aircraft Staff the
issue of the provision of workers for the huge building projects had to be addressed. The consideration,
that there would be enough Jews living in Budapest
was followed by the deportation of the Hungarian
Jews.
Federal Archive-Military Archive, BA-MA RL 3/7, Bl. 3758-3793
Showcase
1 Shoe of a forced laborer from Kaufering
The concrete stained shoe belonged to a concentration camp prisoner, who was working for the Project
Bunker Weingut II in Kaufering. The uncomfortable
wooden shoes did not protect against moisture,
cold or injuries.
Military history collection Weingut II, Landsberg am Lech
After the occupation of the country by German
troops, the confiscation of Jewish property on
a large scale started immediately. The Germans
caught at everything, both in the interest of the
Reich and for their own purposes. Unique art
objects, valuable furniture and large sums of
money disappeared without a trace, office and
home furnishings were also stolen by members
of the occupying force. Many millions of Hungarian pengös were extorted from the Jewish
communities, but also from individuals within a
short period of time.
Some Hungarian towns and internment camps
also used this practice. The acquisition of the
Manfréd Weiss Works was the greatest example
for the robbery of Hungarian Jewish property.
SS-Obersturmbannführer Kurt Becher extorted
the appropriation of one of the largest armaments and machine works in Central Europe
from the Weiss-Chorin-Kornfeld-Mauthner family. In return, most family members were allowed
to emigrate to Switzerland.
Hungary after the Occupation by
German Troops
In the course of the following months, the Germans increased their economic demands, and
after the seizure of power by the Arrow Cross
Party, they intended to remove all valuable movable assets from Hungary. 55,000 railcars with
up to 700,000 tons of goods were shipped to the
German Reich; about one fourth of these goods
came from Jewish property. A part of the valuables stolen from the Jews was shipped by the
so-called “Gold Train”. Another train transported
the gold reserves of the Hungarian National
Bank, objects of art from public collections and
other national property to Germany.
1 Identification paper of Pál Bács, employed in the
military industry and therefore exempted from
forced labor with German and Hungarian stamp,
September 1944.
(Forrás: HDKE)
2 Forced worker Jenő Rosenthal (second for left) in
front of a boxcar of the MÁV at the Szombathely
Freight Yard in October 1944.
(Forrás: HDKE)
3 Yellow reply postcard from members of the Bács
family who were conscripted for forced labor
(Tamás Pál and György), to the wife of Jenő Bács,
21 Oktober 1944: “Yesterday we slept piled up in
Ferihegy, but that’s why we could sleep a bit. Currently we are in Pestszentimre on a meadow and
give water, soup and flour food to the workers. We
are well, I don’t know where we will go to, probably
depending on the profession ...”
(Forrás: HDKE)
4 Postcard by Károly Zelenka to his wife in November
1944. “Goodbye! Tomorrow morning they bring us
beyond the border to Hegyeshalom. If you can do
something, then do it. I kiss you -. Yours Károly”
(Forrás: HDKE)
5 “My love! I write from the boxcar, think on you and
pray for you. Don’t worry about me, be smart and
take care on yourself. Also pray, my love, and be
patient! God and our beloved dead protect us.
kisses and hugs from your loving Father who lives
only for you and worries about you “(Budapest, 1
December 1944)
(Forrás: HDKE)
1 Blasted and shattered Chain Bridge on the Pest side
of the Danube river.
2 The lions of the Chain Bridge with the sight of the
destroyed Royal Palace.
3 View of the Margaret bridge, which was blown up
too early during ongoing traffic.
4 Streets of Pest after the assault.
5 On the Vérmező Square after the assault in 1945
aircraft wreckages lying around and pulled aside
(Source: Fortepan)
6 View from the castle in spring 1945
Pictures