Rolf Jung
| Rolf Jung | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Birth name | Rudolf Jung |
| Birth date | 10 March 1912 |
| Place of birth | German Empire |
| Allegiance |  Weimar Republic National Socialist Germany
|
| Service/branch |  Reichswehr  Luftwaffe
|
| Rank | Major |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Iron Cross |
Rudolf "Rolf" Jung (b. 10 March 1912) was a German officer of the Reichswehr and the Wehrmacht, finally Major of the Luftwaffe in WWII. It is very possible that 1st Lieutenant Erich Jung (b. 17 June 1922; d. 16 April 2016), also a night fighter flying ace with 30 victories (Luftsiege) and recipient of the German Cross in Gold, was his younger brother.
Life
Military
Jung joined the Reichswehr and then transferred to the new Luftwaffe. He volunteered for the Spanish Civil War as a member of the Condor Legion. After the liberation of the Sudetenland, the Poland Campaign and the Battle of France, he transferred to the new night fighter wing Nachtjagdgeschwader 2 and was promoted to Hauptmann (Captain) on 1 December 1940. As such, he was appointed commander of the 2nd Squadron. In late 1941, he was promoted to commander of the I. Group/NJG 2. On 9 October 1943, he was promoted to Major.
On 7 February 1944, he was appointed Chief of Operations (Ia) of the 2nd Fighter Division (2. Jagddivision) under Max-Josef Ibel. On 31 August 1944, he was appointed commander of the III. Group/Nachtjagdgeschwader 101 under Herbert Sewing (1913–2007) who would become pastor (Pfarrer) after the war and then Brigadegeneral of the Bundeswehr years later. On 20 October 1944, he was appointed commander of the I. Group/Nachtjagdgeschwader 101. The 1st Group of the Night Fighter Wing 101 was based in Ingolstadt-Manching at the beginning of 1945. It was equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf 110, the Dornier Do 217 and the Junkers Ju 88. On 15 March 1945, the group was disbanded.
Nachtjagd (example)
In the early morning hours of 9 October 1943, five Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortresses" (from altogether 378 bombers from VIII Bomber Command) from Thurleigh Airfield (just North of the village) were returning from a bombing attack on Gotenhafen (Gdingen) in Pomerania. The USAAF B-17 Gs belonged to the 368th Bomb Squadron/306th Bomb Group/VIII Bomber Command and were accompanied by the 40th Combat Bomb Wing. Overall, the attack was meager; five auxiliary vessels and eight merchant ships were destroyed or sank, four merchant ships were damaged. Dock C was also destroyed. The Americans seriously damaged one German hospital ship, the "Stuttgart".
Still burning, the "Stuttgart" (13,387 GRT), a former passenger steamer and since 23 August 1939 a hospital ship and as such placed under the protection of the Hague Convention, was towed into port. 48 people died in the cowardly attack, among them doctors and nurses. The ship was no longer salvageable and was sunk by boats of the 3rd Security Flotilla with 25 rounds of 8.8 cm shells on the orders of the Naval Group Command East (Marineoberkommando Ost) to the Coastal Commander Center. Later, two bow anchors were salvaged and brought to Oslo for the former Norwegian passenger ship and, since 1940, German supply ship "Stavangerfjord". The American government officially regretted the shelling of the hospital ship, but claimed that they were targeting "warships" in the vicinity of the "Stuttgart".
On the return flight, the enemy was attacked by German Messerschmitt Bf 110 G-4 night fighters of I. Group/NJG 2 lead by wing commodore Lieutenant Colonel Karl Theodor Hülshoff (1909–1989). A B-17 G (Serial No. 42-37718, coded BO-H) piloted by 1st Lieutenant Roy C. Ranck Jr. was attacked by Rolf Jung flying Bf 110 G-4 (Werknummer: 5,677). He hit the B-17 G in the left hand engines which started smoking. Lieutenant Ranck had to leave the formation and headed north. Again the B-17 G was attacked and this time right waist gunner Sergeant Douglas R. Farris was hit in the chest and died instantly[1] while left waist gunner Staff Sergeant Fred H. Nabors was hit in the legs.
Once again, Jung with his crew of flight engineer Oberfeldwebel Heinz Lüttringshaus and radio operator Oberfeldwebel Theo Schürks prepared to attack but, Jung was a gentleman and knight of the skies, refrained from doing so due to the landing gear of the B-17 coming down. When the enemy plane was over the island of Samsø, three miles NNE of Tranebjerg (Denmark), the crew abandoned the aircraft by parachute and at 14:58, the B-17 G crashed at the edge of Alstrup village a few meters away from the house of Widow Signe Jensen. When the bomber hit the ground petrol from the aircraft set the house on fire and only at the last moment did neighbors manage to rescue the old lady from the flames. Also the nearby farm “Alstrupgaard” was set on fire and burned down. Jungs Bf 110 G-4 had been hit by return fire from the B-17 G which had rendered most of the instruments unserviceable. Jung chose to land at Kiel-Holtenau Airfield, but had to belly land the Bf 110 G-4 due to the landing gear not operating. After the landing, he counted more that 50 bullet holes in the aircraft. The Americans were taken prisoner of war, five on the same day, including Ranck, the other four, who had been hiding, on 12 October 1943.[2][3]
In the same night, other USAAF Bombardment Squadrons attacked Marienburg and Anklam. All-in-all, 9 October 1943 was very successful for the Luftwaffe. In night and daytime missions, 67 Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortresses" were shot down[4] (28 of them were involved in the attack on Gotenhafen). One of them by wing commodore Lieutenant Colonel Hülshoff, his 11th victory, who shot down a B-17 F of the 427th Bombardment Squadron flown by 2nd Lieutenant Bernard J. Clifford returning from Anklam. The No. 3 engine was on fire and feathered. When the wheels were let down the fighter attacks ceased. The B-17 crashed in the Baltic Sea south of Lolland, Denmark. The entire crew of ten men were killed in action.
Awards and decorations
- Wehrmacht Pilot's Badge (Flugzeugführerabzeichen)
- Wehrmacht Long Service Award (Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung), 4th Class
- Spanish combined Pilot/Observer Badge of the Condor Legion
- Spanish Medal for the Campaign of 1936−1939 with Swords (Medalla de la Campaña Española 1936−1939)
- Spanish War Cross (Cruz de Guerra)
- Spanish Cross (Spanienkreuz) in Gold with Swords
- Sudetenland Medal
- Iron Cross (1939), 2nd and 1st Class
- Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe (Ehrenpokal für besondere Leistung im Luftkrieg) on 7 September 1942[5]
- Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe for short-range Night Fighters in Gold
References
- ↑ Right waist gunner Farris was retrieved from the wreck and cremated. On 31 October 1943, his urn was set down in Besser cemetery. On 30 April 1948, it was retrieved and evacuated to the American cemetery at Neuville en Condron in Belgium by the US military. It was later brought back to the USA.
- ↑ B 17G 42-37718 crashed Alstrup, Samsø on 9/10-1943 (Archive)
- ↑ All nine of the crew were sent to Germany for one and a half years as POWs. The officers were sent to Stalag Luft III Sagan where they stayed until January 1945 when they were moved to Stalag VIIA Moosburg an der Isar in Bavaria.
- ↑ WWII B-17 claims
- ↑ Jung, Rolf
