LW fighter unit trivia...

[DuckofTindalos]

Here's a fun little factoid I fell over. Which was the only Luftwaffe fighter unit to be equipped with, and operationally use, two different types of fighter aircraft of non-German manufacture, and which types were they?

[Montbrun]

The only fighter unit I can think of is "Zirkus Rosarius" which flew P51s, P47s, P38s, etc., to develop tactics against these planes.

KG 200 flew all sorts of allied bombers - primarily B17s and B24s...

[von Shagmeister]

II./JG 77 flew MC.205s for a while after the Italian armistice, but I don't know of them using any other foreign types.

[DuckofTindalos]

The unit is correct, and the MC.205 is correct, but they briefly used another type operationally.

[von Shagmeister]

I'll take an educated guess. Presumably it would have been a half decent type so I'll say either G.55 or Re.2005

[DuckofTindalos]

Neither. It was earlier in the war.

[von Shagmeister]

MC.202?

[Hard Sarge]

hmmm, that would be tricky, at least from photo, most times 205 and 202 used the same parts, so lots of confusion on what is really a 205 and what is a 202, unless you can see the info plates

short details on II/JG 77 only shows them flying the 205 as a main plane type

[DuckofTindalos]

Nope. Another hint: it wasn't an Axis type.

[von Shagmeister]

I know the Italians carried out interceptions on USAAF bombers with a salvaged P-38 so my last guess is that II./JG 77 also flew it.

[DuckofTindalos]

Finally found the reference again, and I have a correction to make: it was not II./JG77, but III./JG77, which departed Norway in June of 1940 to be the defensive unit for Berlin, flying ex-AdA Hawk 75s! The 7. Staffel only flew them for six weeks before handing them off to training schools and re-equipping with 109E's for the Battle of Britain.

Sorry for the mix-up.

[kaybayray]

Alex, That would be "Who was Rosarius' Travelling Circus" ?

Heard about them long ago but dont recall the unit designator.

later,
KayBay

[von Shagmeister]

ORIGINAL: kaybayray

Alex, That would be "Who was Rosarius' Travelling Circus" ?

Heard about them long ago but dont recall the unit designator.

later,
KayBay

I believe it was 2./Versuchsverband Ob.d.L.

[Hard Sarge]

well, not LW, but Allied this time around

which are the top 5 US FG's for Air to Air kills ?

(based on the 78 redoing of the claims lists)

some surprises in there