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Adler Schwarm,
by Jim Laurier
Early in the
in the morning on May 12, 1944, Major Gunther Rall was awakened by the
Division Commander. A large formation of American bombers and fighters was
headed towards Germany to bomb six oil refineries in the area. Rall had just
taken command of II/ JG11 barely a month earlier, when he left III/JG52 on
the Eastern front. Based at Hustedt airfield, located near the town of
Celle, just north east of Hanover, II /JG11's primary task was to engage the
American fighter escorts so that the more heavily armed Fw-190's could
attack the bombers.
When the signal to scramble came, Rall led 25 Bf-109s from Hustedt and
headed south west towards a formation of eight hundred B-17 and B-24
bombers, plus twelve hundred escorting fighters. Descending from 35,000
feet to 26,000 feet, Rall's group ran straight into a formation of P-47
Thunderbolts from the 56th Fighter Group. Major Rall quickly shot down two
of the P-47's but lost his wingman in the process, the latter having an
engine failure. After executing a split-S maneuver, Rall found himself boxed
in by four P-47s from "Zemke's Wolfpack". He tried desperately to
out-maneuver his opponents at treetop level, but his left thumb was shot off
and his Messerschmitt was heavily damaged. With his aircraft on the verge of
structural failure, Rall "bailed out" at low altitude and was rescued by
farmers. When the bombing attack was over, the farmers arranged for an
ambulance to take Major Rall to the hospital. Günther Rall eventually
recuperated and ended the war as Wing Commander of JG 300. His final victory
tally was 275 confirmed aerial victories- the third highest in history.
Signed by Lt Gen. Gunther Rall and the artist.
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