The Abbeville Boys

Chapter 14: The War Is On

      With the declaration of war and Poland defeated, the pilots knew they would be heading west soon. They still flew daily missions into Poland providing support, but there was nothing left. After several weeks the Jagdgeschwader was flying practice missions over Berlin. The situation became known as the phony war. None of the nations involved did anything.

      In March of 1940 it was announced to the flight they would be moving to Heidelberg as expected. A small airfield was on the border with the Netherlands and Belgium. The next target for the German blitzkrieg.

      The flight flew to an airfield just west of Heidelberg. The conditions at the airfield weren’t as good as Berlin but the pilots adapted. They flew missions every day and ventured into Belgum airspace. No one responded. There were no planes coming to meet them.

      By May of 1940 Germany was ready. They went into Belgum and the Netherlands with blitzkrieg. Kurt’s squadron provided support for the Stuka dive bombers. A few planes came up to challenge the 109’s but as in Poland, they were inferior. Eberhart and Kurt swooped down. They were a good team. Eberhart took one fighter, and Kurt took the other one. Eberhart shot the first one down. The other obsolete biplane turned for home. Kurt was on his tail as he desperately tried to escape the 109. Kurt stayed with him and got in close. It was all over then. Kurt pulled the trigger on the stick. Bullets riddled the plane, and it was smoking. The biplane headed down and the pilot bailed out. Kurt circled the pilot as he parachuted down. Some pilots would shoot the enemy who bailed out, but Kurt would not. He waved at the pilot and the guy waved back. Kurt knew he would get another plane, but he had the confidence he would shoot him down again. He didn’t believe in killing helpless men.

      Eberhart and Kurt formed up and looked for other targets. There were none. They patrolled for a while with the Schwarm and went back to base. The battle in Belgum and the Netherlands didn’t last long. The patrols were mundane from a dogfighting point of view. Eberhart and Kurt would occasionally drop down and machine gun some Belgum troops running from the Wehrmacht but that was about it.

      The total defeat of Belgum and the Netherlands was quick. The French knew they were next. The British sent in an expeditionary force to assist the French. The French army was formidable. Unfortunately, they fought a new war with old tactics. They built a new version of the World War l trench warfare called the Maginot line. It was sophisticated tunnels along a line to prevent Germany from invading. It was static and Germany was fighting a fluid war. The Germans quickly went over the top and around them before the French knew what was happening. The French air force was obsolete like the others the Luftwaffe had been fighting. The French sent up some fighters, but they were quickly shot down of by the Luftwaffe. As the Germans moved west, they captured most of the French army, and the surrender was almost complete. They chased the British Expeditionary Force into Dunkirk. The British evacuated some troops but suffered losses. As the Luftwaffe moved west in support, they suddenly encountered a new opponent. The British fighter plane the Supermarine Spitfire. It was comparable to the 109.

      There was a small airfield in Ghent, Belgum. The Jagdgeschwader landed there and took over. It was an outdated airfield, but it was temporary. It was close to Dunkirk and the next day they would be flying support for Stukas bombing the British force trying to evacuate.

      That night the boys of Jagdgeschwader 26 had their fill of schnapps and beer. They celebrated victories on all sides. The guy’s swapped stories and sang songs. The group now called Kurt, der kitz, 'the kid'. They also painted a wolf on his plane with a bow and arrow beside it. There was also a Large S on a shield in calligraphy. These were on every plane in the squadron which was their emblem. They called him "wolf" when talking on the radio.

      Kurt was having a great time. He loved the flying, the fighting, the hunting and camaraderie of his fellow pilots. He still receives letters from Gretchen and enjoys those. He was concerned about Joseph. Kurt thought about calling his own parents and asking them if they had talked to Joseph’s parents. There were no phones where he was so it would have to wait.

      The next morning the squadron went up towards Dunkirk. Kurt had his usual adrenaline surge but felt confident. He had no clue what was about to happen, nobody did. They approached Dunkirk and the Stukas were attacking the British troops on the beach and the boats picking them up.

      Out of the sun British Spitfires came in and began shooting down Stukas. The 109s saw this and dove on the group. The Spitfires broke off and went after the 109s. They climbed fast and got behind Eberhart’s Schwarm.

      Eberhart called for the Schwarm to break. They split into two separate groups. Kurt was concentrating and keeping up with Eberhart. This was a whole new experience. These were not the obsolete planes they’d been fighting. The Spitfire could hold its own against the 109.

      The British don’t fly with four fighters in a formation they fly with only three. After the Spitfires broke up only one fighter was on their tail. Eberhart came over the radio, “Wolf, move up and down a few times quick and do an Immelmann. Then kill the guy. I’ll keep him busy until you do it.”

      Kurt came back, “Roger boss. Hang on.”

      Kurt was sweating and had adrenaline flowing. He made an up and down movement. The Spitfire followed every movement. Suddenly Kurt shot straight up in the air and the Spitfire decided to stay on the leader. He thought Kurt was running. Kurt pulled up and over and came down on the tail of the British plane. Eberhart was weaving and bobbing to avoid getting shot down. Kurt came over the radio, “Boss, turn left.”

      Eberhart turned and the Spitfire followed. Kurt was behind him close and pulled the trigger. Smoke came out and he fell from the sky. He hit the channel but didn’t bail out. They formed up to look for other targets. Eberhart and Kurt went back to Dunkirk and machine gunned the last remaining troops. All the air traffic had left the area, so they went back to base.