ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 193021
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| Date: | Saturday 20 January 1945 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Heinkel He 111H-20 |
| Owner/operator: | 8./KG4 Luftwaffe |
| Registration: | 701132 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 5 / Occupants: 5 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Budaörs -
 Hungary
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | |
On 24 December 1944, Budapest was surrounded by Russian forces. Within the Budapest enclave Obergruppenführer Karl von Pfeffer-Wildenbruck commanded 33 000 Germans and 37 000 Hungarian troops. It was decided that the enclave would be re-supplied by air. The German army required that 80 tons of supplies were to be delivered daily – 60 tons to be landed each day, plus another 20 tons to be airdropped. This was based on the principal that the available transport facilities would be sufficient and that the required amount of ground transport was available to deliver the supplies to the take-off bases. The main items to be delivered were – ammunition, fuel, food, medical supplies and flour. It was expected that, on return journeys, the planes would fly out wounded personnel – no able-bodies males (regardless of rank) were allowed to leave.
The Luftwaffe allocated to the air supply operation the following units: 5./TG 2, III./TG 2, elements of I./TG 3, III./TG 3 (all using Ju 52/3m), I and II./ KG 4 (using He 111s). Budapest’s main airport was captured by Soviet forces as early as 27 December, the racetrack was then used, despite being under constant artillery fire, until to was overrun on 9 January 1945. The Germans then converted the Vérmezö, an eight-hundred-yard-long park, into a landing zone. for light aircraft and gliders, while bigger aircraft dropped supplies by parachute.
At the end of the operation on 9 February 1945, the transport units (excluding KG 4) had flown in 1515 tons of supplies to the enclave. This amounted to approximately 36 tons per day, well below the 80 tons required by the German Army. 36 Ju 52/3ms, 7 He111s, 1 Ju 87, 1 Do 17 (both later types being used to tow gliders) and 12 gliders were lost during the operation, plus 36 gliders abandoned after landing in the enclave (either at the racetrack or at the park).
On 20 January 1945 the He 111 H-20 WNr. 701132 5J+GS of 8./KG 4 was shot near Budapest by the Soviet 1614 aer. ap PVO (AA regiment) and crashed without survivor at Budaörs, in the approximate area where the Balaton M7 highway enters Budapest today.
Crew (all killed):
Lt. Karl Hergenhan (pilot)
Uffz. Wilfried Wenzel (observer)
Uffz. Kurt Schwarz (radio operator)
Fw. Kurt Loers (flying engineer)
Ogfr. Hans-Heinrich Dreyer (gunner)
Sources:
http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/showthread.php?t=36699
http://www.wiki.luftwaffedata.co.uk/wiki/index.php?title=Budapest
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buda%C3%B6rs
http://www.maplandia.com/hungary/pest/budaors/
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 23-Jan-2017 18:34 | Laurent Rizzotti | Added |
| 08-Dec-2019 18:50 | Nepa | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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