Jagdgeschwader 11 - Bomber Interception Tactics of JG 11

Bomber Interception Tactics of JG 11

As JG 11 formed in 1943 the bombers of Eighth Air Force were starting to extned their bombing operations, and JG 11 pilots avoided combat until the escorts were forced to break off.

As a means of combating the massed firepower of bomber streams, JG 11 personnel trialed the viability of bombing the formations from above with 250 kg bombs, a practice pioneered by Luftwaffe Oberleutnant Heinz Knoke in March 1943. On 28 July 1943 Unteroffizier Fest of 5./JG 11 claimed three B-17's with a single bomb. However the loss in performance of the bomb-laden Bf 109's, along with their vulnerability to escorting fighters, soon curtailed the practice. 5./JG 11 were at the forefront of tactical developments for effectively intercepting the day bomber formations. The most effective tactic were mass frontal assaults, while other methods trialed were the use of Werfer-Granate (Wfr. Gr. or WGr) 21 under-wing rockets. These were inaccurate but were used primarily to break up the bomber formations.