Fighting above the Caucasus

[JG4_Sputnik]

Does anyone know how the Luftwaffe fought above the Caucasus? Were there crossing flight routes for example? Or restrictions where not to fly etc?

 

It is a very tricky terrain and I noticed, that I have little to no idea on how and where air combat actually took place in the Caucasus in WW2.

Any info on how it actually happened would be appreciated.

 

PS: Yesterday I did my very first crossing flight from Sotchi to Maikop in a Ju52 in VR - man was it cool! It took me 51mins 

 

Thanks and cheers

[216th_Lucas_From_Hell]

Two P-40Es from 45 IAP shot down a recce Ju-88 beyond the mountains. I believe most fighting in the mountain ranges would have happened in 1942 since the front went all the way down to Vladikavkaz.

[HandyNasty]

From Hans-Ulrich Rudell's mémoire, part where he's in the caucasus :

 

The panorama as we approach our objective to the south is glorious.Ahead of us the snow peaks of the 15,000 feet range, glittering in the sunshine in all imaginable colours, below us green meadows spotted with yellow, red and blue. These spots are plants and flowers.Above us a brilliant blue sky.When approaching the target I often forget entirely the bombs I am carrying and the objective. Everything makes such a soothing, peaceful and beautiful impression. The mountain world of which the Elbruz is the centre has such a gigantic and overpowering effect; in this or that valley here one could easily tuck away several of the Alps. 

 

 

on the question 'how', I like this part

Fighting in the narrow valleys is a thrilling experience.We are often unwarily enticed by our eagerness for a fight into a trap, if we pursue the enemy or try too persistently to discover his hiding places. If in our search we fly into one of these narrow valleys we are frequently unable to manoeuvre at all. Sometimes, however, a mountain suddenly looms up at the end of such a valley, rising sheer and blocking the way ahead. Then we have to make a quick reaction, and time and again we owe our escape to the good performance of our aircraft. But that is still child's play compared with the situation we find ourselves in when 600 feet above us the mountains are wreathed in dense cloud. 

Edited September 6, 2017 by HandyNasty

[ShamrockOneFive]

For a general location you can draw a line between Krasnodar and Novorossiyk and that would paint a pretty broad picture of where a lot of the aerial warfare happened. The town of Krymsk was the epicenter at times.

 

As fighting continued into the middle part of the year the frontlines began to fall back towards Anapa and by end of the year German forces had been pushed back across the Kerch strait. Then there was a bit of a lull for a while before forces pushed into Crimea in 1944.

 

The rest of the map didn't see as much fighting persay but you do have lots of key airbases for some of the long range aviation and some point defense fighters. As I remember there was a naval IAP flying late model MiG-3s well into 1943. Often flying against recon missions over the mountains.

[216th_Lucas_From_Hell]

It is often forgotten that behind the 1943 massive engagements there was also very bloody and intense aerial warfare happening in the summer and autumn of 1942 almost down to the Caspian sea. Soviet bases and villages were being constantly bombed, supplies were extremely scarce and casualties were mounting but nonetheless the units there put up a good fight and eventually, with the help ofnthr army and navy, stopped the German advance. Great setting for a campaign, and conveniently self-described in many memoirs.

 

About the equipment over Kuban, check out the hot rod 84-A IAP was still touting in April 1943:

 

Edited September 6, 2017 by 216th_Lucas_From_Hell

[GrendelsDad]

Sometime in August/Sept of 1943 I believe a German night-fighter wing saw some action over the Crimean side of the peninsula during the evacuation stage of the retreat from the Taman peninsula across the Kerch Strait.  One lesser known Bf-110 ace fought and died here I will try to find the info and post.

Edited September 6, 2017 by GrendelsDad

[JG4_Sputnik]

Thx for all the info.

 

 

 

For a general location you can draw a line between Krasnodar and Novorossiyk and that would paint a pretty broad picture of where a lot of the aerial warfare happened. The town of Krymsk was the epicenter at times.

 

 

So what do we have the most southern airfields for, such as Adlerskyi, they are pretty far away south and there's just water and hills mainly. Were there bombers stationed? And I assume that the Luftwaffe took the way along the coastline to attack the southern airfields rather than the way through the hills of the caucasus?

 

@HandyNasty 

thanks for that read, I've red Rudels diary two times now but couldn't remember those parts...

[ShamrockOneFive]

Thx for all the info.

 

 

 

 

 

So what do we have the most southern airfields for, such as Adlerskyi, they are pretty far away south and there's just water and hills mainly. Were there bombers stationed? And I assume that the Luftwaffe took the way along the coastline to attack the southern airfields rather than the way through the hills of the caucasus?

 

@HandyNasty 

thanks for that read, I've red Rudels diary two times now but couldn't remember those parts...

 

I don't know where all of the units were... I suspect Career mode will help with that. Further south you did have the aforementioned MiG-3 naval squadron that flew recon flight interceptions. Also I'm guessing some of the bomber units were operating from those rear bases. The same with the bases across the Kerch strait in the Crimea. Definitely some bomber units on that side.

[Gambit21]

Wise words from Lucas...and for me this is where the rubber meets the road for this map. Summer and Autumn of 1942.

We really have a "Battle for the Caucasus" map.

The "Kuban Air Battles" of 1943 are all good and well, but for my money they take place over a much less interesting part of the map IMHO.

From Anapa south/southeast is the sweet spot.

 

This works out perfectly, since in August of 1942 the Germans had advanced to Novorossiysk, and east/southeast into the Caucusus, nearly down to the Caspian sea as Lucas said, with a hard drive

toward Taupse in October with the lines pretty much in the middle of the range.

 

Bombers were making distant trips from the north/northeast and given the position of the lines during this time we don't have enough map going north to

represent those flights since all of the territory on our map north of the mountains was occupied by the Germans, and frankly  most people wouldn't want to fly that far anyway.

Thus for my purposes bombers will be based on the southern coast and flying sorties the north and northwest, as this

is more or less the only choice if I want the front lines in the  historically correct position during the most interesting part of the campaign.