|
|
|
The Bessarabian and Odessa campaign
On 22 June 1941, the offensive power of the ARR (Aeronautica Regala Romana=Romanian Royal Aeronautics) was concentrated in the Combat Air Grouping (Gruparea Aeriana de Lupta). It was made up of four flotillas:
The Combat Air Grouping had a total of 253 aircraft, out of which only 205 were available for action on 22 June. Their mission was to gain air supremacy over Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina and then support the offensive of the Romanian 4th Army. After Besserabia was secured, the CAG assisted in the siege of Odessa.
The badly hit 5th Fighter Group was reduced to a single squadron (the 51st). The 52nd gave it its remaining He-112Bs and merged with the 42nd Squadron, forming the 42/52nd Fighter Squadron, which received new IAR-80As. The 8th Fighter Group was transferred back to the 2nd Fighter Flotilla, at the beginning of August. To bolster the ranks of the Romanian fighter force around Odessa the PZL equipped 4th and 6th Fighter Group were brought on the front. A few IAR-81 dive bombers were given to the 59th Fighter Squadron (8th Fighter Group), but flew only 2 missions against Soviet ships near Odessa.
In July, the 75th Bomber Squadron (2nd Bomber Group) transferred its surviving Potez 633B2s to the 74th Squadron and received new JRS-79B bombers. All available P.23Bs were assigned to the 73rd Bomber Squadron, which formed the 6th Bomber Group together with the 18th Bomber Squadron, on 3 August. Also the 82nd Bomber Squadron (MB-210) was put under the direct command of the 1st Bomber Flotilla.
The 3rd and 4th Army had their own Observation and light bomber squadrons. The 4th Long Range Recon (Blenheim Mk. I), 19th, 20th and 21st Observation Squadron (IAR-39) and 115th Liaison Squadron (Fleet-10G) were assigned to the 3rd Army and the 3rd Long Range Recon (Blenheim Mk. I), 17th and 22nd Observation Squadron (IAR-39) and 114th Liaison Squadron (Fleet-10G) to the 4th Army. Also the 1st Armoured Division had the 15th Observation Squadron (IAR-39).
Behind the front line, the territory of Romania was divided between the 2nd Air Region:
In Dobruja were stationed the
Their mission was to defend the Prahova Valley oil installations, the capital, the Constanta port, the railroad bridge over the Danube at Cernavoda and other strategic locations, against Soviet air raids.
ARR fielded 672 airplanes at the beginning of Operation Barbarossa. These totaled 17,386 sorties during this campaign, out of which 7,857 were done by CAG airplanes. In 217 air engagements, the Romanian pilots claimed 332 VVS airplanes shot down (out of which 257 belonged to the CAG) and another 150 destroyed on the ground. The AA artillery also claimed 115, rising the total number to 597. However this seems to be an overclaim, since the Soviet loss records don't show that many losses in that part of the front. The CAG lost 40 airplanes in battle and 83 KIA and 26 MIA, but the ARR total number of losses in this campaign, including accidents and enemy AAA, is 136.
Because of the many types of airplanes serving in the ARR, most of which were already obsolete, there where a lot of maintenance problems. This and the lack of airfields close to the front lead to modest performances of the ARR in the campaigns of 1941. Air superiority was gained by the 7th and 8th Fighter Group and by the 53rd Fighter Squadron. These were equipped with superior fighters to the Soviet I-16, which made up the bulk of the VVS forces in the area. Romanian veterans considered that the main threat was the Soviet AAA and not the Soviet fighter force.
The first campaign ended with the capture of Odessa by the Romanian 4th Army on 16 October 1941. The squadrons assigned to the 3rd Army, followed it in its advance in the Ukraine and then into Crimea.
The Stalingrad campaign
At the beginning of 1942, after the experience of last year's campaign, the ARR was reorganized. The Bloch MB-210 bombers were converted to transport airplanes, the PZL P.11s and 24s were retired from front duty. From Germany came some Ju-52s with which was equipped the 105th Transport Squadron and Fi-156, which were used to replace a part of the Fleet-10G. But the main source of new airplanes was the Romanian air industry. The 3rd and 9th Fighter Group and the 52nd and 53rd Fighter Squadron were equipped with the IAR-80. Some IAR-80s were used to train the 4th Fighter Group. The 6th Fighter Group received the new IAR-81 fighter-bombers. The 2nd Observation Flotilla replaced all the IAR-38s with the newer IAR-39s.
The 102nd Seaplane Squadron was equipped with He-114C1. The old Italian seaplanes were all assigned to the 101st Squadron. In 1943, the 101st Seaplane Squadron also received the He-114C1.
In the first part of 1942, the ARR executed only recon, liaison and transport missions totaling 3439 sorties. Fighters were occasionally scrambled against VVS reconnaissance flights. This is reason why only 7 airplanes were claimed shot down and another 3 destroyed on the ground. The Romanian AA artillery claimed 111 VVS aircraft in that period.
In 1942 the main unit of the Combat Air Grouping was the Combat Aviation Command. It was made up of the:
The Combat Air Grouping also had the 105th (Ju-52) and 108th Transport Squadron (RWD-13). To the 3rd Army were assigned the 11th, 12th and 13th Observation Squadron (IAR-39) and to the 4th Army the 15th, 16th and 17th Observation Squadron (IAR-39).
It started the war missions in September with the offensive in the Caucasus and towards Stalingrad. The CAC made about 5000 sorties until January 1943. The Romanian pilots claimed 39 Soviet airplanes shot down and 22 destroyed on the ground. It lost 26 airplanes to enemy fighters and AA artillery and 65 were left behind during the retreat or were destroyed in accidents. The AA artillery shot down 90 VVS, while assisting the 3rd Army at Stalingrad and others in the Caucasus, rising the total for 1942 to 199.
The Soviet counteroffensive had terrible consequences not only for the Romanian army, but also for the air force. Many airplanes and men had to be left behind. The 7th Fighter Group was completely surrounded on its airfield at Karpovka, but most of the pilots managed to escape with their planes and mechanics squeezed in the Bf-109Es. A lot of transport missions were flown in a futile effort to supply the Romanian and German troops caught in the different pockets. In December several squadrons equipped with Polish and French airplanes were sent home, followed soon by IAR-80/81 and JRS-79B squadrons. The remaining Bf-109Es and He-111H3s formed a mixed group, which remained on the front until February 1943.
The Ukrainian campaign
In the spring of 1943, a new reorganization started. All the Polish, French, Italian and English airplanes were retired from service, because they were obsolete and their maintenance was very difficult due to the lack of spare parts. They were replaced mainly by Romanian and German planes.
The 4th Fighter Group (45th, 46th and 49th Squadron) was equipped with the IAR-80C and the 9th Fighter Group (43rd, 47th and 48th Squadron) with the IAR-81C. The newly created 1st Fighter Group (63rd and 64th Squadron) and 2nd Fighter Group (65th and 66th Squadron) were also equipped with the IAR-81C. The 2nd Bomber Group (82nd and 83rd Squadron) was also created and had JRS-79B1s.
The Air Corps received modern German airplanes. The 2nd Long Range Recon Squadron replaced the Do-17M with the Ju-88D1. The 7th Fighter Group got the Bf-109G, the 5th Bomber Group the Ju-88A4, the 3rd Bomber Group the Ju-87D3 and D5 and changed its name to 3rd Dive Bomber Group and the 8th Fighter Group received the Hs-129B2 and changed its name to 8th Assault Group. A part of these planes were only loaned by the Germans to the ARR. This meant their the maintenance and replacements were done by the Luftflotte IV.
The majority of the Romanian built airplanes were regrouped inside Romania and had defensive tasks. The 3rd Fighter Group, equipped with the older IAR-80A, was transformed into a pilot training unit.
In the second half of 1943, 3 new units were created: the 107th Transport Squadron (Ju-52), the 109th Squadron (IAR-39), which towed the DFS-230 transport gliders and the 51st Night Fighter Squadron (Bf-110C1 and C3).
In June 1943, the reorganization of the ARR ended. The 1st Air Corps, which was in the front line, was made up of the:
It had about 200 airplanes, which had the mission to support the German troops in southern Ukraine. It was one of the most effective periods of ARR during WWII.
Initially the 9th Fighter Group wasn't sent to the front, because it was preparing to change to Bf-109Gs. It replaced the 7th Fighter Group in October 1943, also taking over its best pilots and airplanes. The exhausted 7th Fighter Group was brought back home for rest and refitting. It had been fighting since March, when it was part of JG 3 Udet. The 5th Fighter Group (52nd and 53rd Squadron) was reorganized in the second half of 1943 and equipped with Bf-109Es and Gs. The 52nd Squadron (IAR-80Cs and later Bf-109Es) was assigned to coastal defense, while the 53rd (Bf-109G) was part of the mixed German-Romanian group (I/JG 4), which was defending the oil fields and refineries at Ploesti.
The 5th Bomber Group arrived on the front in August and replaced the badly hit 6th Bomber Group, which began training for transition to the Ju-87Ds.
On 1 August 1943, the first massive USAAF attack on the Ploesti refineries took place. The Americans suffered heavy casualties and the primary result was the increase in AA defenses in the area, defenses which will cause the highest loss ratio for the Allied raids in Europe.
The Romanian AA artillery shot down 17 USAAF bombers and 84 VVS aircraft in 1943. The fighters brought down 10 American and over 300 Soviet airplanes.
The home defense campaign
In the winter of 1943/1944, the air defense was insured by the 3rd Fighter Group (44th and 50th Squadrons), equipped with IAR-80Bs and IAR-81As, stationed on the Ghimbav-Brasov airfield, the 6th Fighter Group (61st and 62nd Squadrons), equipped with IAR-81Cs, stationed on the Popesti-Leordeni airfield and the 7th Fighter Group (56th, 57th and 58th Squadron), equipped also with IAR-81Cs, stationed on the Pipera airfield. The seaside was protected by the 5th Fighter Group and 4th Fighter Group (45th and 46th Squadrons), equipped with IAR-80Cs.
In April 1944, the 105th, 106th and 107th Transport Squadrons were used to supply the forces in Crimea and to evacuate wounded soldiers (about 3,000).
Because of the losses of 1943 and spring of 1944 and the fact that the Red Army was threatening the national territory, a new reorganization was necessary. The old IAR-37 was brought back into service in the 17th and 18th Observation Squadron and the Nardi FN-305, P.11c and PWS were equipped with bomb launchers. It was decided to create the 11th Assault Group (Hs-129B2), but because there weren't enough planes, only one squadron was organized: the 38th. The IAR-81C was by far outclassed by the P-51s and P-38s. The intention was to equip every fighter group with Bf-109Gs made in Romania, but after the US bombings of the airplane factories the production decreased and only 6 Bf-109G4s were delivered in August.
In May 1944, the 6th Bomber Group (74th, 86th and 87th Squadron) was equipped with the Ju-87D3 and changed its name to 6th Dive Bomber Group. With the personnel of the 49th Squadron (4th Fighter Group), which left its airplanes in Crimea, was organized the 67th Squadron (IAR-81C), from the 2nd Fighter Group.
In the summer of 1944, the 1st Air Corps was made up of the:
On 1st April 1944, the 2nd Air Corps was created. It consisted in the:
To the 1st Army were assigned the 111th Squadron (Fleet-10G) and 20th Squadron (IAR-39).
On 30 June 1944, the 1st Air Corps was assigned to the "Dumitrescu Army Group", which included the 3rd Army. The 4th Army had air support from the Luftwaffe. On the same day the 2nd Air Corps was renamed the 3rd Air Corps and was given the mission to protect the seaside and the Danube Delta.
The 1st, 5th, 6th and 7th Fighter Groups and the 1st Night Fighter Squadron were engaged in the battle with the USAAF and RAF, which started on 4 April and lasted until 18 August 1944. They were occasionally joined by the 9th Fighter Group, which engaged USAAF airplanes flying to airfields in the USSR. They totaled about 30 Bf-109Gs and 70 IAR-80/81Cs and 60 German Bf-109Gs. They faced the superior numbers and airplanes of the 15th Air Force.
In April, the 53rd and 57th Squadron from the 7th Fighter Group were sent on the front in Moldova and the 2nd Fighter Group was brought in to protect the capital. The 58th Squadron (Bf-109G), which remained from the 7th Fighter Group was assigned to the 2nd Fighter Group. In June the number of enemy raids increased and the 7th Fighter Group was brought back and got the 58th Squadron. The 2nd Fighter Group was sent to the front in Moldavia. Following the death of cpt. Alexandru Serbanescu, the commander of the 9th Group, on 18 August it was decided not to engage the American airplanes. The 7th Fighter Group was sent on the front, again.
In the 4 and a half months of battle, the Americans lost 223 bombers and 36 fighters. 225 German and Romanian airplanes were shot down in this period. The ARR lost 80 fighters and many experienced pilots.
On 20 August, the Red Army launched the Iasi-Chisinau offensive, which practically destroyed the Romanian and German defensive line in Moldavia and caused Romania to request a cease-fire. The ARR aircraft flew numerous sorties against Soviet troops, but with little impact on the operations because of the numerical superiority of the Red Army. The VVS lost 111 airplanes during the offensive and the ARR about 25.
The anti-Axis campaign
During the events on 23 August 1944, the ARR managed to capture 228 German airplanes, but it lost 161, mainly older training models. Between those lost were the Ju 87 Ds of the 6th Dive Bomber Group and the Bf 110s of the 1st Night Fighter Squadron.
After Romania quit the Axis, the Germans started to bomb Bucharest. The 7th and 9th Fighter Groups were brought in to protect the capital. Romanian fighters also shot down Luftwaffe transport aircraft which were bringing reinforcements.
At the beginning of September, the 1st Air Corps was moved to bases in southern Transylvania, from where it had to provide air cover to the Romanian and Soviet troops fighting the Germans and the Hungarians. The new situation demanded for a reorganization.
The 7th Fighter Group was absorbed by the 9th, the remains of the 6th Dive Bomber Group were included in the 3rd and the squadrons of the 11th Assault Group were used to fill in the ranks of the 8th.
In September 1944, the 1st Air Corps consisted in the:
It had in total 210 airplanes, out of which half were German-made.
On 20 September several other units joined the Corps:
Because of losses and lack of spare parts, the number of available Ju-87Ds and Hs-129B2s decreased. In October 1944 the 6th Dive Bomber Group was reduced to the 74th Squadron, which was joined with the remnants of the 8th Assault Group (41st Squadron) and formed the 8th Assault-Dive Bomber Group. The remaining airplanes of the 77th Bomber Squadron (Ju-88A4) were transferred to the 2nd Long Range Observation Squadron (Ju-88D1). The 1st Bomber Group, in which had been included the remains of the 2nd Bomber Group, was also assigned to the 1st Air Corps. It was made up of the 72nd Bomber Squadron (JRS-79B) and the 82nd Bomber Squadron (JRS-79B1).
During the winter of 1944/1945, the 1st and 6th Group were refitted with the Bf 109 G. The 1st Fighter Group joined the Air Corps, which was now fighting in Hungary.
The 1st Air Corps flew until the end of the war, on 12 May 1945, 8,542 sorties and claimed 101 Axis aircraft (together with the AA artillery). It lost 176 airplanes to enemy fighters, AAA and in the many accidents caused by the bad weather in the winter and spring of 1945. This figure also includes airplanes seized by the Germans in August 1944. There were also many cases of Soviet "friendly" fire.
ARR suffered during the entire war 4,172 casualties, out of which 2,977 against the Allies (972 dead, 1,167 wounded and 838 missing) and 1,195 against the Axis (356 dead, 371 wounded and 468 missing).
The end of the war found the ARR in a poorer state than in 1941. It managed alone, using its own resources and obtaining good results, even though the material situation wasn't satisfactory all the time. This was probably because of the pilots, who in many cases were superior to the Allied ones.
@ 2002-2003