German and Allied aircraft losses during Operation Bodenplatte facts for kids

Operation Bodenplatte (which means "Baseplate" or "Ground Plate" in English) was a big surprise attack by the German Air Force (the Luftwaffe) during World War II. It happened on January 1, 1945. The goal was to seriously damage the planes of the Allied forces in the Low Countries (like Belgium and the Netherlands).

Germany had saved up its planes and resources for this one last big effort. They wanted to help their ground army (the Heer) during a tough part of the Battle of the Bulge. This battle was also known as "Operation Watch on the Rhine."

About the Losses

It's been a long time since Operation Bodenplatte, but historians still argue about how many planes and people the Allies lost. Some even think there was a "conspiracy" to hide the real numbers. This is because official records often don't agree, and many detailed reports are missing.

For example, some people claim that 141 Hawker Typhoon planes were destroyed at Eindhoven airfield. But official British records say this isn't true. They show that only 107 Typhoons were ready for action. Out of these, 17 were completely destroyed, 9 were too damaged to fix, 10 were badly damaged but repaired, and 24 had minor damage.

More recent studies give different numbers. One report said 127 Allied planes were destroyed and 133 were damaged. It also said 40 British soldiers were killed (11 of them pilots) and 145 were injured. Another report from January 3, 1945, stated 120 planes were destroyed and 73 were damaged.

German sources also have different numbers for their own losses. One author, Werner Girbig, said Germany lost 137 planes (98 in the British area and 39 in the American area). He said 57 were shot down by Allied fighters and 80 by Allied anti-aircraft guns. He also noted that 48 more planes were lost for unknown reasons, bringing the total to about 200 fighters. He believed the rest were lost to German anti-aircraft fire, making his final total around 300 planes. Girbig also reported that 151 German pilots were killed and 63 were captured.

Girbig estimated Allied losses at about 500 planes. He said Allied sources reported 144 planes destroyed and 84 damaged for the British RAF. For the American USAAF, he noted 134 planes destroyed and 62 damaged.

More recently, John Manrho and Ronald Pütz studied the losses in great detail. They used both German and Allied records, even including information from German airmen's remains found up to 2003. According to their findings, Germany lost 271 single-engine fighter planes and 9 twin-engine planes. Another 65 single-engine fighters and 4 twin-engine planes were damaged. They found that 143 German pilots were killed, 70 became prisoners of war, and 21 were wounded.

Manrho and Pütz reported that the Allies lost 305 aircraft destroyed and 190 damaged. Another 15 Allied planes were shot down and 10 damaged. Six more were lost for other reasons. They also found that only 17 German planes were definitely shot down by German anti-aircraft fire (called Flak). They believe the idea that one-third of German planes were shot down by friendly fire is a "myth."

Other historians have given different figures. Steven Zaloga, for example, says 214 German aircrew were killed or captured, and 304 German planes were destroyed. In return, he states that the Allies lost 144 planes on the ground, 62 were damaged, and 70 were lost in air battles.

Losses in the Air

During Operation Bodenplatte, some Allied pilots were lost in air combat. Here are a few examples:

• Flight Lieutenant Howard P. Gibboms of 168 Squadron RAF was killed when his Hawker Typhoon was shot down by German Fw 190s.
• Flying Officer Don Webber of 183 Squadron RAF was killed when his Hawker Typhoon was accidentally shot down by an American P-51 plane.
• Flight Lieutenant Wacław Chojnacki of 308 Polish Fighter Squadron was killed when his Supermarine Spitfire was shot down by German Fw 190s.
• Flight Lieutenant David Harling of 416 Squadron RCAF was killed when his Supermarine Spitfire was shot down by a German Fw 190D-9.
• Captain William Whisner of the 487 Fighter Squadron, 352 Fighter Group, was uninjured. After his P-51 Mustang was damaged by German fire, he managed to destroy two German Bf 109s and two Fw 190s before landing safely.

German Losses Summary

The German Air Force suffered significant losses during Operation Bodenplatte. Here is a summary of the total known losses for German pilots and aircraft:

Overall, 15 German pilots from Jagdgeschwader 27 were lost directly because of Operation Bodenplatte.

Images for kids

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  A Fw 190D-9 plane of 10./JG 54 Grünherz, flown by pilot (Leutnant Theo Nibel). It crashed near Brussels on January 1, 1945, after a partridge flew into its nose radiator.