Forsyth, Robert. JV 44: The Galland Circus. Burgess Hill, England: Classic Publications, 1996.

356 pages
0-9526867-0-8

Foreword by Generalleutnant Walter Krupinski; Personal Introduction by Generalleutnant Adolf Galland; Author's Introduction; Acknowledgements; photos; maps; diagrams; color artwork and technical drawings; Bibliography; Source Notes; Glossary; Table of Comparative Ranks; index.

Appendices: Pilots and personnel known to have been assigned to JV 44; Aircraft known to have been assigned to JV 44.

Out of England comes this huge volume relating the history of one of the oddest units of the Luftwaffe, Jagdverband 44.

At a time when Allied air superiority had become overwhelming and German cities were subjected to merciless pounding daily by the Eighth Air Force and nightly by Bomber Command, Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering -- seeking a scapegoat for his own failures -- sacked the highly-regarded and highly-decorated Generalleutnant Adolf Galland from the post of commander of fighter forces, dismissing him to obscurity.

Galland, however, refused to disappear, and remained too well-known and popular to ignore. Thus, at the end of January Goering assigned him to command a small force of Me 262 jets which were to be employed in the role of fighters against the streams of Allied heavy bombers assaulting Germany. While Galland's new unit was to be uniquely independent of the usual Luftwaffe chain of command, Goering also insisted that Galland was to operate in isolation and to have no contact with other fighter units. Galland's successor as commander of fighter forces, Gollob, further obstructed formation of the new unit by refusing to assign aircraft and pilots.

Galland resorted to something of a guerrilla recruiting campaign, calling upon long-time friends and colleagues, many of whom were out of favor at OKL. It was rumored that "if you wanted to belong to Jagdverband 44, you had to have at least the Ritterkreuz." JV 44 quickly became famous -- or notorious -- for its exceptionally skilled pilots who also happened to be headstrong, rebellious, and iconoclastic.

Given the Luftwaffe's dwindling resources and Galland's lack of official support, his unit led a rather difficult, hand-to-mouth existence. "Word had got out that Galland was forming a new jet unit at Brandenburg so I called him from Lechfeld...after all, I had just been trained to fly on the Me 262. He said: 'Sure, no problem.... Just bring a jet with you.'"

Part experimental unit, part oasis for Luftwaffe exiles, part circus, and part "flying sanitorium," JV 44 fought with verve and bravery in the waning months of the war. Galland himself was hospitalized with leg wounds, but after Hitler's death sent officers to negotiate a "special surrender" of his planes and pilots to the Americans. By the end, engulfed in the chaos of the final German defeat, JV 44 pilots -- told to transfer to Prague -- were refusing to follow orders from anyone but Galland.

As dawn broke on the morning of 4 May, the pilots of JV 44 gathered in the drafty wooden barrack huts that served as their accommodation, could see American tanks massing on the far side of the Saalach, hear their engines. Even the autobahn running north out of the city was clogged with American military traffic. The air was unseasonably cold and the ground was white with a fresh fall of snow....

After a brief artillery barrage on the city, intended as a show of strength, the Americans began to broadcast announcements to all German units in the area to surrender and to send a nominated representative into the city. Bar first ordered the ground crews to remove the Me 262 Jumo engine governors which would have the effect of immobilizing the aircraft. These were to be given to Major Hans-Ekkehard Bob whom Bar assigned to lead a convoy of lorries into the mountains south of the city where the engine parts could be concealed and/or destroyed at some point in the future if necessary. Next, he ordered Major "Bubi" Schnell and Fhj Ofw Herbert Kaiser to form the JV 44 delegation and gave them orders to investigate what was happening in the city. If possible they were to return to Maxglan with an American representative to whom surrender terms could be negotiated. Similarly, if they encountered any difficulties they were to return. The two Ritterkreuztrager left and the remaining pilots sat down to a game of cards and to wait for whatever happened next, even ready to take off if necessary, though to where nobody really knew.

Always a glamorous and mysterious footnote in the history of the Luftwaffe, JV 44's story has here been carefully researched and thoroughly told for the first time. Author Forsyth has done an outstanding job of putting this volume together, proving once again that many of our most capable Second World War historians are specializing in the air war and air unit histories.

Well-researched and well-written. Hundreds of useful photos. Very nice color artwork and technical drawings from Creek and Bentley. High production standards. Valuable details for modelers. Recommended for anyone with any interest in the Luftwaffe or air warfare.

Available from mail order booksellers, local bookshops, or directly from Classic Publications for £39.95.

Thanks to Classic Publications for providing this review copy.