Luftwaffe Flight Standard

[Bob Lyons]

And my latest addition, picked up in Berlin last week…..

“Flag for Air Force Flying Units, Technical, and Aerial Warfare Schools”

On the 16th of March 1936 the Fuhrer and Supreme Commander of the Wehrmacht bestowed new Colours to the
German armed forces by virtue of the following

“On the first anniversary of the rebirth of the German right to bear arms I bestow unit colours upon the armed forces.
The glorious existence of the old Army came to an end as a result of the events of 1918. The courageous spirit of soldiers put to the
test through the centuries can only be suppressed at a time of the national misfortune, but it can never be destroyed.
The new colours shall be a symbol of this ideal towards which to strive.

Berlin 16 March 1936
(signed) The Fuhrer and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces
Adolf Hitler.

Most of the armed forces’ Colours were presented during the years 1936 and 1937. In the later pre-war years all existing units are
presumed to have received their Colours. It would however appear that no official list giving the names of the units of all branches of the
Wehrmacht that received Colours, as well as the dates and places of presentation, was ever published. If such a list did exist it has so far not
come to light.

(From B.L. Davis book: “Flags & Standards Of The Thirds Reich Army, Navy & Air Force”.

Cheers,

-Bob

[MAP]

Stunning Bob

Some nice honest minor wear makes it even nicer.

Congrats

[Chopperman]

Very nice piece
I don't collect Luft items but even I would be proud to own this.

[paulscoot]

What a great flag Bob ,I would love one of these ! (Didn't find it in the attic of the hotel Messerschmitt did you haha ) regards, Paul

[carpediem]

That is a great addition to any collection! Not something you see many of! Thanks for sharing it!

[Bob Lyons]

It does tie in quite nicely with my couple of vehicle pennants and a bit of other Luftwaffe gear I think....

-Bob

[Chopperman]

WOW, Nice collection

[Bob Lyons]

Me again, I have been trying to ascertain how many Luftwaffe standards that may have been presented, and was looking through the pages of the old ‘Flags & Standards Of
The Third Reich’ by B.L. Davis, and he cites the following (on pages 16 to 20) for a number of Luftwaffe standards that were made and presented pre-war, he states: ….
(I count 76 flags below, and I am sure there would have had to have been more):

On 21 April 1936 on the second ‘Day of the Luftwaffe’ (the eighteenth anniversary of the death of Manfred von Richthofen) Generaloberst Hermann Göring presented twelve new colours to various Luftwaffe
contingents at a parade held on the aerodrome at Berlin-Gatow. This was the first such parade held in the German Third Reich and preceded by almost five months the presentation of the first Army and Navy
flags presented at Nuremberg during the 1936 Reich Party Congress gathering.

Those Air Force units to receive new Colours were:
Flying group Doberitz (I Group from fighter squadron ‘Richthofen’)
Aerial Warefare School based at Gatow
Aerial Warefare School based at Wildpark-Werder
Technical School based at Adlershof
I and II Battalions of Regiment ‘General Göring’ (each battalion received a former Land Police Group ‘General Göring’ flag, and a Flak Battalion
I Battalion from Flak Regiment 12 stationed at Döberitz
I and II Battalions from Flak Regiment 22 stationed at Lankwitz
Signals Battalion from the Reich Air Ministry
Air Signals Reserve Battalion from Air District II.

On 15 May 1936 General der Flieger Erhard Milch, Secretary of State for Air travel, representing Generaloberst Göring, presented a flag to each of the three groups from the ‘Horst Wessel’ fighter squadron during a
parade held at Dortmund. (The three groups were stationed at Dortmund, Wesel and Lippstadt.)

On 7 July 1936 General Milch also presented a further six Colours to six Luftwaffe units stationed in East Prussia.

Generaloberst Göring as Commander-in-Chief of the German Air Force also presented new Colours to four Luftwaffe contingents taking part in the same military parade. The units were:
A fighter squadron
II Battalion from Flak-Regiment 23
An Air Signals battalion
A pilot officer school

On 24 February 1937 Generalmajor Friedrich Christiansen presented a Colour to the Magdeburg Flying School during a parade held on the Magdeburg-Ost aerodrome.

On 1 March 1937 Generalmajor Helmuth Felmy, the Commanding General and Supreme Commander of Air District VII, presented a flag on Domplatz in Halberstadt.

On 8 May 1937 General der Flieger Kaupisch, the Commander of Air District II, presented a Colour to the Schönewalde air station near Spandau.

On 10 May 1937 Genraloberst Goring presented a Colour to the Rothwesten air station near Kassel.

On either 11 or 12 May 1937 the Commander of Air District II, General Kaupisch, presented a further Colour to the II Battalion from Flak-Regiment 12 during a parade held in Heilegensee.

On 28 June 1937 Generaloberst Göring, accompanied by Generalleutnant Hubert Weise, presented a flag of the former Land Police Group ‘General Göring’ to the III Battalion of Regiment
‘General Göring’ at a parade held in the unit’s barracks at Berlin-Reinickendorf.

On 19 October 1937 Generaloberst Göring presented a further forty-five Colours to units from Air Districts I, II, III, IV, VI, and VII during a parade held on the air station at Gatow.

During the month of April 1938, possibly on the 15th, Generalfeldmarschall Göring presented the first German Air Force Flag to Fighter Group 1, the former Austrian group of fighters, during
a ceremony held after the Anschluss at the unit’s air base at Wiener-Neustadt. The Luftwaffe flag bore the ‘Fahnenspruch’ inscription ‘Eine Reich, Eine Volk, Eine Führer’.

On 4 November 1938, the day of the moved into their newly constructed barracks in Brunswick, the Fallschirm-Infanterie-Bataillon were presented with an army standard in white of the type
designed for mororized-infantry units. The standard was presented by Generalmajor Ott, Inspector of Infantry to the Battalion Commander, Major Heidrich.

Davis also states (on page 20) “ Most of the armed forces’ colours were presented during the years 1936 and 1937. In the later pre-war years all existing untis are presumed to have received their Colours.
It would however appear than no official list giving the names of the units of all branches of the Wehrmacht that received Colours, as well as the dates and places of presentation, was ever published.
If such a list did exist it has so far not come to light”.

Ben K. Weed (OFW) also posted this list of Heer standards that were made on the WAF yesterday, it might be of some interest too…

Cheers,

Bob


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---Quote (Originally by oldflagswanted)---

IMO only a few dozen survive in private hands.
German records of the numbers made are ...

*930 total Heer Flags, of those swallowtail total = 576

Red = Artillery & Observation ------> 251 swallowtails
Pink = Panzer/Panzerabwehr-------> 115 swallowtails
Lemon Yellow = Signals -----------> 67 swallowtail standarten
White = Infantry ------------------> 59 swallowtails, 290 fahnen
Gold-Yellow = Cavalry -------------> 35 swallowtails
Black = Pionier --------------------> 32 swallowtails, 39 fahnen
Grass Green = Jager/Gebirgsjager --> 25 fahnen (~4'x4' size)
Copper Brown = Recon ---> (none) used pink or g-yel swallowtails
Light (Powder) Blue = Transport ---> 12 swallowtails
Boreaux (Wine) Red = Nebelwerfer -> 4 swallowtails
Lime Green = Schutzen *(rarest*)* ----> 1 swallowtail (II./Sch.Rgt.1)
(*)=This flag survives in Russia, see this thread post #10b/c.

*OFW*
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[Horst]

Outstanding collection and some great information -

Horst

[Agitatorn]

I just found this thread!! and what a fantastic collection and display!!
outstanding!!!

Cheers