Rammkommando Elbe Operation April 7,1945 -The Deliberate Ramming of American Bombers.

On April 7,1945 the 385thBG flew its 285th mission against the Munitions Depot, at Gustrow , Germany. The Luftwaffes  Rammkommando Elbe  became OPERATIONAL on April 7, 1945 flying from the Prague Gbel  Airfield. About 200 Me109s were fitted with an additional belly fuel tanks and an armoured frontal windshields. The aircraft carried no guns or camouflage.
During the mission an ME-109 flown by pilot WALTER OTTO rammed into the  REAR  of B-17 #44-8744 .The collision took the left wing of the Fortress. Both aircraft disintegrated . The entire Burich  crew flying "Tail End Charlie" in the Lead Squadron were lost. German pilot WALTER OTTO survived  the deliberate ramming . I would like to know if there is any additional information available on this incident.

It sounds like "Sonnerkomando Elbe"
http://forum.armyairforces.com/tm.aspx?m=132121&mpage=&print=true

J.M.B.

Hello,
what is the source, given Walter Otto as Pilot who rammed the Burich ship?

Regards from Germany
Jens-Michael

  Hello  Jens -Michael, Greetings from sunny California .
Thank You for your response . My resource for this thread is " The Story of Vans Valiants of the 8th Army Air Force, A History of the 385th Bomb Group in World War II , 8th Edition ,2010 By W.W. Varnedoe ,Jr.Published by Colonial Graphics Group.
  1st Lt. William ( Bill ) Varnedoe is a veteran of the 385thBG ,550th BS who flew TWENTY SIX missions as a Navigator between January-April ,1945.
Bill Varnedoe is also the former historian of the 385th Bomb Group. His email is billvar@comcast.net .
  Jens, PLEASE contact him directly if you feel that there are Discrepancies with his information or have any questions regarding this thread .

Jens,
Any adversity to my input should be addressed with Martin Bowmen, I got my information from his book " BATTLES WITH THE LUFWAFFE" not from self appointed WWII historian.

I will updating my last post:

From the high altitude Fw. Otto bailed out he saw a smal water. When he came down further he got shocked because the smal water suddenly turn to be a large lake, the so-called Steinhuder Meer (Steinhuder Lake). Since he wasn't a good swimmer he did its best not to land into that water. He finaly came safely down near a village with the name Hagen.... I migth have been Hagenburg which is located about 2 km (1.06 NM) SE of and the lake side. There were already farmers with pitchforks waiting to take him prisoner. He was lacky to be German. One farmer took him later with his carriage to Stadthagen. Here he spent a night in a house of a pharmacist.
Fw. Walter Otto left Stadthagen by train via Celle, Leipzig and Chemnitz, where he stayed for two days with his family.
But whereabout came down the debris of David Owens B-17? According to MACR #13886 the place with the coordinates: 52°30' N - 09°20' E was at the northern lake side of the Steinhuder Meer. This location is about 7-8 km NW of the place Walter Otto came down.
2-5 chutes were seen open, three men fell out burning. The Loss List of The Mighty Eight Combat Chronology reported 9 KIA.
What is right?
Nothing.... but why?

"Snake Eye" crashed 2 kilometers north of Stillenhofen/Engehausen, east of Schwarmstedt where the most action on this day took place.
The crassite was confirmed by seperate eyewitness reports and the IDPF of Lt. Owens which contains a sketch of the location. The wreck was devinitive identyfied as #42-31366. Six of the crew were buried at the crashsite one was left in the wreckage. That was confirmed by an eyewitness report of an former Wehrmacht soldier who saw in 1946 a body in the wreck still wearing his Flak helmet.
Two of the crew were buried a few hundred meters west of the crashsite. May there crashed the tail, which disapeared in low altitude.
Do you believe that a hard strucked B-17 with a disintegrated nose flew another 22 miles from Steinhuder Lake to east of Schwarmstedt? I don´t.
That is one reason why Walter Otto couldn´t rammed the "Snake Eye" in the Steinhuder Lake area. The town Stadthagen where he was brought to and where he spent a night, was occupied on April 8, 1945. The railway line from Stadthagen to westerly and easterly direction (to Wunstorf) was closed on April 7, 1945. Wunstorf was occupied on April 7, 1945. Otto stated that he take a train via Celle to Leipzig, that make no sense when you starting in Stadthagen. The shortest and quickest way ist via Wunstorf - Hanover - Brunswick - Leipzig. It is a deture to take a train via Celle. Wherever ha wanted to go. He had to pass the occupied Wunstorf.
He was impossible to travel by train on April 8, 1945 from Stadthagen in any direction.
Otto remebered a village with the name Hagen.... There is no village with such a name in the Schwarmstedt area, but a village Nienhagen 2.7 miles northwest of Schwarmstedt, close to the village Gilten where 2nd Lt. Gilbert M. Plowman crashed on April 7, 1945 with his P-51 and was killed in this crash.
Schwarmstedt has a train-station at the former railway line Verden - Rethem - Schwarmstedt - Celle.
Beside the local headquarter of the Wehrmacht in Schwarmstedt there was a pharmacy and I believe that Otto reported back at that headquarter. From Schwarmstedt he was able to reach Celle by train, because the line was closed later on April 10, 1945.
But why was Otto convinced that he rammed and bailed out in the Steinhuder Lake area. Someone after the war he was asked for his experinces as a pilot on that day. I believe that he only remembered less details an took a map from the Hanover area, because his order was to met the bomber streams in this area. He remembered a large wide water, looking like a lake. The only possibility for him was that this water was the Steinhuder Lake. He couldn´t know that near Schwarmstedt the Leine-River and the Aller-River met and that in spring after the snow melt in the Harz Mountains both rivers to be in high flood. The fields around then looks like a lake.
So he looked for a village with Hagen... close to a town with a station. So he may found Hagenburg or Pollhagen or Auhagen etc.... And the only town in this area with a station: Stadthagen. Now HIS story was completed and logical.
Supported on facts and indicies Otto rammed and bailed out in the Schwarmstedt area.
 
Jens-Michael

http://forum.12oclockhigh../showthread.php?t=11345
 
B-17 42-31366
https://einestages.spiege...mando_fuer_hitler.html
 
B-17 44-8744
http://b17warhorse.fws1.com/custom.html
Picture is that at "Wee Willie" lost April 1945 at http://ww2db.com/image.php?image_id=3759 http://www.91stbombgroup....wphotos/weewillie.html