LUFTWAFFE’S WANING POWER

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25242, 3 June 1943, Page 3

LUFTWAFFE’S WANING POWER

NEED FOR EARLY VICTORY NEW, YORK, June 1. “ The Luftwaffe on the Russian front is no longer the overpowering instrument of destruction it was in June, 1941,” says the New York Times correspondent in Moscow, Carl Sulzberger. “The Germans have lost their overwhelming air ascendancy, and can muster probably only parity. Any effort to obtain local superiority in one sector would 'risk stripping the protection needed at other points. Furthermore, the efficiency of the Luftwaffe’s personnel is almost certainly steadily deteriorating. Although the Luftwaffe’s power is still formidable, it is a power that can be matched, and perhaps overmatched. It is difficult to establish accurately the exact amount of German losses on the Russian front, but, the Luftwaffe has never shown anything like its original strength because of the exceedingly heavy losses it suffered in the earlier stages of the war on the eastern front.

“The Luftwaffe had 10,000 aircraft in June, 1941, 4000 of which were reserves. Almost the entire number could have been thrown against the Russians, because of the Nazis’ light commitments elsewheiie. To-day the situation is different. The strength of the Luftwaffe is at least 1000 planes fewer, and must be prudently split up to protect the Continent from Allied air onslaughts or to counter the risk of invasion. The Luftwaffe’s reserves have also fallen off to under 1000. This situation means that the Germans must succeed in their effort to achieve a decisive major victory in 1943, otherwise the efficacy of the Luftwaffe is likely to be virtually destroyed in the effort.” The Moscow radio to-day claimed that the Soviet Air Force had gained complete command of the air over the Russian front. The radio reported that the Nazis had lost 2069 planes between May 2 and 29 in air combat and in Russian attacks on German airfields.