How the Luftwaffe’s Nachtjagd transformed from struggling operations to a formidable defensive force with the creation of the Kammhuber Line
Winter 1941 brought a lull in aerial combat, allowing both sides to refine their capabilities. Bomber Command trained crews in new tactics while introducing heavier aircraft like the Stirling, Halifax, and Manchester. The Luftwaffe responded by appointing Oberst Josef Kammhuber to organize night fighter operations on a more systematic basis.
The Kammhuber Line
German factories increased production of Freya-type detection equipment, deploying units along coastal areas and strategic locations. Kammhuber established a defensive belt extending from northern Germany to northern France, designed to protect the Ruhr industrial region and major cities including Hamburg, Berlin, and Frankfurt am Main. This network, known as the Kammhuber Line, divided airspace into sectors (Raum) patrolled by night fighters equipped with sophisticated detection equipment and searchlights. Ground-based Flak units defended strategic targets that bombers managed to penetrate.
Early 1941 Operations
January saw limited activity. I./NJG 3 lost several aircraft during training exercises, while NJG 1 managed only two victories. I./NJG 2 performed better with three kills against one crew lost.
February brought I./NJG 3 its first success when Oberleutnant Hans Jüsgens downed a Whitley from 77 Squadron over the Netherlands. However, the unit weakened when 1./NJG 3 deployed to Sicily, supporting operations in North Africa.
The night of February 10/11 proved exceptionally successful. According to unit reports, Hauptmann Ehle opened the scoring when his radio operator spotted a Wellington cruising below them in moonlight. The bomber landed on the frozen Zuiderzee surface, and its five crew members were captured. Lieutenant Fellerer added another victory after being vectored onto a Hampden by Würzburg radar.
Long-range intruder missions (Fernnachtjagd) achieved their best results yet. Oberleutnant Schulz destroyed a Blenheim at just 200 meters over West Raynham aerodrome. Hauptmann Jung downed a Wellington in flames at the same location before dropping incendiaries on Coltishall. Oberleutnant Semrau caught two Blenheims orbiting Feltwell and shot both down, while Oberleutnant Hermann claimed two Hampdens over Waddington.
Spring Successes
March brought 11 confirmed victories for NJG 1, though two crews were lost. Notable achievements included Lieutenant Reinhold Knacke downing the first Stirling on March 10, and Oberleutnant Walter Fenske claiming the first Manchester on March 27.
Radio operator Obergefreiter Kurt Bundrock described intercept procedures: ground radar stations tracked incoming bombers and provided altitude and heading information. Success depended on visual contact, lighting conditions, and enemy pilot actions. “Occasionally, all you would see would be the exhaust flames, the huge bomber otherwise all but invisible,” he explained. Pilots positioned themselves 50 meters below targets for better visibility against the sky, then closed to within 30 meters before attacking.
April produced another 11 victories for NJG 1. One Bf 110 collided with a Hampden during combat—the pilot survived and received credit, but the radio operator perished. I./NJG 2 scored 17 confirmed victories, though many involved training aircraft. Feldwebel Hans Hahn notably shot down a Beaufighter whose pilot was Flight Lieutenant Guy Gibson, later famous for leading the Dambusters raid.
Peak Performance
May saw NJG 1 add 22 victories despite losing four aircraft. Lieutenant Eckart-Wilhelm von Bonin scored his first success, downing a Wellington. I./NJG 2 claimed 11 victories over England but lost a crew when intercepted by a Beaufighter from 25 Squadron near The Wash.
June proved the most successful month, with NJG 1 claiming 41 victories and I./NJG 3 four more. Leading aces emerged: Hauptmann Werner Streib reached 15 victories, while Oberleutnants Walter Fenske, Helmut Lent, and Reinhold Eckardt each achieved 12.
The month proved costly for I./NJG 2, which lost four crews on the night of June 13/14 alone. On June 25/26, Oberleutnant Paul Bohn shot down a bomber but was killed by defensive fire. Flight engineer Unteroffizier Walter Lindner took control of the Ju 88 and, with radio operator Hans Engmann’s assistance, managed to extract the pilot’s body. Following ground instructions, they jettisoned the body with a parachute deployed before bailing out over France. The aircraft crashed near Milan. Both surviving crew members received promotions to Feldwebel.
Operation Barbarossa began on June 22, though it had minimal immediate impact on Western night fighter operations.
Technical Developments
The Dornier Do 17 Z-7 “Kauz I” and Z-10 “Kauz II” served as interim night fighters. The Z-10 featured pioneering technology, including an infrared spotlight (Spanner Anlage), later supplemented by FuG 202 Lichtenstein radar. Lieutenant Ludwig Becker achieved the first confirmed Z-10 victory on October 16, 1940, destroying a Wellington from 311 Squadron.
Mediterranean Operations
Elements of I./NJG 3 deployed to support North African operations from February 1941, operating from Catania, Sicily, then moving to Greece and Libya. The unit achieved no confirmed successes during this deployment and returned to Germany in November, replaced by I./NJG 2, which claimed five victories against Beaufighters, Blenheims, and Hurricanes.
Click here to purchase “Night Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe 1940–43” by Neil Page
