Allied Jet Killers of World War 2

by Stephen Chapis

  The Komets of I./JG 400 were airborne again the next day, and this time they tangled with P-38 Lightnings of the 479th FG, which was providing withdrawal support for a group of B-17s. Leading ‘Newcross Yellow’ Flight was future 14-victory ace Capt Arthur F Jeffrey, who joined the 479th FG’s 434th FS in October 1943. It was a very cloudy day over Holland and Jeffrey noticed a straggler just above the undercast that was steadily falling behind the formation. The aircraft in question was B-17G 42-107997 She Hasta from the 100th BG, which had been severely damaged and had several wounded crewmen on board. Jeffrey, noticing the bomber was heading northwest – a heading that would cause it to miss England completely – left ‘Yellow Three’ and ‘Four’ at altitude while he took his wingman down to give She Hasta some close support and navigational assistance. Even though their P-38s looked like no other fighter in the world, the gunners of the rookie crew manning the Flying Fortress fired at the Lightnings as they approached. A short while later Jeffrey found himself engaging an Me 163, as he described in his Encounter Report;

  ‘The B-17 plodded along at 11,000 ft, dodging holes in the overcast to keep out of the flak, and at 1145 hrs I observed an Me 163 in attack position behind it. The Me 163 made a slight low-side “five o’clock” pass at the B-17, followed through in a slight dive and then levelled off. At about this time the German must have seen me because he made another slight dive. He then started a very steep climb, weaving all the while, as though he was trying to see behind him. During this weaving I closed with him and opened fire, observing strikes on the Me 163.

  ‘At 15,000 ft the pilot levelled off and started to circle to the left, as though positioning himself to attack me. I could turn tighter than he could, and I got a good deflection shot, with the closest range estimated to be 200 to 300 yards. I thought I was getting hits but my shots seemed too far away for effect when puffs of smoke started to emanate from the tail of the jet.’

  Jeffrey seemed to think that the Komet pilot had never been in combat before, for it seemed like he did not know what to do. There are no records to indicate who the aviator was or what kind of combat experience he had, but he did do what most fighter pilots do instinctively – he turned into his attacker.

  USAAF fighters attempted to engage Luftwaffe jets for the first time on 28 July 1944 when Mustangs from the 359th FG tangled with Me 163s from JG 400 near Merseburg. The next day the P-38-equipped 479th FG was in the process of providing withdrawal support for a group of B-17s over Holland when Capt Arthur Jeffrey of the 434th FS/479th FG spotted a Me 163 preparing to attack a lost and struggling B-17G. Engaging the Komet, he scored numerous hits before following the Me 163 into a vertical dive in his P-38J-15 42-104425 BOOMERANG (seen here with a member of Jeffrey’s groundcrew), which entered compressibility at 500 mph. Jeffrey pulled out just above the ground, but his wingman last saw the Komet enter the clouds at 3000 ft, still in a near vertical dive. This was Jeffrey’s second aerial victory, and the only jet success credited to the P-38. Jeffrey would score two more victories in the Lightning and go on to become a double ace in the P-51 (Peter Randall collection)

  ‘At about 15,000 ft he turned and attacked, with me looking right down his throat’, Jeffrey continued. ‘We got into a tight circle and I saw some good deflection shots hitting him. Then he rolled over and went straight down, with me fire-walled behind him. For the first time in my life I found out how – at more than 500 mph – your props can act as brakes. I was shooting at him as I was going straight down, and my tracer path was walking forward of the “bat” [Me 163]. Then I got into an arc of an outside loop, and when I finally pulled out a few hundred feet above the ground, I blacked out’.

  Jeffrey, flying P-38J-15 42-104425 BOOMERANG, quickly regained his senses, but by then the rocket fighter had vanished. He duly claimed it as a probable. While Jeffrey had been wrestling his Lightning out of the death-grip of compressibility, his wingman, 1Lt Richard G Simpson, watched the Me 163 enter the clouds;

  ‘I started to pull out at 3500-4000 ft, indicating a little over 400 mph. The Me 163 went into the clouds, which were around at 3000 ft, still in a dive of 80 degrees or better. He must have been indicating 550-600 mph, and showed no signs of pulling out. I don’t see how the German could have gotten out of that dive.’

  To this day no records have been located that indicate the loss of an Me 163 on this day, yet Capt Arthur Jeffrey’s probable claim was upgraded to destroyed, thus giving him the distinction of being the first Allied pilot to down a German jet. His Me 163 also proved to be the only jet/rocket-powered aircraft victory credited to the P-38. The second of four kills credited to Capt Jeffrey in the Lightning, he would go on score ten more victories in the Mustang and finish the war as the 479th FG’s leading ace.

  Maj John B Murphy took command of the 370th FS/359th FG in early 1943, and he was the only pilot in the new group to have combat experience. He had fought the Japanese in the Aleutians, where he helped down an E8N ‘Dave’ floatplane whilst flying a P-40E. By 16 August 1944 now-Lt Col Murphy had 5.75 kills to his credit when he came to the aid of the crippled B-17G 42-31636 OUTHOUSE MOUSE of the 91st BG that was under attack by Me 163s. After damaging one Komet, Murphy attacked a second that attempted to escape by diving for the deck. He scored several hits that caused heavy damage, and the Me 163 was last seen in a dive shedding parts. Murphy was credited with one Komet destroyed and one damaged, finishing the war with 6.75 victories (359th FG Association)

  On 16 August 425 B-17s from the Eighth Air Force’s 1st Air Division targeted oil refineries and aircraft plants in Delitzsch, Halle, Böhlen and Schkeuditz. Only three of these targets were within range of the Komets operating from Brandis, whose pilots would have to penetrate the defensive cover provided by 48 Thunderbolts and 241 Mustangs before they could engage the bombers. Unperturbed, the Jagdflieger from 1./JG 400 attacked five Flying Fortresses, including B-17G 42-31636 OUTHOUSE MOUSE of the 91st BG and B-17G 43-38085 Towering Titan of the 305th BG. The tail gunner aboard the latter aircraft, SSgt Howard Kaysen, managed to hit an Me 163 that had closed to within 50 yards. The Komet began trailing smoke and its pilot, Feldwebel Herbert Straznicky, who had been wounded by Kaysen’s defensive fire, bailed out.

  1Lt Reese Walker Mullins’ Outhouse Mouse had already been damaged by Fw 190s from IV.(Sturm)/JG 3 by the time it was targeted by an Me 163, the B-17 proving to be an inviting target as it lagged behind the main bomber formation. Five-victory ace Leutnant Hartmut Ryll wasted little time in getting directly behind the aircraft and making a gliding attack on it at 1045 hrs, although he was unable to score any hits due to Mullins’ aggressive evasive action. This attack had in turn been observed by a flight of P-51Ds from the 359th FG, led by 370th FS CO, and ace, Lt Col John B Murphy, who recounted the ensuing engagement in his Encounter Report;

  ‘I was escorting our bombers southeast of Leipzig at 27,000 ft when I noticed a contrail climbing rapidly up towards the bombers from behind and to the port side. I recognised the contrail as being produced by a jet-propelled aircraft because of its speed. Due to its speed and altitude advantage, I knew I could not overtake him, but noticed a straggling B-17 to starboard at 25,000 ft which was headed north and east of Leipzig all alone, and I headed toward him, thinking that he probably would be attacked. The jettie [sic] contrail ceased about 500 yards from the bomber, and from that point on I kept him in sight as I would any other aircraft. He passed through the bombers and went down to the straggling B-17, arriving there before I could. I wasn’t far behind, however, and was overtaking.

  ‘After he passed the B-17, he seemed to level off, and as I closed on him, I opened fire from about 1000 ft and held it until I overshot. I scored a few hits on the left side of the fuselage. I pulled up to the left as sharply as I could to prevent overshooting and getting in front of him, and lost sight of both him and my wingman. My wingman, Lt Jones, reported that the jettie flipped over on his back in a half roll, and as he did so, he scored a sufficient number of hits in the canopy to dest
roy him. As Jones tried to follow him through the dive, he blacked out.

  ‘When I completed my sharp chandelle turn to the left, I saw another jettie off to my left and Jones farther off and lower to my right. I started down on this one, which was making rather shallow diving turns to the left. I think I must have followed him through two turns before overtaking him. I realised that I was going to overtake him rapidly too, but I did not fire until at a distance of around 750 ft, when I held a continuous burst, seeing a series of strikes the full length of the fuselage. Parts began falling off, followed by a big explosion and more parts falling off. I could smell strange chemical fumes in my cockpit as I followed through the smoke of the explosion. It seemed to me that a large chunk of the fuselage from the canopy on back just popped off with the explosion.

  On 16 August 1944, 2Lt Cyril W Jones was Lt Col Murphy’s wingman, and after his flight leader attacked and overshot the first Komet, Jones moved in for the kill as the German split-essed into a dive. After getting a few hits on Me 163’s tail, Jones increased his lead and fired a burst that shattered the canopy on the Komet and probably killed the pilot, Leutnant Hartmut Ryll, who became the first pilot from JG 400 to be killed in action. This was Jones’ second victory. He ‘made ace’ on 11 September 1944 when he shot down four Bf 109s. The next day, on just his 16th combat mission, Jones was shot down by flak and killed while strafing an airfield south of Meiningen (359th FG Association)

  ‘I followed him part of the way down, and my intention was to follow him down until he hit [the ground], but I saw another jettie at my same altitude about two miles off and decided against it. Being by myself and low on gas, I did not attack the other jet, but headed home.’

  Murphy claimed one Me 163 shot down and one damaged in the air. His wingman, future six-victory ace 2Lt Cyril Jones, who had scored his first aerial victory one week earlier, also filed a report following this engagement;

  ‘I was flying “White Two” when “White Leader” called in a jettie making a pass at the bombers we were escorting. “White Leader” said to keep an eye on the enemy aircraft. We were about two miles from the bomber formation, and the jet aircraft was on the other side of the bombers. “White Leader” started a turn toward one bomber straggler which looked as if it might be a target for the jet aircraft – as we started the turn, I noticed three contrails similar to the one “White Leader” had called in. They were going through another formation of bombers. I could see no aircraft at the end of the contrails, but decided they must be other jet aircraft. I did not try to watch them longer and concentrated on following my leader.

  ‘The enemy pilot that was trying to intercept completed his run on the formation of bombers, passing through them and heading for the straggler. He completed the run on the straggler and he passed about 500 yards in front and to the starboard side of the bomber when we overtook him. “White Leader” was about 1000 ft ahead of me and about 500 ft above me on the final approach. I saw “White Leader” fire, and strikes appeared on the tail of the enemy aircraft. “White Leader” broke away and I continued in, the jet aircraft split-essed, and I followed him. I fired a short burst with a three-radii lead and observed no hits. I increased the lead and fired again. The entire canopy seemed to dissolve on the enemy aircraft, which I had identified as an Me 163. I closed very fast and broke behind him.

  ‘As I passed behind the enemy aircraft, I hit his wash and did a half turn. While recovering, I blacked out and lost sight of the Me 163. I recovered at 14,000 ft after starting the attack at 23,000 ft. The pilot was surely killed when the bullets entered his canopy, and I claim one Me 163 destroyed.’

  A group photograph of pilots from the 370th FS includes two Komet ‘killers’, 2Lt Cyril W Jones standing third from the left and Lt Col John B Murphy standing on the far right. The 359th FG was credited with the destruction of six Luftwaffe jets during the war, the 368th FS downing a single Me 262, the 369th a pair of Me 262s and the 370th FS three Me 163s, making it the highest scoring USAAF squadron against the Komet (Peter Randall collection)

  Jones’s victim, Leutnant Ryll, became the first JG 400 pilot to be killed in action when his Me 163 crashed vertically southeast of Leipzig. He was subsequently credited with downing a B-17 prior to this death, taking his final tally to six. Feldwebel Herbert Straznicky and Feldwebel Siegfried Schübert were also awarded single victories over Flying Fortresses on this date.

  A nearly forgotten footnote to the story of this oft-told engagement is that 1Lt Jimmy C Shoffit from the 370th FS broke into a Me 163 that was attacking a B-17, scoring hits on its right wing before the Komet escaped in a power dive. This was the closest Shoffit would get to claiming a victory prior to finishing his tour in April 1945. John Murphy’s Komet kill took his final score to 6.75, as he finished his tour just two weeks later. Finally, ‘Cy’ Jones ‘made ace’ on 11 September when he shot down four Bf 109s in a single dogfight. Sadly, the very next day, whilst on only his 16th combat mission, Jones was shot down by flak and killed while strafing an airfield south of Meiningen.

  Twelve days after the first Me 163 had been shot down, the Duxford-based 78th FG was tasked with strafing rail targets in Charleroi, Belgium. 82nd FS CO Maj Joseph Myers was leading ‘Surtax Blue’ Flight on this mission, having only recently taken command of the unit (he had previously completed a tour in the ETO with the 38th FS/55th FG) after Capt Charles Clark was shot down and captured on 2 August 1944.

  Although he never attained ace status, 2Lt Manfred O Croy made USAAF history on 28 August 1944 when he and his flight leader, Maj Joseph Myers, were credited with the downing of the first Me 262 by Allied fighter pilots. It was also Croy’s first victory, and he later shot down a pair of Bf 109s on 26 November 1944. He was killed on 16 April 1945 while strafing Straubing airfield. Croy’s body was interred in the Lorraine American Cemetery in St Avold, France (Curtis Shepard)

  ‘Surtax Blue’ Flight was providing top cover while a number of other Thunderbolts went down to the deck. On this mission Maj Myers was flying his assigned P-47D 42-27339, with future jet killer 2Lt Wayne Coleman on his wing. The second element was led by 1Lt Fred Bolgert, with 2Lt Manfred Croy in P-47D 42-75551 on his wing. While flying at 11,000 ft near Brussels, Myers caught a glimpse of what he thought was a B-26 Marauder flying at low level and went down to investigate. When Myers got down to around 5000 ft he was indicating 450 mph and the unidentified aircraft began evasive action that allowed him to close to within 2000 ft above and astern. Myers later noted in his Encounter Report;

  ‘At this distance I could readily see the similarity between the aircraft and the recognition plates of the Me 262. With full power on and the advantage of altitude, I gradually started closing on the enemy aircraft and drew up to within 500 yards astern. I was about to open fire when the enemy pilot cut his throttle and crash-landed in a ploughed field.’

  Myers may have scored hits on the engines and cockpit, and the rest of his flight strafed the jet as the pilot ran away. In his Claim Report Myers stated that 2Lt Croy had hit the German pilot, Oberfeldwebel Hieronymous Lauer from 3./KG 51, as he ran away from the burning jet and claimed shared credit with Croy. Lauer escaped the incident uninjured, however, and returned to his unit that night. Myers and Croy were awarded a half credit each in the destruction of the first Me 262 downed by the Allies.

  At the end of his Claim Report, Maj Myers described the overall shape and size of the jet, noting what was similar to and different from the published recognition plates that were being used at the time. He stated the chord of the wing, especially at the root, was wider than what was shown on the drawings and the nose was about the same size as that of a P-38, but not as pointed as on the recognition drawings. Where the drawings were correct were the fuselage, engine nacelles and the tail. Finally, he said the overall size of the Me 262 appeared to be the same as a P-38 and looked similar to the B-26 Marauder when viewed from directly above.

  Prior to this engagement, Maj Myers had scored three victories flying P-3
8s with the 55th FG, and he claimed his final success – a Bf 109 – on 7 October 1944, thus falling just a half-kill short of acedom. This Me 262 was Croy’s first victory, and he would later claim two Bf 109s on 26 November 1944. On 16 April 1945 Capt Croy was shot down and killed while strafing Straubing airfield.

  CHAPTER THREE

  BATTLES INTENSIFY

  After an eventful four weeks where the USAAF had claimed five victories over the Me 163 and Me 262 in three combats, the next encounter would not take place until 2 October – and this time it would involve pilots from the Ninth Air Force. Although the P-47 groups of the Ninth were tasked primarily with close air support of ground troops, the Thunderbolt pilots still claimed their share of victories.

  On the 2nd, 21-year-old Capt Valmore J Beaudrault of Milford, New Hampshire, who had one aerial victory to his name, was leading a flight of 365th FG Thunderbolts on a reconnaissance mission near Münster and Dusseldorf. Flying at 9000 ft, Beaudrault suddenly heard his element leader, 1Lt Robert Teeter, call out over the radio, ‘My God. What was that?!’ Instinctively checking his tail, Beaudrault spotted something streak past the rear of his fighter and disappear into the clouds. He had never seen anything fly that fast, but his flight gave chase nevertheless. When they popped out on top of the overcast they saw nothing. The P-47 pilots descended through the clouds again to resume their mission, at which point Beaudrault spotted the jet at ‘ten o’clock low’ and dived in pursuit.

  Capt ‘Chuck’ Yeager was at the controls of P-51D-15 44-14888 GLAMOROUS GLEN III when he clashed with Me 262s on 6 November 1944. He also used the fighter to down four Fw 190s exactly three weeks later, their destruction taking his final tally to 11.5 victories. Upon his repatriation home in January 1945 the aircraft was passed to fellow ace Capt Don McGee and renamed Whole Hawg. On 2 March the fighter was lost to flak along with its pilot, Flt Off Patrick Mallione (Tony Holmes)