January - August 1942
Armies.
Heer expansion in the first eight months of 1942 can be divided into two realms: continued development of their motorized and mechanized forces on one hand and expansion of the Reserve Armee which would hold the conquered areas. For the former, the deployment of two new Schutzstaffel brigades for the XV and XVI Armeekorps’ Liechte-Divisionen as well as the 69. and 71. Infantrie-Division (mot); the latter was detached and immediately began retraining the motorized infantry brigades to become the first of the Panzergrenadier-Divisionen (PzGrD), the motorized artillery battalion group was also given to training to receive the first examples of a Multiple-Launch Rocket System which could maintain pace with the mechanized division it was assigned to. The 1. and 2. PzGrD would commission in late July. Other attachments for the XV and XVI AK(mot) included a motorized air defense artillery battalion group and a heavy armored brigade for XVI AK (mot).
Above: the schwere Wurfrahmen 40 (sWuR 40) frames attached to the sides of
Sd.Kfz. 251/1 half-track, loaded with the 28/32 cm Nebelwerfer 41.
Below: the Nebelwerfer 41 conducting a firing exercise in 1942.
The latter--the Reserve Armee--received another corps command headquarters in the form of XXX Armeekorps (Feldgendarmerie). The 244. and 245. Feldgendarmerie-Divisionen activated in mid-May, well after five other FGDs had been transferred from the corps commands on the West Wall to new commands in the Reserve Armee. These commands were also receiving their ADA battalion groups, seven were activated over the course of the months.
A company of the 244. FGD during a “ceremony.”
Italy’s focus--what little they managed for the Esercito--focused almost entirely on the recreation of their MSVN forces for homeland garrisons. Three divisions were reactivated over eight months. The Esercito’s decisive deficit of heavy artillery was slowly being chipped away as two brigades of artillery were activated and assigned to their respective divisions. Like the Italians, the Japanese proved that their army was not truly focused on increasing their forces and only commissioned seven engineer brigades which were attached to their garrison forces; indeed their army was still contracting from the disestablishment of the anti-tank forces.
Air Forces.
The Luftwaffe was largely finishing its latest round of expansion during the first quarter of 1942. Zerstörergeschwader 12, the second group for XVIII Fliegerkorps (Multi-Role) was activated on 12 January, while XIX FK (MR), consisting of ZGs 13 and 14 would not be active until mid-June and not combat capable until well afterwards. Jagdgeschwader 21 activated under the aegis of XXIX FK (INT) on 5 February, and it’s compatriot, JG 22, would commission on 13 April, but the command would be disestablished as a realignment of all wings participating in the defense of the Reich were realigned the same day. XXIV FK (INT) would take the helm and be composed of JGs 7, 8, 13, 14, 21 and 22. The last tactical bomber group, Kampfgeschwader 10, completed the authorized strength of XXX Fliegerkorps (TAC) on 17 February.
Examples of the Bf 109s destined for JG 21. By 1942, most of
the squadrons for the Luftwaffe had been established, with new
formations foregone in favor of replacing the airframes in the
groups which already existed.
With these major commands completed, aircraft production focus turned largely to the production of replacements for combat and training losses, ammunition and disposable stores. This was not the case, however, for the development of the Marschflugkörper, the first two hundred of which were activated on 11 April. Production ramped up considerably and rapidly: 800 more were completed in May, while 400 were accepted in June and July and another 800 in August.
Italian Bf 109s were equipped with the Breda-SAFAT 12.7mm
machine gun, which was comparable to the MG 131 from Germany,
but nowhere near as capable as the German weapon.
In Italy, the lack of focus on producing more Italian designs had caused something of a political stir, but the funding was not diverted or removed from the airframes already procured. The first three wings of the Bf 109-i (modified from the traditional German version with the replacement of the Rheinmetall-Borsig 13mm MG 131s for the Breda-SAFAT 12.7mm machine guns and Italian radios) were received over the course of several months. A sop to the Savoia-Marchetti corporation for ignoring their offer of producing an Italian multi-role fighter had been an order of tactical bombers, formed into the fourth group on 21 April.
Naval Forces.
The Kriegsmarine had expended much of their goodwill in the years before 1942, and the conflicts between the command staffs had caused a breakdown in the production of new hulls, especially as the cost of production for a single u-boat had skyrocketed from the cost of the early coastal subs of the Type IIA/Bs to the latest Type XXIEs. Indeed, only Ubootgeschwader 20 and 21 were commissioned making up Uboot Flotille X.
The Focke-Wulf Fw190Tr was a modified multi-role aircraft
designed to be able to bring a torpedo to conduct the strike
mission or supplement the Bf 109Trs in the air defense or
escort role. This of course supposed a light-weight
torpedo which wouldn’t hamper the range of the fighter.
On the other hand, the Kriegsmarine also took delivery of the first examples of the Messerschmitt Bf 109Tr (for Träger, or “carrier”) interceptors, Focke-Wulf Fw190Tr multi-role fighter/torpedo attack and Junkers Ju-87Tr dive bombers were received and began operational training. Another two groups were planned and examples were in production. Goering had been fuming for years over the loss of some of the focus on aviation, but had developed a bit of a magnanimous view: the more cooperative he appeared to his compatriots in the Kriegsmarine, the more chances that he would be able to eventually subsume their laughable efforts at their air arm, especially as his own forces were so graciously providing the Kriegsmarine with their second-hand aircraft.
Commissioning ceremonies aboard the Leonardo Da
Vinci
the day before the commissioning of her sister,
Francesco Caracciolo
. The cost of these battleships
far exceeded their usefulness as for much of the war
the Royal Navy’s focus was on Germany.
Italy had spent much of the last several years lavishly funding the Regia Marina. Indeed, on 20 February, the two battleships of the
Da Vinci-class, the RM
Leonardo Da Vinci and
Francesco Caracciolo were commissioned into the fleet. Two more vessels were planned in order to fully (and finally) replace the dreadnaughts of the
Andrea Doria and
Conte di Cavour classes and to maintain a fleet of eight battleships. At the end of March, four destroyers of the
Capitani Romani-class were commissioned as Destroyer Squadrons 30 and 31.
A light cruiser, Suyuza, on trials after her commissioning, 1942.
Japan was the only Axis navy to lose major fleet units to the
Royal Navy in the first years of the war, a fact which generated
significant smugness from the OKKM and RM.
For Imperial Japan, her navy was quite appropriately considered the most important force. Over the course of eight months, the Chrysanthemum throne commissioned two light cruisers, four advanced destroyers, the most advanced aircraft carrier in the world in the form of the
Hiryu, and a maritime reconnaissance wing.
*****
Author's Notes: I post this because it's done, and I like keeping everyone up to date! Also, everyone: ACHTUNG! ALARM! The YAYAs are back! Vote vote vote!
Caught up again and WOW. Your work got even greater again! With all those great photos and greater ship drawings.
Thank you, sir. I appreciate the compliments!
But I hope, Lindbergh is forced to go soon, Roosevelt comes back and the US become a member of the allies, soon.
Lindbergh does go, and it's a fiasco... Roosevelt does not return, however, as he is disgraced from the loss to Lindbergh... I'll have a whole update about that when the time comes! Suffice it to say, impeachment is a terrible process!