Date: 5th March 1944
Unit: 3 Staffel/Kampfgeschwader 100
Time: 15.30 hours
Type: Heinkel He 177A-3
Werke Nr. 332214
Code: 5J + AL
Location: 4 Km N of Chateaudun Aerodrome, NW of Orleans, France.
Pilot: Leutnant Wilhelm Werzer 55530/100 Killed (Born 28.05.1915 in Villach.)
Radio/Op: Unteroffizier Kolomann Schloegl 55530/103 Killed (Born 18.10.1919 in Liebing.)
Flt/Engineer: Unteroffizier Gustav Birkenmaier 55530/102 Killed (Born 12.16.1918 in Aldingen/Ludwigsburg.)
Gunner Unteroffizier Alfred Zwieselsberger 55530/114 Killed (Born 07.04.1923 in Muenchen.)
Gunner: Unteroffizier Josef Kerres 67450/1351 Killed (Born 18.05.1922 in Aachen.)
REASON FOR LOSS:
This aircraft was shot down whilst on a workshop test flight by W/Cdr J. D. R. Braham and F/Lt W. J. "Sticks" Gregory in Mosquito LR364 of No.613 Squadron.
Extract from "Scramble" by W/Cdr Bob Braham DSO, DFC, AFC.
A mile or so from the perimeter of the airfield we flew low over German flak positions and saw with amazement that the shirt-sleeved enemy gunners were waving to us thinking we were one of their aircraft. To keep them happy we waved back! Surprise was complete after all. Now we were closing rapidly on what we recognized as one of the large He 177's. He was circling the airfield at 1,000 feet. We stayed on the deck until the last minute.
We were approaching head on and a little to one side. When about a half mile away I pulled up in a gentle climbing turn so that the massive fuselage of the bomber was ahead of us. A beam shot. At the last minute, the enemy realised we were hostile and attempted to turn away, but it was too late.
I tightened the turn a little to set the dot of my electric gunsight ahead of the bomber to allow for the correct deflection, and pressed the button.
A stream of 20 mm and .303 bullets poured from the nose of the "Mossie" as I tightened the turn a little more to keep my sights on the rapidly - closing He 177 looking as big as a house, a stream of flame and smoke appeared below the nose of the aircraft. It reared up like a wounded animal, then winged over on its back and dived vertically into the ground. The explosion when it hit was like an oil tank blowing up, a huge ball of red flame and clouds of oily smoke.
`My God`, was all I could say. It happened so fast that none of the wretched crew had time to bale out. There was no time for pity. We now had our work cut out to get away..........
The pilot of the ill-fated He 177, Leutnant Werzer
The original burial of the crew members took place at the Friedhof Chateaudun
