Luftwaffe Orders of Battle September 2, 1939

Strength and aircraft of the Luftflotten on the day after Germany invaded Poland and before the declaration of war by Britain and France.

Orders of Battle from German Luftwaffe on 2nd September 1939

The Luftwaffe Orders of Battle gives the strength of the German air force operational units on the day after Germany invaded Poland, and the day before Great Britain and France declared war on Germany. The majority of the short range fighter, dive-bomber and reconnaissance units were subordinated to Luftflotte 1 and 4 for the attack on Poland. Long range aircraft from the other Luftflotten were also involved in this campaign, however. The Lehrdivision (combat training units), comprising LG1 and LG2, operated independently of the Luftflotten, but several of its units took part in the Polish campaign.

Luftwaffe Orders of Battle from September 2nd, 1939:

Equipment of Luftwaffe First Line Units on September 1, 1939:

Staffel (Squadron):
The number of flying personnel in a Squadron naturally depended on the type of aircraft it operated; between 10 (in the case of single-seat fighters) and more than 40 (in the case of multiengine bombers). The number of ground personnel in a Squadron varied from 150 (in the case of single engine fighters) to 80 (in the case of multiengine bombers); the latter’s ground staff was smaller because much of its servicing and administration was done for it by attached units provided by the local Luftgau command.
A Squadron had a strength of 9 to 12 aircraft in 1939, but gradually rose during the war to a maximum of 16, with corresponding rises in the number of aircrew and ground personnel.

Gruppe (Group):
The Group was the basic flying unit for operational and administrative purposes. Initially the Group comprised three Staffeln, and a Staff flight (headquarters flight) with three aircraft more, making a total of 30 aircraft in all. By the mid-war period many fighter groups operated a fourth Squadron, however, and this, with the 16-aircraft Squadron establishment, brought the strength of some Gruppen to 67 aircraft.
The total personnel strength of a Group varied between 35 and 150 members of the aircrews, and 300 and 515 ground crew.

Geschwader (no English equivalent):
The Geschwader was the largest German flying unit. Initially it comprised three Gruppen, with 90 aircraft, and a Staff flight (staff) flight with four, making a total of 94 aircraft.

References and literature

Luftwaffe Handbook (Dr Alfred Price)
Das große Buch der Luftkämpfe (Ian Parsons)
Luftkrieg (Piekalkiewicz)
Der 2. Weltkrieg (C. Bertelsmann Verlag)
Zweiter Weltkrieg in Bildern (Mathias Färber)