Osterkamps last three victories...

[Soderbaum]

Hi

It seems certain that Theodor Osterkamp scored three confirmed victories in early October 1918....Numbers 29 until 31...

I wonder if anyone has any kind of information on these (his last three in WW1) victories...

TIA
Gunnar

[Regulus]

Gunnar,

Let me join the club. I'm curious to. Were there any with the Fokker DVII ?

Best from Regulus ;)

[Volker_Nemsch]

Here is what I found:

29. September 1918: victory 29, one Breguet west of Zarren, Escadrille Spa 34, MdL de Bellencourt & Lt de Bussy, both WIA

Unfortunately I found no other victories of Osterkamp. Several pilots of MFJ II scored in October and November but Osterkamp is not shown in the victory list.
???

Source: The Jasta War Chronology

Who has more details?

[Lyle]

In Above the Lines by Franks, Bailey, and Guest, Osterkamp is listed as having 32 victories. *After the Breguet shot down on 29 September, his last victories of 1918 (two or three?) are listed as being on 29 October, but no mention is made of what type of aircraft or what time they were downed. *Indeed these victories could belong to some other pilots of MFJ II.

It's interesting to see his fighting skills weren't rusty as he shot down six aircraft in 1940 flying a Bf109E!

[Volker_Nemsch]

The last MFJ 2 victories I found before EOW are as follows:

01.11.1918
Flgmt Wasserthal, 1 Sop. Camel, southeast Deinze

30.10.1918
Flgmt Wasserthal, 1 DH9, Deinze

27.10.1918
Vzflgmstr A Zenses, Sop. Camel, south Deinze
Vzflgmstr K Scharon, Sop. Camel, Deinze

... there was no confirmed or unconfirmed MFJ 2 victory on 29.10.1918.
???

Source: The Jasta War Chronology

[Soderbaum]

Thanks all

Osterkamp is mentioned in higher German records as scoring his 26 until 31 victory from 28 Sept 1918 until late October 1918.

His 26,27 and 28 can be verified in the TJWC but nothing are still known about the last three... :(

His 32nd is probably a wishful thinking of Osterkamp, or some until now unknown reconfirmation..?....or that he included one jzLg in his total, which in some meaning could be accepted... ;)

The victory on 29 Oct was certain a duplicate for 29 Sep and is also corrected in TJWC...

It is also known that Theo went on recreation(exhaustion) and a well earned PlM vacation around 8 Oct 1918(and possible did not returned before EOW) when Sachsenberg returned from his leave.....so it limits the "lost" victories from 1 Oct 1918 until around 8 Oct 1918.....

It is a possibility that none of these three last victories actually were confirmed, which could mean that Theo ended up the War with "only" 28 confirmed victories...

But it is however strange that no single information are known about these claims/victories...

I still hope someone out there in the world could add some information...

Gunnar