The Me 262 Stormbird: From the Pilots Who Flew, Fought, and Survived It

FURTHER SUBSTANTIATION

In March 2004, the Swedish author Christer Bergstrom contacted me and wanted me to furnish him an account of my 10 April 1945 mission. He was in the process of writing Walter Schuck’s biography and wanted to compare it with Walter’s account of events that day. After he read my account, he contacted me and said that both he and Walter are 100 percent sure that it was I who caused the damage to Walter’s Me 262 resulting in his bailout. I asked how they could be so certain. Christer wrote:

After the war, many attempts were made to identify the American fighter pilot who hit Schuck’s Me 262 with machine gun fire. Several suggestions are based on the erroneous assumption that Schuck engaged the B-17’s near Magdeberg, over eighty miles southwest of Oranienberg. However, it is clear that on this day, Schuck and his 3/JG7 operated from Oranienberg and they engaged the 1st Air Division bombers that attacked Oranienberg. American fighter pilots claimed to have shot down no less than twenty Me 262s on this day—including three by pilots of the 20th FG. However, while none of these could apply to Schuck’s aircraft, no other American fighter pilot than Peterburs appears to come into question for having shot down Schuck. Peterburs’ account, which he wrote years before and without knowing anything about Walter Schuck, clearly describes the action of Walter Schuck. No other Me 262 pilot shot down several B-17s in a row over Oranienberg. The reason why no researcher previously has been able to identify Peterburs as the man who shot down Schuck is easily explained. Peterburs never reported that he shot down or even damaged a Me 262! In fact, it took almost sixty years before Peterburs even found out that he had shot down Walter Schuck.

I always thought that my actions after Tracy was shot down while we were strafing Schonwalde airport, as well as my activities and adventures that followed my eventual bailout and capture, were the highlights of my World War II experiences. It was nice to know that the Me 262 that I engaged was destroyed and that the pilot was a top German ace.

OBERLEUTNANT WALTER SCHUCK AND I MEET

In March 2005, I was contacted by Christer Bergstrom and several other friends of Walter Schuck. They told me of Walter Schuck’s forthcoming visit to southern California. They asked me to contact Kurt Schulze, Walter’s squadron mate during the war, for more details. In April I contacted Kurt and he said Walter would be there in mid-May for a visit. He also told me about Robert Bailey’s “Escort Fury” poster depicting me shooting Walter down. I was really overwhelmed and surprised, since I had never been told that he was doing a print. Kurt then informed me that they wanted me there not only to meet Walter but to sign the print. I was very reluctant to leave Colorado Springs and was in a state of grief and deep depression having just recently lost my beloved wife, Josephine. After much more pressure from the friends of Walter and my grandson Rick and his wife, Sabrina, I decided to combine the visit to see Walter with a visit to my grandson’s home in Roseville, California. I made the trip to Roseville in mid-May and spent several days there before Sabrina, Hannah, and I drove to Vista, California, where the meeting and signing was to take place.

The meeting with Walter took place at the “Old, bold, pilots’ Club” breakfast. After the breakfast, Walter and I were scheduled to sign the “Escort Fury” prints. On 18 May 2005, a historical meeting took place in Vista, California—Walter and I met, for the first time in person, since that fateful day over sixty years ago. The greatest thing about our meeting is that Walter and I took to each other immediately. We genuinely like each other. After the meeting and signing sessions, we went to the Chino Air Show where we were interviewed for the crowd and did a lot of signings. When Walter and I parted I can say we were good friends. Since then we have been together at least every year either here or in Germany and our relationship has grown into a truly great friendship.

Note: This narration of the last mission (number 49) flown on April 10, 1945, by 1st Lt. Joe Peterburs of the 20th Fighter Group, 55th Fighter Squadron, RAF Station Kings Cliff, England, is based on the recollections of Peterburs, Schuck, and various bomber crew members, the research of Christer Bergstrom, and the after-action intelligence reports of applicable units.

Appendix 2 German Ranks and Medals

CORRESPONDING GERMAN AND ALLIED AIR FORCE RANKS