One of the nicest catches in my last shows was this Soldbuch to a Fallschirmjäger captured in Africa.
Ernst Kuntzi was born in 1923 and joined the Luftwaffe in August 1941. Through a training unit in Brussels, he was moved to the Zerstörerschule in Memmingen, and early 1942 he was admitted to the paratroopers. He joined the 2. Kompanie of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 3, part of the new "Fallschirmjäger-Lehr-Bataillon" created by the XI. Fliegerkorps in March 1942. He received a complete Fallschirmjäger equipment, including a Tarnbezug and FJ helmet in that month, as his Bataillon trained on experimental kinds of drops and tactics. Kuntzi was granted a last trip home late May 1942 and received some new equipment in June, before he was sent with the rest of his unit via Crete and Athens to Africa, where they landed on 10th of August, 1942. The Fallschirm-Lehr-Bataillon (I/FJR3) was now put under the command of no other than KC&EL winner Friedrich Von der Heydte, and formed part of the famous Fallschirm-Brigade Ramcke. They fought in the Battle of El Alamein, where Kuntzi's Bataillon under Von der Heydte is known to have escaped from the battle in captured British trucks. In April 1943, Kuntzi was promoted to Gefreiter. Most of the Bataillon managed to get out of Africa in time, but a Wehrsold entry on 11th of May 1943 confirms that Kuntzi was still in Tunis and received a Frontzulage just two days before the general surrender of the Afrikakorps. Interestingly, he was promoted to Obergefreiter during his capitivity: two letters from June 1944 to his parents confirms this.
Like most of the troops captured in Africa, Kuntzi followed instructions to remove the units and awards pages of his Soldbuch. The awards page is gone, but by some lucky circumstances, the units page, although torn out, was still kept with the Soldbuch. There was no portrait photo officially entered and stamped, but a photo has been pasted on the inside cover. By the exact match with the personal details on page 2, I would tend to believe in it.
Hope you like the Soldbuch, and any additional information from the FJ experts is more than welcome!
Ernst Kuntzi was born in 1923 and joined the Luftwaffe in August 1941. Through a training unit in Brussels, he was moved to the Zerstörerschule in Memmingen, and early 1942 he was admitted to the paratroopers. He joined the 2. Kompanie of Fallschirmjäger-Regiment 3, part of the new "Fallschirmjäger-Lehr-Bataillon" created by the XI. Fliegerkorps in March 1942. He received a complete Fallschirmjäger equipment, including a Tarnbezug and FJ helmet in that month, as his Bataillon trained on experimental kinds of drops and tactics. Kuntzi was granted a last trip home late May 1942 and received some new equipment in June, before he was sent with the rest of his unit via Crete and Athens to Africa, where they landed on 10th of August, 1942. The Fallschirm-Lehr-Bataillon (I/FJR3) was now put under the command of no other than KC&EL winner Friedrich Von der Heydte, and formed part of the famous Fallschirm-Brigade Ramcke. They fought in the Battle of El Alamein, where Kuntzi's Bataillon under Von der Heydte is known to have escaped from the battle in captured British trucks. In April 1943, Kuntzi was promoted to Gefreiter. Most of the Bataillon managed to get out of Africa in time, but a Wehrsold entry on 11th of May 1943 confirms that Kuntzi was still in Tunis and received a Frontzulage just two days before the general surrender of the Afrikakorps. Interestingly, he was promoted to Obergefreiter during his capitivity: two letters from June 1944 to his parents confirms this.
Like most of the troops captured in Africa, Kuntzi followed instructions to remove the units and awards pages of his Soldbuch. The awards page is gone, but by some lucky circumstances, the units page, although torn out, was still kept with the Soldbuch. There was no portrait photo officially entered and stamped, but a photo has been pasted on the inside cover. By the exact match with the personal details on page 2, I would tend to believe in it.
Hope you like the Soldbuch, and any additional information from the FJ experts is more than welcome!
Comment