Luftwaffe Soldbuch /Flg. Ers.Batl. XII - Italiener

[caracciola]

Dear Friends,

Just got this nice « Italiener » Luftwaffe Soldbuch; please note the Soldbuch is numbered 865 and its dog tag 835 .

Photo is stamped :

Dienstelle Feldpostnummer 02479
Luftgaupostamt Paris


02479
(Mobilmachung-1.1.1940) 7. Kompanie SS-TK-Infanterie-Regiment 2,
(2.1.1940-27.4.1940) gestrichen, wurde Fp.Nr. 34142 D,
(28.4.1940-14.9.1940) Werftkompanie der Luftwaffe z.b.V. 2/VII,
(24.3.1944-6.11.1944) 19.8.1944 Werft-Abteilung der Luftwaffe 106/XII.

I have just scanned a few pages.

Is there anybody to identified the name of this soldier ? Is this unit stationned in France during the war ?

Thanks for your comments.

Kind regards.

C.

[caracciola]

Luftwaffe Soldbuch /Flg. Ers.Batl. XII - Italiener

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[caracciola]

Luftwaffe Soldbuch /Flg. Ers.Batl. XII - Italiener

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[caracciola]

Luftwaffe Soldbuch /Flg. Ers.Batl. XII - Italiener

Thanks for your visits and comments.

C.

[mufasa]

Very interesting and nice soldbuch.... the Germans in Italy above all in the Falk and the airport personnel, workers attracted enlisted thousands of Italians ...

[Gerdan]

His name I read Ottello Manelli.

Gerdan

[Luft 76]

Very interesting document ; firtst time l see such italian Lw member. Also, the error of numbering on dogtag is interesting.

[Ironcrown]

Not Ottello Manelli, but Otello Mannelli, from Florence (my city).
Most of the italians that were drafted in the Lw in 1944-45 passed through the Flg. Ers. Batl. XII. Sometimes the dogtags had the abbreviation "Ital" on it, but not always. Here's another dogtag from the same unit

[Gerdan]

Ironcrown

if you read his name on the front page and also on page 5 it is "Manelli" with only one " n ".

Gerdan

[Gerdan]

I forgot: and his first name is also written "Ottello" with two " tt ", not Otello., sorry.

Gerdan

[Ironcrown]

It's a mistake, believe me, the correct surname is "Mannelli". Look at the signature, that is correct!

I live in Florence and Mannelli is an old florentine family name:
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mannelli

Manelli exist as a family name, but it's less common and is not florentine.

Manelli:
http://www.cognomix.it/mappe-dei-cog...aliani/MANELLI

Mannelli:
http://www.cognomix.it/mappe-dei-cog...liani/MANNELLI

Also, Ottello doesn't exist as first name !

[caracciola]

Luftwaffe Soldbuch /Flg. Ers.Batl. XII - Italiener

Dear Friends,

Thanks a lot for your nice comments and knowledges... Always very interesting.

I have found this thread :

http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...aliener&page=2

Is there anybody to explain me the connection with Luftgaupostamt Paris ?

Thanks a lot for your time.

C.

[Luft 76]

[QUOTE=caracciola;784761

Is there anybody to explain me the connection with Luftgaupostamt Paris ?

Thanks a lot for your time.

C.[/QUOTE]

It means that his unit was in France (excepted northern France) under control of Lg PA Paris.

[caracciola]

Default Luftwaffe Soldbuch /Flg. Ers.Batl. XII - Italiener

Hello,

Yes, you are right but it seems there is no connection between this unit and France :

http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/...erErsBtl12.htm

Have a good day.

C.

[Archi]

Hello all !

Interesting Soldbuch, pointing to an interesting part of history that was
totally unknown for me. Thanks for showing and also for the additional
information from the other members.

Regarding the connection to Luftgaupostamt Paris :
I think the explanation by Luft76 is correct.
To find more detailed informations on this type of unit will be very difficult.
Tessin and the site below don't even have that unit listed :
http://www.ww2.dk/ground/versorgung/werftabt.htm
Perhaps there are some other entries in this SB, that could give some further clues ?!

That the link to Flieger-Ersatz-Btl. XII doesn't have a connection to France is most
likely not relevant. If I understood the posting from Ironcrown correctly, a large
number of Italians were first recruited by Flieger-Ersatz-Bataillon XII, before
they were later distributed to other units. If you look on SB p. 2, after the stamp
Flg.Ers.Batl. XII, there is a handwritten entry : Aufn.Kdo. I
I think this could be a short-cut for: Aufnahme-Kommando I [recruiting HQ I].

Anyway, in this case the SB was issued by this unit on 9.5.44, but according
to p. 4, already 2 weeks later, he was posted to Werftabteilung 106/XII, and it is likely,
that the SB photo was entered and stamped by this latter unit (with its current Feldpostnummer
and the additional mentioning of LGPA Paris means, that it was likely somewhere in France then).

I would be interested in (and thankful for) any info on the following questions :
- Is there any info whether Flg.Ers.Batl. XII had a local detached HQ in Italy, or did they sent all recruits to Germany?
- Is there any info, how many Italians joined the Luftwaffe in a similar way (or the Germany Army in total) ?
- What happened to these soldiers, when they became POWs before or after after 8th, May, 1945 ?
Where they sent home or treated just similar to German soldiers ?!

Thanks in advance for any hint on these questions,

best regards,

Archi