Luftwaffe guy with "Adolf Hitler" cuff title. Who is he?

[Sven Masch]

Hello guys,

today i recieved those very rare photos of a soldier belonging to the Luftwaffe, wearing the "AH" cuff title.

Can you tell me how it comes that a lw soldier wears this cuff title and also i would love to know who he is.

I just know his first name "Otto" (written on the back).

I cant wait to hear your comments on those pictures...

[Sven Masch]

Details:

[Sven Masch]

3.

[Sven Masch]

last one:

[Raym']

I have heard of one ss soldier who chose to do his war service in the navy and so was in the unique position of wearing a navy war badge on his ss uniform so maybe this ss guy has chosen to do his service with the luftwaffe?

[Edward]

Hello Sven,

Wow...now that is both a great and very rare studio photo! What you have is an LW enlistedman assigned to the Fliegerstaffel of the LAH Division. ... First such studio photo I have seen of any LW personnel from such staffels wearing the assigned Divisional cufftitle. Of course it is a total post war copy and should you decide to throw it away please contact me first.

Regards

[J Melvin]

This one is in his Luftwaffe uniform, but with all SS insignia. I think that this is out of the Beaver books.

[Robin Lumsden]

Unique photo - the first like it I've seen. I always thought that members of the LAH Fliegerstaffel wore standard W-SS uniform. Photos certainly exist of LAH aircrew in full W-SS uniform, wearing Luftwaffe qualificatiion and war badges.

It's also noteworthy that this guy is a driver, not aircrew.

Like I say, I've never seen this before, but I wonder if this could be an ex-LAH man, now in the Luftwaffe, who has retained his cufftitle as a 'commemorative'??

The retention of 'prestige' cufftitles after transfer was unofficially permitted within the SS - so could he have done the same?

Just a thought.

[Ian Jewison]

If I remember correctly there are a couple of Luftwaffe Officers wearing "LAH" cuffband in BL Davies' book on Lufwaffe uniforms!

[Robin Lumsden]

If I remember correctly there are a couple of Luftwaffe Officers wearing "LAH" cuffband in BL Davies' book on Lufwaffe uniforms!

Ian.
I can't remember seeing these pix?

[Robin Lumsden]

This one is in his Luftwaffe uniform, but with all SS insignia. I think that this is out of the Beaver books.

Jack.
Are you sure this guy is Fliegerstaffel??

[Ian Jewison]

Ian.
I can't remember seeing these pix?

Robin,

If you have a copy:
page 102, volume 2. Lw. Hauptmann veteran of spain and holder of EK I, wearing "Adolf Hitler" cufftitle.....

I was also thinking of another picture in a book...it is not BL Davis' I will have a look and see if I can find it.

/Ian

[J Melvin]

Robin, I am not sure that he is. Here is an interesting story that came from a field division veteran that lives down around New Orleans. He was a member of Fl.Aus.Rgt. 52. In the story, the old vet could not remember his division number, but remembered his training regiment as being Fl.Aus.Rgt. 52. He also remembered that during D-Day, his division was stationed around Dunkirk. These things made sense as his training regiment was used to form 18.Feld Division (Lw). 18.Feld was around Dunkirk on June 6, 1944. So the story goes that in 1944, as a present to Heinrich Himmler, Reichmarshall Göring gave 5,000 men of the Luftwaffe to the Waffen SS. The vet telling the story was one of these 5,000. At the turn-over, the former members of the Luftwaffe kept their Luftwaffe uniforms, but were issued new insignia from their new branch of service. Although, I cannot state that this fellow was another of the 5,000 so given to the Waffen SS, this photo may give credence to the story of the field division veteran.

Can there be another logical explanation of the dress?

[Robin Lumsden]

Robin,

If you have a copy:
page 102, volume 2. Lw. Hauptmann veteran of spain and holder of EK I, wearing "Adolf Hitler" cufftitle.....

I was also thinking of another picture in a book...it is not BL Davis' I will have a look and see if I can find it.

/Ian

Ian.
Many thanks.
I've just had a look and - yes - that's a great photo.

[Robin Lumsden]

Robin, I am not sure that he is. Here is an interesting story that came from a field division veteran that lives down around New Orleans. He was a member of Fl.Aus.Rgt. 52. In the story, the old vet could not remember his division number, but remembered his training regiment as being Fl.Aus.Rgt. 52. He also remembered that during D-Day, his division was stationed around Dunkirk. These things made sense as his training regiment was used to form 18.Feld Division (Lw). 18.Feld was around Dunkirk on June 6, 1944. So the story goes that in 1944, as a present to Heinrich Himmler, Reichmarshall Göring gave 5,000 men of the Luftwaffe to the Waffen SS. The vet telling the story was one of these 5,000. At the turn-over, the former members of the Luftwaffe kept their Luftwaffe uniforms, but were issued new insignia from their new branch of service. Although, I cannot state that this fellow was another of the 5,000 so given to the Waffen SS, this photo may give credence to the story of the field division veteran.

Can there be another logical explanation of the dress?

Jack.
It's certainly true that at the tail end of the war, many Luftwaffe and naval personnel were drafted into the Waffen-SS. Himmler was head of the reserves after 20th July '44, and took the opportunity to expand his 'empire' by sucking in troops from a variety of sources who, technically, came under his jurisdiction from the point of view of home defence. The photo Ian refers to above clearly shows the same combination of badges - full Luftwaffe uniform with the LAH cufftitle.