10. Staffel IV. Gruppe Zerstörergeschwader 1- 10./ZG1
Messerschmitt Bf 110G 10./ZG1 (2N+IU) pilot Kociok Crimea 1943
Pilots 4./ZG1 pilot Josef Kociok 01
Photo 01: Josef Kociok began the war with III./ZG76 and, after the German invasion of Russia in June 1941, transferred to the IV./Schnellkampfgeschwader (Fast Bomber Wing) 210. When night fighting operations began in Russia, he transferred to 4./(N)ZG1 and within a relatively short space of time, shot down 21 bombers. He was awarded the Knight's Cross on 31 July 1943 but was killed two months later.
Josef Kociok
Units: 7/ZG-76, 4/SKG-210, 4/ZG-1 (7/42 S.U., 10(Nacht)/ZG-1 (2/43 S.U., 5/NJG-200 (9/43 S.U.)
Awards: RK(7/31/43, DK-G(12/14/42, EP(6/1/42, EK 1 & 2, Wnd Bdg, Destroyer & Night Fighter Oper.Clasps
Known Aircraft: Bf 110G-2 WNr 6392 (lost 9/43)
Remarks: KIA 26 September, 1943 near Kertsch, when he collided with a crashing Russian DB-3 AC, and his parachute failed to open. His R/O, Alexander Wegerhoff survived by parachuting. In addition to his aerial victories, he was credited with another 15 AC on the ground, 4 tanks and 200 vehicles. All victories in the East, 21 were Night victories. His first known victory, a Soviet Seversky on 8 July, 1942, a Fw at the time. A 2nd, an I-18 on 25 February, 1943. A 3rd & 4th, an MBR-2 and a DB-3 N of Kortsch on 12 March, 1943. Nos 5 & 6, An SB-2 and a Yak-4 the night of 26-27 April, 1943. Three PS-84's and an SB-2 the night of 15-16 May, 1943. Two Soviet Boston's the night of 16-17 June, 1943. A PS-84 SE of Taman on 1 July, 1943. An R-5 at Krimskaya on the night of 27-28 July, 1943. Three R-5's in the Krimskaya area on the night of 31 July, 1943. Two Bostons and an I-18 on 17 September, 1943. An I-18 on 18 September, 1943. An MBR-2 in the Nevel area on 26 September, 1943, the day he was KIA. Buried in the cemetery at Kertsch.
Josef Kociok was born in Alt-Schalkendorf, High Silesia on 26 of April of 1918. He started his military career in the autumn of 1940 with 7./ZG 76 , besed in Stavanger-Sola, Norway.
In 24th April 1941 III./ZG76 was renamed in II./SKG210. And soon was engaged in the “Barbarossa Operation”, started 22.06.41. With his Staffel, now named 4./SKG 210, Kociok would mainly execute missions against airfields, vehicles, trains, tanks, Flak and anti-tank gun positions, and also attacks against the Soviet infantry. On 30.06. 41 he scored his first aerial victory. 04.02.42 his Staffel was again renamed: now into 4./ZG 1. By his performance in combat missions, Kociok was decorated with the Ehrenpokal on 01.06.1942. On 14.12. 42 he reseived Deutschen Kreuz in Gold for the successful actions over Kuban area.
At the same time, he specialized himself in missions of night hunt for the Soviet night bombers, as Po-2 and R-5. This ltlle biplanes gived great trouble to German Army, attacking different targets near frontline at night, making impossible the well rest of German soldiers. The most successful Po-2 unit was “Womens” 46th Guards Taman' Night Bomber Regiment. Soviet statistics show this unit to have flown about 23,672 sorties and the unit was credited with dropping 3,000 tons of bombs. (Please note that the maximum bomb load of a Po-2 plane was only 300 kg!).
As a counter-measure, Fliegerkorps IV organized an improvised night-fighter unit of 10(Nachtjagd)./ZG1. Operating with the support of searchlights, the Bf 110s of this unit took a heavy toll of the slow and brittle Po-2 biplanes once they encountered them in the air. The Po-2 aircraft was easily set on fire by either the antiaircraft or machine-gun tracers, and the plane was almost always doomed. The crew could not escape, because parachutes were not provided until the summer of 1944.
In early 1943, he was transferred to 10(Nachtjagd)./ZG1.
At this time he had: 12 aerial victoryes plus 15 aircraft, 4 tanks, 141 railroad wagons, 80 motor vehicles, 4 locomotives, 2 bridges and 1 Flak position destroyed on the ground.
When on 31 of July of 1943 Oberfeldwebel Josef Kociok as awarded with the Ritterkreuz, he had 15 night vistoryes in addition to day victoryes on his score.
On 31.07.43 during a single night he destroyed four Po-2s from 46th Guards Taman' Night Bomber Regiment in a row. Serafima Amosova, pilot of one of the survived Po-2's, witnessed this event: 'One night, as our aircraft passed over the target, the searchlights came on, the antiaircraft guns were firing, and then a green rocket was fired from the ground. The antiaircraft guns stopped, and a German fighter plane came and shot down four of our aircraft as each one came over the target. Our planes were burning like candles. We all witnessed this scene. When we landed and reported that we were being attacked by German fighters, they would not let us fly again that night. We lived in a school building with folding wooden beds. You can imagine our feelings when we returned to our quarters and saw eight beds folded, and we knew they were the beds of our friends who perished a few hours ago.'
In September of 1943, NachtJagdStaffel./ZG1 officially was redesignated as 5./NJG200. With this Staffel Kociok scored his last 6 victoryes – 2 Boston Mk.III bombers and Yak-7 in one mission on 17.09.43. On 18.09.43 he scored Yak-7, and later – 2 MBR-2 flying boats – on 24.09.43 and 26.09.43.
However, in the night of 26/27 of September of 1943, he engaged Il-4 bomber in a combat over Kertch (East Crimea, attacked it from close distanse. Il-4 was hit, but Kociok could not break off and rammed his burning victim. He ordered to his bordfunker Feldwebel Wegerhoff to jump, and decided to bellyland his heavy damaged Bf110G-2 (W.Nr. 6392). Unfortunatly, it was impossible, and Kociok used his parashute at least.
But his parachute failed to open.
Josef Kociok was credited with 33 victories having flown over 200 missions. He recorded 21 victories as night victoryes. He flew in following units: 7./ZG 76, 4./SKG210, 4./ZG 1, 10(Nachtjagd)./ZG1, 5./NJG200
He was posthumously promoted to the rank of Leutnant.
Asisbiz database list of 22 aerial victories out of 33 for Josef Kociok
Date Pilot Name Unit Enemy A/C Type Height Time Location Thursday, February 25, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 I-18 80m 09:35 66 835 Friday, March 12, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 MBR-2 3200m 21:43 North of Kortsch Friday, March 12, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 DB-3 3000m 21:45 North of Kortsch Monday, April 26, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 SB-2 22:25 59 593 Briefbuch Nr keine Monday, April 26, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 Yak-4 22:30 59 623 Briefbuch Nr keine Saturday, May 15, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 PS-84 1000m 21:39 34 Ost/59 392 Saturday, May 15, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 PS-84 1200m 21:41 34 Ost/59 399 Saturday, May 15, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 SB-2 3500m 22:05 34 Ost/59 365 Saturday, May 15, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 PS-84 3000m 22:54 34 Ost/59 311 Wednesday, June 16, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 A-20 Boston 3000m 21:20 66 881 Briefbuch Nr keine Wednesday, June 16, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 A-20 Boston 4500m 21:00 66 364 Briefbuch Nr keine Thursday, July 01, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 PS-84 1000m 21:00 SE Taman’ Tuesday, July 27, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 R-5 1200m 21:20 Krimskaya Saturday, July 31, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 R-5 1200m 21:15 Krimskaya Saturday, July 31, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 R-5 22:00 Raum Krimskaya Saturday, July 31, 1943 Josef Kociok 10.(N)/ZG1 R-5 22:05 Raum Krimskaya Friday, September 17, 1943 Josef Kociok 5./NJG200 A-20 Boston 2000m 14:00 76 62 Friday, September 17, 1943 Josef Kociok 5./NJG200 A-20 Boston 2000m 14:01 76 62 Friday, September 17, 1943 Josef Kociok 5./NJG200 I-18 2000m 14:04 76 62 Saturday, September 18, 1943 Josef Kociok 5./NJG200 I-18 50m 10:05 76 53 Friday, September 24, 1943 Josef Kociok 5./NJG200 MBR-2 1500m 01:48 66 89 Sunday, September 26, 1943 Josef Kociok 5./NJG200 MBR-2 1500m 20:20 66 852
Luftwaffe pilot Walter Nowotny 258 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Theodor Weissenberger 208 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Heinz Bar 175 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Franz Schall 133 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Rudolf Rademacher 126 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Adolf Galland 104 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Hermann Buchner 58 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Erich Hohagen 50 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Rudolf Sinner 39 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Ernst-Wilhelm Modrow 32 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Richard Altner 25 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Gunther Wegmann 21 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Wolfgang Schenck 18 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Franz Holzinger 10 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Helmut Lennartz 10 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Alfred 'Bubi' Schreiber 9 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Eduard Schallmoser 3 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Wilhelm Batel 1 kills
Luftwaffe pilot Joachim Fingerlos 1 kills
Bibliography: +
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Magazine References: +
- Airfix Magazines (English) - http://www.airfix.com/
- Avions (French) - http://www.aerostories.org/~aerobiblio/rubrique10.html
- FlyPast (English) - http://www.flypast.com/
- Flugzeug Publikations GmbH (German) - http://vdmedien.com/flugzeug-publikations-gmbh-hersteller_verlag-vdm-heinz-nickel-33.html
- Flugzeug Classic (German) - http://www.flugzeugclassic.de/
- Klassiker (German) - http://shop.flugrevue.de/abo/klassiker-der-luftfahrt
- Le Fana de L'Aviation (French) - http://boutique.editions-lariviere.fr/site/abonnement-le-fana-de-l-aviation-626-4-6.html
- Le Fana de L'Aviation (French) - http://www.pdfmagazines.org/tags/Le+Fana+De+L+Aviation/
- Osprey (English) - http://www.ospreypublishing.com/
- Revi Magazines (Czech) - http://www.revi.cz/
Web References: +
- Wikipedia.org - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Messerschmitt
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