Whatever the organisational indecision of the previous ten days, JGr. 200 went into action on 15 June when a force of USAAF P-51s and P-38s strafed Luftwaffe airfields at Lajasse (near Salon), Orange and Avignon. The Americans lost several aircraft to Flak as well as clashing with German fighters. The first claim was made by 1/Lt. John D. Lewis of 14th FG/49th FS at 11.55 hours, a probable Bf 109 at Orange-Caritat; at noon it was 3./JGr. 200’s turn when Ofw. Eduard Isken claimed a P-38 over Orange.

Isken’s victim cannot be identified with certainty among the five Lightnings lost in strafing the two airfields — the Americans attributed all of them to Flak — but there are two strong candidates. The 14th FG’s 2/Lt. William L. McClain was found to be missing as his Group left the area but no one had seen him hit; the same was true of 1/Lt. Warren E. Semple but since his P-38 was one of the final pair off the target, he seems the more likely to have been picked off by an unseen Bf 109.

At 12.01 hours, Lt. Don H. Greenley of 1st FG/94th FS damaged a Bf 109 over Orange’s other airfield, Plan de Dieu. At 12.10 the two P-51 Groups engaged Bf 109s between Salon and the eastern side of the Étang de Berre (Lake Berre to American airmen), claiming 4-1-0. There was one loss recorded from 1./JGr. 200 and two from the 3. Staffel, all three pilots being killed but there is not enough evidence to match individual losses and claims in this engagement. Also at 12.10, Capt. Robert A. Spitler of 1st FG/71st FS claimed a Fw 190 near Tarascon, some distance from the above engagements and the locations of the day’s known German losses.

The final action came 30 minutes later when the 325th FG were already over the Mediterranean. First Lieutenant Hiawatha Mohawk (319th FS):

“We were about 40 miles south of Marseilles and … [2/Lt. Robert A. Rausch] was flying about one ship-length and fifteen yards to the left of me … and then when I looked around there were two Me 109s in our formation about fifty yards behind on our same level. I told Rausch … to break and at that instant his wings burst into flames. My ammunition was all gone … so I had to leave. At the time Lt. Rausch was hit we were at an altitude of fifty feet. He stayed in the air for about fifteen seconds and then went straight into the water.”

Rausch’s loss was timed at 12.30, corresponding closely with the claim by 3./JGr. 200's claim of a P-51, shot down from 100 m. in the relevant area, at 12.32 hours.