It is not clear when or why the Focke-Wulf type entered the picture or what particular advantage it offered over the Bf 109 G-models then equipping most Nahaufklärungsgruppen. On the 1st, Fliegerdivision 15 requested asked Lw.Kdo. West to despatch three Fw 190 tactical reconnaissance pilots to NAG 6 at Vörden to ensure that cover could be maintained in bad weather. Sufficient aircraft were said to be available for this. The day’s operations saw an Fw 190 take off at 09.15 GMT for a reconnaissance of Lüdinghausen – Münster – Rheine which it was forced to abandon within 25 minutes thanks to a combat with Spitfires while an Me 262 which attempted to cover Münster – Rheine that afternoon was posted missing. Nor did 2 April go any more smoothly for NAG 6: two Fw 190s and an Me 262 flew coverage of the Paderborn – Kassel area but one of the Focke-Wulfs was forced to break off its mission and the Messerschmitt made a belly-landing due to a fire in one engine burned out the aircraft. The jet’s pilot was Obltn. Ernst Bratke who was killed in the emergency landing at Brockum and is buried at Diepholz. Next day, Ofw. Oldenstädt ferried “white 2” from Achmer to Vörden in the morning but an evening flight from the latter base in “white 1” was cut short after 5 minutes by an engine fire. Oldenstadt was able to land safely however.

Daily readiness returns cited by Dan O’Connell show how low 2./NAG 6’s serviceability had fallen:

On 5 April, NAG 6 at Faßberg contacted Air Movement Control at Burg-bei-Magdeburg to the effect that Obltn. Keck and Ofw. Schneider who were taking off that day for Faßberg should watch out for craters in the landing area and runway, marked with flags. Two Fw 190s operated on the 5th: the first from 13.02–13.47 GMT, on a low-level sorties to the Minden – Stolzenau area (the British were bridging the Weser at the latter town). The other machine was up for 45 minutes from 16.00, carrying out its assigned task over Osnabrück – Vechta – Minden. The following afternoon, two Me 262s broke off a reconnaissance of Minden – Osnabrück – Rheine – Lingen owing to technical difficulties. Two jets were put up on the 7th, at early morning and early evening respectively, both covering Hildesheim – Hameln – Holzminden whereas the following afternoon a single Me 262 reconnoitred between Hannover and Minden. The afternoon of 9 April brought four jet sorties, to Nienburg – Uchten – Hannover and the effort was on the same scale next day for visual reconnaissance of Hannover – Nienburg – Neustadt – Verden – Stolzenau – Steinhuder Meer. One of these sorties was by Oldenstadt who took off from Faßberg at mid-afternoon in “white 2.”

The 11th saw a reconnaissance by just one NAG 6 Me 262 (again Oldenstädt’s ‘white 2”) of Fassberg – Verden – Hoya. Three Me 262s were in the air the next afternoon to cover the area south of Bremen and NAG 6’s strength in Luftflotte Reich’s area that evening was:

The target area for a single Me 262 ealy on 13 April was Gifhorn – Salzwedel – Gardelegen. On the 14th Oldenstadt ferried “4” from Perleberg to Kaltenkirchen (probably to avoid 21st Army Group’s advance) while next day he flew a mission from the latter in his regular “2.” On the 16th, NAG 6’s Obltn. Langendorf advised Berlin that Me 262 W.Nr. 500538 had crashed following an operation, for reasons unknown.

NAG 6’s effort the following day was “4 Aufklärer” to the Nienburg – Celle area but two were turned back by fog. On the 23rd, 7. Jagddivision despatched two Me 262s (from KG 51?) on early morning reconnaissances of the Danube bridges at Lauingen and Dillingen and the area south of the river. In its strength return for the day II./KG 51 noted that it had given up Me 262 A-1 W.Nr, 500050 to NAG 6 at Reinsehlen. Also that afternoon, the unit’s Heinz Huxold ferried Me 262 “1” from Kaltenkirchen to Hohn. Neverthless, Oldenstadt recorded an operation in the same aircraft from Kaltenkirchen on the evening of the 29th.

The last NAG 6 operation for which I have any information was a planned reconnaissance for Fliegerdivision 14 on the evening of 2 May, covering Stade, Soltau, Lüneburg and Dannenberg. In the event this was cancelled owing to bad weather.

On 4 May, German forces surrendered unconditionally to the Western Allies. According to a Luftflotte Reich report two days later, the whole Gruppe was subordinated to Fliegerdivision 14 with these locations and strengths:

The Gruppe reported having 644 personnel (71 aircrew) in total.

What had happened to the Me 262s of NAG 6 between 2 and 6 May is unclear but they may have been destroyed in accordance with earlier directives that neither jet aircraft nor their components should be allowed to fall intact into Allied hands. The Allies did however pick up radio-telephony next day from a “possible jet recce” west and north west of Hamburg from 15.45–16.15 hours.

After the surrender, still-functioning Luftwaffe authorities kept busy accounting for the strength, whereabouts and commanders of their subordinate formations. Early in the evening of 22 May, listed under Fliegerdivision 14 were (sic):

PART FIVE

Final operations and surrender