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Adam,

All info welcome.

Getting a little behind at the moment as we are having to spend time taking care of my 88yr old mothers affairs.

Andy,

Sorry to hear that. I hope things aren't too bleak.

bleak and zany

Hello, I am a new member and I have a very large film poster collection which has some of the German Luftwaffe feature film posters, such as
Kampfgeschwader Lützow, Stukas, DIII88, and also a special section on the 1943 Karl Ritter film, which was never released publicly, Besatzung Dora. I have done some serious research on this film, shot at Buc, Paris (Staffel 123, Major Kopper) in August 1942, and then with Staffel 122 (Capt. Taubert) in Gostkino nr. Luga, USSR in October, 1942, as well as in Italy and in Berlin. My research included access to Karl Ritter's unpublished and untranslated private diaries during the war, which are in Argentina in his grandson's possession.

The Besatzung Dora summary can be found here: http://www.germanfilms.net/besatzung-dora/

On the website, I also have a special section on Luftwaffe pilot Hannes Stelzer, who died in an air crash on 27 December, 1944 in Slovakia,
He was a pilot in the Night Attack Group 5 stationed in Felso–Abramy, Hungary at that time. He was a famous young film actor as well, as starred in 19 feature films between 1935 and 1943, including three of Karl Ritter's Luftwaffe films Stukas, Über alles in der Welt, and Besatzung Dora.

cheers
Billy98

Bill98,

Welcome to the board.

I presume that by Staffel 122 you are referring to 5(F)./122 - Hptm. Richard Taubert (Apr 41 - Mar 43) RK 16 Nov 1942 (b. 29 Jul 1911 Eger/Sudetenland d. 24 Jun 1959 München) - 5(F)./122 Gosstkino Dec 1941-Dec 1943?

Full biography from Stankey/de Zeng

TAUBERT, Richard. (DOB:29.07.11 in Eger/Sudetenland). (R, DKG). 04.41 Hptm., appt Staka 5.
(F)/Aufkl.Gr. 122 (to 03.43). 23.02.42 awarded Ehrenpokal. 18.05.42 Hptm., awarded DKG, 5.
(F)/Aufkl.Gr. 122. 16.11.42 Hptm., awarded Ritterkreuz, Staka 5.(F)/Aufkl.Gr. 122. 01.12.42 promo to
Maj. 20.02.43 Hptm., trf from 5.(F)/Aufkl.Gr. 122 to Fernaufklärungsfliegerschule 1. 17.04.43 in FAG
101,appt provisional Kdr. I./FAG 101. 15.06.43 Kdr. I.(F)/FAG 1, concurrently appt Kdt. Fl.H.Kdtr. A
41/IV, Grossenhain. 15.10.44 Hptm., appt Kdr. FAGr. 1 (to c.27.01.45). 27.01.45 appt Kdr.
II./Erg.Aufkl.Geschw. 1. 01.45 appt Kdr. Aufkl.Gr. 123 (to 03.45 or 17.04.45) (n.d.) in the Bundeswehr,
rising to the rank of Obstlt. †24.06.59 in München.

and similar for Kopper who was Gruppen Kdr. of (F)./123 - both Stab and 1(F)./123 are listed by Holm (http://www.ww2.dk) as operating from Toussus-le-Buc in the period that you quote.

KOPPER, Gerhard. (DOB: 20.11.04). 09.11.23 entered service with the Polizei. 15.01.32 enrolled in
Beobachter course with the Landespolizei (to 18.04.32). 01.04.35 promo to Hptm. 01.05.35 trf to the
Luftwaffe and sent to Fliegerschule Braunschweig for Beobachter (observer) training. 01.10.35 trf to
Aufkl.Gr. 115 (Göppingen) as a Beobachter. 15.08.36 received the Lw. Beobachter license. 01.09.36 trf
to Flieger-Ers.Abt. 24 (Quakenbrück). 01.10.36 appt Kp.-Chef in Flieger-Ers.Abt. 24 (Quakenbrück).
01.05.39 appt assistant Ic in Stab/Luftflotte 3. 1939 Maj. and Kdr. Aufkl.Gr. 123 (to 10.39). 30.08.40
Maj., re-appt Kdr. Aufkl.Gr. 123 (to 17.05.43)). 01.08.42 promo to Obstlt. c.18.05.43 appt Chef Abt.
Luftbildwesen in RLM (to 15.01.44). 16.01.44 Obstlt., appt Kdr. Erg.Fernaufkl.Gr. (to 27.12.44).
01.11.44 promo to Oberst. 28.12 44 Oberst, appt Kommodore Erg.Aufkl.Geschw. 1 (to 19.01.45).

Billy98,

Also please see this for the 5(F)./122 2000th combat sortie from 6th Sep 1942

http://www.luftwaffedata.co.uk/wiki/ind ... 2_Sep_1942 and http://www.luftwaffedata.co.uk/wiki/ind ... 0th_Sortie both contain photos from the same series as the still on your page even down to the wine bottles in front of the group.

Hello Andy Mitchell,

Thank you for assisting me with my membership earlier today. All good.

Yes, your summary of the two careers of Richard Taubert and of Gerhard Kopper are correct....they served in the respective locales in 1942 when Karl Ritter and his film crew came to shoot key aircraft scenes of the BESATZUNG DORA film. After Buc and Gostkino/Luga, the team was meant to film in North Africa, where the third front in the film was being depicted, but Rommel had been in retreat and there was no way that the film could be shot in the war zone, so it was re-staged instead in Italy in sand found in Ostia, southwest of Rome, in November 1942.

Taubert was also involved with the film after it was provisionally banned by Goebbels in early 1943. He was sent from the Aufklärungsfliegerschule 1 (F) Heer on 23 June 1943 to the film city of Babelsberg (Potsdam) where the Ufa studios were located. There he and a Col. Schneider (Afrika expert), Capt. Wagenfield and a Col. Bechmann were shown the finished film for their review. The film was still kept under wraps.

Even though Major Gen. Kriep, with endorsement from Göring, wrote in January 1944 to the Ufa studio to have the film released as a matter of pride and morale for the Luftwaffe, it was not shown publicly, and only shown once, on 2 February 1945, to a closed invited audience at the Luftwaffe Training School in Brandenberg-Brieste.

The first commercial release of the film, on DVD, was made earlier in 2014 by International Historic Films in Chicago, IL: USA, with English subtitles.

cheers,
Billy98