2001 RAAF HERITAGEAWARDS EX-LUFTWAFFEMBE FRANKKORBL D Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2002 This work is copyright. Apart Eom any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without permission from AusInfo. Requests and inquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to the Manager, Legislative Services, AusInfo, GPO Box 84, Canberra ACT 2601. DISCLAIMER The views are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Department oEDefence, the Royal Australian Air Force or the Government of Australia. National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publicationenhy Korbl, Frank Ex Luftwaffe MBE Bibliography. ISBN 0 642 26573 9 1. Korbl, Frank. 2. Germany. LuhaffeBiography. 3. Aushalia. Royal Aurstralian Air Force -Biography. 4. Air pilots, Military - Germany - Biography. I. Australia. Royal Australian Air Force. Aerospace Centre 11. Title. (Series: Heritage series (Canberra, ACT)). Published and distributed by: Aerospace Centre RAAF Base Fairbairn ACT 2600 Aushalia Tel: (02) 62876563 Fax: (02) 62876382 e-mail: [email protected] Other titles in the series: Secvet Action of305 Smith & Coghlan W5nner of the 1988 Heritage Award The RAAFMirage Story Compiled by Wing Commander MR. Susans Winner of the 1989 Heritage Award Aifresco Flight - The RAAFAntauctic Experience David Wilson Winner of the 1990 Heritage Award E,dge of Centre - The event@/ life of Group Captain GernldPacker Chis Coulthard-Clark Winner of the 1991 Heritage Award Beaufighters Over New Guinea -No. 30 Squadron RAAF 1442.1943 George Tumball Dick Winner of the 1992 Heritage Award Defeat to Victov- No. 453 Squadron RAAF John Bennett Winner of the 1993 Heritage Award Not to be Shot at orExported- An Airman's LettersHome 1942.1945 Leslie Howard Sullivan Winner of the 1994 Heritage Award Odd Jobs RAAF Operations in Japan, The Berlin Airlgt, Korea, Malaya andMalta 1946-1960 Steve Eather Winner of the 1995 Heritage Award McNamara VC-A Hero's Dilemma Clnis Coulthard-Clark WWinnerof the 1996 Heritage Award Siiylarks - The Lighter Side ofLfi in the RAAF in World War l1 E~icBrown Winner of the 1997 Heritage Award Up andAway Memoirs ofa Pilot in theRoyalAustralian Air Force 1950-1981 John Jacobs Winner of the 1998 Heritage Award How Not to Run an Air Force - The Higher Command of the Royal Aushalian Air Force During the Second World War Norman Ashworth Winner of the 1999 Heritage Award Dicing with Death -An Airman 'S Account of his Training and Operations over Japan Arthur Sandell Winner of the 2000 Heritage Award Acceptance Speech by Frank Korbl This will certainly go down in my diary as a red letter day! I feel deeply honoured to receive the award, but I am also humbled for many reasons which may become obvious to the reader. I would like to thank the RAM for providing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I would like to thank the Chief of Air Force, and the judges for selecting my entry. My thanks also go to my good friends Ken Llewelyn who first drew my attention to the Heritage Award and Noel Tanswell who took time to read the original manuscript. Noel gave me valuable advice as how to reduce the lengthy text to meet the prescribed words limitation. My profound gratitude goes to my dear wife Stella who spent long hours with proofreading and to my son Hany who set up the computer system. Last but not least I wish to thank all the dedicated Education Officers and the tutors at University as well as all the good people who helped me to improve my English. I can honestly say that the years I was privileged to serve in the Royal Australian Air Force, both in uniform and later working as a civilian in the Facilities Branch at Air Force Office, were the happiest of my whole life. It was an exciting and rewarding experience. I made many true and lasting friends and it is to them that I wish to express my appreciation for having suggested in the first place that I should sit down and write my memoirs before my cerebral computer becomes unserviceable. Sadly, some of them are no longer with us to share in the celebration. I am thinking of John Lessels, Ted Hewby, Jack Leonard, 'Chris' Christofis, Robert O'Neill, Alec Rundle and many others. But, who knows, they are probably watching anyway. What else can I say? I am defmitely floating on Cloud Nine! Thank you all! Acceptance Speech iv Reflections ix Chapter 1 A Time to Kill and a Time to Die l Rzcruit training in Plzen (Pilsen), CSR. Koniggritz: Luhachnchtznschule. Aircrew radio operator training. First Christmas away from home. Promotion to NCO. Cliapter 2 Kampfgeschwader 53 'Legion Condor' 15 Szolnok (Belgrade): Blindflugschule - Instrument Flying, Air Navigation Training. IVKG 53 Legion Condor at Orltans in France. Conversion to Heinkel He 11 1 bombers. Chapter 3 A Link to the Antipodes 27 Australia's involvement in the war in Europe. No 455 Squadron. The strange story of Leo Kzmpson and Stella Lord. Tne British War Cemetery at Kiel. Clrapter 4 Wheels Must Turn for Victory 31 Tl.avels across Europe. The Aircrew Reserve Unit at Quedlinburg. Re-location to Szolnak in Hungary. The Detachment at Grossenhain in Saxonia. Sojoum to Orltans. A fatal accident. Cliapter 5 Confusion Reigns Supreme 45 The landing in Normandy. The 20th July 1944 attempt on the life of Adolf Hitler. Reprisals. The V1 and V2 'Vergeltungswaffen'. More travels. Final days at Plzen (Pilsen). The German bomber force is grounded. The girls Gom Dijon. Transfer to the Army. Chapter 6 The End of an Era 57 Chapter 7 Humiliation, Barbed Wire and Survival 63 Crossing the Elbe River. Surrender to the Americans. The POW camp at Kalbe an der Milbe. Transfer to the British Army at Hanover. The Hanoinag Works. Survival. Chapter 8 Scavenging with Regiment Paulsen 77 A join1 BritishiGerman salvage operation. Collecting signal equipment around the country. Ostenvieck and Magdeburg. Underground in a salt mine near Helrnstitt. Transfer to Hanover. A self-contained POW existence at Klinigslulter. Alternative Medicine. The Austrian Delegation at Brunswick. Discharge at Wolfenbiittel. Chapter 9 Working for the Tommy 89 Chapter 10 A New Life Down Under 99 End of the Occupation. The State Treaw. Working in the automotive industry. Migration to Australia. The Bonegilla Migrant Centre. Melbourne. A tempting advertisement in the Herald. Commissioned into the RAAF. OTS at Paint Cook. Equipment Officers Course at RAAF Tottenham. Wedding with a Guard of Honour. Chapter 11 Learning the Ropes 109 RAAF Wagga-Wagga: Catering Course. RAAF East Sale: Catering Officer. Art work for the Battle of Britain Ball. RAAF Edinburgh: Moral Leadership Course. RAAF Richmond: Ainnovement Course. The Flying Catering Officer. Chapter 12 The Lure of the Tropics 115 A jolly with SAN. Pasting to RAAF Townsville. Barracks and Housing. Exercise Townhouse at Darwin. Stack Control and Warehousing. Posted to Vietnam. Chapter 13 Uc Dai Loi in Vietnam 121 No 9 Sqn at Vung Tau. Saigon, Nui Dat, Phan Rang. No 2 Sqn. Flying in a Canberra bomber. Mike Herbelt. Long Binh, Long Than, Bear Cat, Da Lat and Cam Rhan Bay. Chapter 14 A Year Older and a Year Wiser 127 Life at Vung Tau. The AustralianIAmerican supply liaison. Armed convoys. Military Payment Vouchers (MPC). Rest and Recreation (R&R) leave in Hong Kong. Rest-in-Country (R-in-C) leave at Penang. Chapter 15 A View from the Top 131 Headquarters Operational Command, Penrith. Senior Equipment Officer at HQOCU. The OETC Correspondence Course. The All-Seasons uniform. Social life. Conferences. A traditional Christmas Chapter 16 Per Ardua Ad Astra 135 RAAF Base Richmond. Senior Barracks Officer. Works orocedures. The MBE. The Radetzkv consultant with the Navy. Training courses and another manual. Final retirement. Letters from Vietnam 143 Bibliography 173 Glossary 174 Foreword quadron Leader Frank Korbl (Ret.), MBE, BA, was born in Vienna, Austria. Following the anuexion of his country in 1938, he became a SGerman subject and was drafted for military service as soon as he reached the conscription age. Whilst undergoing basic recruit training in a Signal Regiment of the Luftwaffe, he was selected for aircrew operations. Great expectations of adventure and heroic exploits came to a sudden end when the Heinkel bomber that he was training in crashed on a training flight and both ~~ilotand navigator were killed in the accident. iifter several ground appointments in various theatres and at a time when it should have been obvious that the German war effort was lost, he found himself transferred to the Abwehr, the intelligence organisation of the Wehrmacht. In May 1945, having survived several bizarre experiences, his unit was encircled 11ythe advancing Russian armies. Crossing the Elbe River, some 100,000 men were able to surrender to the American 9th Army. The spell as a Prisoner of War (POW) exposed him to further unusual adventures in the now occupied provinces of Western Germany. When he was finally discharged, he did not return to his native homeland of Austria which, like Germany, was also jointly controlled by British, American, French and Russian Forces. Taking refuge with the family of a former crew mate, he went to Kiel in Northern Germany, where he found employment with the British element of the Allied Control Commission. It was to be the start of a remarkable career that eventually took him back to Vienna, where be continued to work for the British until the end of the occupation in 1955. Fate had it that he eventually migrated to Australia. After over two years in a clerical position at the Immigration Centre at Bonegilla, he went to Melbourne to work with the stockbroking firm of J.B.