Major
Herbert Kaminski was born on 24 May 1905 at Ohmswalde
in the Ortelsburg region of Ostpreußen. In 1935, he was serving as
a policeman but then transferred to the Luftwaffe. Kaminski served in the
Spanish Civil War as a courier pilot during 1937 and 1938. On his return
to Germany he underwent conversion training to become a fighter pilot.
On completion of his training, Kaminski was posted to ZG 26. On 1 May 1940,
he was appointed Staffelkapitän of 2./ZG 26. He claimed his first
victory during the French campaign. During August
and September, he flew over 50 missions during the Battle
of Britain claiming two RAF fighters shot down. On 18 August, his Bf
110 Zerstörer twin-engine fighter was badly damaged in aerial combat
with RAF Hurricane fighters over England. He was forced to ditch his aircraft
in the English Channel. He and his gunner survived the ditching and were
rescued by a German naval minesweeper. Kaminski led 2./ZG 76 during the
Balkans campaign. He was shot down during a ground attack mission over
Serbia and, after making an emergency landing, was captured and imprisoned.
After 11 days in captivity and constantly threatened with being shot, he
was freed by German troops. Soon back in action, Kaminski undertook many
ground attack missions destroying several tanks and three artillery pieces.
Over Crete, he shot down a RAF Gladiator biplane fighter. On 22 May 1941,
Hauptmann Kaminski was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of I./ZG 26. He led
the Gruppe in the invasion of Russia. Performing mainly ground attack missions
on Russian airfields, the Gruppe destroyed 51 aircraft on the ground in
addition to claiming 11 aircraft in aerial combat. Kaminski was awarded
the Ritterkreuz on 6 August for five victories. Kaminski was transferred
to the staff of the General der Jagdflieger as an advisor on Zerstörer
operations. On 1 November 1941, Major Kaminski was appointed Gruppenkommandeur
of I./JG 53 based in Sicily. He shot down a RAF fighter over Malta on 20
December. In May 1942, I./JG 53 was relocated to the Eastern front. He
shot down a Russian LaGG-3 fighter on 28 June. On 24 July, I./JG 53 was
transferred to the southern sector of the Eastern front. During the transfer
flight, Kaminski’s Bf 109 G-2 (W.Nr. 13 481) “<< +” developed engine
trouble. In attempting a forced-landed at Taganrog-North, his aircraft
crashed resulting in injuries that saw him hospitalised for a time. Kaminski
was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of II./ZG 76 on 5 October 1943 and led
the Gruppe until 9 August 1944 on Reichsverteidigung operations. He would
record a USAAF B-17 four-engine bomber shot down during his time with the
unit. He relinquished command of the unit on 9 August 1944. In December
1944, Kaminski was appointed Kommandeur of Flugzeugführerschule A/B
41 at Frankfurt in Oder. He served in this role until the end of the war.
Kaminski was killed in an automobile accident at Garmisch on 18 July 1971.
Herbert Kaminski was credited with seven victories
in approximately 300 missions. He recorded one victory over the Eastern
front. Of the six victories recorded over the Western
front, one was a four-engine bomber.
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1940
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E/a | 2./ZG 26 | - |
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1940
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E/a | 2./ZG 26 | - |
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1940
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E/a | 2./ZG 26 | - |
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1941
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Gladiator | 2./ZG 26 | Crete |
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20.12.1941
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Hurricane | I./JG 53 | Malta |
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28.6.1942
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LaGG-3 | I./JG 53 | - |
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1943-44
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B-17 | II./ZG 76 | - |
Victories : 7
Awards : Ritterkreuz (6 August 1941)
Units : ZG 26, JG 53, ZG 76
