Luftwaffe Officer's Dagger - Marksmanship Honor Prize
The blade with decorative etching on both sides (floral motifs), on the obverse Luftwaffe eagle, on the reverse “EhrenpreisschieÃen der Luftwaffen-Gruppe 3, 1938” (Honor Prize Shooting of Air Force Group 3, 1938), manufacturer's mark of “Malsch & Ambronn Steinbach”, white grip with fine wire wrapping, pommel and crossguard as well as scabbard uniformly toned, only lightly worn dagger with few signs of age, overall still very well preserved, rare. Condition 2
Luftflotte 3 was formed on February 1, 1939 from the Luftwaffengruppenkommando 3 (Air Force Group Command 3) established one year earlier under Hugo Sperrle and maintained its headquarters in München until the outbreak of war. In September 1939, the new headquarters was established in Bad Orb, Hesse, from where the air fleet directed operations during the so-called Phoney War in the southwestern Germany region. During the Western Campaign, Luftflotte 3 supported the advance of Heeresgruppe A (Army Group A) through the Ardennes and contributed significantly to the success of the Sichelschnitt plan (Case Yellow). After the end of operations in France, it bore the main burden of the Battle of Britain together with Luftflotte 2. When the latter was transferred east in 1941 in preparation for the attack on the Soviet Union, Luftflotte 3 remained as the supreme Luftwaffe headquarters in the West and assumed responsibility for northeastern France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
Luftflotte 3 was formed on February 1, 1939 from the Luftwaffengruppenkommando 3 (Air Force Group Command 3) established one year earlier under Hugo Sperrle and maintained its headquarters in München until the outbreak of war. In September 1939, the new headquarters was established in Bad Orb, Hesse, from where the air fleet directed operations during the so-called Phoney War in the southwestern Germany region. During the Western Campaign, Luftflotte 3 supported the advance of Heeresgruppe A (Army Group A) through the Ardennes and contributed significantly to the success of the Sichelschnitt plan (Case Yellow). After the end of operations in France, it bore the main burden of the Battle of Britain together with Luftflotte 2. When the latter was transferred east in 1941 in preparation for the attack on the Soviet Union, Luftflotte 3 remained as the supreme Luftwaffe headquarters in the West and assumed responsibility for northeastern France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
