Luftwaffe Fighter Units: Mediterranean 1941-44

At the start of 1941 it had become abundantly clear to Hitler that he would have to provide some aid lor his Italian ally Mussolini, whose dreams of a Mediterranean empire were in danger of being shattered beyond repair, and It fell to the Luftwaffe to supply the first such assistance. During the pre­vious October, the Italians had Invaded north­western Greece, expecting a swift conquest. Instead the Greeks had resisted with spirit, counter­attacking and driving the invaders back across the border into Albania (annexed by Italy In 1936). By the beginning of 1941, units of the Royal Air Force were present in Greece, raising the possibility of a major British thrust into the Balkans generally. This could prove a most dangerous threat to German plans for the forthcoming invasion of Russia, which at that time was envisaged to commence in the late spring. In December 1940 a reconnaissance in force across the Egyptian frontier by a small British force had turned into a full-scale offensive after achieving unexpectedly large initial gains. =