that the figures were nearer 305 destroyed and 190 damaged. However, as the vast majority of these planes were destroyed on the ground, allied pilot losses were very light and the planes could be quickly replaced by the allies. The operation was a disaster for the Jagdwaffe. The Luftwaffe turned its attention to a revolutionary jet fighter in the Messerschmitt Me 262 Stormbird or Schwalbe (Swallow). While this aircraft could outrun any Allied aircraft, and had armament that could effectively destroy Allied bombers with a single 'burst' of fire, it was not produced in sufficient numbers to change the air war. The Luftwaffe continued to resist the Allied air assault over Germany proper, which had by March 1945, become the front line itself. In several missions during March the American bomber fleets reported attacks from large groups of German piston-engined and jet aircraft, sometimes numbering up to 150. The fuel shortages were now responsible for grounding the Jagdwaffe. Priority was given to jet units now operating the Messerschmitt Me 163 and Me 262. Adolf Galland, formerly General der Jagdflieger and now in disgrace after the Fighter Pilots Revolt, formed Jagdverband 44 (JV 44). This unit was a special fighter force consisting of some of the top German fighter aces in the Luftwaffe which would fly the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. The unit was established in February 1945 . The flying personnel of the squadron were made up almost exclusively of high scoring aces, or Experten. The unit's top five aces alone had more than 1,000 victories. JV 44 defended southern Germany and Austria from aerial attack. Because of the greater length of runway it required, and the slow acceleration it had at low speeds, the Me 262 was especially vulnerable during take-off and landing. The unit constructed a Protection Squadron (Platzschutzstaffel) headed by Lieutenant Heinz Sachsenberg to provide air cover for takeoffs and landings. This unit flew the long-nosed 'Dora', Fw 190 D, variant of the well-known Fw 190. These aircraft were painted bright red on their underbelly with contrasting white stripes so anti-aircraft batteries could distinguish them from Allied aircraft. The unit continued operations until the end of the war, Galland himself was wounded, after destroying a solitary B-26, when he was shot down by a P-47 Thunderbolt. By April, the German front in the west had disintegrated and in the east the Red Army had encircled Berlin.