CAPTAIN BERG IS KILLED IN ACTION

(History of the Hanko Group, T-22005, Military Archives of Finland) 

1st of November 1941

- Captain Berg was the commander of Section Hanko with its eight Curtiss Hawk fighter planes, which were moved from the Suulajärvi to the Nummela airfield to support the Hanko Front. The first flight in Hanko area was the last one for Captain Berg. 

- On 1st of November 1941 at 13:20 o'clock Captain Berg started from the Nummela airfield with two planes. Their intention was to draw the enemy fighters away from the actual rental area of Hanko, where the AA-fire was very heavy. After this, the enemy planes could be shot down. Four other Curtiss Hawk fighters under the command of Lieutenant Euramo covered these two planes. These were supposed to strike against the enemy fighters, once they had been drawn away from the AA-gun range. 

- After the patrol led by Captain Berg had flied around the rental area of Hanko in the altitude of 1500 to 2000 meters, they spotted alone I-16 plane in the east side of Tvärminne. Berg who was an experienced pilot and had fought many battles in the Winter War and also in the Continuation War, which had lasted now for a bit over four months, attacked with his wingman Senior Sergeant Alppinen against the plane. Captain Berg together with his wingman, most likely scored a hit to the Russian fighter which crashed to the ground, but the I-16 was inside the Russian AA-gun range and Berg most likely received a hit to his plane from the AA-fire. As Alppinen was evading the AA-fire, he lost sight to the plane of Captain Berg. Also the four plane group under the command of Lieutenant Euramo was still too far away to see what happened to Berg. 

- Rest of the patrol landed to their airfield at 15:05 o'clock, without Captain P. Berg. Land forces reported that two planes were seen going down. 

Commander of Section Hanko: Captain Kullervo Lahtela.

- There is some mined positions in the hill which is located in the north-east corner of Vitsjön.

- The positions are not that deep and the meaning of these is unknown, as the source material remains silent about these.

- One of the biggest positions.

- The same position seen from another direction. The mined position has been edged with stones and with wood. Most likely this is done by the conscripts of the Nylands Brigade, as the army still practices in the area. However no mining has been performed in the civilian area by the garrison after the war.

- There is a bit of water at the bottom of some positions.