''Kampfgruppe'' 100 (KGr 100) was a specialist unit of the

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

during the early stages of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It is best known as the first unit to use the "pathfinder" concept, with its aircraft being equipped with the latest

radio navigation Radio navigation or radionavigation is the application of radio waves to geolocalization, determine a position of an object on the Earth, either the vessel or an obstruction. Like radiolocation, it is a type of Radiodetermination-satellite servi ...

aids to find their targets and then dropping

flares A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala, bengalo in several European countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illuminatio ...

on them to mark the target for the following

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft that utilizes air-to-ground weaponry to drop bombs, launch aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploy air-launched cruise missiles. There are two major classifications of bomber: strategic and tactical. Strateg ...

s. The unit first formed out of parts of ''Luftnachrichten Abteilung 100'' at Köthen on 18 November 1939 with a HQ unit and two squadrons, 1./ and 2./KGr 100. In keeping with typical Luftwaffe organization, Kampfgruppe 100 was later expanded to three squadrons, all flying the Heinkel He 111H. On 15 December 1941 the unit was used as the basis for the greatly expanded Kampfgeschwader 100, becoming I.''Gruppe''/KG 100.Michael Holm
"Kampfgruppe 100"
/ref> The distinguishing alphanumeric ''Geschwaderkennung'' code for both KGr 100 and its later wing-sized successor unit was 6N.

References

* Balke, Ulf. "Kampfgeschwader 100 "Wiking" : eine Geschichte aus Kriegstagebüchern, Dokumenten und Berichten : 1934-1945", Motorbuch Verlag, 1981 * de Zeng, H.L; Stankey, D.G; Creek, E.J. ''Bomber Units of the Luftwaffe 1933-1945; A Reference Source, Volume 1''. Ian Allan Publishing, 2007. * Goss, Chris. (2000). ''The Luftwaffe Bombers' Battle of Britain''. Crecy, Manchester. * Goss, Chris. (2010). ''The Luftwaffe's Blitz: The Inside Story, November 1940—May 1941''. Crecy, Manchester. * Hooton, E.R. (1994). ''Phoenix Triumphant: The Rise and Rise of the Luftwaffe''. Arms & Armour, . * James, T.C.G and Cox, Sebastian. ''The Battle of Britain''. Frank Cass, London. 2000. * Wakefield, Ken (1999). ''Pfadfinder: Luftwaffe Pathfinder Operations Over Britain''. NPI Media Group. Luftwaffe Wings Radar signal processing {{Germany-WWII-stub