The 18. Luftwaffen-Feld-Division was formed in France in December 1942 from Flieger-Regiment 52. It was transferred to the Heer on 1 November 1943 and redesignated 18. Feld-Division (L). From January 1943 to April 1943, the division was assigned to the 1. Armee in the area of Rochefort, France. Transferred to control of the 15. Armee in April 1943, the division was based at Dunkirk-Calais, France as an occupation and coastal defense force. In August 1944, the division withdrew from the coast and fought under the 5. Panzer-Armee in defense of Paris before retreating to Belgium. The division was destroyed in September 1944 in the Mons pocket. The remnants of the division were used to form the 18. Volksgrenadier-Division in Denmark.

Commanders

Generalmajor Ferdinand Freiherr von Stein-Liebenstein zu Barchfeld (? Dec 1942 - 1 Apr 1943)
Generalleutnant Wolfgang Erdmann (1 Apr 1943 - 26 Aug 1943)
Generalmajor Fritz Reinshagen (26 Aug 1943 - 27 Oct 1943)
Generalleutnant Wilhelm Rupprecht (27 Oct 1943 - 1 Feb 1944)
Generalleutnant Joachim von Tresckow (1 Feb 1944 - ? Sep 1944)

Operations Officers (Ia)

Major Steuer (9 Dec 1942 - Jan 1943)
Hauptmann Volrath Gerlach (Jan 1943 - 23 Feb 1943)
Oberstleutnant Alexander Olbrichs (23 Feb 1943 - 25 May 1943)
Oberstleutnant Gerhard Hildebrand (25 May 1943 - 1943)
Major Windt (1943 - 1 Dec 1943)
Oberstleutnant Albert Hobusch (15 Dec 1943 - 3 Aug 1944) (MIA)

Area of operations

France (Dec 1942 - Sep 1944)
Belgium (Sep 1944)

Order of battle

Stab der Division
Jäger-Regiment 35 (L)
Jäger-Regiment 36 (L)
Jäger-Regiment 48 (L)
Divisions-Füsilier-Bataillon 18 (L)
Artillerie-Regiment 18 (L)
Panzerjäger-Abteilung 18 (L)
Pionier-Bataillon 18 (L)
Nachrichten-Abteilung 18 (L)
Feldersatz-Bataillon 18 (L)
Versorgungstruppen 18 (L)

Sources used

Antonio Muñoz - Göring’s Grenadiers: The Luftwaffe Field Divisions, 1942-1945
Georg Tessin - Verbände und Truppen der deutschen Wehrmacht 1933-1945

Reference material on this unit

- None known at this time -