During the year, JG 26 lost Johannes Seifert, Seifert and Friedrich Geißhardt killed in action; all of them group commanders. In 1943, the wing claim-to-loss ratio was 4:1 which suggested a favourable combat performance. However, there were signs Allied operations were wearing it down. The 158 pilots killed or wounded during the year, was double that of 1942 and equivalent to an annual attrition rate of 100 percent. The strength of the wing was 50 percent of authorised strength; but only two thirds of that total were operational. It had 68 fighters on 31 December; all Bf 109 G-6s and Fw 190 A-6s. Of the 185 pilots, 107 were available, the remainder were on leave, convalescing, or considered not ready for combat. At least 84 of RAF Fighter Command's losses during 1943 have been attributed to JG 26.