In November 1944, the Luftwaffe exhibited a façade of air supremacy, yet superior numbers did not transfer into quality. On the second day of this month, Luftflotte Reich experienced the worst single daily loss of the entire war to date. The US Eighth Air Force lost 40 bombers and 16 fighters in the running battles, some to anti-aircraft artillery—3.6 and 1.8 respectively Germans claimed 82. All while losing 120 fighters, 70 pilots killed or missing and 28 wounded. On 21st another 62 were killed or wounded, then on 26th 87 pilots were killed or posted missing—on 27 November another 51. Hitler was furious, bemoaned the impotence of the fighter force and the materials and labour used to produce it. Galland's "Great Blow"—the use of the entire fighter force in one massive strike against American bomber streams—would not take place. Hitler did not trust the Luftwaffe's ability to secure a decisive result, and preferred to use what remained of it to support a land offensive in the west. Hitler gambled the last substance of the Waffen SS and Panzer Divisions on the Ardennes Offensive, an effort to capture Antwerp and split the Americans and British Commonwealth forces militarily, in the hopes of improving Germany's dire situation. On 24 November, Stab and I./JG 26 moved from bases at Greven, a grass airfield near Münster to Fürstenau. Both remained there until March 1945. I. "Gruppe", commanded by Karl Borris since mid-1943, began receiving the Fw 190 D-9. Some 63 fighters of this type were received in the latter half of December 1944. II. "Gruppe" moved to Reinsehlen from Kirchhellen north of Soltau. There, the Fw 190 A-8 and A-9s were replaced by 55 Fw 190 D-9s. The "gruppe" was given to Anton Hackl, an able fighter pilot with 166 aerial victories to his credit. III. "Gruppe" was based at Plantlünne at the end of November. JG 26 was to take part in the last major offensive of the Wehrmacht in Western Europe. ULTRA intercepted messages to III. "Gruppe" ordering it move from Nordhorn, regardless of whether it could equip with GM-1 or not. ULTRA listened to the urgent Luftwaffe messages which belied a German build-up.