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Walter Dahl

Name : Walter Dahl Died : 25th November 1985 Air Victories : 128.00 Awards : Knights Cross Oak Leaves to the Knights Cross

Walter Dahl was born on 27 March 1916 at Lug in the Bergzabern region of Pfalz. He joined the army in 1935, initially serving in the infantry, before transferring to the Luftwaffe and becoming a pilot. He became a flight instructor in 1939. In May 1941, Dahl was transferred to the Geschwaderstab of JG 3. He gained his first victory on 22 June during the invasion of Russia. On 10 July, Dahl was transferred to II./JG 3. By the end of October, Dahl had 17 victories to his credit, including three Russian aircraft shot down on 13 September to record victories seven through nine and a further three on 23 October, all Russian fighters (15-17). Dahl was transferred to 4./JG 3 on 13 December 1941 and accompanied the unit to the Mediterranean theatre. He claimed a Spitfire shot down over Malta on 1 April 1942, although this claim could well have occurred on 2 April. However, the victory was not confirmed and the “Spitfire�, actually a RAF Hurricane of 229 Sqn, managed to return to its base on Malta, albeit damaged. On 10 April 1942, Dahl was appointed Staffelkapitän of Ergänzungsgruppe/JG 3. At the end of April 1943, Dahl was transferred to the staff of the General der Jagdflieger. On 15 August, Dahl was appointed Geschwaderadjutant of JG 3 based on the Eastern front where, by mid-April 1943, he had raised his victory total to 51. Dahl shot down four Russian Il-2 ground attack aircraft on 26 October 1942 (34-37). Oberleutnant Dahl was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 2 December 1942 for 42 victories. He shot down two Russian LaGG-3 fighters on 16 April 1943 (50-51). On 20 July 1943, Dahl was posted as Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 3, recently relocated to Münster from deployment around Kursk on the Russian Front. Here Dahl was to battle the bomber formations of the USAAF. He shot down two four-engine bombers on 6 September (52-53). He downed two more four-engine bombers and a USAAF P-38 twin-engine fighter on 23 February 1944 (59–61). Dahl led III./JG 3 against the Schweinfurt and Regensburg raid on 17 August but was intercepted by 222 Squadron RAF Spitfires. Five III./JG 3 Bf 109s were shot down including the aircraft of Leutnant Hans Schleef (99 victories, RK, killed in action 31 December 1944). Dahl himself had to make a belly landing near Capperath when his Bf 109 G-6 (W.Nr. 18 842) suffered an engine failure. Major Dahl was awarded the Knight’s Cross on 11 March 1944 for 67 victories. On 21 May 1944, Dahl was appointed Kommodore of JG z.b.V. He led the unit until 6 June before taking command of JG 300 on 27 June. On 13 September, he brought down a USAAF B-17 four-engine bomber by ramming. Despite the successes achieved against the USAAF four-engine bombers with the use of Sturm tactics employed by JG 300, Dahl was to be relieved of his command by Göring on 30 November 1944. On 26 January 1945, he was appointed Inspekteur der Tagjäger. Oberst Dahl was awarded the Eichenlaub on 1 February for 92 victories. Despite his promotion, Dahl continued to fly operationally. He added 32 Russian aircraft to his tally flying over the Eastern front. He recorded his 100th victory on 28 February 1945. Oberst Dahl ended the war flying Me 262 jet fighters with III./EJG 2. Here he flew under the command of Heinz “Pritzl� Bär (221 victories, RK-S). On 27 March, Dahl claimed two USAAF P-47 fighters shot down. He gained his 128th and last victory, a USAAF P-51 Mustang near Dillingen, on 26 April 1945. Walter Dahl survived the war but died on 25 November 1985 at Heidelberg, aged 69. Walter Dahl shot down 128 enemy aircraft in 678 missions, including about 300 ground-attack missions. He claimed 30, possibly 36, four-engine bombers and 34 Il-2 Stormovik ground attack aircraft. Dahl also achieved 2, possibly as many as 9 victories, flying the Me-262. He recorded 84 victories over the Eastern Front.

Known Victory Claims :
Date	Rank	Squadron	Claimed	Location	Time	Aircraft Flown	Notes
06/09/1943	Hptm.	JG 3	B-17HSS details	-	11.15
06/09/1943	Hptm.	JG 3	B-17 details	12km SW St. Avold: 7200m	11.3
14/10/1943	Hptm.	JG 3	B-17 details	Est: Aschaffenburg-Würzburg 7000m	14.3
14/10/1943	Hptm.	JG 3	B-17HSS details	Est: Aschaffenburg-Würzburg 7000m	14.35
19/12/1943	Hptm.	JG 3	B-17 details	14 Ost N/ID: 6000m [Zillertaler-Alpen]	12.25
29/01/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17 details	-	11.07
29/01/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17HSS details	-	11.13
23/02/1944	Major	JG 3	P-38 details	SE Steyr: 6000m	12.2
23/02/1944	Major	JG 3	B-24 details	-	12.08
23/02/1944	Major	JG 3	B-24 HSS details	-	12.12
24/02/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17HSS details	-	13.12
24/02/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17HSS details	-	13.12
24/02/1944	Major	JG 3	P-38 details	30km SE Steyr: 5000m	13.2
25/02/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17 details	Gegend Mühldorf: 6500m	12.27
25/02/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17 details	20-30km SW Regensburg: 6500m	12.48
13/04/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17 details	20-30km NW Augsburg: 6000m	15.04
13/04/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17HSS details	30km N. Augsburg: 6000m	15.08
24/04/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17 details	Gegend Augsburg: 6500m	13.3
24/04/1944	Major	JG 3	B-17HSS details	10km S. München: 6500m	13.36
24/04/1944	Major	JG 3	P-51 details	Raum München: 6500m	13.45
07/07/1944	Major	JG 300	B-24 details	N. Quedlinbürg Kr. Sachsen: 6000m	9.45
15/08/1944	Major	JG 300	B-17 details	PO-QO: 6500m [Raum Daun-Kyllberg]	11.45
15/08/1944	Major	JG 300	B-17 details	PP-PO-QO: 6500m [Raum Koblenz]	11.46
11/09/1944	Major	JG 300	B-17 details	LD-KD-KE-LE: 7000m [Halle-Leipzig]	11.55
11/09/1944	Major	JG 300	B-17 details	LD-MD-KC-KD: 7000m [W. Halle]	12.05
28/09/1944	Major	JG 300	B-17 details	HB-HA: 7900m [Raum Wofenbüttel]	12.45
06/10/1944	Major	JG 300	B-17 details	FF-FG-GF: 8000m: [Naunen-Brandenburg]	12.05
27/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	La-7 details	-	-
28/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	Il-2 details	-	-
29/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	Il-2 details	-	-
29/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	La-7 details	-	-
30/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	B-17 details	-	-
30/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	P-51 details	-	-
31/01/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	P-51 details	-	-
04/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	P-38 details	-	-
20/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	La-7 details	-	-
21/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	Il-2 details	-	-
21/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger	Il-2 details	-	-
28/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger		-	-
28/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger		-	-
28/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger		-	-
28/02/1945	Oberst	Insp.der Tagjäger		-	-
27/03/1945	Oberst	EJG 2	P-47 details	-	-
27/03/1945	Oberst	EJG 2	P-47 details	-	-
26/04/1945	Oberst	EJG 2	P-51 details	Raum Dillingen	-

Aircraft for : Walter Dahl
A list of all aircraft associated with Walter Dahl. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name.
Aircraft	Info
Me109 Click the name above to see prints featuring Me109 aircraft. Manufacturer : Messerschmitt Production Began : 1937 Retired : 1945 Number Built : 33984	Me109 Willy Messerschmitt designed the BF109 during the early 1930s. The Bf109 was one of the first all metal monocoque construction fighters with a closed canopy and retractable undercarriage. The engine of the Me109 was a V12 aero engine which was liquid-cooled. The Bf109 first saw operational service during the Spanish Civil War and flew to the end of World War II, during which time it was the backbone of the Luftwaffe fighter squadrons. During the Battle of Britian the Bf109 was used in the role of an escort fighter, a role for which it was not designed for, and it was also used as a fighter bomber. During the last days of May 1940 Robert Stanford-Tuck, the RAF ace, got the chance to fly an Me109 which they had rebuilt after it had crash landed. Stanford-Tuck found out that the Me109 was a wonderful little plane, it was slightly faster than the Spitfire, but lacked the Spitfire manoeuvrability. By testing the Me109, Tuck could put himself inside the Me109 when fighting them, knowing its weak and strong points. With the introduction of the improved Bf109F in the spring of 1941, the type again proved to be an effective fighter during the invasion of Yugoslavia and during the Battle of Crete and the invasion of Russia and it was used during the Siege of the Mediteranean island of Malta. The Bf109 was the main fighter for the Luftwaffe until 1942 when the Fw190 entered service and shared this position, and was partially replaced in Western Europe, but the Me109 continued to serve on the Eastern Front and during the defence of the Reich against the allied bombers. It was also used to good effect in the Mediterranean and North Africa in support of The Africa Korps. The Me109 was also supplied to several German allies, including Finland, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Slovakia. The Bf109 scored more kills than any other fighter of any country during the war and was built in greater numbers with a total of over 31,000 aircraft being built. The Bf109 was flown by the three top German aces of the war war. Erich Hartmann with 352 victories, Gerhard Barkhorn with 301 victories and Gunther Rall with 275 kills. Bf109 pilots were credited with the destruction of 100 or more enemy aircraft. Thirteen Luftwaffe Aces scored more than 200 kills. Altogether this group of pilots were credited with a total of nearly 15,000 kills, of which the Messerschmitt Bf109 was credited with over 10,000 of these victories. The Bf109 was the most produced warplane during World War II, with 30,573 examples built during the war, and the most produced fighter aircraft in history, with a total of 33,984 units produced up to April 1945. Bf109s remained in foreign service for many years after World War II. The Swiss used their Bf109Gs well into the 1950s. The Finnish Air Force did not retire their Bf109Gs until March 1954. Romania used its Bf109s until 1955. The Spanish Hispanos flew even longer. Some were still in service in the late 1960s.
Me262 Click the name above to see prints featuring Me262 aircraft. Manufacturer : Messerschmitt Number Built : 1400	Me262 The Messerschmitt Me-262 Swallow, a masterpiece of engineering, was the first operational mass-produced jet to see service. Prototype testing of the airframe commenced in 1941 utilizing a piston engine. General Adolf Galland, who was in charge of the German Fighter Forces at that time, pressured both Goring and Hitler to accelerate the Me-262, and stress its use as a fighter to defend Germany from Allied bombers. Hitler, however, envisioned the 262 as the aircraft which might allow him to inflict punishment on Britain. About 1400 Swallows were produced, but fortunately for the Allies, only about 300 saw combat duty. While the original plans for the 262 presumed the use of BMW jet engines, production Swallows were ultimately equipped with Jumo 004B turbojet engines. The wing design of the 262 necessitated the unique triangular hull section of the fuselage, giving the aircraft a shark-like appearance. With an 18 degree swept wing, the 262 was capable of Mach .86. The 262 was totally ineffective in a turning duel with Allied fighters, and was also vulnerable to attack during take off and landings. The landing gear was also suspect, and many 262s were destroyed or damaged due to landing gear failure. Despite its sleek jet-age appearance, the 262 was roughly manufactured, because Germany had lost access to its normal aircraft assembly plants. In spite of these drawbacks the 262 was effective. For example, on April 7, 1945 a force of sixty 262s took on a large force of Allied bombers with escort fighters. Armed with their four nose-mounted cannons, and underwing rockets the Swallows succeeded in downing or damaging 25 Allied B-17s on that single mission. While it is unlikely that the outcome of the War could have been altered by an earlier introduction or greater production totals for this aircraft, it is clear to many historians that the duration of the War might have been drastically lengthened if the Me-262 had not been too little too late.