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Rudolf Sinner

Name : Rudolf Sinner Born : 1915 Air Victories : 39.00

Scored 2 of his victories in the Me262 jet. Rudolf “Rudi� Sinner was born in 1915 in Austria. In 1936, he was serving in the Austrian Army in the horsedrawn artillery. During the invasion of Poland, he served with an anti-aircraft artillery unit before transferring to the Luftwaffe in 1940. Sinner began his aerial combat career with JG 3, based on the Western front, but was then transferred to JG 27 serving in North Africa. He was assigned to 2./JG 27. It was with JG 27 that Sinner gained his greatest successes. He claimed his first victory on 12 October 1941, when he shot down a RAF P-40 fighter near Sidi Omar. On 4 June 1942, Sinner was appointed Staffelkapitän of 6./JG 27. On 10 June, Oberleutnant Sinner was shot down near Bir Hacheim by the British Ace, Charles Overton (5.5 confirmed, 1 probable and 0.5 damaged victories), flying a Spitfire Vb fighter of 145 Squadron, RAF. Then, on 24 June, Sinner’s aircraft was hit in the engine during combat with RAF Hurricane fighters and he was forced to make a forced-landing. On 10 July, he shot down a Hurricane fighter with only one of his 7.92mm MG 17 machine-guns functioning. Sinner recorded his 10th victory on 13 July and his 20th on 24 July. On 31 August, Sinner shot down a Hurricane near Alam el Haifa. His victim was South African Ace, John “Harry� Gaynor (5.5 destroyed and 6 damaged victories) of 1 Sqn, SAAF, who crash-landed unhurt. He claimed his 30th victory on 3 September. In June 1943, Hauptmann Sinner was appointed Gruppenkommandeur IV./JG 27 then based at Kalamaki, Greece. However, his stay with the unit was destined to brief. On 30 July 1943, Sinner was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of IV./JG 54, based on the Russian front, taking over from Hauptmann Erich Rudorffer (224 victories, RK-S). Sinner led the Gruppe until 10 February 1944. He added three further victories to his victory total during his time with the unit. In March 1944, Hauptmann Sinner became Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 54 located on the Western front. On 6 March 1944, Sinner shot down a USAAF B-17 four-engine bomber for his 36th victory. However, his aircraft was hit by the bombers’ defensive fire and Sinner was badly wounded. He successfully baled out of his stricken Bf 109 G-6 (W.Nr. 410 557) "2". By 12 June 1944, Sinner was again serving with JG 27, based on the Invasion front in France, in command of I. Gruppe. He was to lead the Gruppe until 1 August 1944. On 1 January 1945, Major Sinner was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 7 flying Me 262 jet fighters. At this time his victory total stood at 36, including 32 victories achieved over North Africa. Sinner was to add three confirmed victories to his tally flying the jet, including two USAAF B-24 four-engine bombers near Rathenow on 3 March. On 4 April, Sinner led seven other Me 262s off from Rechlin. Emerging from the clouds shortly after take-off, the flight was bounced by P-51 fighters of the 339th Fighter Group, USAAF. In the ensuing combat “Rudi� Sinner’s aircraft was hit. With his face and hands badly burned, he baled out at low level. His parachute deployed at the last moment, but did not completely fill, and he was hanging by just the left strap when he hit the ground heavily in a ploughed field and dragged into a barbed wire fence. He reported that the P-51s then attempted to strafe him, but he feigned death and, as the P-51 fighters departed, he made his way to the safety of a deep furrow. Sinner’s wounds were serious enough to keep him out of the rest of war. Rudolf Sinner was credited with 39 victories in 305 missions. 36 of his victories were achieved over the Western front, including three four-engine bombers and three flying the Me 262 jet fighter. Three victories were achieved over the Eastern front. He was shot down 12 times, baling out on three occasions, and was wounded five times.

Known Victory Claims :
Date	Rank	Squadron	Claimed	Location	Time	Aircraft Flown	Notes
12/10/1941	Ltn.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	Sidi Omar	9.05	Me109	12.10.1941 9:05 P-40 2./JG 27 Sidi Omar Tomahawk IIb (AN355) of 3 Sqn, RAAF flown by Sgt TD Parker, baled out
12/10/1941		JG27	Tomahawk details	Sidi Omar , North Africa	9.05	Me109	Tomahawk IIb (AN355) of 3 Sqn, RAAF flown by Sgt TD Parker, baled out
17/12/1941	Ltn.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	SE Martuba	11.1	Me109	Hurricane of 1 Sqn, SAAF flown by Lt M MacRobert
13/02/1942	Ltn.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	ESE Tobruk	9.23
23/02/1942	Ltn.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	NE Fort Acroma [SE Umm-er-Rzem]	15.23
23/02/1942	Ltn.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	SE Umm-er-Rzem	15.25
30/05/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	Bir-el-Harmat	14.05
24/06/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane IIc details	20km S. Bir el Tholata	10
26/06/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane IIc details	SE Marsa-Matruh	18.4
10/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane IIc details	SW El-Alamein	6.15
13/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	ENE El-Dakar	12.25
17/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Spitfire details	El-Dakar	6.37
17/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	Haggag-el-Quasaba	13.22
17/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	S. Haggag-el-Quasaba	13.27
19/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	Bir-el-Themta	9.15
19/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	S. El-Alamein	9.19
20/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	3km SE Bir-el-Khasa	11.19
21/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	N. Bir-el-Harmat	18.09
21/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	SW El-Alamein	18.16
24/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	S. Bir-el-Abd	9.4
24/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	S. Deir-el-Raghil	17.19
28/07/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	3km E. Deir-el-Taqa	18.25
03/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	SE El-Daba	17.55
03/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane II details	Bir Ibrahim	18
14/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	5km NW El Alamein: 2000m	6.3
14/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 o.Zg. details	NW El Alamein	6.25
27/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane details	5km NE Kharita: 2000m	14.1
31/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Hurricane details	3km NW Deir-el-Raghil: 2000m	10.3
31/08/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Spitfire details	15km S. Imayid: 6500m	18.3
01/09/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	15km ENE Deir-el-Taqa: 3500m	6.59
01/09/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	E. Deir-el-Taqa	7.01
03/09/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Curtiss P-40 details	S. El-Hammam	14.25
03/09/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Spitfire details	3km S. Bir-Ibrahim: 5500m	14.35		V
06/09/1942	Oblt.	JG 27	Airacobra details	S. Bir-El-Imayid	17.25
11/10/1943	Hptm.	JG 54	LaGG-3 details	06 263: 800m [NE Ussvyati]	15.08
18/10/1943	Hptm.	JG 54	Curtiss P-40 details	00 441 [SE Pushkin]: 2000m	10.04
27/10/1943	Hptm.	JG 54	La-5 details	10 714: 2000m	13.45
06/03/1944	Hptm.	JG 54	B-17 details	FQ-3 to FR-2: 6000m [Essen-Vechta]	12.06
26/11/1944	Major	JG 7	P-38 details	FB-6: 2500m	13.1
03/03/1945	Major	JG 7	B-24 details	bei Rathenow	-
07/03/1945	Major	JG 7	P-51 details	SW Berlin	-

Aircraft for : Rudolf Sinner
A list of all aircraft associated with Rudolf Sinner. 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.