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JG51

Name : JG51 Founded : August 1939 Country : Germany

Jagdgeschwader 51 Mölders was a Luftwaffe fighter wing during World War II, named after the fighter ace Werner Mölders in 1942. JG 51's pilots won more Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes than any other Jagdgeschwader, and flew combat from 1939 in all major theatres of war. Flying Bf 109s and then FW 190s, the wing claimed over 8,000 air victories. Experten included 'Toni' Hafner, Heinz Bär, Richard Leppla, Karl-Gottfried Nordmann, Günther Schack and the legendary Mölders. Formed in August 1939, and commanded by 48-year-old World War I ace Onkel Theo Osterkamp, the early months of the war JG 51 was based in the West, fighting in the French campaign, and in the Battle of Britain. From late June to mid July JG 51 was the only fighter Geschwader engaged against the RAF constantly. During the whole battle JG 51 lost 68 pilots, the highest casualty rate of the Luftwaffe fighter units engaged. JG 51 was one of the two Geschewader that had four Gruppen. The other being JG 1. Four Bf 109 of JG 51 in France 1940Whilst based out of the Belgian airfield at Mardyik in late 1940, the German ace Josef "Pips" Priller was a Staffelkapitän with JG 51, flying Bf 109-E "Yellow One". Josef Priller went on to score over 100 victories, the third highest scoring Luftwaffe day fighter ace on the Western Front, fighting solely against the Western Allies. Against the Western Allies JG 51 had claimed 345 aircraft destroyed by May 1941. JG 51 were therefore one of the Jagdwaffe's elite units, with 'top ten' aces at this time including Werner Mölders with 68 claims, Walter Oesau with 34 claims, and Hermann-Friedrich Joppien with 31. Major Werner Mölders became unit Geschwaderkommodore during July 1940 and led the unit into the invasion of Russia in June 1941. Barbarossa (1941) Claiming 69 kills on the first day of the offensive, by 30 June 1941 JG 51 became the first fighter Geschwader to claim 1,000 air victories (113 kills in 157 sorties were claimed for the day). On 24 June JG 51 claimed 57 bombers shot down for the day. Mölders became the first fighter pilot to reach 100 claims in August and in the same month JG 51's Oberfeldwebel Heinz Bär reached 60 claims and was decorated with the Oak Leaves. A total of 500 Soviet claims was reached on 12 July 1941, although 6 pilots had been lost by JG 51 in the intervening 3 weeks since the offensive had started. After Mölders' departure in September 1941 (and death later that year) the Geschwader adopted his name as a title of honor in early 1942. Jagdgeschwader 51 Mölders was to remain on the centre sector of the Russian front throughout the rest of 1941. However Oberstleutnant Friedrich Beckh ( one of the few fighter pilots to wear spectacles) proved an uncharismatic commander after Mölders, and it was not until Major Karl-Gottfried Nordmann took over in April 1942 that a worthy successor to Mölders was found. In the period 22 June - 5 December 1941 the unit destroyed 1,881 Soviet aircraft, in return for 84 losses in aerial combat and a single aircraft on the ground. Air support for the Wehrmacht's Army Group Centre was entrusted to General Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen's VIII. Fliegerkorps. In early January 1942, among the fighter units available to von Richthofen were II, III and IV/ JG 51. With the onset of the sub-zero conditions of the Russian winter, the majority of JG 51's available aircraft became grounded. The Russian winter counter offensive forced III./ JG 51 into flying numerous fighter-bomber operations in direct support of the infantry, and the gruppe filed few aerial 'kill' claims through January 1942. II./ JG 51 however, accounted for most of VIII. Fliegerkorps's aerial victories during the Soviet offensive. Particularly successful was the duo of Lt. Hans Strelow and Ofw. Wilhelm Mink, both of 5. JG 51. They claimed five MiG-3s of 16 IAP on 4 January (Mink claimed three) and 9 days later Mink claimed a Pe-2 and Strelow destroyed two R-Z biplanes for his 30th and 31st victories. On 4 February, Strelow increased his victories to 36 by shooting down four Russian aircraft. The 19 year-old Strelow claimed his 40th victory on 28 February and claimed 4 victories on both 6 March and 17 March. The next day he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes and also shot down seven Soviet aircraft. He was awarded the Eichenlaub on 24 March, his claims total at 66. Normandy (1944) 7./JG 51, (with Bf 109G-6's) was attached to II./JG 1 in May 1944 from Brest-Litovsk, with pilots arriving at Störmede late in May and hurriedly converting to the FW-190. (It was later renamed 8./JG 1 on 15 August 1944 when the four-Staffeln Gruppe became standard) 7. Staffel was led by Ritterkreuzträger (Knight's Cross winner) Hptm. Karl-Heinz Weber with 136 confirmed kills. Its two other experten were Lt. Friedrich Krakowitzer (23 kills) and Ofhr. Günther Heckmann with 12 kills. 7./JG 51 joined II. Gruppe with 15 pilots on strength at the end of May, and during the first two months of the Normandy campaign the staffel was decimated, with twelve pilots killed, one POW and one severely wounded. As the war turned against Germany JG 51 was forced to operate closer and closer to Germany, finally staging out of East Prussia.

Known Service Details :
Pilot or Aircrew	Rank	Start of Service	End of Service	Known Dates	Aircraft	Airframes	Notes
Albrecht	Oberfeldwebel	unknown	unknown	22nd August 1942 10th December 1942
Javier Allende-Isasi	Oberleutnant	unknown	unknown	18th July 1942
Antonio Alos	Hauptmann	unknown	unknown	09th March 1943
Erich Alt	Unteroffizier	unknown	unknown	17th December 1942 05th August 1943
Fritz Andreaus	Feldwebel	unknown	unknown	27th January 1944
Damaso Arango	Oberleutnant	unknown	unknown	18th July 1942 29th October 1943
Elmar Arensmeyer	Unteroffizier	unknown	unknown	13th October 1944 25th October 1944
Bach	Unteroffizier	unknown	unknown	16th September 1944
Heinz Bar	Leutnant	unknown	unknown	25th September 1939 07th December 1941
Franz Barten	Oberfeldwebel	unknown	unknown	15th April 1941 05th August 1942
Franz Barten	Leutnant	unknown	unknown	08th April 1943
Adolf Borchers	Hauptmann	unknown	unknown	05th March 1941 28th May 1944
Rafael Calleja	Oberleutnant	unknown	unknown	09th March 1943 08th June 1943
Karl Führing	Oberleutnant	unknown	unknown	26th April 1941 12th July 1941
Heinz-Günter Flesichhacker	Oberfeldwebel	unknown	unknown	04th December 1941 21st January 1942
Bernd Gallowitsch	Leutnant	unknown	unknown	06th May 1941 15th December 1941
Heinrich Hoffmann	Oberfeldwebel	unknown	3rd October 1941	23rd June 1941			Killed in Action
Gunther Josten	Oberfeldwebel	August 1942	October 1943	20th September 1943
Gunther Josten	Oberleutnant	3rd February 1944	unknown	25th April 1945
Harald Jung	Hauptmann	unknown	unknown	30th July 1943
Heinz Lange		unknown	unknown
Heinz Leber	Leutnant	unknown	1st June 1943				Killed in Action
Heinz Marquardt	Fahnenjunker-Oberfeldwebel	August 1943	unknown	01st May 1945
H Petschler	Feldwebel	unknown	4th May 1945		Me109	0130297
Oskar Romm		unknown	unknown
Karl-Heinz Schnell		unknown	unknown
Otto Schultz		unknown	unknown
Gerhard Schwarz	Unteroffizier	unknown	21st June 1943				Killed in Action
Hubert Strassl	Unteroffizier	unknown	8th July 1943				Killed in Action
Otto Tange	Leutnant	unknown	30th July 1943				Killed in Action
Kurt Tanzer	Oberfeldwebel	unknown	6th May 1943	18th March 1942	Fw190	7161	Wounded
Kurt Tanzer	Oberfeldwebel	4th November 1943	June 1944
Bernhard Vechtel	Oberleutnant	unknown	unknown	02nd August 1942 25th March 1945
W Wagler	Hauptmann	unknown	24th April 1945		Me109	0490137	Deserted

Pilots and Aircrew for : JG51
A list of all aircrew from our database who are associated with this squadron. A profile page is available by clicking their name.
Name	Info
Albrecht, Click the name above to see a profile of Albrecht,	Albrecht,
Allende-Isasi, Javier Click the name above to see a profile of Allende-Isasi, Javier	Allende-Isasi, Javier
Alos, Antonio Click the name above to see a profile of Alos, Antonio	Alos, Antonio
Alt, Erich Click the name above to see a profile of Alt, Erich	Alt, Erich
Andreaus, Fritz Click the name above to see a profile of Andreaus, Fritz	Andreaus, Fritz
Arango, Damaso Click the name above to see a profile of Arango, Damaso	Arango, Damaso
Arensmeyer, Elmar Click the name above to see a profile of Arensmeyer, Elmar	Arensmeyer, Elmar
Bach, Click the name above to see a profile of Bach,	Bach,
Balfanz, Wilfried Click the name above to see a profile of Balfanz, Wilfried    Died : 24 / 6 / 1941	Balfanz, Wilfried
Bar, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Bar, Heinz    Died : 28 / 4 / 1957	Bar, Heinz Lieutenant Colonel Oskar-Heinz Heinrich "Pritzl" Bär born 25 May 1913 was a German Luftwaffe flying ace who served throughout World War II in Europe. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He flew over a thousand combat missions, and fought in all major German theatres of the war, including the Western, Eastern and Mediterranean fronts. On 18 occasions he survived being shot down, and he was credited with 220 aerial victories. Heinz Bär, a Saxon with a strong accent, joined the Reichswehr in 1934 and transferred to the Luftwaffe in 1935. Serving first as a mechanic, then as a pilot on transport aircraft, he was informally trained as a fighter pilot. He claimed his first aerial victory in September 1939 on the French border. By the end of the Battle of Britain, his tally of victories had increased to 17. Transferred to the Eastern front to participate in Operation Barbarossa, he quickly accumulated further victories, a feat that earned him the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords for 90 aerial victories in February 1942. During the remainder of World War II, Heinz Bär was credited with 130 other aerial victories, including 16 while flying one of the first jet fighters, the Me 262, an achievement which would normally have earned him the coveted Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds However, Hermann Göring's personal dislike of Bär, coupled with Bär's insubordinate character and lack of military discipline, deprived him of this award. After World War II, Bär continued his career as an aviator and was killed in a flying accident on 28 April 1957 near Braunschweig.
Bareuther, Herbert Click the name above to see a profile of Bareuther, Herbert    Died : 30 / 4 / 1945	Bareuther, Herbert
Barten, Franz Click the name above to see a profile of Barten, Franz    Died : 4 / 8 / 1944	Barten, Franz
Barz, Erich Click the name above to see a profile of Barz, Erich	Barz, Erich
Beckh, Friedrich Click the name above to see a profile of Beckh, Friedrich    Died : 21 / 6 / 1942	Beckh, Friedrich
Beerenbrock, Franz-Josef Click the name above to see a profile of Beerenbrock, Franz-Josef    Died : 13 / 12 / 2004	Beerenbrock, Franz-Josef Born in 1920, Franz-Josef Beerenbrock trained as a pilot in 1939, joining JG51 on the eastern front in March 1941. With 46 victories, he was awarded the Knights Cross on 6th October 1941. By the beginning of August 1942, he was the most successful pilot in JG51, with a total of 102 victories. However, he was himself shot down on 9th November 1943, and was captured. With a final score of 117 victories, he was not repatriated until 1949.
Bob, Hans-Ekkehard Click the name above to see a profile of Bob, Hans-Ekkehard    Died : 12 / 8 / 2013	Bob, Hans-Ekkehard After success in the Battle of Britain, Hans-Ekkehard Bob took over leadership of 9./JG54 in 1940. The following year he was awarded the Knight's Cross. Transferring to the Eastern Front his victories rose steadily to 50 by September 1942. His Group later transferred back to the West for a short period, where in April 1943, he rammed a B-17 Fortress. Returning to the Eastern Front as Kommander of IV./JG3, he ended the war as Adjutant of Galland's JV44 in the West. In his 700 missions he scored 60 victories.
Borchers, Adolf Click the name above to see a profile of Borchers, Adolf    Died : 9 / 2 / 1996	Borchers, Adolf Adolf Borchers was born on 10th February 1913 in Wendhausen near Lunesburg. In the autumn of 1938 he was in the Legion Condor. He was transferred to JG51 where he flew in the Polish and Western campaign and in the Battle of Britain, during which he scored five victories. By the end of 1941 his score stood at 23. In October 1942 he was promoted to Officer and named squadron leader of 11./JG51. By the end of 1942 his score stood at 38. On 7th May 1943 he scored his 44th to 49th victories. A short time later he was awarded the Knights Cross for 78 victories. He was then neamd Commander of 1./JG52 on 11th June 1944 and on 24th July that year he scored his 110th victory. His 118th victory came on 2nd September, the same time the 10,000th victory of JG52 was recorded. Ercih Hartmann took over 1./JG52 on 1st February 1945 and Borchers was appointed Commander of iii./JG52. He was bitterly disappointed at being replaced by this youngster and carried that resentment to the grave. Borchers flew approximately 800 missions and had 132 victories, including 5 in the west. He was the 53rd ranking ace in Germany. Adolf Borchers died 9th February 1996.
Borchers, Walter Click the name above to see a profile of Borchers, Walter    Died : 16 / 3 / 1945	Borchers, Walter
Bowing-Treuding, Wolfgang Click the name above to see a profile of Bowing-Treuding, Wolfgang    Died : 11 / 1 / 1943	Bowing-Treuding, Wolfgang
Brendel, Joachim Click the name above to see a profile of Brendel, Joachim    Died : 7 / 7 / 1974	Brendel, Joachim Joachim Brendel was born in April 27, 1921 in Ulrichshalben near Weimar. Brendel began his combat career in 1941 as a Leutnant and Rottenflieger with I./JG 51 on the Russian front. On only his fourth mission he scored his first victory, but had to wait until 31 March 1942 flying another 116 missions to score again. The beginning of 1943 saw a marked change in Brendels performance, by February he had 20 kills to his credit, on the July 9, 1943 he scored his 50th victory. After his 95th victory he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and on the October 16, 1944 he achieved his 150th victory which earning him the Oak Leaves to the Knight' Cross on 14 January 1945 by this time his score stood at 156 kills. By now he had been promoted to the rank of Hauptmann and was Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 51. His final victory came on the April 25, 1945. Joachim Brendel finished the War with 189 victories and emerged as JG 51 highest scorer on the Eastern Front, including over 90 heavily armored Ilyushin Sturmoviks. He died on July 7, 1974 in Cologne.
Brunotte, Erich Click the name above to see a profile of Brunotte, Erich	Brunotte, Erich Born in 1923, Erich Brunotte joined the Luftwaffe and started immediate pilot training in June 1941. He flew on the Eastern Front with 1./Gruppe Nauhaufklarungs Geschwader 102, and later transferred to fly with IV./Jagdgeswader 51 Molders, in the 13th Staffel. Promoted to Unteroffizier in December 1944, and Feldwebel in April 1945, he flew most marks of the Bf109, and the Fw190. His very last combat mission was in the Fw Dora 9 on 3rd May 1945 at Flensburg in northen Germany.
Busse, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Busse, Heinz	Busse, Heinz
Buttner, Johannes Click the name above to see a profile of Buttner, Johannes	Buttner, Johannes
Calleja, Rafael Click the name above to see a profile of Calleja, Rafael	Calleja, Rafael
Claus, Georg Click the name above to see a profile of Claus, Georg	Claus, Georg
Dau, Arthur Click the name above to see a profile of Dau, Arthur	Dau, Arthur
Dittlmann, Heinrich Click the name above to see a profile of Dittlmann, Heinrich    Died : 23 / 2 / 1944	Dittlmann, Heinrich
Dombacher, Kurt Click the name above to see a profile of Dombacher, Kurt	Dombacher, Kurt
Eberle, Friedrich Click the name above to see a profile of Eberle, Friedrich	Eberle, Friedrich
Eder, Georg-Peter Click the name above to see a profile of Eder, Georg-Peter    Died : 11 / 3 / 1986	Eder, Georg-Peter
Eichel-Streiber, Diethelm Click the name above to see a profile of Eichel-Streiber, Diethelm    Died : 13 / 5 / 1996	Eichel-Streiber, Diethelm
Falkensamer, Egon Click the name above to see a profile of Falkensamer, Egon	Falkensamer, Egon
Fassong, Horst-Günther von Click the name above to see a profile of Fassong, Horst-Günther von    Died : 1 / 1 / 1945	Fassong, Horst-Günther von Hauptmann Horst-Günther von Fassong (born 27 April 1919 in Kassel – MIA 1 January 1945) was German World War II Luftwaffe 136 victories Flying ace. He participated in Operation Bodenplatte and was last seen on 1 January 1945 engaged in aerial combat near Maastricht. Place of birth Kassel Place of death near Maastricht, Netherlands Allegiance Nazi Germany Service/branch Heer, Luftwaffe Rank Hauptmann Unit JG 51, JG 11 Commands held 10./JG 51, III./JG 11 Battles/wars World War II Operation Bodenplatte Awards Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Führing, Karl Click the name above to see a profile of Führing, Karl	Führing, Karl
Fleig, Erwin Click the name above to see a profile of Fleig, Erwin    Died : 1986	Fleig, Erwin
Flesichhacker, Heinz-Günter Click the name above to see a profile of Flesichhacker, Heinz-Günter    Died : 24 / 2 / 1942	Flesichhacker, Heinz-Günter
Fozo, Josef Click the name above to see a profile of Fozo, Josef	Fozo, Josef
Friebel, Herbert Click the name above to see a profile of Friebel, Herbert    Died : 15 / 5 / 1944	Friebel, Herbert
Fuchs, Robert Click the name above to see a profile of Fuchs, Robert    Died : 22 / 10 / 1941	Fuchs, Robert
Furch, Ralph Click the name above to see a profile of Furch, Ralph    Died : 22 / 1 / 1943	Furch, Ralph Missing in action 22nd January 1943
Gabl, Josef Click the name above to see a profile of Gabl, Josef	Gabl, Josef
Gaiser, Otto Click the name above to see a profile of Gaiser, Otto    Died : 22 / 1 / 1944	Gaiser, Otto
Gallowitsch, Bernd Click the name above to see a profile of Gallowitsch, Bernd	Gallowitsch, Bernd
Gasthaus, Wilhelm Click the name above to see a profile of Gasthaus, Wilhelm	Gasthaus, Wilhelm
Gerlitz, Erich Click the name above to see a profile of Gerlitz, Erich	Gerlitz, Erich
Graf, Hermann Click the name above to see a profile of Graf, Hermann    Died : 11 / 4 / 1988	Graf, Hermann Hermann Graf, born in October 1912, trained to be a pilot from 1936, and in the summer of 1939 joined 2./JG51. With 9./JG52, Graf was transferred around several European stations, including Greece and Romania, eventually transferring to the Ukraine in August 1941. Claiming his first victory in August 1941, by early 1942 he had scored 45 victories, earning him the Knights Cross on 24th January 1942. Rapidly adding to his victories on the eastern front, Hermann Graf became the first pilot to score over 200 victories, earning the Oak Leaves, Sword and Diamonds to his Knights Cross on 17th May, 19th May and 16th September 1942 respectively. Due to the potential morale loss should such a high scoring Ace be shot down, he was subsequently moved to command a pilot training unit. He was injured after a collision with an American fighter in March 1944, recovering to take command of JG52 once again. finally surrendering his unit in May 1945. His total was 212 victories. Hermann Graf died 11th April 1988.
Grasser, Hartmann Click the name above to see a profile of Grasser, Hartmann    Died : 2 / 6 / 1986	Grasser, Hartmann
Haase, Horst Click the name above to see a profile of Haase, Horst    Died : 26 / 11 / 1944	Haase, Horst
Hachfeld, Wilhelm Click the name above to see a profile of Hachfeld, Wilhelm    Died : 2 / 12 / 1942	Hachfeld, Wilhelm
Hacker, Joachim Click the name above to see a profile of Hacker, Joachim    Died : 13 / 10 / 1941	Hacker, Joachim
Hafner, Anton Click the name above to see a profile of Hafner, Anton    Died : 17 / 10 / 1944	Hafner, Anton Oberleutnant Anton "Toni" Hafner was born 2 June 1918 in Erbach an der Donau. Anton was killed in action 17 October 1944 on the Eastern front. He was a German former Luftwaffe fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves during World War II. On 18 December 1942 Hafner was on a bomber intercept mission. While approaching the bomber formation they engaged the escorting P-38 Lightning fighter escort. In the ensuing dog fight Hafner flamed the left engine of a P-38. The pilot, Norman L. Widen, bailed out and was taken prisoner of war and brought to Hafner's airfield. After Hafner landed, Widen presented Hafner his silver pilot insignia. Before Widen was taken to the POW camp, Hafner and Widen promised to meet again after the war. Hafner sent the gift to his brother, Alfons Hafner, with the request to return the gifts together with a medal and picture of Anton Hafner in case of Anton Hafner getting killed in action. In 1960 Alfons Hafner managed to contact Major Widen via the US Air Force to fulfil his brother's will. On 16 October 1944, Hafner destroyed four fighters thus taking him past the double century mark. Hafner's 204th and last victory was a Russian Yak-7 fighter on 17 October 1944. However, during the dogfight his plane hit a tree. His Bf 109 G-6 "Black 1" crashed killing Hafner, the highest scoring pilot of JG 51 "Mölders". Anton Hafner was credited with 204 victories in 795 combat missions. He claimed 184 victories over the Eastern Front. Of his 20 victories claimed over the Western front, eight were P-38 two engine fighters. Among his claims are 55 Il-2 Sturmoviks. Victories : 204 Awards : Ehrenpokal (27 April 1942), Deutsches Kreuz in Gold (22 May 1942), Ritterkreuz (23 August 1942), Eichenlaub (11 April 1944) Units : JG 51
Hamer, Joachim Click the name above to see a profile of Hamer, Joachim	Hamer, Joachim
Heckmann, Gunther Click the name above to see a profile of Heckmann, Gunther	Heckmann, Gunther
Heimann, Friedrich Click the name above to see a profile of Heimann, Friedrich	Heimann, Friedrich
Hofemeier, Heinrich Click the name above to see a profile of Hofemeier, Heinrich    Died : 7 / 8 / 1943	Hofemeier, Heinrich
Hoffmann, Gerhard Click the name above to see a profile of Hoffmann, Gerhard    Died : 11 / 4 / 1945	Hoffmann, Gerhard Gerhard Hoffmann was a Luftwaffe flying ace of World War II. Hoffmann was credited with 130 aerial victories. Unteroffizier Hoffmann was transferred to the 4./Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52) in June 1942 on the Eastern front. His first streak of success was achieved in April and May 1943 over the Cuban bridgehead where he claimed his 42nd aerial victory on 30 May 1943. He was wounded on 25 September 1943 and claimed his century mark in the middle of March 1944 over the Crimea. His victory tally stood at 125 when he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 14 May 1944. He was transferred to the Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe West at the end of April 1944 as a fighter pilot instructor and promoted to Leutnant. He was put in command of the 4./Ergänzungs-Jagdgeschwader 1 (EJG 1). He claimed 4 aerial victories in March 1945 at the Oder front with this Staffel and was made Staffelkapitän of the 11./JG 52. He shuttling an aircraft to Breslau on 11 April 1945. On this flight he crashed and was killed. The reasons for this crash remain unanswered.
Hoffmann, Heinrich Click the name above to see a profile of Hoffmann, Heinrich    Died : 3 / 10 / 1941	Hoffmann, Heinrich
Hohagen, Erich Click the name above to see a profile of Hohagen, Erich    Died : 8 / 3 / 1990	Hohagen, Erich
Hubner, Werner Click the name above to see a profile of Hubner, Werner    Died : 12 / 4 / 1941	Hubner, Werner
Hubner, Wilhelm Click the name above to see a profile of Hubner, Wilhelm    Died : 7 / 4 / 1945	Hubner, Wilhelm
Huppertz, Herbert Click the name above to see a profile of Huppertz, Herbert    Died : 8 / 6 / 1944	Huppertz, Herbert
Jennewein, Josef Click the name above to see a profile of Jennewein, Josef    Died : 27 / 7 / 1942	Jennewein, Josef Born 21st November 1919. Scored a total of 86 victories, including 5 on the western front, and 5 in a single day in May 1943. He force landed his aircraft behind Russian lines and was never seen again. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross.
John, Hans Click the name above to see a profile of John, Hans    Died : 28 / 10 / 1940	John, Hans
Joppien, Hermann-Friedrich Click the name above to see a profile of Joppien, Hermann-Friedrich    Died : 28 / 8 / 1941	Joppien, Hermann-Friedrich
Josten, Gunther Click the name above to see a profile of Josten, Gunther    Died : 7 / 7 / 2004	Josten, Gunther Oberleutnant Günther Josten born 7 November 1921 - died 7 July 2004 aged 82, was a German former Luftwaffe fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves[1] during World War II. He was born in Rhynern, in the city of Hamm in the Province of Westphalia. He joined the Luftwaffe in January 1940 and was transferred to the Jagdgruppe Drontheim on November 1, 1941. At the end of August 1942 he was reassigned to 3./JG 51 on the Eastern front. On February 23, 1943 he claimed his first aerial victory. On July 10, 1943 he scored multiple times for his claims 8 to 10. Three days later on July 13 he shot down 5 Il-2 Sturmoviks for victories 12 to 16. All in all he claimed 19 victories in July and 30 in August. After a successful September with 26 victories he was transferred to Luftkriegsschule Fürstenfeldbruck. He returned to his Staffel on February 3, 1944. Two days later he claimed two Bostons and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross as Oberfeldwebel. He claimed his 90th victory on May 2, 1944 and was promoted to Leutnant. On September 18, 1944 he took command of his 3./JG 51. On September 20 he reached the century mark. His 123. aerial victory was a Boeing B-17 on a supply mission to Warsaw. By October 26 his score had reached 139 claims. His 150th kill was claimed on February 16, 1945. On March 28, 1945 Oberleutnant Josten was awarded the 810th Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross for 161. aerial victories. He was promoted to Gruppenkommandeur of IV./JG 51 on April 18, 1945. His last seven aerial victories were claimed on April 25, 1945. Josten flew 420 combat missions, was never shot down, and was officially credited with shooting down 178 enemy aircraft. After World War II, Günther Josten rejoined the military service in the Bundeswehr and succeeded Erich Hartmann as Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 71. It was under his command that Jagdgeschwader 71 reequipped the Canadair Sabre with the U.S.-made Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. Oberst Josten retired on 31 March 1981. Günther had a brother, Reinhard Josten, he also served in the Jagdgeschwader 51 and was killed in action on 21 April 1942.
Jung, Harald Click the name above to see a profile of Jung, Harald	Jung, Harald
Kalden, Peter Click the name above to see a profile of Kalden, Peter	Kalden, Peter
Küken, Wilhelm Click the name above to see a profile of Küken, Wilhelm	Küken, Wilhelm
Keitel, Hans-Karl Click the name above to see a profile of Keitel, Hans-Karl    Died : 26 / 2 / 1941	Keitel, Hans-Karl
Keller, Hans Click the name above to see a profile of Keller, Hans	Keller, Hans
Klopper, Heinrich Click the name above to see a profile of Klopper, Heinrich    Died : 29 / 11 / 1943	Klopper, Heinrich
Knappe, Kurt Click the name above to see a profile of Knappe, Kurt    Died : 3 / 9 / 1943	Knappe, Kurt
Knauth, Johann Click the name above to see a profile of Knauth, Johann	Knauth, Johann
Kohl, Hermann Click the name above to see a profile of Kohl, Hermann	Kohl, Hermann
Kolbow, Hans Click the name above to see a profile of Kolbow, Hans    Died : 16 / 7 / 1941	Kolbow, Hans
Krafft, Heinrich Click the name above to see a profile of Krafft, Heinrich    Died : 14 / 12 / 1942	Krafft, Heinrich
Kuhlein, Elias Click the name above to see a profile of Kuhlein, Elias	Kuhlein, Elias
Lange, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Lange, Heinz    Died : 26 / 2 / 2006	Lange, Heinz At the outbreak of war Heinz Lange was with I./JG21 scoring his first victory in October 1939. He flew 76 missions in the Battle of Britain with 8./JG54, and never lost a wingman. After flying in the Balkan campaign he took part in the invasion of Russia, scoring 7 victories during the first week. In October 1941 he was given command of 1./JG54 and in 1942 command of 3./JG51. In January 1944 Heinz Lange returned to JG54 to command 1.Gruppe and then back to JG51 where he was appointed Kommodore of JG51 Molders, leading IV./JG51 at the same time. Heinz Lange flew over 628 missions and achieved 70 victories. He was awarded the Knight's Cross. Born 2nd October 1917, died 26th February 2006.
Laskowski, Erwin Click the name above to see a profile of Laskowski, Erwin	Laskowski, Erwin
Lausch, Bernhard Click the name above to see a profile of Lausch, Bernhard    Died : 4 / 7 / 1942	Lausch, Bernhard
Leber, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Leber, Heinz    Died : 1 / 6 / 1943	Leber, Heinz
Leie, Erich Click the name above to see a profile of Leie, Erich    Died : 7 / 3 / 1945	Leie, Erich
Leppla, Richard Click the name above to see a profile of Leppla, Richard	Leppla, Richard
Liebelt, Fritz Click the name above to see a profile of Liebelt, Fritz	Liebelt, Fritz
Lignitz, Arnold Click the name above to see a profile of Lignitz, Arnold    Died : 30 / 9 / 1941	Lignitz, Arnold
Lindner, Anton Click the name above to see a profile of Lindner, Anton	Lindner, Anton
Lohoff, Helmut Click the name above to see a profile of Lohoff, Helmut    Died : 11 / 2 / 1942	Lohoff, Helmut
Losigkeit, Fritz Click the name above to see a profile of Losigkeit, Fritz    Died : 14 / 1 / 1994	Losigkeit, Fritz
Lucke, Hermann Click the name above to see a profile of Lucke, Hermann    Died : 8 / 11 / 1943	Lucke, Hermann
Luddecke, Fritz Click the name above to see a profile of Luddecke, Fritz    Died : 10 / 8 / 1944	Luddecke, Fritz
Marquardt, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Marquardt, Heinz    Died : 19 / 12 / 2003	Marquardt, Heinz In late 1941 Heinz Marquardt was with a training squadron south of Paris. In August 1943 he was posted to join IV./JG51 in Russia, achieving his first victory two months later. Shot down eight times, he once achieved twelve victories in a single day. Awarded the Knight's Cross in November 1944, he flew a total of 320 missions, and scored 121 victories. Sadly, Heinz Marquardt died 19th December 2003, aged 80.
Mayer, Leander Click the name above to see a profile of Mayer, Leander    Died : 29 / 1 / 1943	Mayer, Leander Born in 1921. On 29th of January 1943 he went missing in his Fw190 in combat with Russian aircraft in the region North of Dolgoje, Russia. He flew with 7, 8, 9 and 10./JG51.
Mayerl, Maximilian Click the name above to see a profile of Mayerl, Maximilian    Died : 11 / 2 / 2010	Mayerl, Maximilian
Mink, Wilhelm Click the name above to see a profile of Mink, Wilhelm    Died : 12 / 3 / 1945	Mink, Wilhelm Killed on 12th March 1945 when his Me109G-14 0464454 of EJG1 was shot down by an American P-51 Mustang of 339th Fighter Group and crashed near Hammerslev.
Molders, Werner Click the name above to see a profile of Molders, Werner    Died : 22 / 11 / 1941	Molders, Werner At the outbreak of WWII Werner Molders was the most successful German fighter pilot, leading 3./JG53, then III.JG53, on the Western Front. As inspirational fighter leader, he was the first Ace to achieve 20 victories, the first awarded the Knights Cross, and commanded JG51 during the Battle of Britain. With 68 victories in the West, he transferred to Russia, and in July 1941 shot down his 101st enemy aircraft, agains as the first to do so. Promoted as the first General of the Fighter Arm, on 22nd November 1941 travelling to the funeral of Ernst Udet, the plane in which he was a passenger crashed and he was killed. Molders had by then achieved 115 victories, and had been awarded the Knights Cross with Oak Leaves and Diamonds. Signature of Werner Molders on a Hoffmann card.
Moritz, Wilhelm Click the name above to see a profile of Moritz, Wilhelm	Moritz, Wilhelm
Muncheberg, Joachim Click the name above to see a profile of Muncheberg, Joachim    Died : 23 / 3 / 1943	Muncheberg, Joachim Joachim Müncheberg was born 18 December 1918 Joachim Müncheberg is credited with 135 enemy aircraft shot down claimed in over 500 combat missions. The majority of his victories were claimed over the Western front with 33 claims over the Eastern Front. Of his 102 aerial victories achieved over the Western Allies are 46 Supermarine Spitfire fighters. Malta Operations From February 1941, Müncheberg's staffel became the first Bf-109 unit to operate in the Mediterranean theatre, and from bases in Sicily the staffel was to achieve success out of all proportion to its size, with some 52 victories claimed without losing a single pilot. Müncheberg claimed almost half of these victories. Flying missions over Yugoslavia in support of the German invasion of the Balkans, he also claimed a Yugoslav 'Hawker Fury biplane' on 6 April 1941 and claimed another destroyed on the ground (Both victories were in fact Avia BH-33 biplanes). In May 1941, Müncheberg was awarded the Oak Leaves and the Italian Medaglia d'Oro and by this time had 43 victories. A 2-month spell in Libya in mid 1941 to support the Afrika Korps saw a further 5 victories claimed. In August 1941, 7./JG 26 returned to France. Müncheberg was to claim a further 35 victories (including 34 Spitfires) by June 1942. On 19 September, Müncheberg was promoted to the rank of Hauptmann and became Gruppenkommandeur of II/JG 26. On 29 April 1942 Müncheberg probably shot down and killed the Northolt Wing Leader and Polish ace Wing Commander Marian Pisarek. Russia 1942 In July 1942, Müncheberg was posted to the Eastern Front, joining Jagdgeschwader 51. On 5 September, he claimed his 100th kill. On 9 September, he was awarded the 'Swords' following his 103rd victory. Müncheberg shot down 33 victories over Russian aircraft while being shot down twice himself. North Africa Major Müncheberg was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 77, operating over North Africa and Tunisia. He added 24 victories but force-landed unhurt in his Bf 109-G2 after combat with RAF Kittyhawk fighters on 10 December 1942. In the spring of 1943 Müncheberg became the second German fighter pilot to achieve 100 aerial victories over Anglo-American adversaries. Müncheberg was killed on 23 March 1943 over Tunisia when his 135th victim, a USAAF 52nd Fighter Group Spitfire exploded in front of him after a close burst of cannon fire. The Spitfire was piloted by Captain Sweetman. Müncheberg managed to bail and landed severely wounded with his parachute. Although the search team recovered him fairly quickly, Müncheberg died on the way to a field hospital.
Neumann, Klaus Click the name above to see a profile of Neumann, Klaus	Neumann, Klaus
Nordmann, Karl-Gottfried Click the name above to see a profile of Nordmann, Karl-Gottfried    Died : 22 / 7 / 1982	Nordmann, Karl-Gottfried
Oesau, Walter Click the name above to see a profile of Oesau, Walter    Died : 11 / 5 / 1944	Oesau, Walter Oberst Walter "Gulle" Oesau was born 28 June 1913. He was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1934 until his death in 1944. He rose to command Jagdgeschwader 1, which was named in his honour after his death. He served with the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War, with 3 Staffel of Jagdgruppe 88 (3./J 88), claiming 8 aircraft during the campaign, becoming one of only 28 people to earn the award of the Spanish Cross in Gold and Diamonds. At the start of World War II, Oesau was given command of 2 Staffel, Jagdgeschwader 20. The group was moved to the Eastern front at the start of the Invasion of Poland, moving back to the Western Front later as the redesignated III Gruppe, Jagdgeschwader 51 (III./JG 51). After his first victory of WWII in the Battle of France, Oesau operated on both the Western and Eastern Fronts, where he was wounded and received the Silver Wound Badge. He returned to operations as Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 1 (JG 1). He was killed in action on 11 May 1944 aged 30. JG 1 was given the suffix "Oesau" in his honour. Battle of Britain On 10 July 1940, the first major clashes of the Battle of Britain occurred. 20 Bf 109s of III./JG 51 led by Hauptmann Hannes Trautloft and 30 Bf 110 C of I./Zerstörergeschwader 26 escorted 20 Dornier Do 17 bombers of II./Kampfgeschwader 2 attacking a large convoy off Folkstone. Oberleutnant Oesau was leading 7./JG 51. Trautloft noticed three of a flight of six intercepting Hurricanes of No. 32 squadron higher than the escorts, attempting to intercept the bombers. Soon they were joined by four squadrons of British fighters; No. 56 Squadron, No. 111 Squadron, No. 64 Squadron and No. 74 Squadron. Oesau was able to claim three Spitfires . Two 7./JG 51 aircraft crash landed in France] On 19 July, III./JG 51 were confronted by Defiants of No. 141 Squadron south of Folkestone. As the German pilots were now aware of Defiant's lack of front armament, they soon gained the advantage in combat and claimed 11 Defiants shot down in 8 minutes. Oesau was credited with one Defiant, taking his score to 19. He was the first one of JG 51 to reach double digits in WWII. On 18 August 1940, III./JG 51 escorted Dorniers attacking Hornchurch airfield. Intercepted by Hurricanes over Kent, Oesau claimed one Hurricane shot down as his 20th victory, earning him the Knight's Cross two days later, the first pilot of JG 51 to be thus honoured. On 23 August 1940, Trautloft took over as Geschwaderkommodore of JG 54, and Walter Oesau replaced him as Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 51. By October 1940, Oesau had a total score of 48 (including 26 Spitfires). On 10 November 1940 Oesau succeeded Wilhelm Balthasar as Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 3. With 39 victories he was currently the 4th highest scoring Ace behind Helmut Wick, Werner Mölders and Adolf Galland. On 5 February 1941 he shot down a Hurricane over Desvres, France, his 40th victory. He was awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross next day. It also earned him second entry in the Wehrmachtbericht. In early 1941, JG 3 returned to Germany to replace their Bf 109 'Emils' with the new 'F' variant (Friedrich). They returned to France in May 1941 and Oesau added two more kills on 16 May and 28 May bringing his total to 51.
Oesterheldt, Johannes Click the name above to see a profile of Oesterheldt, Johannes	Oesterheldt, Johannes Born in August 1925, Johannes Oesterhelt joined the Luftwaffe in July 1943 and was one of the youngest pilots to fly with JG51 Molders. Joining IV./JG51 he flew his first combat mission in January 1945, aged 19, flying with the 13th Staffel against the advancing Russians in the area around the northern city of Danzig, and protecting the retreating German army. He flew against Russian II-2s, Yak-3s, Airacobras, and also against Russian tanks. He scored 2 confirmed air victories before the war ended.
Osterkamp, Theo Click the name above to see a profile of Osterkamp, Theo	Osterkamp, Theo
Petschler, H Click the name above to see a profile of Petschler, H	Petschler, H On 4th May 1945, a navigational error led to his Me109G-10/R3 0130297 Yellow 5 of JG51 landing on Bulltofta airfield in Sweden where aircraft and pilot were interred.
Petzschler, Horst Click the name above to see a profile of Petzschler, Horst	Petzschler, Horst
Pfuller, Helmut Click the name above to see a profile of Pfuller, Helmut	Pfuller, Helmut
Priller, Josef Click the name above to see a profile of Priller, Josef    Died : 20 / 5 / 1961	Priller, Josef
Puschmann, Herbert Click the name above to see a profile of Puschmann, Herbert    Died : 3 / 2 / 1944	Puschmann, Herbert
Quante, Richard Click the name above to see a profile of Quante, Richard    Died : 14 / 8 / 1942	Quante, Richard
Radlauer, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Radlauer, Heinz	Radlauer, Heinz Heinz Radlauer learnt to fly gliders in 1940, aged 17, and joined the Luftwaffe in August 1941. After Fighter School, in June 1944 he was posted to join JG51 Molders then fighting on the Eastern Front near Minsk, scoring his first victory in October of that year. Heinz Radlauer fleew the Bf109G, the Fw190A, and at the end of the war the Fw190D, by which time he had notched up over 100 combat missions, flying his last combat mission on 30th April 1945. Credited with 15 air victories, all on the Eastern Front, he was awarded the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class.
Radlauer, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Radlauer, Heinz	Radlauer, Heinz Heinz Radlauer learnt to fly gliders in 1940, aged 17, and joined the Luftwaffe in August 1941. After Fighter School, in June 1944 he was posted to join JG51 Molders then fighting on the Eastern Front near Minsk, scoring his first victory in October of that year. Heinz Radlauer fleew the Bf109G, the Fw190A, and at the end of the war the Fw190D, by which time he had notched up over 100 combat missions, flying his last combat mission on 30th April 1945. Credited with 15 air victories, all on the Eastern Front, he was awarded the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class.
Rammelt, Karl Click the name above to see a profile of Rammelt, Karl    Died : 13 / 5 / 2009	Rammelt, Karl
Rauch, Alfred Click the name above to see a profile of Rauch, Alfred	Rauch, Alfred
Resch, Rudolf Click the name above to see a profile of Resch, Rudolf    Died : 11 / 7 / 1943	Resch, Rudolf
Romm, Oskar Click the name above to see a profile of Romm, Oskar	Romm, Oskar
Rubell, Gunther Click the name above to see a profile of Rubell, Gunther	Rubell, Gunther
Ruffler, Helmut Click the name above to see a profile of Ruffler, Helmut    Died : 21 / 9 / 2001	Ruffler, Helmut Helmut Ruffler joined 9./JG3 in February 1941 and was soon to prove himself a masterful fighter pilot. His scores began to mount quickly and by the end of 1942 his tally had risen to 50 victories. Surviving being shot down in 1943, he was posted as a much needed fighter instructor but was soon back in the fray - joining 4./JG3 in the home defence of the Reich. In March 1945 he was promoted Staffelfuhrer of 9./JG51. Shot down 5 times during the war, Helmut Ruffler fleww over 690 missions and scored 98 victories. He was awarded the Knight's Cross in December 1942.
Schack, Gunther Click the name above to see a profile of Schack, Gunther    Died : 14 / 6 / 2003	Schack, Gunther Major Günther Schack was born in Bartenstein, a small town in Eastern Prussia, on 12 November 1917 as the son of Dr. Willy Schack and his wife, Dorothea (maiden name: Nietzki). He studied at the University of Stuttgart and at the Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule. In 1937, when he first tried to join the Luftwaffe, he was categorised as wehruntauglich (unsuited for military service) because of a sports injury earlier in his life. Günther Schack resubmitted an application as a volunteer and was accepted into the Luftwaffe on 2 September 1939. After being trained as a fighter pilot, Schack was posted to 7th Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 51. Schack claimed first aerial victory in combat on 23 July 1941 on the Eastern front. Meanwhile, he had been promoted to the rank of Unteroffizier. After his 48th aerial victory, he was ordered back to Germany to serve as a flight instructor and was promoted to Leutnant on 1 January 1943. In mid 1943 he returned back to the Eastern front, now serving in the 9th Staffel of JG 51. He claimed his century mark in aerial combat on 3 September 1943. On 8 December 1943 he was made Staffelkapitän of 9./JG 51. Leutnant Günther Schack was awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 April 1944 for 133 aerial victories.[2] Schack was then promoted to Hauptmann on 1 July 1944. In December 1944, now a Gruppenkommandeur, in charge of I./JG 51. After this Gruppe was disbanded on 1 May 1945 he briefly was named commander of the 4th Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3. By the end of the war, he had scored 174 victories in 780 aerial combats, and was shot down 15 times. Günther Schack died 14 June 2003 in Schmidt near Nideggen he was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1939 until the end of World War II in 1945. He claimed 174 enemy aircraft shot down, all of them on the Russian front. He survived being shot down 15 times during his 780 combat missions. After the war he lived secluded in the Eifel Mountains, and devoted himself to philosophical research.
Schelker, Friedrich Click the name above to see a profile of Schelker, Friedrich	Schelker, Friedrich Joining the Luftwaffe in the autumn of 1940, Friedrich Schelker was posted to I./JG52 at Dnepropetrowsk a year later, flying the Me109F. Later when serving with 7./JG51 in the southern sector of Mariupol he was shot down and badly wounded. After hospitalisation, in 1943 he was transferred to fly the Fischler Fil56 Storch. Friedrich served throughout the Eastern Front, in Russia, Rumania and Hungary. He scored 22 victories and was awarded the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class.
Scheufele, Ernst Click the name above to see a profile of Scheufele, Ernst    Died : 18 / 2 / 2010	Scheufele, Ernst Joining the Luftwaffe in October 1940, Ernst Scheufele was posted to Norway in June 1942, to join 4./JG5. There, flying Me109s he carried out a total of 67 escort missions for the German battleships Bismarck and Tirpitz. In October 1943 he joined II./JG5 flying over Arctic waters, in Finland, and on the Russian Front, before transferring to the defence of the Reich in June 1944. On 3 December 1944 he was shot down by an American flak battery near Saxony, wounded and taken prisoner. He had a total of 18 victories. Sadly, Ernst Scheufele died on 18th February 2010.
Schlitzer, Gottfried Click the name above to see a profile of Schlitzer, Gottfried    Died : 6 / 8 / 1942	Schlitzer, Gottfried
Schmid, Karl Click the name above to see a profile of Schmid, Karl    Died : 5 / 8 / 1940	Schmid, Karl
Schneider, Gerhard Click the name above to see a profile of Schneider, Gerhard	Schneider, Gerhard
Schnell, Karl-Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Schnell, Karl-Heinz    Died : 13 / 3 / 2013	Schnell, Karl-Heinz
Schonfelder, Helmut Click the name above to see a profile of Schonfelder, Helmut	Schonfelder, Helmut
Schultz, Otto Click the name above to see a profile of Schultz, Otto    Died : 17 / 6 / 1942	Schultz, Otto
Schultz, Otto Click the name above to see a profile of Schultz, Otto	Schultz, Otto Otto Schultz flew with II /JG 51 'Mölders' during the Battle of Britain. He moved to the Eastern Front and gained his first victory on the 22 June 1941. As well as flying missions on the Russian front he also flew missions against Tunisia, Italy, Romania and Hungary. He was awarded his Knight's Cross on the 14 March 1943 while at the rank of Oberfeldwebel with 51 victories. He scored 20 victories in Tunisia and went on to become Staffelkapitän of 6/JG 51. Schultz was a very accomplished fighter pilot and often referred to as one of the Luftwaffe's fighter 'experts' who on account of their ability and experience managed to survive the entire war and completing a vast number of missions. Total of 73 victories, 40 of which scored on the Eastern Front and 8 four engined bombers. Over 800 missions.
Schulze, Kurt Click the name above to see a profile of Schulze, Kurt	Schulze, Kurt After serving with the Air Signals Corps during the Blitzkrieg through the Low Countries and France, Kurt Schulze then flew as a Me110 Wireless Operator over southern Russia, before returning to the west. Here he flew night missions against England in Do217s with I./KG2. In September 1943 he transferred to train as a fighter pilot, and flew 65 missions in Me109s with III./JG5 on the Arctic Front, scoring three victories. In November 1944 he flew in the ill-fated defence of the German battleship Tirpitz. In March 1945 he commanded I./JG51 in the encircled east German city of Danzig, before returning to Norway in May 1945 to command 16./JG5.
Schumann, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Schumann, Heinz	Schumann, Heinz
Schwarz, Gerhard Click the name above to see a profile of Schwarz, Gerhard    Died : 21 / 6 / 1943	Schwarz, Gerhard
Seelmann, Georg Click the name above to see a profile of Seelmann, Georg	Seelmann, Georg
Segatz, Hermann Click the name above to see a profile of Segatz, Hermann	Segatz, Hermann
Seidel, Georg Click the name above to see a profile of Seidel, Georg	Seidel, Georg
Simon, Friedrich Click the name above to see a profile of Simon, Friedrich	Simon, Friedrich
Sonner, Michael Click the name above to see a profile of Sonner, Michael    Died : 4 / 4 / 1943	Sonner, Michael
Stadeck, Karl Click the name above to see a profile of Stadeck, Karl	Stadeck, Karl
Staiger, Hermann Click the name above to see a profile of Staiger, Hermann    Died : 22 / 6 / 1964	Staiger, Hermann
Stedtfeld, Gunther Click the name above to see a profile of Stedtfeld, Gunther	Stedtfeld, Gunther
Steffens, Hans-Joachim Click the name above to see a profile of Steffens, Hans-Joachim    Died : 30 / 7 / 1941	Steffens, Hans-Joachim
Stendel, Fritz Click the name above to see a profile of Stendel, Fritz	Stendel, Fritz
Stengel, Walter Click the name above to see a profile of Stengel, Walter	Stengel, Walter
Strassl, Hubert Click the name above to see a profile of Strassl, Hubert    Died : 8 / 7 / 1943	Strassl, Hubert His tally of victories included 30 in 4 days.
Strelow, Hans Click the name above to see a profile of Strelow, Hans    Died : 22 / 5 / 1942	Strelow, Hans
Tange, Otto Click the name above to see a profile of Tange, Otto    Died : 30 / 7 / 1943	Tange, Otto
Tanzer, Kurt Click the name above to see a profile of Tanzer, Kurt    Died : 25 / 6 / 1960	Tanzer, Kurt Kurt Tanzer was born on 1 November 1920 at Moscow in Russia. Tanzer was transferred from Ergänzungsgruppe/JG 51 to 12./JG 51, based on the Eastern front, on 18 March 1942. He claimed his 35th victory on 5 May 1943. The next day, Russian Il-2 Sturmovik ground-attack aircraft attacked the airfield at which Tanzer was stationed. He managed to scramble and shot down two of the attacking aircraft. Tanzer was wounded in this combat but continued attacking the raiding Russian aircraft shooting down a further two Il-2s. Russian fighters then intervened and Tanzer was further wounded. Despite severe wounds to his right hand and blood loss, Tanzer managed to land his badly damaged Fw 190 A-4 (Work.Nr. 7161) “Blue 7â€� at his base airfield. Oberfeldwebel Tanzer was awarded the Knight’s Cross on 5 December for 39 victories. Following his recovery from the wounds received in May 1943, Tanzer returned to JG 51 and front line duty on 4 November. He was assigned to the Geschwaderstab of JG 51, with whom he flew many successful fighter-bomber missions while also increasing his tally of aerial victories. In June 1944, Tanzer accompanied Karl-Gottfried Nordmann (78 victories, RK-EL), Kommodore of JG 51, to the staff of Jagdfliegerführer 6.
Tautscher, Gabriel Click the name above to see a profile of Tautscher, Gabriel    Died : 12 / 1 / 1944	Tautscher, Gabriel
Terry, Ernst Click the name above to see a profile of Terry, Ernst    Died : 29 / 10 / 1940	Terry, Ernst
Thiel, Edwin Click the name above to see a profile of Thiel, Edwin    Died : 14 / 7 / 1944	Thiel, Edwin
Tietzen, Horst Click the name above to see a profile of Tietzen, Horst    Died : 18 / 7 / 1940	Tietzen, Horst Horst Jakob Tietzen was born in Neu-Ostwalter on 19th July 1912. Leutnant Tietzen scored his first victory during the Spanish Civil War when flying with 3.J/88 of the Condor Legion, on 19th July 1938. He went on to score a further 6 victories during the Spanish Civil War, receiving the Spanish Cross in Gold with Swords. Later, he joined 5./JG51 as Staffelkapitan, and took part in the Battle of France, claiming a Bloch MB174 and a Fairey Battle. With eight victories to his name, he went on to take part in the Battle of Britain, vastly increasing his total with JG51. In combat with Spitfires and Hurricanes throughout July and August 1940, he claimed three Hurricanes in one day on the 15th of August. Just three days later, he became just the fourth German pilot to score 20 victories. However, his luck ran out on the same day, as he was shot down over the Thames estuary while in combat with Hurricane and was killed, his body later washing ashore at Calais. He was posthumously awarded the Knights Cross and was promoted.
Tornow, Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Tornow, Heinz	Tornow, Heinz
Trautloft, Hannes Click the name above to see a profile of Trautloft, Hannes    Died : 11 / 1 / 1995	Trautloft, Hannes Hannes Trautloft is one of the Luftwaffe's great fighter leaders, scoring his first air victory in the Spanish Civil War in August 1936. Returning to Germany in 1937 he joined the national aerobatics team flying the Me109. Soon after the outbreak of World War II, Hannes took command of I./JG20 taking part in the Battle of Britain, before moving to the Balkans as Kommodore of JG54. Now leading the group on the Russian Front, JG54 took part in the heavy fighting, first in the Me109, then the Fw190. In the summer of 1943 Hannes Trautloft joined General Galland's staff. As a 'mutineer' he was sacked by Goering, thus ending an illustrious combat career comprising 550 combat missions and 57 aerial victories. he died 11th January 1995.
Ulbrich, Martin Click the name above to see a profile of Ulbrich, Martin	Ulbrich, Martin
Vechtel, Bernhard Click the name above to see a profile of Vechtel, Bernhard	Vechtel, Bernhard
Wagler, W Click the name above to see a profile of Wagler, W	Wagler, W Staffelkapitan of 15./IV./JG51. On 24th April 1945 he deserted, flying his Me109G-10 049037 White 14 of JG51 to Rinkaby airfield in Sweden.
Wagner, Edmund Click the name above to see a profile of Wagner, Edmund    Died : 13 / 11 / 1941	Wagner, Edmund
Wagner, Rudolf Click the name above to see a profile of Wagner, Rudolf    Died : 11 / 12 / 1943	Wagner, Rudolf
Walther, Horst Click the name above to see a profile of Walther, Horst	Walther, Horst
Weber, Karl-Heinz Click the name above to see a profile of Weber, Karl-Heinz    Died : 7 / 6 / 1944	Weber, Karl-Heinz Karl-Heinz "Benjamin" Weber was born on 30 January 1922 in Heringsdorf, Pommern. A glider pilot, Weber volunteered for service in the Luftwaffe in autumn 1939. Weber joined 7./JG 51 on 1 October 1940 as a Leutnant. He claimed his first victory on 24 June 1941 and by 25 October had accumulated a total of 12 confirmed victories. In November 1941 he was designated Staffelkapitän of Ergänzungsstaffel/JG 51. Returning to active duty in June 1942, Weber achieved his 20th victory on 9 August. On 3 September his Bf 109 F-2 “White 0â€� was damaged in combat with Russian twin-engine bombers and he was forced to bail out. Landing safely, he was, however, wounded by a German sentry and remained several months in hospital during which he was awarded the Ehernpokal on 30 September. Returning to combat in mid-December, Weber began to increase his tally rapidly. He was decorated with the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 16 March 1943. He claimed five victories on 5 July (41-45), six on 7 July (46-51) and five on 4 August (79-83). Oberleutnant Weber recorded his 100th victory on 10 October and received the Ritterkreuz on 12 November 1943. By now serving as Staffelkapitän of 7./JG 51, he was promoted to Hauptmann on 25 May 1944. On 29 May, 7./JG 51 was transferred to the Western Front to re-enforce II./JG 1 engaged in Reichsverteidigung duties. On 3 June he was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 1. On 7 June, Weber led III./JG 1 in Bf 109 G-6/AS “White 20â€� against Allied fighters south of Rouen on his first mission over the Invasion Front. He never returned from the mission and his body was never recovered. It appears that he was shot down and killed by RAF Mustangs. He was posthumously awarded the Eichenlaub (Nr. 529) on 20 July 1944. Karl-Heinz Weber flew over 500 missions and claimed 136 victories over the Eastern Front, including at least 28 Il-2 Sturmoviks.
Wehnelt, Herbert Click the name above to see a profile of Wehnelt, Herbert	Wehnelt, Herbert Joining the Luftwaffe in 1936, Herbert Wehnelt served first with 2./JG132 Richthofen. During the Battle of Britain he flew with III./JG51 and served in the West until transferring to the Eastern Front in 1943. In 1944 he was with JG West and in 1945, JG106. He was awarded the Iron Cross and scored 36 victories.
Weismann, Ernst Click the name above to see a profile of Weismann, Ernst    Died : 13 / 8 / 1942	Weismann, Ernst
Wever, Walther Click the name above to see a profile of Wever, Walther    Died : 10 / 4 / 1945	Wever, Walther
Willinger, Franz Click the name above to see a profile of Willinger, Franz    Died : 5 / 2 / 1943	Willinger, Franz
Willius, Karl Click the name above to see a profile of Willius, Karl    Died : 8 / 4 / 1944	Willius, Karl
Wurfel, Otto Click the name above to see a profile of Wurfel, Otto    Died : 22 / 12 / 1944	Wurfel, Otto
Zimmermann, Oskar Click the name above to see a profile of Zimmermann, Oskar	Zimmermann, Oskar
Zoufahl, Franz-Josef Click the name above to see a profile of Zoufahl, Franz-Josef	Zoufahl, Franz-Josef

Aircraft for : JG51
A list of all aircraft associated with JG51. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name.
Aircraft	Info
Fw190 Click the name above to see prints featuring Fw190 aircraft. Manufacturer : Fokke-Wulf Production Began : 1940 Retired : 1945	Fw190 The Focke-Wulf 190 development project began in 1937. Conceived as a hedge against total dependence on the Messerchmitt 109, the 190 was designed by Kurt Tank utilizing a radial engine. This was against generally accepted design criteria in Germany, and many historians believe that the decision to produce a radial engine fighter was largely due to the limited manufacturing capacity for in-line, water-cooled engines which were widely used on all other Luftwaffe aircraft. Despite these concerns, Tanks design was brilliant, and the 190 would become one of the top fighter aircraft of WWII. The first prototype flew in mid-1939. The aircraft had excellent flying characteristics, a wonderful rate of acceleration, and was heavily armed. By late 1940 the new fighter was ordered into production. Nicknamed the butcher bird, by Luftwaffe pilots, early 190s were quite successful in the bomber interceptor role, but at this stage of the war many Allied bombing raids lacked fighter escort. As the war dragged on, Allied bombers were increasingly accompanied by fighters, including the very effective P-51 Mustang. The Allies learned from experience that the 190s performance fell off sharply at altitudes above 20,000 feet. As a result, most Allied bombing missions were shifted to higher altitudes when fighter opposition was likely. Kurt Tank had recognized this shortcoming and began working on a high-altitude version of the 190 utilizing an in-line, water-cooled engine. Utilizing a Jumo 12-cylinder engine rated at 1770-HP, and capable of 2,240-HP for short bursts with its methanol injection system, the 190D, or Long Nose or Dora as it was called, had a top speed of 426-MPH at 22,000 feet. Armament was improved with two fuselage and two wing mounted 20mm cannon. To accommodate the changes in power plants the Dora had a longer, more streamlined fuselage, with 24 inches added to the nose, and an additional 19 inches added aft of the cockpit to compensate for the altered center of gravity. By mid 1944 the Dora began to reach fighter squadrons in quantity. Although the aircraft had all the right attributes to serve admirably in the high altitude interceptor role, it was not generally focused on such missions. Instead many 190Ds were assigned to protect airfields where Me-262 jet fighters were based. This was due to the latter aircrafts extreme vulnerability to Allied attack during takeoff and landing. The 190Ds also played a major role in Operation Bodenplatte, the New Years Day raid in 1945 which destroyed approximately 500 Allied aircraft on the ground. The High Command was impressed with the 190Ds record on this raid, and ordered most future production of the Doras to be equipped as fighter-bombers. In retrospect this was a strategic error, and this capable aircraft was not fully utilized in the role for which it was intended.
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.