German Air Sports Association
The German Air Sports Association (DLV e.V.) was an association founded by the NSDAP in March 1933 to create a uniform basis for military aviation training. The chairman of the association was Hermann Göring , the deputy chairman was Ernst Röhm .
founding
Already at the end of March 1933 - even before the establishment of the Reich Aviation Ministry - all of the aviation organizations, in particular the Rhön-Rossitten-Gesellschaft and the Aero-Klub von Deutschland (which only existed as a representation vis-à-vis abroad), were organized by Göring in a unified association, summarized by the German Air Sports Association. All facilities of the associations listed above, their training facilities and flying schools were transferred to the DLV. The main task of the new association, which was under the "joint management of the Aviation Ministry , the Reichswehr Ministry and the Supreme SA leadership " and in close contact with the Reichswehr and the police as well as with the SA , SS , the Stahlhelm , the Hitler Youth and the labor service worked, was the military pilot training.
The SA air storms were separated from the SA and incorporated into the DLV. On June 21, 1933, the leaders of the SA and SS Fliegerstürme held a joint meeting in Berlin , during which the fliegerstürme were transferred to the DLV and the guidelines for the uniform structure of the entire German “ sport aviation ” were established. On the occasion of this meeting, Göring made an appeal to the German aviators (in: Die Luftwacht , June 1933), which among other things said:
“The Fiihrer has ordered that all forces in German aviation should be united. I have therefore agreed with the Chiefs of Staff of the SA and the Reichsführer of the SS to combine these forces within the framework of the German Air Sports Association. They will form the basis of new air storms there. "
The detachment of the Fliegerstürme from the SA in no way meant a weakening of military pilot training, on the contrary, its expansion. Incidentally, the members of the DLV had received the same rights as the members of the SA, SS and the Stahlhelm, whose aircraft squadrons had also been incorporated into the DLV, through the Reich Aviation Act passed in December 1933.
Aviation
The soldiers of the Reichsheeres, who transferred to the command area of the Reich Aviation Ministry from 1933 until the Luftwaffe was exposed in 1935, were formally retired from active service and accepted into the aviation that was part of the DLV. The management offices of the DLV could not give orders to this sub-organization. In addition to their previous rank with the addition of "aD", these soldiers had a DLV leader's rank and special marks on their uniforms (since April 10, 1934 with two shoulder straps / flaps instead of one). In 1935 the uniform of the DLV pilots became the uniform of the Luftwaffe with minor changes (military epaulettes / flaps etc.).
Leader ranks of the DLV
| Air sport rank | comparable military rank |
|---|---|
| DLV chief pilot | Lieutenant General |
| DLV Vice Chief of Aviation | Major general |
| DLV flight commodors | Colonel, sea captain |
| DLV vice-commodore | Lieutenant Colonel, Frigate Captain |
| DLV pilot in command | Major, corvette captain |
| DLV pilot | Captain, lieutenant captain |
| DLV swarm leader | First lieutenant, first lieutenant at sea |
| DLV chain leader | Lieutenant, lieutenant at sea |
| DLV-Obermeister (Oberflugmeister, Oberfunkmeister, Oberortermeister, Oberwerkmeister) | Sergeant Major and comparable naval ranks |
| DLV master | sergeant |
| DLV submaster | Sergeant major |
| DLV pilot (radio operator, Oberwart) | Sergeant |
| DLV auxiliary pilot (auxiliary radio operator, Unterwart) | Private |
| DLV Oberflieger | High flyer |
| DLV flyer | Aviator |
resolution
In 1937 the DLV was dissolved and the successor organization National Socialist Aviation Corps (NSFK) was founded. The NSFK was a corporation under public law and was subordinate to the Reich Aviation Minister Hermann Göring.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Adolf Schlicht, John R. Angolia: The German Wehrmacht, Uniform and Equipment 1933-1945 , Volume 3: Air Force. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 1999, p. 23
- ↑ a b c d Karl-Heinz Völker: The German Air Force 1933–1939 . In: Contributions to military and war history, ed. v. Military History Research Office (MGFA series of publications), Volume 8, Deutsche Verlagsanstalt, Stuttgart 1967, pp. 20-21
- ^ Karl-Heinz Völker: Documents and documentary photos on the history of the German Air Force . In: Contributions to military and war history, ed. v. Military History Research Office (MGFA series of publications), Volume 9, Deutsche Verlagsanstalt, Stuttgart 1968, p. 363 ff. (Document 146, Document 147)