Emil Schäfer
Karl Emil Schäfer (born December 17, 1891 in Krefeld , † June 5, 1917 near Ypres / Belgium) was a fighter pilot in the First World War .
Life
Emil Schäfer was born on December 17, 1891 in Krefeld . After attending the Realgymnasium in Krefeld , he did his service as a one-year volunteer with the Hunter Regiment on Horses No. 10 . At the beginning of the First World War , Schäfer was studying in Paris , but was still able to return to Germany and joined the Reserve Jäger Battalion 7 in Bückeburg .
In September 1914 he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd class and was promoted to Vice Sergeant before he was out for six months due to a serious wound. In May 1915 he took up his service again and applied to the air force . He was accepted into the air force, acquired a flight license and was transferred to Kampfgruppe 2, Squadron 8 on the Eastern Front on July 30, 1916 . After moving to the Western Front in January 1917, Schäfer was able to achieve his first kill there, now in Jasta 11 of Kampfgruppe 3.
On February 21, 1917 he came to Manfred von Richthofen's Jasta 11 . In a short time he scored 22 kills and on April 26th received command of the Jasta 28 and on the same day the Pour le Mérite and the Knight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern with swords. Schäfer was later awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class and the Bavarian Order of Military Merit IV Class with Swords.
After his 30th victory, Schäfer died in combat on June 5, 1917. At 4:05 pm, his Albatros D.III was defeated by the pilots Lieutenant Harold Satchell and Lieutenant Thomas during a battle against FE2d fighters of the 20th Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps Lewis shot on fire over the Belgian city of Ypres . Schäfer's machine exploded and lost its wings. Eyewitnesses reported that only the tail unit of the upper right wing was found. The left wing was found near Zandvoorde, southeast of Ypres. Emil Schäfer's body was also found that night and first brought to Lille . An autopsy revealed that almost every bone in his body was broken, his skull was shattered, and his heart was torn. However, no gunshot wounds were found. Schäfer died in the impact when his machine crashed. His body was brought home to Krefeld and buried there in the main cemetery. The grave still exists there today.
The barracks of the Bundeswehr with airfield in Achum in Bückeburg , today on which International Helicopter Training Center (formerly Army Aviation School) is, in 1961, named by the British to the Bundeswehr, according to him after the handover of the airport. On the 20th anniversary of his death, a memorial plaque was placed on the house where he was born at Uerdinger Strasse 231. The house and the plaque still exist today. The city of Krefeld has a street in the immediate vicinity of the former airfield of Krefeld, in today's district of Bockum , named after Emil Schäfer.
At the Deutsches Technikmuseum Berlin he is represented with a curriculum vitae in the exhibition on aviation technology.
Sources and web links
- Emil Schäfer at "Luftfahrtgeschichte.com" : Short biography
- Emil Schäfer at "The Aerodrome" : Brief profile and list of aerial victories (English)
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Shepherd, Emil |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Schäfer, Karl Emil (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German fighter pilot and flying ace in the First World War |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 17, 1891 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Krefeld |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 5, 1917 |
| Place of death | near Ypres |