Heinrich Hoffmann (fighter pilot)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Heinrich Hoffmann (born March 8, 1913 in Worms , † after October 3, 1941 in Russia ) was a German fighter pilot , the first non-commissioned officer in the Wehrmacht to be awarded the Knight's Cross with the Oak Leaves , and the first soldier ever to receive this award received posthumously .

Military career

Heinrich Hoffmann acquired the pilot's license during his pre-war service, which he completed as a non-commissioned officer in the reserve. When he was mobilized at the end of August 1939, he was drafted back into the air force and trained as a fighter pilot. On May 18, 1940, he was promoted to Sergeant in 1939 and transferred to the 3rd Squadron of Jagdgeschwader 77 (JG 77) . During the Battle of Britain won Hoffmann, from the squadron based in Norway from flying, on September 7, 1940 his first aerial victory , his only over England when he a Spitfire of the Royal Air Force . Shot down

On November 21, 1940, the I. Group of JG 77 (I./JG 77) in Marquise (between Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer ) was incorporated into Jagdgeschwader 51 as IV./JG 51 . Hoffmann's squadron was the 12./JG 51. From December 1940 to February 1941, the squadron in Mannheim-Sandhofen was completely refreshed and then back on the Channel coast by the beginning of June . In June 1941 the squadron was relocated to the Siedlce area ( Poland ) and from there took part in the German attack on the Soviet Union ( Operation Barbarossa ). During the German advance to the east, Hoffmann, who was promoted to sergeant-major at that time , scored 61 of his kills between June 23 and September 30, 1941: six in June, 20 in July, 19 in August and 16 in September. On July 10, 1941, he received the 2nd class of the Iron Cross and on July 28, 1941, he was awarded the 1st class. After his 40th victory in the air, which he achieved on August 12, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross . During this time Hoffmann often flew as a squad pilot with Heinz Bär , who received the Knight's Cross on July 2, 1941 and became one of the most successful fighter pilots of the Second World War with a total of 220 aerial victories .

On September 16, Hoffmann had five kills, on the 17th another two. On the morning of October 3, 1941, he achieved his last aerial victory. On the same day, his Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2 did not return to Shatalowo, about 50 km southeast of Smolensk , after an aerial battle in the early evening hours with several Soviet attack aircraft of the Ilyushin Il-2 "Schturmowik" type . Hoffmann had to make an emergency landing on enemy territory and was captured by Soviet soldiers. He has been missing since then. The Soviet First Lieutenant Sergejew, a pilot in the 233rd IAP (233rd Fighter Regiment), reported his first aerial victory that evening in the Jelnja area , where Hoffmann was last seen, and is therefore considered to be the pilot responsible for the downing of Hoffmann.

Hoffmann achieved 63 victories in a total of 261 enemy flights and was one of the most successful German fighter pilots until then. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on October 19, 1941 . He was the 36th recipient overall, the first non-commissioned officer to receive this award, and the first soldier ever to receive it posthumously.

See also

literature

  • Gebhard Aders -Albert, Werner Held: Jagdgeschwader 51 'Mölders'. A chronicle - reports, experiences, documents. 3. Edition. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 1999, ISBN 3-613-01045-3 .
  • Christer Bergström, Andrey Mikhailov: Black Cross / Red Star Air War Over the Eastern Front, Volume I, Operation Barbarossa 1941. Pacifica Military History, Pacifica, Calif. 2000, ISBN 0-935553-48-7 .
  • Ernst Obermaier: The Air Force Knight's Cross: Fighter pilots 1939-1945. Hoffmann, Mainz, 1989, ISBN 3-87341-065-6 .
  • Mike Spick: Air Force Fighter Aces. Ivy Books, New York 1996, ISBN 0-8041-1696-2 .
  • John Weal: Jagdgeschwader 51 'Mölders'. Osprey Publishing, Oxford 2006, ISBN 1-8460-3045-5 .
  • John Weal: More Bf 109 Aces of the Russian Front. Osprey Publishing, Oxford 2007, ISBN 1-8460-3177-X .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Veit Scherzer : Knight's Cross bearers 1939–1945. The holders of the Iron Cross of the Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and armed forces allied with Germany according to the documents of the Federal Archives. 2nd Edition. Scherzers Militaer-Verlag, Ranis / Jena 2007, ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2 , p. 398.
  2. ↑ During this time the Air Force operated two airfields near Schatalowo, the operational airfield Schatalowka-East ( 54 ° 22 ′  N , 32 ° 32 ′  E ) and the field airfield Schatalowka-West ( 54 ° 20 ′  N , 32 ° 29 ′  E ).
  3. ↑ Russian: 233. ИАП (истребительный авиационный полк).
  4. ↑ Obermaier, p. 47.
  5. ↑ Bergström & Mikhailov, p. 194.
personal data
SURNAME Hoffmann, Heinrich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German fighter pilot
DATE OF BIRTH March 8, 1913
PLACE OF BIRTH Worms
DATE OF DEATH after October 3, 1941
Place of death Yelnya