Josef Jacobs
Josef Carl Peter Jacobs (born May 15, 1894 in Kreuzkapelle (Rhineland) ; † July 29, 1978 in Munich ) was one of the most successful German fighter pilots of the First World War with 48 aerial victories and was awarded the " Pour le Mérite " order.
Life
Josef Jacobs was the son of Wilhelm Jacobs and Josefina Küppers. He came into contact with aviation at the Bruno Werntgens Aviation School before the war , but after his aviation death in 1913 he had to interrupt his aviation training and began to study mechanical engineering. When the war broke out, Jacobs volunteered for the air force and began his training as a pilot at Aviation Substitute Department 3 in Darmstadt , from there he was transferred to Army Aviation Park 1 in Tergnier , from where he came to Field Aviation Department 11 via Hellmuth Wilberg and led with him the observer Hermann Fricke , later also holder of the order “Pour le Mérite”, carried out artillery and long-range reconnaissance missions.
In March 1916, Josef Jacobs achieved the first aerial victory with his Fokker monoplane . This was followed by a time in a combat unit until he joined Jagdstaffel 12 between October and November 1916. From November 1916 to August 1917 he flew with Jagdstaffel 22, until he himself became leader of Jagdstaffel 7 from August 1917 until the end of the war.
On September 10, 1917, he defeated the successful French fighter pilot Jean Matton, who shot down nine German aircraft. In December 1917, he collided with an aircraft belonging to a neighboring squadron during a dogfight, in which his aircraft was badly damaged, surface radiator, propeller, parts of the engine and the left torsion flap torn off. With a lot of luck, he managed to crash land between the lines and escaped from shell to shell looking for cover on the German side. The other fighter pilot also managed to land without the torn off chassis. After his 22nd victory in the air, Jacobs was awarded the "Pour le Mérite" medal on July 18, 1918. He later commented on the awarding of the medal : "Son Gedöns at that time - as Wilhelm put the thing on me: What are you for a poor carrion ..." By the end of the war, Jacobs had achieved 48 recognized aerial victories. From 1918 until the end of the war he flew on a three-decker Fokker Dr.I 450/17, whose engine he had replaced with that of a shot down British Sopwith “Camel”.
After the First World War, Josef Carl Jacobs worked, among other things, as a racing driver and in 1922 won a race at the AVUS in Berlin . In the 1930s, Jacobs was appointed director of the Adler works in Frankfurt. On February 21, 1936, he founded the " Reparaturwerk Erfurt Josef Jacobs " in Erfurt , which was renamed in 1937 as "Reparaturwerk Erfurt GmbH". In October 1940 Albert Kalkert , who had previously worked as an aircraft designer at Gothaer Waggonfabrik , replaced Jacobs as director. Jacobs was invited by Göring to join the newly established Air Force as a major, but he declined because he was an opponent of National Socialism and later moved to the Netherlands.
Josef Carl Jacobs returned to Germany after the war. He died on July 29, 1978 as a welfare recipient in Munich and found his final resting place in the Perlach cemetery. He was the last living knight of the order Pour le Mérite of the German air force of the First World War and was buried with full military honors.
See also
literature
- Arch Whitehouse: Ace of Aviators 1914-1918. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1970.
Web links
- Short biography: Josef Jacobs
- Red Baron Aviation Association (founding and honorary member Josef Jacobs)
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Jacobs, Josef |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Jacobs, Josef Carl Peter (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German fighter pilot in the First World War |
| DATE OF BIRTH | May 15, 1894 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Kreuzkapelle (Much) |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 29, 1978 |
| Place of death | Munich |