Otto Bertram (officer)

Otto Bertram (born April 30, 1916 in Wilhelmshaven ; † February 8, 1987 in Freiburg im Breisgau ) was an officer in the Wehrmacht and later a lieutenant colonel in the Bundeswehr , a press officer in the Bundeswehr headquarters and an air force attaché .

Military career

Otto Bertram was one of three brothers who joined the Air Force in 1935 . There he completed his training as a pilot . From March 1938 Bertram was a lieutenant in the Condor Legion , which supported the putschists under General Franco in their victory against Spain's democratically elected government. a. due to the illegal bombing and destruction of the town of Guernica . Bertram belonged to the 1st squadron of Jagdgruppe 88 and achieved eight aerial victories. On October 4, 1938, he was shot down by an opposing Polikarpov I-15 during one of his missions from La Sénia and had to make an emergency landing. After his return to Germany, he was awarded the Spanish Cross in gold with diamonds, which was only awarded 28 times. Among other things, Werner Mölders and Hugo Sperrle received it for their "exemplary and outstanding performance" , so the reasoning in the Nazi propaganda , in their work there. On October 26, 1939, Bertram was appointed squadron captain.

During the Second World War , Oberleutnant Bertram served in the Battle of France and between September 2 and September 6, 1940 in the Battle of Britain . Here he rose on September 26, 1940 to group commander of the III. Group of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" . After his two brothers Hans and Karl died in the Battle of Britain, Bertram was pulled out of the mission there and promoted to captain on October 28, 1940 . Bertram himself was dismissed as a fighter pilot and served until the war's end in various staff positions in the Air Force: so the fall of 1940 until 1941 the Jagdfliegerschule 5 in Wien-Schwechat and from 1943 to 1944 as commander of the staff of the Fighter Wing JG as 101. Major he was in February 1945 the group commander of I. Group / Jagdgeschwader 6 until its dissolution.

After rearmament in 1956, Otto Bertram became a major in the Bundeswehr and a press officer in the Bundeswehr headquarters. He was a member of the Association of Jagdflieger e. V. in the Federal Republic. In 1966 he was a lieutenant colonel and air force attaché in Belgium , also responsible for Luxembourg .

Awards

Pilot badge
Spanish cross in gold with swords and diamonds
Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st class
Wound badge (1939) in silver
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on October 28, 1940

literature

Ernst Obermaier: The Luftwaffe Knight's Cross Carriers 1939–1945, Volume I, Fighter Pilot, Dieter Hoffmann Verlag 1966, p. 96.

Web links

The Guernica bombers on freitag.de v. June 10, 2009

Individual evidence

^ Jörg Nimmergut : German medals and decorations until 1945. Volume 4. Württemberg II - German Empire. Central Office for Scientific Order Studies , Munich 2001, ISBN 3-00-00-1396-2 , p. 2091

↑ 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. 218.

personal data
SURNAME	Bertram, Otto
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German air force officer in the Third Reich and Bundeswehr
DATE OF BIRTH	April 30, 1916
PLACE OF BIRTH	Wilhelmshaven
DATE OF DEATH	February 8, 1987
Place of death	Freiburg in Breisgau

[1] Jörg Nimmergut : German medals and decorations until 1945. Volume 4. Württemberg II - German Empire. Central Office for Scientific Order Studies , Munich 2001, ISBN 3-00-00-1396-2 , p. 2091

[2] 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. 218.