Rudolf Rickenbacher

Rudolf Rickenbacher (born November 15, 1915 - † June 4, 1940 ) was a Swiss military pilot . He was the first member of the Swiss Army to be killed in fighting between Switzerland and Germany during World War II .

Life

Rickenbacher grew up in Gutenburg in Oberaargau and began studying engineering at the ETH Zurich . From August 1938 he did 15 active duty as a lieutenant in the Fliegerkompagnie .

On June 4, 1940, Rickenbacher flew in a Bf 109 with First Lieutenant Rudolf Suter on a two-man patrol to repel German aircraft that were penetrating Swiss airspace. At Saignelégier in the Jura there was a dogfight with three German aircraft, in the course of which Rickenbacher's plane crashed. The plane was found near Boécourt , Rickenbacher's body around 400 meters away. The investigation revealed that Rickenbacher had shot, but was hit on the oil tank. The fire made the plane inoperable and the high centrifugal forces threw the pilot out of his seat.

Rickenbacher's death was only briefly noted in the Swiss newspapers two days later. The pilot was buried militarily in Lotzwil with great public sympathy. Among other things , the German Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring sent a wreath that angry Lotzwiler is said to have torn.

swell

• Herbert Rentsch: " He was the first victim when war broke out in the Swiss sky ". Berner Zeitung , May 31, 2015