Viktor Bauer (officer)
Viktor Bauer (born September 19, 1915 in Löcknitz , † December 13, 1969 in Bad Homburg vor der Höhe ) was a German officer, most recently a colonel in the Air Force in World War II .
Life
Viktor Bauer was born on September 19, 1915 in Löcknitz / Pomerania and joined the Air Force as a flag junior in 1935 . After his training he was assigned to the I. Group of Jagdgeschwader 2 and promoted to lieutenant .
On May 15, 1940, he won his first aerial victory over Belgium as a member of the 2nd squadron of Jagdgeschwader 77. After participating in the aerial battles in the west and over England, he came in December 1940 to the Jagdgeschwader 3 Udet , where he led the 9th squadron in the Battle of Britain . For his success in aerial combat, he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross after his 34th shooting down on July 30, 1941, as first lieutenant and squadron captain . He was seriously wounded in an air battle on the Eastern Front on August 23, 1941 and was unfit to fly until February 1942. Immediately after his 102nd victory in the air, on July 26, 1942, he was awarded the Oak Leaves for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
After further promotions to captain and major , he took over command of the Eastern Supplementary Group in southern France in early August 1943. From 1944 he led the supplementary hunting squadron 1 as a lieutenant colonel and finally as a colonel . At the end of March 1945, he was taken prisoner by the Americans, from which he was released in July 1945.
Viktor Bauer achieved 106 victories on around 400 enemy flights, making him one of the most successful fighter pilots in World War II.
He died on December 13, 1969 in Bad Homburg / Hessen.
Awards
- Wehrmacht service award IV class
- Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st class
- Front flight clasp for fighter pilots
- Pilot and observer badges
- Cup of honor for special achievement in the aerial warfare on June 22, 1942
-
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with oak leaves
- Knight's Cross on July 30, 1941
- Oak leaves on July 26, 1942 (107th award)
See also
literature
- Ernst Obermaier: The Air Force Knight's Cross, Volume I. Fighter Pilot , ISBN 3-87341-065-6
Individual evidence
- ↑ 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. 206.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bauer, Viktor |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German Air Force officer in World War II |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 19, 1915 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Löcknitz |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 13, 1969 |
| Place of death | Bad Homburg vor der Höhe |