Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Imperial Germany was selling postcards of fighter pilots during the Great War; the NSDAP was fixated on the idea of the warrior-hero and arranged press coverage accordingly.

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Is it possible, that if Hartmann knew the truth, he could not reveal it later because of the political pressure of the NATO...?

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Very possibly, and in any case, the need to lie was taken care of by Toliver and Constable's constantly repeated assertion that the German claims verification system was super-effective, a myth that persists to this day as it seems

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Perhaps another silly question....

Did the Germans ever develop/use gun cameras?
Not even they were (are) 100% reliable, but when taken in use by the Allies must have gotten rid of all sorts of fancy claims

Cheers
Stig

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Nick, the fact that Germans were pursuing careers of their aces does not mean the world should follow. In fact there was an explosion of stories about German superheroes just when the enemy known of mass murders and concentration camps had to become the key ally in Europe.
Re Toliver, I recall to read that he was a CIA's employee or at least an associate. That said, I am fairly certain of that, but cannot find any source just at the moment.
I bet there is plenty of paperwork in that, still classified.

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Franek, when you have had the opportunity to read my post with a little more care, you will see that nowhere did I suggest that anyone should do anything of the kind. I simply pointed out that the talking-up of “aces” for public consumption had being going on since the Great War.

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Yes, sure. I was replying to other posts as well, and referring to a post war worldwide myth.

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

I ask always, how it happend, so many generals of after war bundesluftwaffe come from JG52: Rall, Barkhorn, Obleser, Krupinski, Hrabak, Steinhoff, someone else??? I don't know if this was special politic of US and BRD "HR" departments and such books as Toliver & Constable should help to position the people in the right light

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Yes gun cameras were used by the Germans but they were too resource poor to stick gun cameras in each and every aircraft.

Re: Hartmann: claims vs. victories
 

Thanks

Thus it begs the question, who used them?
Not much point in putting them inside the rookies aircraft....

Cheers
Stig