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Jewish airmen in WWII
I am just curious what was the participation of Jewes in air forces of WWII on either fighting side. Please note the difference between a Jew and a person of Jewish origin. I would expect plenty in USAAF and Soviet AFs and close to nil in Japanese AFs.
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Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Franek,
I'm not sure exactly what you mean by "the difference between a Jew and a person of Jewish origin," but I assume you are taliking about observant Jews or someone who considers himself to be Jewish. Well certainly there were many Jewish servicemen in all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces, which is not to say there was no prejudice against them within those forces. It is interesting that there were a number of Luftwaffe pilots whose Jewish ancestry made them anathema to the powers that be, however the ancestry seemed to have been remote enough to keep them out of the concentration camps. One in particular who comes to mind is Horst Rippert who was long relegated as a lowly Obergefreiter flight instructor with JGr. Süd. He came to note in the spring & summer of 1944 with the Einsatzstaffel of JGr. Süd (later JGr. 200) claiming 19 Allied aircraft over Southern France. Presumably this sufficiently proved his loyalty to "Volk und Führer" as he subsequently was posted to IV./JG 27. He remained an Obergefreiter until at least March of 1945. In April 1945 he as a Feldwebel serving in II./JG 27 against the Soviets, surviving the war with a total of 28 victories. Tom |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Franek perhaps you'd be interested in Hitler's Jewish Soldiers, by Bryan M. Rigg?
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Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Hello
There were plenty in the RAF - and not only those of British & Commonwealth nationalities. The CWG cemeteries evidence their sacrifice with the Star of David on the gravestones. And the Israeli Airforce after the war had many ex-WW2 pilots in it. Graham |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Thanks for the replies.
For the beginning I will explain my issue concerning Jewishness. I understand a Jew a person being of Jewish nationality/faith. A person of Jewish origin is the one of Jewish roots but does not recognise itself as a Jew anymore. A sample of the former might be Weizmann, while of the latter - Marseille perhaps? I know that in the Luftwaffe, at least Simsch had a Mischling status. Others - I do not know but names like Baer, Krakowitzer, Marseille or Suess suggest their 'nicht ganz arisch' origin. Similarly, names like John C. Meyer, Myron Levy, Levi Chase sound Jewish but did they consider themselves Jewes? Another question is what was the presence of Jewes in air forces in percents (approximate)? I have seen some articles on the subject but my impression was that the number was usually inflated. Oh, and what is typical/traditional Jewish name in UK? |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
If it was a typical jewish name for the UK I do not know but Klaus Hugo Adam was born in Berlin. His father had a famous sportsshop in Berlin and his parents were Jewish. The family went to the UK in 1934. Klaus Hugo Adam and his brother flew as Typhoon pilots in no.123 RAF Wing, 609 and 183 Sqn., from Gilze-Rijen, Kluis and Plantlünne airfields in 1944/1945. So they were German and Jewish and flew in the RAF. Klaus Hugo Adam changed his name during his operational time to Keith Howard Adams and grew a moustache. Now he is Sir Kenneth Hugo Adam OBE.
Jaap |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
If you want the stereotype jewish name in the UK then it is Cohen. However, many Jews were well integrated into British life and had names indistinguishable from Christians, atheists, agnostics or even Welsh.
If I may be permitted a personal story to illustrate this: many years ago I was running the reception desk at an SF convention, when I asked the well-known (in context) Ron Bennet what his wife's Christian name was. He just grinned and gently pointed out that this was rather difficult, both of them being Jewish. Bennet is an entirely English name. I did notice recently that the list of the nationality of BoB pilots included one Israeli. An interesting concept, that. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Thanks for the replies
It seems Adam was one of a number of Jewes that left Germany but was their part significant in the war effort? How many of them joined RAF. We are still talking about single names. There was Sid Seitz or Klibanski (sp?) but were there any more? Concerning Goodman, it is a pure case of PC. He cannot be considered as an Israeli because the country did not exist yet. He had a Palestinian passport and the table counts citizenship rather than nationality (a lot of mess with Commonwealth I think). In the Polish Air Force we had two non-Polish nationals. Both were on Polish pay roll, both had Polish service nos and both had no relationships to Poland being Czechoslovaks. Should they be counted on Polish or Czechoslovak lists? Finally, concerning Cohen. I expected something more subtle. Cohen is just a variation of a very popular Jewish name appearing eg. like Cohn (eg. Cohn-Bendit), Kon (eg. Feliks Kon - a member of Polish Soviet government in 1920), Kun (eg. Bela Kun), Kochan, etc. Pronuntiation is almost identical in all cases. Of course, in case of changed names, there is no possibility to judge, but in Germany or Poland Jewes had different names rather than the rest of population, originating from places (Krakowitzer-Krakowski), trade (Fleischmann), flowers (Blum, Lilienthal), metals (Messing, Goldbaum), etc. I expected similar pattern in England. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Many thoroughly Anglo-Saxon English surnames come from placenames (e.g. Kirkham, Barton) and occupations (Palmer, Fletcher, Cooper, Smith) so that would be no way of distinguishing their religion. My understanding was that this is/was common in Western Europe, even Germany. I don't think that there is any suggestion that Messerschmitt had any Jewish origins, or that any was implied in Goering's famous "You can call me Maier" boast.
There are specifically Jewish surnames in England, but as far as I know these are basically those recognisable anywhere. Many Englishmen with Germanic names would be Jewish, of course, but not all. The well-known families of Battenberg and Saxe-Coburg-Gotha spring to mind. However, many English Jews with Germanic surnames will have changed them to avoid being mistaken for Germans during the hate campaigns of WW1. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Graham
Perhaps I was not clear enough. Jewish names were of big cities rather than small villages: Amsterdamski, Berliner, Bremer or Krakowitzer. Also only particular trade names were considered Jewish. Smith, Schmidt, Kowal or Kowalski are Arian ones, but there are some variations considered Jewish like Kowalewski or Goldschmidt. I cannot say anything about Messerschmitt though. This is a very subtle matter. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
May I turn the question around?
Insofar as the most recent anti-semitic excesses of the European history have been caused by German heathen or various national Catholic/Protestant or inspired/misled Soviet fanatics... what does it really matter what a WW2 pilot believed in? Rudel? Townsend? Bader? Slaski? Galland? etc. you climb into your aeroplane and avoid being blasted to smithereens - whilst attempting to do the same to others. We who are not so challenged - respect those who were. Some fought for the 'wrong' side - some fought fought for the "good guys". Most died - some survived. Unfortunately 60 years on - I'm not too sure that we all agree who the good guys were..... For me Jews are good guys..... Graham |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
"For me Jews are good guys....."
Let Graham's comment be the end of this pointless discussion. Bob Rinder |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Hang on a moment......it may seem a pointless discussion to some, but I have learned a little about European naming conventions, so I treat it as a small positive.
Is there a suggestion in the last two posts that there is something anti-semitic about my postings? (Let others speak for themselves.) I deny it. Given that the entire struggle was about the Nazi ideology, and the treatment of Jews was an intrinsic part of that, then any Jewish airman was risking (in the event of capture) rather more than the average Protestant or Catholic, and also could be considered as having rather more reason to be involved. It would be grossly unfair to them to consider their religion as minor a point as the difference between (say) Free Baptist and Episcopelian. Being a Jew was important in WW2 whereas being a Wee Free or Methodist wasn't. Personally, I have no problems with deciding who was in the right. Casting doubt over that is rather more worrying, even despicable, than queries into the ethnic/religious composition of the participants. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Graham
Let me remind you that most recent antisemitic incidents took place in France not long ago. They were so strong, Israelis suggested best choice is to leave the country. France is neither German, Soviet or religious country. Just aside. Anyway, yes, I think religion is important, see the recent discussions about euroconstitution for example. Religion was also used as an argument in case of certain ace called Moelders. I do not mention national issues, which still cause white hot discussions. You ask if it is important what pilots believed in. Yes it is. It is because they are treated like heroes. I simply cannot accept a view of 'decent people and brave soldiers' like Rudel or Galland having in mind German behaviour here in Poland. They knew perfectly well, what is going here but it did not influence them in any way. The only difference between Rudel and Galland is that the latter turned views after the war and created himself as a great oppositionist. I do not want to generalise, therefore I reply on those two particular airmen. But I have a general question for your statement about Jews being good guys. Are Jews fighting in German forces during WWII good guys? Are Jews fighting in the Red Army good guys? Are Jews who deserted from the Polish army in Palestine and started terroristic attacks on British good guys too? I think it is too complicated for such a general statement. Finally, on the background of my question. Over last few years I have seen several publications on the subject but mostly sloppy and fragmentary. Seeing that a lot of this is some sort of wishful thinking I just wanted to learn something new. I see my hopes were in vain, however. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Hello
Well keeping it within the WW2 framework of the forum - any Jew who fought for the allies, had made the right choice. A Jew (who still could claim to be one) who then fought for the Germans (Nazis) is for me not a good guy. But as the whole history of Jews in Europe over the last 2000 years is a matter of survival in hostile environments against all the odds - then it would be wrong of me to judge individual choices. Poles also fought for the Soviets and for the Germans - many were impressed - some volunteered. Who can judge each individual decision made? Still the question evidences a remnant of non-identification with Jews. A B17 crew comprising of Jew, Catholic, Protestant, Baptist is 1st and foremost a B17 crew. I may admire the skills of fighter pilots etc. I do not find the 'views' of Rudel acceptable. Pilots may be personal heroes - experts, patriots and very very brave - but they are only human and have a share of all the failings which may be expected of the species. Plenty of allied pilots express views in old age which are discordant with the cause for which they fought in their youth. There are Kowalskis in Germany and in the USA - only a small percentage would after 7 or 8 generations still think of themselves as Polish... But a Jew was always made to feel different - even when higly integrated into society - such as in France or Germany in the early 20th century. Wilhelm Frankl WW1 German ace was a Jew - so was Edmund Rumpler - of Rumpler Taube fame. Jewish life in Poland from 18th to 20th centuries was always separate from mainstream Polish society. So a Jew was fighting for survival always - whatever the uniform. Little has changed. Whatever they do - is wrong in the eyes of some. Graham W |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Graham
Well, but should we consider Soviets as Allies? How about Jews serving in quite numbers in such forces like NKVD? For me they were not good guys. But it is not important for me if they were good or not, but if they were at all. Then we have the question if we should consider Jews as a nation without country or as a religion. As you rightly pointed out, they have lived for about 2000 years in hostile environment and kept their integrity. It is also a fact that the hostility was in their national interest as it disallowed to assimilate. Otherwise they would dissapear as many other nations with perhaps a name distinguishing their origin, just like mentioned Kowalskis. I do not want to judge their deeds, it often was not a matter of choice. As you mentioned, Poles served both in Soviet and German armies but those doing this willingly were a marigin. Great bulk of them were drafted and nobody asked their opinion. But it must be noted here, that more Poles - German deserters - joined the army in the west than were evacuated from the SU! This says a lot about their feelings and their loyalty. I have no problem with Jews deserting from the Polish army in Palestine. I understand pretty well that they considered themselves a separate nation and wanted own country. The only thing that bothers me is why they did not do that after the war. Their choice anyway. In the effect, number of Jews in Polish army (and aviation) was not very significant or rather mariginal. On the other hand there were several Jewish volunteers that chose to serve in Polish army. For example there were two Jewes, one from Argentina and one from the US flying with 304 Sqn. The latter had a chance to be transferred to USAAF but did not do that. And all I want to know is how the situation was in other air forces. I still find it weird that nobody can say there were hundreds or thousand in XAF, famous ones being Y and Z. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
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So when a French youth of North African decent attacks a jew, is it french or islamic anti-semitism? The global community has made easy black and white world views untenable. So a Swastika on a Jewish grave in Germany might just as well have originated from a Turkish migrant youth as a Neo-Nazi. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Surely this is largely a matter of integration and tolerance in differing societies, with differences between western and Eastern Europe, and protestant or catholic nations, and democratic or autocratic societies.
There is no separate listings of, and publicity given to, Jews in the RAF because it mattered little to the society at the time. This is not to say that examples of intolerance and anti-semitism cannot be found in Britain of that period, but little more than that directed at other sectarian groups. I could quote the hatred between protestants and catholics in Glasgow. Other than at the time for Church parade, Jews would not stand out as a distinctive group (and even then would probably be outnumbered by other "non-conformists"). Individual examples come to mind: the electronic technician on the Bruneval raid; at least one South African ace; a Beaufighter pilot from Canada. This is about what I would expect from random sampling of any minority. There is the additional factor that, as in many nations, the British military recruited their officers from a restricted strata of society, especially in peacetime. Some prejudice is probably inevitable in such situations. After all, how many Methodists were there in the Royal Air Force? |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
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If you want I can search out all the Jewish war graves at Rheinbeg & Reichswald cemeteries. BUT................... Still I am unconfortable with the weighting of this thread. I do not care if an allied airman was Jewish, Atheist, Christian (Catholic, Protestant, Anglican, Quaker, Methodist, Baptist, Greek-Orthodox, Mormon, Dutch Reformed, etc) or Buddhist (Burmese Tiffy pilots) or even Islamic (i.e Egyptian Gladiator pilots) or the brave Sikhs in their Vultee Vengeances. Maybe there were even Christians in the Japanese forces..... If one person is capable of killing another inspired by political dogma – then why do you choose to emphasize Jews in the NKVD rather than Soviet atheists in the NKVD? OK I do accept that Poland was always the victim of aggression, rather than aggressor (excepting little bits of Czech territory in the late 1930s) The extremes of the Shoah took place on Polish soil – but the prime-movers were German But I am disturbed the underlining of Jews in the Red Army or Jews who defected from the Polish Forces in the Middle East. Look at events in post war Poland – even statements from the famous and otherwise quite admirable Solidarity president from Gdansk. The moment a Jew achieves any position – he becomes a target, even a ‘threat’ It is a European phobia, even now an Arabic phobia – but I refuse to have any part in it. The ramp at Oswiecim is the lowest common denominator. Some wanted to see all Jews on the ramp – some merely want to know how many Jews belonged to organisation X I may be too suspiscious – but it does spook me Graham |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
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If Rigg can find these figures for the German Armed Forces, it can only be easier for the majority of other combattants*. According to Rigg p. 66 1914-18 Germany 100.000 soldiers 3.200 officers 12.000 casualties Austro-Hungarian 300.000 soldiers n/a officers 25.000 casualties According to Rigg's research (table 5 p.64) there was a surprisingly high number of Jews and Mischlinge who served in the Wehrmacht. 97 Jews 967 Half Jews 607 Quarter Jews 1671 Total 5 Jews served with the Waffen-SS 1 Jewish Admiral 3 Half-Jewish Admirals 11 Half Jewish Generals!! To name but a few of his figures. An interesting book that anyone with an interest in this subject should have read. *Not certain but I think I have seen similar religion tables for other armed forces. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Ruy
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I have neither possibility, knowledge nor will to do an extensive searches in foreign archives. I am just curious and did not expect such a quite weird reaction. Quote:
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Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
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Why? It is your right to be curious, but why? What to you wish to ascertain? Graham mixed ancestry - no Chinese. |
streuth!!!!
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********* :-O Graham |
a link for starters
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Re: streuth!!!!
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Collating nationality with religion was and is quite common in this part of Europe, where there were no ethnic borders and community was quite mixed and dispersed. Protestants were German, Orthodox - Russians or Rutenians, Jews - well, Catholics - Poles. Naturalisation was partially done by a conversion of religion. The same situation is in Balkans. Perhaps it will change gradually, but I am not so sure. The world is not Britain-like created. Quote:
Finally, concerning Ajex site - I do not trust them. Judging by their research on Jews in the Polish army (sic!), their research is sloppy or even with a bad will. |
Re: streuth!!!!
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Hi Franek more of a difficulty than a problem.... I seem to be the only member choosing to respond to your posting, which, as someone who finds the Baal Shem Tov an inspiration, seems to be an ill-advised decision. Shalom! Graham |
Re: streuth!!!!
Graham
Who would remember a rabbi living three centuries ago? And what it has to the history of WWII, which happenned 60 years ago? This is not a site about ideology and relligion but about history. I find exremelly weird a question about famous Jews is inspirational when asked by another Jew but difficult or even 'antisemitic' when asked by a non-Jew. Oh well, today another news is spreading Poland - Israel once again refused to hand over Salomon Morel, a commander of a camp in Świętochłowice, where at least 1538 prisoners dies (read - were murdered), both Poles and Germans imprisoned by communists. Morel escaped to Israel in the early 1990s and resides there since. Another inspirational good guy? Now, it is really interesting. There is a lot of trouble to name but a few famous Jewish aviators and there is really no problem to find plenty of communistic criminals of the same origin. What conclusion should I have drawn? |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Jewish = Religion OK?
Any question about Jews is perforce a question about a religious identity. Anyhow my old Rabbi was very tolerant of other religions. I do not remember him, I'm not that old. I am not Jewish - but I love Judaic mysticism. To adherents of psuedo-scientific racial theories I am a goner and not too trustworthy as a long long time ago one of my ancesters married a Jewess........ oooooh! I do not understand why, other than Ruy, nobody else can help you in your mysterious mission to establish how many 'Jews' served with the various WW2 airforces. There is information on the web - but as most of it is compiled by sloppy Jewish researchers who are more anti-Polish than they are should be - all that I can quickly offer is in a similar vein. I have no influence on Israeli unwillingness to extradite murderers to Poland. ******************************** ....meet Harry... "Among those whose Heroes Return awards are announced today is veteran Harry Levy from Leeds in West Yorkshire, who will be making an emotional journey back to Lansdorf prisoner of war camp where he spent three wartime years. Harry, an RAF wireless operator and air gunner on Wellington bombers, was shot down by a Messerschmitt fighter over Belgium as he and his crew were returning from a raid over Dusseldorf. He remembers: "I was up in my turret when the fighter suddenly came upon us; he was very close, I could see the markings quite clearly. Suddenly he opened fire and I was hit in the chest and leg. I managed to crawl back into the fuselage but the rest of the crew were dead. I remember the navigator slumped over his charts and the pilot hanging limp from his straps. The plane was on fire and there was nothing I could do." Harry realised his only chance was to bale out, and after kicking through a panel in the tail end he jumped clear between the tail fin and the rear gunner's turret, which was now swinging wildly from side to side. He recalls hurtling down in the pitch black. "It was about 2 o'clock in the morning, and I hadn't a clue where the ground was. So when I landed it was a complete shock, and my knees went straight up into my stomach. At first I couldn't get up; then, in the dark I made out a cottage and dragged myself over to knock on the door. After a few moments the lights came on and an old man opened the door and shook my hand enthusiastically. He pulled me inside, rushed out of the room and came back wearing a First World War helmet." Sheltered by the local community, Harry was smuggled to a house with seven children where he hid in an attic for four days before being taken to Brussels, where he was eventually caught by the Germans and thrown in prison. After ten weeks of solitary confinement he was transferred to Landsdorf prison for the duration of the war. Warmly welcoming the Heroes Return scheme, Harry, now 82, plans to pass on a personal piece of history through his book 'The Dark Side of the Sky', which he will donate to the Landsdorf Museum along with a series of cartoons depicting prison life sketched by a fellow inmate. " ******************* http://www.pmo.gov.il/PMOEng/Communi...eech110504.htm http://www.australiansatwar.gov.au/s...p?war=W1&id=26 http://www.ajex.org.uk/ (sloppy) http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/...w2/Arnhem.html (sloppy) http://www.yorku.ca/cjv/db/directory.php http://www.marchoftheliving.org/mol2...tt05speech.pdf http://www.harrypalmergallery.ab.ca/...issenthal.html ******************** Why are you curious about such objectionable people? I'm still waiting for this information - as you can hardly be regarded as a 'friendly researcher' from what you have revealed in your various postings TTFN Graham |
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Concerning your links, website about Candians is interesting but death rate seems suspicious for me. Enlistement into the service does not mean service on the frontline. Clerk or medician is an important duty but it is not the airman flying against the enemy. Quote:
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more links
Shalom!
Aha, but do you know about Moishe - the famous Jewish fighter pilot? http://www.af.mil/news/airman/0202/crew.html (above ref. Larry Fleischer..) http://www.theherald.co.za/herald/20...6_06052003.htm http://www.fau.edu/library/br097.htm http://www.zchor.org/bialystok/adler.htm http://www.zenoswarbirdvideos.com/Debriefings.html ;- Graham |
at the risk of being moderated....
say hello to Moishe!
***************** Moishe, the brave Jewish fighter pilot, takes Rebecca down to the beach for a romantic summer picnic. After spreading out their lunch on the picnic blanket, they sit next to each other and begin showing their affections for each other. As things start to escalate, Rebecca calls out "Oh, Moishe, kiss me on the lips." Moishe breaks open a bottle of Manishevitz Concord wine and splashes it on her lips. She exclaims, "Moishe, what are you doing?" Moishe replies: "I am Moishe, the brave Jewish fighter pilot; when I have red meat, I have red wine!" Rebecca swoons at this fighter pilot's savoir faire and soon they are engaged in further petting. After a little while, Rebecca moans, "Oh, Moishe, kiss me lower." Moishe tears open her blouse, breaks open a bottle of white wine, and pours it on her chest. "Moishe," cries Rebecca, "what in the world are you doing?" Moishe declares: "I am Moishe, the brave Jewish fighter pilot; when I have white meat, I have white wine." This has the effect of Rebecca totally surrendering to the machismo of this gentleman and it isn't until a little while later she groans, "Ohh, Moishe, kiss me lower." At this point, our young hero breaks open a bottle of Cognac, pours the contents onto Rebecca's crotch, lights a match and throws it into her lap. As her skirts starts to go up in flames, she runs down into the water to douse the fire. She's standing there up to her waist in water and screams at him: "Moishe, what the f*ck are you doing?" Moishe replies, "I am Moishe, the brave Jewish fighter pilot; when I go down, I go down in flames." ****************** |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
:D
The only thing that makes it risquee is the combination of a Jewish airman and a (more or less) Luftwaffe forum, other than that I personally found it quite amusing. BTW I always game for a dirty joke, another character flaw. Perhaps we should set up a separate forum catagory for humor, war is serious enough as it is! |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Ruy
Well, I am afraid there is no escape from history, which is both amusing and surprising. Did you know that one of the founders of SS in Nuremberg was certain Salomon von Pfeffer? Or that one of the few British SS-men was of the name Courlander? ;) In the 304 Sqn there were two Jewes, one from NYC and one from Argentina. One day there was a show for the airmen but among flags presented on the scene there was no Polish one (Soviet and US were present). This caused a mass protest and the Polish airmen left the theatre, all but the American guy. When asked why he did not, he said that there was a falg, having in mind US one, this causing a lot of laugh among Poles. Anyway this caused Argentinian so infuriated that he had beaten American. British OC learned only that a Jew was beaten, however, and asked about mitreatment of minorities. This again caused Argie red-hot, who, with a Jewish accent commented: 'What? He is a minority? I am a minority' and got to beat American again. Finally all was settled in peaceful way, but the story circulated long after the event. ;) Graham Concerning Adler brothers, yes, there was quite a number of Jewes in the People's Aviation but most of them served after the war. Reputedly some scored some successes in Israeli's wars but due to their Hebrew names, they are unrecognisable. I recall a story told by a Syrian jet pilot who studied in Poland. Once he met Israeli jets over Golan and got on their frequency. In order to keep communications secret, the latter used a code. This was not a problem for Arabic after a few years spend in Poland, so he joined the discussion. At the end a lot of invectives were involved. ;) PS I am out for about a week or so. |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
You really believe that without the front-line troops of the Soviet Army, Hitler would never have started the war?
I can only presume that you are referring to the Nazi-Soviet pact and the joint invasion of Poland, but that only draws a specific line in history. To suggest that Hitler had not already started warfare in Europe ignores his actions in Austria and Czechoslovakia, or his plans for later, elsewhere. Had Poland agreed to the passage of Soviet troops, the Munich agreement and the betrayal of Czechoslovakia may never have happened. Perhaps then Hitler's ambitions could have been curbed, but after that failure the war was inevitable. It was the failure of the "West" here that encouraged Stalin to come to his agreement with the Nazis, which no one on any side expected to last. |
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Writing from my own tiny & strange corner - the overwhelming interest in the Luftwaffe bemuses me... When you peer back through the decades - the tragedies of 1939 & 1940 still inspire me more than any German military triumphs in their aftermath.... but then, I also believe in fairies.... slaap rustig kinderen... Graham |
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http://www.fau.edu/library/br123.htm ;-) graham |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
The Jewish knowledge of Yiddish and German contribution to the Allied air campaign
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/...w2/sugar1.html |
Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
Well, the Royal Hungarian Air Force had two pilots with Jewish roots (according to my knowledge, few others also possible), and both have striking stories too...
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Re: Jewish airmen in WWII
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