German pilots in Korea War?

[Edward L. Hsiao]

It's being over three years since that topic about the possibility of German pilots fighting in the Korean War. There were other foreign air forces that were allied to our air force in the air war over Korea. Perhaps there were German pilots in other air forces over Korea that were allies to our US Air Force.

Edward L. Hsiao

[BrianC]

Hi guys

Most interesting!

Changing tack slightly, I believe the odd ex-Luftwaffe pilot flew for the Syrians in the late 1940s/early 1950s against the new state of Israel.

Also, a few Soviet pilots flew for the Egyptians during the same period.

What do we know about these?

Cheers
Brian

[Edward L. Hsiao]

There were also not so strange possiblities of Luftwaffe pilot veterans joining the US Army and Marines as ground soldiers after WWII and Heer,Waffen-SS,and Kriegsmarine veterans joined the US Air Force after WWII as pilots and crewmen of USAF planes. See if you can figure that out.

Edward L. Hsiao

[bearoutwest]

The timing may not be suitable for any ex-Luftwaffe personell to serve in the USAF in Korea. If we look at typical immigration times/waiting periods:
- 12-24 months wait post application (clearance checks, processing time);
- 6-12 months post-approval to travel and settle in the USA
- 6 months between applying to join USAF and being accepted (post-war glut of ex-USAAF aircrews wanting to stay in service)
- 6 months initial flight training (even an ex-Luftwaffe pilot would need to be taught USAF procedures and protocols)
- 6-12 months operational training (e.g. fighter stream onto T-33s, F-80s, F-84s or F-86s)
- finally to an operational squadron
- into the queue of operational pilots wanting to go to Korea to bag a MiG (there were also units in continental USA, Greenland/Iceland, and NATO regions as well as parts of SE Asia that needed pilots).

So as a rough guess, minimum of 3 years (probably longer) between applying for US citizenship to being operational and in the queue for Korea. You would need to apply in 1946 to be operational in 1949/50. Would the US have had any real need to fast-track ex-Luftwaffe pilots, when there were so many ex-USAAF aircrew wanting to re-enlist? (Ace pilots like Robin Olds were sent to USAF Europe, having had their application to serve in Korea turned down.) Probably why so few stories exist of ex-Luftwaffe types in Western air forces.

I'm aware of one case - Frank Korbl - ex-Luftwaffe and was in initial pilot training in 1945, when redirected to radio school. Eventually immigrated to Australia, and served in the RAAF in Vietnam in a helicopter squadron.
Book listing on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Luftwaffe-.../dp/B00A1WY094

Or possibly available to download free from Australian Government publications:
http://airpower.airforce.gov.au/Publ...-Luftwaffe-MBE (original title? Ex-Luftwaffe-MBE)

...geoff

[Franek Grabowski]

I would say surprisingly few German pilots emerged in various places around the world. I guess most remained in Germany, and some worked as pilots there. Others asjusted to civilian life.
I am not aware of Soviet pilots in Egypt in 1940s.