Which rank for this Luftwaffe aviator

[BABIN]

Hello,

Could somebody tell me what is the rank of this aviator ? the stripes on the sleeves of his jacket, intrigue me. Besides the marks on his shoulders and his collar, seem unusual ... of course, I'm not a specialist !

Thank you very much.

Pierre

[bill norman]

Oberfeldwebel.

[Kaczmarek]

Because of the stripes on his sleeves it is a Hauptfeldwebel (Senior master sergeant). It is not a rank, it is a position the so called "Spieß".

Kaczmarek

[David Ransome]

Hi,

I believe that the order to wear these arm stripes in NCO braid on tunics and flightblouse was issued 11 April 1935 ( Luftwaffen Verordnungsblatt Nr 11 dated 22 april 1935) for wear by Oberfeldwebel/Oberwachtmeister 'in troop service'. The ranks of Hauptfeldwebel/Hauptwachtmeister were introduced later and the order was then extended to them too; in March/April 1939 another order was issued which allowed these two ranks to also wear the stripes on their greatcoat sleeves. I'm not an authority on this but checked some of my references which all stated more or less the same, main one being 'Uniforms & Insignia of the Luftwaffe Vol 1' by Brian L. Davis ISBN 1-85409-497-1.

I've heard of 'Der Spiess' in the Heer but I can't say that I've heard that use in the Luftwaffe - doesn't mean to say that it wasn't used however!

Regards

David

[John Manrho]

O yes, every Staffel had a "Spiess"....

cheers,

John

[BABIN]

Thank you very much, gentlemen, for your replies. But which was the specifical function of a "Spiess" in a Staffel ?

Pierre

[PaulReck]

Same as a Company First Sargent in the US Army and Marine Corps. This was the senior enlisted person who acted as a liaison between the enlisted corps and the Commanding Officer.

[BABIN]

Thank you very much, Paul

Pierre

[John Vasco]

I was told he was the one who bossed the erks about and made sure the allotted work was done. Usually not the most popular person in the Staffel... Like a Sergeant-Major in the UK military.