Recommended For the Knight's Cross

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Gentlemen,

Here are a few names that were nominated for the Knight's Cross near the end of WWII. The outcome of the nominations are unknown.

Werner Fehdler,SG-2(Destroyed 65 tanks)

Helmut Hannemann,SG-2(Destroyed 77 tanks)

Feldhelm Maahs,SG-77(rear gunner;over 900 sorties)

Heinrich Michalczak,SG-9(Flew HS-129s)

Hermann Neumann,SG-1(Destroyed over 60 Tanks)

Hans Schulz,SG-10

Waldemar Soffing,JG-26(33 air-to-air kills)

Franz Stigler,JG-27,JV-44(28 confirmed air kills,Genlt. Adolf Galland put Stigler's name for the Knight's Cross)

Wilhelm Tschenett,SG-77(rear gunner;over 900 sorties)

Hartmut Vogt,SG-3,SG-77(Destroyed over 41 Tanks)

Gebhard Weber,SG-9(Flew HS-129s)

Plus plenty of Schlachtfliegers with over 500 or 600 sorties that were in for the Knight's Cross. If you can add some more names to my list,please do thank you.

Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

[Johannes]

Hi Edward

By Hans Schulz I guess you mean Hans-Gottfried Schulz 21st July 1920-16th February 2012 DKiG 12th July 1943? I have this pilot with several units including I./JG 51, but ending the war with 2./SG 10. I have seven recorded air victories over Russian aircraft for him upto the end of 1944, but he is alleged to have claimed some thirty-one....is possible as he was claiming well from November 1944 onwards. Flew 486 sorties.

Kind Regards

Johannes

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Dear Johannes,

Yes,Hans-Gottfried Schulz was the full name of that ground-attack pilot. So, probably at least 31 air-to-air victories for Schulz. Pretty interesting new information for me. Thank you!

Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

[Jim P.]

Interesting list. I don't believe either Soffing or Stigler ever were officially awarded the RK. Or, better to put it this way, neither one is recognized in the Obermaier Jagdfliger RK book.

[VtwinVince]

Stigler being recommended is news to me.

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Gentlemen,

One more Luftwaffe pilot that was recommended for the Knight's Cross. Roman Gastager of Aufklarungsgruppe 123. He passed away a few years ago. There was a autobiography of Gastager in German.

Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

[Pesel##]

Hi,
There is a number of websites which collect biographies of high award recipients. Here are a few of them. Enjoy
http://en.ww2awards.com/person.asp?id=18
http://www.geocities.com/~orion47/AW...ecipients.html
http://www.ritterkreuztraeger-1939-45.de/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...oss_recipients

[John Manrho]

I would like to see where those assumptions are based on. In other words, what is the proof that these pilots were ever recommended for the KC? Otherwise a list does not make any sense imho.

Cheers,

John

[Jim P.]

I wonder if some of these names might be from the, now very dated, Constable & Toliver book on LW aces. I have a copy of this somewhere......

[Larry deZeng]

Originally Posted by Edward L. Hsiao

Gentlemen,

One more Luftwaffe pilot that was recommended for the Knight's Cross. Roman Gastager of Aufklarungsgruppe 123. He passed away a few years ago. There was a autobiography of Gastager in German.

Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

He was in 3.(F)/Aufkl.Gr 123:

R.Gastager/Wendy von Well - The Easter Bunnies: Long-distance Reconnaissance by the German Luftwaffe over Poland, France, England and the Atlantic 1938-1945 (Oxford: Trafford Publishing, 2006).