No Such Person On The Ace List

[Edward L. Hsiao]

Were there any reports from the Allied intelligence and civilians in encountering a Luftwaffe fighter ace that they thought they knew but that there was no such name on the Luftwaffe fighter aces list or simply don't existed at all? For a fictional example,Allied and Soviet pilots had studied a file on a 'Fritz Flugmann' who supposed to have shot down 130 Allied and Soviet planes on all fronts during WWII. Sometimes the civilians would examined Flugman's fighter plane whether crashed or on the airfield through their telescopes and examined the kill markings on the plane's rudder. Years later after WWII was over,it turned out that there was no such Luftwaffe fighter ace named 'Fritz Flugmann' at all. He never existed. I don't know if you understand my question but that's how I put it. I'm looking forward for your answer.

Sincerely,

Edward L. Hsiao

[Teresa Maria]

I suppose he may have been a fictional fighter. Fritz is a fairly stereotypical German name (that's why in German jokes about teachers and pupils the pupil is usually called Fritzchen), and Flugmann (Flug (flight) + Mann (man)) may have been invented as a hypothetical example for pilots to study.

[ghostwriter]

in
HORRIDO! FIGHTER ACES OF THE LUFTWAFFE
by col. raymond f. toliver and trevor j. constable

original page 20:

Suppose it is early 1943, at which time forty points were required to qualify a fighter pilot for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Our hypothetical pilot, Captain Fritz Flugmann, has already shot down and confirmed twenty-two single-engined fighters (twenty-two points), five twin-engined bombers (ten points), and two four-engined bombers (six points). Captain Flugmann is an ace with twenty-nine kills, but he has only thirty-eight points—not enough for his Knight's Cross,
"Next day, Flugmanntakes off and damages a B-17, separating it from its box formation, and accomplishes the final destruction of a second B-17 damaged previously by another German pilot. Captain Flugmann now has forty-one points, enough for his Knight's Cross, but he is credited with thirty kills after reconciling the aerial battle with other pilots and getting victory credit for one of the bombers.

http://www.worldhistory.biz/download...eLuftwaffe.pdf

there is your "fritz flugmann" ...


regards
ghostwriter

[Jim P.]

It's been many, many years since I've looked at "HORRIDO! FIGHTER ACES OF THE LUFTWAFFE" though I probably still have it tucked away on a bookshelf somewhere. And if I remember correctly, there were at least a few of the names on the "ace list", as published in "HORRIDO! FIGHTER ACES OF THE LUFTWAFFE", that appear to have been complete fiction and have yet to appear in ANY documentation that I've ever found in the intervening 40-50 years. In its day, this book was likely one of the main titles that first sparked interest in the Jagdwaffe for a number of us old geezers. Then again, back during that time, there really weren't many options to pick from.

The years have not been kind to this title, or its authors as historians. The anti-Soviet climate in the west of the 50s-60s likely colored a lot of the "atmosphere" and viewpoint of the book, not that it was a totally false narrative, but it was certainly overplayed as to the aura presented of the Luftwaffe. Back then, I was certainly guilty of becoming a "fanboy" of the aces for a time. But only a short time because as more information came forth, a lot of it proved to be complete BS. I won't mention the names that I use now to refer to these authors, but Edward, if you still use this as a "primary" source for pilot names & such, you need to set it aside and move on to much more current and relevant sources. I'm sure you have in much or most of your research, but this book in particular just tends to "muddy the waters", being too much of a fairy tale versus reality and currently available information. Sorry, didn't mean to get preachy, but your inquiry for 'Fritz Flugmann', and ghostwriter's response, struck a nerve.