Luftwaffe and Allied Air Forces Discussion Forum  

Go Back   Luftwaffe and Allied Air Forces Discussion Forum > Discussion > Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces

Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces Please use this forum to discuss the German Luftwaffe and the Air Forces of its Allies.

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 28th December 2004, 17:23
Glimspur Glimspur is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: NYC
Posts: 12
Glimspur
Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

Hi Folks,

This is actually a serious question. I know that downed Black American pilots were treated pretty much the same as their White counterparts in Luftwaffe POW camps. I also know that on a few occasions Luftwaffe fighter pilots mis-identified their adversaries as being Black (due to the black oxygen masks and helmuts). But I've never read anything in any Luftwaffe pilot's memoirs that touches on the subject of how they felt flying in combat against African-Americans. I assume they had more important things to worry about.
Still, given the official Nazi line about Black soldiers, I can't help but feel that the idea of fighting African-American pilots created a barracks room stir of some sort.
Does anyone have any documented insight into this matter?

Thanks,
Glimspur
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 12th January 2005, 03:59
Glimspur Glimspur is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: NYC
Posts: 12
Glimspur
Hi Fellas, I posted this just after the Board was set up. I really would appreciate any help on this subject. I know it is a rather unusual issue, but please post if you can.

Thanks
Glimspur
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 5th November 2006, 19:13
mkb42h mkb42h is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 11
mkb42h is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

I have an anecdote passed down by a friend whose stepfather was in the luftwaffe: he was flying his messerschmidt in combat and suddenly found he was flying alongside a 'schwarze' he had never seen a 'schwarze' before and says they made eyecontact and each peeled off in opposite directions!
take it for what it's worth.
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 6th November 2006, 00:10
Franek Grabowski Franek Grabowski is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Warsaw, Poland
Posts: 2,382
Franek Grabowski is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

I doubt anybody cared as it was highly unusual to meet a negro in the air, not even to mention it is virtually impossible to recognise colour of a skin in the air.
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 6th November 2006, 00:17
brewerjerry brewerjerry is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Vancouver BC Canada ( Tiz a long way from Devon)
Posts: 829
brewerjerry
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

Hi
slightly O/T,
but in my local library,they have a 70's book on luftwaffe aces, in it is a picture of a coloured african and it is captioned as 'the batman of the marseille'
it doesn't say if he was a civilian or a member of the luftwaffe
cheers
Jerry
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 6th November 2006, 10:33
Ruy Horta's Avatar
Ruy Horta Ruy Horta is offline
He who rules the forum...
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Amstelveen, The Netherlands
Posts: 1,475
Ruy Horta has disabled reputation
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

He was a POW from South Africa, who was later executed by French resistence fighters.

At least according to Paul Carell.
__________________
Ruy Horta
12 O'Clock High!

And now I see with eye serene
The very pulse of the machine;
A being breathing thoughtful breath,
A traveller between life and death;
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 6th November 2006, 15:13
Graham Boak Graham Boak is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Lancashire, UK
Posts: 1,680
Graham Boak is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

There were some black Germans, in one sense at least. JG27's badge of a negro head on a map of Africa referred to Germany's experience as a colonial power, in South-West Africa, now Namibia I believe. Some of the matters arising appear in Thomas Pynchon's novel, V.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 6th November 2006, 19:45
Brian Brian is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
Posts: 3,972
Brian is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

Hi guys

Interestingly, I have just purchased an excellent book written by Cy Grant (one the first black TV entertainers in Britain back in the late 1950s), a former RAF navigator who was shot down and made POW in 1943. The title of the book is an echo of the caption to his photograph that appeared in a German newspaper - "A member of the RAF of Indeterminate Race."

Cheers
Brian
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 7th November 2006, 00:06
Tony Jones Tony Jones is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: West Wickham, Kent, UK
Posts: 263
Tony Jones
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

Hi

Theree is an intercept for 2/44I found in PRO HW 5 last week that noted that an all Negro USAF fighter Squadorn was now in action on the Italian front. It detailed the Squadron and a/c type but I haven't looked for this in the pics I took

Tony
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 12th November 2006, 00:24
Swiper Swiper is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Stade, Germany
Posts: 2
Swiper is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots?

"The Batman of Marseilles" would seem to refer to the Batman of Me109 fighter ace Hans-Joachim Marseilles who was eventually killed in North Africa, the batman being the personnal "servant" - each pilot of a specific rank had one.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
NEW BOOK - LUFTWAFFE & THE WAR AT SEA DavidIsby Books and Magazines 27 29th June 2012 01:15
Number of Luftwaffe fighter pilots edwest Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces 0 14th August 2005 21:19
allied pilots in luftwaffe brewerjerry Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces 18 20th May 2005 18:41
Fighter pilots' guts Hawk-Eye Allied and Soviet Air Forces 44 8th April 2005 15:25
Fighter pilots chicken? Hawk-Eye Allied and Soviet Air Forces 7 26th March 2005 14:17


All times are GMT +2. The time now is 12:17.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.2
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004 - 2018, 12oclockhigh.net