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 22nd December 2021, 17:25
Schlageter Schlageter is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 90
Schlageter is on a distinguished road
Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Hello gents,

I would like to ask for your help researching the career of specific Luftwaffe pilots.

I am interested how many and which members of the Army and Navy (maybe Waffen-SS too?) volunteered or were selected for pilot training and subsequent transfer to the Luftwaffe during wartime.

What was the criteria/ ratio behind these changes in the careers? Were e.g. only professional soldiers eligible for such a step? Did the other Armed Forces branches encourage these transfers or did they try to prevent losing their members (and trained and specialized personnel) to the Luftwaffe?

I am excluding from my request the Army members who served as observers in Nahaufklärungsgruppen and from 1943 onwards were sent to pilot training as well the (pilot trained) Army and Navy personnel who were transferred in the 1930s to build up the Luftwaffe.

I know of following examples to above-described process:
  • Helmut Lipfert (JG52), member of Nachr. Abt.37 of 1. Panzerdivision, volunteered 1941 for pilot training
  • Hans Dortenmann (JG54, JG26), NCO in an Infantry Regiment, transferred to Luftwaffe after self-inflicted wounds saw him unfit for ground combat duties
  • Siegfried Sy (JG26), Officer in an Infantry Regiment, began 1943 pilot training
  • Willi Heilmann (JG54, JG26), Officer in an Engineer Battalion, began 1943 pilot training
Do you know other examples of such a wartime transfer and career change?

Thanks a lot in advance

Best

Michael
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 22nd December 2021, 20:29
tonda75 tonda75 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 346
tonda75 is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Hi Michael,
It probably happened very often that the pilot was first a member of the WH, or another type of army.
I started searching among JG 26 pilots whose surname begins with the letter S and K.

Uffz.W. Spiegl 5./JG 26 I.R. 483
Uffz.H. Streufert 10./JG 26 Kraftf.-Ers.Abt. 32
Uffz.A. Jenner 11./JG 26 San.Ers.Komp.
Uffz.E. Kohler 3./JG 26 I.R.
Ofw.K. Kruska 6./JG 26 A.R.121
Hptm.G. Kelch 7./JG 26 A.R. 59 and 39.

If you are interested I can continue.
I did not include Flak members in this list.
Interestingly, before the war, many pilots were members of the police.
Regards Tony
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 23rd December 2021, 00:41
Schlageter Schlageter is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 90
Schlageter is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Hello Tony,

thank you very much for that promising start! Especially interesting that there are many JG26 pilots who went that career path…

Do you maybe also have the years they switched to the Luftwaffe?

Thanks again and all the best

Last edited by Schlageter; 23rd December 2021 at 00:42. Reason: Spelling mistake
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 23rd December 2021, 00:58
Teresa Maria's Avatar
Teresa Maria Teresa Maria is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,220
Teresa Maria is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Alfred Wehmeyer (ZG 26) started his military career as a Gebirgsjäger (a member of the mountain infantry) and later transferred to the Luftwaffe. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Wehmeyer
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 23rd December 2021, 01:04
Teresa Maria's Avatar
Teresa Maria Teresa Maria is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,220
Teresa Maria is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Hans Beißwenger (JG 54) was first in the SS, then in the anti-aircraft artillery, and then moved to the Luftwaffe: https://de.metapedia.org/wiki/Bei%C3%9Fwenger,_Hans

Dietrich Hrabak (JG 54) was first in the navy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietrich_Hrabak

Josef Zwernemann (JG 52) was also a sailor at the beginning: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_Zwernemann
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 23rd December 2021, 11:55
FalkeEins's Avatar
FalkeEins FalkeEins is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Hauts-de-France
Posts: 855
FalkeEins will become famous soon enoughFalkeEins will become famous soon enough
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Quote:
Originally Posted by tonda75 View Post
Interestingly, before the war, many pilots were members of the police.
Regards Tony


there was a Polizeifliegerstaffel stationed in Oberschleißheim, overseeing control of German borders and air traffic.

for the OP, Fahnenjunker Martin Drewes was a tank commander in Pz-Rgt 6 before applying to fly and joining 4./ZG 76 in 1940.
__________________
FalkeEins- The Luftwaffe blog
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 23rd December 2021, 12:09
Chris Goss's Avatar
Chris Goss Chris Goss is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: UK
Posts: 11,410
Chris Goss has a spectacular aura aboutChris Goss has a spectacular aura aboutChris Goss has a spectacular aura about
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Quite a massive undertaking and noting the request is wartime only. Hans-Karl Mayer from JG 53 was a midshipman pre-war like loads of others
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 23rd December 2021, 13:51
John Manrho John Manrho is offline
Alter Hase
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Netherlands
Posts: 1,753
John Manrho will become famous soon enough
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

In my research into JG 6 I also have numerous pilots who belonged to other branches of the armed forces before they joined the Luftwaffe. This concerns enlisted men and officers.

John
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 23rd December 2021, 14:05
tonda75 tonda75 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 346
tonda75 is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Hello,
this is the rest of the pilots, the year in which the pilot training began is indicated in parentheses:

Uffz.W. Spiegl (1941)
Uffz.H. Streufert (1942)
Uffz.A. Jenner (1940)
Uffz.E. Kohler (1943)
Ofw.K. Kruska (1939/40)
Hptm.G. Kelch (1941)

OBlt.K. Bertels II./JG 26 Rgt. "General Göring" (1940)
Ofw.F. Roggenkamp 7./JG 26 I.R. 107 (1940)
Ogefr. H. Grimm 9./JG 26 Ln.Rgt. 1 (1943)
Fw.K. Schmidtke 4./JG 26 Ln.Rgt. 1 (1941)
Fw.K. Friedrich 11./JG 26 Geb.Jäger Rgt.98 (1940)
Lt.W. Nink 3./JG 26 I.R. 110 (1942)
Ofw.K.-H. Ehret 7./JG 26 I.R.110 and 485 (1939/40)
Ofw.F. Buchegger 2./JG 26 Aufkl.Rgt.9 (1940)

There are also opposite cases.
Two JG 52 ground staff, Gefr.Rudolf Wüster and Gefr.Eduard Woll, joined the Luftwaffe voluntarily in 1939.
In 1943, they volunteered for the SS and were members of the crew of the tank Tiger SS-Pz.Rgt.2 "Das Reich"
Regards Tony
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 23rd December 2021, 15:13
tonda75 tonda75 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Posts: 346
tonda75 is on a distinguished road
Re: Luftwaffe Pilots from other Armed Forces branches

Hello,
The pilots I had in mind were members of the police in different parts of Germany.
For example, Oblt.Herbert Heck (2./JG 26).
Before the war: SS-Obersturmführer H.Heck, Kriminalsekretär
Staatspolizei-Leistelle,Hamburg (GESTAPO)

Tony
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
Korea-MiG-15 and the other side of the history Daniel Nole Post-WW2 Military and Naval Aviation 24 20th April 2022 21:18
Unknown Luftwaffe pilots Adlerhorst Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces 2 2nd April 2020 23:56
Information about 2 Luftwaffe fighter pilots named Mertens canonne Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces 0 9th November 2016 18:35
Luftwaffe Pilots Fumanchan Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces 0 18th February 2015 00:09
Luftwaffe Reaction re: African American Pilots? Glimspur Luftwaffe and Axis Air Forces 10 12th November 2006 04:33


All times are GMT +2. The time now is 22:44.


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