Top 10 Fighter pilots of World War II

[Star Wars]

All of them are Germans

10. Heinrich Ehrler

Kills - 208 (8 Me-262)
Years of service - 1935–1945
Died - 4 April 1945 (aged 27 )

Last Sortie-

On the morning of 4 April 1945, Ehrler flew his last sortie and achieved the last two of his 208 recorded victories. Major Ehrler, flying out of the JG 7 Airfield at Brandenburg-Briest accompanied by his wingman, was in the skies 50 kilometers east of Hamburg when B-24 Liberators from the 448th Bombardment Group began forming their bombing run of Parchim. Ehrler attacked the lead 714th Bombardment Squadron, downing two B-24 Liberator bombers—Lt. Shafter's "Miss-B-Havin," and Lt. Mains' "Red Bow." At the time of the attack, two P-51 Mustangs were pursuing Ehrler, and he was being fired upon by squadron bombers, taking hits from the tail and waist gunners of B-24, "My Buddie" (piloted by Lt. Gordon Brock), who reported pieces of fuselage flying off the jet. The attack took place over Büchen.

Minutes later, as the 448th Bombardment Group circled back towards their Group RP at Stendal, Ehrler engaged a third B-24 Liberator, "Trouble in Mind," piloted by Captain John Ray, over Kyritz, at 52°57′N 12°23′E. A reference is made by surviving crew members to a cannon hit in the fuselage that destroyed the Liberator, but Ehrler had, only moments before, radioed Major Theodor Weissenberger that he was running out of ammunition and intended to ram the bomber. In any case, both planes were destroyed in the ensuing explosion. The B-24 crashed at Krüllenkempe, near Havelberg, as Ehrler's jet fell to earth in the woods of Scharlibbe, where he was killed. His body was recovered the following day at Scharlibbe, near Stendal, where he was buried. Ehrler's grave at Stendal confirms the date of death as 4 April 1945.


Quotes - "Theo. I have run out of ammunition. I'm going to ram this one. Good bye. We'll see each other in Valhalla."


9. Hermann Graf

Kills - 212 aerial victories in over 830 combat missions
Awards - Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
Died - 4 November 1988 (aged 76)

8. Heinrich Bär

Kills - He was credited with 220 or 221 aerial victories
Died - 28 April 1957 (aged 43)
Nickname- Reeste(anyone know what it means ?)

7. Erich Rudorffer

Kills - His 222 aerial victories include 58 heavily armoured Il-2 Sturmovik ground attack aircraft
He is NOT dead
Nick Name- Fighter of Libau

6. Wilhelm Batz

Kills - 237 enemy aircraft
Nickname - Willi
Died - 11 September 1988 (aged 72)

5. Walter Nowotny

Kills - claiming 267 aerial victories
Died - 8 November 1944 (aged 23 )
Džūkste, Latvia
Nickname "Nowi", "Tiger of Wolchowstroj"

Last Sortie

The next morning, 8 November 1944, the Generals arrived again at Nowotny's command post and Keller declared that the aces of the past years had become cowards and that the Luftwaffe had lost its fighting spirit. Shortly after, news reached the command post of a large bomber formation approaching. Two Rotten of Me 262 were prepared for take-off, Erich Büttner and Franz Schall at Hesepe, and Nowotny and Günther Wegmann at Achmer. At first only Schall and Wegmann managed to take off because Büttner had a punctured tire during taxiing and Nowotny's turbines initially refused to start. With some delay, Nowotny took off and engaged the enemy on his own, Schall and Wegmann having since retired from the action after sustaining battle damage. Nowotny radioed that he had downed a B-24 Liberator and a P-51 Mustang before he reported one engine failing and made one final garbled transmission containing the word "burning". Helmut Lennartz recalled:

4. Otto Kittel

Kills - 267 aerial victories
Died - 14 or 16 February 1945 (aged 27 )
Nickname Bruno

Last Sortie

At 12:06 on 14 or 16 February 1945[Notes 2], Otto Kittel took off with his Geschwader (Wing) flying Fw 190 A-8 "Black 1", Werknummer (airframe number) 690 282, to engage a formation of 14 Shturmovik aircraft over the Courland Pocket. At 12:13 he made contact with the formation at low altitude, no more than 100–150 metres (328 to 492 feet). Kittel attacked, firing at and damaging several Shturmovik. Kittel damaged one aircraft and chased it. As he closed in for the kill, his Focke-Wulf was hit by return fire from a rear gunner, and descended towards the ground on fire. Kittel, probably incapacitated and unable to use his parachute, did not bail out and the Fw 190 crashed in flames. The site of the crash is believed to have been six kilometres (3.7 miles) south-west of Džūkste in Latvia. Witnesses from Kittel's formation reported that a Shturmovik had been shot down by Otto before he himself was killed during the air battle having scored his 267th and final victory.

3. Günther Rall

Kills - He achieved a total of 275 victories during World War II
Died - 4 October 2009 (aged 91)

2. Gerhard Barkhorn

Kills - credited with 301 victories
Died - 8 January 1983 (aged 63)
Nickname - Gerd (what does it mean)



*drums beat in back ground*



1 . Erich Hartmann

Kills - shooting down 352 Allied aircraft
Died - 20 September 1993 (aged 71)
Nickname -Bubi
-The Blond Knight
-The Black Devil
-The Black Devil of the South (by the Soviets)

 

[Trichy]

Good find...but Change the topic as Top 10 Fighter Pilots of Luftwaffe during World War II

 

[Juice]

Good find...but Change the topic as Top 10 Fighter Pilots of Luftwaffe during World War II

Technically, the best all-time aces belonged to the Luftwaffe....so the title is correct. Of course, there are many reasons for this (Galland gave a few....such as ALWAYS having targets when you got in the air, etc.)

 

[Star Wars]

Good find...but Change the topic as Top 10 Fighter Pilots of Luftwaffe during World War II

not really entire top10 were form Luftwaffe...actually....like the top 50-60 fighter pilots are from Luftwaffe

 

[scorpionx]

There is a reason why Luftwaffe pilots are among the best of the best.Spanish Civil war was a vital platform for the young German pilots to learn the crucial fighter maneuvers which produced remarkable outputs during the second world war. For example while the British pilots were still stuck up to their conventional delta formation even during battle of Britain in the summer of '40,their German counterparts had already using the "Finger four" technique which they learnt during the Civil war.

 

[AUSTERLITZ]

Not in numbers but inquality-Molders and galland were superb pilots.
However the best probably is marsielle 'the star of africa'.With 150 odd victories -all against the extremely competent RAF and all on the western front.No shooting down old soviet planes by conscript pilots for inflated numbers.

 

[Juice]

There is a reason why Luftwaffe pilots are among the best of the best.Spanish Civil war was a vital platform for the young German pilots to learn the crucial fighter maneuvers which produced remarkable outputs during the second world war. For example while the British pilots were still stuck up to their conventional delta formation even during battle of Britain in the summer of '40,their German counterparts had already using the "Finger four" technique which they learnt during the Civil war.

The main reasons were opportunity and combat cycle. Some American pilots never got to even see a German plane. And you didn't fly all the time, rotated, etc. German pilots were swarmed with enemy aircraft all the time....and you flew continuously til the war ended or you died.