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Erich Schmidt (pilot)

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Erich Schmidt
Nickname(s)"Schmidtchen"
Born17 November 1914
Neuhaus am Rennweg
Died31 August 1941(1941-08-31) (aged 26)
Dubno, Ukraine
Allegiance Nazi Germany
Service / branch Luftwaffe
Years of service?-1941
RankOberleutnant
UnitJG 53
Battles / warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Erich "Schmidtchen" Schmidt (17 November 1914 – 31 August 1941) was a Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II.

Career

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After completing his flight training, at the start of the war in September 1939, Leutnant Schmidt was in the 2nd Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53 (2./JG 53).[1] Transferred to 9th Staffel (9./JG 53) in the following February, he had no success in the French campaign, and his first victory was on 12 August 1940 when he shot down a Spitfire over the Isle of Wight. He was far more successful in the Battle of Britain however, and he had 17 victories by end of November 1940,[2] when he was transferred briefly to the Stab (HQ) flight of III./JG 53 as Gruppe-Adjutant.[3]

But he was back with 9./JG 53 for the invasion of Russia Operation Barbarossa. With his unit covering the advance of Hoth's panzers on the northern side of Army Group Centre, on the opening day of the campaign (22 June 1941) he shot down four Russian aircraft, and his 30th victory was an I-16 fighter on 4 July. For that score he was awarded the Knight's Cross by the newly promoted General of Fighters Werner Mölders on 23 July. His unit was constantly on the move, leap-frogging forward to airbases often only cleared of enemy a day or two before. Barely staying a few days to a week at a time, their mission was to protect the ground troops from enemy bombers as the blitzkrieg stormed eastward past Minsk, Vitebsk, Smolensk, toward Moscow.

On 26 July he shot down 5 DB-3 bombers, 3 in the morning and 2 more in the afternoon. He shot down his final three victories on 29 August taking his total to 47. On 31 August 1941, returning from a freie Jagd (free hunt), Schmidt was shot down east of Velikiye Luki.[4] His Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2 (Werknummer 12633—factory number) had been hit by Soviet anti-aircraft artillery. Schmidt bailed near Dubno and was seen to have safely landed, he was never seen again and remains missing in action.[5][6] At the time he was the top-scoring pilot of III/JG 53, and was posthumously promoted to Oberleutnant.

Summary of career

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Aerial victory claims

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Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 47 aerial victory claims, including 30 aerial victories claimed on the Eastern Front and 17 on the Western Front.[7]

Chronicle of aerial victories
  This and the ♠ (Ace of spades) indicates those aerial victories which made Schmidt an "ace-in-a-day", a term which designates a fighter pilot who has shot down five or more airplanes in a single day.
Claim Date Time Type Location Claim Date Time Type Location
– 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53 –[7]
At the Channel and over England — 26 June 1940 – 7 June 1941
1 12 August 1940 12:37 Spitfire[8] Isle of Wight 10 30 September 1940 14:33 Spitfire[9]
2 31 August 1940 20:42 Spitfire[10] vicinity of Dover 11 2 October 1940 11:06 Spitfire Thames Estuary[9]
3 5 September 1940 16:35 Spitfire[10] 12 2 October 1940 11:10 Spitfire Thames Estuary[9]
4 9 September 1940 18:55 Spitfire[10] 13 5 October 1940 12:33 Hurricane Thames Estuary[9]
5 15 September 1940 12:44 Spitfire[9] 14 7 October 1940 14:20 Spitfire Mayfield[9]
6 15 September 1940 13:08 Spitfire 10 km (6.2 mi) south of London[9] 15 10 October 1940 11:30 Spitfire Thames Estuary[9]
7 15 September 1940 15:36 Spitfire[9] 16 1 November 1940 12:45 Spitfire Tunbridge Wells[9]
8 17 September 1940 16:41 Spitfire[9] 17 30 November 1940 11:30 Spitfire north of Dover[9]
9 27 September 1940 13:33 Spitfire[9]
– 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53 –
Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 31 August 1941
18 22 June 1941 07:15 I-16[11] 33♠ 26 July 1941 10:10 DB-3[12]
19 22 June 1941 11:35 DJ-6[11] 34♠ 26 July 1941 10:12 DB-3[12]
20 22 June 1941 18:25 I-16[11] 35♠ 26 July 1941 18:28 DB-3[12]
21 22 June 1941 20:45 DJ-6[11] 36♠ 26 July 1941 18:32 DB-3[12]
22 25 June 1941 08:33 SB-3[11] 37 2 August 1941 13:45 I-18[13]
23 25 June 1941 11:30 SB-3[11] 38 5 August 1941 10:41 I-18[13]
24 26 June 1941 07:28 DB-3[11] 39 5 August 1941 10:46 I-18[13]
25 26 June 1941 07:41 DB-3[11] 40 7 August 1941 10:22 I-16[13]
26 27 June 1941 05:08 DB-3[14] 41 19 August 1941 13:05 I-16[15]
27 27 June 1941 14:57 DB-3[14] 42 23 August 1941 17:00 I-18[15]
28 27 June 1941 18:34 DB-3[14] 43 25 August 1941 14:55 V-11 (Il-2)[15]
29 2 July 1941 20:09 I-153[14] 44 27 August 1941 16:25 I-153[15]
30 4 July 1941 12:21 I-16[14] 45 29 August 1941 15:35 I-16[15]
31 14 July 1941 18:05 I-15[16] 46 29 August 1941 15:44 I-18[15]
32♠ 26 July 1941 09:35 DB-3[12] 47 29 August 1941 15:46 I-18[15]

Awards

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Notes

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  1. ^ According to Scherzer as pilot in the 9./Jagdgeschwader 53.[19]

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ Luftwaffe Officer Career Summaries website.
  2. ^ Aces of the Luftwaffe website.
  3. ^ Weal 2007, p. 38.
  4. ^ Weal 2007, p. 48.
  5. ^ Prien et al. 2003, pp. 152, 170.
  6. ^ Spick 2006, pp. 121, 123.
  7. ^ a b Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 1138.
  8. ^ Prien et al. 2002, p. 266.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Prien et al. 2002, p. 260.
  10. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2002, p. 267.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h Prien et al. 2003, p. 159.
  12. ^ a b c d e Prien et al. 2003, p. 163.
  13. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2003, p. 164.
  14. ^ a b c d e Prien et al. 2003, p. 160.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g Prien et al. 2003, p. 165.
  16. ^ Prien et al. 2003, p. 161.
  17. ^ a b Dixon 2023, p. 83.
  18. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 381.
  19. ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 669.

Bibliography

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  • Dixon, Jeremy (2023). Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe: Knight's Cross Holders 1939–1942. Pen and Sword Books. ISBN 978-1-52677-864-2.
  • Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer [in German] (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
  • Mathews, Andrew Johannes; Foreman, John (2015). Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims — Volume 4 S–Z. Walton on Thames: Red Kite. ISBN 978-1-906592-21-9.
  • Obermaier, Ernst (1989). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe Jagdflieger 1939 – 1945 [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Luftwaffe Fighter Force 1939 – 1945] (in German). Mainz, Germany: Verlag Dieter Hoffmann. ISBN 978-3-87341-065-7.
  • Prien, Jochen; Stemmer, Gerhard; Rodeike, Peter; Bock, Winfried (2002). Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945—Teil 4/II—Einsatz am Kanal und über England—26.6.1940 bis 21.6.1941 [The Fighter Units of the German Air Force 1934 to 1945—Part 4/II—Action at the Channel and over England—26 June 1940 to 21 June 1941] (in German). Eutin, Germany: Struve-Druck. ISBN 978-3-923457-64-9.
  • Prien, Jochen; Stemmer, Gerhard; Rodeike, Peter; Bock, Winfried (2003). Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945—Teil 6/II—Unternehmen "BARBAROSSA"—Einsatz im Osten—22.6. bis 5.12.1941 [The Fighter Units of the German Air Force 1934 to 1945—Part 6/II—Operation "BARBAROSSA"—Action in the East—22 June to 5 December 1941] (in German). Eutin, Germany: Struve-Druck. ISBN 978-3-923457-70-0.
  • Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
  • Spick, Mike (1996). Luftwaffe Fighter Aces. New York: Ivy Books. ISBN 0-8041-1696-2.
  • Weal, John (1996). Bf 109D/E Aces 1939-41. Oxford: Osprey Publishing Limited. ISBN 1-85532-487-3.
  • Weal, John (2001). Bf 109 Aces of the Russian Front. Oxford: Osprey Publishing Limited. ISBN 1-84176-084-6.
  • Weal, John (2007). Jagdgeschwader 53 "Pik-As". Aviation Elite Units. Vol. 25. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84603-204-2.
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