The Luftwaffe was the aerial-warfare branch of the Wehrmacht before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the Luftstreitkräfte of the Imperial Army and the Marine-Fliegerabteilung of the Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles which banned Germany from having any air force.
The War Order of the German Cross, normally abbreviated to the German Cross or Deutsches Kreuz, was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repeated acts of bravery or military leadership; and in silver for distinguished non-combat war service. The German Cross in Gold ranked higher than the Iron Cross First Class but below the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, while the German Cross in Silver ranked higher than the War Merit Cross First Class with Swords but below the Knight's Cross of the War Merit Cross with Swords.
The 21st Panzer Division was a German armoured division best known for its role in the battles of the North African Campaign from 1941 to 1943 during World War II when it was one of the two armoured divisions making up the Deutsches Afrikakorps (DAK). It was first formed as the 5th Light Division in early 1941.
Otto Kittel was a German fighter pilot during World War II. He flew 583 combat missions on the Eastern Front, claiming 267 aerial victories, making him the fourth highest scoring ace in aviation history according to authors John Weal and Jerry Scutts. Kittel claimed all of his victories against the Red Air Force.
Alfred Schlemm was a German General der Fallschirmtruppe in the Wehrmacht. His last command in World War II opposed the advance of the First Canadian Army through the Reichswald in February 1945.
The Luftwaffe field divisions were the ground forces of the German Luftwaffe during World War II.
Horst Ademeit was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves during World War II. Ademeit fought in the Battle of Britain and the Eastern Front where he was officially credited with 166 aerial victories before his disappearance during a mission over Latvia on 7 August 1944.
Hans Philipp was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace during World War II. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He is credited with 206 enemy aircraft shot down in over 500 combat missions. The majority of his victories were claimed over the Eastern Front, with 29 claims over the Western Front.
Anton "Toni" Hackl was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 192 enemy aircraft shot down in over 1,000 combat missions. The majority of his victories were claimed over the Eastern Front, with 87 claims over the Western Front. Of his 87 victories over the Western Allies, at least 32 were four-engined bombers, a further 24 victories were unconfirmed.
Joachim Brendel was a Luftwaffe flying ace of World War II. Brendel was credited with 189 aerial victories—that is, 189 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft. All but six of his victories were claimed over the Soviet Air Forces on the Eastern Front in more than 950 combat missions, including 162 ground support missions.
Kurt-Werner Brändle was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 180 enemy aircraft shot down in over 700 combat missions. The majority of his victories were claimed over the Eastern Front, with 25 claims over the Western Front. He was "ace-in-a-day" three times, shooting down five or more aircraft on a single day.
Heinrich Setz was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 138 enemy aircraft shot down in 274 combat missions. The majority of his victories were claimed over the Eastern Front, with six claims over the Western Front.
Paul Conrath was a German general during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves of Nazi Germany.
X. Fliegerkorps was a formation of the German Luftwaffe in World War II, which specialised in coastal operations. It was formed 2 October 1939, in Hamburg from the 10. Flieger-Division.
Paul Gildner was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a night fighter ace credited with 44 aerial victories, including two by day, claimed in approximately 160 combat missions making him one of the more successful night fighter pilots in the Luftwaffe. All of his victories were claimed over the Western Front in Defense of the Reich missions against the Royal Air Force's (RAF) Bomber Command.
II Army Corps was a corps in the German Army during World War II.
The 12th Luftwaffe Field Division was a major military organization of the Wehrmacht during the Second World War. The Luftwaffe Field Division was formed from Flieger-Regiment 12 at the end of 1942, and was assigned to Army Group North in early 1943.
The LIII Army Corps was a corps of the German Army during World War II. It was first deployed in 1941 and was active as part of various armies under Army Group Centre until 1944, when it was destroyed during the Soviet Red Army operations Bagration and Kutuzov in June and July 1944. The corps suffered enormous casualties as a result of the Soviet attacks. All of its divisions were destroyed and all but a few of the soldiers were killed or captured by the Soviet Union. A new formation named LIII Army Corps was subsequently deployed in December 1944, when it was assigned to Seventh Army and fought on the western front until surrendering to United States Army forces in April 1945.
The 328th Infantry Division was the name of two distinct infantry divisions of the German army during World War II. The first, simply dubbed 328th Infantry Division, existed between 1941 and 1943, while the second, designated 328th Infantry Division "Zealand", existed for just under two months in 1945.
The 2nd Flak Division was a Flak division of the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany during World War II. It was initially deployed as a stationary formation in Leipzig for the defense of the German homeland's air space, but became a mobile division in January 1942 and was deployed to the Eastern Front. Eventually, it was shuffled to the Western Front, where it was destroyed in 1945.
Nazi Germany