The Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte —known before October 1916 as Fliegertruppen —was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-language sources it is usually referred to as the Imperial German Air Service, although that is not a literal translation of either name. German naval aviators of the Marine-Fliegerabteilung were an integral part of the Imperial German Navy. Both military branches operated aeroplanes, observation balloons and airships.
Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 11 was founded on 28 September 1916 from elements of 4 Armee's “Kampfeinsitzer” or KEKs) 1, 2 and 3 and mobilized on 11 October as part of the German Air Service's expansion program, forming permanent specialised fighter squadrons, or "Jastas". It became the most successful fighter squadron in the Luftstreitkräfte.
Erich Loewenhardt was a German soldier and military aviator who fought in the First World War and became a fighter ace credited with 54 confirmed aerial victories. Originally enlisting in an infantry regiment even though he was only 17, he fought in the Battle of Tannenberg, winning a battlefield commission on 2 October 1914. He would serve in the Carpathians and on the Italian Front before being medically discharged in mid-1915. Following a five month recuperation, Loewenhardt joined the Imperial German Air Service in 1916. After serving as an aerial observer and reconnaissance pilot, he underwent advanced training to become a fighter pilot with Jagdstaffel 10 in March 1917. Between 24 March 1917 and 10 August 1918, Loewenhardt shot down 45 enemy airplanes, as well as destroying nine observation balloons. Shortly after his final victory, he was killed in a collision with another German pilot.
LeutnantKarl Allmenröder was a German World War I flying ace credited with 30 aerial victories. The medical student son of a preacher father was seasoned in the trenches as an 18-year-old artilleryman in the early days of the First World War, earning promotion via battlefield commission to Leutnant on 30 March 1915. After transferring to aviation and serving some time as an artillery spotter in two-seater reconnaissance airplanes, he transferred to flying fighter aircraft with Jagdstaffel 11 in November 1916. As Manfred von Richthofen's protege, Karl Allmenröder scored the first of his 30 confirmed victories on 16 February 1917. Flying a scarlet Albatros D.III trimmed out with white nose and elevators, Allmenröder would score a constant string of aerial victories until 26 June 1917, the day before his death. On 27 June 1917, Karl Allmenröder fell to his death near Zillebeke, Belgium. His posthumous legacy of patriotic courage would later be abused as propaganda by the Nazis.
Bruno Loerzer was a German air force officer during World War I and World War II. Credited with 44 aerial victories during World War I, he was one of Germany's leading flying aces, as well as commander of one of the first Imperial German Air Service Jagdeschwaders.
JagdgeschwaderI of World War I, was a fighter wing of the German Luftstreitkräfte, comprising four Jastas. The first unit of its type formed under that classification, JG I was formed on 24 June 1917, with Manfred von Richthofen as commanding officer, by combining Jastas 4, 6, 10 and 11. JG I became known as "The Flying Circus" or "Richthofen's Circus" because of the bright colours of its aircraft, and perhaps also because of the way the unit was transferred from one area of Allied air activity to another – moving like a travelling circus in trains, and frequently setting up in tents on improvised airfields.
Theodor "Theo" Osterkamp was a German fighter pilot during World War I and World War II. A flying ace, he achieved 32 victories in World War I. In World War II, he led Jagdgeschwader 51 up to the Battle of Britain and claimed a further six victories during World War II, in the process becoming one of only a few men to score victories and become an ace in both world wars.
OberleutnantKurt Robert Wilhelm Wolff PlM was one of Imperial Germany's highest-scoring fighter aces during World War I. The frail youthful orphan originally piloted bombers before being picked by Manfred von Richthofen to join Jagdstaffel 11 in the burgeoning Imperial German Air Service. Under the tutelage of Richthofen, Wolff would shoot down 33 enemy aircraft in four months, including 22 victims during the Royal Flying Corps' disastrous Bloody April, 1917. Wolff scored victories so rapidly he outran the Prussian awards system; although the Pour le Merite was customarily awarded after a fighter ace's 20th victory, Wolff's was not received until after his 29th.
Harry von Bülow-Bothkamp was a German fighter pilot notable for being one of the few two-war aces in history. After scoring six victories in World War I, he became a Luftwaffe ace in World War II, with 12 additional victories. Also he was a member of the National Socialist Flyers Corps with the rank of NSFK-Obergruppenführer.
Eduard-Maria Joseph Ritter von Schleich, born Schleich, was a high scoring Bavarian flying ace of the First World War. He was credited with 35 aerial victories at the end of the war. During the Second World War he served in the Luftwaffe as a general.
Generalleutnant Kurt-Bertram von Döring was a German World War II Generalleutnant of Luftwaffe. He began his career as a flying ace in World War I, became a flying soldier of fortune during the 1920s and early 1930s, and then joined the resurgent German air service and served through World War II.
Max Ritter von Müller PlM, IC, MOMJ was a German World War I fighter ace credited with 36 victories. He was the highest scoring Bavarian pilot of the war.
Rittmeister Carl Bolle, PlM, MMC, HOH, IC, was a fighter ace with 36 aerial victories during World War I. He became a Jagdstaffel commander during that war, and an advisor to the Luftwaffe during World War II.
Generalmajor Hermann Frommherz Military Order of St. Henry, Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross of the Military Karl-Friedrich Merit Order, began his military career in World War I as a German ace fighter pilot. He was credited with 32 victories. During World War II he was involved in the German takeover of Czechoslovakia and rose to become a Luftwaffe Generalmajor.
Ulrich Neckel Pour le Mérite, Iron Cross First and Second Class, was a World War I fighter ace credited with 30 victories.
Oskar Freiherr von Boenigk was a German Generalmajor, he began his military career during World War I as a fighter ace credited with 26 victories. He survived the war, served in the post-war revolution, and eventually rose to the rank of Generalmajor in the Luftwaffe during World War II.
Oberleutnant Eduard Ritter von DostlerPlM, MOMJ was a German World War I fighter ace credited with 26 victories. On three consecutive assignments during World War I, Dostler was entrusted with the combat leadership of German jagdstaffeln.
Hans Klein was a German World War I fighter ace credited with 22 aerial victories.
Major General Carl-August von Schoenebeck began his career in the Baden Leib-Grenadier Regiment in 1915. He transferred to the Luftstreitkräfte in 1916. After training, he served with the artillery cooperation unit FA (A) 203. His subsequent service in fighters (e. g. Jasta 11 earned him credit for eight confirmed aerial victories and a number of decorations, as well as the command of Jasta 33 while still a leutnant.
Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 26 was a "hunting group" of the Luftstreitkräfte, the air arm of the Imperial German Army during World War I. As one of the original German fighter squadrons, the unit would score 177 verified aerial victories, including four observation balloons destroyed. The Jasta would pay a bloody price for its success: five pilots killed in action, nine wounded in action, and one prisoner of war.
