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Heinz Knoke
Heinz Knoke (24 March 1921 – 18 May 1993) was a World War II ''Luftwaffe'' flying ace. He is credited with 33 confirmed aerial victories, all claimed over the Western theatre of operations, and claimed a further 19 unconfirmed kills in over 2,000 flights. His total included 19 heavy bombers of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). Early life Knoke was born the son of a policeman on 24 March 1921 in Hamelin. On 6 July 1938, whilst watching an air display, Knoke made his first flight, a fifteen-minute joy ride in an old transport aircraft and took the preliminary examination for entry into the ''Luftwaffe''. On 15 November 1939, Knoke underwent flight training at No. 11 Flying Training Regiment Schönwald, Brandenburg, Schonwald, near Berlin and in August 1940 attended ''Jagdfliegerschule'' 1 (Werneuchen) under instructor Flight Sergeant Kuhl, an experienced operational pilot who had already seen action in both the invasions of Poland and France. War career 1941–42 In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hamelin
Hameln ( ; ) is a town on the river Weser in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Hameln-Pyrmont and has a population of roughly 57,000. Hamelin is best known for the tale of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. History Hameln started with a monastery, which was founded as early as 851 AD; its surrounding village became a town by the 12th century. The incident involving the "Pied Piper" (see below) is said to have occurred in 1284 and may be based on a true event, although somewhat different from the traditional tale. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Hamelin was a minor member of the Hanseatic League. In June 1634, during the Thirty Years' War, Lothar Dietrich, Freiherr of Bönninghausen, a general in the Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Emperor, lost the Battle of Oldendorf to the Swedish General Kniphausen, after Hamelin had been besieged by the Swedish army. The era of the town's greatest prosperity began in 1664, when Hamelin became a fortified border town ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Günther Rall
Günther Rall (10 March 1918 – 4 October 2009) was a highly decorated German Military aviation, military aviator, officer and General, whose military career spanned nearly forty years. Rall was the third most successful fighter pilot in aviation history, behind Gerhard Barkhorn, who is second, and Erich Hartmann, who is first. Rall was born in Gaggenau, the German Empire, in March 1918. Rall grew up in the Weimar Republic. In 1933 the Nazi Party seized power and Rall, deciding upon a military career, joined the German Army (1935–1945), Army in 1936 to train as an infantry soldier. Rall transferred to the Luftwaffe soon after and he qualified as a fighter pilot in 1938. In September 1939 World War II began with the German invasion of Poland. Rall was assigned to Jagdgeschwader 52, ''Jagdgeschwader'' 52 (JG 52—52nd Fighter Wing) and flew combat patrols during the Phoney War period on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front. Rall flew combat missions in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zwischenahn
Bad Zwischenahn (; ) is a town and a municipality in the low-lying Ammerland district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is on Zwischenahner Meer, approximately 15 km northwest of Oldenburg (city), Oldenburg and about 70 km south of the North Sea coast. History The first written evidence of Zwischenahn dates back to 1124 in connection with the founding of St. John's Church by Count Egilmar of Oldenburg. During the Nazi era, Bad Zwischenahn was one of the Nazi strongholds in Ammerland and the whole of Emsland. During World War II Bad Zwischenahn was home to the largest Luftwaffe airbase in northern Germany, the 'Adlerhorst' military airport in Rostrup (Bad Zwischenahn). From here, Luftwaffe pilots flew their attacks on the Netherlands and Great Britain from May 10, 1940. Since 1943, the airport was home of the Erprobungskommando 16 service-test unit, then Jagdgeschwader 400 each in their turn operating the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet rocket fighter from the base. The airbas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
