Josef Jacobs
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Josef Carl Peter Jacobs PlM (15 May 1894 – 29 July 1978) was a German
flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...
with 48 victories during the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. The victory total of the prewar flier tied him with
Werner Voss Werner Voss (; 13 April 1897 – 23 September 1917) was a World War I German flying ace credited with 48 aerial victories. A Dyer (occupation), dyer's son from Krefeld, he was a patriotic young man while still in school. He began his milita ...
for fourth place among the war's German aces. His skill in
aerial warfare Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare. Aerial warfare includes bombers attacking tactical bombing, enemy installations or a concentration of enemy troops or Strategic bombing, strategic targets; fi ...
brought him squadron and
wing A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...
-level commands. By war's end, he was the leading ace flying the
Fokker Triplane The Fokker Dr.I (''Dreidecker'', 'triplane' in German), often known simply as the Fokker Triplane, was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918. It became famous as the ...
. Postwar, Jacobs fought the communists attempting to take over Germany, before becoming a flight instructor for the
Turkish Army The Turkish Land Forces () is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for Army, land-based military operations. The army was formed on November 8, 1920, after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Significant campaigns since the ...
. He was also racing both power boats and automobiles, as well as bobsledding. In line with the latter, he became a director of the
Adler Adler may refer to: Places *Adler, Alabama, an unincorporated community in Perry County * Adler Planetarium, Chicago, Illinois, USA * Adler Township, Nelson County, North Dakota, USA * Adler University, formerly Adler School of Professional Psych ...
automobile works. In the 1930s, he also began repairing and manufacturing airplanes. As Hitler rose to power, Jacobs joined the
Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
reserves as a major, but refused to join the
Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
party. He went into hiding in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
to shelter his company from the Nazis. While his
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
experience is unknown, afterward Jacobs would own a construction crane company.


Background

Josef Carl Peter Jacobs was born in Kreuzkapelle,
Rhineland The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly Middle Rhine, its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy ...
,
German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...
on 15 May 1894, and learned to fly in 1912, aged 18. As a schoolboy in
Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...
, he had been fascinated by the activities he saw at the nearby
flying school Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...
in Hangelar. There he learned to fly, under the tutelage of Bruno Werntgen. When war broke out, he joined up for the
Imperial German Army Air Service Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Impe ...
to train as a
pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
with ''Fliegerersatz-Abteilung'' (Replacement Detachment) 9.


Military service


1915–16

On 3 July 1915, Jacobs was posted to ''Feldflieger Abteilung'' 11 (a
reconnaissance In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...
squadron) for a year, flying long-range sorties over Allied lines, his first flight occurring the evening of his arrival. His first victory over a
French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...
Caudron The Société des Avions Caudron was a French aircraft company founded in 1909 as the Association Aéroplanes Caudron Frères by brothers Gaston and René Caudron. It was one of the earliest aircraft manufacturers in France and produced planes for ...
occurred in February 1916, however, it was unconfirmed, due to lack of independent witnesses. After leave in April, Jacobs was posted to ''Fokkerstaffel-West'' to fly a Fokker E.III ''Eindecker'' and he finally achieved his first official victory, over an enemy aircraft on 12 May 1916 when he shot down a two-seater
Caudron The Société des Avions Caudron was a French aircraft company founded in 1909 as the Association Aéroplanes Caudron Frères by brothers Gaston and René Caudron. It was one of the earliest aircraft manufacturers in France and produced planes for ...
crewed only by its pilot. A week later, he was awarded the
Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...
First Class. At the end of July, Jacobs and his unit had been pulled back for what became a month's aerial bodyguard duty, protecting General Headquarters at Charleville. On 1 September, Jacobs left this duty that disgusted him, and returned to a front line assignment flying a Fokker E.III. On 19 September, he upgraded to a
Fokker D.II __NOTOC__ The Fokker D.II was a biplane fighter designed by the Fokker Aircraft Company () during the First World War for the Imperial German Army's () Imperial German Air Service () and the Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops () of the Austro-Hu ...
. His old comrade in arms,
Kurt Wintgens ''Leutnant'' Kurt Wintgens (1 August 1894 – 25 September 1916) was a German World War I fighter ace. He was the first fighter pilot to score an aerial victory with a synchronized machine gun. Wintgens was the recipient of the Iron Cross and th ...
, was killed in action on 25 September; another old friend, Max Ritter von Mulzer, died in a crash the next day. Three days later, Jacobs fell ill from dysentery; the sickness waylaid him for several weeks. That same day, his airplane was painted a dark blue. ''Fokker Staffel West'' became ''
Jagdstaffel 12 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 12 was a World War I "hunting group" (i.e., fighter squadron) 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 scor ...
'' on 6 October 1916, and Jacobs remained with it while recuperating, although a month later he transferred to '' Jagdstaffel 22'', then under the command of Oberleutnant Erich Hönemanns, who was a personal friend.


1917–18

He achieved his second victory (this time over a Caudron R.IV) in January 1917. He achieved three officially confirmed and eight more unconfirmed victories whilst at ''Jagdstaffel 22'', where he remained until 2 August 1917, when he transferred to ''
Jagdstaffel 7 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 7 was a "hunting group" (i.e., fighter squadron) of the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the air arm of the Imperial German Army during World War I. The unit would score 126 aerial victories (130 claimed) during the war, at the exp ...
'' as its ''
Staffelführer ''Staffelführer'' (, " Formation leader") was one of the first paramilitary ranks used by the German ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) in the early years of that group's existence. The later SS rank of ''Staffelführer'' traces its origins to the First ...
'' (commander)'Jasta 7 under Kobes'. ''Cross and Cockade International vol. 25-2 and 25-3'' It was also in August that Jacobs received the
Royal House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of Hohenzollern ( or ') was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various versions of the order were crosses an ...
, having previously been awarded both classes of the
Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...
. His first combat flight leading his squadron was a memorable one. On 21 August, he led his squadron into a '' Jagdstaffel 26'' dogfight, only to see its commander exploded in midair; upon recovery back at base, he survived a low-level landing collision with one of his pilots. On 10 September 1917 Jacobs shot down French ace
Jean Matton Capitaine Jean Georges Fernand Matton was a French World War I cavalryman and flying ace. He was credited with nine confirmed and two unconfirmed aerial victories. Biography Early life Jean Georges Fernand Matton was born in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés ...
as his seventh victim. On 28 February 1918, Jacobs gave up his
Albatros D.V The Albatros D.V is a fighter aircraft of the German aircraft manufacturer ''Albatros Flugzeugwerke''. It was the final development of the Albatros D.I family and the last Albatros fighter to see operational service with the (Imperial German A ...
and started flying the Fokker Dr.I
triplane A triplane is a fixed-wing aircraft equipped with three vertically stacked wing planes. Tailplanes and canard (aeronautics), canard foreplanes are not normally included in this count, although they occasionally are. Design principles The trip ...
with ''Jagdstaffel 7'', and had his aircraft finished in a distinctive black scheme. The triplane was his favoured mount until October 1918 and he used its maneuverability to his advantage, becoming the triplane's highest scoring ace, with over 30 confirmed victories. Jacobs' victory tally slowly rose, until at 24 victories (achieved on 19 July 1918) he was awarded the coveted ''
Pour le Mérite The (; , ), also informally known as the ''Blue Max'' () after German WWI flying ace Max Immelmann, is an order of merit established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. Separated into two classes, each with their own designs, the was ...
''. Jacobs would remain with ''Jagdstaffel 7'' until the armistice; his final victory tally was 48 enemy aircraft and balloons.


Post-World War I

Jacobs continued to fight against the
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...
forces in the
Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...
area in 1919, with
Gotthard Sachsenberg Gotthard Sachsenberg (6 December 1891 – 23 August 1961) was a German World War I fighter ace with 31 victories who went on to command the world's first naval air wing. In later life, he founded the airline ''Deutscher Aero Lloyd'', became an ant ...
and
Theo Osterkamp Theodor "Theo" Osterkamp (15 April 1892 – 2 January 1975) 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 B ...
in ''Kommando Sachsenberg''. After combat against the Bolsheviks, Jacobs briefly became a flying instructor in the
Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...
Army, before completely withdrawing from military activity. In addition to aviation, Jacobs was a keen participant in bob sleighing and car and speedboat racing. He won the first
AVUS The ('Automobile traffic and training road'), known as AVUS (), is a public road in Berlin, Germany. Opened in 1921, it was also used as a motor racing circuit until 1998. Today, the AVUS forms the northern part of the Bundesautobahn 115. C ...
(the forerunner of Formula 1) race in Berlin. Later he became a director in the
Adler Adler may refer to: Places *Adler, Alabama, an unincorporated community in Perry County * Adler Planetarium, Chicago, Illinois, USA * Adler Township, Nelson County, North Dakota, USA * Adler University, formerly Adler School of Professional Psych ...
automobile works and in the 1930s owned his own aircraft repair and manufacturing company in Erfurt. After Hitler came into power, Jacobs became a major in the Luftwaffe Reserves, but declined to join the
Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...
. Then, after refusing to let Göring become a major shareholder in his company, Jacobs moved his company to the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
, and for a time after the German invasion went into hiding. Jacobs moved to
Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
after World War II. He owned a construction crane operation, became president of The German Bobsleigh Society, and aided aviation historians of World War I. He died in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
on 29 July 1978.


Awards

*
Pour le Mérite The (; , ), also informally known as the ''Blue Max'' () after German WWI flying ace Max Immelmann, is an order of merit established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. Separated into two classes, each with their own designs, the was ...
*
Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...
, 1st and 2nd Class *
Wound Badge The Wound Badge () was a German military decoration first promulgated by Wilhelm II, German Emperor on 3 March 1918, which was first awarded to soldiers of the Imperial German Army, German Army who were wounded during World War I. Between the worl ...
, 1918 version in Silver *
Prussian Military Pilot Badge The Royal Prussian Military Pilot's Badge () was created by Kaiser Wilhelm II on January 27, 1913. It could be awarded to officers, non-commissioned officers A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty offic ...
* House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight with Swords and Crown *
Hanseatic Cross The Hanseatic Cross () was a military decoration of the three Hanseatic city-states of Bremen, Hamburg and Lübeck, who were members of the German Empire during World War I. Each republic established its own version of the cross, but the design ...
, Hamburg Version *
Friedrich-August Cross The Friedrich-August Cross was a German decoration of the First World War. It was set up on 24 September 1914 by Frederick Augustus II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg, with two classes, for (to quote its citation) "all persons of military or civilian st ...
, 2nd Class *
Order of the White Falcon Order of the White Falcon () is a grand-ducal order of the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, founded by Duke Ernest Augustus on 2 August 1732, and renewed in 1815 by Charles Augustus. Description In the early 20th century it had four classes a ...
, 2nd Class with Crown and Swords *
Saxe-Ernestine House Order The Saxe-Ernestine House Order ()Hausorden
Herzogliche Haus Sachsen-Coburg und Gotha
was a ...
, 2nd Class with Crown and Swords *
Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (), commonly referred to as the Hindenburg Cross or the German WWI Service Cross, was established by Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, President of the German Weimar Republic, by an order dated 13 July ...


Notes


References

* * * *


Further reading

* Ryheul, Johan. ''KEKs and FOKKERSTAFFELS - The early German Fighter units 1915-1916''. Fonthill Media LLC, 2014.


External links


Josef Carl Peter Jacobs - The Aerodrome - Aces and Aircraft of World War I





Portrait: Josef Carl Peter Jacobs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobs, Josef 1894 births 1978 deaths German racing drivers German World War I flying aces Luftstreitkräfte personnel People from Rhein-Sieg-Kreis Military personnel from the Rhine Province Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Military personnel from North Rhine-Westphalia