Otto Brauneck (27 February 1896 – 26 July 1917) was a German World War I

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 ...

credited with ten confirmed and five unconfirmed aerial victories. Originally assigned to fly on the

Macedonian Front The Macedonian front, also known as the Salonica front (after Thessaloniki), was a military theatre of World War I formed as a result of an attempt by the Allied Powers to aid Serbia, in the autumn of 1915, against the combined attack of Germa ...

to support Germany's ally, the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, between September 1916 and April 1917 Brauneck shot down four enemy

observation balloon An observation balloon is a type of balloon that is employed as an aerial platform for gathering intelligence and spotting artillery. The use of observation balloons began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World ...

s and three aircraft, with a further five claims going unproven. Transferred to the

Red Baron Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a sec ...

Jagdstaffel 11 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 11 ("No 11 Fighter Squadron"; commonly abbreviated to Jasta 11) was founded on 28 September 1916 from elements of 4 Armee's ''Kampfeinsitzerkommandos'' (or KEKs) 1, 2 and 3 and mobilized on 11 October as part o ...

in France, Brauneck scored a further three victories before being killed in action on 26 July 1917.

Early life

Otto Brauneck was born on 27 February 1896 in Sulzbach, the

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 ...

Aerial service

In Macedonia

Brauneck joined the air service and was posted to FFA 69 in Macedonia. He scored first in September 1916. His second victory, over an

on 14 December, earned him 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. After an unconfirmed victory on Christmas Day, he shot down two balloons on 5 January 1917.The Aerodrome website http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/germany/brauneck.php Retrieved on 20 April 2010. He then transferred to Jagdstaffel 25 on 14 January 1917. On 19 January, he received the

Knight's Cross Knight's Cross (German language ''Ritterkreuz'') refers to a distinguishing grade or level of various orders that often denotes bravery and leadership on the battlefield. Most frequently the term Knight's Cross is used to refer to the Knight's Cro ...

of 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 ...

. Between 19 January and 6 April 1917, he claimed seven triumphs, only three of which were confirmed.

Victories in Macedonia

"U/C" marks an unconfirmed victory.

In France

On 20 April 1917, he moved to

Jasta 11 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 11 ("No 11 Fighter Squadron"; commonly abbreviated to Jasta 11) was founded on 28 September 1916 from elements of 4 Armee's ''Kampfeinsitzerkommandos'' (or KEKs) 1, 2 and 3 and mobilized on 11 October as part o ...

on the Western Front, to serve under

Manfred von Richthofen Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of th ...

. He scored twice in early June. On 22 July 1917, he shot down a 10 Naval Squadron

Sopwith Triplane The Sopwith Triplane is a British single seat fighter aircraft designed and manufactured by the Sopwith Aviation Company during the First World War. It has the distinction of being the first military triplane to see operational service. The T ...

, probably Canadian seven-victory ace Flight Lieutenant John Albert Page. On 26 July 1917, Brauneck fell to the guns of 70 Squadron's Captain Noel Webb.

Victories in France

Decorations and awards

* Knight's Cross of 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 ...

(19 January 1917) *

of 1914, 1st and 2nd class

Sources of information

References

* ''Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps 1914 - 1918'' Norman L. R. Franks, ''et al.'' Grub Street, 1993. , . 1896 births 1917 deaths Aviators killed by being shot down German military personnel killed in World War I German World War I flying aces Luftstreitkräfte personnel Military personnel from the Rhine Province People from Saarbrücken (district) Military personnel from Saarland {{wwi-air