Leutnant () is the lowest junior officer rank in the armed forces of Germany ( Bundeswehr), the Austrian Armed Forces, and the military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") from Middle High German «locum ...

Rudolf Friedrich Otto Windisch (27 January 1897 – after 27 May 1918) was a

World War I 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 ...

fighter 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 22 victories.The Aerodrome website
/ref>

Early life and service

Rudolf Friedrich Otto Windisch was born in Dresden, Germany on 27 January 1897,''Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps, 1914–1918'', pp. 230-231 the son of Bruno Windisch, who owned a pastry shop. During his childhood, Rudolf was very interested in aviation. He built model airplanes, and then a glider.''Der Logbuch'' website
/ref> On 14 September 1914, at the age of 17, he volunteered for a year's service with Infantry Regiment 177. After a short period of training, he was off to war on the Western Front. On 21 November, he was wounded by shrapnel and removed from front line duty. He recuperated first at a hospital in

Laon Laon () is a city in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History Early history The Ancient Diocese of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held s ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, then at the Reserve Military Hospital in his home town of Dresden. VonCossel1

On 22 January 1915, he was transferred to the ''

Luftstreitkräfte The ''Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte'' (, German Air Combat Forces)known before October 1916 as (The Imperial German Air Service, lit. "The flying troops of the German Kaiser’s Reich")was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-langu ...

''. In February 1915, he was assigned to the Military Aviation School in Leipzig-Lindenthal. He was promoted to sergeant and was a flight instructor with FEA 6. 1 May 1916 brought a front line flying assignment with FA 62 on the Russian Front. On the night of 2/3 October 1916, he set out on what is arguably the first case of air-supported sabotage. He landed behind Russian lines and dropped off Oberleutnant Maximilian von Cossel (1893–1967) near the Rowno to

Brody Brody (, ; ; ; ) is a city in Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It is located in the valley of the upper Styr, Styr River, approximately northeast of the oblast capital, Lviv. Brody hosts the administrati ...

rail line. Cossel destroyed a railroad bridge that was of strategic importance to the Russians. Windisch swooped in on the 3rd to pick Cossel up and carry him back to safety. This feat earned him the Prussian Order of the Crown (4th Class with Swords); the Kaiser himself presented it on 18 October 1916. Windisch would be the only pilot so honored. In November, he would transfer to '' Kampfgeschwader der Oberste Heeresleitung II'' to fly recon missions on the Western Front. On 20 February 1917, he moved up to flying fighters with Royal Bavarian Jasta 32.The Aerodrome website page on Jassta 32
/ref>

Aerial combat career

Even before his feat of espionage derring-do, Windisch had scored his first aerial victory. On 25 August 1916, while still flying a two-seater reconnaissance airplane, he became a

balloon buster Balloon busters were military pilots known for destroying enemy observation balloons. These pilots were noted for their fearlessness, as balloons were stationary targets able to receive heavy defenses, from the ground and the air. Seventy-seven fl ...

by shooting down one of the Russian

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 southeast of Brody. His next victory would be almost a year later, after he transferred to Jasta 32 on the French Front. On 18 September 1917, he shot down an AR2 near Fleury, France. That was the first of his five triumphs during 1917. The last of them, a Spad shot down near Laval, brought his count to six. He shot down another balloon on 3 January 1918, and another Spad the following day. On 10 January, he was transferred to Royal Prussian

Jasta 50 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 50, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 50, was a "hunting group" (i.e., fighter squadron) of the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the air arm of the Imperial German Army during World War I. The squadron would score over 45 aerial victor ...

for seasoning before taking command of Royal Prussian

Jasta 66 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 66, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 66, was a "hunting group" (i.e., fighter squadron) of the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the air arm of the Imperial German Army during World War I. The squadron would score over 97 aerial victo ...

on the 24th. Sometime during this period, Windisch wangled flying time in a captured

Spad VII The SPAD S.VII C.1 was the first in a series of single-seat biplane fighter aircraft produced by ''Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés'' (SPAD) during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and rugge ...

. It is unknown if he flew it in combat. He scored his first win with his new squadron on 15 March 1918. He had six victories in that month, including a triple on 24 March 1918. He scored three more times in April, and five in May, to bring his tally to 22. No fewer than 16 of his wins were over Spad fighters. A Sopwith and an AR2 completed his list of fighter planes. He also destroyed three balloons and a single two-seater reconnaissance plane. The fact that he was one of the original pilots of Germany's best fighter, the

Fokker D.VII The Fokker D.VII is a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the '' Fokker-Flugzeugwerke''. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the second half of 1918. In service with the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the D.VII ...

, gave him tactical advantage over his foes.

Disappearance

His last victory was on the afternoon of 27 May 1918. Immediately after he shot down this last Spad, he was jumped by several other enemy scouts. A bullet through the gas tank forced him to land behind French lines, about 50 meters from his final victim. The

International Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a aid agency, humanitarian organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, and is a three-time Nobel Prize laureate. The organization has played an instrumental role in the development of Law of ...

reported Windisch was a prisoner of war on several occasions. French pilots who fell into German hands reported him in a French prison. On the assumption he was alive, he was awarded the

Pour le Merite Pour is a name which can be used as a surname and a given name: * Kour Pour (born 1987), American artist of Iranian and British descent * Mehdi Niyayesh Pour (born 1992), Iranian footballer * Mojtaba Mobini Pour (born 1991), Iranian footballer * P ...

on 6 June 1918. The reports differed on whether or not he had been injured, with some rumors saying he had died in captivity. Nothing more would ever be heard of Windisch.

Windisch victories

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 Franks Norman Leslie Robert Franks (1940 – 21 May 2023) was an English militaria writer who specialised in aviation topics. He focused on the pilots and squadrons of World Wars I and II. Biography Franks published his first book in 1976. H ...