Leutnant Fritz Höhn (31 May 1896 – 3 October 1918) was a German

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

credited with 21 victories. He had worked his way up to being a fighter squadron commander and was eligible for the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

's highest award for heroism, the

Blue Max Blue Max is an informal name of ''Pour le Mérite'', a German military decoration from 1740 until the end of World War I. Blue Max may also refer to: * Blue Max (video game), ''Blue Max'' (video game) (1983) and its sequel ''Blue Max 2001'' * Blue ...

, when he was killed in action on 3 October 1918.

Early life and service

Fritz Höhn was born in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, on 31 May 1896. He began his military service in the elite 7th Guards Infantry Regiment.Franks et al 1993, pp. 130-131.

Aerial service

Höhn began aerial duty as an artillery spotter in two-seated reconnaissance planes, flying for ''Flieger-Abteilung'' (Flier Detachment) 227. He was seconded to ''Jastaschule II'' and graduated as a

fighter pilot A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, air-to-ground combat and sometimes electronic warfare while in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and ...

. He joined a fighter squadron, Royal

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

Jagdstaffel 21 Royal Saxon Jagdstaffel 21 was a "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 score 148 verified a ...

'' on 15 November 1917, just as they received new Pfalz D.IIIs. He shot down a

Breguet 14 Breguet or Bréguet may refer to: * Breguet (watch), watch manufacturer **Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823), Swiss watchmaker **Louis-François-Clement Breguet (1804–1883), French physicist, watchmaker, electrical and telegraph work * Bréguet ...

bomber on 1 December 1917 for his first victory. PfalzD

Höhn then had Pfalz no. 4011/17 painted with diagonal stripes to deceive the aim of anyone shooting at him. He also had two rearview mirrors and a

teddy bear A teddy bear is a stuffed toy in the form of a bear. Developed apparently simultaneously by toymakers Morris Michtom in the U.S. and Richard Steiff under his aunt Margarete Steiff's company in Germany in the early 20th century, the teddy bear, ...

wired on the rear of the

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

, facing tailwards. However, it is unknown if Höhn and his teddy bear mascot were successful with this particular plane. He did become 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 ...

for his next win, shooting down a French kite balloon from ''33e Compagnie de Aerostiers'' on 11 April 1918. The next day, he downed a Spad and a balloon. On 20 April, he scored two victories on balloons—one from the ''45e'' and ''75e Compagnies''—making him an ace. In the process, he was severely wounded in the knee. Höhn would be out of action until August. By the time he could return to combat, he had been awarded both classes of the

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...

and the Knight's Cross of the

Royal House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of Hohenzollern (german: Hausorden von 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 v ...

. Beginning on 20 August 1918, he added two more enemy aircraft and two more observation balloons to his tally by month's end. That made him a double ace, with ten victories, and a balloon ace, with six.

Höhn in command

Towards the end of the month, Höhn had a fleeting assignment as commander of Royal

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

'' Jagdstaffel 81'' that lasted until 3 September.VanWyngarden 2006, p. 76. He shot down a Spad on both 2 and 3 September. For the rest of the month of September 1918, Höhn was the acting commander of Royal Prussian '' Jagdstaffel 60''. While with them, he scored two Spads and four more balloons. He then was given command of Royal Prussian ''

Jagdstaffel 41 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 41, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 41, 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 73 aerial victories duri ...

''. He scored each of the first three days of October 1918, running his total to 21. He was killed in action on 3 October 1918. His

Fokker D.VII The Fokker D.VII was 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 qu ...

was downed by a member of French squadron Spa67. Neither his dual rear-view mirrors nor his teddy bear mascot saved him. Höhn's final victory total was ten balloons and eleven airplanes. If he had survived, he would have been eligible for the

's highest honor for valor, the

Pour le Merite Pour may refer to these people: * Kour Pour (born 1987), British artist of part-Iranian descent * Mehdi Niyayesh Pour (born 1992), Iranian footballer * Mojtaba Mobini Pour (born 1991), Iranian footballer * Pouya Jalili Pour (born 1976), Iranian si ...

, upon confirmation of his 20th victory.

References

Sources

* Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank W.; Guest, Russell. ''Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps, 1914–1918''. Grub Street, 1993. , . * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hohn, Fritz 1896 births 1918 deaths German World War I flying aces Military personnel from Wiesbaden Military personnel from Hesse-Nassau Prussian Army personnel Luftstreitkräfte personnel German military personnel killed in World War I Aviators killed by being shot down