Hans Klein (17 January 1891 – 18 November 1944) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

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 22 aerial victories. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he held the position of

Geschwaderkommodore {{unreferenced, date=May 2019 ''Geschwaderkommodore'' (short also ''Kommodore'') is a ''Luftwaffe'' position or appointment (not rank), originating during World War II. A ''Geschwaderkommodore'' is usually an OF5-rank of ''Oberst'' (colonel) or K ...

of the

JG 53 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 53 (JG 53) was a Luftwaffe fighter-wing of World War II. It operated in Western Europe and in the Mediterranean. ''Jagdgeschwader'' 53 - or as it was better known, the "Pik As" ''(Ace of Spades)'' Geschwader - was one of the ...

"Pik As" fighter ''Geschwader'' (wing).

Early life and infantry service

Hans Klein was born in

Stettin Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin language, Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Po ...

, when it was still within the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...

and 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 ...

; today, Stettin was and is part of Poland because of the partition of Poland where Poland was literally wiped of the map. Klein's birth date was 17 January 1891.Franks et al 1993, pp. 144–145. When World War I broke out in 1914, Klein joined the

Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...

. He served first with the 34th Infantry Regiment, then with the 210th Reserve Infantry Regiment on the Western Front, beginning in October 1914. He was commissioned as an officer in March 1915.

World War I aerial service

Hans Klein transferred to aviation service in March 1916. He first flew with ''Flieger-Abteilung'' (Artillerie): Flier Detachment (Artillery) 5 and ''Flieger-Abteilung'' (Artillerie) 6 on artillery ranging and

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

duties.Bodenschatz 1998, p. 166. He then served in an early ad hoc fighter unit, a ''Kampfeinsitzerkommando'' (Combat Single-Seater Command), claiming a 20 August 1916 aerial victory that could not be confirmed. Klein was then posted to a

fighter squadron A squadron in air force, army aviation, or naval aviation is a unit comprising a number of military aircraft and their aircrews, usually of the same type, typically with 12 to 24 aircraft, sometimes divided into three or four flights, dependi ...

, ''

Jagdstaffel 4 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 4, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 4, 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 192 confirmed victories; ...

'', on 4 November 1916. He was credited with his first confirmed aerial victory on 4 April 1917; by the time

Bloody April Bloody April was the (largely successful) British air support operation during the Battle of Arras in April 1917, during which particularly heavy casualties were suffered by the Royal Flying Corps at the hands of the German ''Luftstreitkräfte ...

ended, his tally was up to eight, including an

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

on the 7th and a pioneering night-time victory on the 8th. He scored his ninth victory on 6 May 1917; three days later, he was wounded in action.Hans Klein
/ref> Klein scored his tenth victory on 16 June 1917, and once again began to notch victories. On 11 July, he managed to shoot down two enemy balloons in two minutes for his 15th and 16th victories. He was wounded again on 13 July 1917, in combat versus

Nieuport 17 The Nieuport 17 C.1 (or Nieuport XVII C.1 in contemporary sources) was a French sesquiplane fighter designed and manufactured by the Nieuport company during World War I. An improvement over the Nieuport 11, it was a little larger than earlier N ...

s of No. 29 Squadron RFC. On 27 September 1917, Klein assumed command of '' Jagdstaffel 10''. He began to score again on 2 October. He had already 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

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 ...

. Now he qualified for the ''

Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by Frederick the Great, King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Or ...

'' with his 20th confirmed victory, scored on 18 October 1917. He would score two more victories in late November, before he was awarded the ''Pour le Mérite'' on 2 December 1917. Although he would not score again, he continued to fly until he was wounded again on 19 February 1918. He lost a digit to a British bullet fired by one of the

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...

s of No. 54 Squadron RFC. Various sources say he lost either his right index finger or his thumb. Upon recovering, he served on ground duties with ''Jasta 10'' on ground duties from 26 April 1918 until the end of the war.

Post World War I

After attaining an engineering degree, in 1935 Klein joined the Luftwaffe as a major, commanding JG 133 and

in late 1939. He later served as deputy commander of all fighter schools and attained the rank of major general before his retirement in April 1943. He died on 18 November 1944. The official cause of death was from injuries received in a car accident, however his family suspected he was murdered, an inspection of Klein's body allegedly showing evidence of a gunshot wound to the head.

Awards

(1914) 2nd and 1st class *

(4 December 1917)

Endnotes

References

* Bodenschatz, Karl (translated by Jan Hayzlett). ''Hunting With Richthofen: The Bodenschatz Diaries : Sixteen Months of Battle With Jg Freiherr Von Richthofen, Issue 1''. Grub Street, 1998. , 9781898697978. * 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:Klein, Hans 1891 births 1944 deaths Military personnel from Szczecin People from the Province of Pomerania Luftwaffe pilots German World War I flying aces Luftstreitkräfte personnel Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Technical University of Berlin alumni Major generals of the Luftwaffe Road incident deaths in Germany