Leutnant Helmut Dilthey IC (9 February 1894 – 9 July 1918) was a German pilot who became a

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 ...

flying 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 seven aerial victories. Dilthey was one of the first German military aviators, joining its military aviation in November 1914. From 18 May 1915 through March 1917, he would serve in ''Flieger-Abteilung 50'', flying reconnaissance and bombing missions in Russia while winning both classes of the Iron Cross and being promoted to ''leutnant''. He also gained some experience on fighters with an assigned ''

Fokker Eindekker The Fokker ''Eindecker'' fighters were a series of German World War I monoplane single-seat fighter aircraft designed by Netherlands, Dutch engineer Anthony Fokker.Boyne 1988 Developed in April 1915, the first ''Eindecker'' ("Monoplane") was the f ...

''. When the '' Luftstreitkräfte'' founded dedicated fighter units, Dilthey volunteered for fighter duty. After training, he served under Hermann Göring in '' Jagdstaffel 27'' and scored six victories over enemy fighters. He was then given command of '' Jagdstaffel 40''. He downed 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 ...

while leading this squadron before being killed in action on 9 July 1918.

Early life

Helmut Dilthey was born in Rheydt,

Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regio ...

, 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 ...

on 9 February 1894.

Aerial service

Dilthey joined the German aerial service early in World War I, during November 1914. He was originally assigned to ''Flieger-Abteilung 50'' on 18 May 1915, and served on the Eastern Front in Russia. While flying reconnaissance and bombing missions, he also gained some flight time in the

. He won 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 ...

Second Class on 18 June 1915. The First Class Iron Cross followed on 1 October 1916, and Dilthey was commissioned as a leutnant. When the '' Luftstreitkräfte'' formed ''Jagdstaffeln'' in Fall 1916, Dilthey volunteered to serve in one. He was then sent to ''Jastaschule'' for training 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 ...

in March 1917. On 19 May 1917, he was posted to '' Jagdstaffel 27'' under the command of Hermann Göring. On 24 July, he began a string of six victories over enemy fighter planes. The last of these was on 5 February 1918. He was then posted to

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 40'' to command them as their

Staffelführer ''Staffelführer'' 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 World War, where the tit ...

. He was assigned an

Albatros D.V The Albatros D.V is a fighter aircraft built by the Albatros Flugzeugwerke and used by the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' (Imperial German Air Service) during World War I. The D.V was the final development of the Albatros D.I family and the last Albatro ...

a fighter, and had it vividly painted in the Saxon national colors of green and white. He downed an enemy observation balloon on 5 June 1918 for his final victory. On 9 July 1918, he attacked an

Airco DH.9 The Airco DH.9 (from de Havilland 9) – also known after 1920 as the de Havilland DH.9 – was a British single-engined biplane bomber developed and deployed during the First World War. The DH.9 was a development of Airco's earlier successful ...

No. 107 Squadron RAF ("We shall be there") , colors= , colors_label= , march= , mascot= , equipment= , equipment_label= , battles= , anniversaries= , decorations= , battle_honours= , commander1= , commander1_label= , commander2= , commander2_label= , commander3= , co ...

over

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

, France. It is uncertain whether the rear gunner hit him, or whether he was hit by his own side's antiaircraft fire, but he was killed in action despite taking to his parachute.Ejection history websit

Retrieved 6 June 2012. He was buried in the German extension of Lambersart Communal Cemetery.TheAerodrome website page on Dilthe

Retrieved 6 June 2012.

External links

* http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uS8avoYqxK8/T3GxYBi1lzI/AAAAAAAABqI/DPoqgakRCDg/s1600/1311499185-82388700.jpg is an excellent representation of Dilthey's Albatros D.Va fighter.

Sources of information

References

* Norman Franks, 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:Dilthey, Helmut 1894 births 1918 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 Mönchengladbach People from the Rhine Province Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class