Helmuth Förster (19 April 1889 – 7 April 1965) was a German general in the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

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 ...

. A decorated

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 ...

aviator, he returned to military service in 1934 as an ''Oberstleutnant'' in the Luftwaffe. Promoted to ''Oberst'' in 1936, he was appointed to command the 4th Bomber Wing. During the

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

, Förster commanded the ''Lehrdivision'' with significant success. He was then appointed as chief of staff of the 5th Air Fleet during the

invasion of Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. After serving on the German-French Peace Commission, he was appointed as military governor of the

German-occupied territory of Serbia The Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia (german: Gebiet des Militärbefehlshabers in Serbien; sr, Подручје Војног заповедника у Србији, Područje vojnog zapovednika u Srbiji) was the area of the Kin ...

from April to June 1941, then commanded the 1st Air Corps during the invasion of the Soviet Union until October 1942. Whilst in command of the 1st Air Corps he was awarded the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ...

. He spent the remainder of the war as chief of administration at the

Reich Ministry of Aviation The Ministry of Aviation (german: Reichsluftfahrtministerium, abbreviated RLM) was a government department during the period of Nazi Germany (1933–45). It is also the original name of the Detlev-Rohwedder-Haus building on the Wilhelmstrasse ...

. He was pensioned as an ''Oberstleutnant'' in 1952.

Awards and decorations

on 22 February 1942 as ''

General der Flieger ''General der Flieger'' ( en, General of the aviators) was a General of the branch rank of the Luftwaffe (air force) in Nazi Germany. Until the end of World War II in 1945, this particular general officer rank was on three-star level ( OF-8), e ...

'' and commander of I. Flieger-Korps Fellgiebel 2000, p. 154.

Footnotes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Forster, Helmuth 1889 births 1965 deaths People from Strzelce Opolskie People from the Province of Silesia Luftwaffe World War II generals German Army personnel of World War I Prussian Army personnel Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross German prisoners of war in World War II Recipients of the clasp to the Iron Cross, 1st class Generals of Aviators