Leutnant Hermann Becker (10 September 1887 – 21 April 1970), was 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 ...

German

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 23 victories.The Aerodrome website http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/germany/becker.php

Early life

Hermann Becker was born on 10 September 1887 in Trebus, Upper Silesia.''Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps, 1914–1918'', pp. 68-69.

World War I service

Becker joined the air force in 1916 as an

aerial observer Aerial may refer to: Music * ''Aerial'' (album), by Kate Bush * ''Aerials'' (song), from the album ''Toxicity'' by System of a Down Bands *Aerial (Canadian band) * Aerial (Scottish band) * Aerial (Swedish band) Performance art * Aerial sil ...

on the Eastern Front,serving with ''Flieger-Abteilung 2'' (Flier Detachment 2) and ''Flieger-Abteilung 57'' (Flier Detachment 57). After completing his pilot's training, Becker moved to ''Kampfgeschwader 5'' (Tactical Bomber Wing 5), then to ''

Schutzstaffel The ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS; also stylized as ''ᛋᛋ'' with Armanen runes; ; "Protection Squadron") was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany, and later throughout German-occupied Europe d ...

11'' (Protection Squadron 11) in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, where he was involved in action at the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France *Somme, Queensland, Australia *Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), a ...

and

Verdun Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...

. On 12 January 1917, he was awarded the First Class

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 ...

, having been previously given the Second Class award. In May 1917, Becker transferred to ''

Jagdstaffel 12 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 12 was a World War I "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 scor ...

'' to fly

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

. He scored his first aerial victory on 6 June 1917. On 16 June 1917 he was

wounded in action Wounded in Action (WIA) describes combatants who have been wounded while fighting in a combat zone during wartime, but have not been killed. Typically, it implies that they are temporarily or permanently incapable of bearing arms or continuing ...

fighting No. 60 Squadron RFC and was unable to fly for several months. He would not resume his string of victories until 23 September 1917. On 13 July 1918, with 11 victories to his credit, he was promoted to squadron command as a ''

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 ...

'' and continued to have success in part because he was issued a

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 qui ...

. His second victory on 26 September 1918 was especially memorable; when he set an

Airco DH.4 The Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) was an early British aircraft manufacturer. Established during 1912, it grew rapidly during the First World War, referring to itself as the largest aircraft company in the world by 1918. Air ...

afire, the observer leaped overboard without a parachute just as the bomber exploded. Becker made his 23rd kill on 3 November 1918, when he and his wingmen shot down five SPADs in five minutes. Becker was nominated for a ''

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 ...

'' medal, but never received it because of the abdication of Kaiser Wilhelm on 9 November.''Fokker D.VII Aces of World War I Part I'', pp. 53-55.

Post World War I

Hermann Becker survived the war but nothing more is known of him.

Decorations and awards

* Prussian military pilot badge *

(1914), 1st and 2nd class * 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 ...

with Swords (15 May 1918)

References

* 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. , . * — ''Fokker D.VII Aces of World War I Part I'', Osprey Publishing, 2003. , 978-1841765334.

Endnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Hermann 1887 births 1970 deaths German World War I flying aces Luftstreitkräfte personnel Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class