Vizefeldwebel ''Feldwebel '' (Fw or F, ) is a non-commissioned officer (NCO) rank in several countries. The rank originated in Germany, and is also used in Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, and Estonia. The rank has also been used in Russia, Austria-Hungary, occupi ...

'' Michael Hutterer MMC IC was a World War I

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 eight aerial victories. Hutterer began over two years in ground units on 4 August 1914. He won his native Bavaria's 3rd Class Military Merit Cross on 24 April 1916. On 25 September 1916, he was promoted to ''

Unteroffizier () is a junior non-commissioned officer rank used by the . It is also the collective name for all non-commissioned officers in Austria and Germany. It was formerly a rank in the Imperial Russian Army. Austria , also , is the collective name t ...

''. On 2 November 1916, he began pilot's training to gain his Bavarian Flying Badge. On 23 May 1918, he would join '' Jagdstaffel 23''. By war's end, he had shot down eight enemy aircraft, 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 received another promotion, to ''

''. Shortly after the

Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...

, he would receive another award of the Military Merit Cross, this one Second Class with Swords.

Biography

Michael Hutterer was born in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, the

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German E ...

, 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 17 November 1891. After schooling, he was a mechanic. As World War I began, he reported for duty in Bavaria's 2nd Machine Gun Company on 4 August 1914. He was later transferred to its 2nd Field Artillery Regiment. On 24 April 1916, he received his native Bavaria's Military Merit Cross Third Class. Hutterer was promoted to ''

'' on 25 September 1916. On 2 November 1916, he entered pilot's training at ''Fliegerersatz-Abteilung'' (Replacement Detachment) 5 at

Gersthofen Gersthofen () is a town in the district of Augsburg, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the west bank of the river Lech, approx. north of Augsburg. Gersthofen is divided into five districts (German: Stadtteile): Batzenhofen, Edenbergen (wit ...

. On 20 December 1916, Michael Hutterer was awarded the

Second Class.Franks et al 1993, pp. 133-134. On 28 June 1917, he was promoted to ''

''. He was awarded the First Class Iron Cross on 10 July 1917. On 23 July 1917, he received his Bavarian Flying Badge. There is no record of his activities for the next few months, though German policy customarily called for rookie pilots to fly two-seaters while they gained flight and combat experience; this service also served as a sort of audition for single-seat fighters. Michael Hutterer is known to have graduated from ''Jastaschule I'' (Fighter school 1) and to have been 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 ...

, Royal Bavarian '' Jagdstaffel 23'', on 23 May 1918. He staked an unsuccessful claim to destroying a British plane on 31 May 1918, but did not have his first real success until 22 July. From then through 1 November 1918, he shot down seven more enemy planes. His penultimate victory on 30 October was over Archibald Buchanan, an American ace flying in an old

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

squadron, the former Ten Naval. Hutterer would not score any more victories during the last ten days of World War I. Shortly after war's end, Michael Hutterer was honored with the Bavarian Military Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords. Michael Hutterer died in

Tutzing Tutzing is a municipality in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria, Germany, on the west bank of the Starnberger See. Just 40 km south-west of Munich and with good views of the Alps, the town was traditionally a favorite vacation spot for th ...

, Bavaria on 21 July 1964.The Aerodrome: Michael Hutterer
/ref>

Endnotes

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. , . {{DEFAULTSORT:Hutterer, Michael German World War I flying aces 1891 births 1964 deaths Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Military personnel from Munich Recipients of the Military Merit Cross (Bavaria) People from the Kingdom of Bavaria Luftstreitkräfte personnel