Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 50, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 50, was a "hunting group" (i.e., fighter squadron) of the ''

Luftstreitkräfte The ''Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte'' (, German Air Force)—known before October 1916 as (Flyer Troops)—was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-language sources it is usually referred to as the Imperial German Air Service, alth ...

'', the air arm of the Imperial German Army during

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 ...

. The squadron would score over 45 aerial victories during the war, including 14 observation balloons downed. The unit's victories came at the expense of five killed in action, one

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 ...

, and three taken

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...

. The squadron was disbanded on 17 January 1919.

History

Jasta 50 was founded at ''Flieger-Abteilung'' (Flier Detachment) 13, Bromberg, on 23 December 1917. It moved forward into action with '' 7 Armee'' on 11 January 1918. The squadron's initial commanding officer downed an enemy observation balloon for its first aerial victory on 25 January 1918. In September 1918, Jasta 50 was transferred to '' 3 Armee''. On 21 October 1918, it was transferred again, to '' 18 Armee''. The squadron was disbanded after Germany's defeat, being demobilized on 17 January 1919.

Commanding officers ('' Staffelführer'')

* Heinrich Arntzen: 13 January 1918 — 27 May 1918 *

Hans von Freden Leutnant Hans von Freden was a German World War I flying ace credited with 20 aerial victories. Early life and service Hans von Freden was born on 18 March 1892 in Berlin. As World War I broke out, he volunteered to serve in Field Artillery Regim ...

: 27 May 1918 — 17 January 1919

Duty stations

Autremencourt Autremencourt () is a commune in the department of Aisne in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. Geography Location Autremencourt is located some 35 km east by southeast of Saint-Quentin and 25 km northeast of Laon. It can ...

, France: 11 January 1918 * Marchais, France * Mont St Martin, France *

Rocourt-Saint-Martin Rocourt-Saint-Martin is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 799 communes in the French department of Aisne. ...

, France * Rugny Ferme * Montbanis Ferme * Perles, France * Sisson * Boncourt *

Leffincourt Leffincourt () is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France. Population See also * Mazagran *Communes of the Ardennes department The following is a list of the 449 communes of the Ardennes department of France. The comm ...

, France: September 1918 * Attigny, France * Chémery * Morville: 21 October 1918 * Saint-Gérard

Aircraft

Initially flying the

Albatros D.III The Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service ('' Luftstreitkräfte'') during World War I. A modified licence model was built by Oeffag for the Austro-Hungarian Air Service ( ''Luftfahrtruppen''). ...

from January 1918, it was later upgraded with the

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 ...

, and then re-equipped with

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 ...

fighters by 28 August 1918.

References

;Bibliography * 50 Military units and formations established in 1917 1917 establishments in Germany Military units and formations disestablished in 1919 {{wwi-air