Colonel Karl Christ (15 June 1897 – ) 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 ...

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 five aerial victories. He returned to his nation's defense during early World War II.

Biography

Karl Christ was born on 15 June 1897 in

Darmstadt Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it th ...

, the

Grand Duchy of Hesse The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...

, in 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 ...

. In January 1915, he joined the '' Die Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches'' (the German flying service). He trained with ''Fliegerersatz-Abteilung (Replacement Detachment) 6'' at Grosenheim.Franks et al 1993, p. 92. He began service with ''Kampfgeschwader 6''. By 1916, he was serving in ''Kampfgeschwader 5'', a tactical bomber wing subordinate to the German Supreme Command. During this period, Christ won 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 ...

. Christ was commissioned a ''

Leutnant () is the lowest Junior officer rank in the armed forces the German (language), German-speaking of Germany (Bundeswehr), Austrian Armed Forces, and military of Switzerland. History The German noun (with the meaning "" (in English "deputy") fro ...

'' on 23 March 1917 while serving with another bombing wing under the German Supreme Command—''Bombengeschwader 2''. In November 1917, he left Bogohl 2; the following month he joined Jagdstaffel 28, a single-seat fighter squadron, for service through war's end. Between 14 May and 14 October 1918, he had five of his six victory claims confirmed, though details are lacking on the last pair.

World War II service

From 1 April 1941 through February 1942, Karl Christ was an

Oberst ''Oberst'' () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedish ...

with a Stuka ''geschwader'' in North Africa.

Awards

(1914) 2nd and 1st Class *''Hessische Tapferkeits-Medaille'' *

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (german: Der Kriegsorden Deutsches Kreuz), normally abbreviated to the German Cross or ''Deutsches Kreuz'', was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repe ...

in Gold on 5 June 1942 as ''

Oberstleutnant () is a senior field officer rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Lieutenant colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, and Norway. The Swedis ...

'' in Sturzkampfgeschwader 3Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 73.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * 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. , . * 1897 births Year of death missing German World War I flying aces Luftstreitkräfte personnel Military personnel from Darmstadt People from the Grand Duchy of Hesse Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class {{germany-airforce-bio-stub