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Max Immelmann (21 September 1890 – 18 June 1916) '' PLM'' was the first German
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
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 ...
.Shores, 1983, p. 10. He was a pioneer in fighter aviation and is often mistakenly credited with the first aerial victory using a
synchronized gun A synchronization gear (also known as a gun synchronizer or interrupter gear) was a device enabling a single-engine tractor configuration aircraft to fire its forward-firing armament through the arc of its spinning propeller without bullets str ...
, which was in fact achieved on 1 July 1915 by the German ace Kurt Wintgens. He was the first aviator to receive the ''
Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by 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 Order of the Red Eag ...
'' (colloquially known as the "Blue Max" in his honour), being awarded it at the same time as
Oswald Boelcke Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
. His name has become attached to a common flying tactic, the Immelmann turn, and remains a byword in aviation. He is credited with 15 aerial victories.


Early life

Max Immelmann was born on 21 September 1890, in
Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...
, to an industrialist father who died when Max was young. In 1905 he was enrolled in the Dresden Cadet School. He joined the ''Eisenbahnregiment (Railway Regiment) Nr. 2'' in 1911 as an Ensign,Franks et al. 1993, pp. 134–135. in pursuit of a commission. He left the army in March 1912 to study mechanical engineering in Dresden, but returned to service on the outbreak of war in 1914, as a reserve officer candidate. Assigned to ''Eisenbahnregiment Nr. 1'', he soon transferred to aviation.van Wyngarden 2006, p. 13.


Wartime career

When World War I started, Immelmann was called to active service, transferred to the
German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...
's air arm, ''Die Fliegertruppe des Deutschen Kaiserreiches'' (later known as 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 ...
'') and was sent for pilot training at Johannisthal Air Field in November 1914. He was initially stationed in northern
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 ...
. Immelmann served as a pilot with ''
Feldflieger Abteilung Feldflieger Abteilung (''FFA'', Field Flying Company) was the title of the pioneering field aviation units of what became the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' (German air service) by October 1916, during World War I. Composition The use of aircraft as a tact ...
'' (Field Flier Detachment) 10 from February to April 1915, and then in ''FFA 62'' by early May 1915. On several occasions he engaged in combat while flying the
L.V.G. Luftverkehrsgesellschaft m.b.H. (L.V.G. or LVG) was a German aircraft manufacturer based in Berlin- Johannisthal, which began constructing aircraft in 1912, building Farman-type aircraft. The company constructed many reconnaissance and light bomb ...
two-seaters with which his units were equipped, but never with any success.Shores, 1983, p. 10. On 3 June 1915, he was shot down by a French pilot, but managed to land safely behind German lines. Immelmann was decorated with 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 es ...
, Second Class, for preserving his aircraft. Two very early examples of the
Fokker Eindecker fighters The Fokker ''Eindecker'' fighters were a series of German World War I monoplane single-seat fighter aircraft designed by Dutch engineer Anthony Fokker.Boyne 1988 Developed in April 1915, the first ''Eindecker'' ("Monoplane") was the first purpose ...
were delivered to the unit, one
Fokker M.5 The Fokker M.5 was an unarmed single-seat monoplane aircraft designed and built by Anthony Fokker in 1913. It served as a light reconnaissance aircraft with the German army at the outbreak of World War I and was the basis for the first successf ...
K/MG production prototype numbered ''E.3/15'' for
Oswald Boelcke Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
's use, with Immelmann later in July receiving ''E.13/15'' as a production
Fokker E.I The Fokker E.I was the first fighter aircraft to enter service with the Fliegertruppe of the Deutsches Heer in World War I. Its arrival at the front in mid-1915 marked the start of a period known as the " Fokker Scourge" during which the E.I a ...
for his own use before the end of July. It was with the ''E.13/15'' aircraft, armed with the synchronized lMG 08 ''Spandau'' machine gun, that he gained his first ''confirmed'' air victory of the war on 1 August 1915, a fortnight after ''Leutnant'' Kurt Wintgens obtained the very first confirmed German aerial victory on 15 July 1915 with his own Fokker M.5K/MG production prototype ''E.5/15'' Eindecker,VanWyngarden, pg.12 one of five built, following two unconfirmed ones on 1 and 4 July, all before Immelmann:Shores, 1983, p. 10. Lieutenant William Reid fought back valiantly, flying with his left hand and firing a pistol with his right. Nonetheless, the 450 bullets fired at him took their effect; Reid suffered four wounds in his left arm, and his airplane's engine quit, causing a crash landing. The unarmed Immelmann landed nearby, and approached Reid; they shook hands and Immelmann said to the British pilot "You are my prisoner" and pulled Reid out of the wreckage and rendered first aid. Immelmann became one of the first German fighter pilots, quickly building an impressive score of air victories. During September, three more victories followed, and then in October he became solely responsible for the air defense of the city of Lille. Immelmann became known as ''The Eagle of Lille'' (''Der Adler von Lille'').Shores, 1983, p. 10. Immelmann flirted with the position of Germany's leading ace, trading that spot off with
Oswald Boelcke Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
, another pioneer ace. Having come second to Boelcke for his sixth victory, he was second to be awarded the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern for this feat. On 15 December, Immelmann shot down his seventh British plane and moved into an unchallenged lead in the competition to be Germany's leading ace. Immelmann was the first pilot to be awarded the ''
Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by 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 Order of the Red Eag ...
'', Germany's highest military honour, receiving it on the day of his eighth win,van Wyngarden 2006, p. 30. 12 January 1916. The medal became unofficially known as the "Blue Max" in the German Air Service in honor of Immelmann. His medal was presented by Kaiser Wilhelm II on 12 January 1916. Oswald Boelcke received his medal at the same time. Boelcke scored again two days later. Immelmann would chase him in the ace race for the next four months, drawing even on 13 March at 11 each, losing the lead on the 19th, regaining it on Easter Sunday (23 April) 14 to 13, losing it again forever on 1 May. It was about this time, on 25 April, that Immelmann received a salutary lesson in the improvement of British aircraft. As the German ace described his attack on two Airco DH.2s, "The two worked splendidly together ... and put 11 shots into my machine. The petrol tank, the struts on the fuselage, the undercarriage and the propeller were hit ... It was not a nice business." On 31 May, Immelmann, Max von Mulzer, and another German pilot attacked a formation of seven British aircraft. Immelmann was flying a two-gun Fokker E.IV, and when he opened fire, the synchronizing gear malfunctioned. A stream of bullets cut off the tip of a propeller blade. The thrashing of the unbalanced air screw nearly shook the aircraft's twin-row Oberursel U.III engine loose from its mounts before he could cut the ignition and glide to a dead-stick landing.


Death

In the late afternoon of 18 June 1916, Immelmann led a flight of four Fokker E.III Eindeckers in search of a flight of eight F.E.2b fighter/reconnaissance aircraft of 25 Squadron
Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...
over
Sallaumines Sallaumines (; pcd, Sallaumine or ''Sallau'') is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department of northern France. Administration Sallaumines belongs to the Lens-Liévin intercommunality which consists of 36 communes, with a total population of 25 ...
in northern France. The British flight had just crossed the lines near
Arras Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of ...
, with the intent of photographing the German infantry and artillery positions within the area, when Immelmann's flight intercepted them. After a long-running fight, scattering the participants over an area of some , Immelmann brought down one of the enemy aircraft, wounding both the pilot and observer. This was his 16th victory claim, though it went unconfirmed. At 21:45 that same evening, Immelmann in Fokker E.III, serial 246/16 encountered No. 25 Squadron again, this time near the village of
Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements ...
. Immediately, he got off a burst which hit RFC Lt. J. R. B. Savage, pilot of F.E.2b pusher serial 4909, mortally wounding him. This was his 17th victory claim, though Max Mulzer was later credited with the victory. The second aircraft he closed on was piloted by Second Lieutenant G. R. McCubbin with Corporal J. H. Waller as gunner/observer; McCubbin was credited by the British with shooting Immelmann down. On the German side, many had seen Immelmann as invincible and could not conceive the notion that he had fallen to enemy fire. Meanwhile, British authorities awarded McCubbin the
Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...
and the
Distinguished Service Medal Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a high award of a nation. Examples include: *Distinguished Service Medal (Australia) (established 1991), awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force for distinguished leadership in action * Distinguishe ...
and sergeant's stripes for Waller. The German Air Service at the time said the loss was due to (friendly) anti-aircraft fire."Max Immelmann."
''acepilots.com.'' Retrieved: 10 October 2010.
Others, including Immelmann's brother, believed his aircraft's gun synchronisation (designed to enable his machine gun to fire between the whirling propeller blades without damaging them) had malfunctioned with catastrophic results. Early versions of such gears frequently malfunctioned in this way and this had happened to Immelmann twice before, while testing two- and three-machine gun installations. On each occasion, he had been able to land safely. McCubbin, in a 1935 interview, said that immediately after Immelmann shot down McCubbin's squadron-mate, the German ace began an Immelmann turn, McCubbin and Waller descended from a greater altitude and opened fire, shooting down Immelmann. Waller pointed out later that the British bullets could have hit Immelmann's propeller. Damage to the propeller resulting in the loss of one blade could have been the primary cause of the structural failure evident in accounts of the crash of his aircraft. The resultant vibration of an engine at full throttle spinning half a propeller could have shaken the fragile craft to pieces. At 2,000 metres, the tail was seen to break away from the rest of Immelmann's Fokker, the wings detached or folded, and what remained of the fuselage fell straight down. Immelmann’s body was recovered by the German 6 Armee from the twisted wreckage, lying lifeless over what was left of the surprisingly intact Oberursel engine (sometimes cited as under it), his body was identified by his initials embroidered on his handkerchief. Immelmann was given a state funeral and buried in his home city of
Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...
. His body was later exhumed, however, and cremated in the Dresden-Tolkewitz Crematorium. Immelmann, along with Max Ritter von Mulzer, scored all of his victories flying different types of Eindeckers, becoming one of the most successful pilots in the type.


Grave robbery and desecration

During the night of Sunday 31 January 2021, Max Immelmann's memorial grave in Tolkewitz was robbed and desecrated. The Pöppelmann grave figure "Eagle of Lille" (weighing around 100 kilograms, and approximately 180 centimetres in height) was dismantled and taken away by two men using a handcart to transport it to a pick-up truck parked nearby. A local resident observed the robbery and informed the police, who are also investigating the two suspects in connection with other thefts. The public prosecutor's office in Dresden, which brought charges against the alleged perpetrators, estimated the value of the grave figure at around 50,000 euros. After restoration the figure was returned to Immelmann's grave. A number of historically significant First World War artefacts have been stolen from the graves of soldiers in the Tolkewitz cemetery during 2021, with a suspicion of possible "theft to order".


Legacy

The present-day Luftwaffe has dubbed Squadron AG-51 the "Immelmann Squadron" in his honour.


Promotion record and regimental assignments

* Cadet, Dresden Cadet School, 1905–1912 * ''Fähnrich mit Portepee'' (Swordknot Ensign), Eisenbahn-Regiment Nr 2 (2nd Railway Regiment), 4 April 1911 * Pilot in training, Aviation Replacements Section, 12 November 1914 – 31 March 1915; received Imperial German Pilot's Badge * Assigned, FA (''Flieger-Abteilung'') 10, ''Die Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches'' (Flying Section 10, Imperial German Flying Corps), February – 28 April 1915 * Assigned, FA 62, 28 April 1915–1916 * ''Leutnant'' (Second Lieutenant), Royal Saxony Army Reserves, 14 July 1915 * ("Full") ''Oberleutnant'', Royal Saxon Army (active list), April 1916


Orders and medals

* Military Order of St. Henry, Knight Commander, 30 March 1916, after his 12th and 13th victories * Military Order of St. Henry, Knight, 21 September 1915 * Albert Order, Knight's Cross with Swords * Silver Friedrich August Medal, "For Gallantry in the Face of the Enemy", 15 July 1915 / * ''
Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by 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 Order of the Red Eag ...
'', 12 January 1916, after his eighth victory *
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 es ...
, First Class, 1 August 1915, after his first victory *
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 es ...
, Second Class, 3 June 1915, after flying a successful reconnaissance mission with Lt. von Teubern (observer) * Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross with Swords, November 1915 Miscellaneous German *
Hanseatic Cross The Hanseatic Cross (German: ''Hanseatenkreuz'') was a military decoration of the three Hanseatic city-states of Bremen, Hamburg and Lübeck, who were members of the German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 188 ...
(Hamburg), 15 March 1916, after flying aerial defense for the Mayor of Hamburg * Military Merit Order(Bavaria), Fourth Class, ca. 6–12 December 1915 Other * The Turkish War Medal of 1915 (Ottoman Empire), April/May 1916 * Imtiyaz Medal in Silver (Ottoman Empire), April/May 1916


Fokker Eindecker

Immelmann will forever be associated with the Fokker Eindecker, Germany's first
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 ...
, and the first such aircraft to be armed with a machine gun synchronised to fire forward, through the propeller arc. Immelmann, along with
Oswald Boelcke Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
and other pilots, was one of the main exponents of the Fokker Eindecker, resulting in the Fokker Scourge which inflicted heavy losses upon British and French aircrews during 1915. Initially, Immelmann shared the same ''E.3/15'' machine with Oswald Boelcke, but late in the summer of 1915 would receive his own machine, bearing the IdFlieg serial number ''E.13/15'' on its fuselage. Both the E.3/15 machine earlier shared with Boelcke, and his own E.13/15 aircraft, both used to secure Immelmann's first five victories between them each had a seven-cylinder 80 horsepower Oberursel U.0
rotary engine The rotary engine is an early type of internal combustion engine, usually designed with an odd number of cylinders per row in a radial configuration. The engine's crankshaft remained stationary in operation, while the entire crankcase and its ...
for their power. According to Immelmann, the later E.13/15 aircraft was retired and shipped off to Berlin for display at the Zeughaus Museum, in March 1916,Immelmann 2009, p. 163, letter to his mother dated 16 March 1916. but was wrecked in the first bombing raids of the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
in 1940, during World War II.


The Immelmann turn

This refers to two quite different
aerobatic maneuver Aerobatic maneuvers are flight paths putting aircraft in unusual attitudes, in air shows, dogfights or competition aerobatics. Aerobatics can be performed by a single aircraft or in formation with several others. Nearly all aircraft are capab ...
s. The first of these is the one now known as an "Immelmann" (also frequently spelled'' "Immelman",'' in literature and media). # A half loop followed by a half roll on top, used to rapidly reverse the direction of flight. This maneuver may not have been practical in the primitive, underpowered fighters of 1915–1916, and its connection with the German fighter ace is doubtful.Wheeler 1965, pp. 27–35. # During World War I, an "Immelmann turn" was actually a sharp rudder turn off a vertical zoom climb (almost to a full stall) or modified chandelle followed by a steep dive. Immelmann may very well have originated this maneuver, or at least used it in combat, although this cannot be authenticated.


See also

*
Aerobatics Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glide ...
*
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 ...
* Fokker Eindecker * Fokker Scourge *
Oswald Boelcke Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
*
Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by 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 Order of the Red Eag ...
* Immelmann turn *
Immelmann Loop Roller coaster elements are the individual parts of roller coaster design and operation, such as a track, hill, loop, or turn. Variations in normal track movement that add thrill or excitement to the ride are often called "thrill elements". Comm ...
* Kurt Wintgens


References


Notes


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. , . * Guttman, Jon. ''Pusher Aces of World War 1''. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing Co, 2009. . * Immelmann, Frantz. ''Der Adler von Lille''. Liepzig, Austria: K.F. Koehler Verlag, 1934, reprinted as ''Immelmann: The Eagle of Lille.'' Havertown, Pennsylvania: Casemate, 2009. . * Shores, Christopher, ''Air Aces''. Greenwich, Connecticut: Bison Books, 1983. . * Thompson, J. Steve with Peter C. Smith. ''Air Combat Manoeuvres: The Technique and History of Air Fighting for Flight Simulation.'' Hersham, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Publishing, 2008. . * van Wyngarden, G. ''Early German Aces of World War I''. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing Ltd, 2006. . * Wheeler, Allen. ''Building Aeroplanes for Those Magnificent Men'' London: Foulis, 1965.


External links


Ace Pilots: ImmelmannMax Immelmann page at theaerodrome.com"The Eagle of Lille"
from ''Aviation History'' magazine * {{DEFAULTSORT:Immelmann, Max 1890 births 1916 deaths Military personnel from Dresden People from the Kingdom of Saxony Aviators killed by being shot down German World War I flying aces Luftstreitkräfte personnel Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Recipients of the Silver Imtiyaz Medal German military personnel killed in World War I