Rudolf Matthaei
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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 ...
Rudolf Matthaei (10 November 1895 – 17 April 1918) was a German 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 ten aerial victories.The Aerodrome website http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/germany/matthaei.php Retrieved on 20 April 2010.


Early life

Rudolf Matthaei was born in
Hildesheim Hildesheim (; nds, Hilmessen, Hilmssen; la, Hildesia) is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of the Lei ...
, Saxony, on 10 November 1895.


Military service

Matthaei joined Saxon Field Artillery Regiment No. 46 as an officer candidate on 13 February 1914. His first wartime service was in France. He was commissioned on 23 April 1915. He shipped out with his regiment to the Eastern Front. After a transfer to Infantry Regiment No. 79, Matthaei returned to France in September 1915. In early 1916, he began aviation training. He was assigned to Kasta 9 on 12 October 1916. He upgraded to fighter pilot at
Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a s ...
during the first two months of 1917. In late February, he was posted to
Jagdstaffel 21 Royal Saxon Jagdstaffel 21 was a "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 score 148 verified a ...
. On 24 March 1917, he shot down an
observation balloon An observation balloon is a type of balloon that is employed as an aerial platform for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Use of observation balloons began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War ...
for his first victory. After an unconfirmed claim on 15 April, he shot down a second balloon on 30 April. By 22 November 1917, he had a string of nine victories credited to Jasta 21, even though he had been posted to
Jagdstaffel 5 History Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 5, commonly abbreviated to Jasta 5, was created on January 21, 1916, and mobilized on 21 August 1916, as one of the first fighter units of the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the air arm of the Imperial German Arm ...
in June and become its temporary commander in August. On 17 December, he was promoted to command of
Jagdstaffel 46 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 46 was a "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 score 20 confirme ...
. On 21 February, he capped his career with his tenth win, when he shot down a Spad over
Wavrin Wavrin () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It was established around the year . It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille. Heraldry Population People * Jean de Waurin See also *Communes of the Nord department ...
. On 17 April, he spun in, crashed, and burned on his home airfield. He was pulled alive from the wreckage, but died later that night. He had been awarded both classes of the Iron Cross, as well as the Brunswick State War Service Cross.


Sources


References

* ''Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps 1914 - 1918'' Norman L. R. Franks, ''et al.'' Grub Street, 1993. , . 1895 births 1918 deaths German World War I flying aces Military personnel from Lower Saxony Luftstreitkräfte personnel Aviators killed by being shot down German military personnel killed in World War I People from Hildesheim Military personnel from the Province of Hanover {{germany-mil-bio-stub