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, occup ...

'' Sebastian Festner (30 June 1894 – 25 April 1917) was an

air 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 ...

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 ...

(German Air Force) during World War I, with 12 victories. He was only the second awardee of the Member's Cross of the

House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of Hohenzollern (german: Hausorden von Hohenzollern or ') was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various ...

Early life and service

Festner was born in Holzkirchen,

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 ...

, on 30 June 1894. He originally served with, and was wounded with, the infantry before switching to aviation.The Aerodrome website's page on Festner http://www.theaerodrome.com/aces/germany/festner.php Retrieved on 15 April 2010. He was a mechanic with ''Flieger Abtleilung Nr. 1'' in October 1914. Posted to ''Flieger Abtleilung Nr. 7b'' in February 1915 as a

Gefreiter Gefreiter (, abbr. Gefr.; plural ''Gefreite'') is a German, Swiss and Austrian military rank that has existed since the 16th century. It is usually the second rank or grade to which an enlisted soldier, airman or sailor could be promoted.Duden; D ...

, Festner learned to fly unofficially, and then underwent training with ''Fliegerersatz-Abteilung 2b'' and ''Fliegerersatz-Abteilung 5b''.Franks et al 1993, pp. 105–106. He served briefly with two seater units ''Flieger-Abteilung'' 18 and ''Flieger-Abteilung'' 5b, arriving at FA 18 on 10 September 1916 and FA 5b five days later. His next posting was to ''

Jagdstaffel 11 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 11 ("No 11 Fighter Squadron"; commonly abbreviated to Jasta 11) was founded on 28 September 1916 from elements of 4 Armee's “Kampfeinsitzer” or KEKs) 1, 2 and 3 and mobilized on 11 October as part of the Germ ...

'' on 10 November 1916. Under the command of

Manfred von Richthofen Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of ...

, Festner quickly claimed 2 victories in February 1917 (A BE-2 on 5 February and a FE-8 of No.40 Squadron on 16 February) before claiming another 10 during '

Bloody April Bloody April was the (largely successful) British air support operation during the Battle of Arras in April 1917, during which particularly heavy casualties were suffered by the Royal Flying Corps at the hands of the German ''Luftstreitkräfte' ...

'Bloody April'

A combat with No. 57 Squadron RFC Royal Aircraft Factory FE.2d's over Neuville on 2 April 1917 resulted in Festner claiming a FE-2d (Lt. H.P. Sworder, KIA & 2/Lt. A.H. Margoliouth, POW). On 5 April, during a combat between five Jasta 11 aircraft and six aircraft of No. 48 Squadron RFC, he forced down in captivity the

Bristol F.2 Fighter The Bristol F.2 Fighter is a British First World War two-seat biplane fighter and reconnaissance aircraft developed by Frank Barnwell at the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It is often simply called the Bristol Fighter, ''"Brisfit"'' or ''"Bif ...

of Captain

Leefe Robinson William Leefe Robinson VC (14 July 1895 – 31 December 1918) was the first British pilot to shoot down a German airship over Britain during the First World War. For this, he was awarded the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest award for gallan ...

, a

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

holder, holing his engine: his observer, 2/Lt. E.D. Warburton, was also captured. A Nieuport 17 of No. 60 Squadron was also claimed, but not credited, on 5 April (possibly Lt. E.J.D. Townsend, POW ). A 'Sopwith' was claimed on 7 April (actually a Bristol Fighter of No. 48 Sqn which force-landed with a dead observer) while on 8 April Festner himself force-landed his

Albatros D.II The Albatros D.II was a German fighter aircraft used during World War I. After a successful combat career in the early '' Jagdstaffeln'', it was gradually superseded by the Albatros D.III. Design and development Albatros designers Robert Thelen ...

(serial 223/16) with a cracked wing spar, which occurred while in combat with Nieuport 17s of No. 60 Squadron RFC, including future ace Lt. William 'Billy' Bishop.McCaffery 1988, p. 94. Von Richthofen had the damaged fighter written off strength. Festner shot down a BE-2d of 13 Sqn. RFC, ( Lt. E.R. Gunner, WIA & Lt. C. Curtiss) on 11 April, while on 13 April Jasta 11, Festner included, shot down an entire six-aircraft flight of Royal Aircraft Factory RE.8s from No. 59 Squadron RFC, Festner accounting for the RE-8 of Lt. A. Watson & 2/Lt. E.P. Law (both POW). He later claimed a FE-2b of No. 25 Squadron (Sgt. J. Dempsey KIA & 2/Lt. W.H. Green, POW). A Nieuport 17 of No. 60 Squadron was claimed both on 14 April (2/Lt. L.C. Chapman KIA) and 16 April 1917 (Lt. T. Langwill KIA). On 23 April 1917, having previously 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 es ...

, Sebastian Festner became only the second recipient of the Member's Cross with Swords of the

Death in action

Flying Albatros D.III (serial 2251/17), Festner was killed in action on 25 April 1917, near Oppy. Exact details are unknown; he was either struck by ground fire, suffered a broken propeller, or shot down attacking a Sopwith 1½ Strutter crewed by Lt. C. R. O'Brien & gunner 2/Lt. J. L. Dickson of No. 43 Squadron RFC, who claimed a red Albatros as their 3rd and 2nd victories respectively. Festner crashed behind the British lines, between

Gavrelle Gavrelle () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography A farming village situated northeast of Arras, at the junction of the N50 and the D33 roads. The motorway junction of the A26 autorou ...

and Bailleul. With the area under German artillery fire, there was no attempt to recover either plane or body. Festner was therefore declared

missing in action Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been killed, wounded, captured, ex ...

with no known grave.

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. , . * Franks, Norman; Bailey, Frank W.; Guest, Russell. ''Bloody April–Black September''. Grub Street, 1995. , 9781898697084. * McCaffery, Dan, ''Billy Bishop, Canadian Hero''. J. Lorimer & Co., 1988. , 9781550280951.

Endnotes

External links

article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Festner, Sebastian 1917 deaths 1894 births Aerial disappearances of military personnel in action German military personnel killed in World War I German World War I flying aces Military personnel of Bavaria Missing in action of World War I Missing person cases in France People from Miesbach (district) People from the Kingdom of Bavaria Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class