Walther Wever (16 January 1923 – 10 April 1945) was a

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

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 ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The son of former Chief of the Luftwaffe General Walther Wever, Wever served during 1943 on the Eastern Front and from 19 June 1943 until 10 April 1945 he claimed 44 aerial victories in 250 combat missions. He was also a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ...

Career

Wever was born on 16 January 1923 in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

in the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

, the son of ''General der Flieger'' Walther Wever. Following flight training in mid-1943 he was posted to 3. '' Staffel'' (3rd squadron) of ''Jagdgeschwader'' 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing).For an explanation of ''Luftwaffe'' unit designations see Organization of the ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II. stationed on the Eastern Front. Notable landmarks during his career included his 10th kill on 1 September 1943 followed four days later by shooting down three

Il-2 Sturmoviks The Ilyushin Il-2 (Russian: Илью́шин Ил-2) is a ground-attack plane that was produced by the Soviet Union in large numbers during the Second World War. The word ''shturmovík'' ( Cyrillic: штурмовик), the generic Russian term ...

in five minutes. On 29 March 1944 he claimed a further five aerial victories, making him an " ace-in-a-day". Then on 24 June, he claimed his 40th aerial victory.

Squadron leader

On 7 May 1944, Weaver was appointed ''

Staffelkapitän ''Staffelkapitän'' is a position (not a rank) in flying units ( ''Staffel'') of the German Luftwaffe that is the equivalent of RAF/USAF Squadron Commander. Usually today a ''Staffelkapitän'' is of ''Oberstleutnant'' or ''Major'' rank. In the '' ...

'' (squadron leader) of 3. ''Staffel'' of JG 51, succeeding ''Hauptmann''

Heinz Lange Heinz Lange (October 2, 1917 – February 26, 2006) was an officer and pilot in the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany during World War II who briefly commanded fighter wing Jagdgeschwader 51. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Ca ...

who was transferred. Wever had already briefly led the ''Staffel'' from 15 to 30 August 1943. On 10 July, he was shot down and wounded in his

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

G-6 (''Werknummer'' 410413—factory number) by Soviet

Anti-aircraft artillery Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

. Command of 3. ''Staffel'' was then passed to ''Oberleutnant''

Günther Josten Günther Josten (7 November 19217 July 2004) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 178 enemy aircraft shot down in 420 combat missions, all of which claimed over the Eastern Front. Following Wo ...

. Although he lost a foot, Wever continued to fly and was awarded the

() on 28 January 1945 for reaching the final total of 44 victories. He was then transferred to ''Jagdgeschwader'' 7 (JG 7—7th Fighter Wing), the first jet fighter wing, where he received further training on the

Messerschmitt Me 262 The Messerschmitt Me 262, nicknamed ''Schwalbe'' (German: "Swallow") in fighter versions, or ''Sturmvogel'' (German: "Storm Bird") in fighter-bomber versions, is a fighter aircraft and fighter-bomber that was designed and produced by the Germa ...

jet fighter. On 10 April 1945, having not scored another kill, Wever was shot down and killed in action by

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

fighters near

Neuruppin Neuruppin (; North Brandenburgisch: ''Reppin'') is a town in Brandenburg, Germany, the administrative seat of Ostprignitz-Ruppin district. It is the birthplace of the novelist Theodor Fontane (1819–1898) and therefore also referred to as ''Fonta ...

. That day, the Luftwaffe lost a number of Me 262 pilots, including ''Hauptmann''

Franz Schall Franz Schall (1 June 1918 – 10 April 1945) was a German military aviator who served in the Luftwaffe during World War II. As a fighter ace, he flew approximately 550 combat missions and claimed 137 aerial victories—that is, 137 aerial combat ...

. The Americans dubbed this day the "great jet massacre".

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

According to Obermaier, Wever was credited with 44 aerial victories all but one claimed on the Eastern Front in 250 combat missions. Matthews and Foreman, authors of ''Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims'', researched the

German Federal Archives The German Federal Archives or Bundesarchiv (BArch) (german: Bundesarchiv) are the National Archives of Germany. They were established at the current location in Koblenz in 1952. They are subordinated to the Federal Commissioner for Culture and t ...

and found records for 44 aerial victory claims with 43 claimed on the Eastern Front and one on the Western Front.

Awards and decorations

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 ...

(1939) 2nd and 1st Class *

Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe The ''Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe'' (Honor Goblet of the Luftwaffe) was a Luftwaffe award established on 27 February 1940 by Hermann Göring, ''Reichsmarschall'' Hermann Göring, the ''Reich'' Minister of Aviation and Commander-in-Chief of the Luft ...

(''Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe'') on 17 April 1944 as ''

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 ...

'' and pilot *

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 20 March 1944 as ''Leutnant'' in the I./''Jagdgeschwader'' 51 *

on 28 January 1945 as ''Leutnant'' and pilot in the 3./''Jagdgeschwader'' 51 "Mölders"

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wever, Walther German World War II flying aces Luftwaffe pilots German military personnel killed in World War II Recipients of the Gold German Cross Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Military personnel from Munich 1923 births 1945 deaths Aviators killed by being shot down