Gruppenkommandeur
''Gruppenkommandeur'' is a Luftwaffe position (not rank), that is the equivalent of a commander of a group or wing in other air forces. A ''Gruppenkommandeur'' usually has the rank of Major or ''Oberstleutnant'' (Lieutenant Colonel), and commands a '' Gruppe'', which is a sub-unit of a ''Geschwader''. A ''Gruppe'' usually consists of three or four '' Staffeln'' (each of which is commanded by a ''Staffelkapitän''). See also *Organization of the Luftwaffe (1933–1945) Between 1933 and 1945, the organization of the Luftwaffe underwent several changes. Originally, the German military high command, for their air warfare forces, decided to use an organizational structure similar to the army and navy, treating the ... References Luftwaffe appointments Military ranks of Germany {{aviation-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Organization Of The Luftwaffe (1933–1945)
Between 1933 and 1945, the organization of the Luftwaffe underwent several changes. Originally, the German military high command, for their air warfare forces, decided to use an organizational structure similar to the army and navy, treating the aviation branch as a strategic weapon of war. Later on, during the period of rapid rearmament, the Luftwaffe was organized more in a geographical fashion. Under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles (1919), Germany was prohibited from having an air force, with the former German Empire's ''Luftstreitkräfte'' disbandment in 1920. German pilots were secretly trained for military aviation, first in the Soviet Union during the late 1920s, and then in Germany in the early 1930s. In Germany, the training was done under the guise of the German Air Sports Association ( (DLV)) at the Central Commercial Pilots School ( (ZVF)). Following its 15 May 1933 formation in secret, the formation of the German air arm was openly announced in February 1935, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Luftwaffe
The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial German Navy, Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, which banned Germany from having any air force. During the interwar period, German pilots were trained secretly in violation of the treaty at Lipetsk (air base), Lipetsk Air Base in the Soviet Union. With the rise of the Nazi Party and the repudiation of the Versailles Treaty, the Luftwaffe's existence was publicly acknowledged and officially established on 26 February 1935, just over two weeks before open defiance of the Versailles Treaty through German rearmament and conscription would be announced on 16 March. The Condor Legion, a Luftwaffe detachment sent to aid Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist for ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Group (air Force)
A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation. Air and aviation groups The terms group and wing differ significantly from one country to another, as well as between different branches of a national defence force. Air groups vary considerably in size and status, but generally take two forms: * A unit of two to four squadrons, commanded by a lieutenant colonel, colonel, commander, naval captain or an equivalent rank. The United States Air Force (USAF), ''groupes'' of the French ''Armée de l'air'', ''gruppen'' of the German ''Luftwaffe'', United States Marine Corps Aviation, British Fleet Air Arm and some other naval air services usually follow this pattern. * A larger formation, often comprising more than 10 squadrons, commanded by a major general, brigadier general, commodore, rear admiral, air commodore or air vice-marshal. The air forces of many Commonwealth countries, such as the British Royal Air Force (RAF) ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Wing (air Force Unit)
In military aviation, a wing is a unit of command. In most military aviation services, a wing is a relatively large formation of planes. In Commonwealth countries a wing usually comprises three squadrons, with several wings forming a group (around 10 squadrons). Each squadron will contain around 20 planes. Commonwealth usage Origins On its establishment in 1912, the British Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was intended to be an inter-service, combined force of the British Army and Royal Navy. Given the rivalry that existed between the army and navy, new terminology was used, in order to avoid marking the corps out as having an army or navy ethos. While the term "wing" had been used in the cavalry, its more general use predominated. Accordingly, the word "wing", with its allusion of flight, was chosen as the term of subdivision and the corps was split into a "Military Wing" (i.e. an army wing) and a "Naval Wing". Each wing consisted of a number of squadrons (the term "squadron" ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Major (rank)
Major is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer military rank, rank used in many countries. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators, major is one rank above Captain (land), captain in armies and air forces, and one rank below lieutenant colonel. It is considered the most junior of the senior officer ranks. Background Etymologically, the word stems from the Latin word meaning "greater". The rank can be traced back to the rank of sergeant major general, which was shortened to sergeant major, and subsequently shortened to ''major''. When used in hyphenated or combined fashion, the term can also imply seniority at other levels of rank, including major general, denoting a low-level general officer, and sergeant major, denoting the most senior non-commissioned officer (NCO) of a military unit. The term major can also be used with a hyphen to denote the leader of a military band such as in Pipe-Major, pipe-major or drum-major. Links to major ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Oberstleutnant
() (English: Lieutenant Colonel) 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, Finland and Norway. The Swedish rank is a direct translation, as is the Finnish rank . Austria Austria's armed forces, the ''Bundesheer'', uses the rank Oberstleutnant as its sixth-highest officer rank. Like in Germany and Switzerland, Oberstleutnants are above Majors and below Obersts. The term also finds usage with the Austrian Bundespolizei (federal police force) and Justizwache (prison guards corps). These two organizations are civilian in nature, but their ranks are nonetheless structured in a military fashion. Belgium File:Army-BEL-OF-04.svg, Denmark The Danish rank of is based around the German term. Ranked OF-4 within NATO and having the paygrade of M401, it is used in the Royal Danish Army and the Ro ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Staffelkapitän
''Staffelkapitän'' is a command appointment, rather than a military rank, in the air force units of German-speaking countries. The rank normally held by a ''Staffelkapitän'' has changed over time. In the present-day German ''Luftwaffe'' – part of the ''Bundeswehr'' – the position is usually held by an ''Oberstleutnant'' (lieutenant colonel) or ''Major''. World War II In the ''Luftwaffe'' of the World War II ''Wehrmacht'', a full-strength ''Staffel'' had nine to 12 operational aircraft; as such it was slightly smaller than a full-strength squadron (at least 12 aircraft) in the air forces of other countries. Hence a ''Luftwaffe'' ''Staffelkapitän'' usually held the rank of an ''Oberleutnant'' or ''Hauptmann''. (In other countries, a squadron was normally commanded by, at the very least, a Major or direct equivalent rank, such as an RAF Squadron Leader.) An acting or newly-appointed ''Staffelkapitän'', for the first weeks of their assignment, was known as ''Staffelführ ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |
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Luftwaffe Appointments
The Luftwaffe () was the aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, which banned Germany from having any air force. During the interwar period, German pilots were trained secretly in violation of the treaty at Lipetsk Air Base in the Soviet Union. With the rise of the Nazi Party and the repudiation of the Versailles Treaty, the Luftwaffe's existence was publicly acknowledged and officially established on 26 February 1935, just over two weeks before open defiance of the Versailles Treaty through German rearmament and conscription would be announced on 16 March. The Condor Legion, a Luftwaffe detachment sent to aid Nationalist forces in the Spanish Civil War, provided the force with a valuable testing ground for new tactics and aircraft. Partially as a result ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   [Amazon] |