Günter Voigt (born 2 January 1933), is a military scientist and retired major general, whose last assignment was as Deputy Commander in Chief and Chief of Staff of the

Air Forces of the National People's Army The Air Forces of the National People's Army ( [], ) was the air force of East Germany. As with the , the , and the Border Troops of the German Democratic Republic, Border Troops, it was a military branch of the National People's Army (NVA). A ...

in the former

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

.Die Generale und Admirale der NVA. Militärgeschichte der DDR Ein biographisches Handbuch, S.195. Hrsg. v. Militärgeschichtlichen Forschungsamt von Rüdiger Wenzke Klaus Froh

Military career

After the vocational training, in 1950 Voigt joined the

Volkspolizei The (DVP, German for "German People's Police"), commonly known as the or VoPo, was the national uniformed police force of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1945 to 1990. The Volkspolizei was a highly- centralized agency re ...

as a volunteer. He then became a professional soldier and applied for attendance at the People's Police Officer's School in

Pirna Pirna (; , ) is a town in Saxony, Germany and capital of the administrative district Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge. The town's population is over 37,000. Pirna is located near Dresden and is an important district town as well as a ''Große ...

Sonnenstein Castle The Sonnenstein Castle is a castle in Pirna, near Dresden, Germany. It housed a mental hospital, which operated from 1811 to the end of World War II in 1945. During the War, it functioned as an Sonnenstein Nazi Death Institute, extermination cen ...

. In 1952

Kursant A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime o ...

(officer candidate) Voigt became a member of the

Socialist Unity Party of Germany The Socialist Unity Party of Germany (, ; SED, ) was the founding and ruling party of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from the country's foundation in 1949 until its dissolution after the Peaceful Revolution in 1989. It was a Mar ...

Education and first assignments

As the best school-leaver of the year 1952 Voigt was promoted over the junior officer's rank, ( Sub-lieutenant) of the ''Barracked People's Police - Air'', and was appointed to

platoon leader A platoon leader (NATO) or platoon commander (more common in Commonwealth militaries and the US Marine Corps) is the officer in charge of a platoon. This person is usually a junior officer – a second or first lieutenant or an equivalent rank ...

of the "1st Aero Club Cottbus" (Code name: KVP-Site 600), the predecessor organization of the ''Verwaltung Luftstreitkräfte'', later the Kommando LSK/LV of the National People's Army. Due to his continuing excellent performance he became in 1965 deputy chief of the

Abteilung (; abbrv. ''Abt.'') is a German word that is often used for German or Swiss military formations and depending on its usage could mean detachment, department or battalion; it can also refer to a military division. In German, it is used both ...

''Communications and Air Traffic Control'' of the "1st Aero Club Cottbus". Because he excelled at this staff position as well, he was delegated to high-school study to the

Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy () – is a higher military educational institution for training and retraining of engineers for the Russian Aerospace Forces. The academy trains specialists – engineers, research engineers in the fol ...

of the Soviet Union. Here he passed all examinations with excellence and graduated with a diploma in

military science Military science is the study of military processes, institutions, and behavior, along with the study of warfare, and the theory and application of organized coercive force. It is mainly focused on theory, method, and practice of producing mi ...

in 1961. Simultaneously he was awarded with the gold medal for the best graduate 1961 of the Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy as the best foreign graduate.

Service as staff officer

His permanent outstanding performance and the graduation with excellence recommended by his return to Germany the assignment as deputy chief of the ''Division Communications and Air Traffic Control'' of the Kommando LSK/LV. From 1962 to 1963 captain Voigt was ''Chief of the Communications Branch'' in that division. This tour of duty was followed by the assignment as ''Chief of the Division Communications and Air Traffic Control'' as successor of colonel Wagner. In 1967 he prompted to military scientist Dr.rer.mil. After this Voigt was assigned to the command and general staff officers course at the

General Staff Academy (Russia) The Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation () is the senior staff college of the Russian Armed Forces. The academy is located in Moscow, on 14 Kholzunova Lane. It was founded in 1936 as a Soviet ins ...

from 1973 to 1975. His successor as Chief of the Division Communications and Air Traffic Control was lieutenant-colonel Erich Zettelmann. After successful study colonel Voigt was assigned to ''Assistant Chief of Staff – Operations'' of the Kommando LSK/LV. As successor of major-general Joachim Herbst he worked on that high level staff position until January 1990. Among numerous projects and special tasks in that period he was in charge developing the so-called ''Air Force Operations- and Tactical Training Center'' (. With effect of 1 December 1989 Voigt was replaced by Colonel Siegfried Wünsche.

Promotions * 28 December 1950

* 1952

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

* 1955

First lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

* 1959

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

* 1964

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

* 1969 Lieutenant colonel * 1974

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

* 7 October 1977 Major general

Service as General

On 7 October 1977, at the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the GDR, colonel Voigt was appointed to Major general (OF-6). His final general's assignment was to ''Deputy Commander in Chief and Chief of Staff of the NPA Air Force''.

Retirement

With the disbandment of the National People's Army, major general Voigt retired effective 2 October 1990.

Orders and decorations

Among numerous orders and decorations major general Voigt was awarded with: *

Patriotic Order of Merit The Patriotic Order of Merit (German: ''Vaterländischer Verdienstorden'', or VVO) was a national award granted annually in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). It was founded in 1954 and was awarded to individuals and institutions for outstanding ...

, in bronze * Combat order "Of Merit for the Nation and Fatherland" ( de: Kampforden „Für Verdienste um Volk und Vaterland), in silver, and bronze * Honorary title: "Meritorious Member of National People's Army" ( :de: Verdienter Angehöriger der Nationalen Volksarmee) * Medal of Merit of the National People's Army, in gold, silver and bronze * Medal of Comradeship in Arms (de: Medaille der Waffenbrüderschaft), in silver * Medal "For Strengthening of Brotherhood in Arms" * Medal 30th Anniversary of the Foundation of the GDR (de: Medaille 30. Jahrestag der Gründung der DDR) * Medal for Faithful Service in the National People's Army in bronze, silver, gold, and XX-years service (gold)

Personal life

Voigt is married to his wife Rosemarie, and since 1990 he has been working as independent author.

References

* Schönbohm, Jörg. Two Armies and One Fatherland. Peter and Elfi Johnson, translators. Berghahn Books, Providence, Rhode Island, 1996 (originally published in 1992 in Germany as Zwei Armeen und ein Vaterland) {{DEFAULTSORT:Voigt, Gunter 1933 births Living people Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union alumni Major generals of the Air Forces of the National People's Army People from Strausberg Recipients of the Patriotic Order of Merit