Stuka Ace - Hans-Ulrich Rudel: Greatest Combat Pilot of all Time

[Sunni Man]

Hans-Ulrich Rudel (2 July 1916 – 18 December 1982) was a Stuka dive-bomber pilot during World War II and a member of the Nazi Party. The most highly decorated German serviceman of the war, Rudel was one of only 27 military men to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds, and the only person to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. Germany's highest military decoration.

Rudel flew 2,530 combat missions claiming a total of 2,000 targets destroyed; including 800 vehicles, 519 tanks, 150 artillery pieces, a destroyer, two cruisers, one Soviet battleship, 70 landing craft, 4 armored trains, several bridges and nine aircraft which he shot down.

According to official Luftwaffe figures, Rudel flew some 2,530 combat missions (a world record). He was never shot down by another pilot, only by anti-aircraft artillery. He was shot down or forced to land 32 times, several times behind enemy lines, and was wounded a total of 5 times

"Only he is lost who gives himself up for lost"

—Hans-Ulrich Rudel

Hans-Ulrich Rudel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Mr. H.]

Good thing he sat out the Battle of Britain.

 

[Sunni Man]

He was on the Eastern front against the Russians.

Where the fighting was much more brutal and to the death with no quarter given.

 

[Mr. H.]

I knew an old guy who few a Thunderbolt in the Europe theatre.
He showed me some wing camera footage from his missions. Fascinating.

The days before "fly by wire".

Gutsy stuff.

 

[Sunni Man]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FD7MvO7fww]Stuka Ace - Hans-Ulrich Rudel - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Trajan]

*ahem*

Erich Alfred Hartmann

Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993), nicknamed "Bubi" (the hypocoristic form of "young boy") by his comrades and "The Black Devil" by his Soviet adversaries, was a German fighter pilot during World War II and is the highest-scoring fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He claimed 352 aerial victories (345 against the Soviet Air Force and 260 of which were fighters) in 1,404 combat missions. He engaged in aerial combat 825 times while serving with the Luftwaffe. During the course of his career, Hartmann was forced to crash-land his damaged fighter 14 times. This was due to damage received from parts of enemy aircraft he had just shot down or mechanical failure. Hartmann was never shot down or forced to land due to fire from enemy aircraft.[1]

Hartmann, a pre-war glider pilot, joined the Luftwaffe in 1940 and completed his fighter pilot training in 1942. He was posted to Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52) on the Eastern front and was fortunate to be placed under the supervision of some of the Luftwaffe's most experienced fighter pilots. Under their guidance, Hartmann steadily developed his tactics, which earned him the coveted Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten (Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds) on 25 August 1944 for claiming 301 aerial victories.

He scored his 352nd and last aerial victory on 8 May 1945. He and the remainder of JG 52 surrendered to United States Army forces and were turned over to the Red Army. In an attempt to pressure him into service with the Soviet-friendly East German Volksarmee, he was convicted of false war crimes, a conviction posthumously voided by a Russian court as a malicious prosecution. Hartmann was sentenced to 25 years of hard labour and spent 10 years in various Soviet prison camps and gulags until he was released in 1955.


his greatest achievement inho-

On 1 June 1944, Hartmann shot down four P-51s in a single mission over the Ploieşti oil fields.[24] Later that month, during his fifth combat with American pilots, he shot down two more P-51s before being forced to bail out, when eight other P-51s ran his Messerschmitt out of fuel. During the intense manoeuvring, Hartmann managed to line up one of the P-51s at close range, but heard only a "clank" when he fired, as he had run out of ammunition.

more at-

Erich Hartmann - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[whitehall]

Hans-Ulrich Rudel (2 July 1916 – 18 December 1982) was a Stuka dive-bomber pilot during World War II and a member of the Nazi Party. The most highly decorated German serviceman of the war, Rudel was one of only 27 military men to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds, and the only person to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. Germany's highest military decoration.

Rudel flew 2,530 combat missions claiming a total of 2,000 targets destroyed; including 800 vehicles, 519 tanks, 150 artillery pieces, a destroyer, two cruisers, one Soviet battleship, 70 landing craft, 4 armored trains, several bridges and nine aircraft which he shot down.

According to official Luftwaffe figures, Rudel flew some 2,530 combat missions (a world record). He was never shot down by another pilot, only by anti-aircraft artillery. He was shot down or forced to land 32 times, several times behind enemy lines, and was wounded a total of 5 times

"Only he is lost who gives himself up for lost"

—Hans-Ulrich Rudel

Hans-Ulrich Rudel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A medal for killing 800 Jeep drivers and shot down 32 times. What an ace.

 

[there4eyeM]

Too bad such valiant men could fight for such a preposterously stupid cause.

 

[Sunni Man]

They were fighting for their nation and against communism.

Any red blooded American could easily identify with their patriotic motives.

 

[there4eyeM]

Just goes to show how wrong warriors can be.

 

[Trajan]

They were fighting for their nation and against communism.

Any red blooded American could easily identify with their patriotic motives.

thats a little to simple I think.....nothing occurs in a vacuum right?

 

[there4eyeM]

If we really believe in choice and individual responsibility, we are confronted by the uncomfortable reality that soldiers who participate in illegal wars are war criminals.

A US soldier swears to uphold the Constitution, not a policy or a politician. International laws and treaties approved by Congress come under the Constitution. A soldier ordered to commit unconstitutional acts is obliged to refuse.

Any human, soldier or otherwise, has a higher duty than obedience to a 'superior'.

 

[Sunni Man]

If we really believe in choice and individual responsibility, we are confronted by the uncomfortable reality that soldiers who participate in illegal wars are war criminals.

A US soldier swears to uphold the Constitution, not a policy or a politician. International laws and treaties approved by Congress come under the Constitution. A soldier ordered to commit unconstitutional acts is obliged to refuse.

Any human, soldier or otherwise, has a higher duty than obedience to a 'superior'.

It's obvious from your statements that you have never served in the military.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Hans-Ulrich Rudel (2 July 1916 – 18 December 1982) was a Stuka dive-bomber pilot during World War II and a member of the Nazi Party. The most highly decorated German serviceman of the war, Rudel was one of only 27 military men to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds, and the only person to be awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. Germany's highest military decoration.

Rudel flew 2,530 combat missions claiming a total of 2,000 targets destroyed; including 800 vehicles, 519 tanks, 150 artillery pieces, a destroyer, two cruisers, one Soviet battleship, 70 landing craft, 4 armored trains, several bridges and nine aircraft which he shot down.

According to official Luftwaffe figures, Rudel flew some 2,530 combat missions (a world record). He was never shot down by another pilot, only by anti-aircraft artillery. He was shot down or forced to land 32 times, several times behind enemy lines, and was wounded a total of 5 times

"Only he is lost who gives himself up for lost"

—Hans-Ulrich Rudel

Hans-Ulrich Rudel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A medal for killing 800 Jeep drivers and shot down 32 times. What an ace.

Dumbest post of the day!

 

[Sunni Man]

Erich Alfred Hartmann

Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993), nicknamed "Bubi" (the hypocoristic form of "young boy") by his comrades and "The Black Devil" by his Soviet adversaries, was a German fighter pilot during World War II and is the highest-scoring fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He claimed 352 aerial victories (345 against the Soviet Air Force and 260 of which were fighters) in 1,404 combat missions. He engaged in aerial combat 825 times while serving with the Luftwaffe. During the course of his career, Hartmann was forced to crash-land his damaged fighter 14 times. This was due to damage received from parts of enemy aircraft he had just shot down or mechanical failure. Hartmann was never shot down or forced to land due to fire from enemy aircraft.[1]

Hartmann, a pre-war glider pilot, joined the Luftwaffe in 1940 and completed his fighter pilot training in 1942. He was posted to Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52) on the Eastern front and was fortunate to be placed under the supervision of some of the Luftwaffe's most experienced fighter pilots. Under their guidance, Hartmann steadily developed his tactics, which earned him the coveted Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten (Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds) on 25 August 1944 for claiming 301 aerial victories.

He scored his 352nd and last aerial victory on 8 May 1945. He and the remainder of JG 52 surrendered to United States Army forces and were turned over to the Red Army. In an attempt to pressure him into service with the Soviet-friendly East German Volksarmee, he was convicted of false war crimes, a conviction posthumously voided by a Russian court as a malicious prosecution. Hartmann was sentenced to 25 years of hard labour and spent 10 years in various Soviet prison camps and gulags until he was released in 1955.

Erich Hartmann - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The OP is about Hans-Ulrich Rudel the worlds #1 "combat" pilot.

Whereas, Erich Hartmann was the worlds #1 scoring "fighter" pilot.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LofmuZoIp2A]WW2 - Major Erich Hartmann - Greatest Fighter Ace - YouTube[/ame]

 

[Trajan]

last time I checked fighter pilots where in combat too...

 

[Sunni Man]

Hans-Ulrich Rudel was not a fighter pilot and flew the Stuka.

The Stuka was a dive bomber and a combat ground support plane.

That's the difference..........

 

[whitehall]

I wonder how many Jewish refugees he had painted on the side of his plane?

 

[westwall]

I met Rudel in Syria in the 60's. He was still an ardent Nazi, even then. Gunther Rall was a good friend of mine for many years and he thought Marseille was the best of all time.

 

[westwall]

Hans-Ulrich Rudel was not a fighter pilot and flew the Stuka.

The Stuka was a dive bomber and a combat ground support plane.

That's the difference..........

He flew the FW 190 JABO later in the war.