Hans-Joachim Marseille
Encyclopedia
Hans-Joachim Marseille was a Luftwaffe
fighter
pilot
and flying ace
during World War II
. He is noted for his aerial battles during the North African Campaign
and his bohemian
lifestyle. One of the best fighter pilots of World War II, he was nicknamed the "Star of Africa". Marseille claimed all but seven of his "official" 158 victories against the British Commonwealth's
Desert Air Force
over North Africa
, flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109
fighter for his entire combat career. No other pilot claimed as many Western Allied
aircraft as Marseille.
Marseille, of French Huguenot
ancestry, joined the Luftwaffe in 1938. At the age of 20 he graduated from one of the Luftwaffe's fighter pilot schools just in time to participate in the Battle of Britain
, without notable success. A charming person, he had such a busy night life that sometimes he was too tired to be allowed to fly the next morning. As a result, he was transferred to another unit, which relocated to North Africa in April 1941.
Under the guidance of his new commander, who recognised the hidden potential in the young officer, Marseille started to improve his abilities as a fighter pilot. He reached the zenith of his fighter pilot career on 1 September 1942, when during the course of three combat sortie
s he claimed 17 enemy fighters shot down, earning him the Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten (Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds). Only 29 days later, Marseille was killed in a flying accident, when an engine failure forced him to abandon his fighter. After he exited the smoke-filled cockpit, Marseille's chest struck the vertical stabiliser
of his aircraft, either killing him instantly, or incapacitating him so that he was unable to open his parachute
.
Siegfried Georg Martin Marseille, a family with Huguenot
ancestry, in Berlin-Charlottenburg
Berliner Strasse 164 on 13 December 1919 at 11:45 PM. As a child he was physically weak and nearly died from a serious case of Influenza
.
His father Siegfried was an Army
officer during World War I
, and later left the armed forces to join the Berlin Police force. Siegfried later rejoined the Army in 1933, and was promoted to General in 1935. Promoted again he attained the rank of Generalmajor on 1 July 1941. He served on the Eastern Front
from the beginning of Operation Barbarossa
. Siegfried Marseille was killed by partisans near Petrykaw on 29 January 1944. He was buried in the cemetery of Selasje
. Hans-Joachim also had a younger sister, Ingeborg "Inge". While on sick leave in Athens at the end of December 1941, he was summoned to Berlin via a telegram from his mother. Upon arriving home he learned his sister had been "slain by a jealous lover"; Hans-Joachim never recovered emotionally from this blow.
His mother and father divorced when Marseille was still a young child. His mother married again, a police official by the name of Reuter. Marseille initially carried the name of his stepfather at school, a matter he had a difficult time accepting, and he retook the name Marseille in adulthood. His lack of discipline gained him the reputation of a rebel, a characteristic that would plague him early in his Luftwaffe career.
Marseille also had a difficult relationship with his father, General Marseille. He had refused to visit his father in Hamburg
for sometime after the divorce, but eventually attempted to reconcile. His father introduced him to the nightlife that was to hamper and even damage his military career in his initial years in the Luftwaffe. However it did not strengthen the relationship and he did not see his father again after that.
Marseille attended the 12th Volksschule
Berlin (1926–1930), and from the age of 10, the Prinz Heinrich Gymnasium
in Berlin-Schöneberg (1930–1938). He was considered a lazy student at first, and was constantly playing pranks and getting into trouble.
Toward the end of his school years he took his education seriously, and qualified as one of the youngest at 17 years and six months for his Abitur
and graduated in early 1938.
Marseille then expressed his desire to become a "Flying officer."
("State Labour Service") Abtlg. 1/177 in Osterholz-Scharmbeck
near Bremen
, between 4 April and 24 September 1938.
He joined Luftwaffe on 7 November 1938, as a Fahnenjunker
(officer candidate) and received his military basic training in Quedlinburg
in the Harz
region. On 1 March 1939 Marseille was transferred to the Luftkriegsschule (LKS 4—air war school) near Fürstenfeldbruck
. Among his classmates was Werner Schröer
. Schröer reports that Marseille was often in breach of military discipline. Consequently Marseille was ordered to stay on base while his class mates were on weekend leave. Quite frequently Marseille ignored this and left Schröer a note: "Went out! Please take my chores." On one occasion, while performing a slow circuit
, Marseille broke away and performed an imaginary weaving dogfight. He was reprimanded by his commanding officer, Hauptmann
Mueller-Rohrmoser, and taken off flying duties and his promotion to Gefreiter
postponed. Soon after, during a cross-country flight, he landed on a quiet stretch of Autobahn (between Magdeburg
and Braunschweig
) and ran behind a tree to relieve himself. Some farmers came to enquire if he needed assistance, but by the time they arrived Marseille was on his way, and they were blown back by his slipstream. Infuriated, the farmers reported the matter and Marseille was again suspended from flying. Those he graduated with had been made full officers by early 1940, while Marseille's rule-breaking left him with the rank of Oberfähnrich
at the end of 1941.
Marseille completed his training at Jagdfliegerschule 5
(5th fighter pilot school) in Wien-Schwechat
to which he was posted on 1 November 1939. Jagdfliegerschule 5 at the time was under the command of the World War I
flying ace and recipient of the Pour le Mérite
Eduard Ritter von Schleich
. One of his teachers at the Jagdfliegerschule 5 was the Austro-Hungarian World War I ace Julius Arigi
. Marseille graduated from Jagdfliegerschule 5 with an outstanding evaluation on 18 July 1940 and was assigned to Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg
. Marseille's unit was assigned to air defence duty over the Leuna plant
from the outbreak of war until the fall of France
.
On 10 August 1940 he was assigned to I. Jagd/Lehrgeschwader 2
, based in Calais
-Marck
, to begin operations over Britain and again received an outstanding evaluation this time by his Hauptmann
and Gruppenkommandeur
, Herbert Ihlefeld
.
over England on 24 August 1940, Marseille was involved in a four-minute battle with a skilled opponent. He defeated his opponent by pulling up into a tight chandelle
, to gain an altitude advantage before diving and firing. The British fighter was struck in the engine, pitching over and diving into the English Channel
; this was Marseille's first kill. Marseille was then engaged from above by more enemy fighters. By pushing his aircraft into a steep dive then pulling up metres above the water, Marseille escaped from the machine gun fire of his opponents: "skipping away over the waves, I made a clean break. No one followed me and I returned to Leeuwarden."
Marseille did not take any pleasure in this kill and found it difficult to accept the realities of aerial combat. In a letter to his mother, dated 24 August, he said:
On his second sortie, he scored another victory, and by the fifth day had claimed his fourth kill. While returning from a bomber-escort mission on 23 September 1940, his engine failed after combat damage sustained over Dover
; he tried to radio his position but was forced to bail out over the sea. He paddled around in the water for three hours before being rescued by a Heinkel He 59
float plane based at Schellingwoude
. Severely worn out and suffering from exposure
, he was sent to a field hospital. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed three aerial victories for the loss of four Bf 109.
Days later, Marseille was passed over for promotion and was now the sole Fähnrich in the Geschwader. This was a humiliation for him, suspecting that his abilities were being suppressed so the squadron leaders could take all the glory in the air.
Another account recalled how Marseille once ignored an order to turn back from a fight when outnumbered by two to one, but seeing an enemy aircraft closing on his wing leader, Marseille broke formation and shot the attacking aircraft down. Expecting nothing but "a well done Jochen" when he landed, he was thoroughly criticised for his actions, receiving three days of confinement for failing to carry out an order.
Shortly afterwards, in early October 1940, after having claimed seven aerial victories all them flying with I.(Jagd)/LG 2 Marseille was transferred to 4./Jagdgeschwader 52
, flying alongside the likes of Johannes Steinhoff
and Gerhard Barkhorn
. He wrote off four aircraft as a result of operations during this period. Steinhoff, later recalled:
As punishment for "insubordination
"—rumoured to be his penchant for American jazz
music, womanising and an overt "playboy" lifestyle—and inability to fly as a wingman, Steinhoff transferred Marseille to Jagdgeschwader 27
on 24 December 1940. When he joined his new unit, it was difficult to foresee his outstanding career. His new Gruppenkommandeur
, Eduard Neumann
, later recalled:
Nevertheless, Neumann quickly recognised Marseille's potential as a pilot. He stated in an interview: "Marseille could only be one of two, either a disciplinary problem or a great fighter pilot." Jagdgeschwader 27 was soon relocated to North Africa.
, deployed to Zagreb
on 10 April 1941, before transferring to Africa. On 20 April on his flight from Tripoli
to his front airstrip Marseille's Bf 109 developed engine trouble and he had to make a forced landing in the desert short of his destination. His squadron departed the scene after they had ensured that he had got down safely. Marseille continued his journey, first hitchhiking on an Italian truck, then, finding this too slow; he tried his luck at an airstrip in vain. Finally he made his way to the general in charge of a supply depot on the main route to the front, and convinced him that he should be available for operations next day. Marseille's character appealed to the general and he put at his disposal his own Opel Admiral
, complete with chauffeur
. "You can pay me back by getting fifty victories, Marseille!" were his parting words. Nevertheless he caught up with his squadron and arrived on 21 April.
He scored two more kills on 23 April and 28 April, his first in the North African Campaign
. However, on 23 April, Marseille himself was shot down during his third sortie of that day by Sous-Lieutenant
James Denis, a Free French pilot with No. 73 Squadron RAF
(8.5 kills), flying a Hawker Hurricane. Marseille's Bf 109 received almost 30 hits in the cockpit area, and three or four shattered the canopy. As Marseille was leaning forward the rounds missed him by inches. Marseille managed to crash-land his fighter.
Just a month later, records show that James Denis shot down Marseille again on 21 May 1941. Marseille engaged Denis, but overshot his target. A turning dogfight ensued, in which Denis once again bested Marseille. After the war Denis described his second encounter with Marseille:
Neumann (a Geschwaderkommodore
as of 10 June 1942) encouraged Marseille to self-train to improve his abilities. By this time, he had crashed or damaged another four aircraft, including a tropicalised
aircraft he was ferrying on 23 April 1941.
Marseille's kill rate was low, and he went from June to August without a victory. He was further frustrated after damage forced him to land on two occasions: once on 14 June 1941 and again after he was hit by ground fire over Tobruk
and was forced to land blind.
His tactic of diving into enemy formations often found him under fire from all directions, resulting in his aircraft being damaged beyond repair, consequently, Eduard Neumann was losing his patience. Marseille persisted, and created a unique self-training programme for himself, both physical and tactical, which resulted not just in outstanding situational awareness, marksmanship and confident control of the aircraft, but also in a unique attack tactic that preferred a high angle deflection shooting
attack and shooting at the target's front from the side, instead of the common method of chasing an aircraft and shooting at it directly from behind. Marseille often practiced these tactics on the way back from missions with his comrades. Marseille became known as a master at deflection shooting.
Finally on 24 September 1941, his practice came to fruition, with his first multiple victory sortie, claiming four Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron
, South African Air Force
(SAAF). By mid December, he had reached 25 confirmed victories and was duly awarded the German Cross
in Gold. His Staffel was rotated to Germany in November/December 1941 to convert to the Bf 109F-4/trop, the variant that was described as the Experten (experts) "mount."
Marseille always strove to improve his abilities. He worked to strengthen his legs and abdominal muscles, to help him tolerate the extreme g force
s of air combat. Marseille also drank an abnormal amount of milk and shunned sunglasses, to improve his eyesight.
To counter German fighter attacks, the Allied pilots flew "Lufbery circles" (in which each aircraft's tail was covered by the friendly aircraft behind). The tactic was effective and dangerous as a pilot attacking this formation could find himself constantly in the sights of enemy pilots. Marseille often dived at high speed into the middle of these enemy defensive formations from either above or below, executing a tight turn and firing a two-second deflection shot to destroy an enemy aircraft.
Marseille attacked under conditions many considered unfavourable, but his marksmanship allowed him to make an approach fast enough to escape the return fire of the two aircraft flying on either flank of the target. Marseille's excellent eyesight made it possible for him to spot the enemy before he was spotted, allowing him to take the appropriate action and manoeuvre into position for an attack.
In combat, Marseille's unorthodox methods led him to operate in a small leader/wingman
unit, which he believed to be the safest and most effective way of fighting in the high-visibility conditions of the North African skies. Marseille "worked" alone in combat keeping his wingman at a safe distance so he would not collide or fire on him in error.
In a dogfight
, particularly when attacking Allied aircraft in a Lufbery circle, Marseille would often favour dramatically reducing the throttle and even lowering the flaps to reduce speed and shorten his turn radius, rather than the standard procedure of using full throttle throughout.
Emil Clade
said that none of the other pilots could do this effectively, preferring instead to dive on single opponents at speed so as to escape if anything went wrong. Clade said of Marseille's tactics:
Friedrich Körner
(36 kills) also recognised this as unique:
His success as a fighter pilot also led to promotions and more responsibility as an officer. 1 May 1942 saw him prematurely promoted to Oberleutnant
followed by his appointment to Staffelkapitän
of 3./JG 27 on 8 June 1942, thus succeeding Oberleutnant Gerhard Homuth
who took command of I./JG 27.
In a conversation with his friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt
, Marseille commented on his style, and his idea of air-to-air combat:
His attack method to break up formations, which he perfected, resulted in a high lethality ratio, and in rapid, multiple victories per attack. On 3 June 1942, Marseille attacked alone a formation of 16 Curtiss P-40
fighters and shot down six aircraft of No. 5 Squadron SAAF, five of them in six minutes, including three aces: Robin Pare (six victories), Douglas Golding (6.5 victories) and Andre Botha (five victories). His wingman Rainer Pöttgen, nicknamed Fliegendes Zählwerk the ("Flying Counting Machine"), said of this fight:
After claiming his 100th kill on 17 June 1942, Marseille returned to Germany for two months leave. On 6 August, he began his journey back to North Africa accompanied by his fiancée Hanne-Lies Küpper. On 13 August, he met Benito Mussolini
in Rome
and was presented with the highest Italian military award for bravery, the Medaglia d'Oro al Valor Militare
.
Leaving his fiancée in Rome, Marseille returned to combat duties on 23 August. 1 September 1942 was Marseille's most successful day, destroying 17 enemy aircraft, and September would see him score 54 kills, his most productive month. The 17 enemy aircraft shot down included eight in 10 minutes, as a result of this feat he was presented with a type 82 Volkswagen Kübelwagen
by an Italian Regia Aeronautica
squadron, on which his Italian comrades had painted "Otto" (Italian language
: Otto = eight). This was the most aircraft from Western Allied air forces shot down by a single pilot in one day. Only one pilot, Emil "Bully" Lang
on 4 November 1943, would better this score, against the Soviet Air Force on the Eastern Front.
Marseille continued scoring multiple kills throughout September, including seven on 15 September. Between 16–25 September, Marseille failed to increase his score due to a fractured arm, sustained in a force landing soon after the 15 September mission. As a result, he had been forbidden to fly by Eduard Neumann. But the same day, Marseille borrowed the Macchi C.202 '96-10' of the Italian ace Tenente Emanuele Annoni, from 96a Squadriglia, 9° Gruppo, 4° Stormo, based at Fuka, for a test flight. But the one-off flight ended in a wheels-up landing, when the German ace accidentally switched the engine off, as the throttle control in Italian aircraft was opposite to that of the German aircraft. The incident highlighted some deficiencies in Marseille's flying.
Werner Schröer
said:
Marseille had nearly surpassed his friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt's score of 59 kills in just five weeks. However, the massive material superiority of the Allies meant the strain placed on the outnumbered German pilots was now severe. At this time, the strength of German fighter units was 112 (65 serviceable) aircraft against the British muster of some 800 machines.
Marseille was becoming physically exhausted by the frenetic pace of combat. After his last combat on the 26 September, Marseille was reportedly on the verge of collapse after a 15-minute battle with a formation of Spitfires, during which he scored his seventh victory of that day.
Marseille flew four different Bf 109F-4/Z aircraft:
Albert Kesselring
, Marseille reluctantly obeyed. One of these machines, WK-Nr. 14256 (Engine: Daimler-Benz DB 605
A-1, W.Nr. 77 411), was to be the final aircraft Marseille flew.
Over the next three days Marseille's Staffel was rested and taken off flying duties. On 28 September Marseille received a telephone call from Generalfeldmarschall
Erwin Rommel
asking to return with him to Berlin. Hitler was to make a speech at the Berlin Sportpalast
on 30 September and Rommel and Marseille were to attend. Marseille rejected this offer, citing that he was needed at the front and had already taken three months vacation that year. Marseille also revealed he wanted to take leave at Christmas, to marry his fiancée Hanne-Lies Küpper.
On 30 September 1942, Hauptmann
Marseille was leading his Staffel on a Stuka escort mission, during which no contact with enemy fighters was made. While returning to base, his new Bf 109G-2/trop's
cockpit began to fill with smoke; blinded and half asphyxiated, he was guided back to German lines by his wingmen, Jost Schlang and Lt Rainer Pöttgen. Upon reaching friendly lines, "Yellow 14" had lost power and was drifting lower and lower. Pöttgen called out after about 10 minutes that they had reached the White Mosque of Sidi Abdel Rahman
, and were thus within friendly lines. At this point, Marseille deemed his aircraft no longer flyable and decided to bail out, his last words to his comrades being "I've got to get out now, I can't stand it any longer".
Eduard Neumann was personally directing the mission from the command post:
His Staffel, which had been flying a tight formation around him, peeled away to give him the necessary room to manoeuvre. Marseille rolled his aircraft onto its back, the standard procedure for bail out, but due to the smoke and slight disorientation, he failed to notice that the aircraft had entered a steep dive (at an angle of 70-80 degrees) and was now travelling at a considerably faster speed (about 400 mph). He worked his way out of the cockpit and into the rushing air only to be carried backwards by the slipstream, the left side of his chest striking the vertical stabiliser of his fighter, either killing him instantly or rendering him unconscious to the point that he could not deploy his parachute. He fell almost vertically, hitting the desert floor 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south of Sidi Abdel Rahman
. As it transpired, a gaping 40 cm (16 in) hole had been made in his parachute and the canopy had spilled out, but after recovering the body, the parachute release handle was still on "safe," revealing Marseille had not even attempted to open it. Whilst checking the body, Oberarzt Dr Bick, the regimental doctor for the 115th Panzergrenadier-Regiment, noted Marseille's wristwatch had stopped at exactly 11:42 am. Dr. Bick had been the first to reach the crash site, having been stationed just to the rear of the forward mine defences, he had also witnessed Marseille's fatal fall.
In his autopsy report, Dr. Bick stated:
Oberleutnant
Ludwig Franzisket
collected the body from the desert
. Hans-Joachim Marseille lay in state in the Staffel sick bay, his comrades coming to pay their respects throughout the day. As a tribute they put on the record "Rhumba Azul" that he had enjoyed listening to; it played over and over until the close of day. Marseille's funeral took place on 1 October 1942 at the Heroes Cemetery in Derna with Generalfeldmarschall
Albert Kesselring
and Eduard Neumann
delivering a eulogy.
The last entry in his flight book by Eduard Neumann read: "Flight duration 54 minutes, time of landing "black cross". Took to parachute 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south of Sidi Abdel Rahman
. Remarks: Engine damage. Flights 1-482, 388 combat flights and a total of 158 kills: Certified in the field 30 September 1942".
An enquiry into the crash was hastily set up. The commission’s report (Aktenzeichen 52, Br.B.Nr. 270/42) concluded that the crash was caused by damage to the differential gear, which caused an oil leak. Then a number of teeth broke off the spur wheel and ignited the oil. Sabotage or human error was ruled out.
The aircraft, W. Nr. 14256, was ferried to the unit via Bari
, Italy
. The mission that ended in its destruction was its first mission.
Many of the other top Luftwaffe fighter aces like Adolf Galland
and Erich Hartmann
regarded him as "the best". Günther Rall
said of Marseille, "an excellent pilot and brilliant marksman. I think he was the best shot in the Luftwaffe".
and Marseille's friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt
, just three weeks earlier. This represented a failure in the command style of Marseille, although it was not entirely within his control. The more success he had the more his squadron relied on him to carry the lion's share of the kills. So his death, when it came, was something which JG 27 had seemingly not prepared for and the consequences were predictable and devastating.
Historians Hans Ring and Christopher Shores also point to the fact that Marseille's promotions were based on personal success rates more than any other reason, and other pilots did not get to score kills, let alone become Experten themselves. They flew support as the "maestro showed them how it was done", and often "held back from attacking enemy aircraft to build his score still higher". As a result there was no other "Great" to step into Marseille's shoes if he was killed.
Eduard Neumann explained:
Still Neumann, who was himself one of the Luftwaffe’s most able operational leaders, in the assessment of his subordinate commander’s quality was forthright:
Marseille's impact on enemy fighter pilots and their morale is unclear. Andrew Thomas quoted Pilot Officer
Bert Houle of No. 213 Squadron RAF
; "He was an extremely skilled pilot and a deadly shot. It was a helpless feeling to be continually bounced, and to do so little about it." Robert Tate on the other hand is sceptical that enemy pilots would have been familiar with each other, "How well was Marseille known to DAF personnel in the Desert? Apparently not so well. Although there is little indication that some Allied pilots may have heard of Marseille, this information did not readily make its way down to Allied Squadrons. Fanciful stories abound of how pilots knew of one another and hoped to duel with each other in the skies. This was more than likely not the case."
(Holocaust). Shocked by this information he did not return to North Africa but went into hiding in Italy instead. Only after the Gestapo
established his whereabouts and pressured him did he return to his Geschwader. Although the story is very vague, it was built into the fictionalized 1957 movie about his life and has never been challenged since.
Hans-Joachim Marseille was transferred to his first combat assignment with the I.(Jagd)/Lehrgeschwader 2 at the time stationed at Calais
-Marck
on Sunday 10 August 1940. Two days later he arrived at this unit on 12 August 1940.
He was assigned to the 1. Staffel of this Gruppe. Staffelkapitän
was Oberleutnant
Adolf Buhl. One of the Schwarmführer was Oberfeldwebel Helmut Goedert, to whom Marseille was assigned as wingman
. Marseille already flew his very first combat mission on the next day, Wednesday 13 August 1940 and claimed his first aerial victory on 24 August 1940. In over little more than two years he would account for another 157 aerial victories. His 158 aerial victories were claimed in 382 combat missions.
Marseille's 151 claims in North Africa included:
The German National Archives still hold records for 109 of Marseille aerial victories. A further biographer of Marseille, Walter Wübbe, has made an attempt to link these records to Allied units, squadrons and when possible even to individual pilots, in order to verify the claims as much as possible.
' records shows a verification of 100 percent other aces like Clive Caldwell
(50% to 60% corroboration), Billy Drake
(70% to 80% corroboration), John Lloyd Waddy
(70% to 80% corroboration) and Andrew Barr (60% to 70% corroboration) are at the same order of magnitude as Marseille's claims. Christopher Shores and Hans Ring also support Tate's conclusions. British historian Stephen Bungay
gives a figure of 20 Allied losses that day.
However, the claims for 15 September 1942 are in serious doubt, following the first detailed scrutiny of the records of individual Allied squadrons by Australian historian Russell Brown
. Moreover, Brown lists three occasions on which Marseille could not have downed as many aircraft as claimed.
Stephan Bungay has pointed out the low military value of shooting down DAF fighters, rather than the bombers that, by mid-1942, were having a highly damaging effect on Axis ground units and convoy routes. Referring to 1 September 1942, Bungay points out that even if Marseille shot down 15 of the 17 he claimed that day, "the rest of the 100 or so German fighter pilots between them only got five. The British [sic] lost no bombers at all... During this period the DAF lost only a few bombers, but all fell to anti-aircraft defences
and evidence shows that Rommel was forced onto the defensive because of the losses inflicted by bombers.
Sometime in the early 1990s, one of Marseille's biographers, Robert Tate, visited the former Marseille-Kaserne base and Museum to see and photograph Marseille's medals. When he arrived, Tate was informed the Knights Cross, Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds belonging to Marseille had already been stolen.
in the Harz
region where he received his military basic training
as a Luftwaffe recruit.
-West.
Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg
I.(Jagd)/LG 2
II./JG 52
I./JG 27
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
pilot
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
and flying ace
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He is noted for his aerial battles during the North African Campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
and his bohemian
Bohemianism
Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people, with few permanent ties, involving musical, artistic or literary pursuits...
lifestyle. One of the best fighter pilots of World War II, he was nicknamed the "Star of Africa". Marseille claimed all but seven of his "official" 158 victories against the British Commonwealth's
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
Desert Air Force
Desert Air Force
The Desert Air Force , also known chronologically as Air Headquarters Western Desert, Air Headquarters Libya, AHQ Western Desert, the Western Desert Air Force, Desert Air Force, and the First Tactical Air Force , was an Allied tactical air force initially created from No...
over North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
, flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
fighter for his entire combat career. No other pilot claimed as many Western Allied
Western Allies
The Western Allies were a political and geographic grouping among the Allied Powers of the Second World War. It generally includes the United Kingdom and British Commonwealth, the United States, France and various other European and Latin American countries, but excludes China, the Soviet Union,...
aircraft as Marseille.
Marseille, of French Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
ancestry, joined the Luftwaffe in 1938. At the age of 20 he graduated from one of the Luftwaffe's fighter pilot schools just in time to participate in the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
, without notable success. A charming person, he had such a busy night life that sometimes he was too tired to be allowed to fly the next morning. As a result, he was transferred to another unit, which relocated to North Africa in April 1941.
Under the guidance of his new commander, who recognised the hidden potential in the young officer, Marseille started to improve his abilities as a fighter pilot. He reached the zenith of his fighter pilot career on 1 September 1942, when during the course of three combat sortie
Sortie
Sortie is a term for deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops from a strongpoint. The sortie, whether by one or more aircraft or vessels, usually has a specific mission....
s he claimed 17 enemy fighters shot down, earning him the Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten (Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds). Only 29 days later, Marseille was killed in a flying accident, when an engine failure forced him to abandon his fighter. After he exited the smoke-filled cockpit, Marseille's chest struck the vertical stabiliser
Vertical stabilizer
The vertical stabilizers, vertical stabilisers, or fins, of aircraft, missiles or bombs are typically found on the aft end of the fuselage or body, and are intended to reduce aerodynamic side slip. It is analogical to a skeg on boats and ships.On aircraft, vertical stabilizers generally point upwards...
of his aircraft, either killing him instantly, or incapacitating him so that he was unable to open his parachute
Parachute
A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag, or in the case of ram-air parachutes, aerodynamic lift. Parachutes are usually made out of light, strong cloth, originally silk, now most commonly nylon...
.
Early life
Hans-Joachim "Jochen" Walter Rudolf Siegfried Marseille was born to Charlotte (maiden name: Charlotte Marie Johanna Pauline Gertrud Riemer) and HauptmannHauptmann
Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian and Swiss armies. While "haupt" in contemporary German means "main", it also has the dated meaning of "head", i.e...
Siegfried Georg Martin Marseille, a family with Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
ancestry, in Berlin-Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg
Charlottenburg is a locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, named after Queen consort Sophia Charlotte...
Berliner Strasse 164 on 13 December 1919 at 11:45 PM. As a child he was physically weak and nearly died from a serious case of Influenza
Influenza
Influenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
.
His father Siegfried was an Army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
officer during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and later left the armed forces to join the Berlin Police force. Siegfried later rejoined the Army in 1933, and was promoted to General in 1935. Promoted again he attained the rank of Generalmajor on 1 July 1941. He served on the Eastern Front
Eastern Front (World War II)
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of World War II between the European Axis powers and co-belligerent Finland against the Soviet Union, Poland, and some other Allies which encompassed Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe from 22 June 1941 to 9 May 1945...
from the beginning of Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa
Operation Barbarossa was the code name for Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II that began on 22 June 1941. Over 4.5 million troops of the Axis powers invaded the USSR along a front., the largest invasion in the history of warfare...
. Siegfried Marseille was killed by partisans near Petrykaw on 29 January 1944. He was buried in the cemetery of Selasje
Selasje
Selasje is a town near Homiel Voblast, Belarus....
. Hans-Joachim also had a younger sister, Ingeborg "Inge". While on sick leave in Athens at the end of December 1941, he was summoned to Berlin via a telegram from his mother. Upon arriving home he learned his sister had been "slain by a jealous lover"; Hans-Joachim never recovered emotionally from this blow.
His mother and father divorced when Marseille was still a young child. His mother married again, a police official by the name of Reuter. Marseille initially carried the name of his stepfather at school, a matter he had a difficult time accepting, and he retook the name Marseille in adulthood. His lack of discipline gained him the reputation of a rebel, a characteristic that would plague him early in his Luftwaffe career.
Marseille also had a difficult relationship with his father, General Marseille. He had refused to visit his father in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
for sometime after the divorce, but eventually attempted to reconcile. His father introduced him to the nightlife that was to hamper and even damage his military career in his initial years in the Luftwaffe. However it did not strengthen the relationship and he did not see his father again after that.
Marseille attended the 12th Volksschule
Volksschule
A Volksschule was an 18th century system of state-supported primary schools established in the Habsburg Austrian Empire and Prussia . Attendance was supposedly compulsory, but a 1781 census reveals that only one fourth of school-age children attended. At the time, this was one of the few examples...
Berlin (1926–1930), and from the age of 10, the Prinz Heinrich Gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
in Berlin-Schöneberg (1930–1938). He was considered a lazy student at first, and was constantly playing pranks and getting into trouble.
Toward the end of his school years he took his education seriously, and qualified as one of the youngest at 17 years and six months for his Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
and graduated in early 1938.
Marseille then expressed his desire to become a "Flying officer."
Entry into the Luftwaffe
Although he was not athletic in physique, Marseille received a good report for a term with the ReichsarbeitsdienstReichsarbeitsdienst
The Reichsarbeitsdienst was an institution established by Nazi Germany as an agency to reduce unemployment, similar to the relief programs in other countries. During the Second World War it was an auxiliary formation which provided support for the Wehrmacht.The RAD was formed during July 1934 as...
("State Labour Service") Abtlg. 1/177 in Osterholz-Scharmbeck
Osterholz-Scharmbeck
Osterholz-Scharmbeck is a town and the capital of the district of Osterholz, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Osterholz-Scharmbeck is situated in between the cities of Bremen and Bremerhaven.-Neighbouring places:* Bremen * Delmenhorst...
near Bremen
Bremen
The City Municipality of Bremen is a Hanseatic city in northwestern Germany. A commercial and industrial city with a major port on the river Weser, Bremen is part of the Bremen-Oldenburg metropolitan area . Bremen is the second most populous city in North Germany and tenth in Germany.Bremen is...
, between 4 April and 24 September 1938.
He joined Luftwaffe on 7 November 1938, as a Fahnenjunker
Cadet
A cadet is a trainee to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. The term comes from the term "cadet" for younger sons of a noble family.- Military context :...
(officer candidate) and received his military basic training in Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg is a town located north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. In 1994 the medieval court and the old town was set on the UNESCO world heritage list....
in the Harz
Harz
The Harz is the highest mountain range in northern Germany and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart , latinized as Hercynia. The legendary Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz...
region. On 1 March 1939 Marseille was transferred to the Luftkriegsschule (LKS 4—air war school) near Fürstenfeldbruck
Fürstenfeldbruck
Fürstenfeldbruck is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Fürstenfeldbruck. it has a population of 35,494. Since the 1930s, Fürstenfeldbruck has had an air force base....
. Among his classmates was Werner Schröer
Werner Schröer
Werner Schröer was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1937, initially as a member of the ground staff, until the end of World War II in Europe on 8 May 1945...
. Schröer reports that Marseille was often in breach of military discipline. Consequently Marseille was ordered to stay on base while his class mates were on weekend leave. Quite frequently Marseille ignored this and left Schröer a note: "Went out! Please take my chores." On one occasion, while performing a slow circuit
Airfield traffic pattern
An airfield traffic pattern is a standard path followed by aircraft when taking off or landing, while maintaining visual contact with the airfield....
, Marseille broke away and performed an imaginary weaving dogfight. He was reprimanded by his commanding officer, Hauptmann
Hauptmann
Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian and Swiss armies. While "haupt" in contemporary German means "main", it also has the dated meaning of "head", i.e...
Mueller-Rohrmoser, and taken off flying duties and his promotion to Gefreiter
Gefreiter
Gefreiter is the German, Swiss and Austrian equivalent for the military rank Private . Gefreiter was the lowest rank to which an ordinary soldier could be promoted. As a military rank it has existed since at least the 16th century...
postponed. Soon after, during a cross-country flight, he landed on a quiet stretch of Autobahn (between Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
and Braunschweig
Braunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
) and ran behind a tree to relieve himself. Some farmers came to enquire if he needed assistance, but by the time they arrived Marseille was on his way, and they were blown back by his slipstream. Infuriated, the farmers reported the matter and Marseille was again suspended from flying. Those he graduated with had been made full officers by early 1940, while Marseille's rule-breaking left him with the rank of Oberfähnrich
Fähnrich
Fähnrich is a German and Austrian military rank in armed forces which translates as "Ensign" in English. The rank also exists in a few other European military organizations, often with historical ties to the German system. Examples are Sweden, Norway and Finland . The French Army has a similar...
at the end of 1941.
Marseille completed his training at Jagdfliegerschule 5
Jagdfliegerschule
The German Luftwaffe of the Wehrmacht had seven Jagdfliegerschulen or Fighter Pilot Schools.- Jagdfliegerschule Werneuchen or Jagdfliegerschule 1 :...
(5th fighter pilot school) in Wien-Schwechat
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
to which he was posted on 1 November 1939. Jagdfliegerschule 5 at the time was under the command of the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
flying ace and recipient of the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
Eduard Ritter von Schleich
Eduard Ritter von Schleich
Eduard Ritter von Schleich , née Eduard-Maria Joseph Schleich was a high scoring Bavarian flying ace of World War I. He was credited with 35 aerial victories at the end of the war...
. One of his teachers at the Jagdfliegerschule 5 was the Austro-Hungarian World War I ace Julius Arigi
Julius Arigi
Julius Arigi was a flying ace of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in World War I with a total of 32 credited victories. He was Austro-Hungary's most highly decorated ace. His victory total was second only to Godwin Brumowski. Arigi was considered a superb natural pilot...
. Marseille graduated from Jagdfliegerschule 5 with an outstanding evaluation on 18 July 1940 and was assigned to Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg
Merseburg
Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle . It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg....
. Marseille's unit was assigned to air defence duty over the Leuna plant
Leuna
Leuna is a town in the Saalekreis, Saxony-Anhalt, eastern Germany, south of Merseburg and Halle. It is known for the Leunawerke , at 13 km2 one of the biggest chemical industrial complexes in Germany, where a very wide range of chemicals and plastics is produced...
from the outbreak of war until the fall of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
.
On 10 August 1940 he was assigned to I. Jagd/Lehrgeschwader 2
Lehrgeschwader 2
Lehrgeschwader 2 was a Luftwaffe unit during World War II, operating three fighter, night fighter, reconnaissance and ground support Gruppen ....
, based in Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
-Marck
Marck, Pas-de-Calais
Marck is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Marck is a farming and light industrial town located 6 km east of Calais, at the junction of the D940 and D248 roads. The A26 ‘autoroute des Anglaises’ passes through the commune and the...
, to begin operations over Britain and again received an outstanding evaluation this time by his Hauptmann
Hauptmann
Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian and Swiss armies. While "haupt" in contemporary German means "main", it also has the dated meaning of "head", i.e...
and Gruppenkommandeur
Gruppenkommandeur
Gruppenkommandeur is a Luftwaffe position , that is the equivalent of a commander of a group or wing in other air forces. Gruppenkommandeur usually has the rank of Hauptmann or Major, and commands a Gruppe, which is a sub-division of a Geschwader. A Gruppe usually consists of three or four...
, Herbert Ihlefeld
Herbert Ihlefeld
Herbert Ihlefeld was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1936 until the very end of World War II in May 1945. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords...
.
Battle of Britain
In his first dogfightDogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is a form of aerial combat between fighter aircraft; in particular, combat of maneuver at short range, where each side is aware of the other's presence. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane...
over England on 24 August 1940, Marseille was involved in a four-minute battle with a skilled opponent. He defeated his opponent by pulling up into a tight chandelle
Chandelle
The chandelle is an aircraft control maneuver where the pilot combines a 180° turn with a climb.It is now required for attaining a commercial flight certificate in many countries...
, to gain an altitude advantage before diving and firing. The British fighter was struck in the engine, pitching over and diving into the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
; this was Marseille's first kill. Marseille was then engaged from above by more enemy fighters. By pushing his aircraft into a steep dive then pulling up metres above the water, Marseille escaped from the machine gun fire of his opponents: "skipping away over the waves, I made a clean break. No one followed me and I returned to Leeuwarden."
Marseille did not take any pleasure in this kill and found it difficult to accept the realities of aerial combat. In a letter to his mother, dated 24 August, he said:
Today I shot down my first opponent. It does not sit well with me. I keep thinking how the mother of this young man must feel when she gets the news of her son's death. And I am to blame for this death. I am sad, instead of being happy about the first victory.
On his second sortie, he scored another victory, and by the fifth day had claimed his fourth kill. While returning from a bomber-escort mission on 23 September 1940, his engine failed after combat damage sustained over Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
; he tried to radio his position but was forced to bail out over the sea. He paddled around in the water for three hours before being rescued by a Heinkel He 59
Heinkel He 59
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Green, William.War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Six: Floatplanes. London: Macdonald, 1962.* Green, William. Warplanes of the Third Reich. New York: Doubleday, 1972. ISBN 0-385-05782-2....
float plane based at Schellingwoude
Schellingwoude
Schellingwoude is a former village in the Dutch province of North Holland. It was located in the municipality of Amsterdam, on the northern border of the IJ. It is now a neighbourhood of the city of Amsterdam....
. Severely worn out and suffering from exposure
Hypothermia
Hypothermia is a condition in which core temperature drops below the required temperature for normal metabolism and body functions which is defined as . Body temperature is usually maintained near a constant level of through biologic homeostasis or thermoregulation...
, he was sent to a field hospital. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed three aerial victories for the loss of four Bf 109.
Another account recalled how Marseille once ignored an order to turn back from a fight when outnumbered by two to one, but seeing an enemy aircraft closing on his wing leader, Marseille broke formation and shot the attacking aircraft down. Expecting nothing but "a well done Jochen" when he landed, he was thoroughly criticised for his actions, receiving three days of confinement for failing to carry out an order.
Shortly afterwards, in early October 1940, after having claimed seven aerial victories all them flying with I.(Jagd)/LG 2 Marseille was transferred to 4./Jagdgeschwader 52
Jagdgeschwader 52
Jagdgeschwader 52 of the Luftwaffe, was the most successful fighter-wing of all time, with a claimed total of more than 10,000 victories over enemy aircraft during World War II. It was the unit of the top three scoring Fighter aces of all time, Erich Hartmann, Gerhard Barkhorn and Günther Rall...
, flying alongside the likes of Johannes Steinhoff
Johannes Steinhoff
Johannes Steinhoff was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace of World War II, and later a senior West German air force officer and military commander of NATO. Steinhoff was one of very few Luftwaffe pilots who survived to fly operationally through the whole of the war period 1939-45...
and Gerhard Barkhorn
Gerhard Barkhorn
Lieutenant-General Gerhard "Gerd" Barkhorn , was the second most successful fighter ace of all time after fellow Luftwaffe pilot Erich Hartmann...
. He wrote off four aircraft as a result of operations during this period. Steinhoff, later recalled:
“Marseille was extremely handsome. He was a very gifted pilot, but he was unreliable. He had girl friends everywhere, and they kept him so busy that he was sometimes so worn out that he had to be grounded. His sometime irresponsible way of conducting his duties was the main reason I fired him. But he had irresistible charm.”
As punishment for "insubordination
Insubordination
Insubordination is the act of willfully disobeying an authority. Refusing to perform an action that is unethical or illegal is not insubordination; neither is refusing to perform an action that is not within the scope of authority of the person issuing the order.Insubordination is typically a...
"—rumoured to be his penchant for American jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
music, womanising and an overt "playboy" lifestyle—and inability to fly as a wingman, Steinhoff transferred Marseille to Jagdgeschwader 27
Jagdgeschwader 27
Jagdgeschwader 27 Afrika was a World War II Luftwaffe Geschwader. It was most famous for service in the North African Campaign, supporting the Deutsches Afrikakorps.- Formation:...
on 24 December 1940. When he joined his new unit, it was difficult to foresee his outstanding career. His new Gruppenkommandeur
Gruppenkommandeur
Gruppenkommandeur is a Luftwaffe position , that is the equivalent of a commander of a group or wing in other air forces. Gruppenkommandeur usually has the rank of Hauptmann or Major, and commands a Gruppe, which is a sub-division of a Geschwader. A Gruppe usually consists of three or four...
, Eduard Neumann
Eduard Neumann
Eduard 'Edu' Neumann was a German Luftwaffe Officer and commanded the famous Jagdgeschwader 27 ‘Afrika’ during the North African Campaign from 1941 to 1943.-Early life:...
, later recalled:
“His hair was too long and he brought with him a list of disciplinary punishments as long as your arm. Of the 7 kills he had claimed fighting along the English Channel, 4 had not been confirmed – a large percentage. On top of it all, he was a Berliner… In trying to create an image, he wasn’t averse from talking about the many girls he had been to bed with, among them a famous actress. He was tempestuous, temperamental and unruly. Thirty years later, he would have been called a playboy.”
Nevertheless, Neumann quickly recognised Marseille's potential as a pilot. He stated in an interview: "Marseille could only be one of two, either a disciplinary problem or a great fighter pilot." Jagdgeschwader 27 was soon relocated to North Africa.
North Africa
Marseille's unit briefly saw action during the invasion of YugoslaviaInvasion of Yugoslavia
The Invasion of Yugoslavia , also known as the April War , was the Axis Powers' attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II...
, deployed to Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
on 10 April 1941, before transferring to Africa. On 20 April on his flight from Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
to his front airstrip Marseille's Bf 109 developed engine trouble and he had to make a forced landing in the desert short of his destination. His squadron departed the scene after they had ensured that he had got down safely. Marseille continued his journey, first hitchhiking on an Italian truck, then, finding this too slow; he tried his luck at an airstrip in vain. Finally he made his way to the general in charge of a supply depot on the main route to the front, and convinced him that he should be available for operations next day. Marseille's character appealed to the general and he put at his disposal his own Opel Admiral
Opel Admiral
The Opel Admiral was a luxury car made by the German car manufacturer Opel from 1937 to 1939 and again from 1964 to 1977.-Admiral :...
, complete with chauffeur
Chauffeur
A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.Originally such drivers were always personal servants of the vehicle owner, but now in many cases specialist chauffeur service companies, or individual drivers provide...
. "You can pay me back by getting fifty victories, Marseille!" were his parting words. Nevertheless he caught up with his squadron and arrived on 21 April.
He scored two more kills on 23 April and 28 April, his first in the North African Campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
. However, on 23 April, Marseille himself was shot down during his third sortie of that day by Sous-Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
James Denis, a Free French pilot with No. 73 Squadron RAF
No. 73 Squadron RAF
-World War I:It was initially a unit of the Royal Flying Corps and was formed out of the Central Flying School, based at Upavon, Wiltshire. Eight days after, the new unit moved to Lilbourne, near Rugby....
(8.5 kills), flying a Hawker Hurricane. Marseille's Bf 109 received almost 30 hits in the cockpit area, and three or four shattered the canopy. As Marseille was leaning forward the rounds missed him by inches. Marseille managed to crash-land his fighter.
Just a month later, records show that James Denis shot down Marseille again on 21 May 1941. Marseille engaged Denis, but overshot his target. A turning dogfight ensued, in which Denis once again bested Marseille. After the war Denis described his second encounter with Marseille:
When we arrived near the target, I dived quite steeply and realised my wingman was following shyly. Pompei was a very good pilot but had never trained as a fighter pilot. Worried to see how he was following so far behind, I kept looking back and noticed a ME109 [Messerschmitt Bf 109] attacking him. Having no radio I could not warn him. He was hit and then the ME109 flew in my direction. I acted as if I hadn't seen him, but never stopped watching, and when he was in range I throttled back violently and skidded to the left. Since I was going very fast, my Hurricane [V7859] reacted violently. I saw the hail of bullets pass on my right, and the ME109 could not slow down and flew in front of me. We then started a dogfight, for which the Hurricane was quite good due to its maneuverability. At that moment my plane was flying nose up, hooked to its propeller, when I saw the ME 109 in the sun. I fired a burst so close that we almost collided. I noticed my bullets enter its fuselage
Neumann (a Geschwaderkommodore
Geschwaderkommodore
Geschwaderkommodore is a Luftwaffe position , originating during World War II, that is the equivalent of a RAF Group Commander or USAF Wing Commander. A Geschwaderkommodore is usually of Oberstleutnant or Oberst rank...
as of 10 June 1942) encouraged Marseille to self-train to improve his abilities. By this time, he had crashed or damaged another four aircraft, including a tropicalised
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
aircraft he was ferrying on 23 April 1941.
Marseille's kill rate was low, and he went from June to August without a victory. He was further frustrated after damage forced him to land on two occasions: once on 14 June 1941 and again after he was hit by ground fire over Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
and was forced to land blind.
His tactic of diving into enemy formations often found him under fire from all directions, resulting in his aircraft being damaged beyond repair, consequently, Eduard Neumann was losing his patience. Marseille persisted, and created a unique self-training programme for himself, both physical and tactical, which resulted not just in outstanding situational awareness, marksmanship and confident control of the aircraft, but also in a unique attack tactic that preferred a high angle deflection shooting
Deflection (military)
Deflection is a technique used for effectively firing a ranged weapon at a moving target, that describes "leading the target"; that is, shooting ahead of a moving target so that the target and projectile will collide...
attack and shooting at the target's front from the side, instead of the common method of chasing an aircraft and shooting at it directly from behind. Marseille often practiced these tactics on the way back from missions with his comrades. Marseille became known as a master at deflection shooting.
Finally on 24 September 1941, his practice came to fruition, with his first multiple victory sortie, claiming four Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron
1 Squadron SAAF
1 Squadron SAAF was an air force squadron of the South African Air Force and was formed at Air Force Station Swartkop in February 1920, equipped with De Havilland DH.9's donated to South Africa by Britain. On 31 August 1939 the squadron was re-designated as 1 Bomber/Fighter Squadron and this was...
, South African Air Force
South African Air Force
The South African Air Force is the air force of South Africa, with headquarters in Pretoria. It is the world's second oldest independent air force, and its motto is Per Aspera Ad Astra...
(SAAF). By mid December, he had reached 25 confirmed victories and was duly awarded the German Cross
German Cross
The German Cross was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 17 November 1941 as an award ranking higher than the Iron Cross First Class but below the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross respectively ranking higher than the War Merit Cross First Class with Swords but below the Knight's Cross of the War Merit...
in Gold. His Staffel was rotated to Germany in November/December 1941 to convert to the Bf 109F-4/trop, the variant that was described as the Experten (experts) "mount."
Marseille always strove to improve his abilities. He worked to strengthen his legs and abdominal muscles, to help him tolerate the extreme g force
G force
The g-force associated with an object is its acceleration relative to free-fall.It may also refer to:* G-Force , a 2009 film by Disney** G-Force , a 2009 video game based on the film...
s of air combat. Marseille also drank an abnormal amount of milk and shunned sunglasses, to improve his eyesight.
To counter German fighter attacks, the Allied pilots flew "Lufbery circles" (in which each aircraft's tail was covered by the friendly aircraft behind). The tactic was effective and dangerous as a pilot attacking this formation could find himself constantly in the sights of enemy pilots. Marseille often dived at high speed into the middle of these enemy defensive formations from either above or below, executing a tight turn and firing a two-second deflection shot to destroy an enemy aircraft.
In combat, Marseille's unorthodox methods led him to operate in a small leader/wingman
Wingman
A wingman is a pilot who supports another in a potentially dangerous flying environment. Wingman was originally a term referring to the plane flying beside and slightly behind the lead plane in an aircraft formation....
unit, which he believed to be the safest and most effective way of fighting in the high-visibility conditions of the North African skies. Marseille "worked" alone in combat keeping his wingman at a safe distance so he would not collide or fire on him in error.
Dogfight
A dogfight, or dog fight, is a form of aerial combat between fighter aircraft; in particular, combat of maneuver at short range, where each side is aware of the other's presence. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane...
, particularly when attacking Allied aircraft in a Lufbery circle, Marseille would often favour dramatically reducing the throttle and even lowering the flaps to reduce speed and shorten his turn radius, rather than the standard procedure of using full throttle throughout.
Emil Clade
Emil Clade
Emil Josef Clade was a Luftwaffe fighter ace in World War II, and figured in German civilian aviation after the war...
said that none of the other pilots could do this effectively, preferring instead to dive on single opponents at speed so as to escape if anything went wrong. Clade said of Marseille's tactics:
Marseille developed his own special tactics, which differed significantly from the methods of most other pilots. (When attacking a Lufbery circle) he had to fly very slowly. He even took it to the point where he had to operate his landing flaps as not to fall down, because, of course he had to fly his curve (turns) more tightly than the upper defensive circle. He and his fighter were one unit, and he was in command of that aircraft like no-one else.
Friedrich Körner
Friedrich Körner
Friedrich Körner was a World War II Luftwaffe Flying ace. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Körner was credited with 36 victories in over 250...
(36 kills) also recognised this as unique:
Shooting in a curve (deflection shooting) is the most difficult thing a pilot can do. The enemy flies in a defensive circle, that means they are already lying in a curve and the attacking fighter has to fly into this defensive circle. By pulling his aircraft right around, his curve radius must be smaller, but if he does that, his target disappears in most cases below his wings. So he cannot see it anymore and has to proceed simply by instinct.
His success as a fighter pilot also led to promotions and more responsibility as an officer. 1 May 1942 saw him prematurely promoted to Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Translated as "Senior Lieutenant", the rank is typically bestowed upon commissioned officers after five to six years of active duty...
followed by his appointment to Staffelkapitän
Staffelkapitän
Staffelkapitän is a position in flying units of the German Luftwaffe that is the equivalent of RAF/USAF Squadron Commander. Usually today a Staffelkapitän is of Oberstleutnant or Major rank....
of 3./JG 27 on 8 June 1942, thus succeeding Oberleutnant Gerhard Homuth
Gerhard Homuth
Major Gerhard Homuth was a German World War II Luftwaffe fighter ace. He scored all but two of his 63 victories against the Western Allies whilst flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109, and was one of the top scoring aces in the North African campaign.- Military career :Homuth initially served in the...
who took command of I./JG 27.
In a conversation with his friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt
Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt
Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt was a German fighter pilot and ace. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He scored all of his 59 victories against the Western Allies in North Africa flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109...
, Marseille commented on his style, and his idea of air-to-air combat:
I often experience combat as it should be. I see myself in the middle of a British [sic] swarm, firing from every position and never getting caught. Our aircraft are basic elements, Stahlschmidt, which have got to be mastered. You've got to be able to shoot from any position. From left or right turns, out of a roll, on your back, whenever. Only this way can you develop your own particular tactics. Attack tactics, that the enemy simply cannot anticipate during the course of the battle — a series of unpredictable movements and actions, never the same, always stemming from the situation at hand. Only then can you plunge into the middle of an enemy swarm and blow it up from the inside.
Curtiss P-40
The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk was an American single-engine, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational...
fighters and shot down six aircraft of No. 5 Squadron SAAF, five of them in six minutes, including three aces: Robin Pare (six victories), Douglas Golding (6.5 victories) and Andre Botha (five victories). His wingman Rainer Pöttgen, nicknamed Fliegendes Zählwerk the ("Flying Counting Machine"), said of this fight:
All the enemy were shot down by Marseille in a turning dogfight. As soon as he shot, he needed only to glance at the enemy plane. His pattern [of gunfire] began at the front, the engine's nose, and consistently ended in the cockpit. How he was able to do this not even he could explain. With every dogfight he would throttle back as far as possible; this enabled him to fly tighter turns. His expenditure of ammunition in this air battle was 360 rounds (60 per kill).
After claiming his 100th kill on 17 June 1942, Marseille returned to Germany for two months leave. On 6 August, he began his journey back to North Africa accompanied by his fiancée Hanne-Lies Küpper. On 13 August, he met Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and was presented with the highest Italian military award for bravery, the Medaglia d'Oro al Valor Militare
Gold Medal of Military Valor
The Gold Medal of Military Valor is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia "....per bassi ufficiali e soldati che avevano fatto azioni di segnalato valore in guerra" .The face of the medal displayed the profile of the king, and on its reverse was a flag...
.
Leaving his fiancée in Rome, Marseille returned to combat duties on 23 August. 1 September 1942 was Marseille's most successful day, destroying 17 enemy aircraft, and September would see him score 54 kills, his most productive month. The 17 enemy aircraft shot down included eight in 10 minutes, as a result of this feat he was presented with a type 82 Volkswagen Kübelwagen
Volkswagen Kübelwagen
The Volkswagen Kübelwagen was a military vehicle designed by Ferdinand Porsche and built by Volkswagen during World War II for use by the German military...
by an Italian Regia Aeronautica
Regia Aeronautica
The Italian Royal Air Force was the name of the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946...
squadron, on which his Italian comrades had painted "Otto" (Italian language
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
: Otto = eight). This was the most aircraft from Western Allied air forces shot down by a single pilot in one day. Only one pilot, Emil "Bully" Lang
Emil Lang (fighter ace)
Emil "Bully" Lang was a Luftwaffe Flying ace during World War II. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat...
on 4 November 1943, would better this score, against the Soviet Air Force on the Eastern Front.
Werner Schröer
Werner Schröer
Werner Schröer was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1937, initially as a member of the ground staff, until the end of World War II in Europe on 8 May 1945...
said:
Landings and take-offs, however, fell well below the usual Squadron standards. Once he borrowed a new Macchi 202 from a neighbouring Italian Squadron and crashed it on landing. It left a poor impression of his general ability as a pilot.
Marseille had nearly surpassed his friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt's score of 59 kills in just five weeks. However, the massive material superiority of the Allies meant the strain placed on the outnumbered German pilots was now severe. At this time, the strength of German fighter units was 112 (65 serviceable) aircraft against the British muster of some 800 machines.
Marseille was becoming physically exhausted by the frenetic pace of combat. After his last combat on the 26 September, Marseille was reportedly on the verge of collapse after a 15-minute battle with a formation of Spitfires, during which he scored his seventh victory of that day.
Aircraft
Marseille at least flew the following Bf 109 E-7 aircraft:- Werk Nummer (W.Nr) 3579, sustained 50% damage on 2 September 1940 in aerial combat and crash landed near CalaisCalaisCalais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
-MarckMarck, Pas-de-CalaisMarck is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Marck is a farming and light industrial town located 6 km east of Calais, at the junction of the D940 and D248 roads. The A26 ‘autoroute des Anglaises’ passes through the commune and the...
. - W.Nr 5597, sustained 75% damage on 11 September 1940 in aerial combat and made an emergency landing near Wissant.
- W.Nr 5094, sustained 100% damage on 23 September 1940 Marseille bailed out after aerial combat near DoverDoverDover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
. - W.Nr 4091, sustained 35% damage on 28 September 1940 Marseille made an emergency landing after engine failure near Théville.
- W.Nr 1259, sustained 80% damage on 20 April 1941 Marseille made an emergency landing after engine failure near Cahela.
- W.Nr 5160, sustained 100% damage on 23 April 1941 Marseille made an emergency landing after combat and belly landing near Tobruk.
- W.Nr 1567, sustained 40% damage on 21 May 1941 in aerial combat and made an emergency landing near Tobruk.
Marseille flew four different Bf 109F-4/Z aircraft:
- Werk Nummer (W.Nr) 12593, in which his score rose to 50 on 23 February 1942
- W.Nr. 10059, with 68 victory bars on the rudder. On 15 September 1942 this aircraft lost a wing in a midair collision when its pilot Leutnant Friedrich Hoffmann of 3./JG 27 collided with a Bf 109 piloted by Unteroffizier Heinrich Pein of 5./JG 27. Unteroffizier Pein was killed in the resulting crash. Leutnant Hoffmann bailed out only to succumb to his injuries five weeks later.
- W.Nr. 10137, with the number "70" within an open-topped wreath and 31 victory bars on the rudder
- His final F-4/trop, W.Nr. 8673 with the early-F Variant rear-fuselage horizontal support bars welded along the lower rear fuselage seam joining the fin/rudder and the stabiliser/elevators to the next forward fuselage section, a black-outlined yellow 14, and, on the rudder, "100" enclosed within a wreath, atop 51 victory bars.
Death
The two missions of 26 September 1942 had been flown in Bf 109G-2/trop, in one of which Marseille had shot down seven enemy aircraft. The first six of these machines were to replace the Gruppes Bf 109Fs. All had been allocated to Marseille's 3 Staffel. Marseille had previously ignored orders to use these new aircraft because of its high engine failure rate, but on the orders of GeneralfeldmarschallGeneralfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring was a German Luftwaffe Generalfeldmarschall during World War II. In a military career that spanned both World Wars, Kesselring became one of Nazi Germany's most skilful commanders, being one of 27 soldiers awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords...
, Marseille reluctantly obeyed. One of these machines, WK-Nr. 14256 (Engine: Daimler-Benz DB 605
Daimler-Benz DB 605
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Gunston, Bill. World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines. Cambridge, England. Patrick Stephens Limited, 1989. ISBN 1-85260-163-9* Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II. London. Studio Editions Ltd, 1989. ISBN 0-517-67964-7...
A-1, W.Nr. 77 411), was to be the final aircraft Marseille flew.
Over the next three days Marseille's Staffel was rested and taken off flying duties. On 28 September Marseille received a telephone call from Generalfeldmarschall
Generalfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
Erwin Rommel
Erwin Rommel
Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel , popularly known as the Desert Fox , was a German Field Marshal of World War II. He won the respect of both his own troops and the enemies he fought....
asking to return with him to Berlin. Hitler was to make a speech at the Berlin Sportpalast
Berlin Sportpalast
The Berliner Sportpalast was a multi-purpose winter sport venue and meeting hall in the Schöneberg section of Berlin. Depending on the type of event and seating configuration, the Sportpalast could hold up to 14,000 people and was for a time the biggest meeting hall in the German capital...
on 30 September and Rommel and Marseille were to attend. Marseille rejected this offer, citing that he was needed at the front and had already taken three months vacation that year. Marseille also revealed he wanted to take leave at Christmas, to marry his fiancée Hanne-Lies Küpper.
On 30 September 1942, Hauptmann
Hauptmann
Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian and Swiss armies. While "haupt" in contemporary German means "main", it also has the dated meaning of "head", i.e...
Marseille was leading his Staffel on a Stuka escort mission, during which no contact with enemy fighters was made. While returning to base, his new Bf 109G-2/trop's
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
cockpit began to fill with smoke; blinded and half asphyxiated, he was guided back to German lines by his wingmen, Jost Schlang and Lt Rainer Pöttgen. Upon reaching friendly lines, "Yellow 14" had lost power and was drifting lower and lower. Pöttgen called out after about 10 minutes that they had reached the White Mosque of Sidi Abdel Rahman
Sidi Abdel Rahman
Sidi Abdel Rahman is a small settlement in Egypt. It is most famous for its beach located 132 km west of Alexandria and some 30 km west of Al Alamin...
, and were thus within friendly lines. At this point, Marseille deemed his aircraft no longer flyable and decided to bail out, his last words to his comrades being "I've got to get out now, I can't stand it any longer".
Eduard Neumann was personally directing the mission from the command post:
I was at the command post and listening to the radio communication between the pilots. I realised immediately something serious had happened; I knew they were still in flight and that they were trying to bring Marseille over the lines into our territory and that his aircraft was emitting a lot of smoke.
His Staffel, which had been flying a tight formation around him, peeled away to give him the necessary room to manoeuvre. Marseille rolled his aircraft onto its back, the standard procedure for bail out, but due to the smoke and slight disorientation, he failed to notice that the aircraft had entered a steep dive (at an angle of 70-80 degrees) and was now travelling at a considerably faster speed (about 400 mph). He worked his way out of the cockpit and into the rushing air only to be carried backwards by the slipstream, the left side of his chest striking the vertical stabiliser of his fighter, either killing him instantly or rendering him unconscious to the point that he could not deploy his parachute. He fell almost vertically, hitting the desert floor 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south of Sidi Abdel Rahman
Sidi Abdel Rahman
Sidi Abdel Rahman is a small settlement in Egypt. It is most famous for its beach located 132 km west of Alexandria and some 30 km west of Al Alamin...
. As it transpired, a gaping 40 cm (16 in) hole had been made in his parachute and the canopy had spilled out, but after recovering the body, the parachute release handle was still on "safe," revealing Marseille had not even attempted to open it. Whilst checking the body, Oberarzt Dr Bick, the regimental doctor for the 115th Panzergrenadier-Regiment, noted Marseille's wristwatch had stopped at exactly 11:42 am. Dr. Bick had been the first to reach the crash site, having been stationed just to the rear of the forward mine defences, he had also witnessed Marseille's fatal fall.
In his autopsy report, Dr. Bick stated:
"The pilot lay on his stomach as if asleep. His arms were hidden beneath his body. As I came closer, I saw a pool of blood that had issued from the side of his crushed skull; brain matter was exposed. I turned the dead pilot over onto his back and opened the zipper of his flight jacket, saw the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords (Marseille never actually received the Diamonds personally) and I knew immediately who this was. The paybook also told me."
Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Translated as "Senior Lieutenant", the rank is typically bestowed upon commissioned officers after five to six years of active duty...
Ludwig Franzisket
Ludwig Franzisket
Prof. Dr. Ludwig Franzisket was a German World War II Luftwaffe fighter ace. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat...
collected the body from the desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
. Hans-Joachim Marseille lay in state in the Staffel sick bay, his comrades coming to pay their respects throughout the day. As a tribute they put on the record "Rhumba Azul" that he had enjoyed listening to; it played over and over until the close of day. Marseille's funeral took place on 1 October 1942 at the Heroes Cemetery in Derna with Generalfeldmarschall
Generalfeldmarschall
Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used...
Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring
Albert Kesselring was a German Luftwaffe Generalfeldmarschall during World War II. In a military career that spanned both World Wars, Kesselring became one of Nazi Germany's most skilful commanders, being one of 27 soldiers awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords...
and Eduard Neumann
Eduard Neumann
Eduard 'Edu' Neumann was a German Luftwaffe Officer and commanded the famous Jagdgeschwader 27 ‘Afrika’ during the North African Campaign from 1941 to 1943.-Early life:...
delivering a eulogy.
Sidi Abdel Rahman
Sidi Abdel Rahman is a small settlement in Egypt. It is most famous for its beach located 132 km west of Alexandria and some 30 km west of Al Alamin...
. Remarks: Engine damage. Flights 1-482, 388 combat flights and a total of 158 kills: Certified in the field 30 September 1942".
An enquiry into the crash was hastily set up. The commission’s report (Aktenzeichen 52, Br.B.Nr. 270/42) concluded that the crash was caused by damage to the differential gear, which caused an oil leak. Then a number of teeth broke off the spur wheel and ignited the oil. Sabotage or human error was ruled out.
The aircraft, W. Nr. 14256, was ferried to the unit via Bari
Bari
Bari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The mission that ended in its destruction was its first mission.
Many of the other top Luftwaffe fighter aces like Adolf Galland
Adolf Galland
Adolf "Dolfo" Joseph Ferdinand Galland was a German Luftwaffe General and flying ace who served throughout World War II in Europe. He flew 705 combat missions, and fought on the Western and the Defence of the Reich fronts...
and Erich Hartmann
Erich Hartmann
Erich Alfred Hartmann , nicknamed "Bubi" by his comrades and "The Black Devil" by his Soviet enemies, was a German World War II fighter pilot and is the highest-scoring fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare...
regarded him as "the best". Günther Rall
Günther Rall
Lieutenant-General Günther Rall was the third most successful fighter ace in history. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He achieved a total of 275 victories during World War II: 272 on the Eastern Front,...
said of Marseille, "an excellent pilot and brilliant marksman. I think he was the best shot in the Luftwaffe".
Aftermath
Marseille's death caused the morale of the entire Geschwader to drop. JG 27 was moved out of Africa for about a month because of this, and the deaths of two other German aces, Günter SteinhausenGünter Steinhausen
Feldwebel Günter Steinhausen was a German World War II Luftwaffe Flying ace with 40 combat victories to his name. He was also a posthumous recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
and Marseille's friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt
Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt
Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt was a German fighter pilot and ace. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He scored all of his 59 victories against the Western Allies in North Africa flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109...
, just three weeks earlier. This represented a failure in the command style of Marseille, although it was not entirely within his control. The more success he had the more his squadron relied on him to carry the lion's share of the kills. So his death, when it came, was something which JG 27 had seemingly not prepared for and the consequences were predictable and devastating.
Historians Hans Ring and Christopher Shores also point to the fact that Marseille's promotions were based on personal success rates more than any other reason, and other pilots did not get to score kills, let alone become Experten themselves. They flew support as the "maestro showed them how it was done", and often "held back from attacking enemy aircraft to build his score still higher". As a result there was no other "Great" to step into Marseille's shoes if he was killed.
Eduard Neumann explained:
"This handicap [that very few pilots scored] was partially overcome by the morale effect on the whole Geschwader of the success of pilots like Marseille. In fact most of the pilots in Marseille's staffel acted in secondary role as escort to the "master"."
Still Neumann, who was himself one of the Luftwaffe’s most able operational leaders, in the assessment of his subordinate commander’s quality was forthright:
"As a fighter pilot Marseille was absolutely supreme… Above all, he possessed lightning reflexes and could make a quicker judgment in a bigger orbit than anyone else... Marseille was unique…"
Marseille's impact on enemy fighter pilots and their morale is unclear. Andrew Thomas quoted Pilot Officer
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
Bert Houle of No. 213 Squadron RAF
No. 213 Squadron RAF
No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service...
; "He was an extremely skilled pilot and a deadly shot. It was a helpless feeling to be continually bounced, and to do so little about it." Robert Tate on the other hand is sceptical that enemy pilots would have been familiar with each other, "How well was Marseille known to DAF personnel in the Desert? Apparently not so well. Although there is little indication that some Allied pilots may have heard of Marseille, this information did not readily make its way down to Allied Squadrons. Fanciful stories abound of how pilots knew of one another and hoped to duel with each other in the skies. This was more than likely not the case."
Memorials
- Hans-Joachim Marseille appeared four times in the Deutsche WochenschauDie Deutsche WochenschauDie Deutsche Wochenschau is a series of German newsreels from 1940 until the end of World War II.After the invasion of Poland , the Nazis consolidated four separate newsreel production efforts into one...
. The first time on Wednesday 17 February 1942 when OberstOberstOberst is a military rank in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countries, equivalent to Colonel. It is currently used by both the ground and air forces of Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and Norway. The Swedish rank överste is a direct translation, as are the Finnish rank eversti...
Galland, the General der Jagdflieger, visited an airport in the desert. The second time on Wednesday 1 July 1942 when Marseille traveled to Rastenburg to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords from Adolf Hitler. The third time on Wednesday 9 September 1942 announcing Marseille's 17 aerial victories from 1 September 1942 and that he had been awarded the Diamonds to his Knight's Cross. His last appearance dates from Wednesday 30 September 1942 showing Hauptmann Marseille visiting Erwin RommelErwin RommelErwin Johannes Eugen Rommel , popularly known as the Desert Fox , was a German Field Marshal of World War II. He won the respect of both his own troops and the enemies he fought....
.
- A wartime pyramid was constructed by Italian engineers at the site of Marseille's fall but over time it decayed. On 22 October 1989, Eduard Neumann and other JG 27 survivors in co-operation with the Egyptian government, erected a new pyramid that stands there to this day.
- In the weeks following Marseille's death morale was low. In an attempt to improve morale OberleutnantOberleutnantOberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Translated as "Senior Lieutenant", the rank is typically bestowed upon commissioned officers after five to six years of active duty...
Fritz Dettmann persuaded Eduard Neumann to rename 3./JG 27 the "Marseille Staffel" (seen in photographs as "Staffel Marseille").
- His grave bears a one-word epitaph: Undefeated. It is understood that after the war, Hans-Joachim Marseille's remains were brought from Derna and reinterred in the memorial gardens at Tobruk; it was there that his mother visited his grave in 1954. His remains are now in a small clay coffin (sarcophagus) bearing the number 4133.
- In 1957, a German film, Der Stern von AfrikaDer Stern von AfrikaDer Stern von Afrika is a 1957 black-and-white German war film portraying the combat career of Luftwaffe World War II fighter pilot Hans-Joachim Marseille. It stars Joachim Hansen and Marianne Koch and was directed by Alfred Weidenmann...
(The Star of Africa) directed by Alfred WeidenmannAlfred WeidenmannAlfred Weidenmann was a German film director and screenwriter. He directed 36 films between 1942 and 1984.-Selected filmography:* Der Stern von Afrika * Sacred Waters * Adorable Julia...
, was made starring Joachim HansenJoachim Hansen (actor)Joachim Hansen was a German actor. He was best known for film roles in the 1960s and 1970s where he was often cast in roles portraying Nazi officers and World War II German officials....
as Hans-Joachim Marseille.
- On 24 October 1975, the Bundesluftwaffe's UetersenUetersenUetersen ) is a city in the district of Pinneberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated approx. south of Elmshorn, and northwest of Hamburg at the small river Pinnau, close to the Elbe river...
-AppenAppenAppen is a municipality in the district of Pinneberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated approx. 3 km west of Pinneberg, and 20 km northwest of Hamburg.It is twinned with the village of Polegate, near Eastbourne in East Sussex, England....
Barracks was renamed the "Marseille Barracks."
- The Memorial of the Reuter-Marseille family can be found in the graveyardGraveyardA graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead, with or without monuments such as headstones...
in BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Alt-SchönebergSchönebergSchöneberg is a locality of Berlin, Germany. Until Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it was a separate borough including the locality of Friedenau. Together with the former borough of Tempelhof it is now part of the new borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg....
. The left side bears the insignia.Hauptmann Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Marseille Hans-Joachim Marseille Inh. d. Eichenlaubs m. Schwertern Recipient of the Oak Leaves with Swords u. Brillanten zum Ritterkreuz and Diamonds to the Knight’s Cross Der höchsten Ital. Tapferkeitsmedaille The highest Italian Medal of bravery in Gold u.a. Auszeichnungen in Gold and other Awards Geb. 13.12.1919 gef. i. Derna i. Afrika 30.9.1942 Born 13.12.1919 killed in Derna in Africa 30.9.1942
- The tail rudder of his second to last Messerschmitt Bf 109F-4/trop (Werknummer 8673) now bearing 158 victory marks is on display at Luftwaffenmuseum der BundeswehrLuftwaffenmuseum der BundeswehrThe Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr , together with the Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr, is one of the major military history museums in Germany. The museum acts as an independent military department...
in BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
GatowGatowGatow, a district of south-western Berlin is located west of the Havelsee lake and has forested areas within its boundaries. It is within the borough of Spandau. On 31 December 2002, it had 5,532 inhabitants.-History:...
. It had initially been given to his family as a gift by Hermann GöringHermann GöringHermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"...
and was donated to the museum in the 1970s.
- Twenty-five years after Marseille's death, fighter pilot veterans of World War II gathered to honour Marseille at an "International Fighter Pilots Meeting" on 7–8 October 1967 at FürstenfeldbruckFürstenfeldbruckFürstenfeldbruck is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Fürstenfeldbruck. it has a population of 35,494. Since the 1930s, Fürstenfeldbruck has had an air force base....
. Attending this meeting were fighter pilots from six different countries, including Erich HartmannErich HartmannErich Alfred Hartmann , nicknamed "Bubi" by his comrades and "The Black Devil" by his Soviet enemies, was a German World War II fighter pilot and is the highest-scoring fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare...
, Robert Stanford TuckRobert Stanford TuckWing Commander Roland Robert Stanford Tuck DSO, DFC & Two Bars, AFC was a British fighter pilot and test pilot.Tuck joined the RAF in 1935. Tuck first engaged in combat during the Battle of France, over Dunkirk, claiming his first victories...
, Adolf GallandAdolf GallandAdolf "Dolfo" Joseph Ferdinand Galland was a German Luftwaffe General and flying ace who served throughout World War II in Europe. He flew 705 combat missions, and fought on the Western and the Defence of the Reich fronts...
, Günther RallGünther RallLieutenant-General Günther Rall was the third most successful fighter ace in history. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He achieved a total of 275 victories during World War II: 272 on the Eastern Front,...
and Mike Martin, who was shot down by Marseille on 3 June 1942. The guests of honour at this meeting were Marseille's mother, Frau Charlotte Reuter-Marseille and his ex-fiancée Hanne-Lies.
- The 16th Deutsches AfrikakorpsAfrika KorpsThe German Africa Corps , or the Afrika Korps as it was popularly called, was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II...
reunion took place on 1–2 September 1984 in StuttgartStuttgartStuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
. The German Bundesregierung invited as guest of honour CorporalCorporalCorporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
Mathew P. Letuku from South Africa. Matthew, alias Mathias to everyone in JG 27, was a South African soldier taken prisoner of warPrisoner of warA prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
by German troops on the morning of 21 June 1941 at fortress Tobruk. Mathias initially worked as a driver with 3. Staffel then befriended Marseille and became his domestic helper in Africa.
Rumour
A very controversial and unconfirmed event may have taken place shortly after Marseille was presented the Swords to the Knight's Cross. It indicates that the young Oberleutnant, while on visit in Germany, was presented with evidence of the Final SolutionFinal Solution
The Final Solution was Nazi Germany's plan and execution of the systematic genocide of European Jews during World War II, resulting in the most deadly phase of the Holocaust...
(Holocaust). Shocked by this information he did not return to North Africa but went into hiding in Italy instead. Only after the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
established his whereabouts and pressured him did he return to his Geschwader. Although the story is very vague, it was built into the fictionalized 1957 movie about his life and has never been challenged since.
Victory claims and notable actions
FähnrichFähnrich
Fähnrich is a German and Austrian military rank in armed forces which translates as "Ensign" in English. The rank also exists in a few other European military organizations, often with historical ties to the German system. Examples are Sweden, Norway and Finland . The French Army has a similar...
Hans-Joachim Marseille was transferred to his first combat assignment with the I.(Jagd)/Lehrgeschwader 2 at the time stationed at Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
-Marck
Marck, Pas-de-Calais
Marck is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Marck is a farming and light industrial town located 6 km east of Calais, at the junction of the D940 and D248 roads. The A26 ‘autoroute des Anglaises’ passes through the commune and the...
on Sunday 10 August 1940. Two days later he arrived at this unit on 12 August 1940.
He was assigned to the 1. Staffel of this Gruppe. Staffelkapitän
Staffelkapitän
Staffelkapitän is a position in flying units of the German Luftwaffe that is the equivalent of RAF/USAF Squadron Commander. Usually today a Staffelkapitän is of Oberstleutnant or Major rank....
was Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant
Oberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Translated as "Senior Lieutenant", the rank is typically bestowed upon commissioned officers after five to six years of active duty...
Adolf Buhl. One of the Schwarmführer was Oberfeldwebel Helmut Goedert, to whom Marseille was assigned as wingman
Wingman
A wingman is a pilot who supports another in a potentially dangerous flying environment. Wingman was originally a term referring to the plane flying beside and slightly behind the lead plane in an aircraft formation....
. Marseille already flew his very first combat mission on the next day, Wednesday 13 August 1940 and claimed his first aerial victory on 24 August 1940. In over little more than two years he would account for another 157 aerial victories. His 158 aerial victories were claimed in 382 combat missions.
| Victories | Date | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| – 1940 – I. (Jagd)/LG 2 |
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| 1 | 24 August 1940 | Claim: over Kent Kent Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of... . |
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| I. (J) LG 2 was ordered to fly three combat missions over the area of Kent Kent Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of... . The 1. Staffel claimed three aerial victories out of ten victories claimed by I.(J)/LG 2 in total in return for three losses. Fighter Command lost 14 fighters to enemy fighter action that day. |
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| 2 | 2 September 1940 | Claim: over Detling Detling Detling is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Maidstone in Kent, England. The parish is located on the slope of the North Downs, north east of Maidstone, and on the Pilgrims' Way.... , Kent. |
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| Marseille's aircraft was severely hit so that he had to crash land near Calais Calais Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras.... -Marck Marck, Pas-de-Calais Marck is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Marck is a farming and light industrial town located 6 km east of Calais, at the junction of the D940 and D248 roads. The A26 ‘autoroute des Anglaises’ passes through the commune and the... . Bf 109 E-7 W.Nr. 3579 was 50% damaged. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed six aerial victories and reported one loss. |
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| 3 | 11 September 1940 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Spitfire over southern England. |
| Marseille flew as wingman to promoted Hauptfeldwebel Helmut Goedert. Marseille's aircraft was severely damaged by a Hurricane pilot forcing him to crash-land at the French coast near Wissant Wissant Wissant is a seaside commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:... . Bf 109 E-7 W.Nr. 5597 was 75% damaged. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed seven aerial victories for the loss of two in this engagement. No RAF fighters were reported lost in or around 17:05, or between 16:20 - 17:30 on this date. The only other aircraft reported lost at 17:30 were two Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter... 's of 235 Squadron RAF which were shot down by Bf 109s whilst raiding Calais. |
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| 4 | 15 September 1940 | Claim: over the River Thames River Thames The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,... , England. |
|
| I.(J)/LG 2 claimed four aerial victories in return for two losses. Only two Hurricanes were lost over the Thames on this date. Pilot Officer A Hess in R4085 and Sgt J Hubacek in R4087, both of 310 Squadron. Both pilots survived. | |||
| 5 | 18 September 1940 | Claim: over southern England. | |
| 6 | 27 September 1940 | Claim: over London. | |
| I.(J)/LG 2 claimed six aerial victories sustaining four losses including the Staffelkapitän Adolf Buhl. Oberleutnant Buhl was shot down and killed in action Killed in action Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to... when his aircraft crashed into the sea. |
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| 7 | 28 September 1940 | Claim: over southern England. | |
| – 1941 – I./JG 27 |
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| 8 | 23 April 1941 | 12.50 | Claim: over Tobruk Tobruk Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 .... . |
| The adversaries could have been Hurricanes from No. 73 Squadron RAF No. 73 Squadron RAF -World War I:It was initially a unit of the Royal Flying Corps and was formed out of the Central Flying School, based at Upavon, Wiltshire. Eight days after, the new unit moved to Lilbourne, near Rugby.... . This unit lost three aircraft in aerial combat with Bf 109 around noon. At least one further Hurricane was lost in combat by No. 6 Squadron RAF No. 6 Squadron RAF No. 6 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 at RAF Leuchars.It was previously equipped with the Jaguar GR.3 in the close air support and tactical reconnaissance roles, and was based at RAF Coltishall, Norfolk until April 2006, moving to RAF Coningsby until... . I./JG 27 claimed seven Hurricanes in two engagements: four between 10.40 – 11.05 and three from 12.50 – 13.00. Marseille's Bf 109 E-7 (W.Nr. 5160) sustained 100% damage after combat and belly landing at Tobruk. |
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| 9 | 28 April 1941 | 09.25 | Claim: Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter... Mk IV over the sea north of Tobruk. |
| The Blenheim was T2429, from No. 45 Squadron RAF No. 45 Squadron RAF -First World War:Formed during World War I at Gosport on 1 March 1916 as Number 45 Squadron, the unit was first equipped with Sopwith 1½ Strutters which it was to fly in the Scout role. Deployed to France in October of that year, the Squadron found itself suffering heavy losses due to the quality... , piloted by Pilot Officer B. C. de G. Allan. The crew and passengers were killed in the crash. |
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| 10 – 11 | 1 May 1941 | rowspan="2" | 09.25 |
Claim: Two Hurricanes south of Tobruk. |
| His adversaries were No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... and No. 6 Squadron RAF No. 6 Squadron RAF No. 6 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 at RAF Leuchars.It was previously equipped with the Jaguar GR.3 in the close air support and tactical reconnaissance roles, and was based at RAF Coltishall, Norfolk until April 2006, moving to RAF Coningsby until... . I./JG 27 claimed four victories. Pilot Officer Stanley Godden, an ace with seven victories, was killed in action. |
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| 12 – 13 | 17 June 1941 | rowspan="2" | 18.45 |
Claim: Two Hurricanes, the first northeast of Tobruk and the second east of Sidi Omar. |
| Germans pilots claimed 13 Hurricanes in numerous engagements, the German authorities confirmed 11 claims, of which seven were credited to I./JG 27. The Allies lost at least 10 aircraft. Around noon, seven Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron SAAF engaged Bf 109 and lost four aircraft, one of which was lost to ground fire. In the afternoon No. 73 Squadron RAF No. 73 Squadron RAF -World War I:It was initially a unit of the Royal Flying Corps and was formed out of the Central Flying School, based at Upavon, Wiltshire. Eight days after, the new unit moved to Lilbourne, near Rugby.... lost one aircraft to flak, No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force, and is an officially accredited Battle of Britain Squadron. It became No. 603 Squadron RAF in January 1945.-Formation & World War I:... lost two Hurricanes in aerial combat with Bf 109s and No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... also lost two aircraft to German fighters. No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.1 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.-Current role:The squadron is part of the RAF Support Helicopter force, which reports into the Joint Helicopter Command.... lost one Hurricane to an Italian Fiat G.50 Fiat G.50 The Fiat G.50 Freccia was a World War II Italian fighter aircraft. First flown in February 1937, the G.50 was Italy’s first single-seat, all-metal monoplane with an enclosed cockpit and retractable landing gear to go into production... and a German Ju 87. The Italians claimed three aerial victories. However, Marseille’s victims most likely belonged to No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force, and is an officially accredited Battle of Britain Squadron. It became No. 603 Squadron RAF in January 1945.-Formation & World War I:... and/or No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... . |
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| 14 | 28 August 1941 | 18.00 | Claim: Hurricane northwest of Sidi Barrani Sidi Barrani Sidi Barrani is a town in Egypt, near the Mediterranean Sea, about east of the border with Libya, and around from Tobruk, Libya.Probably named after Sidi Mohammed el Barrani, a Senussi fighter in the early 1900s, the village is mainly a Bedouin community... over the sea. |
| Marseille's adversaries were 12 Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron SAAF. Lieutenant V.F. Williams fighter crashed into the sea. Although injured he was rescued. | |||
| 15 – 16 | 9 September 1941 | Claim: Two Hurricanes southeast of Bardia Bardia Bardia is a geographic region in the Democratic Republic of Nepal.Bardia comprises a portion of the Terai, or lowland hills and valleys of southern Nepal. The Terai is over 1,000 feet in elevation, and extends all along the Indian border... . |
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| 17 | 13 September 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Hurricane south of Bardia. |
| This appears to have been Flt Lt Patrick (Pat) Byers (RAF) of No. 451 Squadron RAAF No. 451 Squadron RAAF No. 451 Squadron was a Royal Australian Air Force army cooperation and fighter squadron of World War II. The squadron was formed at Bankstown in New South Wales on 12 February 1941 and began flying operations on 1 July that year as part of the North African Campaign in Egypt and Libya. In early... . Byers took off alone and was engaged and shot down by two Bf 109s on the afternoon of 13 September. Later that afternoon two Bf 109s overflew 451 Squadron's base and dropped a note informing them that Byers had survived, but was badly burned. A couple of weeks later, two Bf 109s flew through AA fire and dropped another note, stating that Byers had died of his wounds. It is thought that Marseille was one of the pilots. |
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| 18 | 14 September 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Hurricane southeast of Sofafi. |
| Marseille's opponents were Hurricanes from No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.1 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.-Current role:The squadron is part of the RAF Support Helicopter force, which reports into the Joint Helicopter Command.... on an escort mission for Martin Marylands from No. 24 Squadron SAAF. His victim was Sergeant Nourse who bailed out. Three Hurricanes were lost in combat with 12 Bf 109s and six Fiat G.50 Fiat G.50 The Fiat G.50 Freccia was a World War II Italian fighter aircraft. First flown in February 1937, the G.50 was Italy’s first single-seat, all-metal monoplane with an enclosed cockpit and retractable landing gear to go into production... s. The Italians and Germans combined claims were three Hurricanes in this encounter. |
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| 19 – 23 | 24 September 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Four Hurricanes and a Martin Maryland of No. 203 Squadron RAF No. 203 Squadron RAF No. 203 Squadron RAF was originally formed as No. 3 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service. It was renumbered No. 203 when the Royal Air Force was formed on 1 April 1918.-First World War:... . |
| Nine Hurricanes were from No. 1 Squadron SAAF and nine were from an unidentified unit. The South Africans lost a total of three Hurricanes. Captain C. A. van Vliet and 2nd Lieutenant J. MacRobert returned unhurt while Lieutenant B. E. Dold remains missing. I./JG 27 claimed six aerial victories in this engagement. It is possible that the unidentified aircraft were Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... . This unit was bounced by a Bf 109, while returning from a shipping escort mission. Pilot Officer D. F. "Jerry" Westenra, a New Zealander and a future ace, bailed out. However, some sources state that Westenra was shot down the following day and/or by Gerhard Homuth Gerhard Homuth Major Gerhard Homuth was a German World War II Luftwaffe fighter ace. He scored all but two of his 63 victories against the Western Allies whilst flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109, and was one of the top scoring aces in the North African campaign.- Military career :Homuth initially served in the... . |
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| 24 – 25 | 12 October 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Two P-40s near Bir Sheferzan. |
| JG 27 aircraft encountered 24 Mk IIB Tomahawks, belonging to No. 2 Squadron SAAF and No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... . The Australians lost three aircraft, while the South Africans reported one loss plus one severely damaged. I./JG 27 claimed four aerial victories in this engagement. Marseille's victims were likely Flying Officer H. G. "Robbie" Roberts and Sgt Derek Scott, both of 3 Sqn RAAF. Roberts made a forced landing inside Allied lines and his aircraft was later repaired. Scott crash landed his badly damaged aircraft at his base. |
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| 26 | 5 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Hurricane. |
| The adversaries were 20 Hurricanes of No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... and No. 1 Squadron SAAF. Both squadrons reported the loss of one aircraft. I./JG 27 reported two aerial victories in this engagement. |
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| 27 – 28 | 6 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Two Hurricanes south of El Adem. |
| The adversaries were 24 Hurricanes from No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force, and is an officially accredited Battle of Britain Squadron. It became No. 603 Squadron RAF in January 1945.-Formation & World War I:... and No. 238 Squadron RAF. These units lost five Hurricanes in combat with Bf 109 in the vicinity of Bir el Gobi. Also involved in this aerial combat were Hurricanes from No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... , but this unit did not report any losses. I./JG 27 and II./JG 27 claimed two Hurricanes each. |
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| 29 | 7 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Hurricane west of Sidi Omar. |
| JG 27 fought Hurricanes from No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... , which lost three fighters in combat with 15 Ju 87s, six Bf 109s, 12 MC 202s and MC 200 Macchi C.200 The Macchi C.200 Saetta was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Aeronautica Macchi in Italy, and used in various forms throughout the Regia Aeronautica . The MC.200 had excellent manoeuvrability and general flying characteristics left little to be desired... s. The Italians and Germans claimed three aerial victories in this engagement. His opponent was Flight Lieutenant Hobbs. |
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| 30 | 8 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: P-40 southeast of El Adem. |
| Marseille's opponents were misidentified Hurricanes of No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... . This unit lost three fighers in aerial combat with 30 Bf 109s, MC 200 Macchi C.200 The Macchi C.200 Saetta was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Aeronautica Macchi in Italy, and used in various forms throughout the Regia Aeronautica . The MC.200 had excellent manoeuvrability and general flying characteristics left little to be desired... s and MC 202s. |
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| 31 | 10 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: P-40 southeast of El Adem. |
| The victory was over a Tomahawk IIB from No. 2 Squadron SAAF. The pilot, Lieutenant B. G. S. Enslin, bailed out uninjured. | |||
| 32 | 11 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: P-40 southeast of Timimi Timimi Timimi, At Timimi or Tmimi, is a small village in Libya about 75 km east of Derna and 100 km west of Tobruk. It is on the eastern shores of the Libyan coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.-Geography:... . |
| A Tomahawk IIB, AK457, of No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II.It operated Kittyhawk IIIs out of southern Italy in 1943-44.... . The pilot, Flight Sergeant M. A. Canty, remains missing in action. |
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| 33 – 34 | 13 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Two P-40s northeast of Martuba Martuba Martuba is a town in eastern Libya in the Derna District. It is located south of Derna. The Martuba Air Base is located in Martuba.Martuba is connected with Lamluda by two roads. The main road which goes through Derna is part of the Libyan Coastal Highway while The inner road goes through the... and north east of Timimi. |
| One of his victories was a Tomahawk IIB, AM384 of No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... , piloted by Flying Officer Tommy Trimble, who was wounded and had to crash-land his aircraft. His second opponent was either 2nd Lieutenant Connel or Lieutenant Meek both from No. 1 Squadron SAAF. |
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| 35 – 36 | 17 December 1941 | rowspan="2" | | Claim: Two P-40s west-northwest of Martuba and southeast of Derna. |
| Marseille's opponents were eight misidentified Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron SAAF on an escort missions for eight Bristol Blenheim Bristol Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter... from No. 14 Squadron RAF No. 14 Squadron RAF No. 14 Squadron of the Royal Air Force currently operates the Beechcraft Shadow R1 in the ISTAR role from RAF Waddington.-World War I:... and No. 84 Squadron RAF No. 84 Squadron RAF No. 84 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is at present a Search and Rescue Squadron based at RAF Akrotiri, it uses the Bell Griffin HAR.2 helicopter. It is currently part of the RAF's Search and Rescue Force-History:... . The South Africans suffered heavy losses to 12 Bf 109s. Three Hurricanes were reported missing; a fourth was shot down, a fifth crash-landed and a sixth sustained heavy damage. I./JG 27 claimed five aerial victories in this engagement. |
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| – 1942 – | |||
| 37 – 40 | 8 February 1942 | rowspan="2" | 14.20 14.30 |
Claim: Four P-40s east-northeast of Martuba, north of Martuba, northwest of Bomba Bay and over the sea northeast of Bomba Bay. |
| The first action took place directly over the airfield at Martuba. The first victory was a Flight Sergeant Hargreaves, who belly landed his fighter and was taken prisoner. It seems that Marseille's third victory was mistakenly identified as a P-40. The victim was most likely a Hurricane IIB, Z5312, of No. 73 Squadron RAF No. 73 Squadron RAF -World War I:It was initially a unit of the Royal Flying Corps and was formed out of the Central Flying School, based at Upavon, Wiltshire. Eight days after, the new unit moved to Lilbourne, near Rugby.... , piloted by Flight Sergeant Alwyn Sands (RAAF), who also crash-landed. Marseille's 40th claim was probably Sgt A. T. Tonkin of No. 112 Squadron, who was killed. |
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| 41 – 44 | 12 February 1942 | 13.30 13.32 13.33 13.36 |
Claim: Three P-40s and a Hurricane northwest of Tobruk Tobruk Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 .... . |
| The Hurricanes came from No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... . This unit lost four aircraft in aerial combat with Bf 109 fighters in the vicinity of Tobruk: Sergeant R. W. Henderson crashed south of Tobruk and Sergeant Parbury bailed out with his parachute; both of them were uninjured. Pilot Officer S. E. van der Kuhle crashed his Hurricane IIA DG616 into the sea. Flight Lieutenant Smith (Hurricane IIB BD821) did not return from this mission and remains missing in action. |
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| 45 – 46 | 13 February 1942 | 09.20 09.25 |
Claim: Two Hurricanes southeast of Tobruk. |
| Marseille's adversaries were seven Hurricanes from No. 1 Squadron SAAF and No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... . These units lost in aerial combat with three Bf 109 fighters in the vicinity of Tobruk. I./JG 27 claimed three aerial victories in this engagement. Marseille's first victory was Lieutenant Le Roux; the South African crashed his burning Hurricane but escaped the wreck, although he was injured. |
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| 47 – 48 | 15 February 1942 | 13.00 13.03 |
Claim: Two P-40s southwest of Gambut |
| Kittyhawk Is from No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... , near Gambut airfield. The Kittyhawks were bounced by two Bf 109s during takeoff. Marseille's first victory was Kittyhawk I AK594; Pilot Officer P. J. "Tommy" Briggs, bailed out at an altitude of 100 m and was injured. The second victory was Kittyhawk I AK605: Flight Sergeant F. B. (Frank) Reid was killed when it crashed. |
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| 49 – 50 | 21 February 1942 | 12.10 12.18 |
Claim: Two P-40s west of Fort Acroma Acroma Acroma is an alternative rock band formed in Salt Lake City, Utah. The band consists of Jeremy Stanley , Brian Christensen , Tom Collins , and Joshua Zirbel . The band released a three-song demo and was signed by Universal Records in 2002... . |
| Marseille's opponents were 11 Kittyhawks I from No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... , which lost three aircraft in aerial combat with six Bf 109s. I./JG 27 reported three aerial victories in this engagement. |
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| 51 – 52 | 27 February 1942 | 12.00 12.12 |
Claim: Two P-40s east-northeast of Fort Acroma. |
| Probably Mk I Kittyhawks belonging to No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... : Sergeant Roger Jennings, in AK665 was killed while crash landing; Pilot Officer R. C. (Dick) Hart in AK689 bailed out and returned to his unit. |
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| 53 – 54 | 25 April 1942 | 10.06 10.09 |
Claim: Two P-40s north of the Italian airfield at Ain el Gazala Gazala Gazala, or Ain el Gazala , is a small Libyan village near the coast in the northeastern portion of the country. It is located west of Tobruk.... and over the sea north of Ain el Gazala. |
| Opponents were Kittyhawks I from No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as a reconnaissance and anti–submarine unit in World War I and a fighter unit in World War II.-Formation and World War I:No... and Tomahawks IIB from No. 2 Squadron SAAF and No. 4 Squadron SAAF. These units had the following losses in this engagement: three Tomahawks and one Kittyhawk missing (one pilot later returned wounded), two Kittyhawks and two Tomahawks crash landed after aerial combat, and one heavily damaged and one lightly damaged Kittyhawk. On the German side I.JG 27 reported five P-40s, II./JG 27 three P-40s shot down. The combat reports indicate that Marseille's opponents were Kittyhawks from No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as a reconnaissance and anti–submarine unit in World War I and a fighter unit in World War II.-Formation and World War I:No... . His opponents were Squadron Leader Hanbury who crash landed and Sergeant Wareham who was killed in action. |
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| 55 – 56 | 10 May 1942 | 09.13 09.15 |
Claim: Two Mk I Hurricanes, southeast of Martuba airfield. |
| The Hurricanes belonged to No. 40 Squadron SAAF 40 Squadron SAAF 40 Squadron SAAF existed as a combat unit from early 1940 through to late 1945. It served in the East African Campaign, Western Desert, Tunisia, and Italy, reaching Austria by the end of World War II... and were on a patrol mission. Both pilots, Captain Cobbledick and Lieutenant Flesker, are missing in action. The first victory was a Hurricane I, serial number Z4377. |
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| 57 – 58 | 13 May 1942 | 10.10 10.15 |
Claim: Two P-40s: southeast of Ain el Gazala and over Gazala Bay. |
| On this occasion, 12 Mk I Kittyhawks from No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... were bounced by two Bf 109s coming from the sun. Flying Officer H. G. (Graham) Pace, flying Kittyhawk I AL172, was killed by a bullet in the head. Sergeant Colin McDiarmid bailed out, injured from his Kittyhawk I AK855. Flying Officer Geoff Chinchen reported that he damaged a Messerchmitt and Marseille's aircraft was hit in the oil tank and propeller on this occasion. |
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| 59 – 60 | 16 May 1942 | 18.05 18.15 |
Claim: Two P-40s, east of Ain el Gazala and east of Fort Acroma. |
| Following the first action, Sergeant E. V. Teede of No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... crash landed his burning Mk I Kittyhawk, AL120, west of El Adem and returned to his unit uninjured. The second combat involved four Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. It was the second RAAF Article XV squadron formed for service with the British military, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan... . Pilot Officer Dudley Parker bailed out uninjured. His pilotless fighter, AK697, crashed into Kittyhawk AK604, flown by Sergeant W. J. Metherall. Both aircraft were lost in the crash and Metherall was killed in action. Marseille only observed Parker bailing out and therefore claimed only two victories. |
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| 61 – 62 | 19 May 1942 | rowspan="2" | 07.30 |
Claim: Two P-40s south and southwest of Fort Acroma. |
| These were Kittyhawks from No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. It was the second RAAF Article XV squadron formed for service with the British military, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan... . The Kittyhawk I AK842, piloted by Flight Sergeant Ivan Young, was hit in the engine. Young crash-landed without injury to himself; his fighter was destroyed by a resultant fire. Young managed to make it back to Allied lines. |
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| 63 – 64 | 23 May 1942 | 11.05 11.06 |
Claim: Two Douglas Boston southeast of Tobruk harbour. |
| These were really Mk I Martin Baltimores, of No. 223 Squadron RAF No. 223 Squadron RAF No. 223 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. Originally formed as part of the Royal Naval Air Service , the Squadron flew in both World Wars.-History:... . Four Baltimores attacked the airport at Derna, without a fighter escort and three (AG703, AG708 and AG717) were shot down. The fourth bomber crash-landed on its return flight. I./JG 27 claimed four aerial victories that day. |
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| 65 | 30 May 1942 | 06.05 | Claim: P-40 northwest of El Adem. |
| Marseille's adversaries were 20 Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II.It operated Kittyhawk IIIs out of southern Italy in 1943-44.... and No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. It was the second RAAF Article XV squadron formed for service with the British military, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan... , who were attacked by four Bf 109s between Tobruk and El Adem. The Kittyhawk I AK705 of No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II.It operated Kittyhawk IIIs out of southern Italy in 1943-44.... started burning and crashed. Sergeant Graham Buckland (RAAF) bailed out, but his parachute failed to open. |
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| 66 – 68 | 31 May 1942 | 07.26 07.28 07.34 |
Three P-40s west of Bir-el Harmat and south-west of Fort Acroma, probably belonging to No. 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF was a South African Air Force Fighter / Fighter-Bomber squadron during World War II. It was disbanded at the end of the war and was re-commissioned in 1950... ; one of the pilots was Maj. Andrew Duncan (5.5 claims), who was killed. |
| 69 | 1 June 1942 | 19.15 | A P-40 southwest of Mteifel Chebir. Potentially the involved Allied adversaries were Kittyhawks I from No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... . This unit lost Pilot Officer Collet on this day (exact time and location is unknown). I./JG 27 claimed two aerial victories on this evening mission. |
| 70 – 75 | 3 June 1942 | 12.22 12.25 12.27 12.28 12.29 12.33 |
 Three of Marseille's adversaries were SAAF aces: Douglas Golding, Robin Pare and Louis C Botha. |
| 76 – 77 | 7 June 1942 | rowspan="2" | 16.13 |
Claim: Two P-40s southwest and northeast of El Adem. |
| Marseille's adversaries were two Kittyhawk Mk Is, from No. 2 Squadron SAAF 2 Squadron SAAF -Background:2 Squadron is currently the premier squadron in the South African Air Force, and has a long history, having been involved in every single combat action in which the SAAF has taken part... . The two fighters (AK611 and AK628) were lost in combat. Lieutenant Frewen bailed out from his burning aircraft and was uninjured. Lieutenant Leonard James Peter Berrangé was killed in the action. |
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| 78 – 81 | 10 June 1942 | 07.35 07.41 07.45 07.50 |
Claim: Four P-40s near Mteifel Chebir. |
| Among the opponents were 24 Hurricanes from No. 73 Squadron RAF No. 73 Squadron RAF -World War I:It was initially a unit of the Royal Flying Corps and was formed out of the Central Flying School, based at Upavon, Wiltshire. Eight days after, the new unit moved to Lilbourne, near Rugby.... and No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service... . These two units lost four Hurricanes in aerial combat with Bf 109s in the vicinity of Bir Hacheim. Since II./JG 27 reported aerial combat with 40 to 50 P-40s, further Allied units are likely to have been involved. It seems certain that Marseille's fourth victory was Hurricane IIB BM966 from No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service... . Pilot Officer A. J. Hancock crash landed near El Gubbi, after he was chased for more than 30 km. On the German side I./JG 27 reported the destruction of seven P-40s while II./JG 27 claimed one Hurricane. |
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| 82 – 83 | 11 June 1942 | rowspan="2" | 16.35 |
Claim: One P-40 southeast of Fort Acroma and one Hurricane northwest of El Adem. |
| Both were from No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... , which lost two Kittyhawks. One adversary was Sergeant Graves who bailed out. |
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| 84 – 87 | 13 June 1942 | 18.10 18.11 18.14 18.15 |
I./JG 27 claimed four P-40s and one "Hurricane" near El Adem/Gazala. Marseille claimed four and Leutnant Hans Remmer Hans Remmer Hans Remmer was a German Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership... one. These were P-40s from No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. It was the second RAAF Article XV squadron formed for service with the British military, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan... ; no Hurricanes were involved and only four aircraft were lost but another South African aircraft sustained heavy damage and crash-landed at base. Flight Sergeant Bill Halliday (AL127) and Flt Sgt Roy Stone (RAF) in AK952 were both killed in action. Pilot Officer Osborne (AL106) crash landed and was picked up by the army. |
| 88 – 91 | 15 June 1942 | 18.01 18.02 18.04 18.06 |
Marseille was credited with four kills in five minutes, including a P-40 near El Adem. The Allied unit remains unidentified. I./JG 27 claimed six aerial victories in combat with 12 P-40s. An indication for the veracity of this claim is No. 204 Group RAF "Intelligence Report" which reported the loss of four aircraft that day. |
| 92 – 95 | 16 June 1942 | 18.02 18.10 18.11 18.13 |
Claim: Four fighters. |
| No. 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF was a South African Air Force Fighter / Fighter-Bomber squadron during World War II. It was disbanded at the end of the war and was re-commissioned in 1950... lost two: Lt. R. C. Denham was killed and the highest-scoring member of an SAAF squadron during the war, Major John "Jack" Frost John Frost (pilot) John Everitt "Jack" Frost DFC & Bar was a South African fighter ace during the Second World War. He was the highest-scoring member of a South African Air Force squadron during the war... , remains missing in action. |
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| 96 – 101 | 17 June 1942 | rowspan="2" | 12.02 12.04 12.05 12.08 12.09 |
Marseille was credited with six kills in seven minutes over Gambut (becoming the 11th pilot to score 100 kills). |
| His adversaries were Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... and No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II.It operated Kittyhawk IIIs out of southern Italy in 1943-44.... , as well as 12 Mk IIC Hurricanes of No. 73 Squadron RAF No. 73 Squadron RAF -World War I:It was initially a unit of the Royal Flying Corps and was formed out of the Central Flying School, based at Upavon, Wiltshire. Eight days after, the new unit moved to Lilbourne, near Rugby.... . The first two victories were misidentified Mk IIC Hurricanes (BN121 and BN157) of 73 Sqn. The pilots, Pilot Officer Stone and Flight Sergeant Goodwin, bailed out uninjured. The next two victories were Mk IIC Hurricanes (BN277 and BN456) also of 73 Sqn. Both pilots, Squadron Leader Derek Harland Ward Derek Harland Ward Squadron Leader Derek Harland Ward, DFC & Bar, was a New Zealand flying ace during the Second World War. He was credited with six kills, one shared destroyed, one probable and four damaged against the Luftwaffe. Ward was shot down and killed by the German ace Hans-Joachim Marseille on 17 June 1942... . and Pilot Officer Woolley, were killed in action. Marseille's century which he identified as a Hurricane, appears to have been Flight Sergeant Roy Drew (RAAF) of 112 Sqn, in Kittyhawk I, AK586. Drew was separated from his flight and did not return. Marseille's final victory that day was a Spitfire Mk IV reconnaissance aircraft, BP916, flown by Pilot Officer Squires. |
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| 102 – 104 | 31 August 1942 | rowspan="2" | 18.25 |
Two Hurricanes, south-south-east of El Alamein El Alamein El Alamein is a town in the northern Matrouh Governorate of Egypt. Located on the Mediterranean Sea, it lies west of Alexandria and northwest of Cairo. As of 2007, it has a local population of 7,397 inhabitants.- Climate :... in the morning and one Spitfire east of Alam Halfa at 6:25 PM. |
| It seems that one of Marseille's opponents was Pilot Officer L. E. Barnes. Barnes bailed out of his Hurricane IIC (BP451), but was severely wounded and died in a field hospital on 12 September 1942. | |||
| 105 – 121 | 1 September 1942 | 08.26 08.28 08.35 08.39 10.55 10.56 10.58 10.59 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.05 17.47 17.48 17.49 17.50 17.53 |
Marseille was credited with 17 kills in three separate sorties over El Taqua, Alam Halfa and Deir el Raghat. His adversaries on the early morning missions were Mk II Hurricanes (No. 1 Squadron SAAF 1 Squadron SAAF 1 Squadron SAAF was an air force squadron of the South African Air Force and was formed at Air Force Station Swartkop in February 1920, equipped with De Havilland DH.9's donated to South Africa by Britain. On 31 August 1939 the squadron was re-designated as 1 Bomber/Fighter Squadron and this was... and No. 238 Squadron RAF) and Mk V Spitfires (No. 92 Squadron RAF No. 92 Squadron RAF No. 92 Squadron, also known as No 92 Squadron, of the Royal Air Force was formed as part of the Royal Flying Corps at London Colney as a fighter squadron on 1 September 1917. It deployed to France in July 1918 and saw action for just four months, until the end of the war. During the conflict it... ). One South African, Lieutenant Bailey, was injured in a crash landing, while Major P. R. C. Metelerkamp managed to fly his heavily damaged fighter back to his base. Flying Officer I. W. (Ian) Matthews of 238 Sqn was killed. Pilot Officer Bradley-Smith (92 Sqn) bailed out of his burning Spitfire VC BR474. Bradley-Smith was uninjured. Among Marseille’s adversaries during the midday combat were Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF and Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 2 Squadron SAAF, to which was attached pilots of the 57th Fighter Group USAAF United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force.... . Lieutenant Stearns was wounded in the crash-landing of his P-40, Lieutenant Morrison (Kittyhawk I, ET575) remains missing in action, Lieutenant W. L. O. Moon bailed out of his Kittyhawk I, EV366 and was uninjured. Lieutenant G. B. Jack also remains missing in action. Marseille's evening opponents were Hurricanes from No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service... , of which Marseille claimed five shot down. Marseille's 117th official victory was over a Hurricane Mk IIB, BN273. The pilot, Sergeant A. Garrod, bailed out uninjured. |
| 122 – 126 | 2 September 1942 | 09.16 09.18 09.24 15.18 15.21 |
Two P-40s and a Spitfire south of Imayid in the morning and two P-40s southeast of El Alamein in the afternoon. Marseille's adversaries on the early morning mission were Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 2 Squadron SAAF, including pilots from the US 57th Fighter Group and Mk II Hurricanes of No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.1 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.-Current role:The squadron is part of the RAF Support Helicopter force, which reports into the Joint Helicopter Command.... . One of Marseille's victories was Lieutenant Mac M. McMarrell (USAAF) who crash-landed his fighter and was wounded in this engagement. It seems certain that one of Marseille's kills was over a misidentified Hurricane II, piloted by Pilot Officer G. R. Dibbs, who remains missing in action. Marseille's opponents in the afternoon combat were IIB Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF was a South African Air Force Fighter / Fighter-Bomber squadron during World War II. It was disbanded at the end of the war and was re-commissioned in 1950... . Marseille also shot down Lieutenant E. H. O. Carman (Tomahawk IIB AM390) and Lieutenant J. Lindbergh (Tomahawk Mk IIB, AM349) who remain missing in action. |
| 127 – 132 | 3 September 1942 | 07.20 07.23 07.28 15.08 15.10 15.42 |
Marseille claimed two Spitfires and a P-40 near El Hammam, early in the morning, two P-40s near El Imayid in the afternoon and one more P-40 south-southeast of El Alamein in the late afternoon. Marseille's adversaries in the early morning action were 24 Mk II Hurricanes, of No. 127 Squadron RAF No. 127 Squadron RAF No. 127 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the United Kingdom's Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force.It was first formed as a day bomber unit in February 1918, but was disbanded on 4 July of that year without seeing service... and No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF No. 274 Squadron RAF began to form as a patrol squadron, intended to fly Vickers Vimys, at Seaton Carew in November 1918 a few days before the end of World War I. The squadron formation was then cancelled. It was reformed on 15 June 1919 as a bomber squadron, flying Handley Page V/1500s, but... , 15 Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as a reconnaissance and anti–submarine unit in World War I and a fighter unit in World War II.-Formation and World War I:No... , No. 2 Squadron SAAF 2 Squadron SAAF -Background:2 Squadron is currently the premier squadron in the South African Air Force, and has a long history, having been involved in every single combat action in which the SAAF has taken part... and No. 4 Squadron SAAF 4 Squadron SAAF 4 Squadron SAAF was a South African Air Force squadron which served during World War II. It was resurrected in 1951 and remained active until 1958. Its final period of active service was from 1961 to 1991... and eight Mk V Spitfires of No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron that operated during World War I, World War II and the Cold War. Its motto was Diu noctuque pugnamus .-History:... . Pilots of the US 57th Fighter Group were attached to some of the above units. The pilot of the first aircraft destroyed by Marseille bailed out and appears to have been Sergeant M. Powers of 145 Sqn (Spitfire VB AB349), who was wounded in the engagement. The two P-40s were piloted by W/O Stan Bernier of 260 Sqn, who was killed, and a Lt Ryneke of 2 Sqn SAAF. |
| 133 – 136 | 5 September 1942 | 10.48 | Marseille was credited with four kills, despite a cannon malfunction, near Ruweisat and El Taqua. Flight Lieutenant Canham and Pilot Officer Bicksler of No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron that operated during World War I, World War II and the Cold War. Its motto was Diu noctuque pugnamus .-History:... both bailed out of their Spitfire V. It seems that one of them was Marseille's first victory. Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... and No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. It was the second RAAF Article XV squadron formed for service with the British military, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan... were also involved in this engagement. |
| 10.49 10.51 11.00 |
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| 137 – 140 | 6 September 1942 | 17.03 17.14 17.16 17.20 |
Three P-40s and a Spitfire south of El Alamein. Among Marseille's opponents were eight Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF No. 260 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as a reconnaissance and anti–submarine unit in World War I and a fighter unit in World War II.-Formation and World War I:No... , Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF to which was attached pilots of the US 64th Fighter Squadron 64th Aggressor Squadron The 64th Aggressor Squadron ' is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 57th Adversary Tactics Group and stationed at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.-Overview:... (57th Fighter Group). 260 Sqn lost one Kittyhawk and a second fighter was damaged. 5 Sqn SAAF reported three losses and a fourth Tomahawk was damaged beyond repair. No. 7 Squadron SAAF 7 Squadron SAAF 7 Squadron was a squadron of the South African Air Force which served in the Second World War as well as in South Africa between 1951 and 1992. During the war, the squadron was employed as a fighter squadron deployed to the Western Desert as well as in the Aegean, Italy and Ceylon... lost five Hurricanes. It is unknown whether the Americans reported losses I./JG 27 claimed five aerial victories in action against 20 P-40s; II./JG 27 reported aerial combat with 23 P-40s, claiming one victory. III./JG 53 claimed one P-40 in combat with 12 P-40s and six Spitfires. Marseille's 137th victim was Pilot Officer Dick Dunbar, who was reported as missing after the action. |
| 141 – 142 | 7 September 1942 | 17.43 | Two P-40s southeast of El Alamein and southwest of El Hammam. Marseille’s opponents were Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 4 Squadron SAAF 4 Squadron SAAF 4 Squadron SAAF was a South African Air Force squadron which served during World War II. It was resurrected in 1951 and remained active until 1958. Its final period of active service was from 1961 to 1991... and Mk IIB Tomahawks from No. 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF 5 Squadron SAAF was a South African Air Force Fighter / Fighter-Bomber squadron during World War II. It was disbanded at the end of the war and was re-commissioned in 1950... . The South Africans lost two Tomahawks and one Kittyhawk. Two further Tomahawks and one Kittyhawk sustained battle damage. I./JG 27 claimed four aerial victories in this engagement. |
| 17.45 | |||
| 143 – 144 | 11 September 1942 | 07.40 07.42 |
Two P-40s southeast of El Alamein and west-southwest of Imayid. Marseille's opponents were likely Hurricanes II from No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.1 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.-Current role:The squadron is part of the RAF Support Helicopter force, which reports into the Joint Helicopter Command.... and No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service... . No. 213 Sqn RAF reported the loss of Hurricane IIC BP381. Flight Sergeant S.R. Fry was shot down. I./JG 27 reported combat with 20 fighter bombers, an indication which points more to Hurricanes rather than Spitfires V from No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron that operated during World War I, World War II and the Cold War. Its motto was Diu noctuque pugnamus .-History:... and No. 601 Squadron RAF No. 601 Squadron RAF No. 601 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, based in London. The squadron battle honours most notably include the Battle of Britain and the first Americans to fly in World War II were members of this squadron.-History:... , these were engaged with Ju 87s and Bf 109s at the same time. |
| 145 – 151 | 15 September 1942 | 16.51 16.53 16.54 16.57 16.59 17.01 17.02 |
Marseille was credited with seven kills against P-40s in 11 minutes. JG 27 reported combat with 36 Kittyhawks: 18 Bf 109s from I./JG 27 claimed 10 in this enagement, all of them over German-held territory; 15 Bf 109s from II./JG 27 claimed one victory and; 10 Bf 109s from III./JG 27 claimed eight P-40s and one Spitfire, four of them over German territory. However, the records of the individual Allied squadrons involved: No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron RAAF No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. It was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown, near Newcastle, New South Wales.-World War I:... , No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron RAF No. 112 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It served in both the First World War and Second World War and was active for three periods during the Cold War. It is nicknamed "The Shark Squadron", an allusion to the fact that it was the first unit from any air force to use the famous... , No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 Squadron RAF No. 250 squadron RAF was an aircraft squadron of the Royal Air Force during World War II.It operated Kittyhawk IIIs out of southern Italy in 1943-44.... and No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron RAAF No. 450 Squadron was a unit of the Royal Australian Air Force during World War II. It was the second RAAF Article XV squadron formed for service with the British military, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan... (comprising No. 239 Wing) show that their total losses to enemy action that day were only five P-40s. One of the P-40 pilots shot down was Sergeant Peter Ewing (450 Sqn), who bailed out, was captured and spent a day as a guest of I./JG 27. Sgt Gordon Scribner (3 Sqn Kiityhawk EV322 CV-I) was killed during this engagement. Further reported losses include: Jack Donald (No. 3 Sqn), whose Kittyhawk EV345 had its port aileron shot away and engine set on fire — he bailed out, landed on an Italian mess tent and became a POW; Sgt Cedric Young RNZAF Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force is the air arm of the New Zealand Defence Force... (112 Sqn), who may have been shot down by AA Anti-aircraft warfare NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces... fire and; pilots named Thorpe (250 Sqn) and Strong (450 Sqn), who both also became POWs. Sgt Ken Bee (3 Sqn) was wounded in action, but managed to get his damaged aircraft back to base, as did Pilot Officer Keith Kildey, with severe cannon damage to his tailplane. |
| 152 – 158 | 26 September 1942 | rowspan="2" | 09.10 09.13 09.15 09.16 16.59 17.10 |
Claim: Seven kills near El Daba and south of El Hammam, including six Spitfires. |
| Marseille's adversaries on an early morning mission were Mk II Hurricanes of No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron RAF No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.1 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.-Current role:The squadron is part of the RAF Support Helicopter force, which reports into the Joint Helicopter Command.... and No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron RAF No. 213 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. The squadron was formed on 1 April 1918 from No. 13 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service... , plus eight Mk V Spitfires of No. 92 Squadron RAF No. 92 Squadron RAF No. 92 Squadron, also known as No 92 Squadron, of the Royal Air Force was formed as part of the Royal Flying Corps at London Colney as a fighter squadron on 1 September 1917. It deployed to France in July 1918 and saw action for just four months, until the end of the war. During the conflict it... . It seems certain that Marseille's first victory was over a misidentified Hurricane IIC, BN186, flown by Pilot Officer Luxton, who crash-landed his aircraft. Marseille's last victory was Pilot Officer Turvey, who bailed out of his Spitfire VC, BR494. Marseille's adversaries in his last aerial combat, that afternoon, included 11 Spitfires from No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron RAF No. 145 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron that operated during World War I, World War II and the Cold War. Its motto was Diu noctuque pugnamus .-History:... and No. 601 Squadron RAF No. 601 Squadron RAF No. 601 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, based in London. The squadron battle honours most notably include the Battle of Britain and the first Americans to fly in World War II were members of this squadron.-History:... . |
|||
Marseille's 151 claims in North Africa included:
- 101 Curtiss P-40Curtiss P-40The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk was an American single-engine, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational...
Tomahawk/Kittyhawk fighters; - 30 Hawker HurricaneHawker HurricaneThe Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...
fighters; - 16 Supermarine SpitfireSupermarine SpitfireThe Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
fighters; - Two Martin A-30 Baltimore bombers;
- One Bristol BlenheimBristol BlenheimThe Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...
bomber; and - One Martin Maryland bomber.
The German National Archives still hold records for 109 of Marseille aerial victories. A further biographer of Marseille, Walter Wübbe, has made an attempt to link these records to Allied units, squadrons and when possible even to individual pilots, in order to verify the claims as much as possible.
Dispute over claims
Some serious discrepancies between Allied squadron records and German claims have caused some historians and Allied veterans to question the accuracy of Marseille's official victories, in addition to those of JG 27 as a whole. Attention is often focused on the 26 claims made by JG 27 on 1 September 1942, of which 17 were claimed by Marseille alone. Another biographer, Franz Kurowski, claims that 24 of the 26 victories were verified through Allied records after the war. A USAF historian, Major Robert Tate states: "[f]or years, many British historians and militarists refused to admit that they had lost any aircraft that day in North Africa. Careful review of records however do show that the British [and South Africans] did lose more than 17 aircraft that day, and in the area that Marseille operated." Tate also reveals 20 RAF single-engined fighters and one twin engined fighter were destroyed and several others severely damaged, as well as a further USAAF P-40 shot down. However, overall Tate reveals that Marseille's kill total comes close to 65-70 percent corroboration, indicating as many as 50 of his claims may not have been actually kills. Tate also compares Marseilles rate of corroboration with the top six P-40 pilots. While only the Canadian James Francis EdwardsJames Francis Edwards
James Francis "Stocky" Edwards, CM, DFC & Bar, DFM, CD was a Canadian fighter pilot during World War II. Edwards is Canada's highest scoring ace in the Western Desert Campaign.-Early life:...
' records shows a verification of 100 percent other aces like Clive Caldwell
Clive Caldwell
Group Captain Clive Robertson Caldwell DSO, DFC & Bar was the leading Australian air ace of World War II. He is officially credited with shooting down 28.5 enemy aircraft in over 300 operational sorties. In addition to his official score, he has been ascribed six probables and 15 damaged...
(50% to 60% corroboration), Billy Drake
Billy Drake
Group Captain Billy Drake DSO, DFC & Bar was a British air ace. He scored 20 enemy aircraft confirmed destroyed, six probable and nine damaged with the Royal Air Force during the Second World War...
(70% to 80% corroboration), John Lloyd Waddy
John Lloyd Waddy
John Lloyd Waddy OBE, DFC was a senior officer and aviator in the Royal Australian Air Force , who later served as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and Minister of the Crown...
(70% to 80% corroboration) and Andrew Barr (60% to 70% corroboration) are at the same order of magnitude as Marseille's claims. Christopher Shores and Hans Ring also support Tate's conclusions. British historian Stephen Bungay
Stephen Bungay
Stephen Bungay is a British management consultant, historian and author who has made a special study of the Battle of Britain.He read Modern Languages at Oxford, where he received an MA with First Class Honours. He subsequently studied for a doctorate in philosophy at Oxford and the University of...
gives a figure of 20 Allied losses that day.
However, the claims for 15 September 1942 are in serious doubt, following the first detailed scrutiny of the records of individual Allied squadrons by Australian historian Russell Brown
Russell Brown (author)
Russell Brown is an Australian author and former school teacher. He is the author of Desert Warriors: Australian P-40 Pilots at War in the Middle East and North Africa, 1941-1943, dealing primarily with No. 3 Squadron RAAF and No. 450 Squadron RAAF....
. Moreover, Brown lists three occasions on which Marseille could not have downed as many aircraft as claimed.
Stephan Bungay has pointed out the low military value of shooting down DAF fighters, rather than the bombers that, by mid-1942, were having a highly damaging effect on Axis ground units and convoy routes. Referring to 1 September 1942, Bungay points out that even if Marseille shot down 15 of the 17 he claimed that day, "the rest of the 100 or so German fighter pilots between them only got five. The British [sic] lost no bombers at all... During this period the DAF lost only a few bombers, but all fell to anti-aircraft defences
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
and evidence shows that Rommel was forced onto the defensive because of the losses inflicted by bombers.
Decorations
| 1 February 1940: | Flugzeugführerabzeichen (Pilots Badge) |
| 9 September 1940: | Iron Cross Iron Cross The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem.... Second Class for two air victories. |
| 17 September 1940: | Iron Cross First Class for fourth air victory. |
| 3 November 1941: | Honorary Cup of the Luftwaffe Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe The Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe was a Luftwaffe award established on February 27, 1940 by Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring, the Reich Minister of Aviation and Commander in Chief of the Luftwaffe. It was officially known as the Ehrenpokal "für besondere Leistung im Luftkrieg", or Honor Goblet "For... . |
| 24 November 1941: | German Cross in Gold German Cross The German Cross was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 17 November 1941 as an award ranking higher than the Iron Cross First Class but below the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross respectively ranking higher than the War Merit Cross First Class with Swords but below the Knight's Cross of the War Merit... (the first German Pilot to receive this award in Africa.) for 25 victories. After returning from a combat mission having just claimed his 35th and 36th victory, the Award was presented to Marseille by Generalfeldmarschall Generalfeldmarschall Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used... Albert Kesselring Albert Kesselring Albert Kesselring was a German Luftwaffe Generalfeldmarschall during World War II. In a military career that spanned both World Wars, Kesselring became one of Nazi Germany's most skilful commanders, being one of 27 soldiers awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords... on 17 December 1941. |
| 22 February 1942: | 416th Knight's Cross of the Luftwaffe as Leutnant and pilot in the 3./JG 27 for reaching 46 kills. By the time the award was officially processed and handed out to him his score stood at 50 kills. Generalfeldmarschall Generalfeldmarschall Field Marshal or Generalfeldmarschall in German, was a rank in the armies of several German states and the Holy Roman Empire; in the Austrian Empire, the rank Feldmarschall was used... Albert Kesselring Albert Kesselring Albert Kesselring was a German Luftwaffe Generalfeldmarschall during World War II. In a military career that spanned both World Wars, Kesselring became one of Nazi Germany's most skilful commanders, being one of 27 soldiers awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords... presented the Award to both Marseille and Oberfeldwebel Otto Schulz Otto Schulz Oberleutnant Otto Schulz was a German World War II Luftwaffe fighter ace... (4./JG 27). Unfortunately no picture of this presentation exists or has materialised until today. Also awarded near this date was the Italian Silver Medal for bravery (Medaglia d'Argento al Valor Militare Silver Medal of Military Valor The Silver Medal of Military Valor is an Italian medal for gallantry.Italian medals for valor were first instituted by Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia on May 21, 1793, with a gold medal, and, below it, a silver medal... ). |
| 1 May 1942: | Early promotion to Oberleutnant. |
| 6 June 1942: | Becomes the 97th recipient of the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross as Oberleutnant Oberleutnant Oberleutnant is a junior officer rank in the militaries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. In the German Army, it dates from the early 19th century. Translated as "Senior Lieutenant", the rank is typically bestowed upon commissioned officers after five to six years of active duty... and pilot in the 3./JG 27 for 75 kills. The Oak Leaves were never presented to Marseille because a few days later he was already honoured with the Swords and Oak Leaves. |
| 18 June 1942: | 12th recipient of Swords to the Knight's cross with Oak Leaves as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän Staffelkapitän Staffelkapitän is a position in flying units of the German Luftwaffe that is the equivalent of RAF/USAF Squadron Commander. Usually today a Staffelkapitän is of Oberstleutnant or Major rank.... of the 3./JG 27 for 100 kills (presented by Hitler on 28 June 1942 in the Führerhauptquartier Wolfsschanze Wolfsschanze Wolf's Lair is the standard English name for Wolfsschanze, Adolf Hitler's first World War II Eastern Front military headquarters, one of several Führerhauptquartier or FHQs located in various parts of Europe... in Rastenburg Ketrzyn Kętrzyn , is a town in northeastern Poland with 28,351 inhabitants . Situated in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship , Kętrzyn was previously in Olsztyn Voivodeship . It is the capital of Kętrzyn County... ). |
| August 1942: | Awarded Combined Pilots-Observation Badge Combined Pilots-Observation Badge Combined Pilots-Observation Badge was a German military award instituted on 26 March 1936 by the Commander in Chief of the Luftwaffe Hermann Göring to commemorate soldiers or servicemen who had already been awarded the Pilot's badge or Observer badge... in Gold with Diamonds (presented by Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring, was a German politician, military leader, and a leading member of the Nazi Party. He was a veteran of World War I as an ace fighter pilot, and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite, also known as "The Blue Max"... ). |
| 6 August 1942: | Awarded highest Italian decoration for bravery, the Medaglia d'Oro Gold Medal of Military Valor The Gold Medal of Military Valor is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia "....per bassi ufficiali e soldati che avevano fatto azioni di segnalato valore in guerra" .The face of the medal displayed the profile of the king, and on its reverse was a flag... , (presented by Benito Mussolini Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism.... in Rome on 13 August). |
| 3 September 1942: | Becomes only the fourth German serviceman to be awarded the Diamonds to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of the 3./JG 27. The Diamonds were to be made in a special, by Adolf Hitler defined, fashion. Hitler had decided to present them to Marseille personally some time later in the year. However, Marseille's death prevented this. It is unclear why the Diamonds were never handed out to Marseille's family after his demise, as foreseen by Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 1573 Article 7 (German Law of 1939 enacting the Knight's Cross). |
| 16 September 1942: | Early promotion to Hauptmann Hauptmann Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian and Swiss armies. While "haupt" in contemporary German means "main", it also has the dated meaning of "head", i.e... - Youngest Captain in the Luftwaffe Luftwaffe Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956.... . |
| 7 June 1943: | Africa Cuffband Cuff title A cuff title is a form of insignia placed on the sleeve, near the cuff of German military and paramilitary uniforms, most commonly seen in the Second World War but also seen postwar.... (posthumously) |
| 30 November 1962: | The Italian Minister of Defence Giulio Andreotti Giulio Andreotti Giulio Andreotti is an Italian politician of the now dissolved centrist Christian Democracy party. He served as the 42nd Prime Minister of Italy from 1972 to 1973, from 1976 to 1979 and from 1989 to 1992. He also served as Minister of the Interior , Defense Minister and Foreign Minister and he... paid the relatives of Marseille (and relatives of Joachim Müncheberg Joachim Müncheberg Joachim Müncheberg was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace during World War II. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. He is credited with 135 enemy aircraft shot down claimed in over 500 combat missions... ) an honorary one-time pension of 1,500 DM German mark The Deutsche Mark |mark]], abbreviated "DM") was the official currency of West Germany and Germany until the adoption of the euro in 2002. It is commonly called the "Deutschmark" in English but not in German. Germans often say "Mark" or "D-Mark"... . |
| Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe The Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe was awarded in Bronze, Silver, and Gold with upgrade possible to include diamonds. Pennants suspended from the clasp indicated the number of missions obtained in a given type of aircraft... in Gold with Pennant "300" |
|
| Mentioned six times in the Wehrmachtbericht Wehrmachtbericht The Wehrmachtbericht was a daily radio report on the Großdeutscher Rundfunk of Nazi Germany, published by the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht regarding the military situation on all fronts of World War II.... |
|
Sometime in the early 1990s, one of Marseille's biographers, Robert Tate, visited the former Marseille-Kaserne base and Museum to see and photograph Marseille's medals. When he arrived, Tate was informed the Knights Cross, Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds belonging to Marseille had already been stolen.
Dates of rank
Hans-Joachim Marseille joined the military service in Wehrmacht on 7 November 1938. His first station was QuedlinburgQuedlinburg
Quedlinburg is a town located north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. In 1994 the medieval court and the old town was set on the UNESCO world heritage list....
in the Harz
Harz
The Harz is the highest mountain range in northern Germany and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart , latinized as Hercynia. The legendary Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz...
region where he received his military basic training
Basic Training
Basic Training may refer to:* Basic Training, a 1971 American documentary directed by Frederick Wiseman* Basic Training , an American sex comedy* Recruit training...
as a Luftwaffe recruit.
| 7 November 1938: | Flieger |
| 13 March 1939: | Fahnenjunker |
| 1 May 1939: | Fahnenjunker-Gefreiter |
| 1 July 1939: | Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier |
| 1 November 1939: | Fähnrich Fähnrich Fähnrich is a German and Austrian military rank in armed forces which translates as "Ensign" in English. The rank also exists in a few other European military organizations, often with historical ties to the German system. Examples are Sweden, Norway and Finland . The French Army has a similar... |
| 1 March 1941: | Oberfähnrich |
| 1 April 1941: | Leutnant (16 June 1941 effective as of:) |
| 1 April 1942: | Oberleutnant (8 May 1942 effective as of:) |
| 1 September 1942: | Hauptmann (19 September 1942 effective as of:) |
Stations of operation
Hans-Joachim Marseille, after he had completed his training at the Jagdfliegerschule 5, was assigned to the Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg stationed at the airport in MerseburgMerseburg
Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle . It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg....
-West.
Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg
| 18 July 1940 | – | 10 August 1940 | Merseburg Merseburg Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle . It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg.... -West |
I.(Jagd)/LG 2
| 10 August 1940 | – | 30 September 1940 | Calais Calais Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras.... -Marck Marck, Pas-de-Calais Marck is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Marck is a farming and light industrial town located 6 km east of Calais, at the junction of the D940 and D248 roads. The A26 ‘autoroute des Anglaises’ passes through the commune and the... |
II./JG 52
| 30 September 1940 | – | 5 November 1940 | Peuplingues Peuplingues Peuplingues is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:Peuplingues is located 5 miles southwest of Calais, at the junction of the D243 and D243E roads, about a mile from the A16 autoroute.... |
| 5 November 1940 | – | 22 December 1940 | Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach , formerly known as Münchengladbach, is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine half way between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border.... |
| 22 December 1940 | – | 15 January 1941 | Leeuwarden |
| 15 January 1941 | – | 10 February 1941 | Ypenburg |
| 10 February 1941 | – | 21 February 1941 | Berck sur Mer |
I./JG 27
| 21 February 1941 | – | 3 March 1941 | Döberitz |
| 3 March 1941 | – | 4 April 1941 | Ghedi Ghedi Ghedi is a town and comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy, Italy. It received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree on November 24, 2001.... |
| 4 April 1941 | – | 11 April 1941 | Graz Graz The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students... -Thalerhof |
| 11 April 1941 | – | 14 April 1941 | Zagreb Zagreb Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city... |
| 14 April 1941 | – | 16 April 1941 | München-Riem |
| 18 April 1941 | – | 22 April 1941 | Castel Benito near Tripoli Tripoli Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three... in North Africa North Africa North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and... |
| 22 April 1941 | – | 7 December 1941 | Ain el Gazala |
| 7 December 1941 | – | 12 December 1941 | Timimi Timimi Timimi, At Timimi or Tmimi, is a small village in Libya about 75 km east of Derna and 100 km west of Tobruk. It is on the eastern shores of the Libyan coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.-Geography:... |
| 12 December 1941 | – | 17 December 1941 | Martuba Martuba Martuba is a town in eastern Libya in the Derna District. It is located south of Derna. The Martuba Air Base is located in Martuba.Martuba is connected with Lamluda by two roads. The main road which goes through Derna is part of the Libyan Coastal Highway while The inner road goes through the... |
| 17 December 1941 | – | 23 December 1941 | Magrum |
| 23 December 1941 | – | 26 December 1941 | Sirte Sirte Sirte is a city in LibyaSirte may also refer to:* Sirte Declaration, a 1999 resolution to create the African Union* Sirte Oil Company, a Libyan oil companyIn geography:* Gulf of Sirte, alias for Gulf of Sidra on Libya's coast... |
| 26 December 1941 | – | 1 January 1942 | Acro Philaenorum |
| 1 January 1942 | – | 22 January 1942 | Ajdabiya Ajdabiya Ajdabiya was one of the districts of Libya. It lay in the northeastern part of the country. Its capital was Ajdabiya. As of 2007 it was subsumed within the enlarged Al Wahat District.... |
| 22 January 1942 | – | 27 January 1942 | El Agheila El Agheila El Agheila is a coastal city at the bottom of the Gulf of Sidra in far western Cyrenaica, Libya. In 1988 it was placed in Ajdabiya District; between 1995 and 2001 the district name is not known; however, it was again placed into Ajdabiya District in 2001... |
| 27 January 1942 | – | 1 February 1942 | Ajdabiya Ajdabiya Ajdabiya was one of the districts of Libya. It lay in the northeastern part of the country. Its capital was Ajdabiya. As of 2007 it was subsumed within the enlarged Al Wahat District.... |
| 1 February 1942 | – | 7 February 1942 | Benina Benina Benina is a Basic People's Congress administrative division of Benghazi, Libya.It contains the Benina International Airport.... |
| 7 February 1942 | – | 22 May 1942 | Martuba Martuba Martuba is a town in eastern Libya in the Derna District. It is located south of Derna. The Martuba Air Base is located in Martuba.Martuba is connected with Lamluda by two roads. The main road which goes through Derna is part of the Libyan Coastal Highway while The inner road goes through the... |
| 22 May 1942 | – | 14 June 1942 | Timimi Timimi Timimi, At Timimi or Tmimi, is a small village in Libya about 75 km east of Derna and 100 km west of Tobruk. It is on the eastern shores of the Libyan coastline of the Mediterranean Sea.-Geography:... |
| 14 June 1942 | – | 16 June 1942 | Derna |
| 16 June 1942 | – | 22 June 1942 | Ain el Gazala |
| 22 June 1942 | – | 25 June 1942 | Gambut |
| 25 June 1942 | – | 27 June 1942 | Sidi Barrani Sidi Barrani Sidi Barrani is a town in Egypt, near the Mediterranean Sea, about east of the border with Libya, and around from Tobruk, Libya.Probably named after Sidi Mohammed el Barrani, a Senussi fighter in the early 1900s, the village is mainly a Bedouin community... |
| 27 June 1942 | – | 2 July 1942 | Bir el Astas |
| 2 July 1942 | – | 7 July 1942 | Mumin Busak |
| 7 July 1942 | – | 20 July 1942 | Turbiya |
| 20 July 1942 | – | 2 October 1942 | Quotaifiya |
Absence from the Geschwader
| 16 January 1941 | – | 20 February 1941: | Vacation at home. |
| 18 June 1941 | – | 25 August 1941: | Vacation at home. |
| 15 October 1941 | – | 3 December 1941: | Conversion from Bf 109 E-7/trop to Bf 109 F-4/trop in München-Riem and Erdingen. Stop over in Venice Venice Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region... , Hotel Goldener Stern (Albergo Stella d'Oro). |
| 26 December 1941 | – | 6 February 1942: | Hospital stay in Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... and short visit of his parents in Berlin Berlin Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union... . |
| 28 February 1942 | – | 24 April 1942: | Vacation at home. Beginning 9 March two weeks at the Luftwaffen-Hospital in Munich Munich Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat... . Engagement to Hanne-Lies. A short stay in Rome Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half... on his return from Berlin. Here he was presented the Italian Silver Medal for bravery (Medaglia d'Argento al Valor Militare), Italian Pilots Badge and the German-Italian Campaign Badge Africa in Silver. |
| 19 June 1942 | – | 21 August 1942: | Vacation at home. A short stay in Rome Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half... on his return from Berlin. Here he was presented the Italian Golden Medal for bravery (Medaglia d'Oro al Valor Militare). |