Fritz Lüddecke
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23 February 1920
Nazi GermanyFritz Lüddecke | |
|---|---|
 Lüddecke as Oberfeldwebel | |
| Born | Fritz Paul Lüddecke 23 February 1920 |
| Died | 10 August 1944 (aged 24) |
| Cause of death | Killed in action |
| Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
| Branch |  Luftwaffe |
| Rank | Oberfeldwebel (staff sergeant) |
| Unit | JG 51 |
| Conflicts | |
| Awards | |
Fritz Paul Lüddecke (23 February 1920 – 10 August 1944) was a Luftwaffe fighter ace from Brakel, Germany. He was the recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. Fritz Lüddecke was credited with 50 kills all in the Eastern Front. In 1944 he was killed in action over Wilkowischken, Lithuania.
Lüddecke was born on 23 February 1920 in Brakel, then in the Province of Westphalia within the Weimar Republic.[1] He joined the military service of Luftwaffe and following flight training,[Note 1] he was posted to Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe Ost, a supplementary training unit for fighter pilots destined for the Eastern Front, on 18 November 1941. Lüddecke was then transferred to 6. Staffel (6th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing) on the Eastern Front on 20 May 1942.[3] At the time, the Staffel was commanded by Oberleutnant Walter Stengel and subordinated to II. Gruppe (2nd group) which was headed by Hauptmann Hartmann Grasser.[4]
World War II
World War II in Europe had begun on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. On 17 July 1942, II. Gruppe had moved from Bryansk to an airfield named Orel-North. Here on 24 August, Lüddecke claimed his first aerial victory when he shot down a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-3 fighter, his only claim while flying with 6. Staffel.[5]
With the Stabsstaffel
In early October 1942, II. Gruppe of JG 51 was withdrawn from the Eastern Front and sent to Jesau, near present-day Bagrationovsk, to Heiligenbeil, present-day Mamonovo, to be reequipped with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A. While undergoing training on this aircraft, the Gruppe received orders on 4 November to transfer to the Mediterranean theatre flying the Bf 109 again. 6. Staffel was exempt from this order, was detached from II. Gruppe, and continued its training on the Fw 190. In late November, 6. Staffel was renamed to Stabsstaffel (headquarters squadron) of JG 51 and placed under the command of Diethelm von Eichel-Streiber on 30 November.[6] Alternatively, the Stabsstaffel was also referred to as Geschwaderstabsstaffel z.b.V., roughly translating to fighter wing squadron for special deployment. The abbreviation z. b. V. is German and stands for zur besonderen Verwendung (for special deployment).[7]
The Stabsstaffel transferred to the Eastern Front again on 5 February 1943 where it was based at an airfield at Smolensk. There, the fought in support of the 9th Army during the Battles of Rzhev.[8] On 9 March, the Stabsstaffel was scrambled multiple times in defense of the airfield. At noon, a Petlyakov Pe-2 bomber was shot down southwest of Dugino, located approximately 50 kilometers (31 miles) north of Vyazma, which was credited to Lüddecke.[9] The Stabsstaffel was tasked with providing fighter protection of the Smolensk airfield on 15 March. In the morning, the Stabsstaffel was scrambled to intercept a flight of Ilyushin Il-2 ground-attack aircraft north of Smolensk and claimed four aerial victories including an Il-2 aircraft by Lüddecke.[10]
On the first day of the Battle of Kursk, 5 July 1943, the Stabsstaffel relocated from Smolensk to Oryol where it fought over the northern face of the salient.[11] On 13 July, the Stabsstaffel was deployed over the combat area near Novosil where they engaged in combat with Soviet fighters. During this engagement, the Staffel claimed five aerial victories, including a Lavochkin La-5 fighter by Lüddecke, for the loss of one of their own.[12] By end August, Lüddecke had increased his number of aerial victories to 13 and had been awarded both classes of the Iron Cross.(Eisernes Kreuz).[13]
Operation Bagration and death
On 1 August 1944 during Operation Bagration, the Stabstaffel moved to Jürgenfelde, present-day Judino in Kaliningrad Oblast, flying its first combat missions the following day. Here, Lüddecke claimed ten aerial victories, including two on 9 August, taking his total to 50, his last claims.[14]
On 10 August, Lüddecke was killed in action in his Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 (Werknummer 172958—factory number) 16 kilometers (9.9 miles) south-southwest of Wilkowischken, present-day Vilkaviškis. Following hits by anti-aircraft artillery, he attempted an emergency landing when his aircraft exploded in mid-air.[15][16] He was posthumously awarded the German Cross in Gold (Deutsches Kreuz in Gold) on 1 October 1944, and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 18 November 1944.[17][18]
