The Platinum Fighter Pilot Ace you never heard of.

[trof]

Just...WOW!

Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993), 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. He claimed 352 aerial victories (of which 345 were won against the Soviet Air Force, and 260 of which were fighters) in 1,404 combat missions. He engaged in aerial combat 825 times while serving with the Luftwaffe. During the course of his career, Hartmann was forced to crash-land his damaged fighter 14 times. This was due to damage received from parts of enemy aircraft he had just shot down or mechanical failure. Hartmann was never shot down or forced to land due to fire from enemy aircraft.<1>

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

MUCH more here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Hartmann

[av8rdave]

1. As Fourth Class Cadets at the Academy, we were required to memorize a great deal about Hartmann

Just about all of which you have posted here.

A friend of mine had the opportunity to meet him during an F-16 tour in Germany in the late 80s. How cool would that have been???

[trof]

5. So you're a zoomie.

I remember when the AF Academy opened.
Sounds like the christian fundamentalists have taken it over now.
Too bad.

My pilot training class (65-C, Vance AFB) was predominately academy grads.
I was the only guard troop.
They treated me well for the most part.

[av8rdave]

8. I am, and I still take a great deal of pride in the institution

What's happened there re. religion is tragic. That's why I support the Military Religious Freedom Foundation

http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/

Most zoomies are OK. There always has to be a bad apple here and there, unfortunately.

[TheMightyFavog]

2. His Post WWII Bundeswehr carrer is intersting, too

He was opposed to the West German Air Forces adoption of the F-104 Starfighter.

Good reason, too. The Germans had two nicknames for those planes

Erdnagel (Tent Peg)
Witwenmacher (Widowmaker)

They lost 282 F-104s and 115 pilots flying noncombat missions

[trof]

3. The F-104 was the fastest widow maker in the world for it's time.

The wing leading edges were so sharp that they posed a danger to ground personnel.
They put plastic guards on them while parked.

[av8rdave]

4. the F-104 was basically a missile with wings

Very short, stubby, symmetric, anhedral wings. At least it only had one engine!

[trof]

6. I did 1 engine, 1 seat, for 7 years.

My MINIMUM requirement is now 2 engines.

[av8rdave]

7. I prefer 3, but the 727 is gone

I'll be flying with two for at least the next two years.

At that point, I may have a shot at the 747. It's been a long time since I've had 4 engines!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

9. You know what ETOPS stands for, don't you?

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Engines Turn Or Passengers Swim

[av8rdave]

10. So I've been told

Oh well...I get to live with it for a while!

[trof]

12. I flew 747 for about 12 years.

Yep, 4 engines is best.
Really liked that plane, but the L-1011 was my favorite.
At the time it was the only airliner certified for zero-zero autoland.
Did one of those at Heathrow once, and we were the only aircraft to land that morning. Approach, tower, and ground control frequencies were eerily quiet.
Had to call for a follow-me truck to get us to the gate.

[av8rdave]

13. Did a similar one years ago in a 767 in MCO

Ops specs require a min RVR, but (like the Tristar, I imagine) the DH is called an "alert height." You aren't required to see anything....you just check for discrepancies or comparator warnings. The first light we saw was a centerline light disappearing under the nose after touchdown. Same deal - needed a follow me to the gate.

Tomorrow I start my last trip on the 737-700/800. I will miss the heads up display, which allows you to hand fly Cat III approaches. It works very well!

[WildEyedLiberal]

11. I love Luftwaffe history

Those guys were hardcore, but, for obvious reasons, not nearly as famous as they otherwise would be if they'd flown for the other side. For some reason I'd been under the impression that Hartmann had died during WWII.