Hans Joachim Marseille

Among the greatest Luftwaffe fighter pilots, one young ace, Hans-Joachim Marseille, achieved almost legendary status. Marseille 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 of poor discipline he was transferred to Jagdgeschwader 27 which relocated to North Africa in April 1941.

It was here that he became a formidable marksman, earning the title 'The Star of Afrika'. Flying in support of Rommel's famed 'Afrika Korps' in their fierce battle for the desert, he quickly became a master of the Messerschmitt Bf109F. Other pilots were amazed at his ability to handle the aircraft while 'deflection shooting'; firing whilst in a turn, almost at a stall and using only short bursts of fire to bring down his opponent. Marseille eventually rose to become the highest scoring ace against the Western Allies and was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. On one day alone, the 1st September 1942, he shot down
seventeen Allied aircraft including eight in just ten minutes. On the 26th September 1942, he scored his 158th and final victory against a Spitfire. Four days later, when flying a brand new Bf109G, smoke began to appear from the engine. Marseille managed to fly the stricken aircraft back over German-held territory and elected to bail out. In doing so he struck the tail and fell to his death. He was just 22 years old. Adolf Galland described Hans-Joachim Marseille as ''the unequaled virtuoso of all fighter pilots''.

Adolf Galland

Adolf “Dolfo” Galland was born on 19 March 1912 at Westerholt, Westphalia. In February 1934
he joined the Luftwaffe, and in 1937 volunteered for service with the Condor Legion in Spain
where he flew 280 combat sorties. In September 1939 he took part in the invasion of Poland
flying 50 ground attack missions. Galland was posted to JG 27 and by the end of the French
campaign he had accumulated 14 victories.

On 1 November 1940, Galland was promoted to Oberstleutnant and given command of JG 26.
On 21 June 1941, Galland was shot down, by the Polish ace Boleslaw Drobinski of 303 Sqn, RAF, and baled out wounded. Galland had, by now, been ordered by Hitler and Göring not to fly combat missions. However, he disregarded these orders and continued to rack up aerial victories. On the death of Oberst Werner Mölders on 22 November 1941, Galland was named General der Jagdflieger. Late in the war Galland was given command of JV 44 which he led until 26 April 1945 gaining up to seven victories flying the Me 262 jet fighter. On that day day he was bounced by a P-47. Galland was wounded in the right knee and his aircraft received further damage. He was able to bring his crippled jet back to München-Reim and successfully land, but the wounds suffered in this encounter were serious enough to end his combat flying. Galland surrendered himself to American forces at Tegernsee on 5 May 1945.
Galland achieved 104 aerial victories in 705 missions, all on the Western front. Included in his score are at least seven victories flying the Me 262 and four four-engined bombers. He was himself shot down four times.

Eduard Neumann

A veteran of the Spanish campaign, Eduard Neumann started the war leading 4./JG-26 in France, later promoted as adjutant of I./JG-27, moving to North Africa in early 1941. Promoted to Major, he became Kommodore of JG-27, a position he held for the remainder of the desert campaign. He was credited with moulding the careers of many outstanding pilots, the best known being the young Hauptmann Marseille.

Following the defeat of Rommel's Afrika Korps at El Alamein, JG-27 covered the retreat to Tunisia. When the wing finally left the desert, Neumann, now Lt. Colonel was transferred to the staff of General of the fighter arm where he remained until 1944. Promoted to Colonel later that year he took over as Fighter Commander of Northern Italy. Neumann ended the war as one of the Luftwaffe's most highly regarded commanders.

Friedrich Körner

Friedrich Körner joined 2./JG-27 in North Africa in July 1941, where he quickly learned many of his combat skills from his friend and colleague Hans-Joachim Marseille. He soon became a very successful fighter pilot with 36 victories in the desert. On the 4th July 1942, outnumbered after a fierce aerial battle RAF Spitfires near El Alamein, he was shot down and taken prisoner for the rest of the war.
Friedrich Körner flew more than 250 missions over the desert and scored 36 victories.

Fritz Keller

Fritz Keller flew and fought with JG-27 from the outbreak of war in 1939 right through to the cessation of hostilities in May 1945, most of the time with I./JG-27.
He took part in all the major actions in the desert and fought in the skies over El Alamein. Keller finished the war as Kommandeur of II./JG-27 with a total of 13 victories. He was a close personal friend of the legendary Hans-Joachim Marseille and was highly respected by all who flew with him.

Franz Elles
Franz Elles began operations in 1940 with 1 Staffel, I./JG-27 and saw action in the Battle of Britain under the command of Edu Neumann.
Transferred in early 1941 to North Africa he flew as wing-man to the famous Knights Cross holder Karl-Wolfgang Redlich. At the end of that year, Elles, defending his leader's tail in a close air combat, was shot down behind enemy lines and taken prisoner. He spent the remainder of the war as a P.O.W. in Canada. After the war Elles joined the German diplomatic service and rose to become German ambassador to Central America.