Konrad Bauer

This article is about the fighter pilot. For the trombonist, see Conny Bauer. For the German type designer, see Konrad Friedrich Bauer.

Konrad Bauer
Nickname(s)"Pitt"
Born9 February 1919
Gelsenkirchen
Died17 June 1990(1990-06-17) (aged 71)
Gelsenkirchen
Allegiance Nazi Germany (to 1945)
 West Germany
Service / branchLuftwaffe
German Air Force
Years of service?–1945
?–1960
RankOberfeldwebel (Wehrmacht)
Hauptmann (Bundeswehr)
UnitJG 51
JG 3
JG 300
Battles / warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Konrad Bauer (9 February 1919 – 17 June 1990) was a Luftwaffe fighter pilot during World War II and a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Bauer claimed 57 aerial victories, 39 over the Western Front and 18 over the Eastern Front.

Bauer claimed his first of 18 victories over the Eastern Front on 20 March 1943. In 1944 he was transferred to the Western Front where he claimed another 39 victories. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 31 October 1944 after his 34th victory. After the war he joined the new Luftwaffe and retired as a Hauptmann in 1960.

With Jagdgeschwader 300

In June 1944, Bauer was posted to II. Sturmgruppe (2nd assault group) of Jagdgeschwader 300 "Wilde Sau" (JG 300—300th Fighter Wing).[1] On 9 August, Bauer made a forced landing in his Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A at Griesheim Airfield following combat with Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers.[2] Bauer was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 31 October for 34 aerial victories.[1][3]

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

According to US historian David T. Zabecki, Bauer was credited with 57 aerial victories.[4] Obermaier also lists Bauer with 57 aerial victory claims, 39 over the Western Front, including 32 four-engine bombers, and 18 over the Eastern Front.[5] According to Weal, he was credited with 68 aerial victories.[1] Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found documentation for 38 aerial victory claims, plus further ten unconfirmed claims. The number of confirmed claims includes 16 on the Eastern Front and 22 on the Western Front, including 13 four-engine bombers.[6]

Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 35 Ost 25281". The Luftwaffe grid map (Jägermeldenetz) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about 360 square miles (930 km2). These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area 3 km × 4 km (1.9 mi × 2.5 mi) in size.[7]

Chronicle of aerial victories
  This and the ♠ (Ace of spades) indicates those aerial victories which made Bauer an "ace-in-a-day", a term which designates a fighter pilot who has shot down five or more airplanes in a single day.
  This and the ? (question mark) indicates information discrepancies listed by Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike, Balke, Bock, Mathews and Foreman.
Claim Date Time Type Location Claim Date Time Type Location
– 10. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" –[8]
Eastern Front — March – August 1943
1 20 March 1943 15:25 Pe-2 PQ 35 Ost 25281[9] 3?[Note 1] 2 August 1943 08:42 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 35 Ost 53681[10]
2 17 July 1943 08:11 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 35 Ost 63643[10]
vicinity of Lukowets
– Stabsstaffel of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" –[8]
Eastern Front — September – 31 December 1943
4 1 September 1943 18:12 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 25467[11]
20 km (12 mi) west-northwest of Yelnya 		9♠ 15 December 1943 10:06 Boston PQ 25 Ost 93276[12]
10 km (6.2 mi) east of Parichi
5 2 September 1943 11:10 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 35 Ost 25496, west of Yelnya[11]
20 km (12 mi) west of Yelnya 		10♠ 15 December 1943 10:07 Boston PQ 25 Ost 93425, southwest of Zhlobin[12]
20 km (12 mi) east-southeast of Parichi
6 5 September 1943 11:23 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] southwest of Yelnya[13]
10 km (6.2 mi) west of Yelnya 		11♠ 15 December 1943 10:09 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 25 Ost 93436[12]
20 km (12 mi) south of Zhlobin
7 29 November 1943 14:24 Pe-2 25 km (16 mi) east of Zhlobin[12] 12♠ 15 December 1943 10:09 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 35 Ost 03311[12]
20 km (12 mi) south-southwest of Zhlobin
8♠ 15 December 1943 08:20 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 35 Ost 03176[12]
10 km (6.2 mi) south of Zhlobin 		13♠ 15 December 1943 10:10 Il-2 m.H.[Note 2] PQ 25 Ost 93299, 15 km (9.3 mi) south of Zhlobin[12]
– Stabsstaffel of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" –[8]
Eastern Front — January 1944
14 10 January 1944 11:15 Yak-7 PQ 25 Ost 93566[14]
20 km (12 mi) west-southwest of Talachyn 		17 12 January 1944 12:06 Pe-2 PQ 25 Ost 93626[15]
40 km (25 mi) north-northeast of Mazyr
15 10 January 1944 11:17 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost 93617[14]
40 km (25 mi) south-southeast of Parichi
—
?[Note 3] 		12 January 1944
—
 Pe-2[15]
16 12 January 1944 12:05 Pe-2 PQ 25 Ost 93627[15]
40 km (25 mi) southeast of Parichi
– 2. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –[8]
Defense of the Reich — April 1944
19 18 April 1944 14:50 B-17[16] Zehdenick 21?[Note 1] 24 May 1944
—
 B-17[17]
20?[Note 1] 24 May 1944
—
 B-17[17]
– 5. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 300 "Wilde Sau" –[6]
Defense of the Reich — June – August 1944
—
?[Note 4] 		13 June 1944
—
 B-24 vicinity of Munich 25 19 July 1944 09:35 P-51 Obergünzburg[19]
—
?[Note 4] 		13 June 1944
—
 B-24 vicinity of Munich 26 20 July 1944 11:05 B-17 Zwickau[19]
—
?[Note 4] 		20 June 1944
—
 B-24 27 20 July 1944 11:06 B-17 Zwickau[19]
—
?[Note 4] 		20 June 1944
—
 B-24 28 25 July 1944 11:08 B-24 Grein forest, west of Krems an der Donau[20]
Martinsburg/Spitz
—
?[Note 4] 		26 June 1944
—
 B-24 29 27 July 1944 10:00 B-24 Mór[21]
Székesfehérvár
—
?[Note 4] 		26 June 1944
—
 B-24 30 27 July 1944 10:00 B-24 15 km (9.3 mi) southwest of Mór[21]
Székesfehérvár
—
?[Note 4] 		29 June 1944
—
 B-17 vicinity of Naumburg 31 27 July 1944 10:01 B-24 Mór[21]
Székesfehérvár
—
?[Note 4] 		29 June 1944
—
 B-17 32 9 August 1944 10:45 B-17 Herrenberg, southwest of Stuttgart[22]
Wildberg
22 7 July 1944 09:36 B-24 PQ 15 Ost S/LC[23]
Artern[24] 		33 15 August 1944 11:45 B-17 Schwarzenborn, northeast of Bitburg[22]
vicinity of Kyllburg
23 7 July 1944 09:37 B-24 PQ 15 Ost S/LC[23]
Artern[24] 		34 22 August 1944 10:05 B-24 PQ 14 Ost N/HP[25]
Celldömölk-Sümeg/Herend[26]
Nagykanizsa
24 7 July 1944 09:46 P-38 PQ 15 Ost S/JB[27]
Wernigerode[24] 		35 23 August 1944 12:18 P-51 PQ 14 Ost N/FL-5[25]
Seeberg[28]
Hochschwab
—
?[Note 4] 		16 July 1944
—
 B-17 vicinity of Weilheim 36 23 August 1944 12:19 P-51 PQ 14 Ost N/FL-5[25]
Seeberg[28]
Hochschwab
—
?[Note 4] 		16 July 1944
—
 B-17 vicinity of Weilheim 37 29 August 1944 10:45 B-17 PQ 05 Ost S/UR[25]
Púchov[28]
Brno
– 5. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 300 "Wilde Sau" –[29]
Defense of the Reich — September 1944 – May 1945
38 9 February 1945
—
 B-24 Magdeburg[30] 39 2 April 1945 15:00–15:15 P-51 west of Halle[31]

Awards

Notes

  1. ^ a b c This claim is not listed by Mathews and Foreman.[8]
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h The "m.H." refers to an Ilyushin Il-2 with rear gunner (mit Heckschütze).
  3. ^ This unconfirmed claim is not listed by Mathews and Foreman.[8]
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j This unconfirmed claim is not listed by Lorant and Goyat.[18]
  5. ^ According to Obermaier on 31 March 1944.[5]

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c Weal 2005, p. 98.
  2. ^ Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 359.
  3. ^ Forsyth 2011, p. 82.
  4. ^ Zabecki 2014, p. 1618.
  5. ^ a b Obermaier 1989, p. 85.
  6. ^ a b Mathews & Foreman 2014, pp. 59–60.
  7. ^ Planquadrat.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Mathews & Foreman 2014, p. 59.
  9. ^ Prien et al. 2012b, p. 147.
  10. ^ a b Prien et al. 2012b, p. 151.
  11. ^ a b Prien et al. 2012a, p. 426.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g Prien et al. 2012a, p. 428.
  13. ^ Prien et al. 2012a, p. 427.
  14. ^ a b Prien et al. 2022, p. 259.
  15. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2022, p. 260.
  16. ^ Prien & Stemmer 2002, p. 445.
  17. ^ a b Prien & Stemmer 2002, p. 446.
  18. ^ Lorant & Goyat 2005, pp. 373–377.
  19. ^ a b c Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 378.
  20. ^ Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 379.
  21. ^ a b c Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 380.
  22. ^ a b Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 381.
  23. ^ a b Prien et al. 2020, p. 116.
  24. ^ a b c Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 376.
  25. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2020, p. 118.
  26. ^ Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 382.
  27. ^ Prien et al. 2020, p. 117.
  28. ^ a b c Lorant & Goyat 2005, p. 383.
  29. ^ Mathews & Foreman 2014, p. 60.
  30. ^ Lorant & Goyat 2007, p. 356.
  31. ^ Lorant & Goyat 2007, p. 357.
  32. ^ Dixon 2023, pp. 173–174.
  33. ^ Patzwall 2008, p. 46.
  34. ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 27.
  35. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 124.
  36. ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 205.

Bibliography

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