page_title: Heinrich Ehrler
section_title: Defense of the Reich and death
hierarchical_section_title: Heinrich Ehrler / World War II / Defense of the Reich and death
caption_attribution_description: Wa-OR_Vac_10-12-1177
context_page_description: Heinrich Ehrler was a German Luftwaffe military aviator and wing commander during World War II. As a fighter ace, he is credited with 208 enemy aircraft shot down in over 400 combat missions. The majority of his victories were claimed over the Eastern Front, with nine claims over the Western Front which included eight in the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter.
  Born in Oberbalbach, Ehrler grew up in the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany as one of 12 children in his family. He joined the military service in the Wehrmacht in 1935, initially service with the artillery and anti-aircraft artillery. He participated in the Spanish Civil War and following the outbreak of World War II transferred to the Jagdwaffe. Following flight training, he was posted to the 4. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 77, and later reassigned to 4. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 5.
  Scapegoated for the loss of the German battleship Tirpitz, Ehrler was court-martialled, stripped of his command and sentenced to three years and two months Festungshaft. Ehrler's sentence was later commuted and his loss of rank rescinded, and in February 1945 he was transferred to Jagdgeschwader 7.
context_section_description: Ehrler was transferred to Jagdgeschwader 7 (JG 7–7th Fighter Wing) on 27 February 1945 under the command of Major Weissenberger, his former comrade from JG 5. JG 7 was equipped with the Me 262 jet fighter, and was given the task of Reichsverteidigung. During the next five weeks, Ehrler claimed further eight aerial victories while flying with the Geschwaderstab (headquarters unit) of JG 7. On 21 March 1945, the United States Strategic Air Forces (USAAF) Eighth Air Force attacked various Luftwaffe airfields in Germany with approximately 1,300 heavy bombers, escorted by 750 fighter aircraft. That day, Ehrler for the first time flew the Me 262 operationally and claimed the destruction of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber. The next day, the Eighth Air Force again targeted various military installations and airfields in Germany. Flying from Parchim airfield, Ehrler claimed another B-17 bomber shot down. On 23 March, the Fifteenth Air Force headed for Ruhland where the Schwarzheide synthetic fuel factory (Synthesewerk Schwarzheide or Hydrierwerk Brabag) was based. The bombers came under attack by 14 Me 262s from JG 7 over Chemnitz. In this encounter, Ehrler shot down two B-24 Liberator bombers. The next day, he claimed his fifth aerial victory while flying the Me 262, making him a jet ace. That day, 1,714 bombers, escorted by approximately 1,300 fighter aircraft, targeted 18 Luftwaffe airfields. In the vicinity of Dessau, Ehrler attacked bombers from the 463rd Bombardment Group and 483d Bombardment Group and shot down a B-17. On 31 March, the USAAF Eighth Air Force targeted the oil refineries at Zeitz and Bad Berka, as well as other targets of opportunity. In parallel, the RAF Bomber Command bombed the Blohm+Voss shipyards in Hamburg. In the afternoon, Ehrler claimed a North American P-51 Mustang fighter, escorting B-17s and B-24s to their target areas.
  Various authors present conflicting information regarding Ehrler's last aerial victories, as well as date and cause of death. Depending on source, his last combat and death occurred on either 4 or 6 April 1945. In one account presented by Forsyth, Ehrler was shot down by a P-51 northeast of Scharlibbe. According to both Boehme and Forsyth, the Luftwaffe combat report signed by Weissenberger and Schuck, a former JG 5 pilot, dates his death on 6 April. In addition, Boehme points out that the report does not reveal the cause of death. On 7 April, a body was recovered near Stendal. An autopsy indicated that it was Ehrler who was then buried at Stendal on 10 April. Forsyth states that the USAAF reported no combat with Me 262s on 6 April. Subsequently, Forsyth speculates that this combat may have taken place on 4 April and that the report is incorrectly labeled. The authors Morgan and Weal concur with the events presented by Boehme, while Heaton, Matthews and Foreman are more in line with Forsyth, stating Ehrler was killed in action on 4 April 1945.
  On 4 April, RAF Bomber Command targeted Nordhausen with 243 Lancaster bombers while the USAAF Eighth Air Force sent 950 B-17s and B-24s to Luftwaffe airfields at Kaltenkirchen, Parchim, Perleberg, Wesendorf, Faßberg, Hoya, Dedelstorf and Eggebek, as well as the U-boat yards at Finkenwerder and shipyards at Kiel. This bomber force was protected by 800 escort fighters. In the Forsyth account, Ehrler claimed his final two aerial victories on this date. On 6 April, the Eighth Air Force attacked Halle, Leipzig and Gera with a force of 641 heavy bombers, escorted by 600 P-51s and Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighters. According to Boehme, Ehrler claimed two B-17s shot down from this attack force before being killed. Alternatively, both authors report that Ehrler may have died while ramming an enemy bomber. According to Ehrler's final received transmission, he radioed "Theo, I've just used all my ammunition. I'm going to ram. Good bye. See you in Valhalla." Schuck who followed the radio transmission exchange over the loudspeaker in the operations room recalls Ehrler's last words slightly differently. He believes they were: "Theo, Heinrich here. H
caption: A Me 262 of JG 7 similar to those flown by Ehrler on display at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.
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