Walter Oesau Walter " Gulle " Oesau ( 28 June 1913 – 11 May 1944 ) was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1934 until his death in 1944 . He rose to command Jagdgeschwader 1 , which was named in his honor after his death . He served with the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War , with 3 " Staffel " of Jagdgruppe 88 ( 3 . / J 88 ) , claiming 8 aircraft during the campaign , becoming one of only 28 people to earn the award of the Spanish Cross in Gold and Diamonds . At the start of World War II , Oesau was given command of 2 Staffel , Jagdgeschwader 20 . The group was moved to the Eastern front at the start of the Invasion of Poland , moving back to the Western Front later as the redesignated III Gruppe , Jagdgeschwader 51 ( III . / JG 51 ) . After his first victory of World War II in the Battle of France , Oesau operated on both the Western and Eastern Fronts , where he was wounded and received the Silver Wound Badge . He returned to operations as " Geschwaderkommodore " of Jagdgeschwader 1 ( JG 1 ) . He was killed in action on 11 May 1944 aged 30 . JG 1 was given the suffix " " Oesau " " in his honor . Early life . Walter " " Gulle " " Oesau was born to a bank director in Farnewinkel near Meldorf , Germany on 28 June 1913 . He joined the German Army ( Heer ) in October 1933 and served in the Second Artillery Regiment as an enlisted soldier . After being transferred to a Luftwaffe transport unit , he undertook flying training in 1934 as a cadet ( " Fahnenjunker " ) at the Luftwaffe Academy ( " Deutsche Verkehrsfliegerschule " ) in Hanover . Upon completion of his training he was assigned to Jagdgeschwader 132 , as a " Leutnant " . The unit was re – designated as JG 2 Richthofen in May 1939 . Combat career . Spanish Civil War . Oesau started his operational career with the Condor Legion , along with future contemporary aces such as Werner Mölders and Adolf Galland . He was one of the first to join 3 . Jagdgruppe 88 in Spain in April 1938 . The Staffel , commanded by Mölders , took part in the Spanish Civil War where Oesau claimed eight victories , flying 130 combat missions . For this he received the Spanish Cross ( " Spanienkreuz " ) in Gold with Diamonds . He was also wounded in this conflict which earned him the Spanish Wound Badge . He also received the " Medalla de la Campana " and the " Medalla Militar " . Western Front 1939 – 40 . On 1 March 1939 Oesau joined the Headquarters Flight ( " Stabsschwarm " ) of I . / JG 2 . By 15 July 1939 Oesau was promoted to " Oberleutnant " and given command of 2 . / JG 20 . On 15 July 1939 , I . / JG 20 was activated in Döberitz initially consisting of two " Staffeln " drawn from JG 2 . Prior to the invasion of Poland I . / JG 20 was transferred to Strausberg on 26 August 1939 . From there , the group was transferred to Sprottau ( modern Szprotawa ) anticipating an attack from the Polish Air Force . A week later the group moved to Brandenburg . On 21 February 1940 , the unit was relocated to Bönninghardt under the control of JG 51 . It continued to operate in this fashion until the end of the Battle of France . On 4 July it was re – designated III . / JG 51 . Oesau served as " Staffelkapitän " of 7 . / JG 51 . Battle of France . Oesau got his first World War II victory during the Battle of France on 13 May 1940 , when he claimed a French Curtiss P - 36 Hawk over Halsteren in the Netherlands , earning him the Iron Cross 1st class ( " Eisernes Kreuz 1 . Klasse " ) . On 31 May , he claimed three Spitfires during a patrol North West of Dunkirk and next day he claimed a Bristol Blenheim . On 13 June 1940 , he shot down the last French aircraft kill claimed by JG 51 , a French Amiot bomber . By the end of hostilities in France on 25 June , his World War II tally stood at 5 ( 13 including Spanish kills ) . Following the Battle of France , the Luftwaffe started its attacks on Channel convoys as a prelude to the Battle of Britain . The primary task of JG 51 during this time was to provide fighter escort to these bomber missions . The commander of JG 51 , " Oberst " Theo Osterkamp established a policy of unrestricted combat air patrol ( " freie Jagd " ) of fighter " staffeln " providing loose protection rather than close escort to the bombers , actively seeking out Royal Air Force fighters . On 7 July 1940 Oesau claimed one Spitfire . Battle of Britain . On 10 July 1940 , the first major clashes of the Battle of Britain occurred . 20 Bf 109s of III . / JG 51 led by Hauptmann Hannes Trautloft and 30 Bf 110 C of I . / Zerstörergeschwader 26 escorted 20 Dornier Do 17 bombers of II . / Kampfgeschwader 2 attacking a large convoy off Folkstone . " Oberleutnant " Oesau was leading 7 . / JG 51 . Trautloft noticed three of a flight of six intercepting Hurricanes of No . 32 squadron higher than the escorts , attempting to intercept the bombers . Soon they were joined by four squadrons of British fighters : No . 56 Squadron , No . 111 Squadron , No . 64 Squadron and No . 74 Squadron . Oesau was able to claim three Spitfires . Two 7 . / JG 51 aircraft crash landed in France . On 19 July , III . / JG 51 were confronted by Defiants of No . 141 Squadron south of Folkestone . As the German pilots were now aware of Defiant ' s lack of front armament , they soon gained the advantage in combat and claimed 11 Defiants shot down in 8 minutes . Oesau was credited with one Defiant , taking his score to 19 . He was the first one of JG 51 to reach double digits in World War II . On 18 August 1940 , III . / JG 51 escorted Dorniers attacking Hornchurch airfield . Intercepted by Hurricanes over Kent , Oesau claimed one Hurricane shot down as his 20th victory , earning him the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes " ) two days later , the first pilot of JG 51 to be thus honored . On 23 August 1940 , Trautloft took over as " Geschwaderkommodore " of JG 54 , and Walter Oesau replaced him as " Gruppenkommandeur " of III . / JG 51 . By October 1940 , Oesau had a total score of 48 ( including 26 Spitfires ) . On 10 November 1940 Oesau succeeded Wilhelm Balthasar as " Gruppenkommandeur " of III . / JG 3 . With 39 victories he was currently the 4th highest scoring Ace behind Helmut Wick , Werner Mölders and Adolf Galland . On 5 February 1941 he shot down a Hurricane over Desvres , France , his 40th victory . He was awarded the Oak Leaves ( " mit Eichenlaub " ) to his Knight ' s Cross next day . It also earned him second entry in the Wehrmachtbericht . In early 1941 , JG 3 returned to Germany to replace their Bf 109 ' Emils ' with the new ' F ' variant ( " Friedrich " ) . They returned to France in May 1941 and Oesau added two more kills on 16 May and 28 May bringing his total to 51 . Operation Barbarossa . Oesau ' s III . / JG 3 was then involved in Operation Barbarossa the invasion of Russia , launched on 22 June 1941 . Oesau shot down his first Soviet aircraft on 24 June 1941 , and by 30 June 1941 had reached his 60th victory , downing a Tupolev SB bomber . Next day he downed three more SB bombers near Lvov ( modern Lviv , Ukraine ) . This earned him his 3rd entry in the Wehrmachtbericht . On 10 July 1941 , Oesau claimed 5 more aircraft and two more kills by 11 July 1941 . On 12 July 1941 , he shot down 7 Soviet aircraft in one sortie . In the five weeks since moving to the Eastern Front , Oesau was credited with 44 Soviet aircraft downed . He became the third pilot to reach 80 victories , the 80th kill an Ilyushin DB - 3 bomber . He was awarded the Swords to his Knight ' s Cross with Oak Leaves ( " Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern " ) on same day . He was the third person to earn the swords . He was again then wounded , receiving heavy splinter injuries in face and knee . A fortnight later he was transferred to the Western Front to take over JG 2 . Defence of the Reich 1941 – 44 . He succeeded Balthasar for the second time as JG 2 commander , who had died in combat with Spitfires over northern France when he pulled the tail off his Bf 109F in a dive . The Bf 109F - 2 proved an excellent match to the Spitfire V , but Oesau disliked its reduced armament compared to the ' Emil ' , and continued to fly an E - 4 model in preference to the Bf 109F , until lack of spares forced him to switch to the newer variant . Upon his appointment on 4 July 1941 , he addressed JG 2 with following words . JG 2 was tasked with defending targets in occupied France against the RAF fighter offensive . For the next two years Oesau led JG 2 through the war of attrition waged by the RAF . On 10 August 1941 Oesau claimed a Spitfire for his first kill with JG 2 . Over the next two days , he claimed four more Spitfires . By the end of September 1941 , Oesau had claimed two more Spitfires . JG 2 participated in the " Luftwaffe " air cover of the Channel Dash . Two B - 17 C Flying fortresses of No . 90 Squadron attacked the German battleships and . In one of the highest altitude interceptions of World War II , the bombers were attacked by I . / JG 2 , resulting in the destruction of one . This aircraft put JG 2 ' s score past the 800 mark , matching the score of their Great War namesake . Kills No . 88 to 92 were all Spitfires claimed between Calais and Dungeness on 12 August 1941 . Oesau claimed his 100th kill on 26 October 1941 , the third pilot to do so . This earned him 4th entry in the Wehrmachtbericht . He was then grounded from flying on operations , as his experience and leadership qualities were regarded as too valuable to risk further in front line combat . He did fly on occasional sorties , the most famous involving the shooting down of a Lancaster bomber of No . 44 Squadron RAF piloted by Warrant Officer G . T . Rhodes in April 1942 , during a rare RAF daylight raid on targets in Augsberg . It was his 101st kill . In August 1942 , the " Geschwaderstab " of JG 2 exchanged their Bf 109 F aircraft for the FW 190 A – 2s . From late 1942 onwards JG 2 was in the front line against the increasingly numerous United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF ) day bomber formations of B - 17s and B - 24s . Oesau added four more to his tally by mid - 1943 . Shortly before his 30th birthday , Oesau was elevated to a series of Luftwaffe staff and administration positions . On 1 July 1943 he was posted as Fighter Leader Brittany ( " Jagdfliegerführer Bretagne " ) , before being appointed as " Geschwaderkommodore " of JG 1 on 12 November 1943 , following the death of JG 1 ' s Hans Philipp in October 1943 . The ban on Oesau ' s combat flying was lifted . While commanding JG 1 , Oesau became an expert ( " Experten " ) at shooting down 4 engine bombers , with 14 bomber kills claimed . He was awarded the Combined Pilots - Observation Badge in gold and diamonds on 17 October 1943 . He was awarded the German Cross in Gold on 10 January 1944 . For Commander - in - Chief of the Luftwaffe Hermann Göring it was an ongoing concern that inadequate numbers of fighters were able to continually engage the bomber streams . Hence on 23 February 1944 , Generalmajor Joseph Schmid Commander of I . " Jagdkorps " established a new rule for the fighters returning to base . They were to arrive at the nearest designated fighter airfield for resupply instead of returning to their own base . They were to be commanded by the senior pilot landing on that airfield , irrespective of their unit . This was meant to turn around the fighters in time to intercept returning bombers . On next day , B - 24s of 2nd Bomb division of the Eighth Air Force bombed Gotha . JG 1 ( under Oesau ) , JG 11 and JG 3 was sent to intercept . Due to high winds , the bombers were ahead of the escorts unprotected . Two groups of JG 1 met them before Gotha and 9 B - 24s were claimed as a result . Since B - 17s of 1st Bomb division also bombed Schweinfurt , other fighter units also arrived to intercept , eventually involving almost all the Western day fighter units of the Luftwaffe . This caused for confusion in pilots landing on airfields other than their own . This tested the directive of Schmid . Oesau led one of two such improvised formations successfully , with the other led by Hauptmann Borris of I . / JG 26 Oesau added 4 fighters to his score between January and March 1944 , and his tally stood at 117 . On 8 May 1944 he claimed a Thunderbolt shot down over Hanover ; his last kill . Death . While being the " Geschwaderkommodore " ( = equivalent of a RAF Group Commander or USAF Wing Commander ) of JG 1 Oesau frequently received his share of Hermann Göring ’ s deep anger and frustration over the failure to beat off the Allied bomber offensive . Göring questioned the commitment of " Geschwaderkommodores " who were not flying regularly and thus not really " leading " their respective units . In this context it should be stated that in order not to risk one of the Luftwaffe " expert " ' s life [ German fighter aces were called " Experten " ] , there was an automatic ban on Oesau for further combat flying since his 100th " kill . " Perhaps the ban was lifted temporarily or bypassed when he was appointed " Geschwaderkommodore " of JG 1 . On the other hand , Oesau might simply have ignored the ban and continued to lead missions . Oesau added several victories over American heavy bombers in the first five months of 1944 . On 11 May 1944 one thousand U . S . heavy bombers from Eighth Air Force attacked railway targets in Eastern France and North East Belgium . They were escorted by even more numbers of P - 38 and P - 51 fighters . Oesau was in bed with influenza . Upon hearing the news , Göring phoned Oesau ' s staff " Göring " – “ Is the " Kommodore " flying ? ” " Staff " – “ No , he is in bed with fever . ” " Göring " – “ Yes , yes , I know that kind ! ” , Göring said scornfully , " Göring " – “ He has also turned tired and coward ! ” Angered by this comment , Oesau took off in a Bf 109 G - 6 / AS “ Green 13 ” ( Wing Number 20601 ) from Paderborn despite a high fever . Leading three aircraft of the " Geschwaderstab " , the schwarm broke formation over the Ardennes as it approached the bombers . In the dogfight Oesau ' s wingman reported damage to his machine and he was ordered to break off . Left alone , Oesau faced P - 38 s and possibly P - 51 s as well . According to Major Hartmann Grasser , " Gruppenkommandeur " of III . / JG 1 , who was on the same mission , there were five P - 38s facing Oesau . What followed is unclear as there are several versions . Oesau was chased by 1st Lt . James Leslie Doyle , 1st Lt . Wilbur L . Jarvis III and 1st Lt . James C . Austin , of the 428th Fighter Squadron ( 474th FG , 9th AF ) . All three were experienced pilots and chased Oesau from 28 , 000 feet to tree - top level . In the ensuing 20 minute dogfight , Oesau defended skillfully , though his aircraft was damaged by gunfire . While attempting an emergency landing , his Gustav received a final burst of fire in the cockpit area and crashed into the ground 6 miles south west of St . Vith . His body was thrown clear of the aircraft some yards away . According to the " Eighth Air Force Mission Folder for 11 May 1944 , Mission 351 " , Lt . Doyle engaged in a turning dogfight with a pair of Bf 109s , scoring hits on the leader . Doyle had then broken off combat without claiming a kill , unaware that his victim , Oesau , had been killed by a 20 mm shell . Doyle ' s kill had been the first kill of the 474th Fighter Group in its first combat with the " Luftwaffe " . There is some dispute regarding who exactly shot down his fighter . Some sources claim that he was shot during the dogfight and while the aircraft was falling to the ground , he was shot at again a few feet above ground , possibly by the Mustangs of 354th FG . Lt Wilbur Jarvis , No . 2 in the flight led by Doyle received a " Damaged " credit ( not a kill ) for Oesau ' s aircraft . Doyle noted bullet damage in the cockpit area and his gun camera footage showed that it was Oesau ' s Green 13 . German records indicated that his death was caused by an explosive shell in the cockpit , his body having several bullet wounds . Later an image from the Gun camera was published ( without caption ) that purportedly showed Oesau ' s aircraft from the right side . Oesau was aged 30 at the time of his death . He had a total of 127 kills gained over 300 missions . 27 were Spitfires , 14 four - engined bombers , 44 were scored on the Eastern front and 9 in the Spanish Civil War . In recognition of his record , JG 1 received the title " Oesau " in honor of its fallen " Geschwaderkommodore " . Only Werner Mölders had a similar honor with JG 51 Mölders . Walter Oesau is buried in Meldorf , close to his birthplace and the town museum ( " Dithmarscher Landesmuseum " ) has documented his last journey in pictures . Aftermath and historical importance . During his career , Oesau was mentioned five times in the Wehrmachtbericht . These were the daily reports by Oberkommando der Wehrmacht and even one mention is considered to be high military honor . The last one on 15 May 1944 was after his death . Johannes Steinhoff , the high - ranking Luftwaffe ace ( 176 Kills ) who went on to become the Chief of Staff for Allied Air Forces in Central Europe , once said that In 1940 , frustrated with the perceived lack of success against RAF Fighter Command , Göring was keen on infusing the fighter force leadership with younger blood . He perceived a lack of aggressiveness in the Jagdgeschwader leadership . The likes of Theo Osterkamp were the first victim of this policy , handing over JG 51 to Werner Mölders . Oesau was considered to be one such rising star . However , being a star and staying in Göring ' s favor required keeping up the kill rate and promotions were invariably linked to scores . According to Dr . Kurt Tank , the Focke – Wulf designer , although many of the younger generation were good flyers , they were unable to cope with problems of overall planning and broader strategic aspects . However , Oesau was one of the outstanding leaders ever produced by Luftwaffe fighter wings with the likes of Werner Mölders and Adolf Galland . The decision to continually retain or return gifted experts ( ' Experten ' ) to front line battle proved extremely costly , resulting in the death in combat of many of the earlier experts and aces . This , coupled with the acute shortage of well trained pilots and the fact that by 1943 they were facing a better equipped and well - trained enemy , meant the life expectancy of even the most gifted was tragically short . Author John Weal says that , although other Geschwaderkommodore would end up dying in combat , nothing would showcase the changing fortunes of Luftwaffe fighter forces than the death of Walter Oesau . Personality and personal life . German historian Hans Otto Böhm commented on Oesau as " One of my best professors " . There is little information available on the personal side of Walter Oesau . He had good sense of humor and liked to spend time with his friends . He was a simple man , who did not display any flamboyant personal emblems on his aircraft . His aircraft while commanding JG 2 did not have any special markings except for the unit ' s normal yellow under – cowling . While Oesau commanded , JG 2 , like many others , dropped the special symbols for Stab ( headquarters flight ) units in favor of numerals . This helped make the leader ' s aircraft anonymous . Unlike other aces , Oesau reportedly never had markings on his rudder representing his personal tally , although this is contradicted by some photos displaying what may be his aircraft rudder painted with score of downed aircraft . The authenticity of the photograph is questioned by some as there are also Ju 87 photos supposedly signed by Oesau ( he never flew a " Stuka " bomber ) .