Werner Mölders Werner Mölders ( 18 March 1913 – 22 November 1941 ) was a World War II German Luftwaffe pilot and the leading German fighter ace in the Spanish Civil War . Mölders became the first pilot in aviation history to claim 100 aerial victories — that is , 100 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft , and was highly decorated for his achievements . He was instrumental in the development of new fighter tactics which led to the finger - four formation . He died in an air crash in which he was a passenger . Mölders joined the Luftwaffe in 1934 at the age of 21 . In 1938 , he volunteered for service in the " Condor Legion " , which supported General Francisco Franco ' s Nationalist side in the Spanish Civil War , and shot down 15 aircraft . In World War II , he lost two wingmen in the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain , but shot down 53 enemy aircraft . With his tally standing at 68 victories , Mölders and his unit , the Jagdgeschwader 51 ( JG 51 ) , were transferred to the Eastern Front in June 1941 for the opening of " Operation Barbarossa " . By the end of 22 June 1941 , the first day of " Barbarossa " , he had added another four victories to his tally and a week later , Mölders surpassed Manfred von Richthofen ' s 1918 record of 80 victories . By mid - July , he had 100 . Prevented from flying further combat missions for propaganda reasons , at the age of 28 Mölders was promoted to " Oberst " , and appointed Inspector General of Fighters . He was inspecting the Luftwaffe units in the Crimea when he was ordered to Berlin to attend the state funeral of Ernst Udet , the World War I flying ace . On the flight to Berlin , the Heinkel He 111 in which he was travelling as a passenger encountered a heavy thunderstorm during which one of the aircraft ' s engines failed . While attempting to land , the Heinkel crashed at Breslau , killing Mölders and two others . The German " Wehrmacht " of the Third Reich and the " Bundeswehr " of the Federal Republic of Germany both honoured him by naming two fighter wings , a destroyer and barracks after him . However , in 1998 , the German Parliament decided that members of the Condor Legion such as Mölders , should " no longer be honoured " . Therefore , in 2005 , the German Ministry of Defence decided to remove the name " Mölders " from the fighter wing still bearing his name . Childhood , education and early career . Mölders was born on 18 March 1913 in Gelsenkirchen , the son of teacher Viktor Mölders and his wife Annemarie , née Riedel . He was the third of four children , with an older sister , Annemarie , an older brother , Hans , and a younger brother , Victor . After his father , a Reserve " Leutnant " in the King ' s 145th Infantry Regiment , was killed in action on 2 March 1915 in the Argonne Forest in France , his mother moved the family into her parents ' house in Brandenburg an der Havel . In Brandenburg , Mölders found a father figure in Chaplain Erich Klawitter , who instilled firm religious beliefs in him . From 1919 to 1931 , Mölders attended , first , the elementary school and then the Saldria - Gymnasium , or secondary school . At school he discovered his love for water sports , especially rowing . He joined two rowing clubs , first the " Saldria - Brandenburg " and later the " Brandenburger Ruderclub " , and enjoyed success at rowing - regattas . He was also a member of the " Bund Neudeutschland in der katholischen Jugendbewegung " , a Catholic youth organisation . Mölders graduated from school in early 1931 with the " Abitur " ( diploma ) and expressed a desire to become an officer in the armed forces . Mölders joined the II . / 2 infantry regiment of the Reichswehr in Allenstein , East Prussia on 1 April 1931 , serving as an officer cadet in the infantry . He attained the rank of " Fahnenjunker " - " Gefreiter " on 1 October 1931 , rising to " Fahnenjunker " - " Unteroffizier " on 1 April 1932 . After completing his basic military training in October 1932 , he transferred to the Military School Dresden . On 1 June 1933 , he successfully completed his training in Dresden and was promoted to ensign . He again was transferred , this time to the 1st Prussian Pioneer Battalion ( Infantry Regiment 2 ) at the Pioneer School in Munich . During his training years , Mölders made his first attempt to fulfil his dream of flying and volunteered for pilot training , but was declared unfit for flying . He tried again and was given conditional permission ( " bedingt tauglich " — with constraints ) to begin flight training . After his promotion to " Oberfähnrich " on 1 February 1934 , Mölders began his pilot training at the " Deutsche Verkehrsfliegerschule " ( German transport flying school ) in Cottbus , lasting from 6 February 1934 to 31 December 1934 . On 1 March 1934 , he was promoted to " Leutnant " and assigned to the recently established Luftwaffe . In the early stages of his pilot training , he suffered continually from nausea and vomiting , but he eventually overcame these problems and finished the course at the top of his class . The next phase of his military pilot ' s training was from 1 January 1935 to 30 June 1935 at the combat flying school in Tutow and the " Jagdfliegerschule " ( fighter pilot school ) at Schleißheim near Munich . He received the newly created Pilot ' s Badge of the Luftwaffe on 21 May 1935 . On 1 July 1935 , " Leutnant " Mölders was posted to " Fliegergruppe Schwerin " ( I . / JG 162 " Immelmann " ) . On 7 March 1936 , during the remilitarisation of the Rhineland , Mölders and his squadron ( " Staffel " ) flew from Lippstadt across the Ruhr region ; his unit was the first to arrive in Düsseldorf . During this period , Mölders met Luise Baldauf , whom he was to marry a few years later , shortly before his death . On 20 April 1936 , Adolf Hitler ' s birthday , numerous promotions were handed out , and Mölders advanced to " Oberleutnant " , effective as of 1 April 1936 . At the same time , he became leader of the fighter training squadron of the 2nd Group of Jagdgeschwader 134 " Horst Wessel " . This group was under the command of " Major " Theo Osterkamp , who became another of Mölders ' early mentors . Mölders was appointed squadron leader ( " Staffelkapitän " ) of the 1st squadron of Jagdgeschwader 334 on 15 March 1937 and served as an instructor in Wiesbaden . Condor Legion . In 1936 , the Germans sent a Luftwaffe force , the Condor Legion , to assist the Falangists in the Spanish Civil War . Mölders volunteered for service , and arrived by sea in Cadiz on 14 April 1938 . He was assigned to the 3rd squadron of Jagdgruppe 88 ( J 88 ) commanded by " Oberleutnant " Adolf Galland . The unit , stationed at the Valencia – Ebro front , was equipped with the Heinkel He 51 , but later switched to the Messerschmitt Bf 109 B - 2 . Mölders assumed command of the squadron on 24 May 1938 , when Galland returned to Germany . He claimed his first aerial victory , shooting down a Polikarpov I - 15 " Chato " ( " Curtiss " to the Germans ) near Algar , on 15 July 1938 . Over the remaining months of the year , Mölders became the leading ace of the Condor Legion , shooting down 15 aircraft in Spain : two I - 15 " Curtiss " , 12 I - 16 " Rata " and one Tupolev SB ( one " Rata " claimed on 23 September 1938 was not confirmed ) . In recognition of his exceptional performance as a commander and fighter pilot , Mölders was promoted to " Hauptmann " ( captain ) on 18 October 1938 , effective as of 1 October 1938 . He claimed his 14th and final confirmed aerial victory of the conflict by downing a Polikarpov I - 16 " Rata " near Mola on 3 November 1938 and returned to Germany on 5 December 1938 . From 6 December 1938 until March 1939 , Mölders was a member of the 1st group of Jagdgeschwader 133 ( JG 133 ) and held a staff position with the Inspector of Fighters at the " Reichsluftfahrtministerium " ( Imperial Air Ministry ) in Berlin . His task was to devise new fighter pilot tactics . In March 1939 he was given command as " Staffelkapitän " of 1 . / JG 133 , taking over command from " Oberleutnant " Hubertus von Bonin . JG 133 was later renamed Jagdgeschwader 53 " Pik As " ( " Ace of Spades " ) . For his achievements in Spain , Mölders was honoured with the Spanish " Medalla de la Campaña " and " Medalla Militar " on 4 May 1939 and the German Spanish Cross in Gold with Swords and Diamonds ( " Spanienkreuz in Gold mit Schwertern und Brillanten " ) on 6 June 1939 . The Condor Legion officially returned to Germany on 6 June 1939 and troops marched through Berlin to the Lustgarten , where the fallen were honoured . A formal state banquet for the most highly decorated soldiers was held in the marble gallery of the Reich Chancellery . Mölders was seated at table 1 , with " General der Flieger " Hugo Sperrle , General Don Antonio Aranda , General Gonzalo Queipo de Llano , " Oberst " Walter Warlimont , " Oberstleutnant " von Donat , " Leutnant " Reinhard Seiler and " Oberfeldwebel " Ignatz Prestele . Tactical innovations . With other airmen in Spain , Mölders developed the formation known as the " finger - four " . This improved the all - round field of vision and combat flexibility of a flight ( " Schwarm " ) , enhanced mutual protection , and encouraged pilot initiative . In the " finger - four " , the aircraft assumed positions corresponding to the fingertips of an outstretched hand . The fighters flew in two elements ( " Rotten " ) of two aircraft each ; two " Rotten " ( four aircraft ) made up a " Schwarm " ( swarm ) . Mölders is often credited with inventing the cross - over turn . An early version of the manoeuvre , as used by a " Vic " of five aircraft ( a tight formation forming the letter " V " ) , appeared in the Royal Air Force ( RAF ) Training Manual of 1922 , and the manoeuvre may even date back to 1918 . However , it had fallen into disuse due to the difficulty of performing it in a multi - aircraft formation with the contemporary spacing of less than between aircraft . The wide lateral separation of introduced by J 88 both necessitated such a turning manoeuvre , to enable a " Schwarm " to turn as a unit , and minimised the risk of midair collisions previously associated with it . World War II . Phoney War and the Battle of France . At the outbreak of World War II on 1 September 1939 , Mölders ' " Staffel " was stationed in the west protecting Germany ' s border in the Mosel – Saar – Pfalz region . On 8 September 1939 , Mölders ' fighter suffered an engine failure ; he crash - landed , flipping the aircraft over and injuring his back . The injury kept him out of combat for several days . He returned to flying on 19 September . The following day , between Contz and Sierck , at the apex of the " Dreiländereck " , over the three borders area , he shot down his first aircraft of the war , a Curtiss P - 36 ( according to other historians , it was one of a trio of French Hawk H - 75As ) , of " Groupe de Chasse " II / 5 ( Sgt Queginer bailed out ) . Thanks to that victory , he earned the Iron Cross 2nd Class . He recalled his first victory : On 26 September 1939 , JG 53 was ordered to form its " III . Gruppe " . Mölders relinquished command of 1 . / JG 53 to " Oberleutnant " Hans - Karl Mayer and organized the formation of III . / JG 53 at Wiesbaden – Erbenheim ; within two weeks , " Gruppenkommandeur " Mölders reported that the " Gruppe " was conditionally operational with 40 pilots and 48 aircraft . On 22 December , Mölders , leading four Bf 109s from III . / JG 53 , engaged three Hawker Hurricane s over the Saar River , between Metz and Thionville , that were trying to intercept an unidentified aircraft . Mölders and Hans von Hahn shot down two Hurricanes flown by Sergeants R . M . Perry and J . Winn , becoming the first German fighter pilots to shoot down a Hawker Hurricane . Mölders shot down another Hurricane on 2 April , when he forced Flight Lieutenant C . D . " Pussy " Palmer of No . 1 Squadron RAF , to bail out , and on 20 April , he destroyed a French Curtiss P - 36 HawkA east of Saarbrücken . By the time the Phoney War ended and ( " Fall Gelb " , the invasion of France and the Low Countries on 10 May 1940 ) opened the Battle of France , Mölders ' tally of aerial victories on the Western Front had increased to nine . This number included one Bristol Blenheim , two Curtiss P - 36 Hawks , two Morane - Saulnier M . S . 406 s and four Hawker Hurricanes . On 14 May , while engaging enemy bombers over Sedan , Mölders was shot down , but bailed out safely . He claimed his 19th and 20th victories on 27 May 1940 , downing two Curtiss Hawks southwest of Amiens . Subsequently , he became the first fighter pilot to be awarded the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes " ) and on 29 May 1940 was honourably mentioned in the " Wehrmachtbericht " radio report , the first of 11 such mentions . On 5 June 1940 , on his 133rd combat mission of the war , engaging in aerial combat for the 32nd time , Mölders was shot down near Compiègne at about 18 : 40 by " Sous lieutenant " René Pomier Layrargues , flying a French Air Force Dewoitine D . 520 . Mölders was taken prisoner but liberated three weeks later upon the armistice with France . While in French captivity , Mölders asked to shake hands with the pilot who had shot him down , and learned that Pomier - Layrargues had been killed in action 30 minutes after their encounter . His initial experience in French captivity was harsh ; he sustained abrasions to his face and his Knight ' s Cross was stolen from him . A French officer , " Capitaine " Giron , intervened , ensured he was treated fairly , and returned the stolen medal . When a French soldier was later sentenced to death by the Germans for beating Mölders , Mölders approached Hermann Göring and requested clemency , which was granted . Battle of Britain . Returning to Germany , Mölders was promoted to " Major " on 19 July 1940 and took command the following day of Fighter Wing 51 ( JG 51 ) from the recently promoted " Generalmajor " Theo Osterkamp . At the time , JG 51 were based at Saint - Inglevert , Pas - de - Calais , France . Mölders flew his first combat sortie with JG 51 on 28 July , attacking a No . 41 Squadron Supermarine Spitfire flown by Flying Officer A . D . J . Lovell . On this mission , according to legend , Mölders was hit in a dogfight over Dover by the South African ace Sailor Malan , sustaining three splinter wounds in the lower leg , one in the knee and one in the left foot . " Oberleutnant " Richard Leppla shot down the pursuing Spitfire , and Mölders was able to make an emergency landing at Wissant , France . Recent research suggests Mölders was actually wounded in combat by Flight Lieutenant J . T ( John Terence ) " Terry " Webster DFC in a Spitfire of 41 Squadron . Webster was killed in action on 5 September 1940 . Mölders wounds , although not serious , kept him from further operational flying for a month . " Generalmajor " Osterkamp briefly led the " Geschwader " again during Mölders ' convalescence . On 7 August 1940 , Mölders returned to the " Geschwader " without medical clearance for combat , to participate in Operation Eagle Attack ( code name " Adlertag " ) . Adolf Hitler had issued Führer Directive no . 17 ( " Weisung Nr . " 17 ) on 1 August 1940 ; the strategic objective was to engage and defeat the Royal Air Force ( RAF ) so as to achieve air superiority in preparation for Operation Sea Lion ( " Unternehmen Seelöwe " ) , the proposed amphibious invasion of Great Britain . Mölders returned to approved operational flying status and flew his next two combat missions on 28 August 1940 . His aide and wingman , " Oberleutnant " Kircheis , was shot down and taken prisoner during one of these missions ; " Oberleutnant " Georg Claus took his place . Mölders claimed two Hurricanes on 31 August and was mentioned again in the " Wehrmachtbericht " . " Oberleutnant " Victor Mölders , his younger brother , who had been appointed " Staffelkapitän " of the 2 . / JG 51 on 11 September , was shot down and taken prisoner of war on 7 October 1940 by Archie McKellar . Two Spitfires of No . 92 Squadron RAF ( Sgt PR Eyles and P / O HP Hill both killed ) were shot down near Dungeness on 20 September increased Mölders ' tally of aerial victories to 40 . He was the first fighter pilot to reach this number during the war and was awarded the 2nd Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub " ) on 21 September 1940 . The award was presented by Adolf Hitler on 23 September in the new " Reichskanzlei " in Berlin . After the award ceremony , Hermann Göring invited Mölders to his hunting lodge in the Rominter Heide . Mölders returned to his unit by the end of September and continued to win aerial victories . On 11 October , Mölders claimed his 43rd victory . The 66 Squadron Spitfire I " X4562 " was flown by Pilot Officer J . H . T . Pickering , who bailed out , wounded , over Canterbury . Three Hurricanes on 12 October brought his tally to 51 victories , and he received a preferential promotion to " Oberstleutnant " in recognition of his 50 victories on 25 October 1940 . While a severe bout of influenza then kept him grounded for a few weeks , his wingman in over 60 aerial combats , " Oberleutnant " Georg Claus , was killed over the Thames . On 1 December , Mölders claimed his last and 55th victory of 1940 , 25 of which occurred in the Battle of France and 30 in the Battle of Britain . Mölders and members of JG 53 spent a couple of weeks of R & R skiing in the Vorarlberg before continuing operations against the RAF over the Channel and occupied France during early 1941 . His new wingman from January 1941 was " Oberleutnant " Hartmann Grasser . Mölders claimed his first aerial victory after the lengthy vacation on 10 February 1941 ; his tally reached 60 on 26 February and stood at 68 when the " Geschwader " was recalled from the Channel front . His logbook showed 238 combat missions plus an additional 71 reconnaissance flights ; he had engaged in aerial combat 70 times . Eastern Front . In June 1941 , JG 51 and the majority of the Luftwaffe were transferred to the Eastern Front in preparation for Operation Barbarossa , the invasion of the Soviet Union . On the first day of combat operations , 22 June 1941 , Mölders shot down three Tupolev SB bombers and one Curtis Hawk , earning him the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern " ) . Mölders was only the second German serviceman to receive this award ; Adolf Galland , Fighter Squadron Commodore ( " Geschwaderkommodore " ) of Fighter Wing 26 , had received one the day before . The award was presented by Adolf Hitler on 3 July 1941 in the " Wolfsschanze " Hitler ' s Headquarters in Rastenburg . On 30 June , Mölders had become the highest - scoring fighter pilot in the history of aerial warfare after downing five Soviet bombers and bringing his tally to 82 , two more than the record set in World War I by the " Red Baron " , Manfred von Richthofen . On 12 July 1941 , JG 51 under the leadership of Mölders reported that it had destroyed 500 Soviet aircraft since the beginning of hostilities against the Soviets on 22 June , and had suffered three casualties . That day , JG 51 also reported its 1 , 200th aerial victory of the war , the credit going to " Hauptmann " Leppla . Three days later , on 15 July 1941 , Mölders surpassed the " C " mark , claiming victories Nos . 100 and 101 , and celebrated with a victory roll over the airfield . The following day he received news that he had been awarded the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves , Swords and Diamonds ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub , Schwertern und Brillanten " ) . Mölders was the first of 27 German servicemen to receive this award . The diamonds added to the Knight ' s Cross were introduced officially on 28 September 1941 , more than two months after Mölders earned the award . Mölders was promoted to " Oberst " on 20 July 1941 , effective immediately , and banned from further combat flying . Surrendering command of JG 51 to Major Friedrich Beckh he was transferred to the Reich Air Ministry , a temporary position he held until 6 August 1941 . Mölders was summoned to the " Wolfsschanze " again , where he received the Diamonds from Adolf Hitler on 26 July 1941 . On 7 August 1941 , he was appointed Inspector of Fighters ( " Inspekteur der Jagdflieger " ) . High command . An " Oberst " at 28 , Mölders was appointed Inspector General of Fighters , a post responsible for deciding the ongoing tactical and operational doctrine of the Luftwaffe ' s fighter strategies . Returning to Russia in September 1941 , he set up a command post at Chaplinka airfield , from where he flew in his personal Fieseler Fi 156 " Storch " ( stork ) on tours of the " Jagdwaffe " and personally directed German fighter operations . Mölders also flew unofficially on missions , and actively commanded his old unit , JG 51 , for several more months . On 9 August 1941 , he took Herbert Kaiser on a " teaching " mission against a formation of Il - 2 " Stormoviks " . Mölders showed Kaiser how to shoot them down . He recalled later : " He positioned himself off to one side of - and some distance away from - the last Il - 2 in a formation of six . He then turned in quickly and opened fire at the enemy ' s cockpit from an angle of some 30 degrees . The Il - 2 immediately burst into flames and crashed . ' Do you see how it ' s done ? ' , Oberst Mölders ' voice came over the R / T . ' Right , now you take the next one . ' I carried out the same manoeuvre and , sure enough , the next Il - 2 went down on fire . ' And again ! ' It was like being on a training flight . Another short burst and the third Il - 2 was ablaze . The whole lesson had lasted no more than 12 minutes ! " In this way , Kaiser scored his 23rd and 24th kills . But because Mölders was officially banned from operational flying , the first Russian aircraft was never officially credited to him . Within the next two months , it is speculated that Mölders unofficially shot down around another 30 Soviet aircraft . At least six of Mölders ' unofficial victories are recorded in his fellow pilots ' private log books . Death . On 22 November 1941 , Mölders traveled as a passenger in a Heinkel He 111 of Kampfgeschwader 27 " Boelcke " from the Crimea to Germany to attend the funeral of his superior , Ernst Udet , who had committed suicide . Attempting to land at Breslau during a thunderstorm , the aircraft crashed . Mölders , pilot " Oberleutnant " Kolbe and flight engineer " Oberfeldwebel " Hobbie were killed . Major Dr . Wenzel and radio operator " Oberfeldwebel " Tenz survived the crash landing . Dr . Wenzel sustained a broken arm and leg as well as a concussion , and Tenz a broken ankle . Mölders ' fatal injuries included a broken back and a crushed ribcage . Accident investigators then and since have speculated whether Mölders would have survived the crash if he had used his seat belt . Mölders was given a state funeral in Berlin on 28 November 1941 . His coffin was laid out in the honour court of the Imperial Air Ministry . The guard of honour consisted of Johann Schalk , Günther Lützow , Walter Oesau , Joachim Müncheberg , Adolf Galland , Wolfgang Falck , Herbert Kaminski and Karl - Gottfried Nordmann . Mölders was buried next to Ernst Udet and Manfred von Richthofen at the " Invalidenfriedhof " in Berlin . The 8 . 8 cm flak in Berlin Tiergarten fired a salute ; Hermann Göring gave the eulogy . Personal life and character . Mölders was well known for his strength of character . His men nicknamed him " Vati " ( Daddy ) , in recognition of his paternal attitude toward them , and the care he took of their well - being . He was a devoutly religious individual who demanded that all Allied aviators captured by those under his command be treated civilly , and often would invite captured pilots to dine with him . Mölders married Luise Baldauf , née Thurner , the widow of a friend who had been killed in active service , on 13 September 1941 . Erich Klawitter , Mölders ' childhood mentor , performed the religious ceremony in Falkenstein , Taunus . Witnesses to the wedding included " Leutnant " Erwin Fleig and " Oberleutnant " Hartmann Grasser . The marriage produced a posthumous daughter , Verena . Third Reich authorities disapproved of his choice of a Catholic marriage ceremony , performed by Klawitter . Klawitter had been barred from membership in the " Reichskulturkammer " ( Reich Culture Chamber ) and was considered politically unreliable after a 1936 breach of the Pulpit Law , a remnant of the 1870s " Kulturkampf " that among other religions barred Catholics from criticizing the state from the pulpit . Legacy . Werner Mölders ' old unit , " Jagdgeschwader 51 " , was christened " Mölders " in his honour , on 22 November 1941 , only hours after his death . Its members were entitled to wear the " Mölders " cuffband . His death , however , was also put to other uses . Shortly after Mölders died , the British Intelligence agency dropped a flyer over Germany . The so - called " Möldersbrief " ( Mölders - letter ) was a copy of correspondence supposedly written by Mölders to the provost of Schwerin . In this letter , he expressed his strong belief in Catholicism and stated that , especially in the face of death , many supporters of National Socialism still find strength and courage with Catholicism . Mölders ' premature death , just shortly after Udet ' s own suicide , was too great an opportunity for Sefton Delmer , the chief of the British black propaganda in the Political Warfare Executive ( PWE ) , to ignore . His idea was to use Mölders ' popularity in Germany , distributing a letter thus creating the assumption that Mölders strong belief led him to oppose the Nazi regime in Germany . The letter was extremely well conceived . It did not bluntly call for opposition against the state . It never even mentioned the National Socialists by name but rather used metaphors like " the godless " . Nevertheless every German reader knew what was meant . The letter caused a stir in the upper echelons of the Nazi regime . In his diaries , Joseph Goebbels assumed that someone in the German Catholic church organization wrote , and distributed , the letter . A bounty of 100 , 000 Reichsmark , posted by the Führer himself , revealed no clues to its origins . Even the strongest repressive actions could not hinder the distribution of the letter . Post - war honors . The " Invalidenfriedhof " , where Mölders is buried , lay in East Berlin and in 1975 East German officials ordered all the graves leveled . After the 1990 German reunification , Mölders ' grave was rebuilt and rededicated on 11 October 1991 by Mölders ' school friend and " Domherr " of the St . Hedwig ' s Cathedral , Heribert Rosal . The ceremony was witnessed by guests from the United States , Great Britain , Austria , Spain and Hungary . After the war , on 13 April 1968 , a destroyer of the " Bundesmarine " ( Federal German Navy ) was christened " Mölders " in Bath , Maine ( USA ) . It was in service between 1969 and 2003 . As of 24 June 2005 , it is the central attraction at the Navy Museum in Wilhelmshaven . On 9 November 1972 , a base of a battalion of the 34th Signal Regiment of the " Bundeswehr " ( Federal German Army ) in Visselhövede received the name " Mölders " . Most recently , the Fighter Wing 74 ( Jagdgeschwader 74 ) , stationed in Neuburg an der Donau , received the name " Mölders " in 1973 . Fighter Ace " Generalleutnant " Günther Rall presented the cuffbands . Reversal of honors : report by the Office for Military History and its consequences . Mölders ' career and legacy offer an example of the challenges posed in placing the heroism of the German armed forces in the post - war cultural , political and social setting . In 1998 , on the occasion of the 61st anniversary of the bombing of the Spanish town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War , the German Parliament decided that members of the Condor Legion , such as Mölders , should " no longer be honoured " . In 2005 , the German Ministry of Defence ( " Bundesministerium der Verteidigung " ) decided to remove the name " Mölders " from the JG 74 . The decision was confirmed on 11 March 2005 by the Federal Minister of Defence Peter Struck , and at 10 : 00 , the flags and cufftitles were removed . Mölders ' supporters challenged the ruling , and pointed out that Mölders had been posted to Spain well after the bombing of Guernica . They pointed to his equivocal political attitude towards National Socialism and his unequivocal moral commitment to Catholicism . Not only did he have a Catholic " religious " marriage ceremony but Klawitter , regarded by the Third Reich as politically " unreliable , " had performed the ceremony . Furthermore , Mölders had joined the Catholic youth organisation " Bund Neudeutschland " " ( Union for New Germany ) " on 1 October 1925 and had been a youth leader of the organization from 1929 to 1931 . The Third Reich clearly had considered the " Bund Neudeutschland " as a threat : The " Völkischer Beobachter " ( " The People ' s Observer " , the official newspaper of the party ) had reported on 26 January 1938 that the " Bund " had been outlawed for its proven subversive activities against the Reich , based on the " Verordnung des Reichspräsidenten zum Schutz von Volk und Staat " ( " Reich Presidential Decree for the Protection of People and State " ) of 28 February 1933 . Despite petitions from politicians and high - ranking active and retired servicemen , among them Horst Seehofer , Günther Rall and Jörg Kuebart , the Office for Military History ( MGFA ) noted that Mölders ' membership in the " Bund Neudeutschland " did not provide sufficient evidence of his having been critical of the regime , but rather showed the contrary and concluded that it was questionable whether Mölders had distanced himself enough from National Socialism before his death in 1941 . Consequently , the decision remained in force . Other evidence has surfaced illustrating Mölders ' ambiguous relationship with the National Socialist regime . Mölders may have been in contact with bishop Clemens August Graf von Galen , who was highly critical of the Nazi regime . Von Galen publicly criticized the regime for the Gestapo ' s tactics and the deportation and euthanasia of the mentally ill . According to the diary kept by Heinrich Portmann , von Galen ' s secretary and chaplain , Mölders threatened to return his awards if von Galen ' s euthanasia accusation turned out to be true . Furthermore , Portmann stated that Hitler had asked Mölders during the presentation of the Diamonds to the Knight ' s Cross if there was anything he wished for . Mölders reportedly responded , " Please leave the bishop of Münster alone . " Hitler assured him that " Yes , nothing will happen to the bishop of Münster . " The MGFA concluded in 2004 that this story was most likely false . The MGFA revised its position again on 28 June 2007 , concluding that there had been contact between Mölders and von Galen . Evidence also demonstrates Mölders ' propensity to value friendships over political expediency . According to Viktor Mölders , his brother had saved Georg Küch , one of Werner Mölders ' closest friends , who had been classified as a half - Jew by the Nuremberg Laws , from death in the concentration camps . Mölders ' and Küch ' s friendship dated to their school days at the Saldria - Gymnasium in Brandenburg an der Havel . Küch ' s mother , Alice née Siegel , was of Jewish birth . Küch ' s father , Richard Küch , owned and operated a pharmacy in Brandenburg . Georg , himself a pharmacy student , was expelled from university under the Nuremberg Laws , just two semesters shy of his graduation . In 1940 , Richard Küch fell ill , and owning and operating the pharmacy became a bureaucratic problem for the family . Georg Küch contacted his friend Mölders in mid - February 1941 , asking for help . Werner Mölders immediately responded to Küch on 16 February 1941 , stating that he had taken care of the matter and asking Küch not to pursue the issue on his own . When Richard Küch died in June 1941 , his wife was able to sell the pharmacy for fair market value . Normally , since she was Jewish , it would have been confiscated . She also remained exempt from wearing the detested yellow badge until late 1943 . She was then taken to the Theresienstadt concentration camp , where she worked as a cook . Georg Küch , Alice Küch , and Georg ' s sister Friedel survived the Holocaust . Friedel Küch repeatedly stated that Werner Mölders had been responsible for protecting the family ; the mantle of his protection had persisted beyond his death . The MGFA ruled this assertion " highly speculative , " and did not investigate further .