Egon Mayer Egon " Connie " Mayer ( born 19 August 1917 , Konstanz – killed in action 2 March 1944 , near Montmédy ) was a German World War II fighter ace who served in the Luftwaffe from 1937 until his death in 1944 . He was also a recipient of the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords . The Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves and Swords was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership . Mayer shot down 102 enemy aircraft . His victories were all claimed over the Western Front in 353 missions and included 26 four - engine bombers , 51 Supermarine Spitfire s and 12 P - 47 Thunderbolt s . Mayer was the first fighter pilot to score 100 victories entirely on the western front . His final command was Geschwaderkommodore of the Jagdgeschwader 2 " Richthofen " fighter wing . World War II . Egon Mayer joined the Luftwaffe in 1937 . After regular peacetime training , " Fahnenjunker " ( cadet ) Mayer was transferred to I . / Jagdgeschwader 2 ( JG 2 — 2nd Fighter Wing ) on 6 December 1939 . He was serving with 6 . / JG 2 when he shot down a French Morane and claimed his first victory on 13 June 1940 . On 10 June 1941 , Oberleutnant Mayer was appointed " Staffelkapitän " ( squadron leader ) of 7 . / JG 2 , based at St Pol - Brias . On 1 August 1941 , after 20 victories , Mayer was awarded the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross . On 19 August , his 25th birthday , Mayer shot down two Spitfires over Dieppe during Operation Jubilee . In November 1942 , Hauptmann Mayer was appointed " Gruppenkommandeur " ( group commander ) of III . / JG 2 . On 23 November , Mayer claimed his first victories over United States Army Air Forces ( USAAF ) four - engine bombers , when he shot down two B - 17 Flying Fortress and a B - 24 Liberator . Together with Georg - Peter Eder , Mayer developed the head - on attack as the most effective tactic against the Allied daylight heavy combat box bomber formations . It was in June 1943 when Mayer encountered a future ace from the 56th Fighter Group , of the 8th Air Force . His name was Robert S . Johnson . Johnson ' s Republic P - 47D Thunderbolt had been badly shot - up by a gaggle of Focke Wulf Fw 190 ' s during a routine mission . As Johnson limped home , with a canopy that wouldn ' t open , hydraulic fluid and oil covering his windscreen , Mayer pulled along beside him , in his FW - 190 . Mayer looked the wounded P - 47 over , and then circled to come in from Johnson ' s six - oclock , and give it the " coup de grace . " The first gun pass failed to knock the heavy American fighter out of the sky . Mayer made two more runs on Johnson , without success . After running out of ammunition , Mayer pulled alongside Johnson , saluted him and headed for home . Johnson landed his plane , and counted more than 200 holes , without even moving around the airplane . He also saw that a 20mm cannon shell had exploded just behind his headrest , making it impossible to open his canopy . Egon Mayer was honored with the Oak Leaves to the Knight ' s Cross on 16 April 1943 after 63 aerial victories . Oberstleutnant Mayer was appointed " Geschwaderkommodore " ( wing commander ) of JG 2 on 1 July 1943 , thus succeeding Oberst Walter Oesau . His final score stood at 102 , when he was shot down by a P - 47 Thunderbolt near Montmédy in Focke - Wulf Fw 190 A - 6 ( " Werknummer " 470468 — factory number ) on 2 March 1944 . He was posthumously decorated with the Swords to the Knight ' s Cross . Posthumous . He was buried at the cemetery of Beaumont - le - Roger , France and later re - interred at the German War Cemetery , St . Desiré de Lisieux . In " An Ace of the Eighth " by Norman Fortier , the author claims Mayer was shot down by Lt . Walter Gresham of the 358th Fighter Squadron , 355th Fighter Group . The claim is based on gun camera footage and recollections of Mayer ' s wingman , who was forced to bail out during the action .