Wilhelm Balthasar Major Wilhelm Balthasar ( 2 February 1914 – 3 July 1941 ) was a German World War II Luftwaffe flying ace , commander of Jagdgeschwader 2 ( JG 2 ) and a winner of the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves ( ) . The Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership . Legally it was Germany ' s highest military decoration at the time of its presentation to Wilhelm Balthasar . A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat . During his Luftwaffe career , Wilhelm Balthasar was credited with 47 victories — including 7 in the Spanish Civil War — and 13 aircraft on the ground . Between 1939 and 1941 he flew about 300 combat missions in addition to 465 he flew in Spain . Early life . Balthasar was born in Fulda , Hesse - Kassel . Like his father , who was killed in action on Western Front in World War I , Wilhelm served in the Reichswehr as an artillery officer from 1933 until his transfer to the Luftwaffe in 1935 . In November 1936 , he volunteered to join " Sonderstab W " , named after its commander General Helmuth Wilberg , for deployment in the Spanish Civil War . Legion Condor . Following his arrival in Spain , Balthasar served with " Kampfgruppe " K / 88 and " Aufklärungsgruppe " A / 88 flying bomber and reconnaissance missions in Junkers Ju 52 and Heinkel He 70 . On 23 November 1936 , he brought back information that enabled German forces to successfully bomb the port city of Cartagena and also gained his first victory when he shot down a Spanish Republican Air Force I - 16 on 20 January 1937 . On 16 March 1937 Balthasar made an emergency landing at Almorox airfield . As he landed his crippled He - 70 , 3 J / 88s fighters were taking off on a train strafing mission . Spotting an experimental Heinkel He - 112 fighter nearby Balthasar , claiming to be an experienced fighter pilot , received permission to fly the monoplane fighter . Balthasar took off and using the Heinkel ' s 20mm cannon blew up an ammunition rail - car . On his way back to the airfield , he also claimed a republican tank destroyed . Upon landing , Balthasar was initially reprimanded by the commanding officer . However , when the commander learned of his escapade , he was given command of " Aufklärungsgruppe " A / 88 , a detachment of He - 45 biplanes and the He - 112 fighter given the tasks of armed reconnaissance , ground attacks and artillery spotting . In September 1937 , Wilhelm Balthasar joined " Jagdgruppe 88 " J / 88 and claimed six more victories ( including four Tupolev SB bombers in one mission on 7 February 1938 ) flying He - 51 and the legendary Messerschmitt Bf 109 . He returned to Germany in March 1938 . For his bravery and leadership in Spain he became one of only 28 men to be awarded the " Spanienkreuz in Gold mit Schwertern und Brillanten " . World War II . At the outset of World War II , Balthasar was " Staffelkapitän " of 1 . / Jagdgeschwader 1 , which was in July 1940 renamed 7 . / Jagdgeschwader 27 . The squadron did not see any action during the 1939 operation " Fall Weiss " , as it was tasked with the air defense of Berlin . On 10 May 1940 German forces launched the offensive in Western Europe and it was there Balthasar made his mark . On his first mission , 11 May 1940 , he claimed three Belgian Air Force Gloster Gladiator fighters and a French Morane 406 . He also recorded 9 victories in two days between 5 and 6 June 1940 , which brought his World War II tally to 21 . For this achievement , on 14 June 1940 , " Hauptmann " Balthasar was awarded the Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes " ) , becoming the second Luftwaffe fighter pilot after Werner Mölders , to be so decorated . Ultimately , Balthasar was the most successful German fighter pilot of the French campaign with 23 victories . On 1 September 1940 , Balthasar was appointed " Gruppenkommandeur " of III / Jagdgeschwader 3 , hunting in the skies above London . On 4 September he was seriously wounded in the leg during a dogfight with several " 222 Squadron " Spitfires over Canterbury and although still on crutches , Balthasar was flying operationally again some 14 days later . On 23 September 1940 he claimed two Spitfires and had three more victories before returning for hospital treatment in November 1940 . On 16 February 1941 Hauptmann Balthasar took over the " Richthofen Geschwader " , succeeding Hauptmann Greisert who assumed temporary command following the loss of Helmut Wick . Between 22 June and 27 June 1941 he claimed another nine Royal Air Force ( RAF ) aircraft , including five Bristol Blenheim bombers on 23 June , which brought his victory total to 40 . For this milestone , he was awarded Knight ' s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves ( " Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub " ) on 2 July 1941 . Wilhelm Balthasar was killed only a day later during an aerial combat with RAF fighters over Aire , France . As he was diving violently in his Bf 109 F - 4 , the wing of his aircraft malfunctioned and he crashed to his death near Saint - Omer . He was posthumously promoted to the rank of Major and buried at a World War I cemetery in Flanders alongside his father .