Emil Thuy Emil Thuy ( 11 March 1894 – 11 June 1930 ) , Pour le Merite , Württemberg ' s Order of Military Merit , House Order of Hohenzollern , Iron Cross First and Second Class , was one of the leading German fighter aces of World War I , with 35 victories . After the war , he was an adviser to the Finnish air force and was involved in the secret origins of the Luftwaffe within the Soviet Union . Early life . Emil Thuy was born in Hagen , Germany , the son of a factory owner . He was interested in airplanes even as a child , building models and testing a glider . After graduation from secondary school , he worked for a while in a colliery in Lebanon , Germany . He then enrolled in 1913 in the Faculty of Mining at the Technical University of Clausthal ; he was interested in metallurgical engineering . Military service . In August , 1914 , Thuy volunteered to serve as a pioneer , which was the German equivalent of a combat engineer . After only six weeks basic training , he was rushed into combat . In November , 1914 , he was so severely wounded as to be considered unfit for further military service . Nevertheless , when he recuperated , he volunteered for the " Luftstreitkräfte " . He underwent aviation training in Berlin . He then reported for duty with FFA 53 , which was a reconnaissance unit that spotted and directed artillery fire from the air . He reported in on 10 July 1915 as a vizefeldwebel or non - commissioned pilot . He would remain with FFA 53 until 1 November 1916 . Despite flying a two seater plane poorly suited for combat , he scored his first victory on 8 September 1915 . On 1 November 1916 , he entered fighter pilot training , graduating only 18 days later . He was then assigned to Jagdstaffel 21 , then equipped with Albatros fighters . He was commissioned a leutnant ( lieutenant ) in the reserves on 27 March 1917 after three weeks training . On 16 April 1917 , after joining Saxon " Jagdstaffel 21 " , he scored his second victory . He began to tally triumphs on a regular basis . By the time he left Jasta 21 on 29 September 1917 , his list read 14 , with number 14 being shot down on 22 September . He then transferred to command Jasta 28 , which had lost two commanders killed in action in the previous month . On 24 September , he scored his first victory with his new squadron . He continued to accumulate wins on a steady basis , by ones and twos . He was injured in a crash on 2 February 1918 . On the 20th , he was discharged from hospital and returned to duty . On 30 June 1918 , he was awarded the Blue Max ( Pour le Merite ) . At about this time , he changed aircraft from the Pfalz D . III he had been flying , to a Fokker D . VII . In July , Jagdgruppe 7 was founded , incorporating his Jasta and three others . Thuy commanded both JG 7 and Jasta 28 simultaneously . He ended his victory string by shooting a double on 14 October 1918 . Post World War I . Thuy resumed his studies and upon graduation , joined his father in the family ' s factory in Hagen On . He wrote treatises on aviation on the side . As a result , he received an offer from Siemens - Schuckert to be a " technical consultant " for the Finnish Air Force . Thuy was a member of a paramilitary veterans organization known as the Steel Helmets , which was the armed wing of the German National People ' s Party . He was active in the resistance to the French and Belgian occupation of the Ruhr . He then went to Finland in early 1923 as an oberleutnant or senior lieutenant . He was the head of the aerial gunnery department of the Finnish Air Force Flying School , departing finally about 16 August 1924 . The Treaty of Versailles banned Germany from having an air force . To get around this , a secret training base was established in the Soviet Union , at Lipetsk , in 1924 . Thuy was offered the opportunity to serve there and accepted . On 11 June 1930 , while flying from Moscow to Berlin as part of this mission , Thuy crashed fatally in the vicinity of Smolensk . He was testing a secret Albatros L 76 reconnaissance airplane at the time .