Eberhard von Boremski
Eberhard von Boremski (24 September 1914 – 16 December 1963) was a fighter pilot in the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany during World War II. A flying ace, he was credited with 104 aerial victories—that is, 104 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft—claimed in roughly 630 combat missions. Boremski was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He was killed in an accident in Hamburg on 16 December 1963. Early life and career. Von Boremski was born 24 September 1914 in Conow, present-day part of Malliß, near  Ludwigslust in the German Empire. He joined the Luftwaffe in 1939 and served initially in 5. "Staffel" (5th squadron) of "Trägergruppe 186", which became II. "Gruppe" (2nd group) of "Jagdgeschwader" 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing). On 1 March 1940, holding the rank of "Unteroffizier" (corporal), he was transferred to the newly created 7. "Staffel" of "Jagdgeschwader" 3 (JG 3—3rd Fighter Wing), a squadron of III. "Gruppe". On 1 March 1940, III. "Gruppe" of JG 3 was formed at Jena under the command of "Hauptmann" Walter Kienitz. 7. "Staffel" was headed by "Oberleutnant" Erwin Neuerburg, also a former member of JG  77. The "Gruppe" was initially equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-1 and E-3 variant. World War II. World War II in Europe had begun on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. On 28 March 1940, III. "Gruppe" of JG 3 was considered operationally ready and transferred to Detmold Airfield where it was tasked with defending Germanys western border during the "Phoney War". On 10 April, the "Gruppe" relocated to Hopsten Airfield. In preparation for the Battle of France, III. "Gruppe" was subordinated to Luftflotte 2, supporting Army Group Bs attack into the Netherlands. Von Boremski claimed  his first aerial victory on 29 May during the Battle of Dunkirk when he shot down a Royal Air Force (RAF) Supermarine Spitfire fighter on an early evening mission to the combat area. On 5 June, German forced launched "Fall Rot" (Case Red), the second phase of the conquest of France. Two days later, III. "Gruppe" fought in the vicinity of Beauvais where von Boremski claimed a French Bréguet 693 ground-attack aircraft shot down. Following the Armistice of 22 June 1940, III. "Gruppe" was ordered to Dieppe on 29 June where the unit was tasked with patrolling the French  coast at the English Channel. On 30 June, III. "Gruppe" flew two fighter intercept missions against RAF forces attacking various targets near Lille. Defending against these attacks, von Boremski, flying with 7. "Staffel", claimed a Hawker Hurricane fighter shot down which was not confirmed. On 1 September, during the Battle of Britain, command of III. "Gruppe" was transferred to "Hauptmann" Wilhelm Balthasar when the former commander Kienitz had fallen ill. Von Boremski shot down the Bristol Blenheim bomber "T1794" of No. 139 Squadron RAF on 24 September 1940. The Blenheim was on a mission against E-boats and fell into  the English Channel. Squadron Leader M. F. Hendry, Sergeant P. M. Davidson and Sergeant V. Arrowsmith were killed in action. On 15 February 1941, III. "Gruppe" was ordered to Gütersloh Airfield in Germany for a period of rest and replenishment. At Gütersloh, the "Gruppe" received a full complement of the then new Bf 109 F-2 variant. On 3 May, III. "Gruppe" moved back to the English Channel front where it was based at Lillers. There, von Boremski claimed his last aerial victory over the RAF on 25 May 1941. On 9 June, III. "Gruppe" was withdrawn from the west and  ordered to transfer to Breslau. Eastern Front. By the start of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941, Boremski had accumulated four aerial victories claimed in 120 combat missions. Over the Soviet Union in 1941, von Boremski was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross () on 3 May 1942 for achieving 43 victories. After serving as an instructor in mid 1942, he returned to JG 3. In February 1943 he was made "Staffelkapitän" (squadron leader) of 7. "Staffel" of JG 3, serving in this role until 30 May 1943, when he was  wounded. His Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 ("Werknummer" 14808—factory number) had suffered engine failure resulting in a forced landing southeast of Kamianske. He was succeeded by "Hauptmann" Karl-Heinz Langer as commander of 7. "Staffel". In early 1944 he was made commanding officer of "Deutsch-Königlich Rumänischen Jagdverband" (German Royal Romanian Fighter Unit) of Luftflotte 4, in collaboration with the Royal Romanian Air Force. On 24 February 1944, "Oberleutnant" Herbert Kutscha, the commander of 12. "Staffel" of JG 3 was wounded in combat. In consequence, von Boremski took command of the "Staffel" the following day. On 11 April, von Boremski  flying Bf 109 G-6 ("Werknummer" 162585) was wounded following a mid-air collision west of Anklam with "Gefreiter" Horst Witzler from 10. "Staffel". Although both pilots bailed out, command of 12. "Staffel" was transferred to "Leutnant" Hans Rachner. From September 1944 to November 1944 von Boremski led 1. "Staffel" of "Jagdgruppe Ost" and then 9. "Staffel" of "Ergänzungs-Jagdgeschwader" 1 (EJG 1—1st Supplementary Fighter Wing). In January 1945, von Boremski was credited with his 100th aerial victory. He was the 97th Luftwaffe pilot to achieve the century mark. By the end of the war, von Boremski had been credited with  104 victories, with all but four of his victories claimed over the Soviet Air Forces in about 630 combat missions. After the German surrender, von Boremski was handed over by U.S. troops in Czechoslovakia to the Soviet armed forces, and he remained a Prisoner of War until 1955. He died in an accident in Hamburg on 16 December 1963. Summary of career. Aerial victory claims. According to US historian David T. Zabecki, von Boremski was credited with 104 aerial victories. Obermaier also lists von Boremski with 104 aerial victories claimed on 630 combat missions. This figure includes 100 claims on  the Eastern Front, and four on the Western Front. Author Spick lists him with 90 aerial victories. Matthews and Foreman, authors of "Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims", researched the German Federal Archives and state that he claimed at least 88 aerial victories, plus two unconfirmed claims. Four of his aerial victories were claimed on the Western Front, the others on the Eastern Front. The authors indicate that he probably claimed further aerial victories with EJG 1 which cannot be verified through the archives. Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = "Planquadrat"), for example "PQ 4932