Karl-Heinz Langer | |
---|---|
Born | 19 April 1914 Görlitz, German Empire |
Died | 6 May 1955 Remscheid, West Germany | (aged 41)
Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
Service/ | Luftwaffe |
Years of service | ?–1944 |
Rank | Major |
Unit | JG 3 |
Commands held | III./JG 3 |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Karl-Heinz Langer (19 April 1914 – 6 May 1955) was a Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. During his career he was credited with 30 aerial victories in 486 missions, 10 on the Western Front and 20 on the Eastern Front.
In December 1942, III. Gruppe's primary task was providing fighter escort to Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft and Heinkel He 111 bombers shuttling supplies for the encircled German forces fighting in the Battle of Stalingrad. On 17 December, Langer and the Geschwaderkommodore (wing commander) of JG 3, Major Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke, escorted 16 Ju 52 transport aircraft to the Pitomnik Airfield which was located within the Stalingrad pocket. While taking off at Pitomnik Airfield, his Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 (Werknummer 13739—factory number) ran over unexploded ordnance which then exploded, destroying his aircraft and significantly injuring Langer. He was later flown out of the pocket on a Ju 52. [1]
Langer was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 7. Staffel (7th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 3 (JG 3—3rd Fighter Wing) on 1 June 1943. He succeeded Oberleutnant Eberhard von Boremski who was wounded in combat the day before. [2] On 14 October, during the Second Raid on Schweinfurt, Langer claimed the destruction of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber shot down 8 kilometers (5.0 miles) east of Hammelburg. [3] In this engagement, his Bf 109 G-6 (Werknummer 26924) was shot down by defensive fire. Langer was forced to bail out near Hammelburg. [4] Due to the injuries sustained, he was replaced by Leutnant Erwin Stahlberg as leader of 7. Staffel. [5]
On 14 July 1943, Langer was temporarily given command of III. Gruppe (3rd group) of JG 3 after its former commander Hauptmann Wolfgang Ewald was shot down behind enemy lines and taken prisoner of war. In consequence, command of 7. Staffel was briefly given to Leutnant Hans Schleef. When on 20 July, Hauptmann Walther Dahl took command of the Gruppe, Langer returned to his 7. Staffel. [6] On 21 May 1944, Langer was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III. Gruppe of JG 3. He thus succeeded Dahl who was transferred. [7]
Langer died on 6 May 1955 at the age of 41 in Fischbach, West Germany. [8]
Langer was credited with 30 aerial victories claimed in 486 combat missions. [9] Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found documentation for 29 aerial victory claims, plus one further unconfirmed claim. This number includes ten on the Western Front, including four four-engined bombers, and 19 on the Eastern Front. [10]
Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 4056". The Luftwaffe grid map (Jägermeldenetz) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about 360 square miles (930 km2). These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area 3 km × 4 km (1.9 mi × 2.5 mi) in size. [11]
Chronicle of aerial victories | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
This along with the * (asterisk) indicates an Herausschuss (separation shot)—a severely damaged heavy bomber forced to separate from his combat box which was counted as an aerial victory.
This and the ? (question mark) indicates information discrepancies listed by Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike, Bock, Mathews and Foreman.
| |||||||||
Claim | Date | Time | Type | Location | Claim | Date | Time | Type | Location |
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 –
[10] Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 6 November 1941 | |||||||||
1 | 14 July 1941 | 07:10 | I-153 [12] | 2 | 5 October 1941 | 14:55 | DB-3 [13] | ||
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front – 10 February 1942 – 14 April 1942 | |||||||||
3 | 9 March 1942 | 11:08 | I-61 ( MiG-3) | 12 km (7.5 mi) southwest of Salustsche [15] | 4 | 18 March 1942 | 10:15 | Pe-2 [16] | |
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front – 19 May 1942 – 3 February 1943 | |||||||||
5 | 24 August 1942 | 13:50 | R-5 | Zarjew [17] | 9 | 17 October 1942 | 06:23 | Il-2 | PQ 4056, west of Rulew [18] |
6 | 24 August 1942 | 13:56 | MiG-1 | east of Leninsk [17] | 10 | 26 October 1942 | 14:15 | Il-2 | PQ 49357, Bassargino railway station [18] |
7 | 3 September 1942 | 15:53 | LaGG-3 | Akelin [19] | 11 | 28 December 1942 | —
|
Yak-1 | Stalingrad [20] |
8 | 1 October 1942 | 06:57 | LaGG-3 | PQ 40793, northeast Gratschi
[21] vicinity of Spartak |
|||||
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front – 1 June – 1 August 1943 | |||||||||
12 | 5 July 1943 | 11:16 | La-5 | southeast of Kobenaja
[22] southeast of Rakitnoye |
14 | 21 July 1943 | 09:45 | Il-2 | 14 km (8.7 mi) northeast of Dworeznaja
[23] 9 km (5.6 mi) northwest of Bogoroditskoye |
13 | 7 July 1943 | 04:07 | Il-5 | northwest of Vovchansk [24] | 15 | 31 July 1943 | 11:15 | Il-2 | Kuybyshevo [23] |
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Defense of the Reich — 8 August – 14 October 1943 | |||||||||
16 | 14 October 1943 | 14:40 | B-17 | 8 km (5.0 mi) east of Hammelburg [25] | |||||
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Defense of the Reich — 1 January – 5 June 1944 | |||||||||
17 | 27 May 1944 | 12:17 | B-17* | PQ 04 Ost S/DO, southwest of Strasbourg [26] | 19 | 30 May 1944 | 11:17 | B-17 | Dessau [26] |
18 | 30 May 1944 | 11:12 | B-17 | Dessau [26] | |||||
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Normandy Invasion — 6 June – 22 September 1944 | |||||||||
20 | 21 June 1944 | 19:10 | P-47 | PQ 04 Ost N/AD-7
[27] vicinity of Houdan |
22 | 26 July 1944 | 14:50 | P-38 | PQ 14 West BU-2/3
[27] east of Briouze |
21 | 21 June 1944 | 19:25 | P-51 | PQ 04 Ost N/AC-2
[27] vicinity of Dreux |
23 | 19 August 1944 | 09:10 | P-47 | PQ 05 Ost UB-6/1
[27] vicinity of Bernay |
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Defense of the Reich — 24 November – 31 December 1944 | |||||||||
24? [Note 1] | 23 December 1944 | —
|
B-26 [27] | 25 | 27 December 1944 | —
|
P-47 [28] | ||
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front — 1 January – May 1945 | |||||||||
26 | 19 February 1945 | 08:55 | Boston [29] | 29 | 19 April 1945 | —
|
Il-2 [29] | ||
27 | 6 March 1945 | 15:24 | Il-2 [29] | 30 | 23 April 1945 | —
|
Yak-3 [29] | ||
28 | 18 March 1945 | —
|
Il-2 [29] |
Karl-Heinz Langer | |
---|---|
Born | 19 April 1914 Görlitz, German Empire |
Died | 6 May 1955 Remscheid, West Germany | (aged 41)
Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
Service/ | Luftwaffe |
Years of service | ?–1944 |
Rank | Major |
Unit | JG 3 |
Commands held | III./JG 3 |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Karl-Heinz Langer (19 April 1914 – 6 May 1955) was a Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. During his career he was credited with 30 aerial victories in 486 missions, 10 on the Western Front and 20 on the Eastern Front.
In December 1942, III. Gruppe's primary task was providing fighter escort to Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft and Heinkel He 111 bombers shuttling supplies for the encircled German forces fighting in the Battle of Stalingrad. On 17 December, Langer and the Geschwaderkommodore (wing commander) of JG 3, Major Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke, escorted 16 Ju 52 transport aircraft to the Pitomnik Airfield which was located within the Stalingrad pocket. While taking off at Pitomnik Airfield, his Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 (Werknummer 13739—factory number) ran over unexploded ordnance which then exploded, destroying his aircraft and significantly injuring Langer. He was later flown out of the pocket on a Ju 52. [1]
Langer was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 7. Staffel (7th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 3 (JG 3—3rd Fighter Wing) on 1 June 1943. He succeeded Oberleutnant Eberhard von Boremski who was wounded in combat the day before. [2] On 14 October, during the Second Raid on Schweinfurt, Langer claimed the destruction of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber shot down 8 kilometers (5.0 miles) east of Hammelburg. [3] In this engagement, his Bf 109 G-6 (Werknummer 26924) was shot down by defensive fire. Langer was forced to bail out near Hammelburg. [4] Due to the injuries sustained, he was replaced by Leutnant Erwin Stahlberg as leader of 7. Staffel. [5]
On 14 July 1943, Langer was temporarily given command of III. Gruppe (3rd group) of JG 3 after its former commander Hauptmann Wolfgang Ewald was shot down behind enemy lines and taken prisoner of war. In consequence, command of 7. Staffel was briefly given to Leutnant Hans Schleef. When on 20 July, Hauptmann Walther Dahl took command of the Gruppe, Langer returned to his 7. Staffel. [6] On 21 May 1944, Langer was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III. Gruppe of JG 3. He thus succeeded Dahl who was transferred. [7]
Langer died on 6 May 1955 at the age of 41 in Fischbach, West Germany. [8]
Langer was credited with 30 aerial victories claimed in 486 combat missions. [9] Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found documentation for 29 aerial victory claims, plus one further unconfirmed claim. This number includes ten on the Western Front, including four four-engined bombers, and 19 on the Eastern Front. [10]
Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 4056". The Luftwaffe grid map (Jägermeldenetz) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about 360 square miles (930 km2). These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area 3 km × 4 km (1.9 mi × 2.5 mi) in size. [11]
Chronicle of aerial victories | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
This along with the * (asterisk) indicates an Herausschuss (separation shot)—a severely damaged heavy bomber forced to separate from his combat box which was counted as an aerial victory.
This and the ? (question mark) indicates information discrepancies listed by Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike, Bock, Mathews and Foreman.
| |||||||||
Claim | Date | Time | Type | Location | Claim | Date | Time | Type | Location |
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 –
[10] Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 6 November 1941 | |||||||||
1 | 14 July 1941 | 07:10 | I-153 [12] | 2 | 5 October 1941 | 14:55 | DB-3 [13] | ||
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front – 10 February 1942 – 14 April 1942 | |||||||||
3 | 9 March 1942 | 11:08 | I-61 ( MiG-3) | 12 km (7.5 mi) southwest of Salustsche [15] | 4 | 18 March 1942 | 10:15 | Pe-2 [16] | |
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front – 19 May 1942 – 3 February 1943 | |||||||||
5 | 24 August 1942 | 13:50 | R-5 | Zarjew [17] | 9 | 17 October 1942 | 06:23 | Il-2 | PQ 4056, west of Rulew [18] |
6 | 24 August 1942 | 13:56 | MiG-1 | east of Leninsk [17] | 10 | 26 October 1942 | 14:15 | Il-2 | PQ 49357, Bassargino railway station [18] |
7 | 3 September 1942 | 15:53 | LaGG-3 | Akelin [19] | 11 | 28 December 1942 | —
|
Yak-1 | Stalingrad [20] |
8 | 1 October 1942 | 06:57 | LaGG-3 | PQ 40793, northeast Gratschi
[21] vicinity of Spartak |
|||||
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front – 1 June – 1 August 1943 | |||||||||
12 | 5 July 1943 | 11:16 | La-5 | southeast of Kobenaja
[22] southeast of Rakitnoye |
14 | 21 July 1943 | 09:45 | Il-2 | 14 km (8.7 mi) northeast of Dworeznaja
[23] 9 km (5.6 mi) northwest of Bogoroditskoye |
13 | 7 July 1943 | 04:07 | Il-5 | northwest of Vovchansk [24] | 15 | 31 July 1943 | 11:15 | Il-2 | Kuybyshevo [23] |
– 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Defense of the Reich — 8 August – 14 October 1943 | |||||||||
16 | 14 October 1943 | 14:40 | B-17 | 8 km (5.0 mi) east of Hammelburg [25] | |||||
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Defense of the Reich — 1 January – 5 June 1944 | |||||||||
17 | 27 May 1944 | 12:17 | B-17* | PQ 04 Ost S/DO, southwest of Strasbourg [26] | 19 | 30 May 1944 | 11:17 | B-17 | Dessau [26] |
18 | 30 May 1944 | 11:12 | B-17 | Dessau [26] | |||||
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Normandy Invasion — 6 June – 22 September 1944 | |||||||||
20 | 21 June 1944 | 19:10 | P-47 | PQ 04 Ost N/AD-7
[27] vicinity of Houdan |
22 | 26 July 1944 | 14:50 | P-38 | PQ 14 West BU-2/3
[27] east of Briouze |
21 | 21 June 1944 | 19:25 | P-51 | PQ 04 Ost N/AC-2
[27] vicinity of Dreux |
23 | 19 August 1944 | 09:10 | P-47 | PQ 05 Ost UB-6/1
[27] vicinity of Bernay |
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Defense of the Reich — 24 November – 31 December 1944 | |||||||||
24? [Note 1] | 23 December 1944 | —
|
B-26 [27] | 25 | 27 December 1944 | —
|
P-47 [28] | ||
– Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet" –
[14] Eastern Front — 1 January – May 1945 | |||||||||
26 | 19 February 1945 | 08:55 | Boston [29] | 29 | 19 April 1945 | —
|
Il-2 [29] | ||
27 | 6 March 1945 | 15:24 | Il-2 [29] | 30 | 23 April 1945 | —
|
Yak-3 [29] | ||
28 | 18 March 1945 | —
|
Il-2 [29] |