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Franz Eisenach
| Franz Eisenach (deceased) From 1940 Franz Eisenach flew with various Groups, until joining 9./JG 54 on the Eastern Front in October 1942. As Squadron Leader of 3./JG 54 he had considerable success with his first being on 8th November, during his 21st combat mission, Eisenach shot down a P-40 fighter on the Eastern Front. Flying an Fw190A in December 1943, he was hit by flak and badly wounded. After convalescence he joined I./JG 54, becoming its Gruppenkommandeur . Eisenach claimed his 100th victory on 14 September 1944 by shooting down an Illinois-2 Sturmovik. That day he shot down 9 planes, including 5 Il-2 and 4 Pe-2, but in late September 1944 he was wounded again, this time after an encounter with a bomber. Awarded the Knights Cross he returned to the Front until the wars end. His last victory was on 19 March over a Pe-2, reaching 129 victories. 52 of which were IL-2s, and flew 317 combat missions. He also claimed 25 unconfirmed victories. After the war he was confined as a British Prisoner Of War. Major Franz Eisenach re-joined the military service of the Bundeswehr in 1956. He left the service in 1974 with the rank of Oberstleutnant. He died 21st August 1998. |
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Green Heart Warriors by Nicolas Trudgian. (B) In the summer of 1940, as a 28 year old captain, Hannes Trautloft took command of JG 54. During the next three years this extraordinary fighter leader shaped the unit into one of the most successful combat fighter wings of World War II. The Green Heart emblem of his home town Thuringischen, in the heart of Germany, became the Groups symbol and the fighter pilots famous as Trautlofts Green Heart Warriors. They carried their reputation throughout almost every European theatre. After campaigning in the Balkans, the unit moved to the Russian Front, where it flew Me109s and Fw190s in the heavy fighting of the Northern Region. By the war-end no fewer than twenty Green Heart Aces had achieved more than 100 air victories, its pilots collecting 58 Knights Cross awards. Nicolas Trudgian portrays a typical scene on the Eastern Front in 1943: IL 2 Stormoviks have attacked a German armoured division who have called for air support. JG 54 Green Hearts have quickly scrambled to the scene and have broken up the attack, downing several Russian aircraft during the encounter. In the foreground, Hannes Trautlofts Fw190 hurtles out of the canvas towards us, as the Ace glances over his shoulder to see an unfortunate IL-2 moments before hitting the snow-covered landscape a few feet below. Behind, two more Fw190s give support while in the background the low-level aerial contest is furiously fought. The drama unfolds in an exquisitely painted landscape, the northern morning sun casting long shadows across the snow drifts. |
Hunters at Dawn by Robert Taylor. Those Aces with over 100 victories were exceptional. To reach 200 victories was a spectacular achievement. Yet two men went even further and accomplished a feat that will never be repeated - both of them shot down more than 300 enemy aircraft which placed them in a league of their own. They were the elite of the elite, and their names are legendary - Erich Hartmann and Gerhard Barkhorn. It is no surprise that these iconic Aces scored their victories whilst flying with the legendary fighter wing JG52. Active from the beginning of the war, the unit fought in the Battle of France, but suffered terrible losses during the Battle of Britain before transferring to the Eastern Front at the outset of Operation Barbarossa, and it was here that it solidified its fearsome reputation. Operating the Bf109 throughout the war, the Geschwader boasted some of the greatest Luftwaffe pilots of world war two among its ranks - including the top three Aces of all time. Such renowned pilots as Gunther Rall (275 victories), Wilhelm Batz (237 victories), Hermann Graf (212 victories) and Helmut Lipfert (203 victories) helped this formidable unit notch up more than 10,000 victories, making it the most successful fighter wing in history. Hunters at Dawn features Hptm. Gerhard Barkhorn, Gruppenkommandeur of II./JG52. The great Ace, flying his Bf109 G-6, leads the Stab as they climb out from their base near the Black Sea, early November 1943. The crisp air of day break is temporarily punctuated by the roar of Daimler-Benz engines as the deadly Messerschmitt fighters set off on their daily hunt for Soviet aircraft over the front line. |
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