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Walther Wever
Walther Wever attending his father's funeral in Berlin
Born	(1923-01-16)16 January 1923 München, Germany
Died	10 April 1945(1945-04-10) (aged 22) Near Neuruppin, Germany
Cause of death	Killed in action
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1943–1945
Rank	Oberleutnant (second lieutenant)
Unit	JG 51, JG 7
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Relations	Walther Wever (father)

Walther Wever (16 January 1923 – 10 April 1945) was a Luftwaffe flying ace during the Second World War. The son of former Chief of the Luftwaffe General Walther Wever, Wever served during 1943 on the Eastern Front and from 19 June 1943 until 10 April 1945 he claimed 44 aerial victories in 250 combat missions. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

Career

Wever was born on 16 January 1923 in Munich in the Weimar Republic, the son of General der Flieger Walther Wever. Following flight training in mid-1943 he was posted to 3. Staffel (3rd squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing). At the time, 3. Staffel was commanded by Hauptmann Heinz Lange and was subordinated to I. Gruppe (1st group) of JG 51 headed by Major Erich Leie and stationed at an airfield named Orel-Slobodka located approximately 20 kilometers (12 miles) west-southwest of Oryol on the Eastern Front. Wever claimed his first aerial victory on 19 June south of Karachev, approximately 45 kilometers (28 miles) west of Oryol. Depending on source, the aircraft shot down was either a Yakovlev Yak-4 light bomber, an Yakovlev Yak-4 fighter, or a Douglas A-20 Havoc bomber.

Notable landmarks during his career included his 10th kill on 1 September 1943 followed four days later by shooting down three Il-2 Sturmoviks in five minutes. On 29 March 1944 he claimed a further five aerial victories, making him an "ace-in-a-day". Then on 24 June, he claimed his 40th aerial victory.

Squadron leader

On 7 May 1944, Weaver was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 3. Staffel of JG 51, succeeding Lange who was transferred. Wever had already briefly led the Staffel from 15 to 30 August 1943 when Lange had been temporarily tasked with the leadership of I. Gruppe of JG 51. On 21 June, bombers of the Eighth Air Force on a shuttle bombing mission of Operation Frantic, attacked oil refineries south of Berlin before heading for the Poltava Air Base. The bombers were intercepted by elements of JG 51 led by Major Fritz Losigkeit. In this encounter, two of the escorting North American P-51 Mustang fighters were shot down, including one by Wever. One of the P-51 fighters crashed near the Luftwaffe airfield at Babruysk where III. Gruppe of JG 51 was based. In its cockpit, a map of the Poltava Air Base was found. The Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III. Gruppe, Hauptmann Diethelm von Eichel-Streiber, sent the map to the headquarters of Luftflotte 6 (6th Air Fleet). This intelligence led to an attack by Luftwaffe bombers which destroyed 44 parked Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers and damaged further 26. On 10 July, Wever was shot down and wounded in his Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 (Werknummer 410413—factory number) by Soviet Anti-aircraft artillery. Command of 3. Staffel was then passed to Oberleutnant Günther Josten.

Although he lost a foot, Wever continued to fly and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 28 January 1945 for reaching the final total of 44 victories. He was then transferred to Jagdgeschwader 7 (JG 7—7th Fighter Wing), the first jet fighter wing, where he received further training on the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. On 10 April 1945, having not scored another kill, Wever was shot down and killed in action by Allied fighters near Neuruppin. That day, the Luftwaffe lost a number of Me 262 pilots, including Hauptmann Franz Schall. The Americans dubbed this day the "great jet massacre".

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

According to Obermaier, Wever was credited with 44 aerial victories all but one claimed on the Eastern Front in 250 combat missions. Matthews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 44 aerial victory claims with 43 claimed on the Eastern Front and one on the Western Front.

Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 35 Ost 43231". 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 km). 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.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class
• Honor Goblet of the Luftwaffe (Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe) on 17 April 1944 as Leutnant and pilot
• German Cross in Gold on 20 March 1944 as Leutnant in the I./Jagdgeschwader 51
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 28 January 1945 as Leutnant and pilot in the 3./Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders"

Notes

1. For an explanation of Luftwaffe unit designations see Organization of the Luftwaffe during World War II.
2. According to Weal, Wever shot down a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bomber.
3. According to Mathews and Foreman claimed as a Douglas A-20 Havoc.
4. ^ The "m.H." refers to an Ilyushin Il-2 with rear gunner (mit Heckschütze).
5. According to Obermaier on 20 March 1944.

References

Citations

1. ^ Obermaier 1989, p. 223.
2. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 486.
3. Prien et al. 2012, pp. 453, 492.
4. ^ Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 1410.
5. ^ Prien et al. 2022, p. 319.
6. ^ Prien et al. 2022, p. 324.
7. Weal 2006, p. 110.
8. Weal 2006, pp. 110–111.
9. Prien et al. 2022, pp. 298, 328.
10. Forsyth 2008, pp. 100–101.
11. ^ Mathews & Foreman 2015, pp. 1410–1411.
12. Planquadrat.
13. Prien et al. 2012, p. 492.
14. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 499.
15. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 496.
16. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 500.
17. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 497.
18. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 501.
19. ^ Prien et al. 2012, p. 498.
20. ^ Prien et al. 2022, p. 322.
21. ^ Prien et al. 2022, p. 323.
22. Dixon 2023, p. 200.
23. Patzwall 2008, p. 216.
24. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 510.
25. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 444.
26. Scherzer 2007, p. 782.

Bibliography

• Bergström, Christer . "Bergström Black Cross/Red Star website". Identifying a Luftwaffe Planquadrat. Archived from the original on 22 December 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
• Dixon, Jeremy (2023). Day Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe: Knight's Cross Holders 1943–1945. Barnsley: Pen and Sword Books. ISBN 978-1-39903-073-1.
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) . Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
• Forsyth, Robert (2008). Jagdgeschwader 7 'Nowotny. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84603-320-9.
• Mathews, Andrew Johannes; Foreman, John (2015). Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims — Volume 4 S–Z. Walton on Thames: Red Kite. ISBN 978-1-906592-21-9.
• Obermaier, Ernst (1989). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe Jagdflieger 1939 – 1945 [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Luftwaffe Fighter Force 1939 – 1945] (in German). Mainz, Germany: Verlag Dieter Hoffmann. ISBN 978-3-87341-065-7.
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• Patzwall, Klaus D. (2008). Der Ehrenpokal für besondere Leistung im Luftkrieg [The Honor Goblet for Outstanding Achievement in the Air War] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-08-3.
• Prien, Jochen; Stemmer, Gerhard; Rodeike, Peter; Bock, Winfried (2012). Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945—Teil 12/I—Einsatz im Osten—4.2. bis 31.12.1943 [The Fighter Units of the German Air Force 1934 to 1945—Part 12/I—Action in the East—4 February to 31 December 1943] (in German). Eutin, Germany: Buchverlag Rogge. ISBN 978-3-942943-02-4.
• Prien, Jochen; Stemmer, Gerhard; Balke, Ulf; Bock, Winfried (2022). Die Jagdfliegerverbände der Deutschen Luftwaffe 1934 bis 1945—Teil 15/I—Einsatz im Osten—1.1. bis 31.12.1944 [The Fighter Units of the German Air Force 1934 to 1945—Part 15/I—Action in the East—1 January to 31 December 1944] (in German). Eutin, Germany: Buchverlag Rogge. ISBN 978-3-942943-26-0.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Weal, John (2006). Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders". Aviation Elite Units. Vol. 22. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84603-045-1.

• Aviation
• Biography

• German World War II flying aces
• Luftwaffe pilots
• Luftwaffe personnel killed in World War II
• Recipients of the Gold German Cross
• Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
• Military personnel from Munich
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