Walter Nowotny

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Walter Nowotny
Captain Walter Nowotny.jpg
On 14 October 1943, Nowotny became the first pilot to achieve 250 victories. He celebrated it in Vilnius, when he received a phone call from Adolf Hitler himself, announcing that he had been decorated with the Diamonds to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, being the 8th of the 27 men to receive it.
Nickname "Tiger of Wolchowstroj" (Volkhovstroy)
Birth date 7 December 1920(1920-12-07)
Place of birth Gmünd an der Lainsitz, Republic of Austria
Death date ⚔ 8 November 1944 (aged 23)
Place of death Epe, German Reich
Resting place Vienna Central Cemetery
Allegiance  National Socialist Germany
Service/branch Luftwaffe eagle.jpg Luftwaffe
Years of service 1939–1944
Rank Major
Service number NSDAP 6,382,781
Commands held I./JG 54
JG 101
Kommando Nowotny
Battles/wars World War II
Awards Iron Cross
Front Flying Clasp
Ostmedaille
German Cross in Gold
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds

Walter "Nowi" Nowotny (7 December 1920 – 8 November 1944) was an Austrian-born German officer and fighter ace of the Luftwaffe in World War II. The recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds is credited with 258 aerial victories (Luftsiege)—that is, 258 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft in 442+ combat missions (Feindflüge). He achieved 255 confirmed victories (plus 50 more unconfirmed) on the Eastern Front and three while flying one of the first jet fighters, the Me 262, defending his German homeland.

He scored most of his victories in the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and approximately 50 in the Messerschmitt Bf 109. He scored an “ace in a day” on several occasions – five enemy aircraft shot down in a single day. There were even two occurrences of “double-ace in a day” – 10 kills in a day. As his brother writes in the biography, Walter Nowotny received the honorary nickname "Tiger of Volkhovstroy" from the pilots of the Soviet Army. Walter Nowotny is thus the fifth most successful fighter pilot in military history. Without the combat flight ban imposed on the newly decorated and irreplaceable recipient of the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Diamonds in 1943, he would undoubtedly have achieved significantly more aerial victories.

Life

Nowotny's Focke-Wulf Fw 190
Captain Walter Nowotny (left) prepares for flight.
"On the hunt"
Captain Nowotny at the awarding of the Diamonds to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross by Reichskanzler Adolf Hitler.
Nowotny giving autographs to young German women on the hood of his Adler 2.5 liter car, often referred to as the Adler "Autobahn".
Mayor of Vienna SS-Oberführer Dipl.-Ing. Hanns Blaschke presents Captain Walter Nowotny, who comes from the Gau Niederdonau, with the honorary ring of the city of Vienna, awarded to him by Reich Governor Reichsleiter Baldur von Schirach.
Skilfully thwarting the determined efforts of P-51 escort fighters, Major Walter Nowotny, flying his Me 262 A-1A "White 8", successfully attacks a terror bomber B-24 Liberator from the USAAF 392nd Bomb Group high over the town of Bramsche, Lower Saxony, on 7 October 1944.
"Here fell on 8 November 1944, after 258 aerial victories, the recipient of the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds Major Walter Nowotny for Volk und Vaterland, born 7 December 1920 in Gmünd/Austria."
Captain Walter Nowotny II.JPG
Werner Held Der Jagdflieger Walter Nowotny, Stuttgart 1997.jpg

The Nowotny brothers numbered three: Hubert, Rudolf, and Walter – the youngest. They were born in the Waldviertel region of Lower Austria, one of the poorest areas of Austria, the sons of a railway official. The defeat in the First World War had a grotesque impact on this town. The border between the newly formed state of Czechoslovakia and Austria ran through the town of Gmünd.

Their father – a German nationalist and one of the first National Socialists in Gmünd – opted for Austrian citizenship and therefore had to move to the German part of the town. The school remained in the occupied Czech part. As a result, the older boys constantly had to defend themselves against violent Czech attacks in the nationalistic conflicts. In 1925, the father was transferred to Schwarzenau for official reasons, allowing young Walter to attend primary school (Volksschule) without experiencing these ethnic conflicts. During this time, Walter's father discovered his son's musical talent and decided to enroll him in the boy's choir (Sängerknaben) at the Cistercian monastery of Zwettl in 1930.

In the early 1930s, Walter's interest in technology awakened, and soon no electrical outlet or motor was safe from his tinkering. His choirboy career came to an end, and Walter Nowotny attended the secondary school (Bundesoberrealschule) in Waidhofen. After 1935, his father was transferred to Mistelbach, and Walter then attended the high school (Oberschule) in Laa an der Thaya. He was not a model student and is remembered for his pranks, but his academic performance was satisfactory to very good, depending on the subject. Nowotny himself demonstrated an early commitment to Deutschtum through his membership in the German nationalist student fraternity "Vandalia zu Laa" and later in the "Tafelrunde Deutscher Studenten Wartburg zu Mistelbach" – two dueling student fraternities. After its dissolution in 1938, he became a member of the local Hitler Youth, then a leader of a troop in the Mistelbach Hitler Youth district.

In 1936, the world's attention was focused on the Olympic Games in Berlin. Walter Nowotny, a passionate sportsman and footballer, was also drawn to this unique sporting event. He had neither a passport nor sufficient funds, yet he hopped on his bicycle and cycled through Czechoslovakia to Berlin. Two weeks later, he returned via the same route, completely enthralled by his experience. From Berlin, he brought back his interest in track and field and immediately began training with the support of a teacher. He achieved some successes, including first place in the javelin throw at a regional championship, third place in the 1,000-meter run, second place in the 300-meter swim, and further successes with the Hitler Youth track and field relay teams.

  • 1 May 1938 Joined the NSDAP
  • 26 January 1939 Nowotny, still Oberschüler, submitted an application "for voluntary entry into active military service" with the aim of becoming a pilot.
  • 22 May 1939 Achieved his Austrian Abitur (Matura)
    • He received, among other grades, the following: German – good (2 or B), Latin – good (2 or B), Mathematics – satisfactory (4 or D), Physics – good (2 or B), Natural History – very good (1 or A), Geography – very good (1 or A), Introductory Philosophy – very good (1 or A), and Physical Education – very good (1 or A).
  • c. Late May to late September 1939 Reichsarbeitsdienst (mandatory service)
    • He was deployed with the Reich Labor Service (RAD) to the Thaya region for drainage work. Walter did not find the undoubtedly strenuous service a burden; rather, he quickly made friends and enjoyed his work, as he wrote to his mother several times in letters. The drainage work had to be stopped due to the war.
  • 1 October 1939 Joined the Luftwaffe after having received his official enlistment order
    • Nowotny's military basic training began at the 2nd Company/I. Battalion/Flieger-Ausbildungs-Regiment 62 in Quedlinburg (1 October 1939 – 15 November 1939) and continued at the Air Warfare School (Luftkriegschule) 5 in Breslau-Schöngarten (16 November 1939 – 30 June 1940), where he learned to fly on a Heinkel He 72 "Kadett".
  • 1 July 1940 Fighter Pilot School 5 (JFS 5) in Vienna-Schwechat, the same school that Hans-Joachim Marseille had attended one year earlier.
    • At that time, Walter was determined to become a Stuka pilot and hoped for a transfer to Graz-Thalerhof. "The NCO thinks, and Göring directs," he wrote at the time, and was accordingly less than thrilled about his transfer to Schwechat for fighter pilot training. One of his flight instructors was the well-known Austro-Hungarian fighter and aerobatic pilot, Captain Julius Arigi (3 October 1895 – 1 August 1981), from the First World War (32 confirmed victories). Walter overcame his aversion to fighter flying and soon became one of the most capable pilots. This was followed by retraining on the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter aircraft.
  • 15/16 November 1940 Transferred to the 1st Squadron/Merseburg Supplementary Fighter Group (Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe Merseburg) under Major Karl Hermann Gotthard Handrick
    • There he flew his first few missions to protect the Leuna Works, which were involved in nitrogen production, among other things. At that time, no attackers appeared.
  • 1 December 1940 Transferred to the Replacement Squadron/Jagdgeschwader 54 under Johannes Trautloft in Latvia
  • 23 February 1941 Transferred to the 9th Squadron/III. Group/Jagdgeschwader 54
    • Walter Nowotny wrote at the time to his parents: “Now I’m finally with the front-line unit. Until now, I was with a squadron that provided recruits for the front-line unit. Now I’ve finally been deemed ready for the front and it’s time to go! You want to know my commanding officer’s name? I’ll gladly tell you – as soon as the war is over! I think he’s not placing too much importance on popularity at the moment. Incidentally, as a pilot, I received the rating ‘Above Average’ – one of only two others out of 40 men – and as a soldier, I was the best of all. And with that, I set off and landed with one of the best squadrons, the so-called Devil’s Squadron [...]”
  • 25 March 1941 Transferred to the Staff Squadron/Supplementary Fighter Group/Jagdgeschwader 54
    • 2nd Lieutenant Nowotny flew a Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-7 (Werknummer 1173—factory number) "White 2" on his 24th operational mission on 19 July 1941 and claimed his first two enemy aircraft, both Polikarpov I-153 biplanes of Voenno-Vozdushnye Sily (VVS—Military Air Forces) KBF's 12 OIAE/61 BAB, over Saaremaa. He was shot down in the same engagement by Aleksandr Avdeyev, also in a I-153 fighter. He belly-landed on the beach next to the Ösel lighthouse and than ran to the water, the Russians were already close. He knew, he had only one chance: paddle towards Latvia 56 kilometers away, and he did so only with his hands. Of course, it had no sails, and the dinghy barely moved forward. He repeatedly jumped into the water and swam, pulling the small inflatable boat behind him. His fingers were stiff, the salt water was mercilessly eating into his skin. Nowotny spent three days in the Gulf of Riga – on one occasion almost being run down by a Soviet destroyer. He had neither water nor hope on the third day. More than once he held his pistol to his temple and was about to pull the trigger, but something held him back. On the third night, desperate and exhausted, he lost consciousness. But the gods were with him, for the wind shifted, and he was finally washed ashore on the Latvian coast. He had washed ashore near Mikulbake, where it was found and cared for by Latvian volunteers. His squadron was already planning to inform his parents of his loss. After this crash, Walter Nowotny had a bad feeling while flying over the sea, but was able to overcome it by shooting down an enemy bomber near his crash site.
    • Nowotny quickly recovered from his ordeal and on 31 July claimed a Beriev MBR-2 flying boat north-west of Saaremaa and an Ilyushin DB-3 bomber south of the island. For the rest of his combat career, Nowotny always wore the trousers (German: Abschußhose, roughly "shot down pants" sometimes also referred to as "victory pants") that he had worn during those three days in the Gulf of Riga – with one exception, his last sortie, at Achmer on 8 November 1944.
    • In August 1941, Walter Nowotny was awarded the Iron Cross First Class for his first ten aerial victories. Because of his numerous low-level attacks, this award was also jokingly called the "Coverage Damage Iron Cross." Nowotny was granted a short leave and set off on a long journey by car, during which he suffered a car accident in which he broke his collarbone. After only a few days, he "escaped" from the infirmary and continued his leave. He told his parents, "There's time for treatment after the war is won," and he was left with a crooked shoulder. His first combat flight after the accident was nearly fatal; the aircraft malfunctioned and caught fire. Shortly after the emergency landing, the plane exploded. A few days later, he took a direct hit to the engine from an cannon, clipped the embankment of a Flak battery during landing, and flipped over. It took his comrades almost 30 minutes to free him from the aircraft. He, however, jumped from the ambulance, directly into the next plane, and immediately took to the skies again. During this time, he and his fellow pilot Karl Schnörrer became famous as the duo "Max and Moritz" on the Volkhov Front. Nowotny, however, called Schnörrer "Quax" (after the famous film "Quax, the Crash Pilot" with Heinz Rühmann), while Schnörrer affectionately called Nowotny "Nowi." Walter Nowotny cut short a two-week leave after only three days because he felt he couldn't take a vacation when his comrades were lying in the dirt.
  • 8 January 1942 11th and 12th aerial victory
  • 11 March 1942 Transferred to the 9th Squadron, although other sources state it was the 3rd Squadron
    • In 1942, Nowotny increased his tally of victories and claimed his 30th and 31st kills on 11 July over the Volkhov bridgehead during the Battle of Lyuban. Nowotny shot down a further five aircraft on a single day (32nd – 36th victories), known as an "ace in a day", on 20 July and repeated the designation with seven (48th – 54th victories) on 2 August. Leutnant Nowotny carried out three victory passes over the airfield, despite having sustained combat damage to his own Bf 109 "Black 1". In the subsequent landing, his aircraft somersaulted and he sustained moderate injuries. Walter Nowotny was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 4 September, after 56 aerial victories. The Knight's Cross earned him a home leave to Vienna. Here, the brothers Hubert and Walter met for the last time before Hubert was killed at Stalingrad. Walter Nowotny wrote to his parents: “This will probably be the last sign of life we ​​receive from him. We must accept it, dear parents, especially you, dear Mother. Remember that his sacrifice was not in vain and that it gave strength to all the other soldiers. You mustn't be sad, Mother; you must be proud of our Hubert. Tomorrow morning we're off again, and from now on I won't be flying alone in my plane anymore; I'll always be flying with our good Hubert! Chin up, dear parents, and bear it with dignity!”
  • 25 October 1942 Appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron commander) of 1st Squadron/I. Group/JG 54, replacing 1st Lietenant Heinz Lange who was transferred.
    • On 8 November 1942, he achieved his first two victories as squadron commander. In January 1943, JG 54 started converting to the agile Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighter. With the new aircraft, Nowotny scored at an unprecedented "kill" rate, often averaging more than two planes a day for weeks on end. As of 1 February 1943, Nowotny, Schnörrer, – Nowotny's wingman since late 1942 – Anton Döbele and Rudolf Rademacher, formed a team known as the "chain of devils" (Teufelskette) or the Nowotny Schwarm, which during the course of the war was credited with 524 combined kills, making them the most successful team in the Luftwaffe.

Nowotny scored his 69th to 72nd victory on 16 March. He reached the century mark on 15 June 1943, on his 344th combat mission. He was the 42nd Luftwaffe pilot to achieve the century mark. By 24 June, he would accumulate a further 24 victories increasing his total to 124. On 2 August, Hauptmann Gerhard Homuth, the commander of I. Gruppe was wounded in combat. In consequence, command temporarily was passed to Oberleutnant Hans Götz who was killed in action only two days later. Command of the Gruppe was then given to Oberleutnant Otto Vinzent. On 11 August, Vinzent was given command of 2. Staffel and Nowotny temporarily assumed command of I. Gruppe. On 15 September, Nowotny was officially appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of I. Gruppe.

In August 1943 alone, he shot down 49 aircraft – a number matched exactly by Jagdgeschwader 52's (JG 52) Erich Hartmann – bringing Nowotny's total to 161 victories. On 1 September, he scored ten victories in two sorties, which took his tally to 183. Seventy-two hours later, that number had risen to 189, earning him the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross on 4 September. The award was to be personally presented by the Führer, Adolf Hitler, on 22 September 1943. However, by this date Nowotny had claimed his double century (200) on 8 September, and, on 15 September 1943, his 210th to 215th victory, making him the highest-scoring pilot in the Luftwaffe to that time. Two Lavochkin La-5s and a Yakovlev Yak-9 on 17 September brought his score to 218 victories, earning him the Swords to his Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves on 22 September 1943. The planned "Oak Leaves" presentation thus became a "Swords" ceremony. The presentation was made by Hitler at the Wolf's Lair, Hitler's Führerhauptquartier in Rastenburg on 22 September 1943. Three other Luftwaffe officers were presented with awards that day by Hitler, Major Hartmann Grasser and Hauptmann Heinrich Alexander Ludwig Peter Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein were awarded the Oak Leaves, and Hauptmann Günther Rall also received the Swords to his Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves.

Nowotny was promoted to Hauptmann on 21 September 1943, effective as of 1 October, following his 225th victory. On 9 October in aerial combat south of Nevel, he was credited with JG 54s 6,000th aerial victory. Five days later, Nowotny became the first pilot to reach 250 victories. Nowotny was celebrating this feat in the Ria Bar in Vilna when he received a phone call from Hitler himself, announcing that he had been awarded the Diamonds to his Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, making him the eighth of 27 men to be so honored. The Brillanten (Diamonds) were presented by Hitler at the Wolfsschanze, near Rastenburg on 19 October 1943. Nowotny immediately went on a short vacation to Vienna before returning to his front-line unit. On 29 October 1943, Nowotny presented the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross to Oberfeldwebel Otto Kittel. In the days following, Nowotny flew as wingman to Karl Schnörrer, helping him accumulate further victories. On 11 November, Anton Döbele was killed in a mid-air collision with an Il-2 Sturmovik. The next day, 12 November 1943, Schnörrer was severely injured after bailing out at low altitude. Schnörrer was replaced as Nowotny's wingman by Unteroffizier Ernst Richter. With Richter, Nowotny claimed his final two aerial victories on the Eastern Front on 15 November 1943. In total, Nowotny had claimed 255 confirmed kills plus a further 50 unconfirmed, before he was taken off combat duty.

Nowotny was sent on a propaganda tour in Germany, which included the presentation of the Knight's Cross of the War Merit Cross to the railroad engineer August Kindervater on 7 December 1943 – Nowotny's 23rd birthday. Shortly before Christmas, he visited the Focke-Wulf production site at Bad Eilsen, where he was met by Professor Kurt Tank. The mayor of Vienna presented Nowotny the city's ring of honour on 11 January 1944, the presentation taking place a week later. His next official visit was the Büromaschinenfabrik (office machinery factory) at Zella-Mehlis, before he briefly returned to Jagdgeschwader 54. Nowotny was made Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 101 (JG 101) and commander of the Jagdfliegerschule 1, a Luftwaffe fighter pilot training school at Pau in southern France, on 6 February 1944. During his absence from JG 54, Nowotny was temporarily replaced by Hauptmann Heinz Lange as commander of I. Group. On 4 February, Hauptmann Horst Ademeit officially succeeded Nowotny as commander.

Swords for a Hitler Youth leader

  • Die Schwerter für einen HJ-Führer.jpg
  • Die Schwerter für einen HJ-Führer II.jpg
  • Die Schwerter für einen HJ-Führer III.jpg
  • Die Schwerter für einen HJ-Führer IV.jpg

Kommando "Nowotny"

In September 1944, Major Nowotny was put in charge of Testing Command (Erprobungskommando) "Nowotny", equipped with the Me 262 jet fighter. The unit consolidated a number of test units and was tasked with acquiring tactical knowledge and experience of Me 262 operations. The unit was based on two airfields northwest of Osnabrück: Achmer and Hesepe. Nowotny was besieged with difficulties in operationally testing the jet fighter. In addition to staving off the increasing Allied fighter presence the jets attracted, he was also beset with the technical difficulties a new and superior (Wunderwaffe), albeit still immature technology presented. By 7 November 1944, Nowotny had claimed three victories in the new jet fighter.

Generals Alfred Keller and Adolf Galland had scheduled an inspection at Achmer Airfield for the afternoon of 7 November 1944. After inspecting the two airfields at Achmer and Hesepe, Galland stayed in the Penterknapp barracks discussing the problems of the past few weeks. Several pilots openly expressed their doubts as to the readiness of the Me 262 for combat operations. The next morning, 8 November 1944, the Generals arrived again at Nowotny's command post. Shortly after, news reached the command post of a large bomber formation approaching. Two Rotten of Me 262 were prepared for take-off, Erich Büttner and Franz Schall at Hesepe, and Nowotny and Günther Wegmann at Achmer. At first, only Schall and Wegmann managed to take off because Büttner had a punctured tire during taxiing and Nowotny's turbines initially refused to start. With some delay, Nowotny took off and engaged the enemy on his own.

Wehrmachtbericht references

Date Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording Direct English translation
2 September 1943 Oberleutnant Nowotny, Führer einer Jagdfliegergruppe, erzielte gestern zehn Luftsiege.[1] Oberleutnant Nowotny, group leader of a fighter group, achieved ten aerial victories yesterday.
9 September 1943 Deutsche und rumänische Fliegerverbände unterstützten auch gestern in zahlreichen Einsätzen die Truppen des Heeres. Dabei erzielte Oberleutnant Nowotny, Führer einer Jagdfliegergruppe, seinen 196. bis 200. Luftsieg.[2] The German and Rumanian air force again supported the troops of the Army with numerous missions. Oberleutnant Nowotny, group leader of a fighter group, thereby achieving his 196th to 200th aerial victory.
16 September 1943 Oberleutnant Nowotny, Führer einer Jagdfliegergruppe, schoß in den beiden letzten Tagen an der Ostfront 12 feindliche Flugzeuge ab und errang damit seinen 215. Luftsieg.[3] Oberleutnant Nowotny, group leader of a fighter group, shot down 12 enemy aircraft on the Eastern Front during the past two days and achieved his 215th aerial victory.
10 October 1943 Hauptmann Nowotny erhöhte durch acht Abschüsse die Zahl seiner Luftsiege auf 231.[4] Hauptmann Nowotny increased the number of aerial victories by eight to 231.
15 October 1943 Hauptmann Nowotny, Gruppenkommandeur in einem Jagdgeschwader, erzielte gestern an der Ostfront den 250. Luftsieg.[5] Hauptmann Nowotny, group commander in a fighter wing, recorded yesterday his 250th aerial victory on the Eastern Front.
9 November 1944 Gruppenkommandeur Major Walter Nowotny, Inhaber der höchsten deutschen Tapferkeitsauszeichnung, fand im Luftkampf nach Abschuß seines Gegners den Heldentod. Mit ihm verliert die deutsche Luftwaffe einen ihrer erfolgreichsten Jagdflieger, der insgesamt 258 Luftsiege errungen hat.[6] Group commander Major Walter Nowotny, recipient of the highest German award for bravery, found a hero's death in aerial combat after he shot down his adversary. In him the German Luftwaffe loses one of their most successful fighter pilots, who had achieved 258 aerial victories.

Death

On 8 November 1944, one month before his 24th birthday, Major Nowotny engaged a large enemy bomber force of the USAAF single-handedly, after a problem with his turbines prevented him from taking off with other aircraft. He reported over radio downing a B-24 Liberator (this was probably a downed B-17) and a P-51 Mustang before radioing with his final words – either “I’m on fire” or “it’s on fire”. It is not known whether he was shot down by a squadron of fighter escort Mustangs while attempting to land at Achmer airfield or suffered engine failure. He managed to deploy his parachute, but it became entangled in the tail of his aircraft, causing him to plummet to his death. Fighter ace Helmut Lennartz recalled:

"I remember Nowotny's crash very well. Feldwebel Gossler, a radio operator with our unit, had set up a radio on the airfield. Over this set I and many others listened to the radio communications with Nowotny's aircraft. His last words were, 'I'm on fire' or 'it's on fire'. The words were slightly garbled."

Nowotny's state funeral in Vienna on 15 November 1944 was a lavish affair. Thousands of mourners attended, and all of Germany listened to the broadcast on radios, thus participating in the solemn ceremony. The guard of honour for the internationally famous fighter ace consisted of his friend Karl Schnörrer, Oberst Gordon Gollob, Major Rudolf Schoenert, Hauptmann Heinz Strüning, Major Josef Fözö and Major Georg Christl. The eulogy was delivered by General der Jagdflieger Adolf Galland and Generaloberst Otto Deßloch. The newsreel report of his death opened the Deutsche Wochenschau of 23 November 1944. A memorial stone was erected at the crash site in Epe-Malgarten. In the wake of his death, the first operational jet fighter wing was named in his honour: Jagdgeschwader 7 "Nowotny".

Honorary grave of the city of Vienna

Following left-wing extremist attacks (with paint, dog excrement, but also partial destruction with hammer and chisel in 2003) and leftist, woke incitement, the cowardly city government gave in and in 2003 (with the votes of the SPÖ and the Greens) changed his grave from an honorary grave (i.e., maintained at city expense) to a soldier's grave. The grave was desecrated again in 2011.

  • Walter Nowotny, honorary grave at the Vienna Central Cemetery III.jpg
  • Walter Nowotny, honorary grave at the Vienna Central Cemetery II.jpg
  • Walter Nowotny, honorary grave at the Vienna Central Cemetery I.jpg

Family

His father, Rudolf Nowotny, was a railway official; his two brothers, Rudolf and Hubert, became officers in the Wehrmacht. Hubert Nowotny was killed in action in the Battle of Stalingrad. Rudolf Nowotny was taken prisoner of war on the Western Front in 1944 and would be the only one to survive the war.

Walter Nowotny's brother Rudolf published a biography in 1957 entitled: Walter Nowotny. Berichte aus dem Leben meines Bruders. Tiger von Wolchowstroj, Fliegerwunder aus Österreich. It was noteworthy because the highly decorated French World War II veteran and member of the National Assembly, Pierre Clostermann, wrote the foreword. Further editions were published in 1964, 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1989.

Promotions

  • 1 October 1939 Fahnenjunker (Officer Candidate)
  • 1 March 1940 Fahnenjunker-Gefreiter (Officer Candidate with Lance Corporal rank)
  • 1 April 1940 Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier (Officer Candidate with Corporal/NCO/Junior Sergeant rank)
  • 1 July 1940 Fähnrich (Officer Cadet)
  • 1 April 1941 Leutnant (2nd Lieutenant) with Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 February 1941
  • 1 February 1943 Oberleutnant (1st Lieutenant)
  • 21 September 1943 Hauptmann (Captain) with effect and RDA from 1 October 1943
  • 1 September 1944 Major

Awards, decorations and honours

Honours

Further reading

  • Rudolf Nowotny: Walter Nowotny – Berichte aus dem Leben meines Bruder, Leoni am Starnberger See 1957
    • many newer editions, e.g. Leoni am Starnberger See 1964, 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1973
  • Werner Held:
    • Der Jagdflieger Walter Nowotny, Stuttgart 1984 (newer edition: Stuttgart 1997)
    • German Fighter Ace Walter Nowotny – An Illustrated Biography, 2006
  • H. Holl: Walter Nowotny – Erster Jagdflieger mit 250 Luftsiegen, in "Der Landser", Großband Nr. 796, 1991
  • Herbert Ringlstetter: Walter Nowotny – Der „Tiger vom Wolchowstroj“, 2025

External links

References

  • (1985) Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 2, 1. Januar 1942 bis 31. Dezember 1943 (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2. 
  • (1985) Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 3, 1. Januar 1944 bis 9. Mai 1945 (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2. 
  1. ↑ The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, p. 553.
  2. ↑ The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, p. 556.
  3. ↑ The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, p. 563.
  4. ↑ The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, p. 579.
  5. ↑ The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, p. 582.
  6. ↑ The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 3, p. 327.
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