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Bruno Loerzer | |
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 Bruno Loerzer in 1918 | |
| Born | (1891-01-22)22 January 1891 Berlin,German Empire |
| Died | 23 August 1960(1960-08-23) (aged 69) Hamburg,West Germany |
| Buried | |
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| Service | |
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| Rank |  Generaloberst |
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Bruno Loerzer (22 January 1891 – 23 August 1960) was a German air force officer duringWorld War I andWorld War II. Credited with 44 aerial victories during World War I, he was one of Germany's leadingflying aces, as well as commander of one of the firstImperial German Air ServiceJagdeschwaders.
Loerzer's close friendship withHermann Göring led to Loerzer's service in the World War IILuftwaffe, with subsequent promotion toGeneraloberst by the war's end. Göring described Loerzer as "his laziest general," but swept aside criticisms of him, commenting "I need someone I can drink a bottle of red wine with in the evening."[1]
Loerzer was born on 22 January 1891 inFriedenau, a locality inBerlin, thecapital of theGerman Empire.[2]
Born inBerlin, Loerzer was a prewar army officer who learned to fly in 1914. Hermann Göring flew as Loerzer's observer from 28 October 1914 until late June 1915. Transferring to fighters, Loerzer flew with twoJagdstaffeln in 1916. On 18 January 1917, was appointed leader of the newly formedJagdstaffel 26.[3] By then he had scored two victories over French aircraft. He had his aircraft painted distinctively striped in black and white. As his victory score mounted, he was awarded theIron Cross First Class andHouse Order of Hohenzollern. In November 1917, he and his squadron mate Göring each had 15 kills, and both still coveted the highest Prussian decoration - the blue enamel cross of thePour le Mérite. Thirty years later, Loerzer would snicker to colleagues that Göring had inflated his mission claims. "Do the same," Loerzer claimed Göring had urged him, "otherwise we'll never get ahead!"[4][Note 1] His tally reached 20 victories at the end of October and he received the Pour le Mérite in February 1918.[5]
The same month, he took command of the newly formedJagdgeschwader III, the third of Germany's famed "flying circuses." His aces included his brother Fritz, who claimed 11 victories. Leading Jasta 26 and three other squadrons, withHermann Dahlmann's support asadjutant andwingman, Loerzer proved a successful wing commander. Equipped with the new BMW-enginedFokker D.VII, JG III cut a wide swath through Allied formations in the summer of 1918, and his own score mounted steadily. He achieved his last ten victories in September when he reached his final score of 44 victories. Shortly before the armistice, he was promoted toHauptmann (captain).[5]
Loerzer irregularly fought withFreikorps anti-communistparamilitary units from December 1918 until March 1920. He commanded FA 427 in the Baltic area, supporting theEiserne Division in the tactical air role. During the 1930s he was a leader in various civil aviation organizations (National Socialist Flying Corps: NSFK), and rejoined theLuftwaffe in 1935 with the rank ofOberst (colonel).
On 15 March 1937, Loerzer was tasked with the creation ofJagdgeschwader 334 (JG 334—334th Fighter Wing) and appointed its firstGeschwaderkommodore (wing commander).[6][Note 2] He held this position until 31 March 1938 when he was appointedInspekteur der Jagdflieger (Inspector of Fighters). Command of JG 334 was then passed on toOberstleutnantWerner Junck.[7]
During the early war years he was commander ofII Air Corps, being awarded theKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross in May 1940. His II Air Corps participated in the invasion of the Soviet Union in the summer of 1941, as a section of Kesselring's 2nd Air Fleet—in support of Field Marshal von Bock. His unit was transferred to Messina, Sicily in October 1941, and he remained there until the middle of 1943, when his section returned to the Italian mainland after suffering heavy losses.
In December 1942, fighter aceWerner Baumbach, Group Commander of III./Kampfgeschwader 30, wrote a letter toHans Jeschonnek, then Chief of the General Staff of the Luftwaffe, regarding the heavy losses suffered by the II Air Corps under Loerzer's leadership. Loerzer was removed from command of the II Air Corps in February 1943, and subsequently promoted by Goering toGeneraloberst as Chief of the Luftwaffe Personnel Department and Chief of Personnel Armament and National Socialist Leadership of the Luftwaffe. Loerzer showed his gratitude on the occasion of the Reichsmarshall's birthday in January 1944, where he presented Goering with a carload of black market goods from Italy - women's stockings, soaps, and other rare items, complete with a price list in order to keep black market prices uniform throughout Germany.[8]
In December 1944 he was assigned to theFührerreserve. He retired in April 1945, and was captured by the Americans in May 1945, and held until 1948.
Loerzer died inHamburg in 1960, at the age of 69.
| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by none | Commander ofJagdgeschwader 334 15 July 1937 – 31 March 1938 | Succeeded by OberstleutnantWerner Junck |
| Preceded by none | Inspekteur der Jagdflieger 1 April 1938 – 31 January 1939 | Succeeded by OberstWerner Junck |
| Preceded by GeneralWilhelm Wimmer | Commander of2. Flieger-Division (1938-1939) 1 February 1939 – 11 October 1939 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander ofII. Fliegerkorps 11 October 1939 – 23 February 1943 | Succeeded by GeneralleutnantMartin Harlinghausen |
| Preceded by | Chief of the Luftwaffe Personnel Office 23 March 1943 – 22 December 1944 | Succeeded by |
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