Paul-Heinrich Dähne
German World War II fighter pilot (1921–1945) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Paul-Heinrich Dähne (7 July 1921 – 24 April 1945) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 100 aerial victories—that is, 100 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft—claimed in about 600 combat missions.
Paul-Heinrich Dähne | |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | Sarotti |
Born | 7 July 1921 Frankfurt (Oder), Germany |
Died | 24 April 1945(1945-04-24) (aged 23) Warnemünde, Nazi Germany |
Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
Service/ | Luftwaffe |
Rank | Hauptmann (Posthumously) |
Unit | JG 52, JG 11, JG 1 |
Commands held | 2./JG 52, III./JG 11, II./JG 1 |
Battles/wars | World War II |
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Born in Frankfurt an der Oder, Dähne was trained as a fighter pilot and was posted to Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52—52nd Fighter Wing) in late 1940. Fighting on the English Channel, he claimed his first aerial victory on 26 August 1941 over a Royal Air Force (RAF) Bristol Blenheim bomber. His unit was then posted to the Eastern Front where his number of aerial victories increased to 90. Dähne was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 6 April 1944. He was then transferred to the Western Front where he fought in Defense of the Reich. There he was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III. Gruppe (3rd group) of Jagdgeschwader 11 (JG 11—11th Fighter Wing) and later of II. Gruppe of JG 11. Dähne was killed in a flight accident while training on the Heinkel He 162 jet fighter near Warnemünde, Germany on 24 April 1945.