Erich Hartmann

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Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993), nicknamed Bubi, was a German fighter pilot during World War II and the most successful fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He flew 1,404 combat missions and participated in aerial combat on 825 separate occasions. He was credited with shooting down a total of 352 Allied aircraft: 345 Soviet and 7 American while serving with the Luftwaffe. During his career, Hartmann was forced to crash-land his fighter 16 times after either mechanical failure or damage received from parts of enemy aircraft he had shot down; he was never shot down by direct enemy action. Hartmann, a pre-war glider pilot, joined the Luftwaffe in 1940 and completed his fighter pilot training in 1942. He was posted to the veteran Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52—52nd Fighter Wing) on the Eastern Front. On 29 October 1943, Hartmann was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for destroying 148 enemy aircraft and ultimately the coveted Knight's Cross of the Iron...

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