Hartmann Grasser

Infobox Military Person
name= Hartmann Grasser
born=birth date|1914|7|23|df=y
died=dda|1986|6|2|1914|7|23|df=y
placeofbirth= Graz, Austria
placeofdeath= Cologne, West Germany
allegiance=flagicon|Nazi Germany Deutsches Reich, Großdeutsches Reich
branch=
serviceyears= 1936 – 1945
rank= Oberleutnant, Gruppenkommandeur
commands=
unit= JGr 152, ZG 52, ZG 2, JG 51, JG 11, JG 210
battles=World War II
awards=Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
German Cross in Gold
laterwork=

Hartmann Grasser (23 August, 1914 – 2 June, 1986) was a World War II German fighter ace. He was credited with shooting down 103 Allied aircraftcite web|title=Hartmann Grasser|work=Luftwaffe.cz|url=http://www.luftwaffe.cz/grasser.html| accessdate=28 May| accessyear=2008] cite book
author= Trevor J. Constable, Raymond F. Toliver
title= Horrido!: Fighter Aces of the Luftwaffe
publisher= Barker
location=
year= 1968
pages= p9
isbn=
oclc=
doi=] cite book
author= John Weal
title= More Bf 109 Aces of the Russian Front
publisher= Osprey Publishing
location=
year= 2007
pages= p46
isbn= 184603177X
oclc=
doi=] cite book
author= John Weal, Alfred Price
title= Bf 109D/E Aces 1939-41
publisher= Osprey Publishing
location=
year= 1996
pages= p28
isbn= 1855324873
oclc=
doi=] while flying 700 missions on the Western Front (8 victories), Eastern Front (83 victories), and in North Africa (12 victories.)

Early life

Grasser was born on 23 August 1914 in Graz, Steiermark, Austria. Due to political reasons, he left Austria in 1934 and settled in Germany. He was trained at the Naval School in Neustadt and at the flying sports school at Rossitten, followed by six months at the Johannisthal flying school.cite web|title=Eichenlaubträger Hartmann Grasser|work=Ritterkreuztraeger-1939-45.de|url=http://www.ritterkreuztraeger-1939-45.de/Luftwaffe/G/Grasser-Hartmann.htm| accessdate=28 May| accessyear=2008] Grasser then joined the "Luftwaffe" with the rank of "Fahnenjunker" (cadet) in 1936.

World War II

Beginning of the war

At the beginning of the war, Grasser was serving with "Jagdgruppe" (JGr) 152 and was assigned to the 3./JGr 152. After a short service in Poland, the group was relocated to the west in mid-September 1939. He participated in the Battle of France and shot down a French observation balloon on 16 September 1939. Grasser shot down a French Curtiss H75 fighter near Hornbach on 24 September, which marked his first victory over an aircraft.

Battle of Britain

In January 1940, JGr 152 was redesignated I./ZG 52 and equipped with Messerschmitt Bf 110 and in June 1940, I./ZG 52 was renamed II./ZG 2. Grasser was assigned to the 6./ZG 2 during the Battle of Britain and shot down two aircraft, raising his total kills to six. In October 1940, he was posted to "Jagdgeschwader 51" as adjutant to Werner Mölders. On 1 December 1940, Grasser shot down a Royal Air Force (RAF) Hawker Hurricane near Ashford.

Eastern Front

"Oberleutnant" Grasser participated in Operation Barbarossa and shot down a Soviet Tupolev SB on the first day of the invasion of the Soviet Union. He shot down two enemy aircraft on 29 June 1941 which were respectively his ninth and tenth victories. Grasser passed the 20 kill mark on 29 July, a day on which he shot down a Soviet Ilyushin DB-3. On 1 August, he was appointed "Staffelkapitän" of 5./JG 51, and achieved his 30th victory on 7 September after downing a Soviet I-61 near Karlewez. Grasser was appointed "Gruppenkommandeur" of II./JG 51 on 4 September and received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for 29 victories. He achieved his 40th victory on 14 December after shooting down a Soviet Petlyakov Pe-2. On 24 January 1942, after achieving his 45th victory, Grasser was shot down in his Messerschmitt Bf 109, sustaining a severe eye injury. However, he was able to bail out, landing behind Soviet lines, but eventually reached German forces.

Grasser spent several months in hospital but returned to flying duty after recovering from his eye injury. He achieved his 50th victory on 23 June 1942 after shooting down a Soviet Polikarpov I-153. On 5 July, Grasser destroyed six Soviet aircraft, including three Ilyushin Il-2 ground-attack aircraft. He achieved his 70th and 80th victories on 13 August and 29 August respectively. When he was transferred from the Eastern Front, he had racked up a total of 91 kills.

North Africa and Germany

In November 1942, Grasser was assigned to command II./JG 51 in North Africa. In Tunisia, he added 12 more kills, increasing his total to 103. Grasser was awarded the Eichenlaub on 31 August. On 28 April 1944, he was appointed "Gruppenkommandeur" of III./JG 1 based in Germany replacing "Hauptmann" Friedrich Eberle who had been wounded in combat with the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). He stayed with this unit for a short time and then passed the command of III./JG 1 to "Hauptmann" Erich Woitke. In December 1944, Grasser was assigned to JG 210.

Later life

At the end of World War II, Grasser was handed over to the Soviet Union and was imprisoned until 1949. Grasser's views on military service radically changed after his return from Soviet prison, and he swore to never again wear a military uniform. He traveled to India in 1949 to train civil pilots in Allahabad and New Delhi. In 1950 he became an adviser to the Syrian Air Force. After his return from Syria, he began the manufacturing of industrial pressed parts made of steel. Grasser died on 2 June 1986 in Cologne and was buried in his hometown of Graz.

Awards

* German Cross in Gold (19 September 1942)
* Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (4 September 1941)

ee also

*List of World War II aces from Germany
*List of World War II air aces

Notes

Further reading

* Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. "Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945". Friedburg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas, 2000. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.