Erich Leie

Erich Leie (10 September 1916 – 7 March 1945) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator and wing commander during World War II. As a fighter ace, he is credited with 121 aerial victories claimed in more than 500 combat missions. He claimed 44 on Western Front, 77 on the Eastern Front, including one four-engine bomber.

Born in Kiel, Leie grew up in the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. In 1939, he served with Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing) before he was transferred to Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" (JG 2—2nd Fighter Wing) in early 1940. Flying with this wing, Leie claimed his first aerial victory on 14 May during the Battle of France and received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 1 August 1941. In June 1942, he was given command of I. Gruppe of JG 2. In 1943, he transferred back to JG 51 where he commanded I. Gruppe. This unit fought on the Eastern Front where he claimed his 100th aerial victory on 6 November 1943. In December 1944, he was given command of Jagdgeschwader 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing). Leie was killed in action on 7 March 1945. Posthumously, he was promoted to Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel) and nominated for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.

Early life and career Leie was born on 10 September 1916 in Kiel, at the time in the Province of Schleswig-Holstein, a province of the Kingdom of Prussia. In August 1939, Leie temporarily led the Reservestaffel of Jagdgeschwader 71 (JG 71—71st Fighter Wing) until he was replaced by Oberleutnant (First Lieutenant) Horst Tietzen on 29 August. The Reservestaffel was a training squadron equipped with the Messerschmitt Bf 109 D-1, at the time based at Bad Aibling and subordinated to the I. Gruppe (1st group) of Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing). On 26 August, during the German mobilization phase, the Reservestaffel was ordered to Fürstenfeldbruck where it was tasked with providing fighter protection over Munich.

World War II World War II in Europe had begun on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. On 21 March 1940, Leie was transferred to III. Gruppe (3rd group) of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" (JG 2—2nd Fighter Wing), named after World War I fighter ace Manfred von Richthofen. He claimed his first victory on 14 May during the Battle of France when he shot down a Bristol Blenheim bomber east of Sedan. By October 1940, Leie was serving with the Geschwaderstab (headquarters unit) of JG 2. On 28 November 1940, Leie was wingman of Major (Major) Helmut Wick, Geschwaderkommodore (wing commander) of JG 2, on a mission to the Isle of Weight. Leie claimed a Supermarine Spitfire fighter destroyed, his eleventh aerial victory. On that mission, Wick was killed in action when he was shot down, probably by Flight Lieutenant John Dundas of No. 609 Squadron who was also killed that day.

On 23 July 1941, he claimed six Spitfires shot down in one day, an "ace-in-a-day" achievement, taking his total to 21 aerial victories. For this, Leie was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 1 August 1941. He received the award from Feldmarschall (Field Marschal) Hugo Sperrle with fellow JG 2 "Richthofen" pilots Leutnant Egon Mayer and Oberleutnant Rudolf Pflanz on that day. The triple award presentation was recorded by the Deutsche Wochenschau (German Weekly Review), a newsreel series released in the cinemas. By the end of 1941, his total stood at 32 aerial victories. His 32nd claim was a Handley Page Halifax heavy bomber shot down on 30 December in the vicinity of Brest. On 26 January 1942, Leie claimed a Spitfire shot down south of Rame Head. The Spitfire was piloted by Kazimierz Kosinski from the No. 302 Polish Fighter Squadron who was killed in action on a shipping reconnaissance mission that day.

Group commander On 24 June 1942, Leie was officially appointed as Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of I. Gruppe of JG 2. Leie thus succeeded Hauptmann Ignaz Prestele in this capacity who had been killed in action on 4 May 1942. He saw action in the air battle of the Dieppe Raid on 19 August and claimed a Spitfire shot down north of Dieppe. This was his last claim on the Western Front. He was then shot down and wounded, bailing out of his Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-2 (Werknummer 0326—factory number) southwest of Abbeville.

His injuries required hospitalization. Leie returned to his unit on 2 October 1942. During his convalescence, Oberleutnant Christian Eickhoff temporarily led I. Gruppe. On 13 August, Sperrle had approved Leie's preferential promotion to Hauptmann (captain). The Gruppe saw relatively little action in October. In fear of an Allied invasion on the French Mediterranean coast, I. Gruppe was ordered to Marseille-Marignane airfield on 8 November. There, it was tasked with providing fighter protection over the coastal area. Without engaging in aerial combat, the Gruppe stayed in Southern France until the end of 1942.

Eastern Front In January 1943, Leie transferred as Gruppenkommandeur to I. Gruppe of JG 51, based on the Eastern Front. Command of I. Gruppe of JG 2 was then given to Major Helmut Bolz. Leie had received the transfer-order on 6 January and arrived at his new unit on 17 January which at the time was based at Isotscha near Nevel. That day, Leie's predecessor as Gruppenkommandeur, Oberleutnant Rudolf Busch, was killed in action when he collided in mid-air with Geschwaderkommodore Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) Karl-Gottfried Nordmann. Busch had temporarily led the Gruppe after its former commander, Hauptmann Heinrich Krafft, had been killed on 14 December 1942. At the time of Leie's arrival on the Eastern Front, Soviet and German forces were engaged in the Battle for Velikiye Luki and in the Battles of Rzhev in the sector of JG 51 area of operation. On 28 January, I. Gruppe was forced to give up its airfield at Isotscha and moved to an airfield west of Oryol. Flying from Oryol, Leie claimed a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-3 fighter shot down on 2 February, his first aerial victory on the Eastern Front.

Leie led the Gruppe during the offensive operations leading up to Operation Citadel, which initiated the Battle of Kursk. The battle began on 5 July 1943 with I. Gruppe of JG 51 supporting the German 9th Army in its northern attack on the Kursk salient. For the first days of the operation, I. Gruppe primary task was to provide fighter escort for the bombers of Kampfgeschwader 4, Kampfgeschwader 51 and Kampfgeschwader 53, as well as for the Junkers Ju 87 dive bombers of Sturzkampfgeschwader 1. On the first day of the Zitadelle, Leie claimed his 50th aerial victory, an Il-2 shot down in the vicinity of Maloarkhangelsk.

On 6 November 1943 Leie, by now a Major, recorded his 100th victory. He was the 57th Luftwaffe pilot to achieve the century mark. After a lengthy spell of leave, he returned in late March 1944. On 6 July, during Operation Bagration, he was shot down by Soviet fighters. He baled out over Soviet lines but on descending by parachute, was blown back over German lines. By the end of October 1944, Leie's victory total stood at 117.

Wing commander of JG 77 and death

On 29 December 1944, Leie was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing). He replaced Major Siegfried Freytag in this function who had temporarily assumed command after Major Johannes Wiese was wounded in combat on 25 December. Freytag continued to lead JG 77 until Leie's arrival with the Geschwader on 15 January 1945. Command of his former I. Gruppe of JG 51 was passed to Hauptmann Günther Schack. On 12 January, the Red Army had launched the Vistula–Oder Offensive on the Eastern Front. The offensive required the Luftwaffe to relocate its forces, defeated Army Group A, taking much of Poland and striking deep within the pre-war borders of Germany. JG 77 was one of the first Luftwaffe fighter units ordered to relocate to the Eastern Front on 19 January.

As Geschwaderkommodore, Leie was ordered to Berlin on 22 January 1945 and attended the meeting with Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring which was later dubbed the Fighter Pilots' Mutiny. This was an attempt to reinstate Generalleutnant Adolf Galland as General der Jagdflieger who had been dismissed for outspokenness regarding the Oberkommando der Luftwaffe (Luftwaffe high command), and had been replaced by Oberst Gordon Gollob. The meeting was held at the Haus der Flieger in Berlin and was attended by a number of high-ranking fighter pilot leaders which included Leie, Günther Lützow, Hannes Trautloft, Hermann Graf, Gerhard Michalski, Helmut Bennemann, Kurt Bühligen and Herbert Ihlefeld, and their antagonist Göring supported by his staff Bernd von Brauchitsch and Karl Koller. The fighter pilots, with Lützow taking the lead as spokesman, criticized Göring and made him personally responsible for the decisions taken which effectively had led to the lost air war over Europe.

On 7 March 1945, Leie claimed his last two aerial victories and was killed in action. At 14:56, he claimed a La-5 shot down. Half an hour later, he claimed a Yakovlev Yak-9 fighter west of Bielitz, present-day Bielsko-Biała, but collided in mid-air with the crashing Yak-9 fighter in his Bf 109 G-14/AS (Werknummer 786329—factory number). He baled out at an altitude of , too low for his parachute to fully deploy. Posthumously, he was promoted to Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel), and nominated for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves which was not approved. He was buried at the German war cemetery in Valašské Meziříčí.

Summary of career Aerial victory claims According to US historian David T. Zabecki, Leie was credited with 118 aerial victories. Spick also lists him with 118 aerial victories, 75 on the Eastern Front and 43 on the Western Front, claimed in approximately 500 combat missions. Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces – Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 121 aerial victory claims, plus one further unconfirmed claim. This figure includes 77 aerial victories on the Eastern Front and 44 over the Western Allies, including one four-engine bomber.

Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 14 West 4911". The Luftwaffe grid map covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about . These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area in size.

Chronicle of aerial victories Claim Date Time Type Location Claim Date Time Type Location – Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –Battle of France — 10 May – 25 June 1940 1 14 May 1940 19:20 Blenheim east of Sedan – Stab I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –At the Channel and over England — 26 June 1940 – 21 June 1941 2 5 October 1940 15:58 Hurricane south of Bournemouth – Stab of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –At the Channel and over England — 26 June 1940 – 21 June 1941 3 29 October 1940 15:29 Hurricane Portsmouth 8 7 November 1940 15:25 Hurricane south of Portsmouth 4 5 November 1940 14:35 Hurricane northeast of the Isle of Portland 9 7 November 1940 15:25 Hurricane south of Portsmouth 5 5 November 1940 14:40 Spitfire northeast of Portland 10 10 November 1940 15:43 Spitfire east of Portland 6 6 November 1940 15:35 Hurricane Southampton 11 28 November 1940 15:17 Spitfire south of the Isle of Wight 7 6 November 1940 15:37 Hurricane Southampton – Stab of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –On the Western Front — 22 June – 31 December 1941 12 22 June 1941 16:10 Spitfire Arques 22 10 August 1941 14:25 Hurricane northeast of Calais 13 24 June 1941 20:55 Spitfire east of Calais 23 12 August 1941 12:54 Spitfire northwest of Saint-Omer 14 24 June 1941 20:57 Spitfire north of Calais 24 12 August 1941 13:08 Spitfire southeast of Dover 25 June 1941 16:30 Spitfire northeast of Boulogne 25 12 August 1941 19:28 Spitfire south of Dungeness 15 6 July 1941 14:35 Spitfire north of Grand-Fort-Philippe 26 21 August 1941 15:15 Spitfire south of Étaples 16♠ 23 July 1941 13:21 Spitfire east of Calais 27 13 October 1941 14:40 Spitfire west of Boulogne 17♠ 23 July 1941 13:28 Spitfire northwest of Calais 28 13 October 1941 14:43 Spitfire west of Boulogne 18♠ 23 July 1941 20:35 Spitfire west of Hesdin 29 13 October 1941 15:40 Spitfire west-northwest of Étaples 19♠ 23 July 1941 20:39 Spitfire west of Hesdin 30 8 November 1941 12:30 Spitfire Baie de Somme 20♠ 23 July 1941 20:43 Spitfire southwest of Berck 31 8 December 1941 15:45 Spitfire west of Boulogne 21♠ 23 July 1941 20:47 Spitfire west of Berck 32 30 December 1941 15:30 Halifax PQ 14 West 4911vicinity of Brest – Stab of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –On the Western Front — 1 January – May 1942 33 8 January 1942 10:09 Hudson PQ 14 West 6927 37 1 May 1942 19:40 Spitfire northwest of Cap Gris-Nez 34 26 January 1942 13:40 Spitfire PQ 14 West 6042off Rame Head 38 19 May 1942 15:23 Spitfire north of Fécamp 35 2 February 1942 19:05 Beaufort north-northwest of Brignogan-Plages 39 2 June 1942 17:45 Spitfire south-southeast of Eastbourne 25 April 1942 16:45? Spitfire west of Le Crotoy 40 3 June 1942 16:39 Spitfire northwest of Le Havre 36 1 May 1942 19:37 Spitfire west-northwest of Wissant 41 5 June 1942 15:35 Spitfire northwest of Fécamp – Stab I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –On the Western Front — June – 31 December 1942 42 26 June 1942 17:44 Spitfire north of Fécamp 43 19 August 1942 11:50 Spitfire north of Dieppe – Stab I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" –Eastern Front — February 1943 44 2 February 1943 14:05 MiG-3 PQ 7376 – Stab I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" –Eastern Front — 4 February 1943 – 31 December 1943 45 4 February 1943 12:10 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 63632, Kosakowa east-northeast of Maloarkhangelsk 75 7 September 1943 12:29 LaGG-3 PQ 35 Ost 35893 west-southwest of Kirov 46 5 February 1943 14:25 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 73551, east of Tatrino west-southwest of Livny 76 9 September 1943 15:40 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 34235 southeast of Kirov 47 16 March 1943 11:27 Pe-2 PQ 35 Ost 44593, north of Bryansk northeast of Bryansk 77 10 September 1943 13:53 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 44712 west-northwest of Bryansk 48? 4 June 1943 19:35 Pe-2 west of Bokowoje 78 10 September 1943 13:56 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 44728 west of Bryansk 49 8 June 1943 19:35 Yak-7 PQ 35 Ost 53423, Kromy west of Kromy 79 10 September 1943 14:00 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 44766 south of Bryansk 50 5 July 1943 18:44 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 63534vicinity of Maloarkhangelsk 80 11 September 1943 11:10 Yak-7 PQ 35 Ost 44229 north of Zhizdra 51 11 July 1943 19:00 P-39 PQ 35 Ost 63572 south-southeast of Trosna 81 11 September 1943 11:32 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 44769 south of Bryansk 52 13 July 1943 13:44 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 63255 south of Zalegoshch 82 15 September 1943 09:34 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 35348 northwest of Yelnya 53 13 July 1943 13:48 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 64894 east-northeast of Zalegoshch 83 15 September 1943 13:20 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 35378 west of Yelnya 54 13 July 1943 14:05 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 63213vicinity of Zalegoshch 84 15 September 1943 13:25 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 25465 west of Yelnya 55 13 July 1943 18:32 Yak-1 PQ 35 Ost 64878 north of Zalegoshch 85 15 September 1943 13:40 Pe-2 PQ 35 Ost 25466 west-northwest of Yelnya 56 29 July 1943 16:28 LaGG-3 PQ 35 Ost 54653, southwest of Bolkhov east-northeast of Belyov 86 17 September 1943 11:32 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 35511 south-southwest of Yelnya 57 29 July 1943 16:57 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 54648, southwest of Bolkhov northeast of Znamenskoye 87 4 October 1943 15:51 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 15318 northwest of Krassnyj 58 29 July 1943 18:55 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 64755 northeast of Orel 88 5 October 1943 10:46 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 06891vicinity of Gorki 59 31 July 1943 11:49 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 64548 west of Telchje 89 5 October 1943 10:47 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 06868 northeast of Liozna 60 1 August 1943 10:10 Su-2 (Seversky) PQ 35 Ost 53522 southeast of Dmitrowsk-Orlowskiy 90 5 October 1943 10:48 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 06833 north-northeast of Liozna 61 1 August 1943 18:45 Yak-1 PQ 35 Ost 53446 south-southeast of Sockowo 91 5 October 1943 15:19 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 15378 west of Krassnyj 62 2 August 1943 10:05 Pe-2 PQ 35 Ost 53528 southeast of Dmitrowsk-Orlowskiy 92 6 October 1943 12:08 LaGG-3 PQ 35 Ost 06152 southeast of Nevel 63 4 August 1943 16:59 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 53355 southwest of Sockowo 93 6 October 1943 15:42 Pe-2 PQ 35 Ost 06219 64 6 August 1943 16:59 Il-2 PQ 35 Ost 54599 north of Znamenskoye 94 15 October 1943 07:53 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 15617 southeast of Krassnyj 65 7 August 1943 08:20? LaGG-3 PQ 35 Ost 54762 south of Znamenskoye 95 20 October 1943 15:20 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 03876 south-southeast of Rechytsa 66 7 August 1943 14:00? Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 54733vicinity of Znamenskoye 96 22 October 1943 11:44 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 02246 northwest of Ossijaki 67 7 August 1943 14:05 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 54738vicinity of Znamenskoye 97 22 October 1943 11:49 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 02227 northwest of Ossijaki 68 8 August 1943 16:32 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 35423 north-northwest of Spas-Demensk 98 23 October 1943 15:29 Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost 05463 east-northeast of Orsha 69 8 August 1943 16:41 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 35491 north-northwest of Spas-Demensk 99 29 October 1943 12:24 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 05451 southwest of Orsha 70 8 August 1943 16:45 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 35636 northwest of Spas-Demensk 100 6 November 1943 15:00 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 01754 southwest of Vasilikov 71 8 August 1943 16:46 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 45514 north of Spas-Demensk 101 6 November 1943 15:03 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 01756 southwest of Vasilikov 72 12 August 1943 12:50 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 51574vicinity of Kirikowka 102 6 November 1943 15:05 Il-2 m.H. PQ 35 Ost 01738 east of Vasilikov 73 12 August 1943 13:25 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 51387vicinity of Slawgorod 103 6 November 1943 15:15 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 01677 south-southeast of Kiev 74 13 August 1943 16:55 La-5 PQ 35 Ost 50289 west of Merefa – Stab I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" –Eastern Front — 1 January – 31 December 1944 104 29 March 1944 12:37 Yak-7 PQ 35 Ost N/04457 southwest of Tschaussy 111 9 October 1944 13:01? Yak-9 PQ 25 Ost N/26868 southeast of Tauroggen 105 1 April 1944 12:16? Yak-9 PQ 35 Ost N/04593 south-southeast of Stara Bychow 112 9 October 1944 16:00 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/26872 east-northeast of Neusiedel 106 8 April 1944 09:30 Yak-9 PQ 25 Ost N/42688 north of Kovel 113 13 October 1944 13:36 Pe-2 PQ 25 Ost N/25312 east of Neusiedel 107 4 September 1944 17:19 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/14871 south of Ostroleka 114 14 October 1944 15:12 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/16624 east of Laschon 108 5 September 1944 16:14 Yak-7 PQ 25 Ost N/13344 east of Nasielsk 115 14 October 1944 15:13 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/16655 east-southeast of Laschon 109 5 September 1944 16:17 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/13347 east of Nasielsk 116 14 October 1944 15:42 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/16176 north of Memel 110 6 September 1944 15:02 Il-2 m.H. PQ 25 Ost N/13348 east of Nasielsk 117 16 October 1944 13:05 Yak-9 PQ 25 Ost N/25621 east-southeast of Trakehnen – Stab of Jagdgeschwader 77 –Defense of the Reich on the Eastern Front — January – May 1945 118 14 February 1945 16:13 Il-2 120 7 March 1945 14:56 La-5 119 20 February 1945 16:29 La-5 121 7 March 1945 15:30 Yak-9

Awards Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class German Cross in Gold on 20 October 1942 as Oberleutnant in the I./Jagdgeschwader 2 Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 1 August 1941 as Oberleutnant and pilot in the Stab of I./Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen"