Eugen-Ludwig Zweigart

Eugen-Ludwig Zweigart (3 May 1914 – 8 June 1944) a former German fighter ace in the Luftwaffe. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, and its variants were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was credited with 69 victories.

Early life and career Zweigart was born on 3 May 1914 in Saargemünd of Alsace–Lorraine within the German Empire, now Sarreguemines, a commune in the Moselle department of the Grand Est administrative region in north-eastern France. He volunteered for military service in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany in October 1935. Initially serving in the Army, he later transferred to the Luftwaffe (air force). Trained as a fighter pilot, Zweigart was posted to 9. Staffel (9th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 54 (JG 54—54th Fighter Wing), a squadron of III. Gruppe (3rd group) of JG 54, in October 1940.

World War II World War II in Europe began on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. In October 1940, III. Gruppe was based at an airfield at Guînes where it participated in the Battle of Britain against the Royal Air Force (RAF). At the time, 9. Staffel was commanded by Oberleutnant Richard Hausmann while III. Gruppe was temporarily led by Oberleutnant Hans-Ekkehard Bob who transferred command to Hauptmann Arnold Lignitz on 4 November. On 21 October, the Gruppe was withdrawn from the English Channel and dispersed to multiple airfields in the Netherlands with 9. Staffel sent to Amsterdam-Schiphol Airfield and then to Haamstede three days later. Here on 10 November, Zweigart claimed his first aerial victory, a Bristol Blenheim bomber shot down northeast of De Kooy. His only claim during the Battle of Britain

On 29 March 1941, III. Gruppe was ordered to Graz-Thalerhof in preparation for the Balkans campaign. On 20 April, III. Gruppe was withdrawn from combat operation, relocating to Belgrad-Semlin. On 4 May, the Gruppe began its transfer to Airfield Stolp-Reitz in Pomerania, present-day Słupsk, by train, arriving at Stolp-Reitz on 10 May.

Operation Barbarossa At Stolp-Reitz, JG 54 upgraded their aircraft to the Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2. For the next four weeks, the pilots familiarized themselves with the new aircraft before on 15 June, III. Gruppe was ordered to Blumenfeld in East Prussia, present-day Karczarningken in the Kaliningrad Oblast, in preparation for Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. During the upcoming invasion, JG 54 would be deployed in the area of Army Group North, was subordinated to I. Fliegerkorps (1st Air Corps) and supported the 16th and 18th Army as well as the Panzer Group 4 in their strategic objective to reach Leningrad.

On 22 June, the first day of Operation Barbarossa, Zweigart claimed his second aerial victory, a Polikarpov I-153 fighter. On 12 September, the German advance into the Soviet Union, had III. Gruppe relocate to Ziverskaya. Here on 11 November, Zweigart made a forced landing at Sablin, near Lyuban, following combat damage sustained to his Bf 109 F-2 (Werknummer 12943—factory number). By end 1941, Zweigart had claimed seven further aerial victories, taking his total to nine. For this, he had been awarded both classes of the Iron Cross .

On 28 September 1942, Zweigart shot down and killed Kapitan Dmitriy Buryak from 3 GvIAP (Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment—). Buryak had been credited with eleven aerial victories claimed in 170 combat missions. On 22 January 1943, Zweigart was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for 54 aerial victories claimed.

Defense of the Reich In mid-February 1943, III. Gruppe of JG 54 was withdrawn from the Eastern Front and ordered to Vendeville, France where it was subordinated to the Geschwaderstab (headquarters unit) of Jagdgeschwader 26 "Schlageter" (JG 26—26th Fighter Wing). The Gruppe was equipped with the Bf 109 G-4 armed with 20 mm MG 151/20 cannons installed in conformal gun pods under the wings. The original plan was to exchange JG 26 which had been fighting on the Western Front with JG 54. The plan was cancelled in March. Instead of III. Gruppe of JG 54 returning to the Eastern Front, the Gruppe was ordered to Bad Zwischenahn on 25 March and then to Oldenburg Airfield two days later. Here, the Gruppe was subordinated to the 2. Jagd-Division (2nd Fighter Division) which was fighting in defense of the Reich.

Late on 22 June, III. Gruppe moved from Oldenburg to Deelen Airfield in the Netherlands. Here, Zweigart claimed his first heavy bomber shot down. That day, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) VIII Bomber Command, later renamed to Eighth Air Force, attacked various targets of opportunity in East Frisia. III. Gruppe intercepted a formation of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers near Dörpen where Zweigart claimed a B-17 bomber shot down. On 8 July, the Gruppe relocated again, moving from Deelen to Amsterdam-Schiphol Airfield. Here on 18 July, Zweigart claimed a RAF North American P-51 Mustang fighter shot down west of Scheveningen.

On 25 July during Blitz Week, the USAAF VIII Bomber Command attacked Hamburg and Kiel. In order to fragment German aerial defenses, Allied forces also attacked the Fokker factory in Amsterdam, the airfields at Amsterdam-Schiphol and Woensdrecht, and a coking factory at Ghent. Defending against these attacks, Zweigart claimed a Supermarine Spitfire fighter shot down west of Wijk aan Zee. Two days later, Zweigart was shot down in his Bf 109 G-6 (Werknummer 15678) by Spitfire fighters, bailing out near Noorden.

On 6 March 1944, the USAAF targeted various industrial centers in and around Berlin. In total, the Eighth and Fifteenth Air Force mustered 730 heavy bombers with an escort of 796 aircraft in the first, full-scale daylight attack on Berlin. Defending against this attack, Zweigart claimed three B-17 bombers shot down in combat during the morning and afternoon.

Normandy landings and death When Allied forces launched Operation Overlord, the invasion of German-occupied Western Europe on 6 June, III. Gruppe was immediately ordered to relocate to Villacoublay Airfield. That day, the Gruppe reached Nancy, arriving in Villacoublay the following day where it was subordinated to II. Fliegerkorps (2nd Air Corps). Its primary objective was to fly fighter-bomber missions in support of the German ground forces. The Gruppe flew its first missions on 7 June to the combat area east of Caen and the Orne estuary.

A days later on 8 June, Zweigart was shot down flying Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-8 (Werknummer 170736) in aerial combat near Les Champeaux, France. He bailed out and was allegedly shot and killed while hanging in his parachute. He was interred at the Saint-Désir-de-Lisieux German war cemetery.

Summary of career Aerial victory claims According to US historian David T. Zabecki, Zweigart was credited with 69 aerial victories. Spick also lists him with 69 aerial victories claimed in an unknown number of combat missions. This figure includes 54 aerial victories on the Eastern Front and 15 over the Western Allies. Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 66 aerial victory claims plus two further unconfirmed claims. This figure includes 52 aerial victories on the Eastern Front and 14 on the Western Front, including ten four-engined bombers.

Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 10131". 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 – 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Action at the Channel and over England — October 1940 – 29 March 1941 1 10 November 1940 12:20 Blenheim northeast of De Kooy – 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 5 December 1941 2 22 June 1941 14:25? I-153 6 11 September 1941 09:55 I-18 (MiG-1) 3 30 June 1941 12:32 SB-3 Dünaburg 7 30 September 1941 16:30 ground-attack aircraft? 4 6 July 1941 18:50 SB-3 8 5 November 1941 13:05 I-26 (Yak-1) Kolpino 5 14 July 1941 16:20 SB-2 9 1 December 1941 09:27 I-18 (MiG-1) – 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Eastern Front — 6 December 1941 – 30 April 1942 10 9 February 1942 15:57 R-Z? 13 6 April 1942 08:03 P-40 11 9 February 1942 16:12 I-26 (Yak-1) 14 25 April 1942 11:32 MiG-3 12 4 April 1942 15:14 Pe-2 15 25 April 1942 11:40 MiG-3 – 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Eastern Front — 1 May 1942 – 3 February 1943 16 28 May 1942 09:04 I-16 PQ 10131east of Shlisselburg 35 20 September 1942 17:28 LaGG-3 PQ 10214 west-southwest of Shlisselburg 23 July 1942 P-40 36 21 September 1942 11:07 P-40 PQ 10161southeast of Shlisselburg 17 30 July 1942 19:45 I-18 (MiG-3) PQ 18224 east-southeast of Staraya Russa 37 28 September 1942 14:46 LaGG-3 PQ 00321 northwest of Shlisselburg 18 2 August 1942 16:52 MiG-3 PQ 00243 southeast of Leningrad 38 28 September 1942 15:21 Hurricane PQ 00264 southwest of Shlisselburg 19 2 August 1942 19:12 MiG-3 PQ 00164, Aleksandrowka southeast of Leningrad 39 29 September 1942 06:54? LaGG-3 PQ 00251, Oserki west-southwest of Shlisselburg 20 13 August 1942 17:53 P-40 PQ 18261 east-southeast of Staraya Russa 40 26 October 1942 08:45 Il-2 PQ 28263 southwest of Waldi 21 13 August 1942 17:55 P-40 PQ 18264 east-southeast of Staraya Russa 41 26 October 1942 13:57 LaGG-3 PQ 18334 east-southeast of Staraya Russa 22 28 August 1942 11:23 MiG-3 PQ 10181east of Mga 42 30 October 1942 08:55 LaGG-3 PQ 28123 northwest of Demyansk 23 29 August 1942 10:28 MiG-3 PQ 10164vicinity of Putilowo 43 30 October 1942 09:37 LaGG-3 PQ 29783, Tschasyja north-northwest of Demyansk 24 29 August 1942 10:31 MiG-3 PQ 10164vicinity of Putilowo 44 7 November 1942 08:48 P-40 PQ 38742vicinity of Ostashkov 25 31 August 1942 17:16 MiG-3 PQ 10191, Kilosi 45 7 November 1942 08:57 P-40 PQ 28843 northwest of Ostashkov 26 31 August 1942 17:20 MiG-3 PQ 10164vicinity of Putilowo 46 14 November 1942 11:35 LaGG-3 PQ 10262 west-southwest of Shlisselburg 27 1 September 1942 10:55 LaGG-3 PQ 10254 west-southwest of Shlisselburg 47 22 November 1942 11:45 Pe-2 PQ 90441 north of Volosovo 28 2 September 1942 10:12 LaGG-3 PQ 00212 east of Leningrad 48 17 December 1942 10:40? MiG-3 PQ 46214 south of Zubtsov 29 2 September 1942 18:39 MiG-3 PQ 10113vicinity of Shlisselburg 49? 25 December 1942 12:48 Il-2 PQ 07741 30 3 September 1942 11:02 P-40 PQ 10254 west-southwest of Shlisselburg 50 25 December 1942 12:50 Il-2 PQ 07742 southwest of Velikiye Luki 31 3 September 1942 11:07 P-40 PQ 10254 west-southwest of Shlisselburg 51 29 December 1942 08:36 Yak-1 PQ 07692 east of Velikiye Luki 32 9 September 1942 11:12 P-40 PQ 10242 east-southeast of Shlisselburg 52 29 December 1942 08:40 La-5 PQ 07733 southwest of Velikiye Luki 33 9 September 1942 17:20 MiG-3 PQ 00264 southwest of Shlisselburg 53 29 December 1942 08:49 La-5 PQ 07591 south of Velikiye Luki 34 15 September 1942 06:04 P-40 PQ 10241 east-southeast of Shlisselburg 54 29 December 1942 11:16 Yak-1 PQ 07594 southwest of Velikiye Luki – 9. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Defense of the Reich — 27 March – August 1943 55 25 June 1943 09:03 B-17 southwest of Dörpen 58 27 July 1943 20:13 Ventura PQ 05 Ost S/GKHaarlem 56 18 July 1943 07:15 P-51 west of Scheveningen 59 12 August 1943 08:52 B-17 PQ 05 Ost S/LN-3/6Kerken-Kempen 57 25 July 1943 15:19 Spitfire west of Wijk aan Zee – 7. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Defense of the Reich — November 1943 – March 1944 60 29 November 1943 14:58 B-17? Cloppenburg 63 6 March 1944 11:58 B-17 PQ 05 Ost EQSögel-Cloppenburg 61 20 February 1944 12:57 B-17 PQ 15 Ost JD 64 6 March 1944 14:49 B-17 Reinsehlen 62 20 February 1944 13:06 B-17* PQ 15 Ost JE 6 March 1944 B-17 – 8. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Defense of the Reich — March 1944 65 18 March 1944 15:20 B-17 PQ 04 Ost CQ-6Lahr-Biberach – Stab III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 54 –Defense of the Reich — May 1944 66 19 May 1944 13:10 B-24* PQ 15 Ost HB-4 67 27 May 1944 12:19 B-17 PQ 04 Ost DO-6/DP-4Ballons de Voges

Awards Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class Honor Goblet of the Luftwaffe on 26 October 1942 as Oberfeldwebel and pilot German Cross in Gold on 17 November 1942 as Oberfeldwebel in the 9./Jagdgeschwader 54 Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 22 January 1943 as Oberfeldwebel and pilot in the 5./Jagdgeschwader 54