Franz Rudorfer

Oberleutnant Franz Rudorfer (1897-1919) was an Austro-Hungarian World War I flying ace credited with eleven confirmed and two unconfirmed aerial victories.

Early life Franz Rudorfer was born on 29 August 1897 in Vienna, Austria, when it was still part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

World War I Rudorfer had volunteered for service before World War I began. He was posted to Infanterieregiment No. 59 as a new leutnant in August 1916. In May 1917, he requested transfer to aviation. His first posting after observer training at Wiener-Neustadt was Flik 19J on the Italian front, under the command of Adolf Heyrowsky. Here he scored his first victory, becoming a balloon buster on 15 November 1917. It was also during his Flik 19J assignment that Rudorfer began to teach himself to fly.

In April 1918, he was posted to Flik 51J to fly Albatros D.III fighters. They were arrested by the local authorities but released soon afterwards. After this incident Rudorfer returned to Vienna.