Friedrich Kless

Friedrich Kless
Born	7 October 1906 Bayreuth, Germany
Died	6 April 1994 (aged 87)
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Reichswehr (1925–33) Heer (1933–38) Luftwaffe (1938–45)
Years of service	1925–45
Rank	Generalmajor
Commands held	II./Kampfgeschwader 55
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of France Battle of Britain
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Friedrich Kless (7 October 1906 – 6 April 1994) was a highly decorated Generalmajor in the Luftwaffe during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Friedrich Kless was captured by Allied troops in May 1945 and was held until December 1947.

Awards and decorations

• Aviator badge
• Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class
  • 1st Class
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 14 October 1940 as Major and Gruppenkommandeur of the II./Kampfgeschwader 55^[1]
• German Cross in Gold on 12 January 1943 as Oberstleutnant im Generalstab (in the General Staff) of Luftwaffen-Kommando Ost^[2]

References

Citations

1. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 213.
2. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 233.

Bibliography

• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
• Kaiser, Jochen (2010). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Kampfflieger—Band 1 [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Bomber Fliers—Volume 1] (in German and English). Bad Zwischenahn, Germany: Luftfahrtverlag-Start. ISBN 978-3-941437-07-4.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.

External links

• World War 2 Awards.com
• Friedrich Kless @ Axis Biographical Research at the Wayback Machine (archived October 28, 2009)