Werner Dörnbrack

Werner Dörnbrack
Born	29 February 1916 Dortmund
Died	16 March 1981 (aged 65) Göttingen
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1936–1945
Rank	Major
Unit	LG 2 SG 2 SG 4
Commands held	SG 4
Battles/wars	World War II Invasion of Poland Battle of France Battle of Britain Balkans Campaign Battle of Greece Operation Barbarossa Battle of Białystok–Minsk Siege of Leningrad Italian Campaign Operation Overlord Prague Offensive
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Werner Dörnbrack (29 February 1916 – 16 March 1981) was a highly decorated Major in the Luftwaffe during World War II, and one of only 882 recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Werner Dörnbrack was captured by American troops in May 1945, he was later turned over to Soviet forces before escaping. During his career he flew 1118 missions.^{[Note 1]}

Awards and decorations

• Aviator badge
• Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe in Gold with Pennant "1100"
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (9 October 1939)^[1]
  • 1st Class (20 May 1940)^[1]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 21 August 1941 as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of 4.(S)/Lehrgeschwader 2^{[2][Note 2]}
  • 660th Oak Leaves on 25 November 1944 as Major and Gruppenkommandeur of the I./Schlachtgeschwader 4^[3][4]

Notes

1. For a list of Luftwaffe ground attack aces see List of German World War II Ground Attack aces
2. According to Scherzer as Staffelkapitän of the 6.(S)/Lehrgeschwader 2.^[3]

References

Citations

1. Thomas 1997, p. 125.
2. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 163.
3. Scherzer 2007, p. 276.
4. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 92.

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.
• Obermaier, Ernst (1976). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe 1939–1945 Band II Stuka- und Schlachtflieger [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Luftwaffe 1939–1945 Volume II Dive Bomber and Attack Aircraft] (in German). Mainz, Germany: Verlag Dieter Hoffmann. ISBN 978-3-87341-021-3.
• 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.
• Thomas, Franz (1997). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 1: A–K [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 1: A–K] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2299-6.

External links

• Lexikon der Wehrmacht
• World War 2 Awards.com