Full name: Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer
Date of Birth: 16.02.1922 - Calw, Free People's State of Württemberg (Weimar Republic)
Date of Death: 15.07.1950 - Bordeaux, Gironde, France
Battles and Operations: Defence of the Reich campaign 1942-1945, night fighter operations against RAF Bomber Command over Western Europe and the Low Countries
Promotions:
01.04.1940 Fahnenjunker
01.09.1940 Fähnrich
01.02.1941 Oberfähnrich
01.04.1941 Leutnant
01.07.1943 Oberleutnant
01.05.1944 Hauptmann
01.12.1944 Major
Career:
15.11.1939 joined Luftwaffe, basic military training with Fliegerausbildungsregiment 42 in Salzwedel
01.04.1940-20.08.1940 flight training at Flugzeugführerschule A/B 3 in Guben, completion of A/B pilot license
08.1940-05.1941 advanced training at Flugzeugführerschule C 3 in Alt Lönnewitz and Blindflugschule 2 in Neuburg an der Donau
1941 destroyer training at Zerstörerschule in Wunstorf, teamed with radio operator Fritz Rumpelhardt on 03.07.1941
1941 night fighter training at Nachtjagdschule 1 in Schleißheim
11.1941 posted to 5. Staffel, II. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 at Stade, later Sint-Truiden in Belgium
10.04.1942 technical officer in Stab, II. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1
13.08.1943 Staffelkapitän, 12. Staffel, IV. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 at Leeuwarden, later Saint-Trond
01.03.1944 Kommandeur, IV. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 at Saint-Trond
04.11.1944 Geschwaderkommodore, Nachtjagdgeschwader 4
05.1945-1946 prisoner of war in British captivity
1946 released, returned to Calw and took over family winery Schnaufer-Schlossbergkellerei, expanded into imports, sparkling wines and distillery
Awards and Decorations:
Flugzeugführerabzeichen
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (02.06.1942)
Verwundetenabzeichen 1939 in Schwarz (06.1942, wounded in leg during first victory)
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (19.10.1942)
Luftwaffe Ehrenpokal für besondere Leistungen im Luftkrieg (26.07.1943)
Frontflugspange für Nah-Nachtjäger in Gold (1943)
Deutsches Kreuz in Gold (16.08.1943) as Oberleutnant in II. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes (31.12.1943) as Oberleutnant and Staffelführer of 12. Staffel, IV. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 for 42 aerial night victories, including multiple claims against Wellington, Halifax, Lancaster and Whitley bombers during intense RAF raids on German targets in 1943
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub (507. Verleihung, 24.06.1944) as Hauptmann and Kommandeur of IV. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 for 84 aerial night victories, the 84th reached after claiming four RAF bombers on the single night of 22 June 1944 during heavy raids over the Reich
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern (84. Verleihung, 30.07.1944) as Hauptmann and Kommandeur of IV. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 for 89 aerial night victories, achieved through continued leadership and personal claims in the escalating night battles over Belgium and western Germany
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub, Schwerter und Brillanten (21. Verleihung, 16.10.1944) as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur of IV. Gruppe, Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 for 100 aerial night victories, the 100th claimed on the night of 9/10 October 1944 against RAF heavy bombers, one of only 27 recipients of the Brillanten in the entire Wehrmacht
Mentioned in Wehrmachtbericht (10.10.1944) for the 100th victory
Gemeinsames Flugzeugführer-Beobachter Abzeichen mit Brillianten (1944)
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Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer, nicknamed the Spook of St. Trond or Ghost of Sint-Truiden after the location of his unit's base in occupied Belgium, was a German Luftwaffe night fighter pilot and the highest-scoring night fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare with 121 confirmed victories, all achieved at night primarily against British four-engine bombers in 164 operational sorties. Born into a wine-making family in Calw, he showed early aptitude for flying as a glider pilot at the National Political Institute of Education in Backnang and Potsdam, graduating with distinction before joining the Luftwaffe in November 1939. After completing pilot training on various aircraft including the Bf 110, he was posted to Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 in late 1941 and flew his first combat sorties during the Channel Dash escort mission in February 1942. His first victory came on the night of 1/2 June 1942 when he shot down a Handley Page Halifax near Louvain, though he was wounded in the leg during the engagement. Schnaufer started relatively slowly due to limited RAF activity in his sector but accelerated dramatically from mid-1943 after transfer to IV. Gruppe and appointment as Staffelkapitän, then Gruppenkommandeur at age 22. He flew exclusively the Messerschmitt Bf 110 throughout his combat career despite later commanding a Ju 88-equipped Geschwader. Notable actions included claiming five RAF bombers in just 15 minutes in March 1944, reaching the 84-victory mark with four kills on 22 June 1944, and later destroying nine Lancasters in one night on 21 February 1945 with seven falling within 19 minutes. His long-time crew of radio operator Fritz Rumpelhardt and gunner Wilhelm Gänsler formed one of the most successful night fighter teams, each eventually awarded the Knight's Cross as well. Schnaufer was grounded from combat operations in early 1945 to test the experimental Dornier Do 335 night fighter prototype. Captured by British forces at the end of the war, he was released in 1946 and returned to manage the family winery in Calw, expanding the business successfully. On 13 July 1950, while on a wine-buying trip in France, he was involved in a car-train collision near Bordeaux, sustaining a fractured skull from which he died two days later at age 28 without regaining consciousness. He was buried in Calw. His tail rudder from one of his Bf 110 aircraft, marked with all 121 victory bars, is preserved in a museum as a testament to his record.
Source:
Peter Hinchliffe, Schnaufer: Ace of Diamonds, Tempus Publishing, 1999.
Ernst Obermaier, Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe Jagdflieger 1939-1945, Verlag Dieter Hoffmann, 1989.
Ralf Schumann, Ritterkreuzträger Profile Nr. 1 Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer - der erfolgreichste Nachtjäger des zweiten Weltkrieges, UNITEC-Medienvertrieb, 2000.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz-Wolfgang_Schnaufer
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/219/Schnaufer-Heinz-Wolfgang.htm
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://www.ww2.dk/lwoffz.html
https://grokipedia.com/
https://aircrewremembered.com/KrackerDatabase/?q=units
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/
https://books.google.com/
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html
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