Nickname: Bruno
Date of Birth: 21.02.1917 - Kronsdorf, Sudetenland (Austria-Hungary)
Date of Death: 16.02.1945 - Dzukste/Kurland (Latvia)
Battles and Operations: Operation Barbarossa, advance through the Baltic States toward Leningrad, battles over the Crimea Peninsula, Vyazma-Bryansk, Vitebsk, Kharkov, Orsha and Orel regions, Battle of Kursk, Operation Iskra, Battle of Narva, Courland Pocket defensive operations
Religion: No information
Parents: Eduard Kittel (farmer) and unknown mother
Siblings: No information
Spouse: Edith Kumbartzky (married June 1942 at Krasnogvardeysk)
Children: one son (born 1942)
Promotions:
00.00.1939 Flieger (entry into Luftwaffe)
12.02.1941 Unteroffizier
00.00.1942 Feldwebel
00.10.1943 Oberfeldwebel
01.11.1943 Leutnant (war officer)
00.09.1944 Oberleutnant (war officer)
Career:
00.00.1917-00.00.1939 attended school in Kronsdorf and worked briefly as an auto mechanic
00.00.1939 joined the Luftwaffe
00.00.1940-12.02.1941 completed flight and fighter pilot training
12.02.1941 posted to 2. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 (JG 54 Grünherz) at Jever
22.06.1941 first combat missions during Operation Barbarossa supporting Army Group North
24.06.1941 scored first two confirmed victories (Tupolev SB-2 bombers)
1941-1942 flew Messerschmitt Bf 109 F on the Eastern Front, supporting advances in the Baltic States and toward Leningrad
31.05.1941 bailed out near Spiekeroog due to technical failure in Bf 109 F-2 (returned safely)
15.03.1943 forced landing behind enemy lines in Fw 190 A-4 due to engine failure (returned on foot)
mid-December 1942 converted to Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-4
November 1943 posted to Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe Ost as instructor (based at Saint-Jean-d'Angély, France)
09.02.1944 appointed Staffelkapitän of 3. Staffel JG 54 (succeeded Günther Haase)
February 1944 I. Gruppe JG 54 moved to Wesenberg near Rakvere and fought in the Battle of Narva
01.09.1944 formed and commanded new 2. Staffel JG 54
October 1944 temporarily led I. Gruppe JG 54 during absence of Franz Eisenach
1944-1945 defensive operations in the Courland Pocket
16.02.1945 killed in action in Fw 190 A-8 (Werknummer 960282) southwest of Tukums while attacking Il-2 Sturmoviks (shot down by return fire, aircraft crashed in flames 6 km southwest of Dzukste)
Awards and Decorations:
Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse (30.06.1941, after 4 victories)
Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse (August 1941, after 11 victories)
Luftwaffe Ehrenpokal für besondere Leistungen im Luftkrieg (21.12.1942, as Feldwebel and Flugzeugführer)
Deutsches Kreuz in Gold (18.03.1943, as Feldwebel in 2./JG 54)
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes #918 (29.10.1943) as Oberfeldwebel in 2./JG 54, after 123 victories. By the autumn of 1943, Otto Kittel had become one of Jagdgeschwader 54’s most reliable pilots on the northern sector of the Eastern Front. Operating from bases around Vitebsk and Orsha in support of German defensive operations against Soviet offensives toward Smolensk and the Dnieper line, he flew the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-4 in relentless combat against waves of Red Air Force fighters and ground-attack aircraft. October proved to be his breakthrough month. In a series of intense scrambles and free-hunt missions, Kittel claimed 18 victories in just three weeks, often engaging Soviet LaGG-3, La-5, Yak-9, and Pe-2 formations while escorting Ju 87 Stukas or strafing enemy columns. His tally climbed steadily: multiple LaGG-3 fighters on 12–15 October near Gorki and Usswjaty, Il-2 Sturmoviks over Andrejewo, and further fighters in swirling dogfights southwest of Nevel and Lake Ssennitza.
On 28 October 1943, during one such mission southwest of Gomel, Kittel closed on a lone LaGG-3 fighter, opened fire with his 20 mm cannons and machine guns at close range, and watched it spiral down in flames—his 123rd confirmed victory after only 289 combat sorties. The following day, 29 October, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes. The citation highlighted not a single spectacular mission but his sustained excellence: 123 victories in the face of growing Soviet numerical superiority, achieved while protecting Army Group North’s vital supply lines and airfields. Kittel’s calm, methodical style—preferring precise deflection shots and energy-fighting tactics—had turned him from a slow-starting newcomer into one of the Luftwaffe’s rising stars.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub #449 (11.04.1944) as Leutnant and Staffelführer I./JG 54, after 151 victories. Spring 1944 found I./JG 54 based at Wesenberg (Rakvere) in Estonia, heavily engaged in the desperate air battles over the Narva front and the Baltic coast. On the morning of 4 April 1944, shortly before 08:00, the alarm sounded. Kittel, now a Leutnant and acting Staffelführer, scrambled with his Schwarm in their Fw 190s to intercept a large Soviet formation of heavily armored Ilyushin Il-2 Sturmoviks escorted by LaGG-3 and La-5 fighters approaching low over the Baltic Sea off Kunda. The Germans climbed hard and bounced the enemy from above.
What followed was a furious 20-minute dogfight high above the choppy waves. The sky filled with tracer fire, black smoke trails, and parachutes as the two sides clashed in tight turns and head-on passes. Kittel, flying with characteristic precision, dived on the Il-2s first. At 08:10 he sent one Sturmovik cartwheeling into the sea with a burst into its cockpit; seconds later, at 08:11, a second Il-2 exploded under his guns. Switching to the escort fighters, he quickly downed two LaGG-3s at 08:14 and 08:15, their wings shearing off as his cannon shells tore through them. Finally, at 08:30, he caught a La-5 in a climbing turn and finished it with a long burst—his fifth victory of the morning. The entire I. Gruppe claimed 13 kills in that brief, savage encounter: four Il-2s and nine fighters. Kittel’s personal score stood at 151.
His 152nd victory followed days later, and on 11 April 1944 he received the Eichenlaub. The award recognized both the Narva defensive fighting and this spectacular multi-kill sortie that had helped blunt yet another Soviet ground-support mission. On 5 May 1944 Kittel traveled to the Berghof to receive the decoration personally from Adolf Hitler alongside other leading aces.
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern #113 (25.11.1944) as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän 2./JG 54, after 264 victories. By late 1944, Kittel fought in the brutal defensive air battles of the Courland Pocket. Trapped German forces in Latvia relied on the “Grünherz” pilots to fend off near-constant Soviet air assaults aimed at breaking the bridgehead. Flying from forward fields near Riga and Tukums, Kittel specialized in hunting the heavily armored Il-2 Sturmoviks that swarmed over German positions in massive formations, often 20–30 strong and protected by Yak-9 and La-5 escorts.
Throughout October and November, in mission after mission, he led his Staffel into these cauldrons of flak and fighters. On 10 October alone he claimed multiple Il-2s east of Riga, diving through curtains of defensive fire to rake the cockpit and wings of the “flying tanks” until they plunged into the forest or Baltic. By late November his victory total had reached 264 after more than 500 sorties. Each kill demanded split-second timing—approaching from below or the side to avoid the Il-2’s deadly rear gunner, then pulling up sharply to evade pursuing fighters while the Fw 190’s powerful BMW engine gave him the edge in vertical maneuvers.
On 25 November 1944, while the pocket’s defenders clung to their positions under relentless pressure, Kittel was awarded the Schwerter. The citation emphasized his extraordinary record in the Courland defensive operations: 264 victories, leadership of his Staffel under the most difficult conditions, and his role in protecting the trapped army from annihilation from the air. The award came at a time when Soviet numerical superiority was overwhelming; yet Kittel’s calm determination and deadly accuracy continued to inspire his men until his final mission in February 1945.
Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz
Frontflugspange für Jäger in Gold mit Anhänger "500"
Kombiniertes Flugzeugführer- und Beobachterabzeichen
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Otto Eduard Kittel was an Austrian-born German fighter pilot during World War II who flew 583 combat missions on the Eastern Front and claimed 267 aerial victories all against the Red Air Force making him the fourth-highest scoring ace in aviation history. Born in 1917 he served with Jagdgeschwader 54 supporting Army Group North from 1941 onward and rose through the ranks from enlisted pilot to Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän. He received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in October 1943 after 123 victories the Oak Leaves in April 1944 after 151 victories and the Swords in November 1944 after 264 victories. Kittel specialized in engaging heavily armored Soviet Il-2 Sturmovik ground-attack aircraft and became one of the most successful Luftwaffe pilots to be killed in action when he was shot down over the Courland Pocket in February 1945.
Kittel was born on 21 February 1917 in Kronsdorf in Sudeten Silesia Austria-Hungary now Krasov in the Czech Republic as the son of Eduard Kittel a farmer. After completing school he worked briefly as an auto mechanic before joining the Luftwaffe in 1939. He completed his flight and fighter pilot training and on 12 February 1941 was posted to 2. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 54 which at the time was based in the Netherlands and later moved to northern Germany. In June 1942 he married his fiancée Edith and the couple had a son born later that year. Kittel's early service included a forced bailout from his Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2 on 31 May 1941 due to technical problems near Spiekeroog after which he returned safely to his unit.
Operation Barbarossa the German invasion of the Soviet Union began on 22 June 1941 and Kittel's Gruppe supported Army Group North's advance through the Baltic states toward Leningrad. On 24 June 1941 he scored his first two aerial victories by downing two Tupolev SB-2 bombers. His score rose steadily reaching 19 victories by May 1942. In mid-December 1942 the unit converted to the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-4 and after training returned to combat. On 12 January 1943 during Operation Iskra aimed at breaking the siege of Leningrad Kittel achieved his first ace-in-a-day by shooting down six Soviet aircraft across two missions as I. Gruppe claimed 36 victories that day. He claimed his 39th victory on 19 February 1943 which also marked JG 54's 4000th claim overall. On 15 March 1943 his Fw 190 suffered an engine failure forcing a landing behind enemy lines but he evaded capture and returned on foot.
Throughout 1943 Kittel participated in intense air battles over the Crimea Peninsula Vyazma-Bryansk Vitebsk Kharkov Orsha and Orel regions while his unit often escorted Junkers Ju 87 Stukas during the Battle of Kursk. On 14 September 1943 he reached his 100th aerial victory by downing a Yakovlev Yak-9 fighter becoming the 53rd Luftwaffe pilot to achieve this milestone. In October 1943 he added 18 more victories in just three weeks often engaging Soviet LaGG-3 La-5 Yak-9 and Pe-2 formations while protecting German supply lines near Vitebsk and Orsha. His 123rd confirmed victory came on 28 October 1943 when he closed on a lone LaGG-3 southwest of Gomel and destroyed it with precise cannon and machine-gun fire after 289 sorties. The next day he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his sustained excellence in the face of growing Soviet numerical superiority.
In early 1944 Kittel was appointed Staffelkapitän of 3. Staffel of JG 54 succeeding a pilot killed in an accident. His Gruppe moved to Wesenberg near Rakvere in Estonia to fight in the Battle of Narva. On 4 April 1944 shortly before 08:00 the alarm sounded and Kittel scrambled with his Schwarm to intercept a large formation of Il-2 Sturmoviks escorted by LaGG-3 and La-5 fighters approaching low over the Baltic Sea off Kunda. In a furious 20-minute dogfight filled with tracer fire smoke trails and parachutes he dived on the Il-2s first sending one cartwheeling into the sea at 08:10 and exploding a second at 08:11 before switching to the escorts and downing two LaGG-3s at 08:14 and 08:15 followed by a La-5 in a climbing turn at 08:30 for his fifth victory of the morning. The Gruppe claimed 13 kills in the encounter and Kittel's score reached 151. On 11 April 1944 he received the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves for this action and his 152nd victory. He traveled to the Berghof on 5 May to receive the decoration personally from Adolf Hitler.
By late 1944 Kittel now an Oberleutnant commanded the newly formed 2. Staffel of JG 54 operating from fields near Riga and Tukums in the Courland Pocket where trapped German forces depended on the pilots to counter constant Soviet air assaults. In mission after mission he led his Staffel against massive formations of 20 to 30 Il-2 Sturmoviks protected by Yak-9 and La-5 escorts diving through flak and fighter screens to target the cockpit and wings of the armored ground-attack planes. On 26 August 1944 he claimed his 200th victory while flying from Šķirotava near Riga. In October he temporarily led the entire I. Gruppe during the commander's absence. His total reached 264 victories after more than 500 sorties and on 25 November 1944 he was awarded the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords for his leadership and extraordinary record in the desperate defensive fighting.
On 16 February 1945 Kittel took off in his Fw 190 A-8 southwest of Tukums to attack Il-2 ground-attack aircraft over the Courland Pocket. He was struck by return fire from one of the Sturmoviks his aircraft descending in flames and crashing six kilometers southwest of Džūkste in Latvia. His wingman reported seeing the plane hit and erupt in fire before impact. Kittel's death at age 27 marked the loss of the most successful German fighter pilot killed in action during the war. His calm methodical style and deadly accuracy against numerically superior foes had made him a legend within JG 54 known as the Grünherz wing.
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Source:
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/
https://grokipedia.com/
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https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
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Mathews, J. & Foreman, J. (2015). Luftwaffe Aces - Biographies and Victory Claims. Volume 2: G-L. Red Kite.
Weal, J. (2001). Jagdgeschwader 54 'Grünherz'. Osprey Publishing.
Kurowski, F. (various editions). Luftwaffe Aces.
Scutts, J. (various editions on JG 54 and Eastern Front aces).
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