Friedrich Beckh

Friedrich Beckh (17 January 1908 – 21 June 1942) was 48 victory-Luftwaffe flying ace and 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. He held the position of Geschwaderkommodore of fighter wing Jagdgeschwader 51 and Jagdgeschwader 52.

Friedrich Beckh
Born17 January 1908
Nuremberg
Died21 June 1942(1942-06-21) (aged 34)
near Charkow
Allegiance Weimar Republic (to 1933)
 Nazi Germany
Service/branch Luftwaffe
Years of service1926–42
RankOberstleutnant im Generalstab
Commands heldJG 51, JG 52
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Early life and career

Beckh was born on 17 January 1908 in Nuremberg in the Kingdom of Bavaria.[1] He was a career soldier having joined the cavalry in 1926 as part of the-then 100,000 strong German Army. He joined the Luftwaffe with the rank of Oberleutnant in 1935 and trained to be a fighter pilot but Beckh had no particular aptitude for flying.

World War II

By the time World War II broke out he had already occupied several positions on the General Staff and because of his age did not fly any combat sorties. Instead, he was lecturing at the Air War Academy. It was during 1940 as Jägerverbindungsoffizier in the Luftgaukommando Wiesbaden (fighter communications or liaison officer) that he became close friends with Werner Mölders, the two men served in Jagdgeschwader 134 Horst Wessel. When Mölders became Geschwaderkommodore (wing commander) of Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing) on 27 July 1940 he arranged for Beckh to transfer to his Geschwaderstab, as an officer on secondment from the General Staff.

Beckh was nonetheless an enthusiastic fighter pilot. However, there was one further factor in Beckh's make-up that would constitute something of a handicap when flying fighters. He was simply unable to see anything in the air. In fact, Beckh's eyesight had deteriorated considerably since he had first joined the Luftwaffe.

Group commander

On 1 March 1941, Beckh was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of IV. Gruppe of JG 51, succeeding Oberleutnant Hans-Karl Keitel who was posted as missing in action.[2] Following the appointment, Mölders had assigned Leutnant Bernd Gallowitsch as Beckh's regular wingman. Gallowitsch had good eyesight and compensated for Beckh's inabilities.[3] The assignment was based on a recommendation made by Prof. Dr. Paul Robert Skawran, a psychologist who had studied fighter pilot aptitudes and combat readiness with JG 51 at the time.[4] On 5 March, Beckh claimed his first aerial victory. His opponent was a Royal Air Force (RAF) Supermarine Spitfire fighter from No. 610 Squadron which was shot down near Boulogne-sur-Mer.[5]

Operation Barbarossa

On 15 June, IV. Gruppe of JG 51 began transferring east and was located at an airfield named Krzewicze, located approximately 70 kilometers (43 miles) west of Brest-Litovsk. On 22 June, German forces launched Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union.[6] JG 51 was subordinated to II. Fliegerkorps (2nd Air Corps), which as part of Luftflotte 2 (Air Fleet 2). JG 51 area of operation during Operation Barbarossa was over the right flank of Army Group Center in the combat area of the 2nd Panzer Group as well as the 4th Army.[7]

During the opening weeks of Operation Barbarossa, Beckh had considerable success, mostly in tandem with his wingman Gallowitsch, who at the time was credited with around twenty victories. The two pilots invariably returned from sorties with a victory each.

Wing commander

On 19 July 1941, Beckh was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of JG 51. He succeeded Mölders in this capacity who transferred and appointed Inspekteur der Jagdflieger (Inspector of Fighters).[8] Command of IV. Gruppe then passed on to Haupmann Karl-Gottfried Nordmann.[9][10]

On 8 September, JG 51 supported Heinz Guderian's 2nd Panzer Army in the battles around Kiev. That day, Beckh claimed the Geschwader's 2000th aerial victory.[11] However, on 16 September, during a fighter sweep, his Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2 (Werknummer 8988—factory number) was hit by anti-aircraft artillery, resulting in a forced landing 30 kilometers (19 miles) east of Konotop. During his convalescence, he was temporarily replaced by Major Günther Lützow as commander of JG 51.[12] Two days after being wounded in action, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) for 27 aerial victories, 23 of them on the Eastern Front.[13] Initially, he had insisted on leading the Geschwader from the ground. However, the injury caused by the incendiary round which had punctured his left foot had turned into gangrene. When Mölders visited him on 4 October, he immediately had him transferred to a Luftwaffe hospital in Munich-Oberföhring.[14]

Beckh returned to the Geschwader on 21 December 1941 and he achieved approximately twenty further victories before being transferred back to the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (RLM—Ministry of Aviation) on 9 April 1942.[15] Oberst Adolf Galland, Mölders' successor as Inspekteur der Jagdflieger, was responsible for Beckh's transfer to the RLM. Galland was mindful of Beckh's organizational and managerial talents. Galland quickly realized that the changing air-war necessitated changes in his staff.[16]

He was then appointed Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52—52nd Fighter Wing) on 3 June 1942 barely two months later following the death of Major Wilhelm Lessmann.[17][18] At the time, the Geschwaderstab of JG 52 was based at Barvinkove.[19]

On 21 June 1942, Beckh was airborne in his Bf 109 F-4 "weiße 4" (Werknummer 13362) with his wingman for a low-level sortie of the type he preferred in the area of Izium-Kupiansk-Valuyki, east of Charkov.[20] East of Valuyki, the duo observed a Russian air base with Russian fighters on the ground. Beckh dived, claiming two fighters, but his wingman observed Beckh's F-4 taking a number of flak hits before it too nosed down and appeared to plunge to the ground. The Bf 109 came down in a marsh near Valuyki. His body was found inside his fighter when the site was excavated in 2004.[21] At the time of his death he claimed over 40 aircraft in aerial combat and a dozen on the ground.[17] Beckh was succeeded by Major Herbert Ihlefeld as commander of JG 52.[22]

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

According to Obermaier, Beckh was credited with 48 aerial victories claimed in an unknown number of combat missions. This figure includes eleven claims on the Eastern Front and four over the Western Allies.[1] Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 40 aerial victory claims, plus two further unconfirmed claims. This figure of confirmed claims includes four aerial victories on the Western Front and 36 on the Eastern Front.[23]

Chronicle of aerial victories
  This and the ♠ (Ace of spades) indicates those aerial victories which made Beckh an "ace-in-a-day", a term which designates a fighter pilot who has shot down five or more airplanes in a single day.
  This and the ? (question mark) indicates information discrepancies listed by Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike, Bock, Mathews and Foreman.
Claim Date Time Type Location Claim Date Time Type Location
– Stab VI. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 51 –[24]
Over England and on the English Channel — 1 March – 9 June 1941
1 5 March 1941 14:50 Spitfire west of Boulogne[25] 3 6 May 1941 13:55 Spitfire 20 km (12 mi) north of Cap Blanc-Nez[25]
2 10 March 1941 17:25 Spitfire 20 km (12 mi) west of Le Tréport[25] 4 21 May 1941 18:00 Hurricane 20 km (12 mi) north of Calais[25]
– Stab VI. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 51 –[24]
Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 19 July 1941
5 22 June 1941 06:25 DJ-6[26] 7 27 June 1941 10:03 SB-2[26]
6 24 June 1941 09:25 DB-3 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Pruzhany[26] 8 7 July 1941 16:30 I-18 (MiG-1) Orsha[27]
– Stab of Jagdgeschwader 51 –[24]
Operation Barbarossa — 19 July – 5 December 1941
9 23 July 1941 08:16 unknown[28] 18 27 August 1941 15:00 Pe-2[29]
10 2 August 1941 17:12 R-5 5 km (3.1 mi) south of Kondratowa[28] 19 27 August 1941 15:00 Pe-2[29]
11 2 August 1941 17:15 I-15 5 km (3.1 mi) east of Aleksino[28] 20 27 August 1941 15:05 Pe-2 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Novgorod[29]
12 10 August 1941 10:43 I-61 (MiG-3) 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Vyshny Volochyok[28] 21 6 September 1941 09:30 I-153 15 km (9.3 mi) south-southeast of Yelnya[29]
13 10 August 1941 11:00 I-15 12 km (7.5 mi) northeast of Yelnya[28] 22 6 September 1941 12:25 ground-attack aircraft[29]
14?[Note 1] 12 August 1941 10:43 I-61 (MiG-3)[28] 23 8 September 1941 09:35 I-61 (MiG-3)[29]
15 15 August 1941 16:45 I-61[28] 24?[Note 1] 8 September 1941
—
 I-61 (MiG-3)[29]
16 16 August 1941 08:45 R-5[29] 25 10 September 1941 08:06 DB-3[29]
17 25 August 1941 15:10 R-3 25 km (16 mi) north of Novgorod[29] 26 16 September 1941 15:05 SB-2[29]
– Stab of Jagdgeschwader 51 –[24]
Winter War — 6 December 1941 – 30 April 1942
27 11 March 1942 17:23 unknown[30] 35♠ 31 March 1942 15:25 unknown[30]
28 29 March 1942 10:25 unknown[30] 36♠ 5 April 1942 09:01 unknown[30]
29 30 March 1942 10:45 unknown[30] 37♠ 5 April 1942 09:03 unknown[30]
30 30 March 1942 17:25 unknown[30] 38♠ 5 April 1942 09:05 unknown[30]
31♠ 31 March 1942 08:42 unknown[30] 39♠ 5 April 1942 10:01 unknown[30]
32♠ 31 March 1942 08:43 unknown[30] 40♠ 5 April 1942 10:35 unknown[30]
33♠ 31 March 1942 12:08 unknown[30] 41♠ 5 April 1942 17:15 unknown[30]
34♠ 31 March 1942 12:12 unknown[30]

Awards

Notes
  1. According to Mathews and Foreman this claim is unconfirmed.[24]

References

Citations
  1. Obermaier 1989, p. 85.
  2. Prien et al. 2002, p. 101.
  3. Braatz 2009, p. 299.
  4. Aders & Held 1993, p. 84.
  5. Weal 2012, p. 48.
  6. Prien et al. 2003, p. 319.
  7. Prien et al. 2003, p. 206.
  8. Prien et al. 2003, p. 216.
  9. Prien et al. 2003, p. 329.
  10. Weal 2012, p. 65.
  11. Bergström 2007a, p. 69.
  12. Prien et al. 2003, pp. 210, 222.
  13. Weal 2012, p. 70.
  14. Braatz 2009, p. 334.
  15. Weal 2001, p. 45.
  16. Braatz 2009, p. 357.
  17. Bergström 2007a, p. 52.
  18. Schreier 1990, p. 185.
  19. Barbas 2016, p. 21.
  20. Barbas 2016, pp. 21, 79.
  21. Bergström 2007b, p. 53.
  22. Weal 2004, p. 121.
  23. Mathews & Foreman 2014, pp. 70–71.
  24. Mathews & Foreman 2014, p. 71.
  25. Prien et al. 2002, p. 106.
  26. Prien et al. 2003, p. 334.
  27. Prien et al. 2003, p. 336.
  28. Prien et al. 2003, p. 220.
  29. Prien et al. 2003, p. 221.
  30. Prien et al. 2005, p. 47.
  31. MacLean 2007, p. 55.
  32. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 127.
  33. Scherzer 2007, p. 210.

Bibliography
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