Hermann Greiner

Hermann Greiner
Born	2 January 1920 Heidenheim Germany
Died	26 September 2014 (aged 94) Wangen im Allgäu, Germany
Allegiance	Nazi Germany (1938 to 1945)  West Germany (1957 to 1972)
Service/branch	Luftwaffe  German Air Force
Years of service	1938–45, 1957–72
Rank	Hauptmann (Wehrmacht) Oberstleutnant (Bundeswehr)
Unit	NJG 1
Commands held	IV./NJG 1
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of France Channel Dash Defense of the Reich
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Georg-Hermann Greiner (2 January 1920 – 26 September 2014)^[1] was a German former Luftwaffe night fighter ace, recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and a squadron commander in the prestigious Nachtjagdgeschwader 1, translated in English as the "1st Night Fighter Wing", the most successful Night Air Superiority unit of any nation during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was the fourth grade of Nazi Germany's highest award for military galantry and was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery and successful military leadership. Greiner primarily engaged British RAF crews in their bombing campaigns over greater Germany and was credited with 51 aerial victories over allied aircraft, having destroyed four American bombers during daylight hours and 47 British bombers at night.

Following the conclusion of the War, Greiner and close friend Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer were arrested illegally crossing the German-Swiss border attempting an escape to Argentina. Both Greiner and Schnaufer were detained in an Allied prisoner of war camp and released in 1947. Greiner went on to study law and returned to service in the West German Luftwaffe in 1957, retiring with the rank of Oberstleutnant in 1972. ^{[Notes 1]}

Awards

• Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe (26 December 1943)^[2]
• Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe in Gold with 200 numeral
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (26 June 1942)^[3]
  • 1st Class (1 June 1943)^[3]
• German Cross in Gold on 29 March 1944 as Oberleutnant in the 10./NJG 1^[4]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 27 July 1944 as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of the 11./NJG 1^[5]
  • 840th Oak Leaves on 17 April 1945 as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur of the IV./NJG 1^[6]

Notes

1. For a list of Luftwaffe night fighter aces see List of German World War II night fighter aces.

References

Citations

1. Hermann Greiner's obituary (Portuguese)
2. Obermaier 1989, p. 77.
3. Thomas 1997, p. 221.
4. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 147.
5. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 168.
6. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 84.

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 (1989). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe Jagdflieger 1939 – 1945 [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Luftwaffe Fighter Force 1939 – 1945] (in German). Mainz, Germany: Verlag Dieter Hoffmann. ISBN 978-3-87341-065-7.
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• 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 Militaer-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.