Kurt Pflugbeil

Kurt Pflugbeil
Born	9 May 1890 Hütten
Died	31 May 1955 (aged 65) Weede
Allegiance	German Empire  Weimar Republic  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1910–45
Rank	General der Flieger
Commands held	4th Air Corps Luftflotte 1
Battles/wars	World War II Courland Pocket
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
Relations	Johann Pflugbeil (brother)

Kurt Leopold Pflugbeil (9 May 1890 – 31 May 1955) was a German general (General der Flieger) in the Luftwaffe during World War II who commanded 4th Air Corps and Luftflotte 1. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves of Nazi Germany.

Pflugbeil commanded the 4th Air Corps during the Second Battle of Kharkov, Battle of Stalingrad and Siege of Sevastopol. He surrendered to the Red Army in the Courland Pocket in 1945. In 1950 he was sentenced to 25 in a labour camp, but was released early in 1954 due to ill health.

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914) 2nd Class (14 September 1914) & 1st Class (7 October 1916)^[1]
• Clasp to the Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (7 October 1939) & 1st Class (15 June 1940)^[1]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 5 October 1941 as Generalleutnant and commander of IV. Fliegerkorps^[2]
  • 562nd Oak Leaves on 27 August 1944 as General der Flieger and commander of Luftflotte 1^[3]
• Mentioned 4 times in the Wehrmachtbericht (31 October 1941, 30 May 1942, 11 April 1944 and 1 January 1945)

References

Citations

1. Thomas 1998, p. 151.
2. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 275.
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 74.

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.
• Hayward, Joal S. A. The German use of air power at Kharkov, May 1942. Air Power History, Summer 1997, Volume 44, Number 2.
• 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 (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2300-9.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 1, 1. September 1939 bis 31. Dezember 1941 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 1, 1 September 1939 to 31 December 1941] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 2, 1. Januar 1942 bis 31. Dezember 1943 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 2, 1 January 1942 to 31 December 1943] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 3, 1. Januar 1944 bis 9. Mai 1945 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 3, 1 January 1944 to 9 May 1945] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.