Oskar Dinort

Oskar Dinort
Born	23 June 1901 Berlin-Charlottenburg
Died	27 May 1965 (aged 63) Cologne
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Heer (1919–34) Luftwaffe (1934–45)
Years of service	1919–45
Rank	Generalmajor
Commands held	II./LG 2, StG 2
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Oskar Dinort (23 June 1901 – 27 May 1965) was a German World War II Luftwaffe Stuka pilot and first Stuka pilot to be awarded the coveted Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.^[1] The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Early life and career

Oskar Dinort was born in Berlin-Charlottenburg. He volunteered for military service 1919 and joined the Freikorps der Gardekavallerie-Schützendivision and became a Fähnrich in the Infanterie-Regiment Nr. 2 in 1921. He was promoted to Leutnant in 1923 as well as an enthusiastic glider pilot. Promoted to Oberleutnant in 1928 he set a 14 hours and 43 minutes Gliding World Record. He won the Deutschlandflug in 1931, and participated in the second FAI International Tourist Plane Contest Challenge 1930 (10th place).

Klemm Kl 26 Va (Argus As 8) which Lieutenant Dinort flew to victory.

Dinort was transferred to the still secret Luftwaffe in 1934 where he was posted to the "Reklamestaffel Mitteldeutschland" (Advertisement Staffel). His next posting was as a Hauptmann (captain) in the Stab of I./Jagdgeschwader 132 (JG 132—132nd Fighter Wing) and Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III./Jagdgeschwader 134 (JG 134—134th Fighter Wing) until he was called into in Reichsluftfahrtministerium (Ministry of Aviation) by Ernst Udet on 31 March 1935.

World War II

After commanding I./Sturzkampfgeschwader 2 "Immelmann" (StG 2) in Poland, Major Dinort served as Geschwaderkommodore (wing commander) of StG 2 from October 1939 to October 1941. On 4 July 1940, in between the official dated given for the Battle of France and Battle of Britain, he led a highly successful attack on Convoy OA 178. He received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves in July 1941.

During operations over Greece and Crete in April–May 1941 crews of StG 2 believed the blast effect of their bombs used against troops in Greece was greatly reduced because the bombs penetrated the ground before exploding. The solution was to fit 60 cm metal rods welded to the front of the bombs, with an 8 cm metal disc on the end of the rod. This arrangement became known as Dinortstäbe, (Dinort's rods—similar in concept to the daisy cutter) after the originator of the idea, Oskar Dinort, which caused the bombs to detonate some 30 cm above the ground, maximising their blast.

On 15 October 1941 Dinort left StG. 2, taking up a staff position. In 1944 he was appointed to command 3. Fliegerschuldivision and inlate 1944 promoted to Generalmajor. Held by the British after the war ended, Dinort remained in captivity until 1947, He eventually settled in Dortmund after his release. he later worked in aviation research in Chile.

Dinort died in Cologne, West Germany, on 27 May 1965.

Awards

• Bulgarian Order of Bravery (3rd Class 1st Grade)
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th to 2nd Class
• Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe for Combat Pilots in Gold
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (20 September 1939)^[2]
  • 1st Class (11 May 1940)^[2]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 20 June 1940 as Major and Geschwaderkommodore of StG 2 "Immelmann"^{[3][Note 1]}
  • 21st Oak Leaves on 14 July 1941 as Oberstleutnant and Geschwaderkommodore of StG 2 "Immelmann"^[4][5]

Notes

1. According to Scherzer as Gruppenkommandeur of the I./StG 2 "Immelmann".^[4]

References

Citations

1. Brütting 1992, p. 136.
2. Thomas 1997, p. 122.
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 161.
4. Scherzer 2007, p. 274.
5. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 54.

Bibliography

• Brütting, Georg (1992) [1976]. Das waren die deutschen Stuka-Asse 1939 – 1945 [These were the German Stuka Aces 1939 – 1945] (in German) (7th ed.). Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch. ISBN 978-3-87943-433-6.
• 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 (1976). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Luftwaffe 1939–1945 Band II Stuka- und Schlachtflieger [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Luftwaffe 1939–1945 Volume II Dive Bomber and Attack Aircraft] (in German). Mainz, Germany: Verlag Dieter Hoffmann. ISBN 978-3-87341-021-3.
• 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.
• Schumann, Ralf (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 des LG 1 [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 of LG 1] (in German). Zweibrücken, Germany: VDM Heinz Nickel. ISBN 978-3-86619-013-9.
• 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.