Walter Rubensdörffer

Walter Rubensdörffer
Born	1 August 1910 Basel, Switzerland
Died	15 August 1940 (aged 30) near Rotherfield, England
Buried at	Cannock Chase German Military Cemetery block 9—row 4—grave 20
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1935–40
Rank	Hauptmann
Unit	Jagdgruppe 88 Erprobungsgruppe 210
Battles/wars	Spanish Civil War World War II Invasion of Poland Kanalkampf Battle of England
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Walter Rubensdörffer (1 August 1910 – 15 August 1940) was a German Luftwaffe pilot and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Career

Spanish Civil War

Rubensdörffer served with the Stab of Jagdgruppe 88 during the Spanish Civil War and was credited with one aerial victory.^[1]

World War II

He was appointed as Gruppenkommandeur of Erprobungsgruppe 210 in July 1940 and on 15 August 1940, was killed in action when he mistakenly bombed the Croydon airfield (on the outskirts of London) instead of the intended target, Kenley Aerodrome. His Messerschmitt Bf 110 D-0 ("S9+AB") had sustained damage in combat with No. 111 Squadron RAF and No. 32 Squadron RAF Hawker Hurricanes.^[1] As his aircraft kept being hit, Rubensdörffer attempted to land his aircraft near Rotherfield. He and his crewman, air gunner Obergefreiter Ludwig Kretzer, were killed when the aircraft ploughed into trees near Bletchingley Farm. Rubensdörffer and Kretzer were initially buried in Tunbridge Wells but their bodies were later exhumed and reburied in Cannock Chase German Military Cemetery.

Graves of Walter Rubensdörffer (1910–1940), Ludwig Kretzer (1918–1940) and Oskar Strack (1912–1940), Deutscher Soldatenfriedhof Cannock Chase, Staffordshire, England (Block 9 Row 4 Grave 20)

Awards

• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class
  • 1st Class
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 19 August 1940 (posthumously) as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur of Erprobungsgruppe 210^[2][3]

References

Citations

1. Obermaier 1989, p. 189.
2. Fellgiebel 2000, pp. 366, 502.
3. Scherzer 2007, p. 642.

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.
• 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.

External links