Wolfgang Lippert
Born(1914-09-14)14 September 1914
Fraureuth, Kingdom of Saxony
Died3 December 1941(1941-12-03) (aged 27)
Egypt
Allegiance Nazi Germany
Service/branchBalkenkreuz (Iron Cross) Luftwaffe
Years of service1932/3–1941
RankHauptmann (captain)
UnitStab II./JG 27 and 3./JG 53
Battles/warsSpanish Civil War
World War II
AwardsSpanish Cross In Gold with Swords
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Wolfgang Lippert (14 September 1914 – 3 December 1941) was a World War II Luftwaffe Flying ace. Lippert was credited with 30 victories, five of which were scored in the Spanish Civil War.

Military career

Luftwaffe career

Lippert joined the Luftwaffe and after pilot training, was posted to I./Jagdgeschwader 134 "Horst Wessel". In March 1937 Leutnant Lippert was transferred to I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 53 (JG 53—53rd Fighter Wing) at Wiesbaden. Lippert gained his first aerial victories during the Spanish Civil War flying with the Condor Legion with 3. Staffel of Jagdgruppe 88. He claimed five victories from mid-1938 until March 1939, receiving the award of the Spanish Cross in Gold with Swords.

On 1 May 1939, Lippert was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 3. Staffel of JG 53. He succeeded Hauptmann Lothar von Janson who was transferred.[1]

He claimed his first victory of World War II on 30 September 1939, a French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 over Wissembourg. During the Battle of France he destroyed eight Allied aircraft.

Group commander

II./JG 27 Emblem

On 4 September 1940, Hauptmann Lippert was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG 27—27th Fighter Wing). He thus succeeded Oberleutnant Ernst Düllberg who had temporarily replaced Hauptmann Werner Andres after his transfer.[2]

During the Battle of Britain, a further seven kills were claimed. On 16 August 1940 he shot down Sgt John Lawrence Crisp of 43 Squadron A Flight, who broke his leg on landing at Bognor Regis. On 1 November 1940 he shot down Royal Air Force ace S/L Archie McKellar flying a No. 605 Squadron Hurricane Mk.I.[3][4] He was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 24 September after 13 World War II victories.

In 1941 Lippert participated with II./JG 27 in Operation Barbarossa, scoring four victories against Soviet aircraft. Later that year the unit was transferred to North Africa where he destroyed a further five Allied aircraft.

Death

On 23 November 1941 Lippert was shot down over Allied lines near Bir el Gubi, probably by Flight Lieutenant Clive Caldwell of No. 250 Squadron. As Lippert bailed out of his Bf 109 F-4 (Werknummer 8469—factory number), he hit the tailplane. He was hospitalised in Cairo and his legs were amputated. However, his legs were infected by gangrene and he died on 3 December.[5][6][7]

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 29 aerial victory claims, plus one further unconfirmed claim. This number includes five claims during the Spanish Civil War, three on the Eastern Front and further 21 over the Western Allies of World War II.[8]

Chronicle of aerial victories
  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
Spanish Civil War
– 3. Staffel of Jagdgruppe 88 –[8]
Spanish Civil War — July – December 1938
1 15 July 1938
—
 I-15[9] 4 4 October 1938
—
 I-16[9]
2 23 July 1938
—
 I-16[9] 5 29 December 1938
—
 I-15[9]
3 14 August 1938
—
 I-16[9]
World War II
– 3. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53 –[8]
"Phoney War" — 1 September 1939 – 9 May 1940
1 30 September 1939 14:45 M.S.406 Büdingen[10] 2 7 April 1940 12:50 Spitfire southwest of Diedenhofen[11]
– 3. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53 –[8]
Battle of France — 10 May – 25 June 1940
3 10 May 1940 13:55 Curtiss southwest of Metz[12] 6 20 May 1940 18:35 Curtiss Noyon[12]
4 14 May 1940 19:30 Wellington Sedan[12] 7 3 June 1940 14:20 Spitfire south of Paris[12]
5 15 May 1940 16:13 MB.151 south of Charleville 8 9 June 1940 14:50 Curtiss Boult[12]
– 3. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 53 –[8]
At the Channel and over England — 26 June – 3 September 1940
9 16 August 1940 18:00 Spitfire[13] 11 2 September 1940 08:55 Hurricane[14]
10 26 August 1940 17:35 Spitfire Portsmouth[14]
– Stab II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 27 –[8]
At the Channel and over England — 4 September – 5 November 1940
12 7 September 1940 19:05 Spitfire London[15] 15 25 October 1940 13:06 Hurricane London[16]
13 17 September 1940 16:48 Hurricane Maidstone[15] 16 1 November 1940 09:15 Hurricane Canterbury[16]
14 25 October 1940 13:05 Hurricane London[16]
– Stab II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 27 –[8]
Operation Barbarossa – 22 June – 19 July 1941
17 22 June 1941 04:15 I-15 south of Knyszyn[17] 19?[Note 1] 25 June 1941
—
 SB-3 north of Njemenczin[17]
18 22 June 1941 04:18 I-17 (MiG-1) northeast of Wizna[17] 20 25 June 1941 12:15 DB-3 southwest of Vilnius[17]
– Stab II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 27 –[8]
In North Africa — 22 September – 23 November 1941
21 23 October 1941 09:30 Hurricane south of Buq Buq[18] 24 22 November 1941 16:45 Wellington northwest of Bir Hacheim[19]
22 22 November 1941 10:20 P-40 southeast of Ain el Gazala airfield[19] 25 23 November 1941 12:25 Hurricane east of Bir Hacheim[19]
23 22 November 1941 16:30 P-40 northwest of Bir Hacheim[19]

Awards

Notes

  1. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman this claim is unconfirmed.[8]

References

Citations

  1. ^ Prien et al. 2000, p. 232.
  2. ^ Prien et al. 2002a, p. 398.
  3. ^ Holmes 1998, p. 106.
  4. ^ Foreman 1988, pp. 21–22.
  5. ^ Weal 2003, p. 90.
  6. ^ Weal 2003, p. 72.
  7. ^ Goss 2018, p. 114.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 762.
  9. ^ a b c d e Forsyth 2011, p. 106.
  10. ^ Prien et al. 2001a, p. 368.
  11. ^ Prien et al. 2001a, p. 369.
  12. ^ a b c d e Prien et al. 2001b, p. 327.
  13. ^ Prien et al. 2002b, p. 201.
  14. ^ a b Prien et al. 2002b, p. 203.
  15. ^ a b Prien et al. 2002a, p. 402.
  16. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2002a, p. 403.
  17. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2003, p. 168.
  18. ^ Prien et al. 2004, p. 259.
  19. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2004, p. 260.
  20. ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 510.
  21. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 294.

Bibliography

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  • Foreman, John (1988). Battle of Britain: The Forgotten Months, November And December 1940. London, UK: Air Research Publications. ISBN 978-1-871187-02-1.
  • Forsyth, Robert (2011). Aces of the Legion Condor. Aircraft of the Aces. Vol. 99. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84908-347-8.
  • Goss, Chris (2018). Knights of the Battle of Britain — Luftwaffe Aircrew Awarded the Knight's Cross in 1940. Yorkshire, UK: Pen and Sword Books. ISBN 978-1-52672-651-3.
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  • Mason, Francis (1969). Battle Over Britain. London, UK: McWhirter Twins. ISBN 978-0-901928-00-9.
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