Walter Krupinski
Walter Krupinski was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace in World War II and a senior West German Air Force officer during the Cold War. He was one of the highest-scoring pilots in the war, credited with 197 victories in 1,100 sorties. He was called by his fellow pilots Graf Punski due to his Prussian origins. Krupinski was one of the first to fly the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter in combat as a member of Jagdverband 44 led by Adolf Galland.
Born in the Weimar Republic in 1920, Krupinski joined the Luftwaffe in 1939 and completed his flight training in 1940. Flying with Jagdgeschwader 52, he claimed his first victory in August 1941 and his total rose steadily against Soviet Air Forces. In October 1942, Krupinski was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and was appointed squadron leader of 7. Staffel of JG 52 in March 1943. Krupinski was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves for 174 aerial victories. He was then transferred, serving with Jagdgeschwader 5 and was then given command of II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 11 in 1944. Wounded in a flight accident in August, he commanded III. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 26 "Schlageter" following his convalescence in September. He finished the war serving with JV 44, flying the Me 262, and surrendered to the Western Allies in May 1945.
After the war, Krupinski joined the German Air Force of the Bundeswehr, serving until 1976 when he was forced into early retirement. Krupinski died in Neunkirchen-Seelscheid on 7 October 2000.
Childhood, education and early career
Krupinski was born on 11 November 1920, in the town of Domnau in the Province of East Prussia, and grew up in Braunsberg, present-day Braniewo, Poland. He was the first son of Friedrich Wilhelm Krupinski, a Obergerichtsvollzieher, and his wife Auguste, née Helmke. His two younger brothers were Paul and Günther. Paul joined the Kriegsmarine and entered the U-boat service, and was killed in action on 11 November 1944 while serving on as an Oberleutnant zur See, which was sunk off the Norwegian coast by the British submarine.When the naval branch of Hitler Youth in Braunsberg was founded in 1936, Krupinski joined the organization. There, he received nautical training and went on cruises, making him eligible for a nautical patent. That year, he also met Ilse Hartung, a doctor’s daughter, at a dance class whom he married in 1944. On 21 March 1939, Krupinski graduated with his Abitur from the Lyceum Hosianum in Braunsberg. On 1 April 1939, Krupinski started his compulsory Reichsarbeitsdienst in Freystadt, present-day Kisielice.
On 1 October, Krupinski joined the military and received his basic training with Fliegerausbildungs-Regiment 10 based in Neukuhren, present-day Pionersky, as a Fahnenjunker. After six weeks of basic training, he was posted to the Luftkriegsschule 2. Krupinski made his maiden flight on 9 November. Over the next nine months, he learned to fly the Focke-Wulf Fw 44, Heinkel He 72 and then the twin-engine Fw 58. He was taught blind flying on the Junkers W 34. He also flew the Arado Ar 65 and Ar 66, Bücker Bü 131 and Bü 133, the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch, the Fw 56, the Gotha Go 145, the Heinkel He 46, the He 51 and the Henschel Hs 123. On 24 June 1940, Krupinski received his B2 pilot license.
Following two weeks of vacation, Krupinski completed his training at Jagdfliegerschule 5 in Wien-Schwechat to which he was posted on 1 July 1940. Jagdfliegerschule 5 at the time was under the command of the World War I flying ace and recipient of the Pour le Mérite Eduard Ritter von Schleich. One of his course mates was Hans-Joachim Marseille, who had been posted to the Jagdfliegerschule 5 in late 1939 but had not yet graduated out of disciplinary reasons. His three-roommates at the school were Walter Nowotny, Paul Galland, the brother of Adolf Galland, and Peter Göring, a nephew of the Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring.
World War II
After completing his flight training at Jagdfliegerschule 5, Krupinski was sent to Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg, a supplementary training unit based in Merseburg, on 1 October 1940. On 15 October, he was then posted to the Ergänzungsstaffel of Jagdgeschwader 52. The Ergänzungsstaffel was headed by Oberleutnant Werner Lederer and based at Krefeld Airfield where the pilots received further training flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109 E. At Merseburg, Krupinski met and befriended Gerhard Barkhorn and Willi Nemitz. On 13 May 1940, for his service he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class.On 1 February 1941, Krupinski was transferred to 6. Staffel. 6. Staffel at the time was under the command of Staffelkapitän Rudolf Resch. Resch later gave Krupinski the nickname "Graf Punski" or sometimes just "Der Graf". The nickname had its origins in a late-night conversation between Krupinski and Resch. His father was a professor of Slavic studies in Dresden. When Krupinski tried to explain his East Prussian origin, Resch informed him that the ending in "-ski" or "-zky" denoted a landowner, or that it indicated a Freiherr, and thus the lowest level in the medieval noble hierarchy in the East. The witty banter which then followed, led at first in his squadron, then in his group and eventually in the entire German fighter force to his nickname which stuck with for the rest of his life. His Staffel was subordinated to II. Gruppe of JG 52 which was headed by Hauptmann Erich Woitke.
Operation Barbarossa
In preparation of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union launched on 22 June 1941, II. Gruppe of JG 52, without a period of replenishment in Germany, was ordered to airfields close to the German-Soviet demarcation line. While the Gruppenstab and 4. Staffel were based at Suwałki in northeastern Poland, 5. and 6. Staffel were transferred to a forward airfield at Sobolewo. For the invasion, II. Gruppe of JG 52 was subordinated to the Geschwaderstab of Jagdgeschwader 27. The Geschwader was part of the VIII. Fliegerkorps commanded by Generaloberst Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen which supported the northern wing of Army Group Centre.II. Gruppe was ordered to relocate to Soltsy, west of Lake Ilmen, on 5 August in support of the 16th Army and Army Group North. Here, the Gruppe supported the fighting south of Lake Ilmen, and the German attacks on Shlisselburg, Leningrad and the Soviet fleet at Kronstadt. On 16 August, Krupinski claimed his first aerial victory. At 05:48, he shot down an I-18 fighter, an alternative Luftwaffe name for a Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-1, north of Shimsk. Since German forces had reached the proximity of Leningrad, II. Gruppe was ordered to Lyuban on 1 September, approximately to Leningrad and located on the road to Moscow. The Gruppe stayed at Lyuban until 30 September, flying missions to Shlisselburg, Leningrad and Mga. Fighting in this combat area, Krupinski claimed an Ilyushin DB-3 bomber on 17 September and a Polikarpov I-153 fighter on 21 September.
On 2 October, German forces launched Operation Typhoon, the failed strategic offensive to capture Moscow. In support of this offensive, II. Gruppe was moved to Stabna, located just north of Smolensk. Operating from Stabna, Krupinski shot down a Tupolev SB near Kholm fighter on 4 October. On 12 October, II. Gruppe was ordered to Novodugino where it stayed for four days. The Gruppe then moved to an airfield west of Kalinin, present-day Tver, on 16 October. The following day, Krupinski claimed his fifth aerial victory over an I-18 fighter. The Gruppe relocated to an airfield southeast of Kalinin on 22 October. The next day, Krupinski claimed a Polikarpov R-5 reconnaissance bomber shot down. On 4 November, II. Gruppe had moved to Ruza. There, Krupinski claimed his last aerial victory during Operation Barbarossa on 28 November when he shot down an Ilyushin Il-2 ground attack aircraft near Solnechnogorsk. On 30 November, II. Gruppe moved to Klin located northwest of Moscow. While Soviet forces retook Klin on 15 December, Krupinski had been sent to Insterburg on 13 December. Woitke had tasked him with organizing transportation of vital technical equipment to the Gruppe.
Eastern Front
In late January 1942, II. Gruppe was withdrawn from the Eastern Front and sent to Jesau near Königsberg for a period of recuperation and replenishment, arriving on 24 January 1942. In Jesau, the Gruppe received many factory new Bf 109 F-4 aircraft. On 14 April, II. Gruppe received orders to move to Pilsen, present-day Plzeň in the Czech Republic, for relocation to the Eastern Front. The Gruppe had also received a new commander, Woitke had been transferred and was replaced by Hauptmann Johannes Steinhoff. Following his home leave, Krupinski had rejoined his unit at Jesau. The Gruppe then moved to Wien-Schwechat on 24 April before flying to Zürichtal, present-day Solote Pole, a village near the urban settlement Kirovske in the Crimea. There, II. Gruppe participated in Operation Trappenjagd, a German counterattack during the Battle of the Kerch Peninsula, launched on 8 May.Following a series of relocations, including a short deployment on the Crimea, the Gruppe was then ordered to the airfield named Kharkov-Waitschenko on 14 May and participated in the Second Battle of Kharkov. On 16 May, the Gruppe again relocated moving to Artyomovsk, present-day Bakhmut, where they stayed until 23 May supporting German forces fighting in the Second Battle of Kharkov. On 23 May, the Gruppe was ordered to relocate to Barvinkove. On 1 June, II. Gruppe moved to an airfield at Grakowo, located approximately halfway between Kharkov and Kupiansk. The main German objectives in that combat area were, breakthrough to the upper Don and capture of Voronezh. There, Krupinski claimed his first aerial victory in 1942 when he shot down a MiG-1 fighter northwest of Kupiansk on 4 June. The Gruppe stayed at Grakowo until 26 June when it moved to Bilyi Kolodiaz. During this period, Krupinski claimed further aerial victories, a Lavochkin-Gorbunov-Gudkov LaGG-3 fighter on 5, 14 and 24 June each, and a MiG-1 on 22 June, taking his total to twelve.
On 28 June, the Wehrmacht initiated Fall Blau, the 1942 strategic summer offensive in southern Russia. The objective was to secure the oil fields of Baku as well as an advance in the direction of Stalingrad along the Volga River, to cover the flanks of the advance towards Baku. Tasked with aerial support of this offensive was Luftflotte 4 to which JG 52 was subordinated. Following the German advance, Krupisnki had increased his number of aerial victories to twenty by the end of July. On 20 August, II. Gruppe reached the airfield at Tusov, approximately southwest of Kalach-na-Donu on the western bank of the Don, from where the Gruppe operated in the combat area of Stalingrad. Flying from this airfield, Krupinski's number of aerial victories increased to 31 by end of August.
In September 1942, II. Gruppe was ordered into the Battle of the Caucasus, supporting Army Group South on the front over the Caucasus. Opposing it was the 4th and 5th Air Armies of the Red Air Force. The Gruppe reached an airfield named Gonschtakowka located north-northeast of Mozdok on the Terek on 6 September. On 25 July 1942, the Staffelkapitän of 4. Staffel, Oberleutnant Barkhorn, his friend from Merseburg, had been injured in combat. During his convalescence, Barkhorn was temporarily replaced by Leutnant Waldemar Semelka who was killed in action on 21 August. Command was then given to Leutnant Otto Leicher who was also killed in action. In consequence, Krupinski was transferred, taking command of 4. Staffel from 10 to 30 September when Barkhorn returned. During his tenure with 4. Staffel, Krupinski had to bail out of his Bf 109 G-2 due to engine failure on 17 September. Fighting in the North Caucasus region in September, Krupinski increased his number of aerial victories to 47.
Following his 50th aerial victory, Krupinski was awarded the Honor Goblet of the Luftwaffe on 13 September 1942. On 25 October, his Bf 109 G-2 was severely damaged in aerial combat resulting in a forced landing destroying the aircraft at the airfield near Soldatskaya, approximately north-northwest of Prokhladny. Two days later, he received the German Cross in Gold. By end October, Krupinski increased his number of aerial victories to 59. On 29 October 1942, Krupinski and Leutnant Rudolf Miethig from 3. Staffel were awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
While Soviet forces launched Operation Uranus, the operation which led to the encirclement of Axis forces in the vicinity of Stalingrad, Krupinski was in a hospital at Maykop and had his synovial bursa removed following an injury sustained to knee. He was then flown to Liegnitz, present-day Legnica, for further treatment. On 12 December, he was met by his future wife Ilse Hartung in Berlin and the couple continued their voyage to Braunsberg. In January 1943, Krupinski learned that he had been transferred to Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe Ost, a supplementary training unit for fighter pilots destined for the Eastern Front, as an instructor. At the time, the unit was commanded by Oberstleutnant Hermann Graf and was based at La Leu Airfield near La Rochelle, France.