Hauptmann Wilhelm "Willi" Reinhard (12 March 1891 – 3 July 1918) was a German pilot during World War I. Reinhard became a flying ace during the war, credited with 20 confirmed aerial victories. After commanding two successive fighter squadrons, he was picked to replace Manfred von Richthofen as commander of Jagdgeschwader 1 when the Red Baron fell in combat. Reinhard died on 3 July 1918 while testing a prototype fighter.
Entering military service in 1909 as an officer cadet, Reinhard was assigned to the 14th Bavarian Foot Artillery Regiment. He was severely wounded in the leg in November 1914. Left unfit for service in the trenches, he was accepted for pilot training in the aviation branch, returning to active service in June 1915. Once assigned to a combat unit, Reinhard was seriously wounded a second time.[1]
He returned to duty in February 1916, having been promoted to Oberleutnant. He was assigned to FeldFlieger Abteilung (A) 205 (Flier Detachment (Artillery) 205),[2] Then he was posted to the Balkans with Flieger-Abteilung 28 (Flier Detachment 28).[1]
In early 1917, he was returned to the Western Front to attend fighter pilot training. On 24 June, he was transferred to Jagdstaffel 11 (Fighter Squadron 11) and scored his first victory, over British ace Geoffrey Hornblower Cock (taken POW). He was again wounded on 4 September 1917, having scored eight aerial victories with the squadron.[1]
When he returned to duty, he joined Jagdstaffel 6 (Fighter Squadron 6) as Commanding Officer on 26 November 1917.[1] He shot down a British foe on 4 January 1918, and followed up with five more wins by 12 April.[1] Along the way, on 23 March 1918, he was promoted to Hauptmann. Then the Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen was killed in action on 21 April; Reinhard succeeded to the Baron's command of Jagdgeschwader 1 (Fighter Wing 1) the next day. He would shoot down eight more enemy planes while leading the Jagdgeschwader, bringing his total aerial victories to 20 by 12 June 1918. As was customary, his 20th victory sparked his nomination for the Pour le Mérite, Germany's greatest military honor.[1]
Accidental death
A Dornier-Zeppelin D.I
On 18 June 1918, Reinhard left his unit to travel to Berlin to attend fighter aircraft trials in nearby Adlershof. On 3 July, after Hermann Göring finished test flying a Dornier-Zeppelin D.I, Reinhard took it up for a test flight. A strut broke, causing the upper wing to fail, and Reinhard plunged to his death. His death scotched his award of the Pour le Mérite, which is not bequeathed posthumously.[1]
Wilhelm Reinhard was buried in his native Düsseldorf.[1]
^The Aerodrome website page on the Hohenzollern [1] Retrieved 23 September 2020
References
Norman Franks, Frank W. Bailey, Russell Guest. Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps, 1914–1918. Norman Franks, Frank W. Bailey, Russell Guest. Grub Street, 1993. ISBN0-948817-73-9, ISBN978-0-948817-73-1.
Douglas Whetton. "Wilhelm Reinhard successor to Richthofen". Aircraft Illustrated, May 1979, Vol. 12 No. 5. pp. 205–207.
wilhelm, reinhard, pilot, hauptmann, wilhelm, willi, reinhard, march, 1891, july, 1918, german, pilot, during, world, reinhard, became, flying, during, credited, with, confirmed, aerial, victories, after, commanding, successive, fighter, squadrons, picked, rep. Hauptmann Wilhelm Willi Reinhard 12 March 1891 3 July 1918 was a German pilot during World War I Reinhard became a flying ace during the war credited with 20 confirmed aerial victories After commanding two successive fighter squadrons he was picked to replace Manfred von Richthofen as commander of Jagdgeschwader 1 when the Red Baron fell in combat Reinhard died on 3 July 1918 while testing a prototype fighter Wilhelm ReinhardNickname s Willi Born12 March 1891DusseldorfDied3 July 1918 1918 07 03 aged 27 Adlershof near BerlinAllegiance German EmpireService wbr branchLuftstreitkrafteYears of service1909 1918RankHauptmannUnitFeldFlieger Abteilung A 205 Flier Detachment Artillery 205 Flieger Abteilung 28 Flier Detachment 28 Commands heldJagdstaffel 11 Fighter Squadron 11 Jagdstaffel 6 Fighter Squadron 6 Jagdgeschwader 1 Fighter Wing I Battles warsWorld War I Contents 1 Biography 1 1 Early life 1 2 Military service 1 3 Accidental death 2 Honors and awards 3 End notes 4 References 5 External linksBiography EditEarly life Edit Wilhelm Reinhard was born in Dusseldorf on 12 March 1891 1 Military service Edit See also Aerial victory standards of World War I and List of aerial victories of Wilhelm Reinhard Entering military service in 1909 as an officer cadet Reinhard was assigned to the 14th Bavarian Foot Artillery Regiment He was severely wounded in the leg in November 1914 Left unfit for service in the trenches he was accepted for pilot training in the aviation branch returning to active service in June 1915 Once assigned to a combat unit Reinhard was seriously wounded a second time 1 He returned to duty in February 1916 having been promoted to Oberleutnant He was assigned to FeldFlieger Abteilung A 205 Flier Detachment Artillery 205 2 Then he was posted to the Balkans with Flieger Abteilung 28 Flier Detachment 28 1 In early 1917 he was returned to the Western Front to attend fighter pilot training On 24 June he was transferred to Jagdstaffel 11 Fighter Squadron 11 and scored his first victory over British ace Geoffrey Hornblower Cock taken POW He was again wounded on 4 September 1917 having scored eight aerial victories with the squadron 1 When he returned to duty he joined Jagdstaffel 6 Fighter Squadron 6 as Commanding Officer on 26 November 1917 1 He shot down a British foe on 4 January 1918 and followed up with five more wins by 12 April 1 Along the way on 23 March 1918 he was promoted to Hauptmann Then the Red Baron Manfred von Richthofen was killed in action on 21 April Reinhard succeeded to the Baron s command of Jagdgeschwader 1 Fighter Wing 1 the next day He would shoot down eight more enemy planes while leading the Jagdgeschwader bringing his total aerial victories to 20 by 12 June 1918 As was customary his 20th victory sparked his nomination for the Pour le Merite Germany s greatest military honor 1 Accidental death Edit A Dornier Zeppelin D I On 18 June 1918 Reinhard left his unit to travel to Berlin to attend fighter aircraft trials in nearby Adlershof On 3 July after Hermann Goring finished test flying a Dornier Zeppelin D I Reinhard took it up for a test flight A strut broke causing the upper wing to fail and Reinhard plunged to his death His death scotched his award of the Pour le Merite which is not bequeathed posthumously 1 Wilhelm Reinhard was buried in his native Dusseldorf 1 Honors and awards EditPrussia Knight s Cross with Swords of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern 3 Prussia Iron Cross First and Second Class Baden Order of the Zahringer Lion Knight Second Class with Swords Bulgaria Bravery Order Fourth Class First and Second Degrees 1 End notes Edit a b c d e f g h i j Above the Lines The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps 1914 1918 p 186 Whetton 1979 pp 205 206 The Aerodrome website page on the Hohenzollern 1 Retrieved 23 September 2020References EditNorman Franks Frank W Bailey Russell Guest Above the Lines The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps 1914 1918 Norman Franks Frank W Bailey Russell Guest Grub Street 1993 ISBN 0 948817 73 9 ISBN 978 0 948817 73 1 Douglas Whetton Wilhelm Reinhard successor to Richthofen Aircraft Illustrated May 1979 Vol 12 No 5 pp 205 207 External links EditWilhelm Reinhard page at theaerodrome com Military officesPreceded byManfred von Richthofen Commanding Officer of Fighter Wing No 1 German Empire 1918 Succeeded byHermann GoringPortals Aviation Biography Military of Germany World War I This biographical article related to the German Air Force is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Wilhelm Reinhard pilot amp oldid 1118059584, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
