Anton Mader

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Anton Mader
Born(1913-01-07)7 January 1913
JG 54
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Grand Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria

Anton Mader (7 January 1913 – 19 February 1984) was a German pilot during World War II. He claimed 86 victories and was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He commanded the fighter wing Jagdgeschwader 54 in 1944.

Early life and career

Mader was born on 7 January 1913 in Castelnuovo, at the time in the Kingdom of Dalmatia of Austria-Hungary, present-day Kaštel Novi in Dalmatia, Croatia.[1] He was the son of an Imperial and Royal Kapellmeister, a leader of a musical ensemble, who later served in the Austrian Armed Forces.[2]

In 1933, Mader was conscripted into the Austrian Armed Forces serving with Alpenjägerregiment 10, the 10th Alpine Mountain Regiment. He then attended the military academy at Enns and the Theresian Military Academy at Wiener Neustadt. Promoted to Leutnant (second lieutenant), he was transferred to Fliegerregiment 2, the 2nd Flight Regiment of the Austrian Air Force. Following the Anschluss in March 1938, the forced incorporation of Austria into Nazi Germany, Mader was transferred to the Luftwaffe (the Nazi German Air Force) holding the rank of Oberleutnant (first lieutenant).[2] On 1 April, a newly formed I. Gruppe (1st group) of Jagdgeschwader 138 (JG 138—138th Fighter Wing) stationed in Wien-Aspern also referred to as the "Wiener-Jagdgruppe" ("Vienna fighter group") was created, largely staffed with former Austrian Air Force personnel. There, Mader was made Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 3. Staffel (3rd squadron) of JG 138. On 1 May 1939, his unit I. Gruppe of JG 138 was re-designated and became I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 76 (JG 76—76th Fighter Wing). Initially equipped with the Fiat CR.32, 3. Staffel received the Messerschmitt Bf 109 B. The Gruppe was reequipped with the Bf 109 E-1 and E-3 in 1939. That year, command of 3. Staffel transferred to Oberleutnant Franz Eckerle.[3]

World War II

World War II in Europe began on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. In preparation of the invasion, I. Gruppe of JG 76 had been moved to an airfield at Stubendorf, present-day Izbicko in Poland, on 17 August 1939 and supported the German advance on the central and southern sectors of the front.[4]

On 24 September 1940, Mader was appointed Staffelkapitän of 1. Staffel of

Otto Bertram who was transferred.[5]

The Gruppenkommandeur of II. Gruppe of JG 77, Hauptmann Helmut Henz, was killed in action on 25 May 1941.[6] In consequence, Mader was given command of the Gruppe.[7] Command of 1. Staffel of JG 2 was given to Leutnant Ulrich Adrian.[5] In July 1941, SS-Gruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich briefly served in II. Gruppe under the command of Mader.[8]

Eastern Front

In preparation for Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, was moved to Bucharest and was located in the sector of Heeresgruppe Süd (Army Group South). II. Gruppe arrived in Bucharest on 15 June.[9] Five days later, III. Gruppe moved to Roman.[10] That evening, the pilots and ground crews were briefed of the upcoming invasion of the Soviet Union, which opened the Eastern Front.[11]

Wing commander

On 1 April 1943, Mader was tasked with the formation of the newly created Jagdgeschwader 11 (JG 11—11th Fighter Wing) and became its first Geschwaderkommodore (wing commander).[12] Command of II. Gruppe of JG 77 was given to Hauptmann Siegfried Freytag who had already severed as acting commander since 7 March.[13]

On 28 January 1944, Mader succeeded Oberstleutnant

Luftkriegsschule Berlin-Gatow, the air war school in Gatow. Mader was then posted to the staff of the General der Jagdflieger (General of Fighters), an office held by Oberst Gordon Gollob. In late April 1945, Mader, along with Gollob's staff, was taken prisoner of war by US forces in Austria.[16]

Later life and service

Mader was released from captivity in June 1945. He then worked as a courier for the Embassy of the United States in Vienna. In 1955, the Austrian State Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state. Mader joined the Austrian Air Force, referred to as the Österreichische Luftstreitkräfte, holding the rank of Oberstleutnant. He served with the Fliegerführungskommando (Air Command) and was promoted to Oberst in the general staff in 1961 and to Brigadier in 1966.[16]

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

According to US historian David T. Zabecki, Mader was credited with 86 aerial victories.[17] Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 78 aerial victory claims. This figure includes 73 aerial victories on the Eastern Front and five over the Western Allies, including three four-engined heavy bombers.[18]

Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 72263". The Luftwaffe grid map (Jägermeldenetz) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15

minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about 360 square miles (930 km2). These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area 3 km × 4 km (1.9 mi × 2.5 mi) in size.[19]

Chronicle of aerial victories
  This and the # (hash mark) indicates those aerial victories listed by Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike and Bock without an explicit sequence number.
  This and the ? (question mark) indicates information discrepancies listed by Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike, Balke, Bock, Mathews and Foreman.
Claim Date Time Type Location Claim Date Time Type Location
– 1. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" –[20]
At the Channel and over England — 26 June 1940 – 21 June 1941
1 24 September 1940 09:45 Spitfire east-southeast of London[21] 2 7 October 1940 16:57 Spitfire 20 km (12 mi) north of Portland[22]
– II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 77 –[23]
Operation Barbarossa — 22 June – 5 December 1941
# 2 July 1941 17:50 I-16[24] # 12 August 1941 15:27 I-16[25]
# 6 July 1941 12:43 I-16[24] # 12 August 1941 15:28 I-16[25]
# 11 July 1941 17:40 I-16[24] # 22 August 1941 09:10 Il-2[26]
# 27 July 1941 14:53 MiG-3[27] # 1 September 1941 09:37 MiG-3[28]
# 12 August 1941 12:20
R-10 (Seversky)[25]
 # 2 September 1941 09:55 R-5[28]
According to Prien, Stemmer, Rodeike and Bock, Mader claimed two undocumented aerial victories in the timeframe 22 August to 5 September 1941.[29] These two claims are not listed by Mathews and Foreman.[20]
16 6 September 1941 14:38 Il-2[28] 24 15 October 1941 15:20 MiG-3[30]
17 7 September 1941 16:35 I-16[28] 25 17 October 1941 11:15 I-16[31]
18 8 September 1941 14:38 Seversky[28] 26 19 October 1941 15:06 I-16[31]
19 10 September 1941 15:50 MiG-3[28] 27 21 October 1941 15:20 I-5[31]
20 20 September 1941 11:00 MiG-3[28] 28 21 October 1941 15:21 I-5[31]
21 6 October 1941 11:45 LaGG-3[30] 29 22 October 1941 11:45 R-5[31]
22 9 October 1941 13:30 V-11 (Il-2)[30] 30 24 October 1941 15:09 I-15[31]
23 15 October 1941 08:35 MiG-3[30]
– II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 77 –[32]
Eastern Front — 17 March – 30 April 1942
31 19 March 1942 15:28 I-301 (LaGG-3)[33] 34 24 March 1942 12:58 DB-3[33]
32 22 March 1942 17:30 I-61 (MiG-3)[33] 35 27 March 1942 16:24 I-16[33]
33 23 March 1942 11:53 I-153[33]
– II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 77 –[32]
Eastern Front — 1 May – 7 November 1942
36 4 June 1942 12:10 LaGG-3[34] 50 25 August 1942 17:33 Il-2?[Note 1] PQ 72263[35]
60 km (37 mi) east-northeast of Tim
37 8 June 1942 16:47 MiG-1 PQ 35392, Sevastopol[34] 51 5 September 1942 17:17 Il-2 PQ 83754[35]
55 km (34 mi) southeast of Livny
38 8 June 1942 16:49 MiG-1 PQ 35392, Sevastopol[34] 52 11 September 1942 16:02 Il-2 PQ 92724[36]
30 km (19 mi) northwest of Sloboda
39 14 June 1942 14:51 I-153[37] 53 15 September 1942 08:45 LaGG-3 PQ 92321[38]
10 km (6.2 mi) north of Voronezh
40 14 June 1942 14:52 I-16[37] 54 15 September 1942 13:08 LaGG-3 PQ 92471[38]
25 km (16 mi) southeast of Voronezh
41 6 August 1942 18:07 Douglas DB-7 PQ 82151[39]
65 km (40 mi) northwest of Voronezh 		55 15 September 1942 17:14 Il-2 PQ 82432[38]
15 km (9.3 mi) west-northwest of Voronezh
42 6 August 1942 18:09 Douglas DB-7 PQ 82122[39]
65 km (40 mi) northwest of Voronezh 		56 16 September 1942 08:40?[Note 2] Douglas DB-7 PQ 92372[38]
10 km (6.2 mi) south of Voronezh
43 6 August 1942 18:11 Douglas DB-7 PQ 83763[39]
65 km (40 mi) south-southwest of Yelets 		57 16 September 1942 08:51 Douglas DB-7 PQ 92372[38]
20 km (12 mi) south of Voronezh
44 12 August 1942 09:33 LaGG-3 PQ 83881[39]
50 km (31 mi) north-northwest of Voronezh 		58 16 September 1942 14:40?[Note 3] LaGG-3 PQ 92381[38]
10 km (6.2 mi) south-southeast of Voronezh
45 12 August 1942 16:05?[Note 4] LaGG-3 PQ 83833[40]
55 km (34 mi) south-southeast of Yelets 		59 18 September 1942 17:06?[Note 5] MiG-1 PQ 92294[41]
10 km (6.2 mi) north of Voronezh
46 13 August 1942 08:06 Douglas DB-7 PQ 92332[40]
20 km (12 mi) east-northeast of Voronezh 		60 18 September 1942 17:16 Il-2 PQ 92312[41]
20 km (12 mi) northwest of Voronezh
47 13 August 1942 08:25 MiG-1 PQ 92321[40]
10 km (6.2 mi) north of Voronezh 		61?[Note 6] 18 September 1942 17:20 MiG-1 PQ 92311[41]
48 23 August 1942 14:21 LaGG-3 PQ 82892[35]
20 km (12 mi) southwest of Voronezh 		62 22 September 1942 15:31 MiG-1 PQ 92141[41]
25 km (16 mi) north of Voronezh
49 25 August 1942 17:30 Il-2?[Note 1] PQ 82452[35]
15 km (9.3 mi) west-northwest of Voronezh 		63 31 October 1942 13:55 Il-2 PQ 92774[42]
30 km (19 mi) west-northwest of Sloboda
– Stab of Jagdgeschwader 11 –[32]
Defense of the Reich — 1 April – 31 December 1943
64 19 May 1943 13:23 B-17 2–3 km (1.2–1.9 mi) northeast of Arenberg[43] 66 26 July 1943 13:21 B-17 9 km (5.6 mi) west of Papenburg[43]
65 21 May 1943 12:56 B-17 PQ 05 Ost 75/7/2[43]
– Stab of Jagdgeschwader 54 –[44]
Eastern Front — 28 January – 30 September 1944
67 25 February 1944 14:05 LaGG-3 PQ 26 Ost 70822[45]
25 km (16 mi) southwest of Narva 		75 17 July 1944 16:44 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost HR-2/3[45]
68 6 March 1944 14:37 Il-2 PQ 26 Ost 88162[45]
vicinity of Pskov 		76 17 July 1944 16:53 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost HR-2/6[45]
69 7 March 1944 14:04?[Note 7] Pe-2 PQ 25 Ost 69622[45]
north of Dorpat 		77 24 July 1944 16:36 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost TQ-6/4[45]
70 7 March 1944 14:07?[Note 8] Pe-2 PQ 25 Ost 79532[45]
Lake Peipus 		78 5 August 1944 17:00 La-5 PQ 25 Ost JH-7/5[45]
71 2 April 1944 16:00 Il-2 PQ 26 Ost 8836[45] 79 7 August 1944 15:16 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost KM-7/9[45]
72 3 April 1944 12:35 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost 88352[45]
vicinity of Selo 		80 7 August 1944 15:40 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost KN-9/1[45]
73 24 June 1944 19:25 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost 79551[45]
vicinity of Ostrov 		81 15 August 1944 17:06 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost LK-7/5[45]
74 17 July 1944 16:43 Il-2 PQ 25 Ost GR-9/1[45] 82 26 August 1944 13:50 La-5 PQ 25 Ost JN-6/6[45]

Awards

Notes

  1. ^ a b According to Mathews and Foreman claimed as a Petlyakov Pe-2.[32]
  2. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman claimed at 08:50.[32]
  3. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman claimed at 14:49.[32]
  4. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman claimed at 16:08.[32]
  5. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman claimed at 17:16.[32]
  6. ^ This claim is not listed by Mathews and Foreman.[32]
  7. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman claimed at 14:34.[32]
  8. ^ According to Mathews and Foreman claimed at 14:37.[32]
  9. ^ According to Scherzer on 15 July 1942.[49]

References

Citations

  1. ^ Obermaier 1989, p. 163.
  2. ^ a b Berger & Habisohn 2003, p. 91.
  3. ^ Prien et al. 2000a, pp. 263–264.
  4. ^ Prien et al. 2000a, p. 445.
  5. ^ a b Prien et al. 2002, p. 98.
  6. ^ Prien et al. 2003a, p. 273.
  7. ^ Prien et al. 2003b, p. 322.
  8. ^ Page 2020, p. 72.
  9. ^ Prien 1993, p. 628.
  10. ^ Prien 1993, p. 630.
  11. ^ Prien 1993, p. 632.
  12. ^ Prien & Rodeike 1994, p. 273.
  13. ^ Prien et al. 2011, p. 452.
  14. ^ Weal 2001, p. 118.
  15. ^ Prien et al. 2022, p. 306.
  16. ^ a b c d Berger & Habisohn 2003, p. 93.
  17. ^ Zabecki 2014, p. 1614.
  18. ^ Mathews & Foreman 2015, pp. 796–798.
  19. ^ Planquadrat.
  20. ^ a b Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 796.
  21. ^ Prien et al. 2002, p. 102.
  22. ^ Prien et al. 2002, p. 104.
  23. ^ Mathews & Foreman 2015, pp. 796–797.
  24. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2003b, p. 325.
  25. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2003b, p. 327.
  26. ^ Prien et al. 2003b, p. 328.
  27. ^ Prien et al. 2003b, p. 326.
  28. ^ a b c d e f g Prien et al. 2003b, p. 329.
  29. ^ Prien et al. 2003b, p. 332.
  30. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2003b, p. 330.
  31. ^ a b c d e f Prien et al. 2003b, p. 331.
  32. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Mathews & Foreman 2015, p. 797.
  33. ^ a b c d e Prien et al. 2005, p. 300.
  34. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2006, p. 300.
  35. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2006, p. 311.
  36. ^ Prien et al. 2006, p. 312.
  37. ^ a b Prien et al. 2006, p. 301.
  38. ^ a b c d e f Prien et al. 2006, p. 313.
  39. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2006, p. 309.
  40. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2006, p. 310.
  41. ^ a b c d Prien et al. 2006, p. 314.
  42. ^ Prien et al. 2006, p. 315.
  43. ^ a b c Prien et al. 2008, p. 359.
  44. ^ Mathews & Foreman 2015, pp. 797–798.
  45. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Prien et al. 2022, p. 309.
  46. ^ Patzwall 2008, p. 140.
  47. ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 290.
  48. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 300.
  49. ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 522.

Bibliography


Military offices
Preceded by
none
 Commander of Jagdgeschwader 11
1 April 1943 – 11 November 1943 		Succeeded by
Oberstleutnant Hermann Graf
Preceded by Commander of Jagdgeschwader 54 Grünherz
28 January 1944 – September 1944 		Succeeded by
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