Günter Luther

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Günter Luther
Günter Luther, 1976
Born(1922-03-17)17 March 1922
Bestwig, Germany
Died31 May 1997(1997-05-31) (aged 75)
Kiel, Germany
Allegiance Nazi Germany (to 1945)  Federal Republic of Germany
Service/branch Kriegsmarine
Balkenkreuz (Iron Cross) Luftwaffe
 German Navy
Years of service1939–45
1956–82
Rank
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsIron Cross 2nd Class and 1st Class

Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe in Gold
Grand Cross of Merit with Star and Sash

Grand Cross of the Order of Naval Merit
(Spain)

Günter Luther (17 March 1922 – 31 May 1997) was a German

paratrooper in the Luftwaffe. After the war, he joined the newly founded West German Bundesmarine
in 1956.

Personal life

Günter Luther was born in Bestwig on 17 March 1922, the son of a teacher who came from a family of artisans. He completed his secondary education and took his Abitur in 1939. In 1947 he married his wife Christel, who died in 1995. He died on 31 May 1997 in Kiel from a heart condition, whilst returning from a reunion at the wheel of his car.[1]

Career

World War II

After taking his Abitur, Luther joined the

naval aviator.[2]

Luther volunteered to be a

forward observer. To complete this training he had to exchange his Kriegesmarine uniform for that of the Luftwaffe. Luther was commissioned as a lieutenant (Leutnant) on 1 April 1942. He served as a pilot in the Coastal Aviation Squadrons 1/906 and 1/706. He flew 160 missions over the North Sea and Arctic Ocean. In May 1944, he was shot down with his aircraft over the sea.[3]

By then a first lieutenant (

Ruhr Pocket, and at the battle of Hürtgenwald. Luther became an American prisoner on 28 April 1945, and was freed in December 1945.[3]

After the war

Luther earned his living in the aftermath of the war as a construction worker. This was followed by studying English at a university, which enabled him to take jobs as an interpreter and personnel manager for the American armed forces. From 1952 to 1956, he worked for the

Agfa
camera company, as a clerk and export group leader.

Bundeswehr

On 1 March 1956 Luther joined the newly founded

Kapitän zur See (captain).[3]

He then served as the head of the department for naval aviation at the

Phantom that occurred in the air force. He himself trained as a Starfighter pilot and flew this type of aircraft regularly.[1]

Juan Carlos during the king's 1977 visit to German naval units at Bremerhaven

With his promotion to

Flottillenadmiral (flotilla admiral) on 1 October 1970 he became the youngest admiral of the German Navy at 48 years old, and was given the command of the Flotilla of Naval Aviation in Kiel-Holtenau. There he had command of around 7,500 men and over 200 aircraft. On 1 April 1972 he became commander of the German Navy in the North Sea and simultaneously NATO commander in the North Sea and Skagerrak.[3]

In October 1972 he was promoted to

Marineamt in Wilhelmshaven. On 1 April 1975 he was promoted to Vizeadmiral (vice admiral) and made Inspector of the Navy, i.e. the commander-in-chief of the German Navy.[3]

On 1 April 1980, Luther was promoted to the rank of Admiral, and took up the NATO post of Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (DSACEUR) at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe. On 31 March 1982, Admiral Günter Luther retired from service and moved to Kiel.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c Benzino, Wolfgang (1997). MOV-MOH-DMI-Nachrichten (in German). p. 63. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. ^ a b "Günter Luther". Munzinger Personen (in German). Munzinger-Archiv. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  3. ^
    ISBN 3-8132-0350-6
    .

External links
Military offices
Preceded by
Vizeadmiral Heinz Kühnle
 Inspector of the Navy
1 April 1975 – 30 March 1980 		Succeeded by
Vizeadmiral Ansgar Bethge
Preceded by
Konteradmiral Günter Kuhnke
Chief of the Navy Office

1 October 1972 – 31 March 1975 		Succeeded by
Konteradmiral Otto Ites
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Günter_Luther&oldid=1206644111"