21 Facts About Hajo Herrmann

Hans-Joachim "Hajo" Herrmann was a World War II Luftwaffe pilot and officer and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.

On 1 May 1933, Herrmann joined the Hamburg Landespolizei and attended the Prussian higher police school in Potsdam-Eiche.

Hajo Herrmann then joined the military service of the Wehrmacht, initially serving with Infanterie-Regiment 47, a regiment of the 20th Infantry Division.

On 1 August 1935, Hajo Herrmann transferred to the newly formed Luftwaffe.

Hajo Herrmann then attended the bomber pilot school at Kitzingen Airfield.

From 1936 until 1937, Hajo Herrmann served in Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War, travelling on the Usaramo to Cadiz in early August 1936.

Hajo Herrmann flew 50 combat missions over Spain and following his return to Germany, he was posted to 7.

Hajo Herrmann sank 70,000 tons of Allied shipping as a bomber pilot, and was instrumental in the attack upon Convoy PQ 17.

In one attack Hajo Herrmann sank the ammunition ship Clan Fraser in the Port of Piraeus.

In 1942 Hajo Herrmann was appointed to the Oberkommando der Luftwaffe staff.

Hajo Herrmann realized that the Luftwaffe would have to fight under conditions of numerical inferiority.

Additionally, Hajo Herrmann knew that the Himmelbett was costly and susceptible to counter measures.

In November 1942, Hajo Herrmann presented his ideas at a meeting of the night fighter staff.

Weise rejected the ask but had no objections if Hajo Herrmann was willing to risk flying into a barrage of shell bursts.

Hajo Herrmann managed to intercept the illuminated Mosquito near Brandenburg an der Havel but failed to shoot it down.

Hajo Herrmann played a role in the creation of night fighter wing Jagdgeschwader 300 Wilde Sau using day fighters at night in response to the night raids of RAF Bomber Command on Germany in mid-1943.

In December 1943, Hajo Herrmann was appointed Inspector of Night Fighters.

Hajo Herrmann was a leading exponent of the tactical deployment of Rammjager Sonderkommando Elbe, sent into action in April 1945.

Hajo Herrmann's intention was to gather a large number of these fighters for a one-off attack on the USAAF bomber formations in the hope of causing enough losses to curtail the bombing offensive for a few months.

On 11 May 1945, Hajo Herrmann was captured by Soviet forces and held prisoner of war for 10 years and returned to Germany in October 1955.

Hajo Herrmann defended Otto Ernst Remer, the head of the neo-Nazi Socialist Reich Party and the Holocaust deniers David Irving and Fred A Leuchter.