Walter Matoni was a Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II.
11 Facts About Walter Matoni
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On 17 August 1941, Feldwebel Walter Matoni was posted to II.
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Walter Matoni was badly wounded in aerial combat resulting in a lengthy convalescence, following which he served as an instructor with Jagdgruppe West from October 1942 to February 1943.
4.
On 15 August 1944, Hauptmann Matoni was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of I Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 11.
5.
Walter Matoni's injuries were so severe that he had to be replaced as Gruppenkommandeur of I Gruppe.
6.
Walter Matoni was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 16 December 1944.
7.
Walter Matoni ended the war at the Fighter Pilot's rest-home at Bad Wiessee.
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Just three years before his death, among other guests Walter Matoni appeared on the British television show This Is Your Life on the 8 May 1985, the 40th anniversary of the German capitulation.
9.
Walter Matoni was guest on the Johnnie Johnson episode, celebrating the RAF ace' life.
10.
Walter Matoni's presence owed to a British media-created legend that Johnson personally challenged the German to a duel over Normandy.
11.
Walter Matoni claimed three aerial victories on the Eastern Front, and further 31 aerial victories on the Western Front, including 14 were four-engined heavy bombers.