Wilhelm Herget flew his first combat missions in the 1939 Invasion of Poland and in 1940, in the Battle of France and Britain.
19 Facts About Wilhelm Herget
1.
2.
In November 1941, Wilhelm Herget transferred to the night fighter force, initially serving with Nachtjagdgeschwader 1.
3.
In September 1942, Herget became group commander of I Gruppe of Nachtjagdgeschwader 4, a position he held until December 1944.
4.
Wilhelm Herget flew his last combat missions with Jagdverband 44, a Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter unit, in 1945.
5.
Wilhelm Herget was born on 30 June 1910 in Stuttgart in the Kingdom of Wurttemberg of the German Empire, the son of a printer.
6.
Wilhelm Herget served in the Sturmabteilung as Rottenfuhrer.
7.
Wilhelm Herget claimed three Supermarine Spitfire fighters shot down in May 1940 and a Curtiss P-36 Hawk fighter in June and was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class.
8.
On 30 August 1940, Wilhelm Herget claimed a Hawker Hurricane and a Spitfire on the next day.
9.
In May 1941, Wilhelm Herget was transferred to Sonderkommando Junck, referred to as Fliegerfuhrer Irak, a Luftwaffe task force under the command of Oberst Werner Junck which participated in the Anglo-Iraqi War.
10.
Wilhelm Herget was promoted to Oberleutnant der Reserve on 1 November 1941 and transferred to the night fighter force.
11.
Wilhelm Herget was awarded the German Cross in Gold on 7 February 1942.
12.
On 1 May 1942, Wilhelm Herget was appointed Staffelkapitan of 9.
13.
Wilhelm Herget received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 June 1943 for 31 aerial victories and the destruction of five ground targets.
14.
Wilhelm Herget was promoted to Major der Reserve on 1 October 1943.
15.
In January 1945, Wilhelm Herget underwent conversion training and learned to fly the then new Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter.
16.
Wilhelm Herget then served with Sonderkommission Kleinrath, a specialized task force named after Generalleutnant Kurt Kleinrath.
17.
Wilhelm Herget pointed out that aircraft manufacturing based on slave labor was counterproductive.
18.
Wilhelm Herget handed over a letter from Galland which advocated the idea of surrendering a fully operational jet fighter unit to the Americans.
19.
Wilhelm Herget died on 27 March 1974 at the age of 63 in Stuttgart, West Germany.