Erich Warsitz
| Erich Warsitz | |
|---|---|
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| Born |
Erich Karl Warsitz October 18, 1906 Hattingen, German Empire |
| Died | July 12, 1983 (aged 76) Lugano, Switzerland |
| Nationality | German |
| Aviation career | |
| Known for | Test Pilot (Rechlin) & Chief Test Pilot (Peenemünde West) - RLM |
| Famous flights | Heinkel He 178, He 176, He 111 & He 112 |
| Rank | Flight Captain, Luftwaffe |
Erich Warsitz (18 October 1906, Hattingen, Westphalia – 12 July 1983) was a German test pilot of the 1930s. He held the rank of Flight-Captain in the Luftwaffe and was selected by the Reich Air Ministry as chief test pilot at Peenemünde West. He is remembered as the first person to fly an aircraft under liquid-fueled rocket power, the Heinkel He 176, on June 20, 1939 and also the first to fly an aircraft under turbojet power, the Heinkel He 178, on August 27 the same year.
Warsitz was born at Hattingen.
Together with his practical tuition and technical studies, Erich Warsitz’ aeronautical training as a sport flier for the A-2 licence began at the Academic Aviation Group Bonn/Hangelar (1929-1930). In stages subsequently came the B-1 and B-2 training at various aerodromes of the contemporary sports associations, and further training at DVS (German Commercial Pilot School) at Stettin for the C-2 (land aircraft and commercial carriage of persons) and all licences for flights over the sea. Meanwhile, he was awarded the major K-2 aerobatics licence, passed the blind-flying training and obtained the navigation certificate for short distances. After he had been to DVS and obtained all flying licences there, he took employment as a sporting aircraft instructor and was later transferred to the Reichsbahnstrecke (i.e. the Railway section, a cover name for long-distance flying experience, a unit concealed within the 100,000-man Weimar standing army) as flight instructor, senior flight instructor and then training leader. In 1934 orders arrived drafting him to Rechlin, the Luftwaffe’s test centre. At that time the German aviation industry was operating at full blast, and at Rechlin Erich Warsitz was soon flying everything the aircraft factories could produce. This was the starting point of an activity which, only a little while later, would bring him into intimate contact with developments in aviation which were of tremendous historical importance.
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