Godwin von Brumowski
| Godwin von Brumowski | |
|---|---|
Godwin Brumowski in the 1930's.
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| Born | 26 July 1889 Wadowice, Galicia |
| Died |
3 June 1936 (aged 46) Schiphol, Netherlands |
| Allegiance | Austria-Hungary |
| Years of service | 1910 - 1918 |
| Rank | Hauptmann |
| Unit |
Fliegerkompanie 1, Fliegerkompanie 12 of the Luftfahrtruppen |
| Commands held | Fliegerkompanie 41J of the Luftfahrtruppen |
| Awards | Order of the Iron Crown, Order of Leopold, Medal for Bravery, Military Merit Medal, Iron Cross |
Fliegerkompanie 1, Fliegerkompanie 12 of the Luftfahrtruppen
Godwin von Brumowski (26 July 1889 – 3 June 1936) was the most successful fighter ace of the Austro-Hungarian Air Force during World War I. He was officially credited with 35 air victories, (including 12 shared with other pilots) with 8 others unconfirmed because they fell behind Allied lines. Just before the war ended, von Brumowski rose to command of all his country’s fighter aviation fighting Italy on the Isonzo front.
On 26 July 1889, Godwin von Brumowski was born into a military family in Wadowice, Galicia, in Poland. He attended the Technical Military Academy in Vienna and graduated as a lieutenant commissioned into the 29th Field Artillery Regiment on 18 August 1910. He was serving in the 6th Artillery Division and had just turned 25 years of age when war was declared against Serbia on 28 July 1914. He served on the Eastern front against Russia, winning both a Bronze and Silver Military Medal for Bravery before transferring to air service in der kaiserliche und königliche Luftfahrtruppen (the Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops).
He was posted to Fliegerkompagnie 1 (Flik 1) at Czernowitz, commanded by Hauptmann Otto Jindra, in July 1915; von Brumowski was thus initially assigned as an aerial observer on the Russian Front. His flight log describes him as 1.77 meters (5 feet 10 inches) tall, with blue eyes and light blond hair.
On 12 April 1916 Jindra and von Brumowski crewed one of the seven Austro-Hungarian planes that participated in bombing a military review attended by Czar Nicholas II. In the process, they shot down two of the seven Russian Morane-Saulnier Parasol two-seaters that attempted to drive them off.
On 3 July 1916 von Brumowski became a pilot with Flik 1, despite the defective vision in his right eye that he corrected with a monocle. In November, he transferred to Flik 12 on the Italian Front. He helped down an Italian Caproni bomber on 3 December. On 2 January he became an ace when he was victorious over an Italian Farman two-seater while piloting a Hansa-Brandenburg C.I. It is notable that von Brumowski became an ace while still flying two-seater craft basically unsuited for air-to-air combat.
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