Hans Rudel

Hans-Ulrich Rudel
Hans-Ulrich Rudel in 1944
Nickname(s)	Eagle of the Eastern Front
Born	(1916-07-02)2 July 1916 Konradswaldau, German Empire
Died	18 December 1982(1982-12-18) (aged 66) Rosenheim, West Germany
Buried at	Dornhausen, near Gunzenhausen
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1936–45
Rank	Oberst (Colonel)
Unit	2.(F)/AufklGrp 121 StG 3, StG 2, SG 2
Commands held	III./StG 2, SG 2
Battles/wars	See battles  World War II Invasion of Poland Operation Barbarossa Battle of Białystok–Minsk Siege of Leningrad Battle of Moscow Eastern Front Battles of Rzhev Battle of Stalingrad Battle of Kursk Operation Bagration Tartu Offensive Dnieper–Carpathian Offensive Battle of the Korsun–Cherkassy Pocket Battle of the Oder–Neisse Battle of Bautzen
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds
Other work	Writer, businessman, founded relief organization for Nazi war criminals that helped fugitive escape to Latin America or the Middle East, and member of the German Reich Party

World War II

Hans-Ulrich Rudel (2 July 1916 – 18 December 1982) was a Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a ground-attack pilot credited with the destruction of 519 tanks, as well as a number of ships. He also claimed 9 aerial victories, and the destruction of more than 800 vehicles of all types, over 150 artillery, anti-tank and anti-aircraft positions, 4 armored trains, and numerous bridges and supply lines. He flew 2,530 ground-attack missions exclusively on the Eastern Front, usually flying the Junkers Ju 87 "Stuka" dive bomber, and 430 missions flying the Focke-Wulf Fw 190. Rudel was the most decorated German serviceman of World War II.

Born in the Province of Silesia, Rudel volunteered for military service in the Luftwaffe in 1936. Following flight training, he served in an aerial reconnaissance unit at the outbreak of World War II in Europe. He transferred to the dive bomber force, and was posted to France. Rudel flew his first combat missions as a dive bomber pilot at the beginning of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941. On 23 September 1941, he was credited with severely damaging the Soviet battleship Marat, which effectively put her out of action for several months. He was posted to the Luftwaffe main testing ground at Rechlin, and experimented with the Bordkanone BK 3,7 equipped Ju 87G in the anti-tank role. Back on the Eastern Front, Rudel flew a Ju 87G in combat over the Kuban bridgehead, destroying numerous landing craft. He destroyed his 100th tank on 30 October 1943 and on 22 February 1944 was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of III. Gruppe of Schlachtgeschwader 2 "Immelmann" (SG 2—2nd Ground Support Wing).