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Hans Dortenmann (11 December 19211 April 1973) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator and fighter ace during World War II. He is credited with 39 aerial victories achieved in 150 combat missions. This figure includes 17 aerial victories on the Eastern Front and 22 over the Western Allies.
Born in Weingarten, Dortenmann grew up in the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. He joined the military service of the Wehrmacht, at first in the infantry, before transferring to the Luftwaffe where he was trained as a fighter pilot. Following flight training, he was posted to Jagdgeschwader 54 (JG 54—54th Fighter Wing) in November 1943. Flying with this wing, Dortenmann claimed his first aerial victory on 6 February 1944 over a Soviet Air Forces fighter aircraft. In mid-1944, elements of JG 54 were moved to the Western Front, fighting in the aerial battles of the Normandy invasion. In June 1944, he was appointed squadron leader of 2. Staffel (2nd squadron) of JG 54. This unit was renamed and reorganized a few times and became part of Jagdgeschwader 26 "Schlageter" (JG 26—26th Fighter Wing) In February 1945. Dortenmann was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 April 1945, the last member of JG 26 to be so honored. He surrendered to British forces in May 1945.
Following World War II, Dortenmann studied civil engineering and worked in construction. He committed suicide on 1 April 1973 in Heidelberg.
On 1 June 1941, Dortenmann was posted to the Flugzeugführerschule A/B 2 (FFS A/B 2—flight school for the pilot license) in Demblin, present-day Dęblin. The school moved to Luxeuil-les-Bains in France on 25 June. On 9 June 1942, he was transferred to the Flugzeugführerschule A/B 116 (FFS A/B 116—flight school) in Göppingen, completing his Pilotenabzeichen (Pilot's Badge) on 15 January 1943. In January 1943, Dortenmann was selected for fighter pilot training and was posted to Jagdgeschwader 103 (JG 103—103rd Fighter Wing), a Luftwaffe fighter pilot training unit. The unit was initially based at Bad Aibling but then relocated to Chateauroux-Deols Airfield in central France. There, Dortenmann trained on the French Dewoitine D.520 fighter aircraft, making 35 flights on this type. On 21 July, Dortenmann was posted to Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe Ost, a supplementary training unit for fighter pilots destined to serve on the Eastern Front which was then based at Toulouse Airfield. Here, one of his instructors was Fritz Tegtmeier. On 9 August, Dortenmann was instructed to conduct a training flight in a Focke-Wulf Fw 190, climbing to an altitude of . During the decent, the aircraft went into an uncontrollable steep dive from which he was unable to recover. At an altitude of approximately , he Parachuting and was injured in the hard landing. He was hospitalized in Toulouse, and following his convalescence, was sent on home leave for four weeks.
On 14 January 1944, Soviet forces launched the Leningrad–Novgorod Offensive, an attack on the German Army Group North with the objective to lift the Siege of Leningrad. Dortenmann claimed his first aerial victory on 6 February 1944 over a Lavochkin La-5 fighter. In the engagement, Dortemann collided with the La-5, losing approximately of his left wing. This resulted in a forced landing at the Orsha airfield. The aerial victory was witnessed by Oberfeldwebel Ulrich Wöhnert. On 28 February, his Fw 190 A-6 ( Werknummer 550885—factory number) was hit in the engine during aerial combat with La-5 fighters which resulted in a crash landing. According to Mathews and Foreman, Dortenmann was credited with 15 aerial victories on the Eastern Front. The last claim was filed on 8 April over a Yakovlev Yak-9 south-southeast of Ostrov. According to Weal, he was credited with 14 aerial victories on the Eastern Front. Dortenmann was presented with the Iron Cross 1st Class (Eisernes Kreuz erster Klasse) by the Gruppenkommandeur, Hauptmann Horst Ademeit, and was sent on home leave to marry his bride-to-be Ingeborg.
In mid-August, III. Gruppe was withdrawn from Normandy and returned to Germany for conversion training to the new inline engine powered Fw 190 D-9, the first unit to receive this aircraft. The Gruppe withdrew to northern Germany for the conversion, making stopovers at Beauvais Airfield, Florennes Airfield and Bonn-Hangelar Airfield at Sankt Augustin before retreating to an airfield at Oldenburg. At Oldenburg, III. Gruppe was reformed with four Staffeln, retaining its former 9. Staffel, 10. Staffel was the former 7. Staffel, 11. Staffel was created from 8. Staffel, and Dortenmann's old 2. Staffel became the new 12. Staffel.
Following the conversion training, III. Gruppe of JG 54 under the command of Hauptmann Robert Weiß were moved to Flugplatz Achmer where they were tasked with flying airfield protection cover for the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighters of Kommando Nowotny. Dortenmann claimed his only heavy bomber destroyed on 2 November when he shot down a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress in combat near Osnabrück. The B-17 (Serial Number 4337531) belonged to the 708th Bombardment Squadron of the 447th Bombardment Group. The bomber was on a mission to bomb the ammonia factories at Merseburg. Flying a Me 262 jet fighter on 7 November, Hauptmann Franz Schall attacked a P-47 fighter near Münster. The P-47 was flown by Lieutenant Charles C. McKelvy from the 359th Fighter Group and was damaged in the attack by Schall but kept flying until McKelvy came under attack by Dortenmann. Although injured, McKely made a forced landing and was taken prisoner of war.
On 31 December, Dortenmann led a flight of 20 Fw 190 aircraft from III. Gruppe to Fürstenau in preparation for Operation Bodenplatte. Bodenplatte was an attempt at gaining air superiority during the stagnant stage of the Battle of the Bulge. That evening, the pilots were briefed on the mission objectives, which was the Grimbergen Airfield near Brussels. Under the overall command of Priller, 47 aircraft from the Geschwaderstab and I. Gruppe of JG 26, and further 17 aircraft from III. Gruppe of JG 54 took off at 08:14 on 1 January 1945. Flying at an altitude of approximately , the attack force sustained losses during the approach to the target area, largely due to anti-artillery fire. The airfield at Gimbergen was almost completely abandoned, the damage inflicted was minimal, and the losses sustained were significant. III. Gruppe of JG 54 alone suffered five pilots killed or missing in action, plus four further taken prisoner of war, making the mission a total failure. Dortenmann just made it to Kirchhellen.
On 15 February, III. Gruppe of JG 54 was placed under the command of Hauptmann Rudolf Klemm. Four days later, Dortenmann's 12. Staffel was disbanded, its pilots distributed over III. Gruppe. Dortenmann was given command of 11. Staffel while its former commander, Leutnant Hans Prager, received command of 9. Staffel. Dortenmann now took command of 11./JG 54. On 25 February, III. Gruppe of JG 54 officially became part of JG 26 as its IV. Gruppe. In consequence, 9./JG 54 became 15./JG 26, 10./JG 54 became 13./JG 26, and 11./JG 54 under the command of Dortenmann became 14./JG 26.
On 23 March, Allied forces launched Operation Plunder, the operation to cross the Rhine led by Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. By 25 March, Montgomery's armies had crossed the Rhine in force, threatening the airfield at Nordhorn. In consequence, II. and VI. Gruppe of JG 26 were ordered to Bissel, present-day a neighborhood of Großenkneten. On 28 March, Dortenmann headed a flight of 12 VI. Gruppe aircraft to the area near Münster where a flight of No. 56 Squadron Hawker Tempest fighters was intercepted. Leading the attack, Dortenmann shot down one of the Tempests at 11:35 southwest of Münster.
On 29 March 1945, Oberleutnant Alfred Heckmann, commander of 3. Staffel of JG 26 was transferred. In consequence, Dortenmann was given command of 3. Staffel as Staffelkapitän. Command of his former 14. Staffel was handed over to Prager. Dortenmann was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 20 April for 35 victories. He was the last member of JG 26 to receive this distinction.
Dortenmann led a flight of 12 Fw 190s on mission from Rechlin–Lärz Airfield to Prenzlau on 26 April. The objective was to meet up with a dozen Panzerblitz equipped aircraft, providing fighter escort on an anti-tank mission. The secondary objective was to determine whether the East-West Axis—a street in central Berlin built as a triumphal avenue which in parts is now the Straße des 17. Juni—was still usable as a runway. Over the target area Dortenmann's pilots claimed four Soviet fighters, including a Yak-9 fighter shot down by Dortenmann southeast of Prenzlau. Later the pilots learned that they had escorted Generaloberst Robert Ritter von Greim and the test pilot Hanna Reitsch to RAF Gatow. The two were on a journey to meet Adolf Hitler in the Führerbunker. During the meeting, Hitler promoted von Greim to Generalfeldmarschall (field marshal) and appointed him Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe. The next day, Dortenmann led a combat air patrol of nine Fw 190s from Rechlin to Berlin. The flight spotted seven Yakovlev Yak-3 fighters northeast of Berlin. Dortenmann shot down one of the Yak-3 fighters, this was his last aerial victory claim.
On 28 April, I. Gruppe relocated from Rechlin to an airfield near Neumünster in northern Germany. The Gruppe relocated for the last time on 2 May, flying all of the serviceable aircraft to Flensburg Airfield. On 4 May, Dortenmann led a flight of nine Fw 190s from I. Gruppe on a combat air patrol over the Kiel Canal. The flight landed at 18:24 at Flensburg Airfield, the last and final mission flown by JG 26. Generalfeldmarschall von Greim had ordered the relocation of JG 26 to Prague. However, the German surrender at Lüneburg Heath had been signed and Major Karl Borris, the commander of I. Gruppe, surrendered the airfield to the British on 6 May. Dortenmann had claimed 18 aerial victories flying the Fw 190 D-9, making him the most successful Luftwaffe fighter pilot to have flown this aircraft in combat.
Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 06774". The Luftwaffe grid map (Jägermeldenetz) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about . These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area in size.
| 1 | 6 February 1944 | 15:28 | La-5 | PQ 06774, vicinity of Vitebsk | 9 | 29 March 1944 | 16:58 | La-5 | PQ 70711, vicinity of Narva |
| 2 | 25 February 1944 | 13:38 | La-5 | PQ 80543, southwest of Narva | 10 | 30 March 1944 | 15:40 | Yak-9 | PQ 60452, Kunda Bay northeast of Kunda |
| 3 | 26 February 1944 | 12:25 | Il-2 | PQ 60732, Rakvere over the Gulf of Finland | 11 | 2 April 1944 | 11:46? | LaGG-3 | PQ 60462, Kunda Bay northeast of Kunda |
| 4 | 26 February 1944 | 15:32 | Il-2 | PQ 60732, Wesenberg east of Wesenberg | 12 | 4 April 1944 | 08:19? | LaGG-3 | PQ 60334, Kunda Bay Gulf of Finland, north of Kunda |
| 5 | 8 March 1944 | 16:33 | LaGG-3 | PQ 60462, Gulf of Finland northeast of Kunda | 13 | 4 April 1944 | 09:44 | La-5 | PQ 60483, Kunda Bay southeast of Kunda |
| 6 | 8 March 1944 | 16:38 | Il-2 | PQ 60453, Gulf of Finland northeast of Kunda | 14 | 6 April 1944 | 10:39 | LaGG-3 | southwest of Narva |
| 7? | 26 March 1944 | 12:25 | Il-2 | over the Gulf of Finland | 15 | 8 April 1944 | 10:02 | Yak-9 | PQ 88841, vicinity of Pskov south-southeast of Ostrov |
| 8 | 29 March 1944 | 16:57 | La-5 | PQ 70711, vicinity of Narva | |||||
| 16 | 22 June 1944 | 21:20 | P-47 | PQ TC 6 vicinity of Rouen | 19 | 18 July 1944 | 09:30 | P-38 | PQ AC 6 Ivry-la-Bataille |
| 17 | 24 June 1944 | 07:15 | P-51 | PQ UC 8 Évreux | 20 | 25 July 1944 | 20:12 | Spitfire | PQ AB 3 vicinity of Isigny-sur-Mer |
| 18 | 4 July 1944 | 19:52 | Spitfire | PQ BS 9 Isigny | 21 | 26 July 1944 | 14:53 | P-38 | PQ BB 5 Saint Anne |
| 22 | 2 November 1944 | 12:30 | B-17 | Engelbertswald, southwest of Lingen | 26 | 13 February 1945 | 16:56 | P-47 | PQ QQ 3, vicinity of Limburg an der Lahn south of Nassau |
| 23 | 6 November 1944 | 11:04? | P-51 | PQ 05 Ost S/GR-1, Epe north of Bramsche | 27 | 13 February 1945 | 17:00 | P-47 | PQ PR 3, vicinity of Limburg an der Lahn east of Nassau |
| 24 | 7 November 1944 | 15:30 | P-47 | PQ IQ 1, vicinity of Osnabrück Münster-Handorf | 28 | 21 February 1945 | 17:30 | P-51 | PQ HP 7, vicinity of Rheine vicinity of Metelen |
| 25 | 29 December 1944 | 12:50 | Spitfire | PQ JQ, vicinity of Münster Münster-Handorf | 29 | 22 February 1945 | 14:00 | P-51 | Farwick, southwest of Quakenbrück |
| 30 | 19 March 1945 | 13:36 | P-51 | Rheine-Lingen | 32 | 28 March 1945 | 11:34 | Hawker Tempest | southwest of Münster |
| 31 | 19 March 1945 | 13:37 | P-51 | Rheine-Lingen | |||||
| 33 | 31 March 1945 | 14:46 | Auster Aircraft | Ludwighausen | 37 | 21 April 1945 | 15:19 | Spitfire | Buchholz |
| 34 | 12 April 1945 | 12:53 | Tempest | north of Uelsen | 38 | 26 April 1945 | 19:16 | Yak-9 | southeast of Prenzlau |
| 35 | 12 April 1945 | 12:54 | Tempest | north of Uelsen | 39 | 27 April 1945 | 18:25 | Yak-3 | northeast of Neuruppin-Berlin |
| 36 | 17 April 1945 | 11:34 | Tempest | southwest of Lübeck |
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