Helmut Wick

Helmut Paul Emil Wick (5 August 1915 – 28 November 1940) was a German flying ace of World War II.

He was a wing commander in the Luftwaffe (air force) of Nazi Germany, and the fourth recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, the nation's highest military decoration at the time.

Helmut Paul Emil Wick was born on 5 August 1915 in Mannheim, Germany, the youngest of three children of an agricultural engineer, Karl Wick and Berta Wick, née Schenck.

Helmut's eldest brother Walter was born in Swakopmund, at the time in the German protectorate in South-West Africa.

After the outbreak of World War I, the family returned to Germany.

Owing to the demand for his father's skills and expertise building roads and bridges, Helmut spent most of his childhood traveling throughout the German Empire.

The Wick family moved to Hanover in 1919; Helmut's mother died there in February 1922.

Staffel (6th squadron) of Kampfgeschwader 254 (254th Bomber Wing).

A month later he returned to Dresden to complete his officer training.

His father then took the family to Oliva, near Danzig and Königsberg in East Prussia, finally settling in Berlin in 1935.

Upon graduating from Gymnasium (secondary school) in 1935, Wick applied to the officer candidate course of the new German Air Force.

Born in Mannheim, Wick joined the Luftwaffe in 1936 and was trained as a fighter pilot.

He was assigned to Jagdgeschwader 2 "Richthofen" (JG 2—2nd Fighter Wing), and saw combat in the Battles of France and Britain.

Scoring well on the suitability tests, he was accepted into the German military on 6 April 1936 at the Luftwaffe officer candidate school in Dresden, after completing compulsory Reich Labour Service.

He swore the oath of allegiance to Adolf Hitler on 16 April.

After passing officer training courses, Wick was assessed as "well suited to become an officer" on 13 July.

He then started flight training and shortly later soloed in a Focke-Wulf Fw 44 "Stieglitz".

Wick was considered an average pilot and had difficulties with his theoretical training, especially those topics that were of little or no interest to him.

In early May 1937, he was briefly transferred to the 6.

Wick failed to pass the third course of his training but was given a second chance and on 1 April 1938 reported to the officer candidate school at the Luftkriegsschule 3 (LKS 3—3rd air war school), Wildpark-West near Werder.

He successfully completed the course and in mid-1938 started special pilot training at the Fighter Training facility at Werneuchen.

Upon graduation, he was assigned to II.Gruppe Jagdgeschwader 135 (135th Fighter Wing) which on 1 November 1938 became Jagdgeschwader 333 (333rd Fighter Wing) under Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) Max Ibel at Herzogenaurach, flying obsolete Arado Ar 68 biplane fighters.

On 8 November 1938, Oberfähnrich (senior ensign) Wick was promoted to Leutnant (second lieutenant) and on 1 January 1939 was transferred to 1.

On 31 August 1939 Wick was given orders to transfer to "Jagdgeschwader Richthofen Nr. I".

At the time there was no such unit; the intention was to send him to Jagdgeschwader 1 (JG 1−1st Fighter Wing), based in Döberitz, near Berlin.

During World War I the "Richthofen Geschwader" name had been attached to the World War I era Jagdgeschwader 1.

The "Richthofen" name had been incorrectly put on Wick's order.

Wick noticed the mistake, realizing that he could now choose between JG 1 or the famous Jagdgeschwader 2 (JG 2—2nd Fighter Wing) which currently bore the "Richthofen" name.

He chose the Richthofen Geschwader, commanded by Oberst (Colonel) Gerd von Massow, the unit was equipped with the Bf 109 E-3 and used the tactical code Yellow 3.

Wick joined its ''3.

Staffel'', serving in the air defence of Berlin during the German invasion of Poland which began World War II.

Following the German victory in Poland, JG 2 was transferred to Frankfurt-Rebstock and tasked with protection of Germany's Western border during the Phoney War—the phase between Britain and France's declaration of war on Germany in September 1939, and the Battle of France in May 1940.

In October 1940, he was given the position of wing commander of JG 2—the youngest in the Luftwaffe to hold this position.

Wick was shot down in the vicinity of the Isle of Wight on 28 November 1940, most likely by the British ace John Dundas, who was himself shot down by Wick's wingman.

Wick was posted as missing in action, presumed dead.

By then he had been credited with the destruction of 56 enemy aircraft in aerial combat, making him the leading German ace at the time.

Flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109, he claimed all of his victories against the Western Allies.

Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 133 (133rd Fighter Wing), which was later renamed Jagdgeschwader 53 (JG 53—53rd Fighter Wing).

It was there that Wick began flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109 monoplane fighter under the tutelage of Werner Mölders, a Spanish Civil War flying ace credited with 14 aerial victories.

Under Mölders' guidance, Wick became a Schwarmführer (flight leader).