Werner Voss (; 13 April 1897 – 23 September 1917) was a World War I German flying ace credited with 48 aerial victories. A dyer's son from Krefeld, he was a patriotic young man while still in school. He began his military career in November 1914 as a 17‑year‑old Hussar. After turning to aviation, he proved to be a natural pilot. After flight school and six months in a bomber unit, he joined a newly formed fighter squadron, Jagdstaffel 2 on 21 November 1916. There he befriended Manfred von Richthofen.
By 6 April 1917, Voss had scored 24 victories and awarded Germany's highest award, the Pour le Mérite. A month's leave removed Voss from the battlefield during Bloody April; in his absence, Richthofen scored 13 victories. Nevertheless, Richthofen regarded Voss as his only possible rival as top scoring ace of the war.
Soon after Voss returned from leave, he was at odds with his squadron commander. He was detailed from his squadron to evaluate new fighter aircraft and became enthusiastic about the Fokker Triplane. After transferring through three temporary squadron commands in two months, Voss was given command of Jagdstaffel 10 on 30 July 1917 at Richthofen's request. By now, his victory total was 34.
His last stand came on 23 September 1917, just hours after his 48th victory. Flying a silver-blue Fokker Dr.1, he singly fought James McCudden, Keith Muspratt, Harold A. Hamersley, Arthur Rhys-Davids, Robert L. Chidlaw-Roberts, Geoffrey Hilton Bowman, Reginald Hoidge, and Richard Maybery. After he fell in solo opposition to those eight British, Canadian and Australian aces after a dazzling display of aerobatics and gunnery that put bullets in his every opponent, he was described by his preeminent foe, Victoria Cross winner James McCudden, as "the bravest German airman". The pilot who actually killed Voss, Arthur Rhys-Davids, wished he had brought him down alive. The dogfight remains a subject of debate and controversy among aviation historians and interested parties.
Early life and entry into military service Werner Voss was born in Krefeld, Germany, on 13 April 1897. His mother, Johanna Mathilde Pastor Voss, was a pious homemaker who raised her children in the Evangelical Lutheran faith. His father Maxmilian owned a dye factory. Werner was soon followed by two brothers; Maxmilian Jr. was born in 1898, and Otto on 22 April 1901. An unusual feature of the Voss household was the presence of two first cousins, Margaret and Katherine. The elder Vosses longed for daughters, so they virtually (if not formally) adopted their nieces. The two nieces were commonly referred to within the family as "daughters" and "sisters".Crean 2011, pp. 57–59.
The Voss family home at 75 Blumenthalstrasse was a comfortable two-story house with surrounding grounds. Young Werner was expected to carry on the family trade as he grew into his heritage."Werner Voss" The Blue Max website, 2012. Retrieved: 18 June 2012.Diggens 2003, p. 16. However, even before World War I burgeoned, he was already drawn towards patriotic service. When he finished his schooling at Krefeld's Moltke Gymnasium, he joined the Krefeld Militia. In April 1914, disregarding conscription laws, the underage Werner Voss joined Ersatz Eskadron 2.Diggens 2003, pp. 45–46. His parents gave him a 300 cc (18.3 cid) Vee-twin Wanderer motorcycle for his 17th birthday.Diggens 2003, second page of photo inserts.Crean 2011, p. 56. He received his "Certificate of Graduation" as a motorcyclist on 2 August 1914.Crean, p. 46 After Germany entered World War I, he spent August and September 1914 as a civilian volunteer driver for the German military.Crean 2011, p. 46. The Militia Ersatz Eskadron 2 had been set up to feed recruits to Westphalia's 11th Hussar Regiment. On 16 November 1914, Werner Voss became one of those recruits despite still being only 17 years old. On 30 November, the hussar regiment was ordered to combat duty on the Eastern Front.
Military service
From cavalry to the clouds Voss was proficient in his military duties on the Eastern Front. He was promoted to Gefreiter on 27 January 1915, and raised to Unteroffizier, when barely 18 years of age, on 18 May 1915. His service earned him the Iron Cross 2nd Class. Voss reported to begin officer's training at Camp Beckstadt on 3 June 1915. There he was classified as a reservist because of his flat feet and weak ankles. He graduated on 26 July 1915.
Voss transferred to the Luftstreitkräfte (German Air Service) on 1 August 1915, joining Fliegerersatz-Abteilung 7 (Training Detachment 7) in Cologne. On 1 September, he began learning to fly at Egelsberg airfield in his hometown of Krefeld. A gifted natural pilot, Voss flew his first solo flight on 28 September. He was retained as an instructor at the training school after he graduated on 12 February 1916. On 2 March, as part of his progress towards becoming an officer, he was promoted to Vizefeldwebel (a senior noncommissioned officer).Franks et al. 1993, pp. 223–225. He was the youngest flight instructor in German service.Crean 2011, p. 40.
Aerial combat See also World War I - Aerial Victory Standards
On 10 March 1916, Voss was posted to Kampfstaffel 20 (Tactical Bomber Squadron 20) of Kampfgeschwader IV (Tactical Bomber Wing IV), and served as an observer before he was allowed to fly as a pilot. In accordance with German custom, he received his pilot's badge on 28 May 1916 after flying actual combat missions.Diggens 2003, pp. 17–18, 140. Finally commissioned as an officer on 9 September 1916, he transferred to single-seater scout aircraft and was posted to Jagdstaffel 2 (Fighter Squadron 2) on 21 November 1916.VanWyngarden 2004, p. 32.
Here Voss began a lifelong friendship with another young pilot in the squadron, Manfred von Richthofen, who would soon gain fame as the Red Baron. They would later exchange family visits while on leave,Franks and VanWyngarden 2001, p. 13. and Richthofen would host the Voss family at his squadron's airfield. The friendship grew from Voss flying as Richthofen's wingman in combat, and disregarded the disparity in their family backgrounds.Diggens 2003, pp. 20–21.
Voss, an avid motorcyclist, had a love of machinery that led him to consort with his enlisted mechanics, Karl Timms and Christian Rueser; he was even on a first name basis with them. In time, they would transfer squadrons to accompany him.Diggens 2003, p. 55. Voss contravened uniform regulations at times and could often be found in the hangar working on his machine beside the mechanics, dressed in a grubby jacket without insignia. His care extended to his craft's exterior; he adorned his Albatros D.III with both a swastika and a heart for good luck.Franks 2000, pp. 17, 92. Although he was a casual dresser around his home airfield, when flying he would be well-dressed with a silk shirt beneath his aviation gear. He joked that he wanted to be presentable to the girls of Paris if he were captured. Actually, the shirt's silk collar protected his neck from chafing while he swiveled his head about watching for other aircraft during flight.Diggens 2003, p. 39.
Voss scored his first aerial victory on the morning of 26 November 1916 and added a second during his afternoon flight. The two victories meant he was awarded the Iron Cross First Class on 19 December 1916.Diggens 2003, pp. 28–29. His first victory of 1917, over Captain Daly, inadvertently taught Voss the knack of deflection shooting. Voss later visited Daly while he was in hospital, twice.
Voss' score rose sharply during February and March 1917; of the 15 victories credited to his Jagdstaffel (Jasta) during March, 11 of them were shot down by him alone.VanWyngarden 2007, pp. 30–31. For his feats, he was awarded the Knight's Cross with Swords of the Order of Hohenzollern on 17 March. The following day, Voss downed two British aircraft, doing so in a mere ten minutes. The first one burned; the second managed a crash-landing behind German lines. The second downed aircrew protested to their captors that they had supposedly been strafed at by Voss after landing.
Following his 23rd victory on 1 April, Voss strafed at both the pilot and his plane after he too had crash-landed. On 6 April 1917, he claimed to have scored another two victories 15 minutes apart. Having brought down a two-seater scout plane and a Sopwith Pup who were near one another on either side of the front lines. The two-seater pilot braved both Voss' strafing and incoming German artillery to retrieve aerial photography plates for their military intelligence value. The Sopwith Pup, though later seen with Jasta 2 in German markings after its capture, was marked as an unconfirmed victory despite landing behind German lines.Diggens 2003, pp. 41–42.
Voss was awarded the Pour le Mérite on 8 April 1917. It was customary to award a month's leave to a Pour le Mérite winner. Voss immediately left for his holiday and did not return to combat until 5 May. By the time of this leave, Voss had gained impressive marksmanship and situational awareness skills during his many hours of combat.Franks, Giblin 1997, p. 65.Crean 2011, pp. 149–150.
The timing of the holiday allowed him to spend both Easter and his birthday at home. There was a large family reunion; to the family photos, he added a formal photo, in which he is seated wearing his Pour le Mérite. He also tinkered with, and roared about upon, his motorcycle. He was out of action during Bloody April, the most intense air fighting of the war, when the Luftstreitkräfte and its aces inflicted heavy losses on the Royal Flying Corps.Franks 2000, pp. 16–17. Richthofen, who had scored 11 victories before Voss began his own tally, achieved 13 additional victories during his absence.Franks et al. 1993, pp. 187–189. Referring to his "dear friend", Richthofen stated: "He was ... my most redoubtable competitor."Richthofen 2007, p. 126.
Upon his return from leave, Voss was dissatisfied with his commanding officer, Franz Walz, whom he considered insufficiently aggressive. Voss shared his sentiments with another Westphalian hussar, Leutnant Rolf Freiherr von Lersner. Walz had assumed command on 29 November 1916, just after Voss joined the Jasta. An older man of 31, he was a prewar pilot and professional soldier who had flown over 300 combat missions in reconnaissance two-seaters before being appointed to command this squadron of fighter pilots. Lacking a background in fighter tactics, he compensated by allowing his more experienced pilots to follow their own inclinations, including solo excursions into British territory. The fact that Walz followed two prior brilliant fighter tacticians in his command—Oswald Boelcke and Stefan Kirmaier—only exposed his weaknesses.Diggens 2003, pp. 20, 22, 55.
Voss disregarded military procedure and went outside the chain of command to petition higher headquarters for Walz's removal. Faced with such a case of insubordination, all three men were transferred out of the Jagdstaffel. Lersner was packed off to a bomber unit. Discovering the betrayal, Walz requested reassignment on the grounds that his honor had been impugned. On 20 May 1917, Flight Commander Voss was sent to Jagdstaffel 5 to assume temporary command.Diggens 2003, pp. 55–56.
Voss in command
Voss was bequeathed an Albatros D.III with the squadron's insignia. During his brief spell with Jasta 5, Voss scored a further half dozen victories.Diggens 2003, pp. 145–146. On 9 May 1917, he managed to shoot or force down three Allied aircraft, making it the first of two "hat trick" days he would have in his career.Diggens 2003 However, he was not always successful; being one of the three German fighter pilots who attacked and seriously damaged Captain Keith Caldwell of 60 Squadron on 28 May 1917, just after Voss's 31st victory, but the New Zealander escaped.Crean 2003, p. 213.