Horst Tietzen

Horst "Jakob" Tietzen
Nickname(s)	"Jakob"
Born	19 July 1912 Arnswalde (today Poland)
Died	over the Thames Estuary, England
Buried	German War Cemetery Bourdon Cimetière militaire allemand de Bourdon Block 17—Row 1—Grave 10
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	?–1940
Rank	Hauptmann (Posthumously)
Unit	Condor Legion JG 51
Battles/wars	Spanish Civil War World War II Battle of France Battle of Britain †
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Horst "Jakob" Tietzen (19 July 1912 – 18 August 1940) was a German Luftwaffe ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Career

Tietzen was born 19 July 1912 at Arnswalde (today Choszczno in Poland). As a Leutnant, Tietzen served with 3. Staffel of Jagdgruppe 88 of the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War. He claimed his first air victory on 19 July 1938, downing a Republican I-16. He claimed a further six victories and was awarded the Spanienkreuz in Gold. In August 1939 Tietzen was appointed Staffelkapitän of 5./Jagdgeschwader 51.

He shot down a French Bloch MB.174 bomber for his first victory of World War II on 20 April 1940. He recorded his 17th victory on 25 July 1940, a Spitfire near Dover. On 15 August Tietzen shot down three Hurricanes. He became the fourth German fighter pilot to record 20 victories on 18 August. However, on the same day he was shot down in aerial combat with Royal Air Force Hurricane fighters over the Thames Estuary. His body later washed ashore at Calais in France. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross on 20 August 1940 and was also promoted to Hauptmann. He was credited with 27 victories, 7 during the Spanish Civil War and 20 during World War II.

Awards

• Spanienkreuz in Gold mit Schwerten
• Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class
  • 1st Class
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 20 August 1940 as Hauptmann and Staffelkapitän 5./Jagdgeschwader 51

Wehrmachtbericht reference

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
Friday, 6 September 1940	Außer vier bereits genannten Offizieren haben in den Luftkämpfen der letzten Wochen drei weitere Jagdflieger 20 oder mehr Luftsiege errungen und zwar: Hauptmann Mayer, Hauptmann Oesau und Hauptmann Tietzen. An der Spitze der Sieger in Luftkämpfen steht Major Mölders mit 32 Abschüssen.	Besides those four officers already mentioned over the past weeks a further three fighter pilots achieved 20 or more aerial victories in aerial combat, these are: Hauptmann Mayer, Hauptmann Oesau and Hauptmann Tietzen. At the top of the victors stands Major Mölders with 32 aerial victories.

References

Bibliography

• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939-1945 Band 1, 1. September 1939 bis 31. Dezember 1941 (in German). München: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 3-423-05944-3.

External links

• World War 2 Awards.com
• Aces of the Luftwaffe