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Egon Mayer (19 August 1917 – 2 March 1944) was a German ''Luftwaffe'' military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 102 enemy aircraft shot down in over 353 combat missions. His victories were all claimed over the Western Front and included 26 four-engine bombers, 51 Supermarine Spitfires and 12 P-47 Thunderbolts. Mayer was the first fighter pilot to score 100 victories entirely on the Western Front. Born in Konstanz, Mayer, who was a glider pilot in his youth, volunteered for military service in the ''Luftwaffe'' of the Third Reich in 1937. Following flight training he was posted to ''Jagdgeschwader'' 2 "Richthofen" (JG 2—2nd Fighter Wing) in 1939. He fought in the Battle of France and claimed his first aerial victory in that campaign on 13 June 1940. Mayer was appointed ''Staffelkapitän'' (squadron leader) of the 7. ''Staffel'' (7th squadron) of JG 2 "Richthofen" in June 1941. Two months later, following his 21st aerial victory, he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 1 August 1941. He claimed 16 further victories and was awarded the German Cross in Gold on 16 July 1942. In November 1942, Mayer was appointed ''Gruppenkommandeur'' (group commander) of the III. ''Gruppe'' (3rd group) of JG 2 "Richthofen". Mayer claimed his first victories over United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) four-engine bombers when he shot down two B-17 Flying Fortresses and a B-24 Liberator on 23 November 1942. Together with fellow fighter ace Georg-Peter Eder, Mayer developed the head-on attack as the most effective tactic against the Allied daylight heavy combat box bomber formations. He received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves on 16 April 1943 after 63 victories. On 1 July 1943, he replaced Walter Oesau as ''Geschwaderkommodore'' (wing commander) of JG 2 "Richthofen". He claimed his 90th victory on 31 December 1943 and on 5 February 1944 became the first pilot on the Channel Front to reach 100 victories. Mayer was killed in action on 2 March 1944 while leading an attack on a USAAF bomber formation; he was shot down by P-47 Thunderbolt escort fighters near Montmédy, France. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords that day. ==Early life and career== Mayer, the son of a farmer, was born on 19 August 1917 in Konstanz at the Bodensee. Konstanz at the time was in the Grand Duchy of Baden of the German Empire. Mayer grew up on his parents' farm named ''Hauserhof'' and spent his spare time at the glider airfield at the Bellenberg near Engen. He went to school at the ''Langemarck-Realgymnasium''—a secondary school built on the mid-level ''Realschule'' to achieve the ''Abitur'' (university entry qualification)—in Singen. Today, the ''Langemarck-Realgymnasium'', which had been named after the location of the World War I Battle of Langemarck, is the Hegau-Gymnasium.〔Stockert 1997, p. 124.〕 Following his graduation, Mayer volunteered for military service in the ''Luftwaffe'' on 1 November 1937.〔 His military training began at the 2nd Air Warfare School (''Luftkriegsschule 2'') at Gatow, on the southwestern outskirts of Berlin. He was then trained as a fighter pilot and promoted to ''Leutnant'' (second lieutenant) on 1 August 1939.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Egon Mayer」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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