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Günther Josten (7 November 1921 – 7 July 2004) was a German ''Luftwaffe'' military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace credited with 178 enemy aircraft shot down in 420 combat missions, all of which claimed over the Eastern Front. Following World War II, he served in the newly established West German ''Luftwaffe'' in the ''Bundeswehr''. Born in Rhynern, in the city of Hamm, Josten volunteered for military service in the ''Luftwaffe'' of the Third Reich following outbreak of World War II. He was admitted in 1940 and following flight training, he was posted to I. ''Gruppe'' (1st group) of ''Jagdgeschwader'' 51 "Mölders" (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing) operating on the Eastern Front. He claimed his first aerial victory on 23 February 1943 and after 84 aerial victories, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 5 February 1944. In July 1944, he was appointed ''Staffelkapitän'' (squadron leader) of 3. ''Staffel'' (3rd squadron) of JG 51 and on 20 July, Josten claimed his 100th victory in aerial combat. After he claimed his 161st aerial victory he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves on 28 March 1945. On 12 April 1945, he was appointed ''Gruppenkommandeur'' (group commander) of IV. ''Gruppe'' (4th group) of JG 51. On 5 May 1945, Josten was taken prisoner of war by British forces in Flensburg. Following his release, he became a joiner and worked at a furniture factory. In 1949, he worked for a wood distributor in Cologne and in 1950, he became a general manager of a plywood company in Koblenz. Following the remilitarization of the Federal Republic of Germany, Josten joined the ''Luftwaffe'' of the ''Bundeswehr'' in 1956. He attended a number of training courses with the 7351st and 7330th Flying Training Wing of the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Canadian 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron. In 1962, he was appointed ''Geschwaderkommodore'' (wing commander) of ''Jagdgeschwader'' 71 "Richthofen" (JG 71—71st Fighter Wing). Under his command, JG 71 equipped with the US-made Lockheed F-104 Starfighter. From 1967 to 1970, he was made deputy commander of Natos System Operations Center in Brockzetel, in Aurich. In October 1970, je was transferred to the Allied Air Forces Central Europe at the Ramstein Air Base. There he led the staff of the aerial defenses. His last service position before he retired in 1981 was deputy commander of the 4. ''Luftwaffendivision'' (4th Air Division). Josten, who logged 3,250 flight hours, of which 1,580 during World War II, died on 7 July 2004 in Aurich. ==Early life and career== Josten was born on 7 November 1921 in Rhynern, today a borough of Hamm, in the Province of Westphalia during the time of the Weimar Republic. He was the second son, following his older brother Reinhard, of Johannes Josten and his wife Gertraud. His father was the Protestant pastor of Kölleda in Thuringia. In October 1935, the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (Ministry of Aviation) decided to build an airfield at Kölleda which influenced him and his brother to become an aviator. Josten attended the boarding school Schulpforta. The school was made into a National Political Institutes of Education (''Nationalpolitische Erziehungsanstalt''—Napola), a secondary school founded under the recently established Nazi state, on 16 August 1935. The goal of the Napola schools was to raise a new generation for the political, military and administrative leadership of the Third Reich. On 25 May 1938, Josten made his first rubber powered flight on a DFS 35 glider aircraft with the National Socialist Flyers Corps of Naumburg. World War II in Europe began on Friday, 1 September 1939, when German forces invaded Poland. Following the start of hostilities, Josten immediately volunteered for military service in the ''Luftwaffe''. The Wehrmacht took its time to accept and process his application. In January 1940, he was ordered to the ''Fliegerausbildungsstelle'' (Flier Training Facility) in Weimar-Nohra and on 11 April, he was posted to ''Fliegerausbildungs-Regiment'' 61 (61st Flier Training Regiment) in Oschatz. At first he feared to become an air gunner but his desire to become a pilot was granted and he was posted to the ''Luftwaffen-Flugzeugführerschule'' A/B 4 (flight school for the pilot license) at Prague-Gbell.〔Flight training in the Luftwaffe progressed through the levels A1, A2 and B1, B2, referred to as A/B flight training. A training included theoretical and practical training in aerobatics, navigation, long-distance flights and dead-stick landings. The B courses included high-altitude flights, instrument flights, night landings and training to handle the aircraft in difficult situations.〕 On 31 August 1940, he was granted leave to return to Schulpforta for his ''Abitur'' (diploma) examination which began 19 September. He received news that he had passed his ''Abitur'', a precondition to become an officer, on 23 September and returned to Prague on 2 October. On 18 October 1940, after 63 takeoffs and landings, Josten made his first solo flight on a Focke-Wulf Fw 44 "Stieglitz". On 31 July 1941, Josten received his A/B pilot license and was promoted to ''Unteroffizier'' (staff sergeant), the only student of his class to receive this promotion. During flight training, he was trained to fly the Focke-Wulf Fw 44, Fw 56 and Fw 58, the Bücker Bü 131, the Klemm Kl 35, the Junkers W 34, the Gotha Go 145, the Arado Ar 65 and Ar 96, the Heinkel He 70, the Letov Š-328, the Avia B-534, and the North American NA-57. On 1 August 1941, Josten was transferred to the ''Jagdfliegervorschule'' 1 (Pre Fighter Pilot School) in Kamenz under the command of ''Hauptmann'' (Captain) Hans-Günther von Kornatzki. He was then transferred to the ''Jagdgruppe'' Drontheim, based at the ''Fliegerhorst Grove'' in Denmark on 1 November 1941. There, on 9 January 1942, he flew the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter aircraft for the first time. On 7 July 1942, he was posted to the ''Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe Ost'' (EJGr Ost—Supplementary Fighter Group, East), a specialized training unit for new fighter pilots destined for the Eastern Front. 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「Günther Josten」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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