Gerhard Homuth

Gerhard Homuth
Homuth as an officer
Born	(1914-09-20)20 September 1914 Kiel
Died	2 August 1943(1943-08-02) (aged 28) near Oryol
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1933–1943
Rank	Major (major)
Unit	LG 2, JG 27, JG 54
Commands held	3./JG 27, I./JG 27, I./JG 54
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Gerhard Homuth (20 September 1914 – 2 August 1943) was a World War II Luftwaffe fighter ace. He scored all but two of his 63 victories against the Western Allies whilst flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109, and was one of the top scoring aces in the North African campaign.^[1]

Born in Kiel, Homuth grew up in the Weimar Republic. He joined the military service in the Reichsmarine before transferring to the Luftwaffe in 1935. Trained as a fighter pilot, he was posted Lehrgeschwader 2 (LG 2—2nd Demonstration Wing) where he flew with the aerobatics team. In October 1939, Homuth was posted Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG 27—27th Fighter Wing). In February 1940, he was appointed squadron leader of 3. Staffel (3rd squadron) of JG 27. He claimed his first aerial victory on 11 May 1940 during the Battle of France. In early 1941, his unit was transferred to North Africa where he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 14 June 1941 following his 22nd aerial victory. In June 1942, Homuth was appointed group commander of I. Gruppe (1st group) of JG 27. In late 1942, Homuth fell ill and was taken off operational flying. Following his convalesance, he served as an instructor for Bulgarian fighter pilots. On 1 August 1943, Homuth was given command of I. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 54 (JG 54—54th Fighter Wing) which was fighting on Eastern Front. The following day, he was posted as missing in action when he was shot down and likely killed in action near Kromy.