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CaptainCrunch · 12-21-2024, 08:18 PM

The Dicta Boelcke

A list of fundamental maneuvers formulated by Oswald Boelke Germany’s first and foremost flying ace. And the father of modern flying tactics that is used to this day.

Try to secure advantages before attacking. If possible, keep the sun behind you.
Always carry through an attack when you have started it.
Fire only at close range, and only when your opponent is properly in your sights.
Always keep your eye on your opponent, and never let yourself be deceived by ruses.
In any form of attack, it is essential to assail your enemy from behind.
If your opponent dives on you, do not try to evade his onslaught, but fly to meet it.
When over the enemy's lines never forget your own line of retreat.
For the Staffel (squadron): Attack on principle in groups of four or six. When the fight breaks up into a series of single combats, take care that several do not go for the same opponent.

Richthofen asked his friend George Zeumer to teach him to fly, by Oct 10, 1915, Zeumer decided that his friend was ready for his first solo flight.

“Suddenly it was no longer an anxious feeling," Richthofen wrote, "but, rather, one of daring...I was no longer frightened." – Manfred von Richthofen

Richthofen persevered and on Dec 25th he passed all three of his fighter pilot examinations and was awarded a pilot’s certificate. He was then assigned to the 2nd Fighting Squadron near Verdun and collected another non credited kill because the plane went down in enemy territory with no witnesses. The 2nd was then sent to the Eastern Front to provide air support against the Russians.

Fate intervened again as Oswald Boelcke visited the young Lieutenant, Boelcke’s brother Wilheim was Richthofen’s commander and Oswald had taken a liking to him and recruited him to join his new group the Jagdstaffel 2 (hunting Squadron that was on the front in France.

On Sept 17, 2917th Richthofen got his first chance to fly in a Air Patrol in a squadron that was led by Boelcke. Richthofen got into a battle with a British plane that he described as a “dark colored barge” and eventually shot the plane down, Richthofen in his excitement landed his plan next to the wreck, in a preview of a later behavior of collecting trophies. He found that the Plane’s observer: Lt T. Rees was dead, and the pilot B.F. Morris had survived but later died of his injuries. The future Red Baron though had his of many kills. As was customary Richthofen was gifted a engraved silver mug to commemorate his first aerial victory, Richthofen ordered a 2 inch silver trophy and had it engraved with “1 Vickers 2-17-9-16” the first number was his kill count, Vickers was the type of plane, the third number was the number of crewmen and the last number was the date.

As his kill count increased Richthofen decided that he’d make every 10th victory cup twice as large as the others, and as disturbing as it sounds, he became obsessed with collecting souvenirs, he would land next to his victim and take trophies such as plane parts, but he would also take the canvas serial number plate. He would then send them home to add to his collection.
Later in the war, the number of deaths that he caused had a sobering effect on him, in addition because of the shortage of metal and especially silver, it was harder to order trophies, his last trophy was for his 60th kill.

On Oct 28 1916 the sobering reality of war hit the young pilot, his friend and mentor and commander Oswald Boelcke who was the greatest German Ace at the time with 40 kills, had the wing of his aircraft clipped by squadron mate Erwin Bohme’s plane, it was a minor touch, but WW1 planes were fragile and Boelcke spiraled to the ground, in WW1 most pilots didn’t wear parachutes as they were heavy and commanders considered their use to be cowardly. He desperately tried to regain control but one of his wings snapped off and Boelcke was killed when his plane slammed into the ground.

Boelcke was a national hero in Germany and the entire country mourned his loss. Germany needed a hero, but Richthofen wasn’t ready to take the mantel, however he continued to make kills at a prolific rate. He made his 8th and 9th kills in November, when he made his 10th kill he expected to receiver the Pour le Merite (Blue Max) for bravery in combat, but the criteria had changed and a pilot wouldn’t receive it until they made the 10th kill.
As he continued to rack up kills, he decided to paint his plane red.

"One day, for no particular reason, I got the idea to paint my crate glaring red. After that, absolutely everyone knew my red bird. If fact, even my opponents were not completely unaware." - Manfred von Richthofen

Richthofen understood the value of mental warfare as well as physical combat, he hoped to make his enemies fear the sight of his red plane and become hesitant. It was rumored that the British and French fliers put a bounty on his head, they gave him several nicknames, such as “Red Devil”, “Red Falcon”, “The Jolly Red Baron”. The German’s simply called him “The Red Battle Flier”.
Jan 12, 2017, he achieved his 16th kill, and was finally awarded the Blue Max. Two days later he was given command of Jagdstaffel 11.

April 1917 was “Bloody April” after several months of terrible weather condition that left pilots on both sides on the ground the weather changed, and the air came back into focus. At this point in the war the Germans had an advantage in the war in terms of the locations of their air strips and Aircraft. The British had lost 4 times as many planes and experienced pilots losing 245 planes to Germany’s 66, In April Richthofen shot down 21 planes bringing his kill count to 52 or over 20% of Germany’s total kills. He passed Boelcke’s record of 40 kills, making Richthofen Germany’s ace of aces.

He was now recognized as a hero in Germany and the face of the war effort. Postcards were printed with his image and stories of his kills like baseball cards. Germany in fear of losing their hero sent him on a few weeks of leave leaving Richthofen’s brother Lothar in charge of Jasta 11. He went on a tour meeting Kaiser Wilheim II, and Germany’s top generals, he spoke to youth groups and at schools and engaged in social circles with the wealthy.

During this time off, Germany’s war planners and propagandists asked Richthofen to write his memories which was published under the name Der rote Kampfflieger (The Red Battle Flier). In June of 1917 a rested Richthofen returned to his squadron.

The German Air Commanders at that point decided to change the structure of air squadrons. Jastas 4, 6, 10 and 11 were joined together in a early version of an airwing and the formation was called Jagdgeschwander 1 (Fighter Wing 1) under Richthofen, it became known as the Flying Circus.

12-21-2024, 08:18 PM	#265
CaptainCrunch Norm! Join Date: Jun 2002 Exp:	The Dicta Boelcke A list of fundamental maneuvers formulated by Oswald Boelke Germany’s first and foremost flying ace. And the father of modern flying tactics that is used to this day. Try to secure advantages before attacking. If possible, keep the sun behind you. Always carry through an attack when you have started it. Fire only at close range, and only when your opponent is properly in your sights. Always keep your eye on your opponent, and never let yourself be deceived by ruses. In any form of attack, it is essential to assail your enemy from behind. If your opponent dives on you, do not try to evade his onslaught, but fly to meet it. When over the enemy's lines never forget your own line of retreat. For the Staffel (squadron): Attack on principle in groups of four or six. When the fight breaks up into a series of single combats, take care that several do not go for the same opponent. Richthofen asked his friend George Zeumer to teach him to fly, by Oct 10, 1915, Zeumer decided that his friend was ready for his first solo flight. “Suddenly it was no longer an anxious feeling," Richthofen wrote, "but, rather, one of daring...I was no longer frightened." – Manfred von Richthofen Richthofen persevered and on Dec 25th he passed all three of his fighter pilot examinations and was awarded a pilot’s certificate. He was then assigned to the 2nd Fighting Squadron near Verdun and collected another non credited kill because the plane went down in enemy territory with no witnesses. The 2nd was then sent to the Eastern Front to provide air support against the Russians. Fate intervened again as Oswald Boelcke visited the young Lieutenant, Boelcke’s brother Wilheim was Richthofen’s commander and Oswald had taken a liking to him and recruited him to join his new group the Jagdstaffel 2 (hunting Squadron that was on the front in France. On Sept 17, 2917th Richthofen got his first chance to fly in a Air Patrol in a squadron that was led by Boelcke. Richthofen got into a battle with a British plane that he described as a “dark colored barge” and eventually shot the plane down, Richthofen in his excitement landed his plan next to the wreck, in a preview of a later behavior of collecting trophies. He found that the Plane’s observer: Lt T. Rees was dead, and the pilot B.F. Morris had survived but later died of his injuries. The future Red Baron though had his of many kills. As was customary Richthofen was gifted a engraved silver mug to commemorate his first aerial victory, Richthofen ordered a 2 inch silver trophy and had it engraved with “1 Vickers 2-17-9-16” the first number was his kill count, Vickers was the type of plane, the third number was the number of crewmen and the last number was the date. As his kill count increased Richthofen decided that he’d make every 10th victory cup twice as large as the others, and as disturbing as it sounds, he became obsessed with collecting souvenirs, he would land next to his victim and take trophies such as plane parts, but he would also take the canvas serial number plate. He would then send them home to add to his collection. Later in the war, the number of deaths that he caused had a sobering effect on him, in addition because of the shortage of metal and especially silver, it was harder to order trophies, his last trophy was for his 60th kill. On Oct 28 1916 the sobering reality of war hit the young pilot, his friend and mentor and commander Oswald Boelcke who was the greatest German Ace at the time with 40 kills, had the wing of his aircraft clipped by squadron mate Erwin Bohme’s plane, it was a minor touch, but WW1 planes were fragile and Boelcke spiraled to the ground, in WW1 most pilots didn’t wear parachutes as they were heavy and commanders considered their use to be cowardly. He desperately tried to regain control but one of his wings snapped off and Boelcke was killed when his plane slammed into the ground. Boelcke was a national hero in Germany and the entire country mourned his loss. Germany needed a hero, but Richthofen wasn’t ready to take the mantel, however he continued to make kills at a prolific rate. He made his 8th and 9th kills in November, when he made his 10th kill he expected to receiver the Pour le Merite (Blue Max) for bravery in combat, but the criteria had changed and a pilot wouldn’t receive it until they made the 10th kill. As he continued to rack up kills, he decided to paint his plane red. "One day, for no particular reason, I got the idea to paint my crate glaring red. After that, absolutely everyone knew my red bird. If fact, even my opponents were not completely unaware." - Manfred von Richthofen Richthofen understood the value of mental warfare as well as physical combat, he hoped to make his enemies fear the sight of his red plane and become hesitant. It was rumored that the British and French fliers put a bounty on his head, they gave him several nicknames, such as “Red Devil”, “Red Falcon”, “The Jolly Red Baron”. The German’s simply called him “The Red Battle Flier”. Jan 12, 2017, he achieved his 16th kill, and was finally awarded the Blue Max. Two days later he was given command of Jagdstaffel 11. April 1917 was “Bloody April” after several months of terrible weather condition that left pilots on both sides on the ground the weather changed, and the air came back into focus. At this point in the war the Germans had an advantage in the war in terms of the locations of their air strips and Aircraft. The British had lost 4 times as many planes and experienced pilots losing 245 planes to Germany’s 66, In April Richthofen shot down 21 planes bringing his kill count to 52 or over 20% of Germany’s total kills. He passed Boelcke’s record of 40 kills, making Richthofen Germany’s ace of aces. He was now recognized as a hero in Germany and the face of the war effort. Postcards were printed with his image and stories of his kills like baseball cards. Germany in fear of losing their hero sent him on a few weeks of leave leaving Richthofen’s brother Lothar in charge of Jasta 11. He went on a tour meeting Kaiser Wilheim II, and Germany’s top generals, he spoke to youth groups and at schools and engaged in social circles with the wealthy. During this time off, Germany’s war planners and propagandists asked Richthofen to write his memories which was published under the name Der rote Kampfflieger (The Red Battle Flier). In June of 1917 a rested Richthofen returned to his squadron. The German Air Commanders at that point decided to change the structure of air squadrons. Jastas 4, 6, 10 and 11 were joined together in a early version of an airwing and the formation was called Jagdgeschwander 1 (Fighter Wing 1) under Richthofen, it became known as the Flying Circus. __________________ My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings; Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair! Last edited by CaptainCrunch; 12-21-2024 at 09:02 PM.