The German Aces Speak II: World War II Through the Eyes of Four More of the Luftwaffe's Most Important Commanders

by Colin D. Heaton, Anne-Marie Lewis

The much-anticipated sequel to The German Aces Speak gives voice to four more of WWII’s most noteworthy German pilots. When The German Aces Speak published in 2011, Air & Space/Smithsonian magazine welcomed Colin Heaton’s and Anne-Marie Lewis’s masterful command of interview-based narrative, writing, “. . . what might have been numbing recitations of dogfights are instead vivid descriptions of life as a warrior during World War II.” Indeed, it is this unexpected perspective, brought to life by the authors’ neutrality and thoughtful research, that illuminates a side of war largely hidden from the American public: the experience of the German Luftwaffe pilot. In The German Aces Speak II, Heaton and Lewis paint a picture of the war through the eyes of four more of Germany’s most significant pilots—Johannes Steinhoff, Erich Alfred Hartmann, Guther Rall, and Dieter Hrabak—put together from numerous interviews personally conducted by Heaton from the 1980s through the 2000s. The four ex-Luftwaffe fighter aces bring the past to life as they tell their stories about the war, their battles, their off-duty lives, their lives after the war, and, perhaps most importantly, how they felt about serving under the Nazi leadership of Hermann Göring and Adolf Hitler. Together, the memories of the events captured in The German Aces Speak II continue one of today’s most unique World War II book series, unearthing a facet of the war that has gone widely overlooked for the American public.

Genres: History, Aviation, World War II, Nonfiction, Biography, War, Military History

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Former soldier and Marine scout-sniper, former history professor, military historian, consultant to historians, TV and film, and author.

Reviews

[KOMET · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short time ago, I finished reading this book, which I enjoyed very much. It is made up of a series of interviews that the author had over the years with 4 of the premiere Luftwaffe fighter aces of the Second World War: Erich Hartmann, Johannes Steinhoff, Dietrich Hrabak, and Gunther Rall.

Hartmann and Rall, with 352 and 275 victories respectively, are among the top ranked aces in history. Hartmann’s story is explored in considerable detail in this book. Unlike the other 3 gentleman, Hartmann had not been a part of the prewar Luftwaffe and did not see action until late in 1942 on the Eastern Front, where he made the acquaintance of Steinhoff, Hrabak, and Rall (who occupied senior positions in the fighter wing to which Hartmann had been assigned upon completion of training: JG-52). I appreciated being able to “hear” Hartmann speak extensively about his life, training, his early days at the Front (which could have been his last), his capture and hair-raising escape from Soviet forces after his fighter had been forced down just inside Russian territory in the summer of 1943, his meetings with Hitler (as a result of earning some of the Third Reich’s highest military awards for bravery), his decade’s long imprisonment by the Soviets (May 1945 – October 1955), and his subsequent career in the West German Air Force.

Steinhoff, Hrabak, and Rall also had some very rich, colorful, and fascinating stories about their wartime (and postwar) careers. In contrast to Erich Hartmann (who mainly flew against the Soviets), Steinhoff, Hrabak, and Rall had also seen action from Poland, to the Battle of France, the Battle of Britain, to the Blitzkrieg in the Balkans and Greece. Steinhoff himself also served in Tunisia as a wing commander during the latter stages of the campaign in North Africa.

Besides learning so much more about the combat service of these 4 men, this book also gave me a glimpse into the basic decency and integrity they maintained throughout their lives. I came out liking and respecting these gentlemen. (I was fortunate enough, in 1997, to see Gunther Rall speak about his combat experiences in Russia at a special talk with Luftwaffe aces at the Air and Space Museum. His memory was sharp and he struck me as a very kind and considerate person.) For anyone who loves reading “living” history or is an aviation enthusiast, this is the book for you.

[Marc · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the second volume of what I hope will become a much larger series, four German Experten from World War II give their stories. Three of them are very well-known: Erich Hartmann, Johannes Steinhoff and Gunther Rall. The fourth is Dieter Hrabak, a name some may recognize, but one which does not carry the fame of the other three. As in the previous volume, each ace gets their own chapter, with Hartmann's being the longest and taking up almost half the book. Next is Steinhoff, then Hrabak and then Rall. All four are wonderful to read and are the results of numerous interviews with, and articles about, each ace. Sometimes the narrative gets a little repetitive and certain events are mentioned more than once, but overall they're very easy and enjoyable to read.

All four will give you insight into what it took to become a successful fighter pilot, and there's plenty of stories about aerial combat to whet the appetite. Along the way you'll also find out more about some of the other personalities of the Third Reich and the Luftwaffe such as Adolf Hitler, Herman Goering, Heinrich Himmler, Hans-Joachim Marseille, Adolf Galland, Werner Moelders, Gerd Barkhorn, Walter Krupinski and Herman Graf. The famed "Pilot's Revolt" against Goering is recounted in great detail since Steinhoff was a major part of it, and each ace also was instrumental in the re-birth of the Luftwaffe after the war. I never knew about how controversial the F-104 Starfighter was and how its purchase lead to such friction within Germany, but I do now.

There are some nice pictures included and this is where I have my only complaint: on the back cover there is a picture of several Messerschmitt Bf-109s on an airfield...in Finnish markings. I find it hard to believe the publisher couldn't find a picture of German 109s and I sincerely hope they didn't think readers wouldn't notice the difference or care. I noticed, and I care.

Regardless of the back cover, this is a great book and a wonderful companion to the first volume. I certainly hope there are many more to come!

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Similar format to the first German Aces Speak. Same terrible narrator.

Very interesting oral histories of the famous aces Johannes Steinhoff, Erich Alfred Hartmann, Guther Rall, and Dieter Hrabak.

Hartmann's narrative is heartbreaking after he was captured by the Russians. The Russian troops treatment of captured woman & children is appalling and terrifying. The treatment of their own returned POWs is also dismaying. They basically treated them as outlaws and spies.

Enjoyed but occasionally I wondered why they continued fighting when they found out their leaders were evil and mad. They all pretty much corroborate each other with their opinions on the Luftwaffe and Garman's senior leaders at the time.

[Clinton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Love the idea of interviewing these Aces, but this is just a poorly wrote tale. The idea is great, but I really doubt multiple Aces used the "exact same words and descriptions" to describe historical individuals during separate interviews. If you would like the authors idea of what these aces meant, then this is a great book to ping your interest. If you want to actually read about the aces' story, their exploits and how they really felt/reacted then read their real autobiographies like "The Blond Knight" or "The First and the Last".

[Jean Ledroit · Rating 5 out of 5]

The german perspective in world war two is often forgotten and even vilified, this book brings forward the setting of four of the most succeseful aces of world war two ( all germans) and tells about their experiences and thoughts on the frontline and the war in the russian, british, french, german, north african and roumanian skies. It also gives their opinion on their "political opinion" at the time, especially on Goering, and their few meetings with Hitler.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I said for the first volume: Detailed and engrossing remembrances, suitably collated and edited. Fascinating especially are the parallel retellings of important events by different participants (such as the Fighter Pilots' Revolt against Goering in early 1945).

[Drake McCrary · Rating 3 out of 5]

The four interviews are a mixed bag. Some pilots gave detailed interesting accounts with a ring of truth while others used it as a platform to the political blame game. I recommend focusing on interviews one and four.

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

More interesting stories from various German World War 2 aces telling about their experiences during the war. Some of the details about flying against the US bombers and their escorts in particular is very interesting.

[Piotr · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's always good to see the history from all sides and this book continues great from the 1st book. If you love WW2 aircraft, this is a book for you.

[Ulysses · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the challenges of trying to understand the history of a cataclysmic event that claimed the lives of most participants is that eyewitness accounts from survivors by definition represent a skewed perspective on the event: the survivors are lucky outliers. This book illustrates that conundrum perfectly: how much do the reminiscences of four highly decorated World War II Luftwaffe fighter pilots truly tell us about their side of the World War II air war, given that these men represent a laughably impossible selection of history's most skilled and lucky pilots? These four men combined to shoot down over 900 (not a typo) Allied aircraft, survived the war despite being shot down or crashing several dozen times themselves, and retired as colonels or generals in good standing in the NATO alliance. Obviously, none of this is in any way representative of the average German World War II aviator, tens of thousands of whom died in the war as flying cannon fodder. But the dead don't survive to get medals, promotions, or interviews.

Also significantly, the dead don't get a chance to petition for rehabilitation. All four of the subjects make frequent statements throughout the book about how little respect they had for Hitler and the other Nazi officials that called the strategic shots during the war, and all claim that the fighter pilots had no awareness that while they were fighting a relatively sanitized and chivalrous air war, the ground war was providing cover for a gruesome extermination campaign against millions of civilians. (Amazingly, the wife of one of the subjects was a doctor who personally smuggled several dozen Jews to safety during the war but wisely held off on telling her high-profile German war hero husband the details until after the war.) But if one were a soldier for the most despised losing cause in history yet were fortunate enough to not only survive the loss but to have enough plausible deniability to seek rehabilitation by working with one's former enemies (i.e. the Americans and British) to assist them against a new common enemy (i.e. the Soviets)... well, who in that situation wouldn't leap at the opportunity to disown one's problematic past affiliations, and start a new chapter in which one can rebrand oneself to one's new friends as a steadfast ally and all-around fine human being?

This uncertainty about whether the subjects are telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth, or just taking advantage of an opportunity to relive their glory days for a credulous historian while also issuing disclaimers for their complicity in parts of history they would rather sweep under the rug, sticks with the reader throughout. But even with this hefty dose of skepticism, the personal experiences of these men as they not only survived the odds but thrashed the odds repeatedly throughout the entire war make for fabulous entertainment. This is a must-read for anyone interested in World War II aviation history.

[Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great oral history that features four of the Luftwaffe's most infamous pilots via transcripts of conversations the author had with each pilot in the late 1990s. Like the first book, I was struck by the human element of this book - in many ways hearing the story straight from the German pilots blocks some elements of objectivity, but the stories that emerge are interesting and worth knowing. Heaton is sitting on a treasure trove of material that is illuminating for serious students of WWII history.

[Dave Hoff · Rating 3 out of 5]

The lives of 4 German pilots from youth until near their deaths as told by them. Very many kills of the Allies planes, these flyers were not Nazis as we thought, they hated Hitler & Goring, but fought for Germany & each other. One was in the Russian Gulag for 10 years, the others made it to the American & British zones and never had it so good.

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again it is a pity these great men were not given the recognition from their country that they richly deserve. Their children and great grandchildren have something to be really proud of.