Manfred Meurer

Manfred Meurer (8 September 1919 – 22 January 1944) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a night fighter ace credited with 65 aerial victories claimed in 130 combat missions making him the fifth most successful night fighter pilot in the history of aerial warfare. All of his victories were claimed over the Western Front in Defense of the Reich missions against the Royal Air Force's (RAF) Bomber Command.

Born in Hamburg, Meurer grew up in the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. Following graduation from school and the compulsory Reichsarbeitsdienst (Reich Labour Service), he joined the military service in 1938, at first with an anti aircraft artillery regiment before being trained as a pilot. Meurer then served with Zerstörergeschwader 76 (ZG 76—76th Destroyer Wing), flying a Messerschmitt Bf 110 heavy fighter. In October 1941, he transferred to Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 (NJG 1—1st Night Fighter Wing) where he became a night fighter pilot and claimed his first aerial victory on the night of 26/27 March 1942. Meurer was appointed squadron leader of 3. Staffel (3rd squadron) of NJG 1 in January 1943. Following his 50th aerial victory, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves on 2 August 1943. The Knight's Cross (Ritterkreuz), and its variants were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. On 5 August 1943, he was appointed group commander of II. Gruppe of Nachtjagdgeschwader 5 (NJG 5—5th Night Fighter Wing). Meurer and his crew were killed in action in a mid-air collision with a RAF bomber on the night of 21/22 January 1944.

Early life and career
Meurer, the son of sports editor-in-chief Georg Meurer, was born on 8 September 1919 in Hamburg, at the time a sovereign state of the German Empire. After attending school and passing his Abitur (School Leaving Certificate) and compulsory Reichsarbeitsdienst (Reich Labour Service), he joined the military service of Nazi Germany in 1938. He initially served with Flak-Regiment 6 (6th anti aircraft artillery regiment) of the Luftwaffe as a Fahnenjunker (officer cadet).

World War II
World War II in Europe began on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. Following the outbreak of war, Meurer was accepted for flight training and was promoted to Leutnant (second lieutenant) on 1 April 1940. From the Heeresaufklärern (army aerial reconnaissance), he was posted to II. Gruppe (2nd group) of Zerstörergeschwader 76 (ZG 76—76th Destroyer Wing). In Oktober 1941, he transferred to III. Gruppe (3rd group) of Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 (NJG 1—1st Night Fighter Wing) where he became a night fighter pilot. There, he was assigned to the 9. Staffel (9th squadron) of NJG 1.

Night fighter career
Following the 1939 aerial Battle of the Heligoland Bight, Royal Air Force (RAF) attacks shifted to the cover of darkness, initiating the Defence of the Reich campaign. By mid-1940, Generalmajor (Brigadier General) Josef Kammhuber had established a night air defense system dubbed the Kammhuber Line. It consisted of a series of control sectors equipped with radars and searchlights and an associated night fighter. Each sector named a Himmelbett (canopy bed) would direct the night fighter into visual range with target bombers. In 1941, the Luftwaffe started equipping night fighters with airborne radar such as the Lichtenstein radar. This airborne radar did not come into general use until early 1942.

Meurer was credited with his first aerial victory on 26/27 March 1942, a Vickers Wellington bomber, claimed shot down at 00:10 approximately 2 km east of Wichmond. For this, he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class (Eisernes Kreuz zweiter Klasse) on 17 April 1942. On 30/31 May 1942, he claimed his second victory, a Handley Page Hampden at 02:05 roughly 3 km north of Deventer. The Hampden was identified as P2116 from the RAF No. 14 Operational Training Unit. He shot down a Handley Page Halifax at 01:54 on 2/3 June 1942 claimed near Emmerich. At 04:17 on 15/16 August 1942, Meurer claimed a Wellington shot down at Rozendaal. Meurer became an ace on the night of 10/11 September 1942 after having claimed a Wellington shot down at 00:06 in the vicinity 1 km west of Bienen. Three nights later, he claimed his sixth victory over an Avro Lancaster bomber at 03:26 about 10 km north of Apeldoorn. On 1/2 October 1942, he claimed another Wellington shot down at 21:47 roughly 2 km north-northeast of Haldern. Meurer claimed his last aerial victory in 1942 on the night of 15/16 October. The victory was claimed over a Halifax bomber at 22:52 about 1 km north of Hellendoorn. Credited with eight victories, he was awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class (Eisernes Kreuz erster Klasse) on 19 December 1942.

Staffelkapitän
On 1 January 1943, Meurer was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 3. Staffel (3rd squadron) of NJG 1. His first victory of 1943 was claimed on the night of 3/4 January. He shot down a Lancaster at 20:23 about 20 km north-northeast of Roermond. The aircraft was Lancaster "U-Uncle" from No. 207 Squadron piloted by Flight Sergeant 'Barry' Chaster. In the attack, four crew members were killed. His 10th aerial victory was over a Halifax claimed at 20:53 on 27/28 January 1943 at Handel, followed by a Stirling claimed at 20:41 on 3/4 February 1943 near 5 km south of Amersfoort.

On 14/15 February 1943, he claimed three heavy bombers, two Halifax and one Wellington. At 20:05 about 50 km east of Eindhoven, he claimed the first Halifax of the night. The second was believed to have been shot down at 20:20 north-northeast of Maastricht. The Wellington was then claimed at 21:06 roughly 5 km west of Roermond. Meurer claimed two bombers shot down on 26/27 February 1943. He destroyed a Lancaster at 21:18 about 10 km northeast of Roermond, and a Wellington at 21:35 roughly 20 km northeast of Eindhoven. On 1/2 March 1942, he was victorious over another Lancaster, claimed at 23:56 approximately 10 km southeast of Rotterdam.

Battle of the Ruhr
In March 1943, RAF Bomber Command, under the command of Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris, initiated a 5-month long campaign of strategic bombing targeting the industrial centres in the Ruhr Area. This series of bombing attacks, dubbed the Battle of the Ruhr (5 March 1943 – 31 July 1943), caused heavy damage to German industry. The Battle of the Ruhr began with a 442-aircraft attack on Essen on the night of 5/6 March 1943. That night, Meurer shot down a Halifax shot down at 20:57 west of Düsseldorf and, at 21:20, a Wellington 4 km northwest of Weeze. On 12/13 March 1943, as RAF Bomber Command targeted the Krupp factory in Essen, Meurer claimed four aerial victories, two Halifax, one Lancaster, and one Wellington. The first Halifax was shot down at 21:16 northwest of Venlo; the Lancaster at 21:25 approximately 3-5 km east of Bergen; the second Halifax at 21:48 at Grafwegen;and the Wellington at 22:25 roughly 25 km northeast of 's-Hertogenbosch. Credited with 23 aerial victories, Meurer was awarded the Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe (Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe) on 15 March 1943, the German Cross in Gold (Deutsches Kreuz in Gold) on 31 March 1943, and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on 16 April 1943.

In May 1943, Meuerer was credited with 14 more aerial victories, which included one on 12/13 May, another the next night, three on 23/24 May, again three on 25/26 May, two on 27/28 May, and four on 29/30 May. The victory on 12/13 May was over a Wellington, claimed at 02:10 roughly 18 km east-southeast Eindhoven. On 13/14 May at 02:31, a Halifax was claimed in an unknown location. The three victories claimed on 23/24 May were over a Wellington at 01:55 about 13 km northwest of Eindhoven, a second Wellington at 02:12 east of Essen, and a Lancaster at 02:33 in a position 32 km southeast of Nijmegen. The three further victories claimed on 25/26 May were over a Wellington at 01:24 at Oostrum, a Lancaster at 01:36 about 10 km southeast of Roermond, and a second Lancaster at 02:08 in a position 5 km west of Nijmegen. The two victories claimed on 27/28 May were over a Lancaster at 00:38 about 2 km north-northeast of Barlo, and a Wellington at 02:12 approximately 21 km southeast of Wanroij. On 21/22 June 1943, Bomber command targeted Krefeld, losing 44 aircraft in the attack. That night, Meurer shot down two bombers, one from No. 83 Squadron and another from No. 77 Squadron. Meurer's aircraft was hit by defensive fire of his second opponent, forcing him to bail out. His first victory was a Lancaster shot down at 01:23 about 2 km west of Oeffelt, and a Halifax at 01:48 roughly 0.5 km southwest of Wamel. Flying a specialized Junkers Ju 88 with GM-1 power boost, Meurer was credited with his 50th aerial victory over De Havilland Mosquito IV DZ458 from No. 139 Squadron on 27/28 July 1943.

Gruppenkommandeur
On 2 August 1943, Meurer was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub). The presentation was made by Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair, Hitler's headquarters in Rastenburg, present-day Kętrzyn in Poland on 10/11 August. Five other Luftwaffe officers were presented with awards that day by Hitler, Hauptmann Egmont Prinz zur Lippe-Weißenfeld, Hauptmann Heinrich Ehrler, Oberleutnant Joachim Kirschner, Hauptmann Werner Schröer, Oberleutnant Theodor Weissenberger were also awarded the Oak Leaves, and Major Helmut Lent received the Swords to his Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves.

On 5 August 1943, Meurer was appointed Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of II. Gruppe of Nachtjagdgeschwader 5 (NJG 5—5th Night Fighter Wing), replacing Hauptmann Rudolf Schoenert who was transferred. On 23/24 August 1943, Meurer claimed a Lancaster at 00:58 over the eastern area of Berlin and a second Lancaster at 01:38 at Fürstenberg/Havel. On the last night of August 1943, he claimed a Stirling bomber destroyed at 01:00 on 1 September in a vicinity 20 km west-northwest of Berlin. He returned to NJG 1 on 28 September 1943 as Gruppenkommandeur of I. Gruppe. He replaced Hauptmann Hans-Dieter Frank who was killed in action. I. Gruppe flew the Heinkel He 219 and Meurer gained five victories flying this type. At 20:05 on 18/19 October 1943, he claimed a Lancaster for his 57th aerial victory at Erichshagen. Near Bühne and Haarbrück on the night of 22/23 October 1943, he claimed a Lancaster shot down at 21:20. At 20:15 on 3/4 November 1943, Meurer claimed a Halifax 14 km northeast of Tilburg.

Battle of Berlin and death
In November 1943, Bomber Command initiated the aerial bombing campaign on Berlin. During the Battle of Berlin (18 November 1943 – 31 March 1944), the RAF also targeted other German cities to prevent the concentration of defences. At the start of this campaign, Meurer with his I. Gruppe were based at Venlo Airfield. Meurer was credited with his 60th aerial victory on 12/13 December 1943 for a claim made at 19:25 over a Mosquito west of Zaltbommel. The Mosquito was DZ354 from No. 105 Squadron piloted by Flying Officer Benjamin Frank Reynolds and Flying Officer John Douglass Phillips, both killed in action. On 16/17 December 1943, he claimed his 61st and 62nd victory. The 61st claim was made at 19:25 over an aircraft of unknown type and position. His 62nd claim was over a Lancaster at an unknown time and location.

On the night of 21/22 January 1944, he collided with the Lancaster W4852 LS-B, piloted by Flight Sergeant Robert Butler, roughly 20 km east of Magdeburg. His He 219 A-0 (Werknummer 190070—factory number) "G9+BB" crashed and Meurer, his radar operator Oberfeldwebel Gerhard Scheibe, the first radio operator of the night fighter force to have received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, and all seven members of the Lancaster crew, were killed in action. Meurer had been credited with 65 nocturnal victories, including 40 four-engined bombers and two Mosquitos, claimed in 130 combat missions. On 31 January 1944, Meurer was given a military funeral on the Ohlsdorf Cemetery in Hamburg.

Aerial victory claims
According to US historian David T. Zabecki, Meurer was credited with 65 aerial victories. Foreman, Mathews and Parry, authors of Luftwaffe Night Fighter Claims 1939 – 1945, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 65 nocturnal victory claims, numerically ranging from 1 to 61, 61, 65, 63 and 64. According to Bowman, Meurer shot down Mosquito IV DZ458 from No. 139 Squadron on 27/28 July 1943. This claim is not documented by Foreman, Mathews and Parry. Mathews and Foreman also published Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, listing Meurer with 62 claims.

Awards

 * Iron Cross (1939)
 * 2nd Class (17 April 1942)
 * 1st Class (19 December 1942)
 * Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe (Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe) on 15 March 1943 as Oberleutnant and pilot
 * German Cross in Gold on 31 March 1943 as Oberleutnant in the 3./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1
 * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
 * Knight's Cross on 16 April 1943 as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of the 3./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1
 * 264th Oak Leaves on 2 August 1943 as Hauptmann and Staffelkapitän of the 3./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1