The fighter pilots of the Wehrmacht were the »pop stars« of National Socialist propaganda. But what was behind the shiny façade? Jens Wehner throws – sober and balanced – a new light on their military function in air warfare.
His study analyses the military benefits of Messerschmitt and Focke-Wulf fighter types, their tactical application and guiding principles. Comparisons with the level of development of the Allied opponents of the war question the meaningfulness of the pursuit of technical superiority.
This creates the image of a technology that did not meet the expectations placed in it, of a flawed and static doctrine that caused numerous setbacks, and of individualistic pilots who alienated themselves from the military-hierarchical system.