Friedrich Fahnert


Friedrich Hermann Fahnert was a German military officer who served in World War I and as a Luftwaffe General in World War II. He was the last of three officers to be appointed to the rank of General of air force communications troops.

Military career

Fahnert entered the Imperial Army as an officer cadet in the 2nd railway regiment, Berlin in 1900. He took part in the campaign against the Hereros and the Nama. He served throughout World War I and became a battalion commander. After the war he was retained in the Reichswehr and transferred to the Luftwaffe in 1936. At the outbreak of World War II he was the commander of the Air Signals Training School in Berlin. He took part in the Siege of Leningrad. He then commanded the Air Signals Training Division in France and was promoted to General der Luftnachrichtentruppe on 1 April 1945.

After World War II

On 2 May 1945 Fahnert was taken into British captivity in Lübeck and then held with other senior officers at Special Camp XI near Bridgend, South Wales until 5 December 1947. He then returned to Germany and lived in Baden-Baden until his death in 1964. A Bundeswehr barracks in Karlsruhe was named after him in October 1964. In October 2016 it was renamed into "Kirchfeldkaserne".

Awards and Distinctions