Heinz Marquardt


Heinz "Negus" Marquardt was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, the highest award in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. Marquardt was credited with 121 aerial victories—that is, 121 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft—with a further 16 unconfirmed victories in 320 combat missions. All but one of his victories were claimed over the Eastern Front.

World War II

Marquardt was born on 29 December 1922 in Braunsberg, present-day Braniewo in Poland, at the time in East Prussia a province of the Weimar Republic's Free State of Prussia. On 15 September 1941, he was posted to the Jagdfliegerschule 5, stationed at the Le Havre – Octeville airfield in France. As of 1 February 1942, he served as a fighter pilot instructor and flew a number of operational sorties on the Channel Front with the operational squadron of JFS 5.

Eastern Front

On 1 August 1943, Marquard was transferred to the 10. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 51 "Mölders" operating on the Eastern Front. His transfer to JG 51 occurred during the Soviet Belgorod-Kharkov Offensive Operation where it supported the 8th Army. According to Obermaier, Marquardt claimed his first aerial victory on 2 October, shooting down an Ilyushin Il-2 ground attack aircraft.
On 10 September 1944, Marquard was awarded German Cross in Gold and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 18 November. On 14 April 1945, Marquardt was credited with his 100th aerial victory. He was the 102nd Luftwaffe pilot to achieve the century mark. On a transfer flight of new Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9 to his unit, he was credited with four aerial victories over Yakovlev Yak-3 on 25 April 1945.
On 1 May 1945 Marquardt became Jagdgeschwader 51s last casualty of the war when he was shot down by Royal Air Force Spitfires north of Berlin. Marquardt had led a flight of six Focke-Wulf Fw 190 D-9 on an escort mission of 12 Fw 190 F-8 ground attack aircraft from Redlin on a mission to Berlin. After completing the mission the aircraft returned to Schwerin. During the landing approach the flight came under attack of 6 Spitfire Mk XIV from No. 41 Squadron. Marquardt ordered his flight to cover the landing of the ground attack fighters while he and his wingman, Feldwebel Radlauer, attacked the Spitfires from below. Marquardt claimed one of the attackers but was shot down as well along with two other Fw 190s. Radlauer saw Marquardt's Fw 190 crash in flames but did not observe any sign of life. Marquardt was initially reported as killed in action but he had bailed out injured and was taken to a hospital in Schwerin, where he was taken prisoner of war shortly after.

Later life

Following World War II, Marquardt served in the newly established German Air Force of West Germany with the rank of Leutnant on 16 August 1956. He served with Jagdgeschwader 73 and Leichtes Kampfgeschwader 42. Marquardt retired on 30 September 1973, having risen to the rank of Oberstleutnant. He died on 19 December 2003.

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims

Matthews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and state that Marquardt was credited with more than 121 aerial victories, all of which claimed on the Eastern Front.
Victory claims were logged to a map-reference, for example "PQ 34 Ost 39551". The Luftwaffe grid map covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about. These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area 3 × 4 km in size.

Awards