World War II Chronicle: October 1, 1942
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Page two briefly mentions the passing of Luftwaffe ace Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Marseille over Libya. Although he dies early, Capt. Marseille still managed to shoot down more Western Allied aircraft — 158 — than any other pilot in the war. Marseille was the fourth recipient of the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds, but he died before it could be presented.
The first three diamond recipients are Werner Mölders, Adolf Galland, and Gordon Gollob. Mölders (discussed in several previous posts) was named Inspector of Fighters after becoming the first pilot in aviation history to 100 victories. When he dies in a plane crash, his job goes to Galland. During the Spanish Civil War Galland led a Condor Legion squadron (3. Staffel of Jagdgruppe 88), flying 300 combat missions. When Galland rotated home, Mölders took over his squadron. Galland currently sits at 96 victories and will become a jet ace later in the war.
Gollob claimed six victories over Britain and the Channel before shipping out to the Eastern Front. He had shot down 100 warplanes by June 1942 and on Aug. 29 became the first Luftwaffe pilot to reach 150. Gollob will take over as Inspector of Fighters from Galland in 1944.
Back to Marseille: Just days ago he was congratulated by Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel for becoming the youngest captain in the Luftwaffe at 22 years-old. He was the 11th German pilot to record 100 kills, and like Mölders, perished soon after earning his diamonds. By war’s end, 106 Germans surpass the century mark and only half will survive. No country besides Germany produces an ace with more than 100 kills. In fact the top 200 aces of World War II are all Germans, apart from three Imperial Japanese Navy and two Finnish Air Force pilots. Thirty-five Luftwaffe airmen end up with 150 or more aerial victories. Fifteen surpass 200. Five have more than 250, whereas Gerhard Barkhorn and Erich Hartmann claim more than 300 air-to-air kills…
In other news, the Cardinals defeat the Yankees in Game 2 of the World Series. The series moves to New York for the next three games with the clubs tied at one win apiece… The Evening Star is transporting World Series newspapers by horse-drawn carriage to save on tires and fuel (see page five). Meanwhile, a nationwide 35-mile-per-hour speed limit begins today… The 34 Days Adrift on a Raft series continues on page 17…
Sports section begins on page 42 and breaks down Game 1 of the World Series… Legendary Minnesota Golden Gopher coach Bernie Bierman, now coaching the Iowa Pre-Flight Seahawks, is set to break his former club’s undefeated streak. Neither Iowa nor Minnesota have lost a game this year going into Saturday’s matchup…
Evening star. (Washington, D.C.), 1 October 1942. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.
https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1942-10-01/ed-1/
