Manfred von Richthofen
Manfred von Richthofen was a German fighter pilot and military officer who served with the German Air Force during World War I.
Born on 2 May 1892, Richthofen was educated at the Royal Prussian Main Cadet Institute, a formation that placed him squarely within the military traditions of the Kingdom of Prussia, of which he was a citizen. When the First World War drew aviation into the machinery of industrial conflict, he moved from the ground forces into the air, where he flew as a combat pilot and eventually earned recognition as a flying ace.
Over the course of the war, Richthofen was officially credited with 80 air combat victories, a figure that stood as a record among pilots of the conflict. The decorations he received reflect both the scale and the duration of his service: he was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class and the Iron Cross 1st Class, the Hanseatic Cross in its Bremen, Lübeck, and Hamburg forms, and the Wound Badge in Black, which attested to injuries sustained in action. The highest distinction he received was the Pour le Mérite, the Kingdom of Prussia's foremost military honor, awarded to officers who had demonstrated exceptional conduct in the field.
He died on 21 April 1918, at the age of twenty-five, before the war reached its conclusion. His authorized name in library catalogues — Richthofen, Manfred, Freiherr von, 1892–1918 — preserves the aristocratic title attached to his name, a marker of the Prussian military class from which he came. The arc of his brief career, from cadet institute to the skies over the Western Front, ran entirely within the frame of a single war, and the body of air combat that defined his service remains the concrete measure by which his record as a military aviator is documented.
Quotes by Manfred von Richthofen
When one has shot down one’s first, second or third opponent, then one begins to find out how the trick is done.
It is better that one’s customers come to one’s shop than to have to look for them abroad.
Of course, with the increasing number of aeroplanes one gains increased opportunities for shooting down one’s enemies, but at the same time, the possibility of being shot down one’s self increases.
Fight on and fly on to the last drop of blood and the last drop of fuel, to the last beat of the heart.
The quality of the box matters little. Success depends upon the man who sits in it.
The duty of the fighter pilot is to patrol his area of the sky, and shoot down any enemy fighters in that area. Anything else is rubbish.
