Hermann-Friedrich Joppien
Hermann-Friedrich Joppien (19 July 1912 – 25 August 1941) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator during World War II, a fighter ace who claimed 70 enemy aircraft shot down in roughly 270 combat missions. He claimed 42 victories over the Western Front, of which 23 were Supermarine Spitfires, the remaining victories were recorded over the Eastern Front.

Born in Bochum, Joppien volunteered for military service, at first with the Reichswehr of the Weimar Republic and later with the Luftwaffe of Nazy Germany. He was posted to Jagdgeschwader 51 (JG 51—51st Fighter Wing) in 1939 and fought in the Battle of France and Britain on the Western Front. In October 1940 he was given command of I. Gruppe (1st group) of JG 51. On account of his 40th aerial victory claimed, he was awarded Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. It was Germany's highest military decoration at the time of its presentation to Joppien. Fighting on the Eastern Front, he was killed in action with Soviet fighters on 25 August 1941.

World War II
World War II in Europe began on Friday, 1 September 1939, when German forces invaded Poland. On 23 November 1939, on the Western Front, Joppien claimed his first victory, an Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 of GC III/7, piloted by Sergent (Sergeant) Guillaume who crash landed at Heillecourt where the aircraft completely burned out. During the encounter, his Messerschmitt Bf 109 was damaged by enemy fire resulting in undercarriage failure on landing. His aircraft overturned, fortunately for Joppien, he escaped unhurt.

Battle of France and Britain
The Battle of France, the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, began on 10 May 1940. During this campaign, Joppien was awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class () on 10 June 1940. By 25 June 1940, the date which marked the end of the French campaign, he claimed three further victories, which brought his total to four aerial victories. On 6 August 1940 Joppien became Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of the 1. Staffel (1st squadron) of JG 51.

He accumulated further victories against the RAF and on account of his 40th victory achieved on 21 April was honorably mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht propaganda radio report, the first of three such mentions, on 22 April.

Operation Barbarossa and death
In June 1941, JG 51 and the majority of the Luftwaffe were transferred to the Eastern Front in preparation for Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941. There, on 30 June 1941, he shot down five Soviet bombers near Bobruysk in eastern Belarus, his aerial victories 47–51. This "ace-in-a-day" achievement earned him his second mention in the Wehrmachtbericht on 1 July 1941. On 5 July 1941, he was wounded following his 58th victory claimed and spent several weeks in convalescence.

On 25 August 1941, Joppien and his wingman, Leutnant Erwin Fleig, engaged in combat with Soviet fighters and bombers near Yelnya, Bryansk Oblast, a village in Krasnovichsky Selsoviet of Unechsky District of Bryansk Oblast,  southwest of Bryansk. In the subsequent action Joppien was shot down and killed in his Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2 (Werknummer 9670—factory number) "Black" by a Soviet Polikarpov I-16 fighter. Fleig later gave to protocol that he and Joppien had attacked three Petlyakov Pe-2 bombers, escorted by three I-16 fighter aircraft, at an altitude of . Fleig saw that Joppien had attacked a Pe-2 bomber, which trailing smoke, was going down. Fleig then observed Joppien's Bf 109 making a sharp right turn and crashed into the ground. By this date, Joppien had shot down 70 enemy aircraft claimed in roughly 270 combat missions. The Wehrmachtbericht announced his death on 29 August 1941.

Summary of career

Aerial victory claims
Matthews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 59 confirmed aerial victory claims, plus eleven further unconfirmed claims. This figure of confirmed claims includes 32 aerial victories on the Western Front and 27 on the Eastern Front.

Awards
 Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
 Knight's Cross on 16 September 1940 as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of the 1./Jagdgeschwader 51
 11th Oak Leaves on 23 April 1941 as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur of I./Jagdgeschwader 51
 Three named references in the Wehrmachtbericht (22 April 1941, 1 July 1941 and 29 August 1941)

Notes