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English: German postcard from World War I honoring Frankl

Wilhelm Frankl is the most well known German Jewish fighter pilot of World War I. He was born in Hamburg on December 20, 1893, and his family later moved to Frankfurt-am-Main. After graduating from school, Frankl went to Germany’s famous aviation center at Johannisthal and took flying lessons from Germany’s first female pilot, Melly Beese. After the war started he volunteered for the air service and proved to be an outstanding fighter pilot. In 1916 Frankl became engaged to the Christian daughter of an Austrian naval officer, and he made a controversial decision to convert to Christianity. Some say he converted to please his future wife, while others say he converted in the hope that he would have better career opportunities. (Jews in Germany were not allowed the same rights as Christians.)

In a short amount of time Frankl shot down several enemy planes, and soon afterwards his picture was featured on German postcards and he was hailed as a national hero. Frankl received the Pour-le-mérite (nicknamed the “Blue Max”), which was Germany’s equivalent to America’s Medal of Honor. He was made commander of his own squadron, Jasta 4.

Frankl was killed on April 8, 1917, when the Albatros D.III he was flying fell apart during combat over France. Just three days before he had shot down three enemy aircraft in one day, for a total of 19. He was buried in Berlin-Charlottenburg, but his grave has been lost to war and history. Frankl was excluded from Pour-le-mérite Flieger, Walter Zuerl’s 1938 chronicle of German World War I fighter pilots who had received the Pour-le-mérite. In spite of his conversion, Frankl apparently was, in Nazi eyes, still a Jew.

In 1973 the German Luftwaffe named a squadron after him.