How ONE German Pilot Became the Allies Worst Nightmare

2023 ж. 11 Шіл.
560 844 Рет қаралды

This is the full story of Egon Mayer, quite possibly Germany's greatest fighter ace. With over 50 Spitfire Kills and 25 Heavy Bomber kills, he was easily one of the most valuable pilots the Luftwaffe had and was responsible for the tactic that took down countless B-17 Flying Fortresses in World War II. We may have also even located the forgotten gun camera footage of his death! This was made using the World War II flight simulator War Thunder. Hope you enjoy! It's totally free to play and you can download it here: playwt.link/tj3
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Пікірлер
  • I cannot continue to make these videos without your support. Please consider supporting my work here: Patreon.com/TJ3History

    @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • Your Gestapo suit is georgeous :-D Good video by the way. On 22.9.43 there was an underclaiming. Meyer claiming 2, but 3 Spitfires were lost to enemy fighters. Birbeck was pursuied, but Fw 190 turned around and then after some time he was forced to bale out 20-25 nm. S. Ford. Mabye it was Meyer who pursuied him mabye not...

      @ondrejdobrota7344@ondrejdobrota734410 ай бұрын
    • This man was no boy! Choose your words carefully!

      @thehealer913@thehealer91310 ай бұрын
    • The German". 50cal/DSHK" an absolute decimator 13mm

      @firesupport162@firesupport16210 ай бұрын
    • I sgree nut he died to early

      @JoelEdberg@JoelEdberg10 ай бұрын
    • 👌

      @chrisdenem2542@chrisdenem25429 ай бұрын
  • Marseille, Barkhorn, Hartman, Galland, Mölders.... all of them were absolute beasts

    @BratislavMetulski@BratislavMetulski10 ай бұрын
    • Don't forget Gunther Rall who had 275 kills to his credit, a good man but also a beast

      @joereilly1519@joereilly15193 ай бұрын
    • What is a beast? One who wants to protect his homeland, woman, children and old or one who throws bombs on civilians?

      @karlkirchweger4190@karlkirchweger41902 ай бұрын
    • @@karlkirchweger4190 Hans, you were the one dropping bombs on Poles, British, and countless civilians as well...

      @harrisonpowers4265@harrisonpowers42652 ай бұрын
    • Graf...

      @PauloPereira-jj4jv@PauloPereira-jj4jv2 ай бұрын
    • ​@@harrisonpowers4265yeah but also they didn't out right antagonize Britain or France, like they did to Germany, Britain was the allie that hitler wanted

      @Historybuff_769@Historybuff_7692 ай бұрын
  • For me Hans-Joachim Marseille was, is and will always be the best German fighter pilot!!! 🦅

    @franksteinbach9431@franksteinbach943110 ай бұрын
    • He was absolutely fascinating as well, and an elite marksman!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • Absolutely, not only skilled but a true gentleman during the time.

      @5.56man2@5.56man210 ай бұрын
    • If only his work with jazz piano ;)

      @terraflow__bryanburdo4547@terraflow__bryanburdo454710 ай бұрын
    • @5.56man2 and a ladies man 👀 haha

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • But his scores are based on Nazi lies! What tosh.

      @HaveMonkeyWillDance@HaveMonkeyWillDance10 ай бұрын
  • My Great Uncle was an ace with JG 1 Anton Rudolph Piffer. He shot down 32 US Bombers amongst others in a FW190. I wish I knew more about him. He was shot down after D Day by British pilots in Mustangs.

    @zulubeatz1@zulubeatz110 ай бұрын
    • Interesting. I did a bit research and can tell you some facts from 1944: Feldwebel Anton-Rudolf "Toni" Piffer was part of 2./JG 1 and shot down a B-17 on January 5. 1944; his 18. aerial victory. Promoted to Oberfeldwebel he shot down two B-17 (19+20) on Jan. 30 1944. Jan. 31 a P-38 (21); Febr. 8 a B-17 (22); Febr. 24 a B-24 (23); April 8 a B-24 (24); April 24 a B-17 (25) and April 29 a B-17 (26). Promoted to Leutnant(!) your Great Uncle shot down a P-51 (27) on May 8 and a B-24 (28) on May 12. On May 13 1944 he was rammed by a P-47 over the Baltic Sea. While the P-47 crashed into the sea (aerial victory 29), Piffer was able to belly-land his Fw 190 near Hamburg. Last three "kills" were B-17s on May 24. 28. and 29. (30-32). On June 17. 1944 Piffer lost his life, when he was shot down by a Mustang over Le Cordonnière in his Fw 190 A-8 (White 3; WNr. 172604). Awarded posthum with the Ritterkreuz. He'd shot down 26 heavy 4mot bombers! Would be an interesting story for TJ!

      @josefhorndl3469@josefhorndl34699 ай бұрын
    • R.I.P jour ACCE uncle .Nice work her done.⚡⚡

      @ljubo409@ljubo4099 ай бұрын
    • 🕊🖤🖤

      @Kitsui16@Kitsui168 ай бұрын
    • @@Kitsui16 ✋ LAND OFF RISING SUN I ASSUME.HELLO FROM CROATIA WETHER IS ⚡⚡DOWN HIER.

      @ljubo409@ljubo4098 ай бұрын
    • Brazil. Seu avô foi um herói, para Alemanha e sua família.

      @eduardobaccaroschrepel4035@eduardobaccaroschrepel40354 ай бұрын
  • This is by far the most underrated aerial combat history channel on KZhead. Not only is it underrated, but it is also one of the very best . Guy's, please like this video so that this channels algorithm gains more traction and can be seen by other aerial combat enthusiasts such as ourselves . TJ , keep up the amazing work that you put in to bring these videos to us , the fans.

    @dirt_ripper8734@dirt_ripper873410 ай бұрын
    • Thank you very much :)

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • ​@@TJ3just telling the truth . Have a wonderful day .

      @dirt_ripper8734@dirt_ripper873410 ай бұрын
    • The narrator is wrong on a few important facts plus the Air force wasn't formed until late 1947. I guess I could have misunderstood his wording. It's Army Air Force until late 1947 then Air Force. That was one mistake that didn't require more then a sentence. The other things I stated on earlier post. Little details can magnify misunderstanding of history. If I'm wrong I apologize.

      @WilliamHorsley1962@WilliamHorsley19629 ай бұрын
    • Just some lucky shots change history itself.... Truthful history telling is critical theses days.

      @Wrahns@Wrahns3 ай бұрын
  • If you're going to look at a German pilot, look at Heinz Baer (or Bar). A "first to last" pilot who started out flying Me 109 E's in 1939 to flying Me 262s in 1945. Second to Marseille in kills against the Western Allies, fought in all 3 theaters, 3 times nominated for the Diamonds to his Knights Cross and the Cherry on top, Georing didn't like him! As far as "Spitfire Killer" the top pilot was Josef Priller, who shot down 68 Spitfires.

    @michaelbatson1879@michaelbatson187910 ай бұрын
    • What about Erich Hartmann? Over 800 missions and 352 air to air kills.

      @Future183@Future18310 ай бұрын
    • @@Future183 They’re comparing Western Front fighter pilots. Most of Hartmans’s kills were over the Eastern Front. Still a remarkable feat.

      @cecielhelder5923@cecielhelder592310 ай бұрын
    • ​@@cecielhelder5923a good chunk of Bar's kills were Eastern front as well

      @corydunaway@corydunaway10 ай бұрын
    • BÄR

      @karlhubben8009@karlhubben800910 ай бұрын
    • Priller is one of my faves ever since the Dday movie where he told his bosses to F off when they told him to attack normandy with 2 planes lol

      @travisrolison9646@travisrolison96469 ай бұрын
  • Aussie here 👍🙃🍺🦘 Salutations to All WW2 Fighter pilots - what a fascinating period of History & its machinery

    @mudkoerfgen9843@mudkoerfgen984310 ай бұрын
  • Historical notes - edit - also was just told I listed 1943 instead of 44. I'm sorry :( that was a typo I missed. - Well guys, I put an unreal amount of work into this video. But like all, there are small inaccuracies here and there. For one, the paint schemes of planes are always extremely difficult, especially in videos like this that take place across multiple years when models and camos are constantly changing (Like the Spitfire models and roundels here). I have done my best to maintain the closest possible model throughout though. Also, Nick Hector was a huge help here, and most kill claims looked pretty legit. There were some days however, when confirmations could not be found. The ace in a day mission in December was one of these for example. Lastly, with the gun camera footage, I cannot say with complete and full certainty that this is Egon's death. But James Marshall said that it was this one, and he is, without a doubt an expert on the air war over Europe in 1944 and likely worked with Gresham's family on a lot of this. And compared to the recollections that I could find, it checks out. Egon was killed in a wide turn, from a distance, and his plane "Blew up" and immediately went into a snap roll and spiral, similar to what we see here. Finally, obviously there were other German aces with more kills, I know. But I believe there is a case to be made (and is made here) that Mayer may have been the premier and most valuable pilot to the Luftwaffe, fighting on the Western front and making such significant contributions, hence me calling him the greatest! Thanks for watching, love you guys! -TJ

    @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • This video is sooo good!!!!!! Decision to take time to make quality content is the right thing.

      @r.s.i8753@r.s.i875310 ай бұрын
    • @r.s.i8753 thank you :)

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • That was a great account of a Luftwaffe ace who had a talent, guts and luck in downing B-17s only to be killed by a rookie P47 pilot!! God bless the rookies!!

      @waltergreif4836@waltergreif483610 ай бұрын
    • The eastern and western fronts were very different, not just in the air, but also in regards to air bases and ground personnel. In the west units were almost exclusely working out of 'hard' runways, with all the logistical support they could wish for. In the east it was often grass airfields with no hangers or even proper accomodation for the ground crews or pilots, and the pilots were often in action all day long, flying sortie after sortie, which is why the pilot kill totals got so high. Who was the best? I don't like those sorts of questions! I don't think they can be answered. As for the accuracy of your game videos, seriously you put so much effort in that you have no need to apologize at all. Yes, I'm a stickler for accuracy and probably am despised by a lot of content creators when I call out their videos in the comments, but I have never done that here. Most people just stick random videos taken from 1939-1945 while they are talking about specific dates, so you are already doing better than most! Good work, keep it up!

      @captainhurricane5705@captainhurricane570510 ай бұрын
  • UK - I was a school boy during WW2 and even now when I hear a plane go over I look up and think is it German, we kids back then knew what we were seeing, It was a terrifying time. This was an amazing video for me, thank you.

    @henryellis1358@henryellis135810 ай бұрын
    • Sorry to scare you kid, that was probably me

      @Cormano980@Cormano9809 ай бұрын
    • Have you seen the movie Hope and Glory? It's about a boy in London during the Battle of Britain. It's funny, touching, and harrowing.

      @brachio1000@brachio100021 күн бұрын
  • German fighter pilots did not make ace with just five kills. The term was "Expert" and given after 15 kills. And there were many of them.

    @CH-lc3yf@CH-lc3yf10 ай бұрын
    • There were 100+ pilots already with 100+ kills...

      @Vickzq@Vickzq10 ай бұрын
    • snoopy had more than 15, so...

      @paulcarey191@paulcarey19110 ай бұрын
    • ,Novotny an Pilot from Gmünd in Austria . was one of the best.

      @hawidere783@hawidere7839 ай бұрын
    • i thought u need 100 kills in german reich to be called ace......in US u need 5 kills to be called an ace

      @uweSMG@uweSMG8 ай бұрын
    • @@uweSMG Germany got no aces. Only _experten._ 15 kills. No shared numbers, no ground kills... no hearsay, only verified kills.

      @Vickzq@Vickzq8 ай бұрын
  • Judging by that violent snap-roll, I wouldn't be surprised if Mayer got knocked unconscious by knocking his head against something in the cockpit, or canopy.

    @Nghilifa@Nghilifa10 ай бұрын
    • Agreed

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Very well told sir and a fine tribute to one of the greatest fighter piloys of all time . I wonder if there is anything in existence told by Egon Mayer himself. Erich Hartmann perhaps the best pilot ever survived and lived a long life but dead man tell no tale . Long live Deutschland.

    @stevekon11@stevekon1110 ай бұрын
    • So did Galland til 1996.

      @tomh9807@tomh98078 ай бұрын
  • Thanks for your dedication and hard work. A priceless contribution to history.

    @garykyle5750@garykyle575010 ай бұрын
    • Thanks!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • ? Manfred von Richthofen (RED Baron) shot down twice as many if not more.... in a cloth and wood airplane!.....this Hienz guy got nothing on even RIchard I bong who took out more then 100 bombers with his P38 lighting? where do people get they're info??

      @harleyme3163@harleyme31637 ай бұрын
  • Both Hawker Hurricane Mk 1 and Supermarine Sptfire Mk !had an armament of 8 browning 303 machine guns. Also in BOB in 1940 All german Bf 109's were 109 E type, not type For G.

    @wimziekman1104@wimziekman110410 ай бұрын
  • The luftwaffe planes and pilots definitely have a romance all of their own. I love this work of yours and thoroughly enjoyed it. So completely unbiased, and that is a rare approach these days. Thank you!

    @chrisdenem2542@chrisdenem25429 ай бұрын
  • Similar to the Canadian fighter ace, George 'Buzz' Beurling, Mayer, along with several other top Luftwaffe fighter pilots, became extremely adept at deflection shooting. Master that discipline, and the next requisites were great planes to fly in combat scenarios, top-class ground-crews and excellent wing-men. Plus plenty of ammo and some novice enemy pilots to engage.

    @KernowekTim@KernowekTim10 ай бұрын
  • Thanks TJ for this fantastic video! It's an interesting question as to who was Germany's greatest fighter ace: Hartmann with the most aerial kills, Marseille with the most aerial kills against the Western Allies, etc... and Egon Mayer with his incredible achievements shown in your video on the Western Front was certainly one of them. Like all of them, he fought with tremendous skill and bravery for his country against increasingly overwhelming odds, but like so many, made the ultimate sacrifice. RIP Thanks for documenting his story so thoroughly and for all the other great videos you do.

    @patm111@patm11110 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • Sie waren alle drei gut

      @horstpopescu1170@horstpopescu117010 ай бұрын
  • I always thought the Spitfire I & II were truly the classic planes. As far as the Me-109 I have often read that the "F" was one of the best. Marseille wanted to keep his, but was ordered into the "G" which had problems, and we know how that came out.

    @jeffkolln5291@jeffkolln529110 ай бұрын
    • In fact the F variant of the 109 outperformed the Mark II Spitfire in 1941 and it wasn't until the Mark V with the Griffin engine that the RAF was back on equal terms. The 'Rhubarb' search and destroy ground target missions that the RAF were carrying out in 1941 made them very vulnerable to being jumped by German fighters.

      @catinthehat906@catinthehat90610 ай бұрын
    • @@catinthehat906first of all it’s the Griffon not Griffin engine and secondly the Mark V didn’t have it.

      @theonlymadmac4771@theonlymadmac477110 ай бұрын
    • Good observation: I heard and read that the Me-109 G was disliked by several German aces as it was prone to have mechanical troubles. If I remember correctly the engine was not properly refrigerated and caught fire easily, but I could not confirm this.

      @arslongavitabrevis5136@arslongavitabrevis513610 ай бұрын
    • @@arslongavitabrevis5136 But they were fuel injected.

      @dellingson4833@dellingson483310 ай бұрын
    • The problem was the same as for a F35 nowadays... the first ones were most advanced and had technical issues.

      @Vickzq@Vickzq10 ай бұрын
  • Thanks you for all your hard work in these videos! I look forward to watching them and always learn from them. Much appreciated.

    @01ZO6TT@01ZO6TT10 ай бұрын
  • You have without a doubt one of the best voices I have ever heard, describing action and allowing us to feel as if we are involved in the battles , Outstanding work and hope you get acclaimed recognition you deserve. Thank You and really enjoy as my favorite war your Vietnam docucoverage as well.

    @user-pq5iz6zz7n@user-pq5iz6zz7n4 ай бұрын
  • Excellent video ! I’ve been a lifelong aviation enthusiast (since a little kid in the 70s), and it’s kinda hard to find really good stories/info that I haven’t already seen or read… Thanks for sharing something (new for me) that I can enjoy and learn even more. One thing is certain - there have been a lot of extraordinarily brave and excellent pilots fly into combat, on all sides and all theaters of war in the past 100 years !!

    @Alan-in-Bama@Alan-in-Bama5 ай бұрын
  • This is absolutely phenomenal and riveting content and presentation. I been following this page and related content for years and this is by far one of the most superior videos you have ever put out. Thank you so much!!!

    @HungwellAngerthy@HungwellAngerthy10 ай бұрын
    • Thank you! These comments really make it worth it.

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Luftwaffe Kill confirmation procedures were much stricter than the allies; In order for a Luftwaffe pilot to get credit for a kill there had to be either an air witness or a ground witness, PREFERABLY BOTH!!! Using this criteria, there were 107 Luftwaffe fighter pilots that qualified for the title of EXPERTEN (100 or more confirmed kills). All of the top scorers were on the eastern front; But 10 of them did it on the Western Front; and of those 10, 2 of them did it at night.........

    @warrendesonia7924@warrendesonia792410 ай бұрын
    • I thought that was the case as it was much the same with sniper kill count. They had to have witnesses (not including their spotter) then have an nco or officer sign off on it(which they seldom did)

      @schadenfreude191@schadenfreude19129 күн бұрын
  • Very well done thank you for keeping history alive.

    @albertatherepublic8907@albertatherepublic890710 ай бұрын
  • Excellent video and very informative . Hans Ulrich Rudel was the most decorated of the Luftwaffe aces as a ground attack pilot (Stuka) .

    @richardshiggins704@richardshiggins7048 ай бұрын
    • I believe the most decorated person in the German military in recorded history.

      @huntmatthewd@huntmatthewd3 ай бұрын
  • Excellent video and that's what I call deep diving into history well done !

    @keithbusick6859@keithbusick685910 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • What a fantastic job you have done , I'm looking forward to your next one !! I hope you get rewarded for all your hard work

    @1050speed@1050speed10 ай бұрын
  • Amazing story and absolutly a top notch of production. It was very informative and for me personally an unknown part of german military history so far. There are so many german super-aces. Thank you guys, this will be shared 🛩🔥

    @k98_zock_tv47@k98_zock_tv478 ай бұрын
  • I always love your videos! You do such great work! Thanks!

    @artawhirler@artawhirler10 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Wow! I have been with you for several years. This might be your best. You are getting good at this stuff!!!

    @weissrw1@weissrw110 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • This is why I love your channel, thorough research with respect to air to air victories.

    @rElliot09@rElliot095 ай бұрын
  • Awesome video. Thanks for keeping this important history alive.

    @ravenartsandgraphics4456@ravenartsandgraphics44562 ай бұрын
  • People need to understand that every time he shot down a bomber that was 10 men killed right there.

    @danwelterweight4137@danwelterweight413710 ай бұрын
    • shot down do not mean kill

      @vonwaffen@vonwaffen9 ай бұрын
    • Good,

      @admontblanc@admontblanc7 ай бұрын
    • Or,...wounded, or,...captured, or,...evaded, and escaped.

      @josephstabile9154@josephstabile91544 күн бұрын
  • Germany had a ton of high scoring aces Eichmann at 352 phenomenal totals. Wonder how good the opposition was but heck they felt with whatever came along. Heard the Russian combat was totally different from the other campaigns.

    @thomasmackey9300@thomasmackey93009 ай бұрын
    • Eichmann was into camp deportations. With 352 victiories it was Hartmann.

      @mmiYTB@mmiYTB8 ай бұрын
    • Not Eichmann amigo.but Hartmann

      @user-wv7ro1md1e@user-wv7ro1md1eАй бұрын
  • Excellent. WW2 aerial combat fascinated me at a very young age back in 1975. We should keep this history alive.

    @useryggfdcc@useryggfdcc10 ай бұрын
  • I also wanted to say that this was Great and kept my attention through making dinner and cleaning up afterward! Great Job!

    @davidlogansr8007@davidlogansr80078 ай бұрын
  • Early spits, other than having a tighter turning radius, was on par with the 109. This changed with the introduction of engines using high octane fuel.

    @--Valek--@--Valek--10 ай бұрын
  • The Spitfires “Achilles Heel” was in its design. It was designed as an interceptor, making it defensive rather than offensive weapon. That said, the Spitfire mk.IX’s pretty much roamed unchallenged over occupied Europe. It would be the RAF’s Typhoons and Mosquitoes, that would take the war to the Third Reich. “Head-on” attacks were nothing new. During the Battle of Britain RAF pilots were attacking German bombers head on.

    @Jones607@Jones60710 ай бұрын
    • Hey there, it's nice to see another Englander. 📚🇺🇸🙏🇬🇧

      @DaveSCameron@DaveSCameron10 ай бұрын
    • @@DaveSCameron Hi there! I consider myself English (50%) but as can be expected there’s some Scottish/Irish in there. And it’s rumoured there might be a bit of African in there too.😆 The German Luftwaffe never fails to impress me. It took the Mighty 8th AF to bring it too it knees. I don’t think any (apart from the Polish pilots) of the RAF’s British and allied fighter pilots had anywhere near the same aggression, as the American fighter pilots. 🇬🇧❤️🇺🇸 Amen.

      @Jones607@Jones60710 ай бұрын
    • ​​​@@Jones607i think the fw 190 D series could have been a threat to mosquitos, Mk ixs and typhoons if they had produced more

      @Future183@Future18310 ай бұрын
    • @@Future183 FW-190 Dora, they were fitted with inline water cooled engines. They entered the war late. Don’t know much about their performance. They were a high altitude interceptor. The Luftwaffe had the aeroplanes, but didn’t have any pilots, the 8th Air Force had killed all of Germanys best pilots.

      @Jones607@Jones60710 ай бұрын
    • @@Jones607 I dont know that much but i heared many claim that the FW 190 D series and the TA 152 could have been the best planes of the war if they were mass produced.

      @Future183@Future18310 ай бұрын
  • Welcome back TJ! Glad to see more video!

    @moonshineofthemoon8054@moonshineofthemoon805410 ай бұрын
  • Thanks. Good Video and cudos to your persistent research. I look forward to seeing more.

    @alberthennen7370@alberthennen737010 ай бұрын
  • Amazing effort and dedication . An exceptional work of tribute to valiant Luftwaffe and German pilots

    @Love.life.ashigzoya@Love.life.ashigzoya9 ай бұрын
  • Experience counts for a lot , sadly many RAF pilots didn’t have this at the beginning of the war !

    @raven-wf9so@raven-wf9so10 ай бұрын
  • The research is just outstanding!

    @rusticbox9908@rusticbox990810 ай бұрын
  • I first heard of Egon Mayer in that episode of Dogfights. I loved the show as a kid. It was my introduction to military history and aviation.

    @MUSTANG_P51@MUSTANG_P517 ай бұрын
  • A program dedicated to wingmen would be great. How the concept began, their jobs:- biplane to jet age, and success stories.

    @rolandoscar1696@rolandoscar169610 ай бұрын
    • An interesting idea!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • Great idea. You can crush Top Gun.

      @ltjjenkins@ltjjenkins10 ай бұрын
  • What a great and detailed video! Germany couldn't afford to send the aces back to train the next generation. That explains the absurdly high number of kills of German fighter aces.

    @bigbaba1111@bigbaba111110 ай бұрын
  • Thank You!! For being a real human narrator and not A.I.!! Not everyone can tell -but I can. Every time. I can bust the Turing test every time.

    @brianmcwhorter1682@brianmcwhorter168210 ай бұрын
    • Haha thanks!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • nicely done. lot of great info/history

    @michaelbuxton9611@michaelbuxton96112 ай бұрын
  • Very forensic in your approach to history. Good work here.

    @virtuafighter3@virtuafighter310 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • crazy how quick things can change. a superior ace with a ton of talent and 102 aerial kills gets taken down by a pilot with zero aerial kills and very little combat experience

    @jay-nb6uk@jay-nb6uk10 ай бұрын
    • Meyers was taken out by a superior aircraft not pilot!!

      @sticktrik@sticktrik2 ай бұрын
  • They said that 109 wasn`t best fighter, but all top aces flown it. Its results was better than all allied fighters combined results was.

    @jarikinnunen1718@jarikinnunen171810 ай бұрын
    • Many of the German pilots said they would like to fly a Spitfire. I know of no RAF pilot who wanted to fly an Me 109.😄

      @gordonfrickers5592@gordonfrickers559210 ай бұрын
    • ​@@gordonfrickers5592 There were enough testpilots saying a 109 was excellent to fly.

      @Vickzq@Vickzq10 ай бұрын
    • @@Vickzq Of course the 109 was a very successful aircraft in terms of enemy aircrews it killed. So it should be given the number of upgrades and quantity of machines built and flown. The fact remains though, there were German pilots who publicly stated they would like to be flying Spitfires while no RAF pilot ever said he'd rather fly a 109. As for the 109, "all top aces flown it", they did not have much choice !

      @gordonfrickers5592@gordonfrickers559210 ай бұрын
    • @@gordonfrickers5592 LOL, Of course they will say the Spitfire was great, there is no honor in shooting down a poor fighter. The greater your opponent you defeat🤔, again the more honor for you.

      @walterschumann2476@walterschumann247610 ай бұрын
    • @@walterschumann2476 yep, as I rather suspect you know that's not quite the point I was labouring to make however, yes, this is another way of seeing the issue.😄

      @gordonfrickers5592@gordonfrickers559210 ай бұрын
  • Thankyou TJ. I will be sure to watch it. Thanks again for the vid

    @stevenhyde6225@stevenhyde622510 ай бұрын
  • For a long time, I wondered what happened to Egon. I heard later that he was jumped by fighters and his wingman was also shot down. Well, now I know for sure about what happened due to this excellent TJ3 episode. TJ3 is without a doubt one of the best You Tube channels. Thank You.

    @petemiksich5760@petemiksich57602 ай бұрын
  • It is said that Egon Mayer and Georg-Peter Eder developed the devastating head-on attack tactic against American heavy bomber formations - particularly B-17s. During the early US daylight bombing raids into France, the Luftwaffe did not consider the threat seriously. American B-17 Flying Fortresses were heavily armed and entirely new to the Luftwaffe fighter pilots such as Mayer and JG-2. Hence, the German attacks were relatively ineffective and the B-17s were able to adequately defend themselves. But Mayer and Eder saw the growing threat of American daylight raids and set about determining new tactics to destroy the American B-17s. They soon discovered that the B-17s' greatest vulnerability was in the front. So Mayer and Eder began to attack American bomber formations head-on, closing rapidly and attempting to either hit the bombers' engines or kill the pilots. Then Mayer and Eder ripped through the formations (still attacking others head-on) or inverting and rapidly diving away. Mayer and Eder quickly proved head-on attacks as the most efficient, and then modified their tactics once again with wave after wave of Luftwaffe fighters coming head-on into American bomber formations. These continuous wave attacks were extraordinarily successful and remained in use until the end of the war, despite the addition of chin-turrets and extra machine guns to B-17 and B-24 noses. Mayer continued his success until 1944 when the increased number of P-47 and P-51 escort fighters became available, and tactics changed to find and destroy the Luftwaffe at every chance. Once free of escorting the bombers by rotating escorts, American fighter pilots hunted and killed expert Luftwaffe pilots such as Mayer. These were pilots and experience which the Luftwaffe could not replace, and never did.

    @henrygill5550@henrygill555010 ай бұрын
    • Well done.

      @ltjjenkins@ltjjenkins10 ай бұрын
  • Wow, what a fantastic video of this amazingly skilled fighter pilot. The Luftwaffe were very lucky to have him on their side. He really was a workhorse for the German Airforce at this time. What a shame for him that he eventually succumbed to the wrath of the American Airforce.

    @ashleelmb@ashleelmb10 ай бұрын
  • A first class presentation. You definitely have a talent for delivering a narrative. Thanks kindly.

    @Rikki0@Rikki09 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ39 ай бұрын
  • Read Meimbergs autobiography. He discussed the frontal attack tactic with Mayer. And the same tactics were used by British pilots in the BoB against He 111s. Extremely courageous men all of them

    @theonlymadmac4771@theonlymadmac47712 ай бұрын
  • Glorifying killers is a popular fallacy mostly done by those of no experience of the reality. As a combat veteran of a more recent and very different war, my opinion is the life savers ie the medics were the real heroes .

    @umvhu@umvhu10 ай бұрын
    • I‘ m not sure to call soldiers killers , but if , why did you joined the Army?

      @samkangal8428@samkangal842810 ай бұрын
    • Valid point of view. But nothing wrong looking at history. Hartmann having 352 kills as most successful pilot once said, his biggest achievement was to never loose a wingman.

      @Vickzq@Vickzq10 ай бұрын
  • Awesome segment as always TJ!

    @brenthegarty3922@brenthegarty39227 ай бұрын
  • Thanks, mister. Keep up the good work, it's appreciated!

    @t.j.payeur5331@t.j.payeur53312 күн бұрын
  • German aces are legends!

    @UberDurable@UberDurable10 ай бұрын
    • Sad that all the great German knights of the air were fighting for the nazi Dark Lord…

      @danieltossounian1962@danieltossounian19629 ай бұрын
  • Erich Hartmann - 352 kills.

    @offshoretinker@offshoretinker10 ай бұрын
  • Thanks for posting. Great job.

    @rsacchi100@rsacchi10010 ай бұрын
  • Outstanding presentation. Really good work.

    @whiplash8277@whiplash827710 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Ain’t no way they used war thunder footage to make this 💀😭😭😭

    @Goofy_ahh_Andrew@Goofy_ahh_Andrew7 ай бұрын
    • Hey if it works it works

      @grimassassin9722@grimassassin97227 күн бұрын
  • i do believe the p-38 had the range to make it to target and back deep within germany before the p-51 came on scene. i can't recall why i'd read that they didn't make better use of the lightning for escort duty.......

    @1ltcap@1ltcap10 ай бұрын
    • It basically just comes down to wanting fighters for the sake of being able to dog fight. As far as I recall anyway.

      @John.McMillan@John.McMillan10 ай бұрын
    • At first, the p-38 didn't have the range. Until Lindberg figured it out. Also the p-38 didn't do well at high altitude. Something with the cockpit heating system didn't keep the cockpit warm. The plane worked great in the pacific. Due to lower altitude.

      @darrenmarsh2290@darrenmarsh229010 ай бұрын
    • The P-47s also had the range once they got pressurized drop-tanks. For some reason (they were available in 43), they didn't get them until 1944, and by then, the Mustangs were already in theater (The Mustangs were easier to maintain, so from a sortie-generation standpoint, it made perfect sense to just stick to one fighter type for the long range escort missions. Only the 56th Fighter Group kept the 47 until Germany surrendered in 1945.)

      @Nghilifa@Nghilifa10 ай бұрын
    • That's because the Germans clobbered the P 38s

      @jamesmuller3807@jamesmuller380710 ай бұрын
  • The amount of work and effort behind these videos and the resulting quality is simply staggering....bravo!

    @imadumas2@imadumas23 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ33 ай бұрын
  • Thank you TJ3 History 👍

    @steveshoemaker6347@steveshoemaker634710 ай бұрын
  • one of the best german aces was erich hartmann with 352 confirmed kills

    @michaelwalker5174@michaelwalker517410 ай бұрын
    • Believe me, all aviation fans around the globe are knowing, who and what Erich "Bubi" Hartmann is, but this video is about Egon Mayer ;)

      @josefhorndl3469@josefhorndl346910 ай бұрын
  • Brave German pilots! 😺👍💙🐺

    @wolfganggugelweith8760@wolfganggugelweith87609 ай бұрын
  • VERY well done DOCU!… impressive graphics❗️

    @ericjohnson9468@ericjohnson9468Ай бұрын
  • Great video, love the confirmation research.

    @takethesnakeroberts5723@takethesnakeroberts572310 ай бұрын
  • Mayer is the uncontested best bomber killer but the title of your video is a bit misleading. In terms of kills, hartmann is the most successful ace of all time tho he only had 7 kills on the western front (all mustangs). That being said, job well done your video was very interesting 👌

    @etiennelamarche7796@etiennelamarche779610 ай бұрын
  • Most likely Target fixation!! As with anything who gets the jump on his enemy, ends the battle ❤️

    @ricardocorbie6803@ricardocorbie680310 ай бұрын
  • 109s we’re not equipped with 13mm machine guns and 30 mm canons in 1940. That came much later in the war. Some early Es had twin 20 mm canon in the wings and F models had one 20 mm canon in the nose. Both had two 7.62 mm (not 13 mm) machine guns firing through the props.

    @generalmalaise458@generalmalaise45810 ай бұрын
    • There were a few special versions... if we skip especially G models with a multitude of added weapons. There was atleast a type F design with two cannons in wings, too. Might have been used by Galland.

      @Vickzq@Vickzq10 ай бұрын
  • Interesting and informative. Excellent photography job enabling viewers to better understand what/whom the orator was describing. Class A research project!!! I'm certain some of the pilots exaggerated their number of kills. Special thanks to all veteran pilots sharing personal combat experiences. Making this documentary more authentic and possible.

    @asullivan4047@asullivan404710 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
    • hardly possible to exaggerate too much within the Luftwaffe and the real numbers should be rather higher you had to have at least one witness to confirm your claim and they had to be approved by an officer who would (more or less) investigate the whole affair many Luftwaffe pilots who somehow ended up flying alone or far enough away from the rest of their squad and most certainly shot down planes while doing so, didn't have them listed ......sometimes even when they had a gun cam rolling and capturing the fight and hits but not show a literally exploiding aircraft - captured impacts and smoke trails + victory claim alone just wasn't enough

      @feldgeist2637@feldgeist263710 ай бұрын
  • Man shot down so many spitfires he pretty much new every weakness it had

    @josepholiver6733@josepholiver673310 ай бұрын
  • Not every source is 100% accurate because the original sources are from the 40s

    @OG-Productions@OG-Productions10 ай бұрын
    • Not 100 %, but German sources are the most accurate of all air forces in WW 2 - that's a fact!

      @josefhorndl3469@josefhorndl346910 ай бұрын
  • Heinrich Ehrler is my Blood relation. His family moved to California, there's a Ehrler civic center named after his family in Garden Grove, ca

    @taddricketts7921@taddricketts79219 ай бұрын
  • That was the best WW2 prop fighter video I’ve ever seen Well done mate

    @OldTimeyGraeme@OldTimeyGraeme10 ай бұрын
  • Werner Molders, single handedly clear Krimean skies for Von Manstein

    @taddricketts7921@taddricketts79219 ай бұрын
  • For me Erich Hartman is is Germany’s best ace

    @OG-Productions@OG-Productions10 ай бұрын
    • I’d say marcel was the best but Erich just got lucky interns of he was in the right front (eastern) and he survived many times he should’ve died. Maybe if marcel survived he would’ve had more kills

      @ruehl3853@ruehl385310 ай бұрын
    • Who? Never heard of him. Was he notable in some way?

      @mbryson2899@mbryson289910 ай бұрын
    • @@ruehl3853 true but downing planes isn’t easy

      @OG-Productions@OG-Productions10 ай бұрын
    • @@ruehl3853 I'm sure by writing marcel (sooo funny!) you mean Hans-Joachim Marseille (pronounced Mar.sey)!

      @josefhorndl3469@josefhorndl346910 ай бұрын
  • I think Heinrich Bär was the best one. He flew in the east, west, and south. He was successful in adjusting his tactics to be effective in all 3 major regions.

    @jesterhead8028@jesterhead80284 ай бұрын
  • No one can argue the Germans had better equipment, discrediting their victory’s is very predictable for allies, people also easily forget the axis forces were amazingly outnumbered.

    @3Kiwiana@3Kiwiana10 ай бұрын
    • Not by mid1943. The Spitfire IX and then XIV dominated German fighters when they could actually get at them because of their short range. Also the P47D with bubble canopy and paddle blades an especially the P51B/D Mustangs were much better aircraft overall and proved it with their 4.6:1 and 8:1 kill ratios respectively

      @dougmccarthy961@dougmccarthy96110 ай бұрын
    • @@dougmccarthy961 that’s bullshit propaganda and you know it. The fw 190 was better than the mustang, and the Germans were better pilots, but they suffered due to being way outnumbered and people love to forget this fact.

      @3Kiwiana@3Kiwiana10 ай бұрын
    • I can deny. By mid-war they were behind.

      @chriscarbaugh3936@chriscarbaugh393610 ай бұрын
    • @@chriscarbaugh3936 yeah simple reason for that the axis resources in Russia Hitler made some huge tactical blunders the fast efficiency went to his head. The axis were spread out way too far.

      @3Kiwiana@3Kiwiana10 ай бұрын
    • @@chriscarbaugh3936 cant see that being true as they were coming out with Jets, rockets bombs, and then ballistic missiles

      @bbvollmer@bbvollmer8 ай бұрын
  • Great video amazing story to listen. Thank you for your work. ❤

    @tomaszmrozek176@tomaszmrozek17610 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Thank u for sharing this story. New subs here bro. Keep up the good work. ❤

    @michaelmuceros1794@michaelmuceros179423 күн бұрын
  • Erich Hartmann the best fighter pilot of the world.

    @Harzer37520@Harzer3752010 ай бұрын
    • Have you ever hear about Hans Joachim Marseille? He was the best fighter pilot in history, he made multiple aces in one day.

      @Trigger-vi6lb@Trigger-vi6lb10 ай бұрын
    • Hartmann, Barkhorn, Barr, were good against soviets. Myer, marselle, galland, were good against Americans and british who were better Pilots .

      @easterworshipper730@easterworshipper73010 ай бұрын
  • P47 shot down more than any allied fighter including the P51

    @wirelessone2986@wirelessone298610 ай бұрын
    • sorry but not even close. P51's in WW2 in both theaters have a little over 6000 air to air kills and over 4950 ground kills while losing around 2550 aircraft ( 550 in air combat). P47's have 3752 air to air kills and around 3250 ground kills while losing almost 3500 aircraft from all causes

      @dougmccarthy961@dougmccarthy96110 ай бұрын
  • Impressive work. Thank you.

    @allangarrett6251@allangarrett625110 ай бұрын
  • You are indeed a great person for your absolute accuracy of WWII .Well done ✔️

    @waynetaylor121@waynetaylor1216 ай бұрын
    • P.s. The Germans seem to have way better aces. 😔

      @waynetaylor121@waynetaylor1216 ай бұрын
  • Regarding claimed kills it is not unreasonable to assume that the Luftwaffe inflated the numbers of RAF losses, but what is never talked about is the fact that western (and Soviet) air forces did the same. It is irritatingly pathetic to read/hear the accounts of resentful 'authorities' that German pilots and aircraft simply were not that good, that if Luftwaffe official's mouths were moving they were lying. Fact of the matter is that German claims have shown to be the most accurate of any combatant nation in the war, and no, this is not the same thing as saying that German claims were never inflated, just that they were not as egregious as their opponents in this regard. The Americans were easily the worst. To soothe their massive egos American pilots were credited with half a kill, even a quarter kill, and, the cherry on top, full credit for parked aircraft at airbases. To rationalize this American veterans would claim that attacking airfields was much more dangerous than air to air combat because, well, you know, German pilots just weren't any good, especially against us . . . Much ink has been wasted by Brit writers in efforts to discredit Marseille's 17 kills in a day achievement because, well, you know, no-one could ever knock down 17 of our craft in a single day! It is interesting to note that none of these 'historians' have ever disputed Emil "Bully" Lang's remarkable accomplishment of downing 18 Soviet aircraft in a day, probably because the victims were Russian whom too many of said historians believe were lucky enough if they could even get a plane airborne. In theory history should be immune to resentment and ego, in reality it is not. Cheers!

    @kw19193@kw1919310 ай бұрын
  • 5:34 Did you just, Plane-ley, On another LEVEL, REALY... (I will admit, it was a good and possibly unintentional pun)

    @GoshkaPolska@GoshkaPolska9 ай бұрын
  • Interesting research and results 👍

    @xvsj5833@xvsj583310 ай бұрын
  • What a great video, thank you for doing this.

    @Shrpdrt@Shrpdrt10 ай бұрын
  • Wonderfull video, very explained and detailed, totally good Job

    @glap8736@glap873610 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Always an Outstanding video and presentation.

    @MGB-learning@MGB-learning10 ай бұрын
    • Thank you!

      @TJ3@TJ310 ай бұрын
  • Keep the HB SG Johnny. Great show buddy, and I like your idea about an auction.

    @colinstuckey1053@colinstuckey10532 ай бұрын
  • Great video. Thanks

    @nicedog1@nicedog19 ай бұрын
  • Outstanding video!

    @FaithInHisBloodOrg@FaithInHisBloodOrg2 ай бұрын
  • Great Video Thanks

    @daleaeschbacher2367@daleaeschbacher23674 ай бұрын
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