Last Flight From Berlin 1945 - The Reitsch-Von Greim Escape
An examination of the true events surrounding the last plane to escape from embattled Berlin in April 1945, that carried famous test pilot Hanna Reitsch and the newly-appointed commander of the Luftwaffe, Field Marshal Robert Ritter von Greim.
Dr. Mark Felton is a well-known British historian, the author of 22 non-fiction books, including bestsellers 'Zero Night' and 'Castle of the Eagles', both currently being developed into movies in Hollywood. In addition to writing, Mark also appears regularly in television documentaries around the world, including on The History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, Quest, American Heroes Channel and RMC Decouverte. His books have formed the background to several TV and radio documentaries. More information about Mark can be found at: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Fe...
Help support my channel:
www.paypal.me/markfeltonprodu...
/ markfeltonproductions
Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Mark Felton Productions. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Mark Felton Productions does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
Credits: US National Archives; Library of Congress; debbie62140; LEJ.approach.
Music: 'March of Midnight' by Scott Buckley
Hanna Reitsch was also one of the few pilots who flew the Fw 61, the first practical helicopter, and in Feb 1938 she flew it indoors, in the Deutschlandshalle.
May I say, many Thank's.. as most have forgotten or did't know, wishing You, for Future .. Simply the *Best, So Long..
When I was a young lad back in the early 1960's, I was living in Accra, Ghana. Hanna Reitsch was operating a glider-pilot training school for the Ghanaian Air Force. She was a neighbor of ours, but she kept to herself for the most part. A little known fact about Ghana is that a number of ex-Nazis settled in Ghana after independence, which was rather odd, given the country's socialist government. My Dad told me once of coming across a rather sketchy former Nazi doctor, running a practice in a rural town in eastern Ghana (the part that was a former German colony). To be fair, another of our neighbors was W.E.B. DuBois - the noted African-American activist. My family and I once flew first-class flight from London to Accra, where the only other passengers in first class were DuBois, and his wife. Interesting times.
Flying first class in the 1960s? Your family was wealthy ;) Do you remember Reitsch? On German TV she was this kind of ugly old Nazi person who always tried to revise history, telling people that a lot of good things had happened.
It doesn't sound odd to me about The Party members living in a Socialist country. Many Nazis were socialists in fact. Some of them were: brothers Gregor and Otto Strasser and so was Joseph Goebbels. And you won't believe that Otto Skorzeny even worked on a project for Mossad.
The nazis were socialist so its not that surprising
What an interesting childhood!
I'm sure you had some awkward neigbourhood parties.
The series covering the last month of the Nazi regime in Germany is outstanding. From the 9th and 12th Army movements, the Courland evacuation, Himmler's escape, etc. It's just a fascinating look at what was an apocalyptic time. It'd be awesome to see similar material on Japan, perhaps I need to dig in the archives....
I mean…”normal-ish”. There is a limit to how normal your life can be with most cities being bombarded into rubble (before surrender) and most cities having been bombed into rubble (post surrender)
She was the uber nazi. She even wanted to try to get Hitler out of Berlin.
Japan in August of 45 was not quite in the same dire straights as Nazi Germany's last month. Japan if it wanted to they could have continued the war effort for months or even years. The US didn't have any more nukes and it was basically a bluff that we could nuke them into oblivion. The fanaticism the Japanese were prepared to unleash to defend their homeland would have been unparalleled in history. Remember there were cutoff Japanese soldiers who continued fighting the war 30 years after the surrender. A D-day style invasion of Japan might have even failed if it was attempted. Gen MacArthur estimated that it would cost 1 million American lives just to take Tokyo and kill 10 million Japanese. This is based on the resistance and casualties of subduing the small Japanese garrison at Okinawa and scaled up. Taking over the whole of Japan would have impossible. We simply didn't have enough troops and neither did the soviets.
hi ,what is the name of that series ? thanks !
@@Novusod The US had a third atomic bomb that was of the same design as the Fat Man bomb dropped on Nagasaki, with components in transit in mid-August, for assembly after August 20 or 21. Otherwise, the United States had in place the infrastructure to build up an atomic arsenal. General Marshall even had inquired about the possibility of using multiple atomic bombs in support of landings around Kagoshima, in southern Kyushu. The Japanese garrison on Okinawa was not small - talking about 76,000 trained regular troops (out of a roster of 100,000 troops from the 32nd Army) augmented by about 39,000 Okinawans, of which 24,000 formed a home guard. As for soldiers continuing fighting after the war, that gets played up way to much (like great, have some whacko go kill a couple of Philippines citizens).
Another interesting story is the last flight from Berlin BEFORE the war, in 1939. Australian pilot Sidney Cotton (a WW1 RNAS pilot who invented the Sidcot flying suit, and became a pioneer of aerial photography) was in Berlin promoting his company and its products and services (but was actually on a spy mission to bring Goerring to England for peace talks with Chamberlain). He was in a new Lockheed Electra aircraft, and General "Smiling Albert" Kesselring wanted to take it for a test drive. At that time, he was in charge of the defences on the Rhine (or was it the Ruhr?), and so decided to get an aerial overview of the work. Whilst Albert was overflying the area, Cotton flicked a hidden switch, causing a hidden panel to open and allow aerial photos to be taken of the defences. Upon landing, Kesselring thanked Cotton, and whispered to him that he had better leave Berlin as soon as he could. His flight was the last flight out of Tempelhof Airport before Germany invaded Poland and shut down all commercial and private flights. There is a book and a movie "The Last Plane Out Of Berlin" 1999. Very interesting.
Perfect avatar to go with your handle! 👍
Thx for your post.
He also invented the famous 'Cotton Socks.'
There’s a lot of these history documentary shorts channels on KZhead, but Mark Felton is the only one I’ve come across that really does it right… great job!
He does indeed do a fantastic job, it's just a shame that he doesn't put his usual professionalism into his KZhead videos. It was a shame about the comments he made about the Panzer Museum.
@@badonk7618 what comments? He’s an academic expert in this field so I presume he meant well
The Operations Room is pretty good but doesn't focus much on the biographies of the participants 👩💼🇺🇲⚒️🇷🇺
@@je6874 He claimed the Panzer Museum sold off an original Tiger tank and replaced it with a 1:1 plastic replica. They deemed it insulting enough to release a reply. This coupled with a few examples of plagiarism have lead me to watch his videos as a form of entertainment as opposed to a solid source of historical fact.
@@je6874 I would take the videos with a grain of salt honestly he’s been caught plagiarising and getting things wrong a few times
Don’t worry when Steiner launches his attack and turns things around they won’t have to escape Berlin
And if that doesn't work, blame Fegelein
@@thomasblanchard6778 and if that doesn’t work, insult the soldiers!
@@jtgd and then tell the generals he should’ve had them executed like Stalin did.
"Wehr ust Fegelein?? Fegelein!! Fegelein ist hier commt!!!!"
@@treyhelms5282 after that blame the ss for lying
I remember watching Hannah being interviewed on the Late Late Show here in Ireland many years ago. Pity that interview does not seem to be available online as it was fascinating hearing her talk about her younger days and the fall of Berlin.
There are a number of interviews online or at least there were. She was always super hyped and said something about after the war being boring. I can imagine normal life being boring after you were in a action war movie but real.
I remember that broadcast 👉😷👈
Really? That’s amazing. Ah boy Gaybo
@@Balthorium KZhead probably got rid of them all. The crazy super left liberals are weird about history because it's like they want it to be forgotten. It can't be forgotten because everyone knows then it can happen again.
@@jbsully2864 The first victims of the Nazis were the super left, socialists, communists, and Jews, rounded up and sent to Dachau.
Hanna Reitsch was the first woman to fly a helicopter, she was the first woman to fly a rocket plane, and the first woman to fly a jet aircraft.
would have been a better headline for the video
Your straight talk with no constant mellow dramatic music is appreciated!
Incredible to think these efforts and resources could be mustered in the closing days of the war
Yes, or another waste of resources
@@Jakob_DK Everything was a waste at that point.
@@benbaselet2026 Everything was a waste since the first troops penetrating the Russian border
The shocking thing is that it was the best they could muster..
One would think that the German leadership would have seen the writing on the wall and taken action earlier. Well, at least there was no rumour of a stab in the back!
You don't understand how engrained that intro music is into my head now. Cheers Mark for the content (and the epic music taste)!
Funny that you said that, my son is autistic and one of his unusual capabilities is an amazing skill at identifying music in a minimum number of notes. (He would've cleaned house on the old Name That Tune game show.) Without fail, within two or three notes he'll announce for all that "Dad's watching Mark Felton Productions again!" 🙂
@@Chilly_Billy It's a very recognisable tune!
Ddddduuunnn duuuuunnnnn dun dun dun Pause Resume Dddddddunnnn dddddunnnnnnn dddddddddun dun
So, basically this whole incident was the ultimate in "This meeting should have been a conference call."
It seems they used up much of the remaining air force simply to have Hitler appoint him in person rather than on the 'phone.
The fact you keep pulling out material for videos more than once a week it's to me amazing. You are, by far, one of the best, more engaging and interesting history channels today. Mark, thank you so much for your work.
In the spring of 1979, she was visiting glider friends of mine in State College, Pennsylvania. I was staying with those same friends as I was also there to fly. She was a very quiet, diminutive lady, very privately there to try for a new woman's distance record, but the weather didn't cooperate as hoped for. She settled for a glider flight of 1,000 km along the ridges. Lasting memory.
Robert Von Greim is my great great uncle. My grandmother and grandfather are Eric Greim (navy for Germany in ww2) and my grandmother margot Greim. They shared with me so many historical information that we have not shared. Thank you for sharing part of my family history.
This should really be recorded for history, I found the post war Berlin a fascinating place, I have studied and written about WW2 history.
And hitler was my dad
You Are Lucky to have such an interesting family history.
And I am Montezuma.
you should be ashamed...
So it wasn't the way I had imagined. It's good to have things straightened out. The information you disclose on the last flights into and out of Berlin is very valuable.
So glad you took the time to do your extrodinary in depth factual work all about World War 2 true factual events. All justifiably to be commended for. Thanks so.much for sharing it all with all of us. Great work!
This 31st december my brother had opened a champagne bottle and i saw the cork being shooted up into the air, then my brother explained me it’s the principle used in sea launched ICBM missiles and in the rpg-7. I ask to myself how it would had turned the fight in berlin if the panzerfaust would had been fully reloadable as the rpg-7?, R.
@@gratefulguy4130 i ask that to myself because it wasn’t so difficult to develop it, see it needed no guidance, no any electrónic devices to work, and it were used wooden made fins. So here the question is the imagination. No all is knowledge or calculations. That well you needed Maths but not so complicate as developing a curiae missile or something like that. It’s only a rocket launcher, so imagine it would had been throw with pressure as a cork: it means much more range and also if you manufacture it as reloadable?, I imagine a very apocalyptic fight inside Berlin, because a palestine guerrilla man told that he aimed his rpg-7 to the back of a merkava and it blew in pieces. And rpg is direct descendant of panzerfaust. So imagine the last days of the war for the allies in western Germany and for the soviets during his final drive towards Berlin and once again inside the reich’s capital?
The story about the Luftwaffe NCO flying the Reitsch-von-Greim couple on the last plane out of Berlin was mentioned first in a 1963 book by author Henri Ludwig "The Assassination of Hitler". The title refers to the suspicion that Hitler didn't kill himself with a gun, but that Goebbels did it for him. Georges Blond in his 1952 ''The Death Of Hitler's Germany'' correctly identified the plane von Greim & Reitsch took into Berlin as a 2-seater FW-190 for advanced training. When I 1st read the book in 1967 I couldn't believe it since the plane was a fighter !
Dear Dr Mark, Hanna Reitsch was a glider pilot already before the war, that was when she met and learned to know my father. Another side note. Hans Pancherz (Versuchflieger and in charge of the development of all jet and rocket aircraft at this time) was also in Rechlin during these days. Unfortunately I don't know if they met or not during these days. As I probably have said before, Hans Pancherz worked for my father at Malmö Flygindustri, MFI, in Sweden for a few decades. Hans Pancherz did the first designs for the control system for the Saab 340. Father stayed in touch with Hanna Reitsch.
Thx for your post.
I SWEAR TO GOD I WAITED MONTHS FOR THIS. THANK YOU DR FELTON YOU'RE A LEGEND.
I was very pleased to see this too aviation is my thing !
The Stork was and is an incredible aircraft. I watched a demonstration a few years ago in which one all but hovered above the ground, into the wind and just about it's stall speed, it was really amazing. The Stork revolutionized the design of STOL aircraft.
There is a story in my hometown that a Stork was landed on the roof of one of the hangars by an angry pilot. I want it to be true and have never bothered to actually confirm it...
Look up Kermit Weeks videos on KZhead to see him prep and fly his Storch. An amazing aircraft indeed.
They had or have as there are some that survive a rather curious engine an inverted or up side down V8.
@@johnwright291 easier maintenance in an airplane
@@alohathaxted Actually Fantasy of Flight is where I saw the demonstration with Weeks at the controls! He has an amazing collection.
41,000 views and 300 plus comments and this Mark Felton Production has only been posted this morning. A testiment to his professionlism and faithful viewers. I love every topic he covers.
Dr. Felton, what a pleasant surprise today. Am stuck in quarantine with Covid and this video is very informative.
Hope you recover soon.
@@MarkFeltonProductions Thanks Dr. Felton. Be safe out there
Mark, you are an outstanding scholar in many historical periods, particularly in WW2. I think however that your filmed opera-omnia on the last months of war, and on the agony of Nazi Germany in April-May 1945 in particular, is by far the most complete and detailed one the world has ever seen.. As an historian (a grain of sand, compared to you) I dare to suggest you to edit all those short stories together, and publish them as a - say - 90 minutes documentary. It would be the final cut. Many of us would be happy to support you in a pay-per-view platform. Bravo, bravo, bravo Mark.
An incredibly good idea. That really seems to be the cream of Dr Felton's crop. The last days of the Reich
What a great idea ! I'd buy a collectors edition DVD of all of them linked together.
Amazing. This is exactly a story I’d been waiting for. That’s quite a thumbnail as well. Thank you.
I like this story as I have a very fond memory of my late grandad talking about Hanna after he had read a book about her back in the 80s. I had a chuckle and relived his passion in describing her exploits whilst I watched. I know it doesn't mean much to anyone else but made me realise his interests and compassion, as he had served throughout the war. It lifted my spirits as I was proud that as a country during and after the war we showed some solidarity towards our past enemies. May I thank you for that golden memory and I enjoy all your videos and will continue to do so.
Wow, just wow. Mark, your uploads never disappoint. Absolutely loved this one. Thank you so much for all your research and production effort.
Apparently von Greim was flying the Storch into Berlin when he became unconscious when he was hit in the foot by ground fire. Sitting in the tandem seat of the narrow cockpit behind Greim, Hanna had to land the plane, reaching the stick over v Greim’s shoulder, it is said.
There was an article about this episode in the 1966 issue of American tabloid For Men Only (Men ? Men's World ?) The b/w illustration in typical American popular fashion shows a top-model-like Hanna with at least 5 buttons popped out of her Luftwaffe vest, in command of the Storch looking down on crazily shooting up soviet soldiers, with General von Greim slumbered beside her.
Need I say it again? Thanks once more for a remarkable video that sets the record straight about Hanna Reitsch and her participation in the final flight out of Berlin as it sank beneath a sea of artillery fire and flame. You are the best, Dr. Felton.
Mark. Thanks for providing my Monday night entertainment!
Outstanding video. Mark is by far the historian on this period on KZhead by far. Great delivery 👌
Escape from New York with Snake Plisskin? Nah! Escape from Berlin with Mark Felton? Yeah!
I thought he was dead?
Hannah could have landed and taken off in New Yprk no problem.
Enjoyable and informative as always. Love these insights into the small but important events of the war!
Professor Felton, I don't know how you do it Sir. I majored in History myself, but your military history is mind boggling. I just love the history you seem to dig up.
Dr. Felton! It has been a while since I have left you a comment, but I would like you to know that I have not stopped watching, enjoying, and learning from your excellent content.
Reitsch taught my dad's best friend to fly the Storch during the war. As a 16 y/o kid he had trained as a glider pilot, but under Reitsch (his dad was a Luftwaffe Oberst) he learned how to even hover it over a fixed point on the ground given a slight headwind long enough to drop a rope and pull up cargo. Al was one of the best pilots I've ever met. Indeed, in the '70s, he (while borrowing my dad's plane) glided a Stinson 108 that lost 5/6 cylinders - enough power to keep the prop from creating drag - over 300 miles of arctic bush to a perfect landing in Tuktoyaktuk , NWT. His family didn't know there was a problem until he couldn't taxi off the runway. She was an outstanding pilot! Shame about her politics!
Thanks for sharing your dad‘s story. Movie worth adventure and some great pilot skills! I was in Arizona in the 80‘s with a small German Army staff office attached to the US Army, we were fully integrated. Americans made us feel like brothers. I’m still grateful, great times. I read Hannah Reitsch‘s book „Fliegen mein Leben“ (Flying - my life). She writes in a sympathetic and humble and at the same time really interesting way about her becoming a pilot against many odds as a woman, and tells also about her astonishing daredevil flying adventures which she survived with luck, talent and a seventh sense for the forces in the sky. She writes not much about politics but it becomes evident she was a fervent patriot and believed all party propaganda about the reasons for the war, and that the Germans were mostly good and noble. As a reader you get the feeling she just was a patriot, and deceived, like many. Still she never was a party member. One of the strangest stories is her meeting with Himmler. She had heard that the allies were spreading „rumours“ about concentration camps, death camps. She was outraged, didn’t want to believe it. So she decided to confront Himmler himself with these rumours, since she was scheduled to meet him anyway as part of her planning for the Leonidas suicide fighters project. Himmler was quiet for a minute, then denied it in a convincing way. So she felt relieved… After the war she had to learn the truth. But she was more preoccupied with the suicide of both von Greim and her parents who feared to be delivered to the Russians. I think her public image is not fair.
"Shame about her politics". It's only "acceptable" in Germanistan these days to be a brainwashed, politically correct, commie-greenie Germanistani. Preferably a "transgender" one.
Her politics could be way worse she could be a democrat and a biden obama Clinton regime supporter
man, you continue to make my day.... these daring adventurous escapes against all odds are legend.... thank you for your concise, easy to follow narrative and the wonderful footage.... you bring out the human faces and human experience from the very fabric of war.... thank you, Mark.... we all owe you gratitude .... a better 2022 for all of us.... Bill in Vermont
Somehow you continue to surprise and entertain with (to me) new stories from a war that happened the better part of a century ago! Wonderful as always!
Hannah Reitch is one of the most incredible pilots of all time. After WW2 she won all kinds of flying awards in many countries. I believe that she moved to Ghana where she set up a flying school and even an airforce with a man who's name escapes me know.
@@reteipdevries funny guy
@@reteipdevries clown
Wish she had flown for us 😏
I'd never deny her skills as an aviator. They're self-evident. But she was indeed a monster.
"Escapes Me Know" is an odd name for a man.
I always enjoy Dr.Felton uploads. He should be on the history channel. So many fascinating details about WW2. Thank You for all your hard work and research and dedication to covering this subject so well. It is appreciated.
What he doesn't say anything about ancient aliens winning the war or the Germans buring gold on an island in Canada, restoring old cars or buying junk and reselling it. He could never work on the History Channel.
@@rrider3946 True, but this content here is what the History channel should be. It used to teach history, but now it's a joke. An I believe the government is in some way behind it. They want to dumb down the population because they need absolute blind obedience and people not to question. So they fill everyone's heads full of stupid unimportant useless stuff. Corrupt governments don't want a thinking populace because a thinking populace might start questioning things and not blindly obey whatever BS narrative they are trying to shove down our throats with no resistance.
@@ITIsFunnyDamnIT Thats a stupid suggestion
@@ITIsFunnyDamnIT run along back to Twitter with the rest of your conspiracy theorist cultists
@@ITIsFunnyDamnIT . You are depressingly correct. Where does it end, I wonder?
Thank you mr. Felton. I thought, I knew quit a bit about this particular moment of the Ending. However you, as always, have managed to add even more details I never knew about. Great work, sir.
Mark Felton's video are amazing. They are extremely well researched, put together, and narrated by the author. I am greatly impressed by the amount of work and detail that go into these videos.
Thank you once again Dr Felton!
I absolutely love your Fall Of Berlin episodes. Cheers
This video has been a real treat! Thank you Dr Felton!
It must take a lot of time, effort and financial resources to put together such highly informative and consistently accurate content by Dr Felton in the making of his videos. Well done Sir!
An interesting topic to explore would be Field Marshal August von Mackensen. The man lived to be 95, in his life witnessing German history starting from Prussia through the North German Confederation, German Empire, Weimar Republic, 3rd Reich and lastly dying in late 1945 during Allied occupation.
The Last Hussar and the Grand Old Man of the German army. I concur.
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for a Mark Felton Productions program, hosted by Dr. Mark Felton.
Another very interesting story Mark. Well done! Lot's more to come we all hope!
She was invited by Indira Ghandi to set up a flying school in India. She was also invited to the Whitehouse by John Kennedy. Certainly a high level celebrity.
Despite her not flying the Storch out of Berlin in April 1945, Hanna Reitsch was still a remarkable pilot. But thanks for putting the record straight..
I’ve watched a great deal Mark of your videos over the years, I have to say well done and congratulate you on the very high standards of both presentation and production achieved. They are just so good. Thank you.
Wow this video is absolutely outstanding the amount of research you put into your videos is insane
More than ten years ago, I viewed the personal album of photos taken by a Russian & German-speaking American soldier, who arrived in Berlin shortly after its capitulation. I'm guessing he was assigned there because of his language skills. He had a camera and film and took some amazing photos, including the Chancellery being looted by Russian soldiers, the bunker, etc. Among the many photos I remember seeing, was one of a camouflage net covering what looked like a major Berlin boulevard. Under the net were several aircraft, including unconventional, experimental-looking planes, parked and undoubtedly readied as escape planes. They still looked intact. I'm wondering if Dr. Felton or anyone else has seen similar photos of the Berlin camo net with parked aircraft? (The former soldier, who was living in a rest home at the time I met him, is sadly no longer with us).
Thank you for sharing this with the rest of us 👍
If you can remember, could you explain what some of the unconventional experimental aircraft looked like? That's awesome
What happened to the photos?
@@HunterShows We believe that the photographer's relative has the album, which incredibly also included blank pages of AH's personal stationary. Because of this, we know he got there at a time where there were still souvenirs available. Another photo included the area where AH was cremated. We are trying to locate the relative so that the photos can be made public. The album is truly of great historical importance.
@@rickyleeincali5375 Thanks for the details.
Thanks Mark, very pleased I stumbled upon your channel via luck or algorythms. Ive walked that route to the voctory column and didnt know abou it being a landing strip. Thanks again for the extra knowledge. Great channel
Excellent content, rich with detail, all provided gratis. Dr. Felton is an invaluable asset to academic and novice, alike.
Excellent documented clarification of the event. Love the footage of the Storch at the end.
Mark your videos are awesome! I feel like a kid again watching the history channel level documentaries. Always look forward to your content sir!
Read the vidro description, it says he appears regularly on channels like The History Channel
These safisfy my desire for knowledge way better than history channel ever could
You don't have to stop watching The History Channel... I mean what's wrong with Ice Road Truckers and Swamp People?
Excellent Video Mark!!! I really appreciate your attention to detail and accuracy in your stories!!
Another outstanding video Dr. Felton, thank you!
She is a German hero based on playing by the rules of war. A heartfelt salute to her!
She, nevertheless, worked for the Nazi regime and was a devout admirer of Adolf Hitler. Not ANY KIND of a hero.
I love your content Mark and if you haven`t already how about a special on Ernst Udet one of the greatest aviators of all time, kind regards from Yorkshire and keep up the sterling work.
I always thought that Hanna Reitsch flew Greim out. Thank you Mark for the amazing detail!
Amazing content as usual. Thank you, Dr. Felton.
You know it is going to be good when the signature Mark Felton doom music starts playing! Thanks so much for all the detail about this event. Few if any have an idea of how many resources the desperate Germans put into this. An escort of 30 fighters would draw unwanted attention to the mission. Fascinating details and revealing the truth make this a truly great episode!
The 'Stork' is a wonderful aircraft. I once had a flight in one post war of course. it was a Czech copy. I dont know if they make them anymore so thats a pity.
It’s amazing how much detail you can find about this little known operation!
Oh how I love it when I see that I have a new video from Mark Felton.
Really detailed and interesting- I wonder what happened to that Luftwaffe sergeant pilot who flew the AR 96? He got the golden ticket out, for sure. Wonder if he survived the war.
Thank you for sharing your research with us all, Dr Felton.
Very well documented. For people who did not experience the war your in-depth look at the war from all angles brings a fascinating of this particular time in history. .
To me, from all the history channels, there is almost like Mark Felton by himself, then long, long nothing and then all rest of so-called historians... chapeau bas Mr. Felton!
I live in northern Germany, and an older lady with whom I walk my dog has told me stories of how she and her husband used to fly gliders with Hanna Reitsch in Austria. She claims to have an autographed book from Hanna as well.
She would have to be literally 100 years old. And then still unlikely.
@@southerncharity7928 Why would she have to be 'literally 100 years old'? This was in the 50s when Hanna Reitsch was flying gliders in Austria.
@@southerncharity7928 if they were flying gliders with Reitsch in Austria it would have been in the 50s around the time Reitsch became an Austrian citizen Very possible the woman the OP mentioned (if she was a young woman in the mid to late 50s) would be early 80s not literally 100 years old Wether or not it's true or a load of BS is another thing
I spoke to my friend about this yesterday and it turns out I was mistaken. She flew with Hanna Reitsch in the 1970s. She told me that Hanna, in the mid 60s, was a member of the German national glider team that headed to Poland for a world championship glider contest. At the border, the Polish accepted all team members except Hanna. She became angry at the German team and German officials for not supporting her and never flew in Germany again.
Wow. This one was so exciting! Can you imagine seeing dozens of escort planes around those carrying these important figures. Mark, your content is amazing as always.
I´ve always been fascinated by this particular story, thank you for sharing :)
I've been waiting for you to cover this most interesting woman. Just as riveting is her after war life. Thank you Dr. Felton.
Another great story,in the 1970s we only had world at war a weekly documentary series episodes lasted I think about 45 mins could be wrong,narrated by sir Lawrence Olivier.Was upsetting and scary watching it as a kid but interesting.Mark your channel is fantastic,thank you 👍
that was a great series in the 70s and still worth a watch. it is probably on youtube.
Knew it was a good video as always before I even clicked on it
Thank you, Dr Felton- fantastic scholarship, research, a crisp delivery of facts and thank you especially the rich photo history illustrating the lectures which is coordinated so tightly with the story.
Fascinating! Your videos are simply the best!
Outstanding content as always Mark! Not sure if you have already made one or even take video topic requests but if so I think a video on the details of the Courland pocket from 1944 to the end would be fascinating.
I’ve been waiting on this one!!!
😀😀😀👍
Mark..thank you so much.. you've been my regular bedtime night cap for quite a while... keep it up old bean !
Love your content mark and your the reason why I’m so interested in history. Keep it up!!!
Just when you think 'this story I know', it turns out differently. Well done, Mr. Felton!
She later became a technical adviser in Ghana where she set up the first gliding academy in sub-Saharan Africa: the School of Gliding at Afienya. Although the creation of the Ghana Air Force (GAF) owed more to the involvement of Israeli, Indian and Canadian nationals, Reitsch's academy fed into the development of the GAF and, importantly, to the training of female pilots.She advised the Ghanaian Armed Forces during her 4-year stay from 1962-1966.
My Oga , you are interested in European history too. I hope to meet you in person one day. I like your channel
Love your aviation themed videos Dr Felton. Keep 'em coming mate!
Thank you. I always enjoy your accurate and informative vlogs.
Hanna Reitsch also flew the first helicopter, the Focke-Wulf 61 on its demonstration flights inside the Deutschland Halle.
There is a brilliant BBC documentary series from 1975 called The Secret War where Hana Reich is extensively interviewed - as is Albert Speer and Judy Garland. Well worth tracking down (I think it's even on You Tube). She talks about flying the Messerschmitt Me 321 Gigant as a test pilot - as well as the ME 163.
She was a hell of a brave and daring little woman, exceptionally qualified to fly any machine that could take up to the skies.
Yes, It was a superb series that was narrated by William Woolard, an ex RAF pilot himself. I don't think it was ever repeated, which was a pity. It contained a lot of incredible archive film of German and Allied weapon development.
It is Galland, not Garland.
@@thenevadadesertrat2713 - You got it wrong...he is not talking about the fighter ace Adolf Galland....he refers to American singer/actress Judy Garland who was interviewed on the BBC.
Always interesting and intriguing. Thank you, Mark!
Another terrific story and presentation. THANKS
the scene is in downfall aswell, thanks for more detail on this story
The street named Charlottenburger Chaussee is known today as Straße des 17. Juni. The Berlin Senate renamed it in 1953 to conmemorate the uprising in East Germany on June 17 1953, just a few days before the renaming.
the "bundesautobahn7 " also was renamed. ^^
Brilliant, wonderful, Dr. Felton, thanks for sharing your videos
Another little known piece of WWII history! Thanks Mark! You did it again!😊
This woman was amazing in any language. Imagine flying through the mayhem of the Russian final offesive. Bravery and a cool head of the highest order.
There were not only Russians in the Red Army. You disrespect the other member republics of the USSR
She was an unrepentant Nazi.
@@benwilson6145 Which makes her more amazing.
There is a comment on Greg's Airplane and Automobile channel on his Me 163 video about Hanne Reitsch from somebody claiming to be the son of one of the Luftwaffe test pilots involved in the Me 163 programme you all might want to check out. Looks like an interesting story.
another facinating event researched and well presented - look fwd to the next dispatch!
Once again another fantastic and educated video. Great job.
I wonder if you will ever make a film about Leni Reifenstal? I met her once in Rostock when she was an old lady, and she had the 1000-yard stare alright!
This video sheds light & flushes out well some of the lessor-known facets of the dying days of the battle of Berlin (In particular, I was unaware that Reitsch herself did not personally fly the mission on the 28th; also, I had thought that Speer had visited Hitler on the 21st--not the 23rd...). However, I'm not convinced that Reitsch's flight on the 28th was the last flight out using the makeshift runway. Declassified US Army documents state that the SS had ordered a counterattack on the 29th to regain more territory adjacent to the runway, & some experts on the battle of Berlin believe that this runway held up longer--possibly until May 2nd--the last day of fighting. I'm also puzzled as to why Hitler, if given an escape route, would choose to remain in the bunker & commit suicide. Clearly, historians have to stop saying that Hitler committed suicide on the 30th because he was "cornered" in Berlin by the Soviets.