Manfred von Richthofen: Encyclopedia II - Manfred von Richthofen - The Flying Circus

Manfred von Richthofen - The Flying Circus

In January of 1917 von Richthofen assumed command of Jasta 11, which ultimately included some of the elite of Germany's pilots, many of whom the Red Baron trained himself. Since April 1918, the pilots in his squadron included Ernst Udet and future Luftwaffe leader and Gestapo founder Hermann Göring.

Jasta 11's aircraft featured red markings, and some of Richthofen's planes were entirely red. The squadron was usually quartered in tents, in order to get closer to the front and gain mobility. In order to cover various parts of the front, the whole squadron would regularly pack and up truck everything to a new airfield. The squadron--arriving in a new town, setting up the tents and flying the airplanes--seemed much like a travelling circus. In this way, the Jasta became "The Flying Circus" or "Richthofen's Circus".

Von Richthofen led his new unit to unparalleled success, peaking during "Bloody April" of 1917. In that month alone, he downed 20 British aircraft, raising his tally to 52. However, in July he sustained a head wound that grounded him for several weeks. Hermann Göring was the replacement leader in Jasta 11. Later, he would return to combat, leading Jagdgeschwader I composed of Jastas 4, 6, 10, and 11. This head wound is thought to have caused lasting damage, as after the injury he suffered from post-flight nausea and headaches, a change in temperament, and his single minded pursuit that led to his death was uncharacteristic of his standard method of not becoming fixated on a single target to the exclusion of others.

Richthofen was a brilliant tactician but was not a natural leader. He led by example and force of will rather than by inspiration. He was almost universally described as distant, unemotive, and rather humorless. The effects of the head injury exacerbated these qualities.

Some say that, in 1918, Richthofen had become such a legend that it was feared that his death would be a blow to the morale of the German people. So, his superiors asked him to retire, but he refused, considering that there were still many troops in the trenches.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The Flying Circus", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki