BF 109 F4 3./JG 51 Olt. Heinrich Kraft

Bf 109F4 III./JG51 Yellow 7 Heinrich Krafft WNr 7221 Russia March 1942 00

Profile 01:Messerschmitt Bf 109F. 4 'Yellow 7' flown by Obl. Heinrich Krafft, the Staffelkapitan of III./JG51, Soltsy, February 1942. The appearance of this machine is fairly typical of the many which received a temporary white finish during the Winter months in Russia although, in this instance, the white was applied in varying densities resulting in a patchy, almost mottled, finish. Dark areas, particularly the canopy framing, around the W. Nr. 7221 and the Hakenkreuz on the tail, and the rectangular areas left around the pilot's victory tally, show where the original 02/74/75/76 finish and yellow rudder were still visible. This machine carried no unit badges.

Bf 109F 3./JG51 (Y7+) Heinrich Krafft WNr 7221 Russia March 1942 01
Photo 01: Photographed while patrolling the Demyansk area in February 1942, 'Yellow 7' was flown by Obl. Heinrich Krafft, the Staffelkapitan of III./JG51 who, as one of the Geschwader's most successful pilots, was awarded the Knight's Cross on 18 March 1942.

Pilots 3./JG51 Heinrich Krafft

Heinrich 'Gaudi' Krafft

Heinrich 'Gaudi' Krafft was born on 13 August 1914 at Bilin in Böhmen. He joined the army and served with Infanterieregiment 9 before transferring to the Luftwaffe in 1936. In 1939, Krafft was serving with JG51. Oberleutnant Krafft was assigned to III./JG51. He claimed his first victories during the French campaign, when he shot down two RAF Hurricane fighters near Rotterdam on 11 May 1940. He was wounded in aerial combat during May, which resulted in his being out of action for a considerable period. Krafft had four victories to his credit at the time. Krafft was appointed Staffelkapitän of III./JG51 on 11 November 1940 and led the unit for the invasion of Russia. On the first day of the campaign, 22 June 1941, Krafft shot down four Russian aircraft to record his fifth through ninth victories. He recorded his 10th victory on 29 June when he shot down a Russian I-16 fighter. On 31 August he claimed three DB-3 twin-engined bombers (16-18). His 20th victory was achieved on 4 October when he claimed another I-16 shot down. On 6 December, Krafft shot down three enemy aircraft to record his 29th through 31st victories. By the end of 1941, he had increased his victory total to 34.

On 17 February 1942, Krafft shot down a Russian I-61 fighter to record his 40th victory. Oberleutnant Krafft was awarded the Deutsches Kreuz on 25 January 1942 and the Ritterkreuz on 18 March 1942 for 48 victories recorded in over 300 missions. On 1 June 1942, Hauptmann Krafft was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of I./JG51 after Hauptmann Josef Fözö (27 victories, RK) was injured in a landing accident the previous day. In August 1942, I./JG51 transferred to Jesau for conversion to the Fw-190A-2 and A-3, returning to action on 6 September as the first unit to introduce the new fighter on the Eastern Front. Shortly afterwards, I./JG51 was transferred to the Leningrad sector as the Russians attempted to lift the siege of the city. Krafft claimed his 60th victory south of Belyi on 14 December 1942. He survived the crash-landing but was beaten to death by Russian soldiers.

Fw 190A Stab I./JG51 ((+ Heinrich Krafft

Heinrich 'Gaudi' Krafft flew a total of 350 missions and claimed 78 victories, all but four on the Eastern Front, including at least nine Il-2 Sturmoviks.

Bf 109F-2 'Brown 7' flown by Oberleutnant Heinrich Krafft, Staffelkapitan 8./JG 51 'Molders', March 1942