Richthofen a Cold blooded Killer??

[LedZepplane]

Originally Posted by Taz

As someone who was a trained killer and earned the taxpayer's dollars during the first great unpleasantness in the Gulf, I might add that the fighter jock's prayer is "Dear God, please do not let me screw this up." MvR had, I had, and everyone who flew in wartime, had a job to do. That was to destroy the enemy in as humane a fashion as possible, kill as few innocents as possible, survive to do your job another day, and train and protect those who worked for you. If that makes you cold blooded, then MvR and I are cut from the same bolt of cloth. Do not try and and assign your 21st Century morals to people who were just trying to do the best job they could for country, family, unit, and compatriots and yet still live to talk about it.

Taz
Terry Phillips

Well said, Taz.

Danny

[Vin]

Yep, cold blooded killer, unlike all the other pilots in the war.

[Roadhog]

A great man named Nathan Bedford Forrest once said to a group of young Confederate soldiers, "War means fighting and fighting means killing." Over the Western Front it was kill or be killed, plain and simple.

I really believe that MvR's love of hunting and his skill at it has contributed much to the cold-blooded school of thought as did his "unsportsman like" habit of going after two-seater aircraft instead of the game little fighters despite the fact that it was the observation crates that did most of the damage to the German Army. MvR loved his dog and had a close relationship with several of his peers. Just before his last take off it is said that he played a practical joke on one of his pilots who was trying to catch an extra 40 winks before takeoff by sneaking up on him and flipping him over onto the grass.

I am sure that in several villages in Central America myself and my soldiers are still reviled as cold-blooded killers and I turned out just fine. Ask Craig! VR, Roadhog "Memento mori."

[R Pope]

You have to remember, he was little more than a boy when "That unpleasantness " all began. A somewhat provincial lad, as were all his generation. The callousness of youth can easily be misinterpreted as cold-bloodedness, especially from our vantage point on history. His own writings are in the style of the time, and interpreted by others of the same era. The meanings and subtle twists of idioms and slang are lost on us.
That being said, he WAS a German!!! Hahaha.

[Executioner128]

Just like someone pointed out very well on the first page

Asking whether he was a cold killer or not is a bit digressing from the issue...

I suspect Richthofen was a friendly and respectable man. He described his admiration for Bölcke's personality: "equally polite to EVERYone" , I don't think harsh persons actually can perceive or appreciate such behaviour...

Voss is a better candidate for this question: he aimed for the engine of enemy two-seaters, to at least give his foe a chance to crash-land and survive... that's what I call true "chivalry" !

[crankcase]

I think we have put to rest MvR's approach to fighting, but what do you all make of his comments (in "Der rote Kampfflieger") concerning his brother Lothar? Intriguing, no?
crankcase

[Epee]

I think MvR was indicating that Lothar lacked subtilty, someone who when faced with an enemy force only tactic was "Let's jump in the middle of them and shoot our way out!"

In "The Blonde Knight of Germany", Erich Hartmann's biography, it was mentioned that the WW2 Germans refered to two kinds of fighter pilots. They had the "Head Flyer", who stalked his opponent, weighed his chances, waited for opportunity and had a plan to disengage. In our terms a "boom and zoom", or "energy" fighter. The other was the "Muscle Flyer" who charged in and engaged in a dogfight. In modern terms a "stall", "stick", "yank and bank" fighter. It was said that there were many good Muscle fighters but no old muscle fighters.

Where do you think the Richthofen brothers fit in those models?

[Sreiko]

Originally Posted by Dan_San_Abbott

Jamoz:
In aerial combat, there is no second place!
Blue skies,
Dan-San

Simple but truth!!!

[nigelrayner]

Originally Posted by Epee

In "The Blonde Knight of Germany", Erich Hartmann's biography, it was mentioned that the WW2 Germans refered to two kinds of fighter pilots. They had the "Head Flyer", who stalked his opponent, weighed his chances, waited for opportunity and had a plan to disengage. In our terms a "boom and zoom", or "energy" fighter. The other was the "Muscle Flyer" who charged in and engaged in a dogfight. In modern terms a "stall", "stick", "yank and bank" fighter. It was said that there were many good Muscle fighters but no old muscle fighters.

Where do you think the Richthofen brothers fit in those models?

Well, from my reading, MvR was the former and Voss was more like the latter - loved a dogfight. Don't know about Lothar.

The original question is pointless because there is no accepted measure of what makes someone a "cold blooded killer". It is a purely subjective assessment that can only be an opinion. It also depends on your own personal perspective. MvR was a hunter - most vegetarians would probably regard anyone that hunted as "cold blooded killers" while people that are hunters themselves obviously would not.

Cheers,

Nigel

[Rbailey]

But ordering trophy cups to commemorate your victories does perhaps raise certain questions about one's psychology. But otherwise, he did what he was expected to do, and exceedingly well.