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Wilke, Gustav

Date of birth:
March 6th, 1898 (Deutsch-Eylau, Germany)
Date of death:
March 14th, 1977 (Oberstdorf, Germany)
Nationality:
German (1933-1945, Third Reich)

Biography

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Period:
Second World War (1939-1945)
Rank:
Oberstleutnant (Wing Commander)
Unit:
Kampfgruppe z.b.V. 11
Awarded on:
May 24th, 1940
The following wartime excerpt (dated 30.08.1940) describes why Wilke received the Knight’s Cross…

“Oberstleutnant Gustav Wilke and his men landed at the Katwyk airfield on the 10.05.1940 as the first group to do so. Here he gathered up his crews under heavy enemy fire and held firmly onto the airfield in the face of attacks by enemy forces far superior in numbers and weapons up until the capitulation of the Dutch.”
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes

Sources

Photo