Hans Fuß

Fuß was born on 19 September 1920 in Altenhof near Meseritz in West Prussia, present-day Stary Dwór in western Poland. Following flight training,{{refn|Flight training in the Luftwaffe progressed through the levels A1, A2 and B1, B2, referred to as A/B flight training. A training included theoretical and practical training in aerobatics, navigation, long-distance flights and dead-stick landings. The B courses included high-altitude flights, instrument flights, night landings and training to handle the aircraft in difficult situations.{{sfn|Bergström|Antipov|Sundin|2003|p=17}}|group="Note"}} he was posted to 4. Staffel (4th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 3 (JG 3–3rd Fighter Wing) in early 1941.{{sfn|Obermaier|1989|p=116}}

In preparation for Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, II. Gruppe headed further east on 18 June. Following a stopover at Kraków, the unit was moved to Hostynne. At the start of the campaign, JG 3 under the command of Major (Major) Günther Lützow was subordinated to the 5th Air Corps, under the command of General der Flieger (General of the Aviators) Robert Ritter von Greim, itself part of Luftflotte 4 (4th Air Fleet), under the command of Generaloberst (Colonel General) Alexander Löhr. These air elements supported Generalfeldmarschall (Field Marshal) Gerd von Rundstedt's Army Group South, with the objective of capturing Ukraine and its capital Kiev. At 17:00 on 21 June 1941, the 5th Air Corps, based at Lipsko, briefed the various unit commanders of the upcoming attack.All times used in this section are Central European Time unless otherwise noted. That evening, Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of II. Gruppe Lothar Keller informed his subordinates of the attack.{{sfn|Prien|Stemmer|2003|p=70}} The next day, the first day of Operation Barbarossa, Fuß claimed his first aerial victory.{{sfn|Weal|2013|p=24}}

II. Gruppe had been ordered to the Eastern Front in preparation for Case Blue, the strategic summer offensive in southern Russia. While based at Pilsen, Hauptmann Kurt Brändle took over command of the Gruppe after the former commander Hauptmann Karl-Heinz Krahl had been killed in action over Malta.{{sfn|Prien|Stemmer|2003|p=134}} The Gruppe was then deployed on the left wing of Army Group South where it was based at Chuhuiv near the Donets on 19 May.{{sfn|Prien|Stemmer|2003|p=135}} There, Fuß served with the Gruppenstab as an adjutant to Brändle.{{sfn|Obermaier|1989|p=116}}

File:Hans Fuss 1.JPG]]

On 1 August, Fuß was appointed Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) of 6. Staffel of JG 3 after its former commander Oberleutnant Hans-Jürgen Waldhelm had been transferred.{{sfn|Prien|Stemmer|2003|pp=140, 329}} On 7 August, the German 6th Army attacked Soviet forces at Kalach, encircling elements of the Soviet 62nd Army west of the Don. During this battle, II. Gruppe supported the advance, claiming 23 aerial victories, including six by Fuß, making him an "ace-in-a-day".{{sfn|Prien|Stemmer|2003|pp=140–141}}

On 14 September 1942, Fuß claimed a Yakovlev Yak-1 fighter shot down, his last aerial victory claim. During this battle, he engaged with Lydia Litvyak and his Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-2 (Werknummer 13758—factory number) took a hit in the fuel tank causing his engine to seize. During the forced landing at Dedyurevo, an airfield approximately {{Convert|75|km|mi|abbr=off|sp=us}} northeast of Smolensk, his aircraft crashed and Fuß was severely injured.{{sfn|Prien|Stemmer|2003|p=143}} Fuß died of gangrene following the amputation of one of his legs at a Luftwaffe hospital in Berlin on 10 November 1942.{{sfn|Obermaier|1989|p=116}}{{Cite web |title=Lt. Hans Fuss details |url=http://www.aircrewremembered.com/KrackerDatabase/?q=Fuss%2C+Hans |website=Kracker Luftwaffe Archive |publisher=Aircrew Remembered}}

According to US historian David T. Zabecki, Fuß was credited with 71 aerial victories.{{sfn|Zabecki|2014|p=1616}} Obermaier and Spick also list Fuß with 71 aerial victories, of which claimed on the Eastern Front in over 300 combat mission.{{sfn|Obermaier|1989|p=116}}{{sfn|Spick|1996|p=238}} Mathews and Foreman, authors of Luftwaffe Aces — Biographies and Victory Claims, researched the German Federal Archives and found records for 69 aerial victory claims, all of which claimed on the Eastern Front.{{sfn|Mathews|Foreman|2014|pp=354–355}}

Victory claims were logged to a map-reference (PQ = Planquadrat), for example "PQ 4072". The Luftwaffe grid map ({{lang|de|Jägermeldenetz}}) covered all of Europe, western Russia and North Africa and was composed of rectangles measuring 15 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude, an area of about {{Convert|360|sqmi|sqkm}}. These sectors were then subdivided into 36 smaller units to give a location area {{Convert|3|x|4|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us}} in size.{{sfn|Planquadrat}}

• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class{{sfn|Dixon|2023|p=223}}
• Honor Goblet of the Luftwaffe on 23 March 1942 as Leutnant and pilot{{sfn|Patzwall|2008|p=81}}{{refn|According to Obermaier on 22 March 1942.{{sfn|Obermaier|1989|p=116}}|group="Note"}}
• German Cross in Gold on 10 July 1942 as Leutnant in the II./Jagdgeschwader 3{{sfn|Patzwall|Scherzer|2001|p=127}}
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 23 August 1942 as Leutnant and pilot in the II./Jagdgeschwader 3 "Udet"{{sfn|Fellgiebel|2000|p=189}}{{sfn|Scherzer|2007|p=324}}

{{Reflist|group="Note"}}

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{{refend}}

{{Knight's Cross recipients of JG 3}}

{{Subject bar

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| portal2=Biography

| commons=y

| commons-search=Category:Grave of Hans Fuss

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuss, Hans}}

Category:1920 births

Category:1942 deaths

Category:Luftwaffe pilots

Category:German World War II flying aces

Category:Luftwaffe personnel killed in World War II

Category:Recipients of the Gold German Cross

Category:Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Category:Burials at the Invalids' Cemetery

Category:People from Międzyrzecz County

Category:German amputees

Category:Deaths from gangrene