Luftwaffe personnel structure

The commissioned officers of the Luftwaffe could either be non-restricted or restricted line officers, or non-line officers. Non-restricted officers were Truppenoffiziere, troop officers, and Generalstabsoffiziere, general staff officers. Resttricted line officers were ordnance officers and engineering officers. Non-line officers were of two kinds, special career officers, Offiziere der Sonderlaufbahnen, contained medical officers and directors of music, while Truppensonderdienst, the special troop officers, were created in 1944 by the transfer of supply officers and judge advocates from the military officials class.[2][3][4]

The Air force engineer officers were to replace the Air engineers of the military officials class, but only a very limited number of such officers were trained before the end of the war.[6] No such officer had reached higher rank than First Lieutenant at the end of the war. The highest rank of the Ordnance officer corps was Colonel.

The officers of the several corps were listed in different seniority lists depending on their service conditions:

Ergängzungsoffiziere were former officers born in 1882 or later, serving in staff and administrative positions. Offiziere der Beurlaubtenstandes were reserve officers; consisting of Reserveoffiziere (under 35 years of age), and Landwehroffiziere (35 years old and older) until 1940, when the two categories were merged. Kriegsoffiziere were officers promoted from the ranks and given temporary commissions for the duration of the war. Offiziere zur Verfügung were former officers subject to recall at mobilization. Such officers were called Offiziere zur Dienstleistung when recalled.[7][8][9]

Each branch of the Luftwaffe had a number of Dienstlaufbahngruppen (career groups) for non-commissioned officers and airmen, further subdivided into Dienstlaufbahnen (service careers).[10]

The Flying Troops had three career croups, Air Crew, Aircraft Engineering, and General Service.

Air Crew

Airplane Pílot, Aircraft Observer, Auxiliary Observer, Bombardier, Air Signaller (Aerial Gunner), Flight Engineer (Aerial Gunner), Aerial Gunner, and Paratrooper.[11]

Aircraft Engineering

Aircraft Engineering Technician, Airframe Mechanic, Airplane Engine Mechanic, Airplane Electrical Mechanic, Airplane Precision Mechanic, Airplane Bomb Armorer, Airplane Weapons Armorer, Aerial Photography Technician, Airplane Signals Mechanic, and Parachute Rigger and Survival Equipmentman.[11]

General Service

Ground Communications, Motor Transportation, Supply Clerk, Ammunition Technician, Hauptfeldwebel (First Sergeant), HQ Sergeant, Supply Technician (Automotive), Supply Technician (Aircraft), Supply Technician (Weapons/Gas Protection), Supply Technician (General), Clothing Clerk, Accountant, Subsistence NCO, Administrative Clerk, Small Boat Crew, Air Traffic Control, Musician, Medical Technician, and Military Official Candidate.[11]

The Air Defense Artillery had two careers groups, Artillery, and General Service.

Artillery

Anti-aircraft Artillery Personnel, Motor Transportation Personnel, Communications.[12]

General Service

The same as the general service of the Flying Troops, with the addition of Supply Technician (Communications), and Supply Technician (Searchlight), and without Supply Technician (Aircraft).[12]

The Air Signal Troops had two career groups, Signals, and General Service.

Signals

General, Flight Radio Operator, Aircraft Radio, Radio Technical Sergeant, Telephone Technical Sergeant, Supply Technician (Communications), Armorer.[13]

General Service

The same as the general service of the Flying Troops, without Supply Technician (Aircraft).[13]

In addition to the three major branches, flying troops, air defense artillery, and air signal troops, the Luftwaffe had several other branches. In existence at the beginning of the war was the medical troops (Sanitätstruppen), and the Reichsluftaufsicht or the National Flying Safety Service, which was staffed both by military personnel and a special group of Beamten (see below). During the war special Luftwaffe construction units (Luftwaffen-Bauverbände) were added. A special ground-combat unit General Göring existed since 1935, and airborne Fallschirmjäger units since 1938; during the war both expanded into army corps, with the same complement of ground-combat branches that existed in the army. In addition, the Luftwaffe in 1942 formed a number field divisions of excess personnel, that, however, after about a year was absorbed by the German Army. There were even veterinary units; the enlisted men belonging to the Luftwaffe, and the veterinary officers to the army.[14]

In the Luftwaffe war time tables of organization, certain positions could be filled with personnel not possessing the required military training, if properly trained personnel were not available. Such Sonderführer (Specialist Leaders), should have a civilian education or training qualifying them for the technical side of the position to be filled, and preferably some sort of leadership experience or training. Specialist Leaders did not hold military rank as such, but had titles that denoted the equivalent rank level of the positions held. If they were not needed as Specialist Leaders any more, they would to revert to their basic military rank. Specialist Leaders with the equivalent rank level of non-commissioned officers were abolished in 1942; the incumbents transferred to the non-commissioned corps if qualified.[1][15]

Becoming a member of the Ingenieurkorps der Luftwaffe required completion of the two year compulsory military service, being commissioned as a reserve officer, and having a Diplomingenieur-degree in aircraft construction, as well having passed the state exam for Flugbaumeisters (aircraft designers). Diploma Engineers with three years employment as civilian engineers of the Luftwaffe were also accepted.[26][27]

The Nautikerkorps der Luftwaffe was founded in 1938, for air surveying and non-combat navigation duties; all members were military officials of the elevated career recruited as Militäranwärter from former sergeant-navigators. New appointments in the corps ended in 1941. Suitable and willing navigators where then transferred to the officer corps of the flying troops.[28] Of the 295 officials in the navigator corps, 81 had transferred to the officer corps at the beginning of 1942.[29]

The Flugzeugführerkorps was created in 1940, its members being former sergeant-pilots that began their new career as Militäranwärter of the elevated service. They served in positions as flight instructors, weather pilots, test pilots, and as pilots of other similar non-combat activities.[30]

The Reichsluftaufsicht, the National Flying Safety Service, was staffed both with Soldaten and special group Beamten of the middle, elevated, and higher careers.[31]

The Wehrmachtbeamte of the Luftwaffe were administrative, technical and legal specialists and craftsmen, belonging to a large number of Fachrichtungen (occupational groups), according to their profession, occupation or area of specialization.

Occupational Groups of the Wehrmachtbeamte:

Source:[34]

The Beamte auf Kriegsdauer, were the military officialdom's equivalent of Sonderführer; a Luftwaffe member filling a Beamter-position in the tables of organization without having gone through the required training during the candidate period, but possessing adequate technical or professional competence to fill such a slot on an emergency basis.[36] War-time officials were designated with the appendix a. Kr. (abbreviation for auf Kriegsdauer) after the grade title of the position they were filling. For example: Werkmeister a. Kr., or Regierungsinspektor a. Kr. The Air Engineer Corps, the Air Navigation Corps, and the Wehrmachtbeamte were all augmented with war-time officials.[37] By 1944 the war-time Wehrmachtbeamte of the higher service were placed in pay grade A2c2; of the elevated service, in pay grade A4c2; of the middle career in pay grade A8a; and of the lower career in pay grade A10b. War-time engineers and navigators were placed in pay grades JL5 or JL8 depending on position filled.[38]

• Absolon, Rudolf (1969). Die Wehrmacht im Dritten Reich. Band V. (Schriften des Bundesarchivs). Boppard am Rhein: Boldt.
• Adler, Hermann & Rückens, Rolf (1941). Deutsche Luftwaffenkalender. Bamberg: J.W. Reindl Verlag.
• Brand, Arthur (1942). Das Deutsche Beamtengesetz. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
• Davis, Brian L. (1999). Uniforms and Insignia of the Luftwaffe. Arms & Armour.
• Deutsches Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I, 1867-1945. [Cited as RGBl I]
• Henner, Sigurd & Böhler, Wolfgang (2014). Die Deutsche Wehrmacht. Dienstgrade und Waffenfarbe der Luftwaffe 1939-1945. Stuttgart: Motorbuch Verlag.
• Moll, Martin (1997). "Führer-Erlasse" 1939-1945. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag.
• Richhardt, Dirk (2002). Auswahl und Ausbildung junger Offiziere 1930–1945. Diss. Marburg: Philipps–Universität Marburg.
• Schlicht, Adolf & Angolia, John R (1999). Die deutsche Wehrmacht. Uniformierung und Ausrüstung 1933-1945. Band 3: Die Luftwaffe. Stuttgart: Motorbuch Verlag.
• Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forcee (1945). Handbook for unit commanders (Germany). Revised edition. [Cited as SHAPE 1945]
• United States War Department (1944). Military occupational classification of enlisted personnel. TM 12-427. Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office. [Cited as TM 12-427]
• United States War Department (1945). Handbook on German military forces. TM-E 30-451. Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office. [Cited as TM-E 30-451]