The German Ace That Confronted His Nazi Dictator | Günther Rall's Incredible Story | Full Doc
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- čas přidán 20. 08. 2024
- Günther Rall, Germany's Last WW2 Ace. FULL DOCUMENTARY | Amazing Stories of WW2, in their own words.
You could say that history repeats itself. This wonderful documentary, filmed by our partners at Air2AirTV (air2airtv.com) is also masterfully narrated by Gary Sinise.
Günther Rall (10 March 1918 - 4 October 2009) was a highly decorated German military aviator, officer and General, whose military career spanned nearly forty years. Rall was the third most successful fighter pilot in aviation history, behind Gerhard Barkhorn, who is second, and Erich Hartmann, who is first.
Rall was born in Gaggenau, the German Empire, in March 1918. Rall grew up in the Weimar Republic. In 1933 the Nazi Party seized power and Rall, deciding upon a military career, joined the Wehrmacht in 1936 to train as an infantry soldier. Rall transferred to the Luftwaffe soon after and he qualified as a fighter pilot in 1938.
In September 1939 World War II began with the German invasion of Poland. Rall was assigned to Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52-52nd Fighter Wing) and flew combat patrols in the Phoney War period on the Western Front. Rall flew combat missions in the Battle of France and Battle of Britain, claiming one enemy aircraft destroyed in May 1940. Rall's wing sustained heavy casualties and the then-22 year old was appointed to Staffelkapitän (squadron leader). He then served in the Balkans Campaign in April and May 1941 without success.
In June 1941, JG 52 moved to the Eastern Front, where it remained from Operation Barbarossa until the end of the war. Rall claimed his first successes in the air defense of Romania. In November 1941, he was shot down, wounded and invalidated from flying for a year. At this time Rall had claimed 36 aerial victories. His achievements earned him the German Cross in Gold in December 1941.
Rall returned in August 1942 and was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 3 September 1942 for 65 enemy aircraft shot down. By 22 October Rall had claimed 100 and received the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves. He reached 200 in late August 1943. On 12 September 1943 he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, the second highest military award in Nazi Germany at the time of the presentation. By the end of 1943 Rall had achieved over 250, the second flier to do so after Walter Nowotny did in October 1943.
In April 1944 Rall left JG 52 and the Eastern Front. He was given command of II. Gruppe (2nd group) of Jagdgeschwader 11 and served in the Defense of the Reich where he was wounded for a third time. In November 1944 Rall was appointed as an instructor and flew captured Allied fighter aircraft in order to prepare instruction notes on their performance to German fighter pilots. Rall ended the war with an unsuccessful stint commanding Jagdgeschwader 300 (JG 300-300th Fighter Wing) near Salzburg, Austria, where he surrendered in May 1945.
Rall remained in a prisoner of war camp for a matter of weeks. Rall was approached by the Americans who were recruiting Luftwaffe pilots who had experience with the Messerschmitt Me 262 fighter.[104] He was transferred to Bovingdon near Hemel Hempstead, and then based at RAF Tangmere, where he met the RAF fighter pilot Robert Stanford Tuck, with whom he became close friends.
After his release, Rall settled back into civilian life working for Siemens & Halske as a salesman from July 1947 to May 1948. In 1948 he visited England again. Rall accompanied Hertha Rall and stayed in Grosvenor Square with Dr Paul Kaspar and Jewish acquaintances, whom she had helped to escape from the Nazis. Rall knew of Hertha's wartime Jewish connections and was concerned it would attract the attention of Nazi authorities. In 1943, Hertha was suspected of Jewish sympathies by the Gestapo, but no action was taken.
Of Nazi crimes, Rall acknowledged the pilots at the front knew of Nazi concentration camps but didn't know exactly what they were used for. When he first heard of Auschwitz and the Holocaust, initially he believed it to be propaganda. Rall could not believe that Germans would do such things. The criminal nature of the Nazi Party did not occur to Rall when Hitler came to power; "The fact that we did not explore the essence of the Nazi regime when it came to power is, of course, one of our great failings."
During World War II Rall was credited with the destruction of 275 enemy aircraft in 621 combat missions. He was shot down five times and wounded on three occasions. Rall claimed all of his victories in a Messerschmitt Bf 109, though he also flew the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 operationally. All but three of his claims were against Soviet opposition.
#ww2 #ace #documentary
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A big thank you to both Jon Tennyson and Scott Guyette!
Hp
Would love you to do a documentary on the Grey Ghosts. The NZ soldiers who terrified the Japanese in and around Papua New Guinea during WW2 Being modest Kiwis keep this very quiet in their military history. People forget the Japanese used to behead and bayonet prisoners of war. Maybe the Gray ghosts got revenge for these cowardly barbaric acts. Could you ever forget such a thing happening to someone in your family?
Another well kept secret about the NZ military. On the initial assaults at Gallipoli the NZ soldiers advanced further than anyone else. They were then left isolated by the other allied forces. Do your research and you'll be astounded.
Also in the first WW the Australian troops absolutely terrified the Germans in the forests in and around Germany. The Germans thought they were inhuman and supernatural. It's all true but you'll have to dig deep to find evidence.
The moral of the story.
If you walk into a bar with an Aussie and a Kiwi you'll be sweet, make friends and have a good time. Your back will be watched.
That is unless some gutless terrorist sends a child or woman into that bar loaded up with suicide bombs.
There's a fundamental difference between honour and dishonor.
Or humane and inhumane.
American, Australian and NZ troops may have gone into Afghanistan and other middle eastern countries but at least they brought engineers and attempted to improve the country. What you probably don't know that any unfortunate injured soldiers left on the battlefield were cut up at night by women from the local villages. They were tortured and butchered. Where did I learn that? A soldier's account in Rolling Stone magazine.
I've never forgotten it.
Like what the Japanese did. Like what Hitler did.
Like what Stalin did to his own people.
Like what's happening in Ukraine and Yemen.
That's why Julian Assange should be free.
That's why Ed Snowden is a true American patriot.
Compare those two men to who's in the news today.
It makes me feel ashamed and angry.
The sacrifice of young poor kids for the likes of Cheney, Bush, Clinton, Putin, Blair, Reagan, Nixon.
Look what happened to Kennedy when he tried to stop military madness.
Some of you may not know Churchill was unfortunately behind the disaster of Gallipoli in the naval planning.
What did he do in penance?
He joined and fought in the front lines. Fact.
Look at Trump and Bush junior and many others. They used their connections and fake medical reports to avoid serving for their country. Get your facts right folks.
War has never been what you thought it was for.
Where are those weapons of mass destruction?
Was the carpet bombing of Dresden a war crime?
Was the fire bombing of Japan before dropping two nuclear bombs another war crime?
America imported Nazis after WW2. Some built NASA. Some developed internal security services you now know as CIA, FBI and Homeland Security.
That's why you need people like Julian Assange and Ed Snowden and Oliver Stone. I mention those three people and what's your knee jerk reaction?
I thought so.
Truth hurts.
Let the pain be good
Peace and love humans if you can find it.
😅😮😮😮
Za QN
This is my great uncle! He was an amazing man to talk to. The stories he had kept me told me had me captivated for hours.
I knew Gunther Rall. in the late 70's. He was one hell of a guy. After things settled down from the war. He served as the chief of staff of the German Air Force. He was very competent and had a great zest for life. After things settled down from the war he came to the US to receive training in the F-104 Aircraft which were then being provided to the FRG Air Force. He joked about buzzing the tower in Arizona in an F-104 with the Iron Cross on the side and could see the shock on the Air Controller. He also gave me a picture of himself with the Iron cross emblem around his neck. I gave it to my Father in Law, a US Air Force pilot, who had flown bombers into Germany during the war. This was a common trait with German military after the war. They explained to me that they were not fans of Hitler. But their nation was at war and they accepted the responsibility to serve their country. But in the end, Germany has become one of our best allies in Europe.
I had the honour of meeting Günther Rall alongside Johnnie Johnson at an RAF Duxford airshow when I was in my teenage years. I do not recall much from that day, though I remember Rall being wonderfully kind and friendly to this inquisitive teenage boy. I felt really happy to see two former adversaries joking and laughing together. Günther Rall seemed to have a wonderful sense of humour and he was the most approachable of the few WWII aces I ever had the honour of meeting. I was too nervous a teen to ask too many questions, especially since asking about the war was not an option in my family growing up. I had one grandfather who served in the RAF on Lancasters and Sunderlands, whilst the other grandfather served in the Afrika Korps until his capture by the British in Tunisia, 1943. I was never allowed to ask questions before that day and I deeply regret not taking more time to get to know these rather wonderful old fighter aces before the chance was lost forever.
Wow yeah I bet you're kicking yourself now for not asking questions etc but I can understand being nervous and not wanting to piss anybody off or anything lol Very cool experience 👍🏻 ✌🏻
@@EJ-74 I would love to go back in time to that moment and force younger me to have the confidence to ask more questions and listen to all the stories I can get whilst I have the chance. It would turn out to be the only chance I would get to my everlasting regret.
Used to be tour guide in winery outside Atlantic City. Had 101 first airborne and some 82d. Wonderful experience talkin to these guys
I would have said "hold my beer and watch this shit"
As a child I was forever pestering my Grandfather to tell me about the war. The obvious childlike question "Did you ever kill any Germans ?"......My Grandfather started the war in an anti aircraft battery....his answer "The battery he was in certainly shot German Aircraft down but there was no way to tell which individual gun (Bofors) was reponsible". I remember him telling me his adventures and misadventures like it was yesterday. I wish I could ask him more questions now......how I miss him ! ❤
I had the privilidge of hearing General Rall speak in the late 1980s and got to shake his hand. He was a gentleman and great warrior.
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Regardless of which side one fights on it's always a privilege to meet a true warrior. No one soldier can decide the right or wrong of the politics of a war but to do his duty.
It's amazing to see one of the highest scoring aces of all time, a man of the calibre of Von Richthofen, sitting in a backyard somewhere giving an interview like that. He seems like such a normal guy.
Gary Sinise, you speak so clearly, easy to understand and you put true 'heart and soul' into your narration. Thank you!
He wasn't very nice in that Mel Gibson film, Ransom - where he kidnapped Mel Gibson's son. It would have been better if he'd kidnapped Gibson - the REAL Gibson - who is an anti-British toss-bag.
Living herer in Germany you do not hear much at all of these great German pilots. This is a very awesome serie!! Thank you for the upload.
Glad you like them!
It's probably because Germany feels such institutional shame about their history of aggression in 2 World Wars, their heinous human rights abuses, & the way they were deceived & controlled en masse, like some national cult (unlike Japan, who still plays the victim). Glorifying people whose job was killing people is not exactly something to be proud of when you are the cause of tens of millions of deaths. They just want to put it behind them.
Gruß aus California!
Gunther Rall, a Knight of the Skies, a great pilot and a great man. I am truely please, enemies became friends.
that is one of the best parts Ashley. Enemies becoming great friends.This video should set an example, especially these days.
It wasn't uncommon in Europe. My dad was a B-17 pilot. After the war, he worked as an engineer. One of his co-workers was a Luftwaffe fighter pilot. They know they flew against each other at least three times. They became very close friends as did the two families.
Men with honor are always welcome by the fire, no matter the cause.
nonsense
He was friends with Chuck Yeager years after the war. They had great respect for each other. Thanks for this!
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Gary Sinise! as the Narrator! Thank You! I am from Austria, you know, the "other" Australia. Keep up the good work against World War 3! Spot on! This is how history must been told!
It is late in Austria Franz. Thank you for the kind comment.
Even though Gunther Rall was on the side of our enemy, he was a man of honor and integrity.
Well, lets put it that way: Americans tend to "make" their enemies a bigger threat than they actually are. When Germany partnered their so called ally Japan in engaging the US with its superior logistics and mainland not reachable, it was basically over.
Specificially, given this documentary, the Germans had not only notorical shortage of oil supply, but also high(er) octane cerosine in particular which gave Western allies and its planes an edge, since the Germans had way better constructed air planes and pilots - the latter until '44 at least.
What this documentary also should have pointed out maybe a bit more clearly is the circumstance, that pilots like Rall were desperately trying to protect German citizens, not only military logistics, by fending of these air raids - in particular the British ones.
That was even probably their main concern and motivation. "Air raids on industrial compounds" sounds legit whereas terror bombing would at least put a more sinister background to the American-British bombing efforts.
@@Peter-vf3dl your just pissed we kicked your ass, however we did it, we did it. Jabo's will get you, count on it. Mustangs will protect bombers, count on it, numbers will smother you, count on it. You loose, count on it.
@@georgemacdonell2341 I am not "pissed". Sober facts. You are btw. basicially rephrasing what I had written previously.
The unavailability of high octane fuel - later on, Germany had the expensive c3 instead of b4 synthetics - was one main reason why your p51 and p47 went on par with the German piston wings - except the ta-152 which was a masterpiece.
Even the Battle over Britain might had gone another direction, if the British had no supply of American high octane fuel, since the 109e was clearly superior to the spitfire during the Battle of France when the British had to rely on their own low octane fuels.
For that reason the Germans pushed the jet engine since it doesnot rely on octane numbers.
Bullchit he was a murdering bass turd
As were many German airmen. Notably those who were experienced and spent most of the war in battle. According to most accounts it wasn't until late in the war that something the young pilots who were sent in as replacements embraced nazism, and they were left alone and not associated with by the veteran pilots. Whilst everyone understood it was a war, there was still a gentlemanly civility offered to the 'enemy' by both sides... but more so from the veteran pilots, than from the replacement pilots.
This is my observation reading and listening to the accounts of veteran pilots.
One of the best documentaries I’ve ever watched. Plain and simple.
Thank you so much!
"I didn't want any part of scratches" almost made me spit out my coffee. That pilots humor..lol
It's good to see that two old Soldiers each one from the opposing side now can sit down and talk together even laugh.
I need to read that book,
These guys deserve so much respect.
I met him a few months before he passed. He was signing his book at Oshkosh. I think it was 09 but not sure. He signed and we chatted briefly. Reminded me of my dad who had just passed. Not sure why I posted this but he seemed like a humble kind man.
This is a awesome documentary. Thank you ! My Grandpa was in this war on my fathers side US and my Grandpa was in this war in Germanys side. My mothers father . Aka Ompa! Lol ! ! Times, and people were so different as they are now. I wish I could go back in time to the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s .
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Im sorry to sound like a smartass, but it’s Opa in german..
The term for grandmother is Oma.
Well the official terms are Großmutter/Großvater but almost nobody uses those when speaking in real life.
It’s the same like you not calling your mother „mother“, but mom, ma, mommy etc.
I’m really sorry for correcting you and wish you all the best from Germany!
@@rolux4853 i think Rachel was being facetious, hence the “Ompa Lol” . I believe that “ompa” was probably her childhood pet name for her grandparents.
Funny how it works, I too have grandfather's that looked over the battlefield of Fredericksburg at each other...
Very interesting. I don't think I would like living during the 20s and definitely not the late 30s and early 40s. The world was in the great depression and went straight into WWII one of the worse wars in history. I don't see anything good about living during times like that 🤷 Just saying lol
Its the countries who are enemies not the warriors they all shared a tearable event in there lives it's only human that they become friends . Thank you all who are responsible for the time and effort for giveing me the acount of the lives of thease heros Germans and the allies !
you uh...you do know what the Germans did right? If not I have some rlly bad news. All of world war 2 is on the Germans of their time. They just jumped into fascism head first and started taking over other countries. And then there's that whole mechanized death thing.
Not all of them. None of the British veterans of the Far East ever forgave the Japanese for what they had done. My old man among them.
Great way to spend a rainy afternoon..... great Narration by Sinise as well. I recommend this wholeheartedly.
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When I hear Gary Sinices voice, I just want to salute a Flag. That a good feeling
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"Everybody who is born in this country should feel blessed..." If only more people felt this way today. They don't know how lucky they have it in America- they don't know their own history. Many have bled and died for the USA, it makes me heartsick to see how little people appreciate the sacrifices made so that they could be free.
garbage
Maybe people would felt blessed if they had a well paid job and affordable..... healthcare, education, housing. BTW Germany had all that when Hitler rose to power......
Very well said. I moved from America some years ago, but it dawned on me how fortunate I am to be from the US after moving away. Don't take it for granted, folks.
And people do nothing while our rights and freedoms are being decimated by our own government deep state scum bags along with their globalist commie evil people who want us and our country gone and us to be their slaves
I still think that the Versailles treaty at least partially caused WW2. Honestly the “treaty” did do the Germans dirty
What a warrier. I cannot help loving him.
Mr Rall is a true warrior he even laughs about his bravery like it’s nothing. Wheres your finger at dude?
A Warrior Indeed the DNA lives forever 🛸⏳
What an amazing man. I tip my hat to you Mr Gunther Rall. Warriors are also humans, sometimes it's seems they have more humanity than most people. He never said he had a victory, he was happy to survive one day at a time, he seemed a little disgusted at the high number of kills in his log book.
Amazing man? He killed our allies in world war 2. So I guess we are going to just let that go then. He is a war criminal. I only wish he had suffered the same fate as his victims.
Fantastic series! Love my fellow airmen on all sides, those that fought with honor and dignity that is! God bless their hearts!!
By far my favorite fighter ace of WWII
A true Gentleman, in every sense of the word..even if he fought for the bad guys. Respect.
😂 orange man bad
Mr Sinese you always do an outstanding job of narration. Gunther Rall also served in the Germen air force after the war. A true hero of his nation. I wish I could have met him as I wish I could have met Phillip Rasmussen and many of the other WWII pilots who recently passed away. Thank You !
Sinise, you a briliant narator. And super actor. 🇩🇰🙋🏻♂️🐶🇺🇸
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I love getting accurate “as it was” first hand information from these great military veterans. God bless them all. 🇩🇪🇺🇸 🇷🇺 🇯🇵🇬🇧
Very nice- Gary Sinise plus a lot of history in one film! Shorty was right: we better be ready to step up to the plate and stop taking everything for granted. TY!
incredible to see both countries pilots friendly after living through all the death and sorrow to fallen comrades
BOTH SIDES received orders from their governments. They could not be disobeyed. "Theirs was not the reason why.. Theirs was only to do or die..."
There wasn't the hatred involved as on the Eastern Front. I had the privilege to speak to a German "Stug" crewman in the 80's. His recalled that there no good options in the East, if you surrendered they (Soviets) would likely torture you to death so you fought on. I asked him how he was captured & he described that he was with another Stug moving up to support an infantry regiment when they crested a small hill & confronted 50+ American tanks. Of course their two Stug 3's stood no chance & immediately surrendered to survive the war.
Much the same with USA civil war reunions. Most soldiers made their peace with each other. Most, but not all. The soldiers seemed to have an easier time making peace than the civilians. We probably know why.
the north Vietnamese after the war did similar stuff . theres a mac v sog guy who killed 90% of a10.000 person n.viet division and the gen of the n.viets got to meet that sog guy and had a convo about the battle.....oh btw he killed that many with only 6 guys 2 americans and 4 s.viet. spad airstrikes and all the blessings of the recon gods
Put on mute at 1:43:47. I had it on volume 3 and fell asleep with the tv on (like a lil bit of background noise) and this freakin noise played. Let me tell you, I have never woken up with my heart racing and my blood pressure that high ever in my entire life. I can only imagine how many headphone users have gone deaf
I did the same but mine was a little bit louder than you and it damn near gave me a fricking heart attack and then my playstation crashed so I thought it was the ps4 messing up, I played back on my phone at a lower volume just to double check my theory, of course I was wrong but still that is not a noise I want to ever hear again.
@@airman_atlus9405 For the first time ever in my life I genuinely believed I was being hacked or haunted because I couldn"t believe the sound actually came from the video.
@@lerui2820 the same thing happened to me. I'm glad I was not the only one.
Gunther Rall was to me a fascinating airman, I went to the Wisconsin air show and missed him by one day.
What a documentary. Higher level.
Thank you Reidar 🙏
THIS is a remarkable documentary. Unforgettable. Unique and Supremely Honest. I am in awe of all those in front of the camera and behind it.The Germans in this kino speak amazing English. Better than my German. I was once to Munich and the German people were so kind to me. I respect them totally!
Thank you DB 🙏
Thank Gary for your service on getting history out to us
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My older brother discovered this gentle man while learning German in hi school back in 1975. Later on when getting a painting people learned of my brother's last name wanted my brother's autograph. My brother-in -law (John)has seen him in person at air shows at Oshkosh WI. the last time John was there both Gunther & the American ace who shot Gunther down were together talking about that. Gunther died after this air show. I'm not an air craft "nut" like John. However I'm still kicking myself for not going to this show because I'm related to Gunther. That would have been interesting to see if he has ever personally met any blood relative. My family came over to the US after WW One. My dad was in WWII on the American side. I do have a sketch of Gunthers plane in that dog fight with "Shorty" (American Ace) and a photo of both of them recounting this dog fight ,thanks to my brother-in-law. I just stumbled across this video not actually looking for it
I love Zemke's attitude: No matter the cards dealt, make the most of it.
That's what my father taught me and that is what I taught my kids.
Anybody who confronted Hitler should be considered a brave hero unfortunately they were few and if found out lost their lives
I’m surprised this video didn’t mention it but Rall’s wife hid Jews throughout the war, with Rall’s full knowledge.
He was very concerned for her out of fear she would be found out; indeed, she was under suspicion by the Gestapo but due to her name and famous husband, they moved no further with the investigation.
@@mamavswild I had no idea
@AuschwitzSoccerRef. You cannot call the Truth BS simply bc it goes a giant your agenda.
The reason so few confronted Hitler was from the first day Hitler took power not unlike Donald Trump here in the States today he exalted and promoted loyalty above anything else. By the end of the war most of the generals that still held a command were there simply for their loyalty and willingness to follow Hitler's orders without question. Another reason few confronted him was it wouldn't just mean that officer's removal from command, interrogation and probable execution, more often than not his immediate family would have their fates decided by the Gestapo as well. Goebbels propaganda was also extremely effective on the people. Allied bombing of cities didn't help foment opposition to the Nazis either. The German people were so drunk on excitement and felt their pride had been restored after the quick defeat of France. They gave their loyalty and praise to Hitler instead of the Wehrmacht. History is there to teach us about Hitler, Stalin and Mussoulini. Unfortunately, just looking at the numbers Trump is able to attract to his base quite a few people choose to ignore the past. Britain allowed a few misguided and misinformed people to convince the country to vote against its own interests with Brexit. We are in a very dangerous place today and we must do whatever possible to keep them on the sidelines or watch our democracy collapse from within.
Couldn't agree more. World must never forget German Resistence to Hitler. Folks like Erwin Rommel Klaus Von Stauffenberg n other conspirators. Guys like Oskar Schindler Adolf Galland Gunther Rall n Franz Stigler who all hated the SS n the Nazi thugs. Hello from India 🇮🇳.
The wounded soldier in the hospital bed is not Rall, it is Hans Ulric Rudel, the highest decorated soldier in WWII
Rudel helped set up the Argentina Air force post war
Very interesting. Thank you.
Oke;; Also mr.Hans Rudel can fly some air plane's..Junker: slow but heavy.Jij dont forget ,whan Hans wash there...{ noise..}
Rudel is also supposed to have been one that helped many Nazi’s to escape to South America.
Politics
What a gentleman an loyal officer, his explanations of how and why he landed where he did are clear, he was an officer doing his duty, as a Brit I have absolutely no animosity to this gentleman and an officer, as career military he has his duties and orders which he did, he was no more criminal as any military man in this conflict, what his senior officers and more so are those politicians that gave the orders and created the duties are who then made the actions criminal
a lot of ppl dont think like this and are ready to see others that are slightly even another Opinion as pure scum...this mentality of nazis is still alive even today and well used by ppl who claim to hate the nazis but cant seem to overlook the hypocricy on their own behaviour.
Peoples are free to think, and to think not like others. That's unfortunate when it goes to justice and impartiality. God is the best example when dealing with such. Hopefully man or mankind will upraise to God's heavenly, not worldly word!
There is another Luftwaffe officer who saved the lives of many Jazz musicians who became a German disc jockey, calling himself Dr. Jazz. These were blacks, Jews, Gypsies including Django Reinhardt who was a gypsy. That music and those racial groups were Nazi victims.
A true soilder respects his enemy. Im a 2 tour combat veteran myself. I had to ask myself. What would i do if i seen Russian tanks rolling down main street in boston. U have to respect them
@@NewEngland462 how should russian tanks get to boston? 🤔
Cool channel, just found it, good thing it’s a Saturday because I don’t plan on moving for at least a little while.
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such a truthful man gives credit to other side and knows war was wrong and shot down 8 times amazing man
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He certainly did his duty!!!
I went to meet him on the battlefield. In another time, I think we could have been friends. We both had similar experiences and hobbies.
Most unfortunate a War took so many lives of so many great young men and women.
yeah it's so great we won, now we can cut our sons dicks off and get invaded by the third world without firing a shot.
I weep for the 55.000 Young Ámaricans who sacrifized thier life for us. R.I.P. you heroes.🇩🇰🙋🏻♂️🪐👩🏻🚀🇺🇸
Russia saved you not america
@@SnakeBush Russia had an equally important role in the defeat of the reich, but were it not for both the USSR and Western help this goal could not be achieved.
@Mister Google yes and if the rest of the world wasn't at war with Germany then they could focus all of the war effort on the Easter front and they would win. See how it's fun to speculate. Germany was big but they had more to worry about than the Easter front. Britain was always at the door with a powerful navy. The us the same thing. I'm sorry dude but the USSR did alot but you can't pin them as the winners of ww2
@@SnakeBush Buckle Up Here we go again👿🤖👻👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹😱😰😍😋👌💣💣💣💣💣💣💣👺👹👹👹👹👹🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖👾👾👾🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖👾🤖👾👾👾👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹😫😫👹👹👹👹👹
@@lerui2820 GET READY BE ON STAND BY
Excellent presentation of the story of two Ace pilots, enemies during war and friends years after it ended...
Thank you Gretta
@@Dronescapes you're most welcome! It really was a fine presentation and well done🙂!
This is so interesting hearing and old Nazi pilot telling war stories. One thing most WW2 documentaries don’t have is a firsthand account from the perspective of someone who served on the German side. I especially found it interesting hearing about the average German family’s view on how Hitler came to power, that was the most interesting part.
You should read Erik Hartmann’s book.
I think he would have preferred the term Luftwaffe Pilot, rather than Nazi Pilot. He strikes me as an Aviator above anything else.
@@odinsson204 I read it almost thirty years ago. Great telling of what he went through, and Top Ace too.
There are 2 very good book on Audio Books/ kindle The German Aces Speak ( one and two )by Anne- Marie Lewis and Colin Heston.
A deeply moving book from both sides. A Higher Call by Adam Makos
His politics remain suspect. Hans Rudel a Stuka pilot who flew over 2500 missions.
The German pilots were not Nazis. (Hermann Goering was, but he was appointed by Hitler.) They were first and foremost Luftwaffe defending their country. Some of them almost certainly thought Hitler was crazy, just like the Allies did, but you had to be careful in such a world.
Mad respect for all the men that fought that war! Today most younger people think they deserve respect just for being on this earth without having done a damn thing and when they don’t get it they get mad and lash out at those that don’t show them the respect. The older generation never demand respect because in there hearts they know what they have done and that is what separates them from the younger people today! There are exceptions to this I will say, but they are few!
Veterans are old men who were young fools. To putt life and limb out for your country, and to recieve a medal and poverty in return? Better not to die at all than to die for ones country.
100% correct the norm is kids who think they were born with a sense of entitlement. That somehow they don’t have to earn it. Lack of respect for there elders. Drives me crazy 👍🏾
Well maybe another psychopath and all of his murderer underlings will make another attempt to wipe out an entire race of people while a whole country follows them blindly so that we can all go over and kill them and 50 million people die so we can all earn your “respect”. What a load of bullshit!! Keep your respect.
This is the norm for children today. However ‼️ my uncles fought in WW2 and can back to America without respect they deserve but they were Black men . That can’t be taught in school because it comes under Critical Race Theory ‼️‼️‼️‼️
Blame weak and ignorant parents and our selfish consumer society where everything is marketed as 'this is for YOU!' Blaming the kids is like blaming a sad tree, not the shitty soil it is attempting to grow in. My son is polite, caring, honest, hard working and still an idividual with his own well thought out ideas and I often get praise for how I raised him. A job I consider #1. My free time I spend with him, teaching him history and ethics and the importance of taking responsibility for one's own actions. My first hero was John Lennon for his candor and wit.
Do NOT blame others as our MSM do. The excuse they use for ignoring the 1st amendment, to censor us, to protect us from 'bad influences' which is NOT the Governments job. Now UNEMPOWERED parents, are accused of 'terrorism' for asking LEGITIMATE questions about education, denying biology or teaching sex techniques to 6 year olds! Though I am an athiest I sent my son to a strict Catholic school. I was raised in the UK's #1 military academy and was a Flight Sgt by 17. My second hero was Bruce Lee.
I won a scholarship to Cambridge even though I was a 'rocker' and rebel. Hard work and hard play! I also formed the 1st Rock band at the Academy (using the argument of raising money for a handicapped school) and helped stop hazings there that had led to 3 suicides by beating the shit out of older bullies (3 hospitalized with concussion in 1 day, each one at a time), the Academy could do nothing as all three had earlier attacked me. I have no shame in doing this and later when I moved to NYC, my close combat skills saved my life. Thanks Bruce!
An awesome documentary. As this series shows War is really horrific - yet sometimes the only option given certain circumstances.
One quibble for any future documentarians, PLEASE, if you have any old film that was shot in a 4x3 aspect ratio, whatever you decide to do with it, in the name "historical accuracy" DO NOT stretch the image to 16x9. It"s NOT accurate, it literally distorts what the camera saw. Attempt to be as accurate as possible within budget constraints, time, etc....
Dead right. There's far too much footage on the Tube, inappropriately stretched to 16:9, and also a few shrunk inappropriately, as well. Get it right, folks.
do not forget the p51 mustang it flew with the best of them in high alt. -------1200 miles on the merlin eng.
The treaty was harsh but the first world war was harsh
Herr Rall is a great man and great fighter pilot. Excellent video DroneScapes ! 🇩🇪 😊
Many thanks!
@@Dronescapes you are welcome
Absolutely a fantastic documentary and I watched every single part of it, though I really dislike misleading titles in the sense that it was not focused on the German said experience but rather a full telling of the both the axis and Ally experiences from the American and German side versus about the German ace's side
Thank you for sharing this incredible story.
👍🙏
I spoke on the phone with General Gunther Rall about the signing of my drawing. A very pleasant and courteous gentleman!.
A Legend among Legends.
It just kicked off and I'm very excited to hear that Gary saniece Voiced this. This should be pretty good if hes a part of it.
What the fuck kind of Early Warning System is that @1:43:44
If 10 victories make you W-Ace, what about 100 and more victories of German pilot’s?
I think in Germany the super aces with massive scores where known as "Experten".
"It is well that war is so terrible, otherwise we should grow too fond of it."-Robert E. Lee.
WW2 was amazing and dangerous and disturbing too but stylish and devastating wars
Actually your information on German reparation payments are misleading. The payback was largely supported by international loans. Ultimately, little of the German reparation payback was ever a burden on their economy. You can look it up
An Excellent Production! Made all the better by Gary Sinise's Classic voice!!
👍👍🙏
Did no one else deadass not hear the scream of the underworld in this or am I going insane
I knew immediately that Zemke was a German - American by his typically North German name. My dad's family is German - American. My mom's, English. My great uncles on both sides went to war. One was in New Guinea, one of those little Hells on Earth. The experience damaged him emotionally and physically for the rest of his life. Another was infantry and went to Germany. He fared better. On my mom's side, my uncle was in a bomber crew shot down over Italy in 1943. He spent the rest of the war in German captivity.
@@guaporeturns9472 Agreed. I have met so many people affected by war.
@@guaporeturns9472 It was known, but by other names, like "shell shock". I'm sorry about your dad. My great-uncle returned from the Pacific with a raging hatred of Asians. However, I have two Japanese nieces, whom I love.
@@guaporeturns9472 That's so sad. And these things reverberate for generations profoundly affecting persons so removed from the events they are completely unaware of them.
@@guaporeturns9472 Growing up, my family was exposed to the personal aftermath of the Civil War even though we were born a century after it ended.
@@guaporeturns9472 Well, we are from Texas and my paternal grandparents were extremely important to my and my brothers' upbringing, They were born in 1905 and 1906. So, they came up at a time when those who fought in the war and lived through it were still very much alive. They told us one story of our family in North Carolina who had just sat down to a meal when a Union patrol stopped at their place. These soldiers came into the house, fouled the food, and looted the place. They were visibly angry when they told that story. My mother's family had to migrate west to Arkansas from Georgia after losing everything. That was a very common story among new arrivals to Texas, Arkansas, and other places west. There was still tremendous resentment toward the North. On the other hand, my great-grandfather came to Texas from New York City. He was a doctor who served in a Union Military Hospital as an orderly before going to medical school. Our family in the North had a number of relatives in the Union Army, one of whom was killed at Port Hudson, Louisiana - the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi to fall. His story was really something. However, I never heard a word about my people in the North who fought for the Union - only those who fought for the South. I found out about it serfing the internet.
Your video is really good, it made me spend 2 hours watching it
Am I the only one that missed the part where he 'confronted a dictator'?
Cientos de misiones en defensa de su patria. Major Günther Räll, descanse en paz.
Wow, such a great history video and in HD, thanks a lot! I like Rall's take on joining the military, that was my motivations as well. For country.
I will never forgive myself - I had a chance to see Günther live in Finland on his last visit.
But was too hungover and slept over it instead. And then he died.
Imagine you are a German soldier driving a vehicle in 1944 and spot a P 47 coming after you!!! AY Carumba!!! You see it line up on you, then see the wings explode into flames, hear the .50 cal rounds hit around you and THEN you hear the plane and it's machine guns!!
or worse still a British Mosquito or Beaufighter
The P-47 could have been using drop tanks earlier. The British designed drop tanks out of paper that were effective and brought these fighters in range. The commanders of the 8th AF wouldn’t authorize their use till Jimmy Doolittle took over and the newer C and D models of the P-47 with higher fuel capacity came to the front. The bomber mafia that highly influenced USAAC practices was against external fuel tanks.
I knew a man who was a ball turret gunner on B-17’s. His aircraft’s first mission was over Holland, it was one of the first bare metal bomber and targeted by the German fighters. He spent from 1943 to the end of the war. When they left the POW camp he was one of those that lined up to spell POW so that the allied fighters wouldn’t strafe them. That was done under Zemke’s orders and saved their lives as marauding fighters would waggle their wings in response.
Thank you for explaining this!! I also mentioned this in the comment section a little higher up and got no likes or no comments!! I admit I had a couple of drinks in me when I wrote it, but it's the truth! I enjoyed watching this series, but saying the P47s couldn't reach Berlin or deep into Germany is a lie!! They were equipped to carry drop tanks, but bomber command forbid them to!! Some P47 maintenance crews got the British to make them drop tanks out of paper and resin like you said and were able to escort bombers much farther, but there were too few of them. I love Mustangs, but when they only when the Mustang was introduced, they could finally escort the bombers deeper into Germany is a lie!! The 47s could have been doing it from the beginning! They wouldn't let them!! Drop tanks were being used very early on by the British! From what I understand, all P47s were equipped to carry drop tanks from the very beginning! And besides being the work horse for the army air force, they were constantly improved throughout the war. Becoming one of the fastest fighters in the war, hitting 475 mph at altitude, straight and level flight! No bombs of course or drop tanks. It was a clean run at the factory flown by a test pilot on a stock factory plane,the final version of the aircraft.
Wonderful series, I got a real understanding.
Superb oration!! Excellent gathering of key personnel. Scary to look at the errors by Hitler that aided the Allies in the victory.
Once America got involved only ever going to be one outcome
I highly recommend Günther Rall's autobiography "Mein Flugbuch" ("My Logbook").
So many who thrived under Nazism discovered that they were actually anti-Nazi once Germany lost the War. The memoirs of these people must be taken with a huge dose of skepticism
Love this, and Gûnter !!! ((Lars
109 could out dive the spitfire mostly due to fuel injection vs carburetor
The Merlin could only perform on the level of the DB601, because of the 150 Octane gasoline the US was providing the English. Axis fighters could run on the "Regular" (87 Octane) unleaded Americans put in their automobiles today. Still, when the Germans put a DB601 on the front of a captured Spitfire, they made a real monster. What really made the Me 109 is that it performed about as well as everything else, and was quick and easy to produce. Just about anything else was more pleasant to fly. The most powerful weapon system is always the one that makes it to the hands of the men who fight with it.
@@ThatsMrPencilneck2U the 109 was small, making it harder to hit. It was also cheap to manufacture, half of what a Spit cost. Important for the Germans who were short of materials and whose factories and workers were being bombed day and night.
They solved that problem
Sir Gary Sinise, je suis un grand fan de votre carrière d'acteur ,bien sur mais aussi et surtout de votre engagement auprès de la fondation d'aide aux vétérans. Je suis Français mais j'admire ceux qui se dévoue pour porter la parole de ceux qui se battent pour leur pays. Mon pays a tendance a oublier les sacrifices des alliés
nos nations ont toujours fait front, y compris pendant la guerre d'indépendance
cordialement
Dominique Jamois
Why does this film spend so much time on other Allied pilots and planes, and, NOT ON the main SUBJECT? Guntrer Rall? This man was/IS a hero by any definition!
The first pilot to have shot down 5 planes in one mission during WW2 was Frenchman Pierre Le Gloan (4 CR42s and 1 BR20 Italians) on June 15, 1940 while flying a Dewoitine 520 which he had just received.
Shame the french didnt help more,bunch of pussies,they left us brits alone to fight the nazis.
Small note, the "Wolf's Lair" was not in fact his summer home, it was his Eastern Front command bunker complex in the forest in Poland. His summer home was Berchtesgaden in Bavaria, the "Eagle's Nest".
Also, to my knowledge Kursk was just in Western Russia even during the 1940s. I don't believe it was ever part of Ukraine or "The Ukraine" as it was referred to in the 40s as part of the USSR.
29:30 Would that be Michael Gregor who in fact was born in Georgia; moved to the USA in 1921; lived in the USA and became a citizen in 1926; in 1937 came to Canada when he was hired by Canadian Car and Foundary and designed the FDB-1; in 1944 left Canada for New Jersey’s Chase Aircraft Corp. until 1953 when he died just before the financial successes of his collaborations with Kartveli and Seversky. He worked with Kartveli and Seversky on the P-47. His birth name was Mikhail Leontyevish Grigorashvili.
the p-47 COULD outclimb anything when paddle blade propellers were added in 1943-44. it was also the fastest plane of world war 2 at 475 mph. one mph faster than the dornier 335. furthermore, the experimental chrysler engined p-47 reached 500 mph in level flight.
Thank for adding interesting info Jane
@@Dronescapes my pleasure. the p-47 thunderbolt is my all time favourite fighter plane and i research it quite a bit. i like your video.
Thank you so much Jane. Have a great weekend!
@@Dronescapes you too!
nop the Do-335 is the fastest plane according to Guiness World Records with 477MPH
Thanks for a not so bias report hearing from the other side
I flew with Bertrand Souckup for Canadair...I asked him what about all his scarrings on his arms...He used to fly the german BF-109(Messerschmitt) in WWII...He said that a Spitfire got on his ass and shot the hell out of him...he had a thick steel plate on his back, but schrapnell bounce around the cockpit and covered his arms with this crap...but he managed to jump out and parachuted...Another time, he got face to face with another Spitfire...he managed to avoided to hit his Rolls Royce engine but hit the wing...he lost his propeller so he jumped out again and on the way down, he said the Spitfire was spinning(just one wing left) so fast than the english pilot could not jump out and his plane kept spinning to the ground...It Bertrand Souckup(Yes that is name!) is still alive, he must be 120 years old by now!😄😁😆😅🤣😂
There was a thing called "Spitfire snobbery" which caused German pilots to mistake Hurricane II s for Spitfires. The Hurricane II was almost as good as the Spitfire I, And it is much more likely that Russian 'Spitfires' were Hurricane IIAs, which were not easy to distinguish in the heat of battle. The B of B was fought mainly with Hurricanes. As everyone knows, the P51 had much better range than the P47, but less powerful armament. Military top brass like things to be arranged in pretty patterns, and the Vic is prettier than the finger four until it is attacked by the enemy. We soon learned that efficiency is more important than superficial appearances.
Like how every german tank was a Tiger
@@wat8437 That's right.
Apparently the Russians liked the P-39 and Hurricane more than the Spitfire and Mustang due to low-altitude fighting. Pretty good deal for both sides.
I was half asleep @ 1:43:44
Thanks for nightmares.
History should be useful, so we can prevent it from happening again (which happens all the time because we ignore history). Perhaps nightmares should be good sometimes, given what the world is living these days. I don't think we should necessarily be permanently sheltered from events. The result is that we obsess about world event for a few days, and we ignore them after a few weeks, with the consequences still progressing at a fast pace.
@@Dronescapes yo, I'm talking about the incredibly loud audio error that sounds like screaming. Not whatever you're rambling about.
OK, there was not much context in the comment, therefore I went for the most obvious interpretation
@@Dronescapes you mean no context other than the exact time stamp? Yeah, I guess it would be hard to know what I'm talking about.
@@Nimbasa180 you are right, my bad.
It's running in a loop, repeating. Why? I can't stomach this anymore. Do you think I have such a short memory.
It's the same episode with multiple chapters within it. I too thought the same tho.
😂
Yes, the duplication is very irritating. Don't think I'll make it to the end.
Don’t be such a baby.
It is a way to get around the copyright claim.
General Gunther Rall, one of the best pilots ever. A life lived well, at full throttle. A warrior and a gentleman.
Read his autographed book. It is fascinating.
great work
Amazing documentary!
Thank you!
Hero
Hero Indeed Live Forever the DNA does
2nd time subscriber lol
LT Dan the Man
Awesome interview Gunther Rall great guy
🙏
If the P-40 was a Fighter, it would certainly have received the F-40 designation.