Franz Stigler

Franz Stigler
Birth name	Ludwig Franz Stigler
Nickname(s)	'Franz'
Born	(1915-08-21)21 August 1915 Regensburg, Bavaria
Died	22 March 2008(2008-03-22) (aged 92) Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Allegiance	Germany (to 1945)
Service/branch	Luftwaffe (Wehrmacht)
Years of service	1933–1945
Rank	Oberleutnant (Wehrmacht)
Unit	JG 27, and JV 44
Commands held	Gruppenkommandeur 12./JG 27
Battles/wars	World War II North African Campaign Defense of the Reich
Awards	Iron Cross 1st class
Other work	Lufthansa Transport Pilot / Flight Instructor / Lead Mechanic Hertz Rental Car

Oberleutnant Franz Stigler (21 August 1915 – 22 March 2008) was a German fighter pilot in World War II. He was born on 21 August 1915 in Regensburg, Bavaria. His father, also named Franz, was a World War I pilot/observer. Franz started flying gliders in 1927 at the age of twelve. In the 1930s he flew for Lufthansa and was an instructor pilot. One of his most famous students was Gerhard Barkhorn. Stigler said of him that "he could barely fly the plane and I almost failed him".

As a member of Jagdgeschwader (JG) 27 in North Africa as well as Europe, and of the Jagdverband (JV) 44 jet fighter squadron, the only aircraft he flew in combat were the Bf 109 and Me 262. Me 262 "White 3" of JV.44 is commonly believed to be Adolf Galland's aircraft. This is a misconception, as White 3 was the aircraft of Franz Stigler and Galland had a photo taken by it; this led to the confusion.

He is best known for his role in the Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler incident in which he spared the crew of a severely damaged B-17 bomber. He escorted the plane to safety over enemy lines. The story was kept secret for many years, but in 1990 Stigler and Charles Brown (the pilot of the B-17) finally reunited and were close friends until their deaths in 2008. Stigler died in Canada, where he moved to after the war.

Early life[]

Stigler was born on the 21st of August, 1915.

Military and Wehrmacht[]

He joined the German Army sometime around 1939, and was soon placed in the Wehrmacht at an unknown date. His service ended in 1945.

Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler incident[]

On 20 December 1943, Franz met the B-17 bomber named "Ye Olde Pub" and its pilot Charles "Charlie" Brown for the first time. Franz had shot down two B-17s earlier that day and he soon caught up to a wounded B-17 flown by Charles Brown. Lining up to finish the bomber and shoot it down, he noticed the tail gunner never moved the guns. Upon further inspection of the airplane, he saw through large holes in the fuselage a frantic crew trying to save the lives of their fellow airmen. Franz is quoted as saying "and for me it would have been the same as shooting at a parachute", in reference to a statement by his commander and mentor Gustav Rödel; "If I hear of one of you shooting a man in a parachute, I'll shoot you myself!". Stigler motioned to Brown to land his airplane in neutral Sweden because of the extensive damage. However, Brown didn't understand, and decided to keep flying towards England. Stigler escorted the B-17 and its crew to the North Sea coast, protecting it from German anti-aircraft gunners (who recognized the silhouette of his BF-109 and held fire). Once they were over water, Stigler saluted Brown and broke formation to return to base.

Stigler never spoke of this incident as he could have been court-martialed and executed. Charles Brown told his commanding officers, who chose to keep the incident in top secret. Years later, in 1990, Charles Brown searched for the German pilot who let them live that day, and eventually the two pilots, along with the Pub crew, met face to face, half a century later.^[1]

Between 1990 and 2008, Charlie Brown and Franz Stigler became close friends and remained so until their deaths within several months of each other in 2008.^[2]

References[]