Wilhelm Mayer (5 December 1917 – 4 January 1945) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator and fighter ace during World War II. He is credited with 27 aerial victories, claimed over the Western Front and in Defense of the Reich in 124 combat missions.
Born in Fürth, Mayer grew up in the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. He joined the military service in the Luftwaffe and was trained as a fighter pilot. Following flight training, he was posted to Jagdgeschwader 26 "Schlageter" (JG 26—26th Fighter Wing) in January 1942. Flying with this wing, Mayer claimed his first aerial victory on 31 July 1942, which was not confirmed. His first confirmed victory was filed on 14 March 1943 over a Royal Air Force fighter aircraft. In October 1944, he became the acting commander of 8. Staffel (8th squadron) of JG 26. On 4 January 1945, Mayer was shot down by Supermarine Spitfires near Emsland, Germany. He was posthumously awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 12 March 1945.
Career
Mayer was born on 5 December 1917 in Fürth, at the time in Kingdom of Bavaria as part of the German Empire. World War II in Europe began on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland. In January 1942, Mayer was transferred from the Ergänzungs-Jagdgruppe West, a supplementary training unit for fighter pilots destined to fight on the Western Front, to 6. Staffel of Jagdgeschwader 26 "Schlageter" (JG 26—26th Fighter Wing), a squadron of the II. Gruppe. Mayer made four touch-and-go flights on the Focke Wulf Fw 190 on 26 January, his first on the Fw 190. At the time, II. Gruppe was based at Abbeville-Drucat Airfield and commanded by Hauptmann Joachim Müncheberg while 6. Staffel was headed by Oberleutnant Otto Behrens.
On 12 February, Mayer participated in Operation Donnerkeil, flying on two combat missions with II. Gruppe, without claiming an aerial victory. The objective of this operation was to give the German battleships and and the heavy cruiser fighter protection in the breakout from Brest to Germany. The Channel Dash operation (11–13 February 1942) by the Kriegsmarine was codenamed Operation Cerberus by the Germans. In support of this, the Luftwaffe, formulated an air superiority plan dubbed Operation Donnerkeil for the protection of the three German capital ships.
Mayer's Fw 190 A-2 (Werknummer 5393—factory number) suffered engine failure on 15 July resulting in a forced landing at Abbeville-Drucat Airfield. He claimed his first aerial victory on 31 July 1942 in defense of a Royal Air Force (RAF) "Circus" mission flown by twelve Douglas Boston bombers supported by the North Weald Wing. "Circus" No. 201 had targeted the airfield at Drucat and withdrew over the Somme Estuary when they were intercepted by II. Gruppe fighters. In this encounter, Mayer claimed a Supermarine Spitfire fighter, from either No. 121 or No. 332 Squadron, shot down over the English Channel. This claim was not confirmed. In late August, Mayer filed claims for two further Spitfires shot down, both were also not confirmed. Depending on source, the first was either claimed on 26 or 27 August over the Somme Estuary. The second, on 28 August, was over a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Spitfire from No. 401 Squadron. On 6 September, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) targeted the airfield at Wizernes with a small formation of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers. Mayer claimed a B-17 shot down at 18:45 which was not confirmed again.
Mayer first confirmed claim was on 14 March 1943. The RAF conducted a "Rodeo" fighter sweep by the Biggin Hill Wing to Le Touquet. II. Gruppe, under command of Hauptmann Wilhelm-Ferdinand Galland, intercepted the RAF fighters and claimed five aerial victories including a Spitfire shot down by Mayer over the Somme Estuary. On 4 April, Western Allies aerial forces attacked the Renault factory near Paris. Defending against this attack, Mayer claimed yet another unconfirmed aerial victory. The claim was made over a Spitfire presumably shot down northwest of Dieppe.
Defense of the Reich
On 29 April 1943, the USAAF flew its largest mission to date, sweeping the Dutch coast from Ostend to Woensdrecht. Led by Major Josef Priller, 6. and 8. Staffel intercepted Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighters off the coast. During the encounter, Mayer shot down a P-47 fighter from the 56th Fighter Group north of Ostend. On 13 June, Mayer shot down a P-47 from the 78th Fighter Group north-northwest of Dunkirk. That day, the VIII Bomber Command flew a mission to Kiel and Bremen.