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in August, he received the Deutsches Kreuz
in Gold. By mid-September, he had been
transferred to 6./JG 52, and by the end of the
month, his victory tally had reached 60.
However, a sudden change in his career
occurred on October 1, 1943, during a routine
escort mission for Heinkel He 111 bombers.
On his return, his aircraft was hit by German
flak at 5,500 meters, resulting in a severe
injury to Petermann. He managed to execute
a smooth emergency landing, but subsequently,
he had to have his left arm amputated above
the elbow, along with one toe on his left foot.
In February 1944, he was awarded the Knight's
Cross for his service to date. The proposal for
this award was made by the commander of
II./JG 52, Oblt. Wilhelm Batz, and seconded by
Kommodore Dieter Hrabak due to his personal
experience with Petermann.
For Viktor Petermann, this serious injury
should have meant the end of his fighting
career. From May 1944, Viktor Petermann
worked in the Luftwaffe's historical research
department. According to his own account,
however, "desk work" was not for him.
He therefore made use of his former contacts
with fellow airmen from JG 52, who were now
in high positions in the Luftwaffe's fighter
command, and asked to return to the combat
unit. In July 1944, he achieved a transfer to
JG 52 headquarters, which at that time was still
headed by Kommodore Hrabak. In November
1944, Petermann was assigned to the Stab of
III./JG 52, and in January 1945, with a prosthetic
left arm, he returned to combat flying on the
Bf 109. His new duty station became 10. Staffel
within III./JG 52. During January-March 1945,
Petermann, despite the prosthesis, managed
to achieve four more victories over Soviet
fighters, then was retrained to the Me 262
in JG 7 in late March and early April 1945.
He again took part in some combat flights, and
on 30 March scored a probable kill of a B-17,
although he himself disputed this achievement.
However, flying the Me 262 did not suit him.
The aircraft required careful handling of the
throttles of both jet engines, which was very
difficult when the throttles were coupled and
controlled by the prosthesis. At the same
time, Pettermann did not like what he called
the "cocky atmosphere" of the experts from
JG 7. In mid-April, he returned to III./JG 52,
which was then fighting in Silesia, and became
commander of 10. Staffel. On May 1, he was
promoted to the rank of Oberleutnant and
completed his last combat flight four days
later. He was taken captive by the Soviets and
was repatriated due to his injuries in July 1945.
In addition to his 64 confirmed aerial victories,
he claimed at least seven other victories that
were not confirmed. Before he was wounded,
he also severely damaged 56 other aircraft in
aerial combat, although he did not report any
kills in these instances.
After the war, like most Sudeten Germans,
he was expelled from Czechoslovakia and
managed to settle in Saxony, where he worked
in the manufacture of agricultural equipment
and in agricultural trade. In 1995, he came
HISTORY
A portion of a Luftwaffe map from 1940 showing most of the locations mentioned in the article.
INFO Eduard12
November 2024