Hans-Joachim Marseille

Hans-Joachim Marseille
13 December 1919(1919-12-13) – 30 September 1942 (aged 22)
Hans-Joachim Marseille
Nickname	Star of Africa to the Germans Jochen to his friends
Place of birth	Berlin, Germany
Place of death	Sidi Abdel Rahman, Egypt 30°53′26.80″N, 28°41′42.87″E
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Luftwaffe
Years of service	1938–1942
Rank	Hauptmann
Unit	LG 2, JG 52 and JG 27
Commands held	3./JG 27
Battles/wars	World War II Defence of the Reich Battle of Britain Balkans Campaign North African Campaign
Awards	Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillianten Medaglia d'Oro al Valor Militare

Hans-Joachim Marseille (13 December 1919–30 September 1942; German: /hants joːaxɪm maʀsɛj/) was a Luftwaffe fighter pilot and flying ace during World War II. He is noted for his aerial battles during the North African Campaign and his bohemian lifestyle. Arguably one of the best fighter pilots of World War II, he was nicknamed the "Star of Africa". Marseille scored all but seven of his official 158 victories against the British Commonwealth's Desert Air Force over North Africa, flying the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter for his entire combat career. No other pilot destroyed as many Western Allied aircraft as Marseille.^[1]

Marseille, of French Huguenot ancestry, joined the Luftwaffe in 1938. At the age of 20 he graduated from one of the Luftwaffe's fighter pilot school just in time to participate in the Battle of Britain, without notable success. A charming person, he had such a busy night life that sometimes he was too tired to be allowed to fly the next morning. As a result, he was transferred to another unit, which relocated to North Africa in April 1941.

Under the guidance of his new commander, who recognised the hidden potential in the young officer, Marseille started to improve his abilities as a fighter pilot. He reached the zenith of his fighter pilot career on 1 September 1942, when during the course of three combat sorties he shot down 17 enemy fighters, earning him the Ritterkreuz mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillianten (Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds). Only 29 days later, Marseille was killed in a flying accident, when an engine failure forced him to abandon his fighter. After he exited the smoke-filled cockpit, Marseille's chest struck the vertical stabiliser of his aircraft, either killing him instantly, or incapacitating him so that he was unable to open his parachute.

Early life

Hans-Joachim "Jochen"^[2] Walter Rudolf Siegfried Marseille was born to Charlotte (maiden name: Charlotte Marie Johanna Pauline Gertrud Riemer) and Hauptmann Siegfried Georg Martin Marseille, a family with French-Huguenot ancestry, in Berlin-Charlottenburg Berliner Strasse 164 on 13 December 1919 at 11:45 PM.^[a] As a child he was physically weak and nearly died from a serious case of Influenza.^[3] His father Siegfried was an Army officer during World War I, and later left the armed forces to join the Berlin Police force.^[3] Siegfried later rejoined the Army in 1933,^[4] and was promoted to General in 1935. Promoted again he attained the rank of Generalmajor on 1 July 1941. He served on the Eastern Front from the beginning of Operation Barbarossa. Siegfried Marseille was killed by partisans near Petrykaw on 29 January 1944. He was buried in the cemetery of Selasje.^[5] Hans-Joachim also had a younger sister, Ingeborg "Inge". While on sick leave in Athens at the end of December 1941, he was summoned to Berlin via a telegram from his mother. Upon arriving home he learned his sister had been "slain by a jealous lover";^[6] Marseille never recovered emotionally from this blow.

His mother and father divorced when Marseille was still a young child. His mother married again, a police official by the name of Reuter. Marseille initially carried the name of his stepfather at school, a matter he had a difficult time accepting, and he retook the name Marseille in adulthood. His lack of discipline gained him the reputation of a rebel, a characteristic that would plague him early in his Luftwaffe career.^[7]

Marseille attended the 12th Volksschule Berlin (1926 – 1930), and from the age of 10, the Prinz Heinrich Gymnasium in Berlin-Schöneberg (1930 – 1938). He was considered a lazy student at first, and was constantly playing pranks and getting into trouble. Toward the end of his school years he took his education seriously, and qualified as one of the youngest at 17 years and six months for his Abitur and graduated in early 1938.^[3] Marseille then expressed his desire to become a "Flying officer."^[4]

Military service

Entry into the Luftwaffe

Although he was not athletic in physique, Marseille received a good report for a term with the Reichsarbeitsdienst ("State Labour Service") Abtlg. 1/177 in Osterholz-Scharmbeck near Bremen, between 4 April and 24 September 1938.^[8]

He joined Luftwaffe on 7 November 1938, as a Fahnenjunker (officer candidate) and received his military basic training in Quedlinburg in the Harz region. On 1 March 1939 Marseille was transferred to the Luftkriegsschule (LKS 4) near Fürstenfeldbruck. Among his classmates was Werner Schröer. Schröer reports that Marseille was often in breach of military discipline. Consequently Marseille was ordered to stay on base while his class mates were on weekend leave. Quite frequently Marseille ignored this and left Schröer a note: "Went out! Please take my chores."^[9] On one occasion, while performing a slow circuit, Marseille broke away and performed an imaginary weaving dogfight. He was reprimanded by his commanding officer, Hauptmann Mueller-Rohrmoser, and taken off flying duties and his promotion to Gefreiter postponed. Soon after, during a cross-country flight, he landed on a quiet stretch of Autobahn (between Magdeburg and Braunschweig^[10]) and ran behind a tree to relieve himself.^[11] Some farmers came to enquire if he needed assistance, but by the time they arrived Marseille was on his way, and they were blown back by his slipstream. Infuriated, the farmers reported the matter and Marseille was again suspended from flying. Those he graduated with had been made full officers by early 1940, while Marseille's rule-breaking left him with the rank of Oberfähnrich at the end of 1941.^[12]

Marseille completed his training at Jagdfliegerschule 5 in Wien-Schwechat to which he was posted on 1 November 1939. Jagdfliegerschule 5 at the time was under the command of the World War I flying ace and recipient of the Pour le Mérite Eduard Ritter von Schleich.^[13] Marseille graduated from Jagdfliegerschule 5 with an outstanding evaluation on 18 July 1940 and was assigned to Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg.^[14] Marseille's unit was assigned to air defence duty over the Leuna plant from the outbreak of war until the fall of France.

On 10 August 1940 he was assigned to I. Jagd/Lehrgeschwader 2, based in Calais-Marck, to begin operations over Britain and again received an outstanding evaluation this time by his Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur, Herbert Ihlefeld.^[15]

Battle of Britain

In his first dogfight over England, Marseille was involved in a four-minute battle with a skilled opponent.^[b] He defeated his opponent by pulling up into a tight chandelle, to gain an altitude advantage before diving and firing. The Hurricane was struck in the engine, pitching over and diving into the English Channel; this was Marseille's first kill. Marseille was then engaged from above by more enemy fighters. By pushing his aircraft into a steep dive then pulling up metres above the water, Marseille escaped from the machine gun fire of his opponents: "skipping away over the waves, I made a clean break. No one followed me and I returned to Leeuwarden."^[16]

On his second sortie, he scored another victory, and by the fifth day had claimed his fourth kill. While returning from a bomber-escort mission on 23 September 1940, his engine failed after combat damage sustained over Dover; he tried to radio his position but was forced to bail out over the sea. He paddled around in the water for three hours before being rescued by a Heinkel He 59 float plane based at Schellingwoude. Severely worn out and suffering from exposure, he was sent to a field hospital.^[16] I.(J)/LG 2 claimed three aerial victories for the loss of four Bf 109.^[17]

Days later, Marseille was passed over for promotion and was now the sole Fähnrich in the Geschwader. This was a humiliation for him, suspecting that his abilities were being suppressed so the squadron leaders could take all the glory in the air.^[18]

Another account recalled how Marseille once ignored an order to turn back from a fight when outnumbered by two to one, but seeing an enemy aircraft closing on his wing leader, Marseille broke formation and shot the attacking aircraft down. Expecting nothing but "a well done Jochen" when he landed, he was thoroughly criticised for his actions, receiving three days of confinement for failing to carry out an order.^[19]

Shortly afterwards, in early October 1940, after having claimed seven aerial victories all them flying with I.(Jagd)/LG 2 Marseille was transferred to 4./Jagdgeschwader 52,^[c] flying alongside the likes of Johannes Steinhoff and Gerhard Barkhorn. He wrote off four aircraft as a result of operations during this period.^[d]^[20] As punishment for "insubordination"—rumoured to be his penchant for American jazz music, womanising and an overt "playboy" lifestyle—and inability to fly as a wingman, Steinhoff transferred Marseille to Jagdgeschwader 27 on 24 December 1940.^[21] His new Gruppenkommandeur, Eduard Neumann, quickly recognised Marseille's potential as a pilot. Neumann stated in an interview: "Marseille could only be one of two, either a disciplinary problem or a great fighter pilot."^[22] Jagdgeschwader 27 was soon relocated to North Africa.

North Africa

Marseille's unit briefly saw action during the invasion of Yugoslavia, deployed to Zagreb on 10 April 1941, before arriving in Africa on 21 April. He scored two more kills on 23 April and 28 April. However, on 23 April, Marseille himself was shot down during his third sortie of that day by Sous-Lieutenant James Denis, a Free French pilot with No. 73 Squadron RAF, flying a Hawker Hurricane. Marseille's Bf 109 received almost 30 hits in the cockpit area, and three or four shattered the canopy. As Marseille was leaning forward the rounds missed him by inches. Marseille managed to crash-land his fighter.^[23]

Neumann (a Geschwaderkommodore as of 10 June 1942) encouraged Marseille to self-train to improve his abilities. By this time, he had crashed or damaged another four Bf 109E aircraft, including a tropicalised aircraft he was ferrying on 23 April 1941.^[24]

Marseille's kill rate was slow, and he went from June to August without a victory. He was further frustrated after damage forced him to land on two occasions: once on 14 June 1941 and again after he was hit by ground fire over Tobruk and was forced to land blind.^[25]

His tactic of diving into enemy formations often found him under fire from all directions, resulting in his aircraft being damaged beyond repair, consequently, Eduard Neumann was losing his patience. Marseille persisted, and created a unique self-training programme for himself, both physical and tactical, which resulted not just in outstanding situational awareness, marksmanship and confident control of the aircraft, but also in a unique attack tactic that preferred a high angle deflection shooting attack and shooting at the target's front from the side, instead of the common method of chasing an aircraft and shooting at it directly from behind. Marseille often practiced these tactics on the way back from missions with his comrades. Marseille became known as a master at deflection shooting.^[26]

Finally on 24 September 1941, his practice came to fruition, with his first multiple victory sortie, claiming four Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron, South African Air Force (SAAF). By mid December he had reached 25 confirmed victories^[27] and was duly awarded the German Cross in Gold. His Staffel was rotated to Germany in November/December 1941 to convert onto the Bf 109F-4/Trop, the variant that was described as the Experten (experts) "mount."

Marseille always strove to improve his abilities. He worked to strengthen his legs and abdominal muscles, to help him tolerate the extreme g forces of air combat. Marseille also drank an abnormal amount of milk and shunned sunglasses, to improve his eyesight.^[2]

To counter German fighter attacks, the Allied pilots flew "Lufbery circles" (in which each aircraft's tail was covered by the friendly aircraft behind). The tactic was effective and dangerous as a pilot attacking this formation could find himself constantly in the sights of enemy pilots. Marseille often dived at high speed into the middle of these enemy defensive formations from either above or below, executing a tight turn and firing a two-second deflection shot to destroy an enemy aircraft.

Marseille attacked under conditions many considered unfavourable, but his marksmanship allowed him to make an approach fast enough to escape the return fire of the two aircraft flying on either flank of the target. Marseille's excellent eyesight made it possible for him to spot the enemy before he was spotted, allowing him to take the appropriate action and manoeuvre himself into position for an attack.^[28]

In combat Marseille's unorthodox methods led him to operate in a small leader/wingman unit, which he believed to be the safest and most effective way of fighting in the high-visibility conditions of the North African skies. Marseille "worked" alone in combat keeping his wingman at a safe distance so he would not collide or fire on him in error.^[2]

In a dogfight, in particularly when attacking Allied aircraft in a Lufbery circle, Marseille would often favour dramatically reducing the throttle and even lowering the flaps to reduce speed and shorten his turn radius, rather than the standard procedure of using full throttle throughout.^[29] Emil Clade said that none of the other pilots could do this effectively, preferring instead to dive on single opponents at speed so as to escape if anything went wrong. Clade said of Marseille's tactics:

Marseille developed his own special tactics, which differed significantly from the methods of most other pilots. (When attacking a Lufbery circle) he had to fly very slowly. He even took it to the point where he had to operate his landing flaps as not to fall down, because, of course he had to fly his curve (turns) more tightly than the upper defensive circle. He and his fighter were one unit, and he was in command of that aircraft like no-one else.^[30]

Friedrich Körner (36 kills) also recognised this as unique:

Shooting in a curve (deflection shooting) is the most difficult thing a pilot can do. The enemy flies in a defensive circle, that means they are already lying in a curve and the attacking fighter has to fly into this defensive circle. By pulling his aircraft right around, his curve radius must be smaller, but if he does that, his target disappears in most cases below his wings. So he cannot see it anymore and has to proceed simply by instinct.^[30]

His success as a fighter pilot also led to promotions and more responsibility as an officer. 1 May 1942 saw him prematurely promoted to Oberleutnant followed by his appointment to Staffelkapitän of 3./JG 27 on 8 June 1942, thus succeeding Oberleutnant Gerhard Homuth who took command of I./JG 27.^[31]

In a conversation with his friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt, Marseille commented on his style, and his idea of air-to-air combat:

I often experience combat as it should be. I see myself in the middle of a British [sic] swarm, firing from every position and never getting caught. Our aircraft are basic elements, Stahlschmidt, which have got to be mastered. You've got to be able to shoot from any position. From left or right turns, out of a roll, on your back, whenever. Only this way can you develop your own particular tactics. Attack tactics, that the enemy simply cannot anticipate during the course of the battle — a series of unpredictable movements and actions, never the same, always stemming from the situation at hand. Only then can you plunge into the middle of an enemy swarm and blow it up from the inside.^[32]

His attack method to break up formations, which he perfected, resulted in a high lethality ratio, and in rapid, multiple victories per attack. On 3 June 1942, Marseille attacked alone a formation of 16 Curtiss P-40 fighters and shot down six aircraft of No. 5 Squadron SAAF, five of them in six minutes, including three aces: Robin Pare (six victories), Douglas Golding (6.5 victories) and Andre Botha (five victories). His wingman Rainer Pöttgen, nicknamed Fliegendes Zählwerk the ("Flying Counting Machine"),^[33] said of this fight:

All the enemy were shot down by Marseille in a turning dogfight. As soon as he shot, he needed only to glance at the enemy plane. His pattern [of gunfire] began at the front, the engine's nose, and consistently ended in the cockpit. How he was able to do this not even he could explain. With every dogfight he would throttle back as far as possible; this enabled him to fly tighter turns. His expenditure of ammunition in this air battle was 360 rounds (60 per kill).^[34]

After claiming his 100th kill on 17 June 1942, Marseille returned to Germany for two months leave. On 6 August he began his journey back to North Africa accompanied by his fiancée Hanne-Lies Küpper. On 13 August he met Benito Mussolini in Rome and was presented with the highest Italian Military award for bravery; the Medaglia d'Oro.^[35]

Leaving his fiancée in Rome, Marseille returned to combat duties on 23 August. 1 September 1942 had been Marseille's most successful day, destroying 17 enemy aircraft, and September would see him score 54 kills, his most productive month.^[36] The 17 enemy aircraft shot down included eight in 10 minutes, as a result of this feat he was presented with a type 82 Volkswagen Kübelwagen by an Italian Regia Aeronautica squadron, on which his Italian comrades had painted "Otto" (Italian language: Otto = eight).^[37] This was the most aircraft from Western Allied air forces shot down by a single pilot in one day.^[38] Only one pilot, Emil "Bully" Lang on 4 November 1943, would better this score, against the Soviet Air Force on the Eastern Front.^[39]

Marseille continued scoring multiple kills throughout September, including seven on 15 September. Between 16-25 September Marseille failed to increase his score due to a fractured arm, sustained in a force landing soon after the 15 September mission. As a result he had been forbidden from flying by Eduard Neumann.^[e] Marseille had nearly surpassed his friend Hans-Arnold Stahlschmidt's score of 59 kills in just five weeks. However the massive material superiority of the Allies meant the strain placed on the outnumbered German pilots was now severe. At this time the strength of German fighter units numbered 112 (65 serviceable) aircraft against the British who could now muster some 800 machines.^[40] Marseille was becoming physically exhausted by the frenetic pace of combat. After his last combat on the 26 September, Marseille was reportedly on the verge of collapse after a 15-minute battle with a formation of Spitfires, during which he scored his seventh victory of that day.^[41]

Aircraft

Marseille at least flew the following Bf 109 E-7 aircraft:^[42]^[43]

Werk Nummer (W.Nr) 3579, sustained 50% damage on 2 September 1940 in aerial combat and crash landed near Calais-Marck.^d
W.Nr 5597, sustained 75% damage on 11 September 1940 in aerial combat and made an emergency landing near Wissant.
W.Nr 5094, sustained 100% damage on 23 September 1940 Marseille bailed out after aerial combat near Dover.
W.Nr 4091, sustained 35% damage on 28 September 1940 Marseille made an emergency landing after engine failure near Théville.
W.Nr 1259, sustained 80% damage on 20 April 1941 Marseille made an emergency landing after engine failure near Cahela.
W.Nr 5160, sustained 100% damage on 23 April 1941 Marseille made an emergency landing after combat and belly landing near Tobruk.
W.Nr 1567, sustained 40% damage on 21 May 1941 in aerial combat and made an emergency landing near Tobruk.

Marseille flew four different Bf 109F-4/Z Trop aircraft:^[44]

Werk Nummer (W.Nr) 12593, in which his score rose to 50 on 23 February 1942^[44]
W.Nr. 10059, with 68 victory bars on the rudder.^[44] On 15 September 1942 this aircraft lost a wing in a midair collision when its pilot Leutnant Friedrich Hoffmann of 3./JG 27 collided with a Bf 109 piloted by Unteroffizier Heinrich Pein of 5./JG 27. Unteroffizier Pein was killed in the resulting crash. Leutnant Hoffmann bailed out only to succumb to his injuries five weeks later.^[45]
W.Nr. 10137, with the number "70" within an open-topped wreath and 31 victory bars on the rudder^[44]
His final F-4/Trop, W.Nr. 8673 with the early-F Variant rear-fuselage horizontal support bars welded along the lower rear fuselage seam joining the fin/rudder and the stabiliser/elevators to the next forward fuselage section, a black-outlined yellow 14, and, on the rudder, "100" enclosed within a wreath, atop 51 victory bars.^[46]

Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-4/trop, W.Nr. 8673 - 3./JG 27 - Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Marseille in September 1942

Death

The two missions of 26 September 1942 had been flown in Bf 109G-2/Trops, in one of which Marseille had shot down seven enemy aircraft. The first six of these machines were to replace the Gruppe's Bf 109Fs. All had been allocated to Marseille's 3 Staffel. Marseille had previously ignored orders to use these new aircraft because of its high engine failure rate, but on the orders of Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring, Marseille reluctantly obeyed. One of these machines, WK-Nr. 14256 (Engine: Daimler-Benz DB 605 A-1, W.Nr. 77 411), was to be the final aircraft Marseille flew.^[36]^[f]

Over the next three days Marseille's Staffel was rested and taken off flying duties. On 28 September Marseille received a telephone call from Generalfeldmarschall Erwin Rommel asking to return with him to Berlin. Hitler was to make a speech at the Berlin Sportpalast on 30 September and Rommel and Marseille were to attend. Marseille rejected this offer, citing that he was needed at the front and had already taken three months vacation that year. Marseille also revealed he wanted to take leave at Christmas, to marry his fiancée Hanne-Lies Küpper.^[47]

On 30 September 1942, Hauptmann Marseille was leading his Staffel on a Stuka escort mission,^[48]^[g] during which no contact with enemy fighters was made. While returning to base, his new Bf 109G-2/Trop's cockpit began to fill with smoke; blinded and half asphyxiated, he was guided back to German lines by his wingmen, Jost Schlang and Lt Rainer Pöttgen. Upon reaching friendly lines, "Yellow 14" had lost power and was drifting lower and lower. Pöttgen called out after about 10 minutes that they had reached the White Mosque of Sidi Abdel Rahman, and were thus within friendly lines. At this point, Marseille deemed his aircraft no longer flyable and decided to bail out, his last words to his comrades being "I've got to get out now, I can't stand it any longer".^[49]

Eduard Neumann was personally directing the mission from the command post:

I was at the command post and listening to the radio communication between the pilots. I realised immediately something serious had happened; I knew they were still in flight and that they were trying to bring Marseille over the lines into our territory and that his aircraft was emitting a lot of smoke.^[30]

His Staffel, which had been flying a tight formation around him, peeled away to give him the necessary room to manoeuvre. Marseille rolled his aircraft onto its back, the standard procedure for bail out, but due to the smoke and slight disorientation, he failed to notice that the aircraft had entered a shallow dive and was now travelling at a considerably faster speed (about 400 mph). He worked his way out of the cockpit and into the rushing air only to be carried backwards by the slipstream, the left side of his chest striking the vertical stabiliser of his fighter, either killing him instantly or rendering him unconscious to the point that he could not deploy his parachute. He fell almost vertically, hitting the desert floor seven km south of Sidi Abdel Rahman. As it transpired, a gaping 40 cm (16 in) hole had been made in his parachute and the canopy had spilled out, but after recovering the body, the parachute release handle was still on "safe," revealing Marseille had not even attempted to open it. Whilst checking the body, Oberarzt Dr Bick, the regimental doctor for the 115th Panzergrenadierregiment, noted Marseille's wristwatch had stopped at exactly 11:42 am.^[50] Dr. Bick had been the first to reach the crash site, having been stationed just to the rear of the forward mine defences, he had also witnessed Marseille's fatal fall.^[50]

In his autopsy report, Dr. Bick stated:

"The pilot lay on his stomach as if asleep. His arms were hidden beneath his body. As I came closer, I saw a pool of blood that had issued from the side of his crushed skull; brain matter was exposed. I turned the dead pilot over onto his back and opened the zipper of his flight jacket, saw the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords (Marseille never actually received the Diamonds personally) and I knew immediately who this was. The paybook also told me."^[34]

Oberleutnant Ludwig Franzisket collected the body from the desert. Hans-Joachim Marseille lay in state in the Staffel sick bay, his comrades coming to pay their respects throughout the day. As a tribute they put on the record "Rhumba Azul" that he had enjoyed listening to; it played over and over until the close of day. Marseille's funeral took place on 1 October 1942 at the Heroes Cemetery in Derna with Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring and Eduard Neumann delivering a eulogy.

The last entry in his flight book by Eduard Neumann read: "Flight duration 54 minutes, time of landing "black cross". Took to parachute 7 Km south of Sidi Abdel Rahman. Remarks: Engine damage. Flights 1-482, 388 combat flights and a total of 158 kills: Certified in the field 30th September 1942".^[51]

An enquiry into the crash was hastily set up. The commission’s report (Aktenzeichen 52, Br.B.Nr. 270/42) concluded that the crash was caused by damage to the differential gear, which caused an oil leak. Then a number of teeth broke off the spur wheel and ignited the oil. Sabotage or human error was ruled out.^[30]

Many of the other top Luftwaffe fighter aces like Adolf Galland and Erich Hartmann regarded him as "the best". Günther Rall said of Marseille, "an excellent pilot and brilliant marksman. I think he was the best shot in the Luftwaffe".^[52]

Memorials

Hans-Joachim Marseille appeared four times in the Deutsche Wochenschau. The first time on Wednesday 17 February 1942 when Oberst Galland, the General der Jagdflieger, visited an airport in the desert. The second time on Wednesday 1 July 1942 when Marseille traveled to Rastenburg to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords from Adolf Hitler. The third time on Wednesday 9 September 1942 announcing Marseille's 17 aerial victories from 1 September 1942 and that he had been awarded the Diamonds to his Knight's Cross. His last appearance dates from Wednesday 30 September 1942 showing Hauptmann Marseille visiting Erwin Rommel.^[53]

A wartime pyramid was constructed by Italian engineers at the site of Marseille's fall but over time it decayed. On 22 October 1989,^[30] Eduard Neumann and other JG 27 survivors in co-operation with the Egyptian government, erected a new pyramid that stands there to this day.^[54]

In the weeks following Marseille's death morale was low. In an attempt to improve morale Oberleutnant Fritz Dettmann persuaded Eduard Neumann to rename 3./JG 27 the "Marseille Staffel"^[55] (seen in photographs as "Staffel Marseille").^[56]

His grave bears a one-word epitaph: Undefeated. It is understood that after the war, Hans-Joachim Marseille's remains were brought from Derna and reinterred in the memorial gardens at Tobruk; it was there that his mother visited his grave in 1954. His remains are now in a small clay coffin (sarcophagus) bearing the number 4133.^[57]

In 1957, a German film, Der Stern Von Afrika (The Star of Africa), was made starring Joachim Hansen as Hans-Joachim Marseille.^[58]

On 24 October 1975, the Bundesluftwaffe's Uetersen-Appen Barracks was renamed the "Marseille Barracks."^[59]

The Memorial of the Reuter-Marseille family can be found in the graveyard in Berlin, Alt-Schöneberg. The left side bears the insignia.^[60]

Hauptmann		Hauptmann
Hans-Joachim Marseille		Hans-Joachim Marseille
Inh. d. Eichenlaubs m. Schwertern		Recipient of the Oak Leaves with Swords
u. Brillianten zum Ritterkreuz		and Diamonds to the Knight’s Cross
Der höchsten Ital. Tapferkeitsmedaille		The highest Italian Medal of bravery
in Gold u.a. Auszeichnungen		in Gold and other Awards
Geb. 13.12.1919 gef. i. Derna i. Afrika 30.9.1942		Born 13.12.1919 killed in Derna in Africa 30.9.1942

The tail rudder of his second to last Messerschmitt Bf109F-4/Trop (W.-Nr. 8673) now bearing 158 victory marks is on display at Luftwaffenmuseum der Bundeswehr in Berlin Gatow. It had initially been given to his family as a gift by Hermann Göring and was donated to the museum in the 1970s.^[61]

Twenty-five years after Marseille's death, fighter pilot veterans of World War II gathered to honour Marseille at an "International Fighter Pilots Meeting" on 7 October – 8 October 1967 at Fürstenfeldbruck. Attending this meeting were fighter pilots from six different countries, including Erich Hartmann, Robert Stanford Tuck, Adolf Galland, Günther Rall and Mike Martin, who was shot down by Marseille on 3 June 1942. The guests of honour at this meeting were Marseille's mother, Frau Charlotte Reuter-Marseille and his ex-fiancée Hanne-Lies.^[62]

The 16th Deutsches Afrikakorps reunion took place on 1 September – 2 September 1984 in Stuttgart. The German Bundesregierung invited as guest of honour Corporal Mathew P. Letuku from South Africa. Matthew, alias Mathias to everyone in JG 27, was a South African soldier taken prisoner of war by German troops on the morning of 21 June 1941 at fortress Tobruk. Mathias initially worked as a driver with 3. Staffel then befriended Marseille and became his domestic helper in Africa.^[63]^[64]

Rumor

A very controversial and unconfirmed event may have taken place shortly after Marseille was presented the Swords to the Knight's Cross. It indicates that the young Oberleutnant, while on visit in Germany, was presented evidence of the Final Solution (Holocaust). Shocked by this information he did not return to North Africa but went into hiding in Italy instead. Only after the Gestapo established his whereabouts and pressured him did he return to his Geschwader. Although the story is very vague it was built into the 1957 movie about his life, and has never been challenged since.^[65]

Victory claims and notable actions

Fähnrich Hans-Joachim Marseille was transferred to his first combat assignment with the I.(Jagd)/Lehrgeschwader 2 at the time stationed at Calais-Marck on Sunday 10 August 1940. Two days later he arrived at this unit on 12 August 1940.

He was assigned to the 1. Staffel of this Gruppe. Staffelkapitän was Oberleutnant Adolf Buhl. One of the Schwarmführer was Oberfeldwebel Helmut Goedert, to whom Marseille was assigned as wingman. Marseille already flew his very first combat mssion on the next day, Wednesday 13 August 1940 and claimed his first aerial victory on 24 August 1940. In over little more than two years he would account for another 157 aerial victories.^[66]^[67]

This indicates that the aerial combat report is missing from the German National Archives.^[68]
This indicates that Australian historian Russell Brown has expressed doubt regarding the veracity of Marseille's claims.^[69]

Victories	Date	Time	Notes
– 1940 – I. (Jagd)/LG 2
1	24 August 1940		Hurricane/Spitfire over Kent. I. (J) LG 2 was ordered to fly three combat missions over the area of Kent. The 1. Staffel claimed three aerial victories out of ten victories claimed by I.(J)/LG 2 in total in return for three losses.
2	2 September 1940		Spitfire over Detling, Kent. Marseille's aircraft was severely hit so that he had to crash land near Calais-Marck. Bf 109 E-7 W.Nr. 3579 was 50% damaged. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed six aerial victories and reported one loss.^d
3	11 September 1940	17.05	Spitfire over southern England. Marseille flew as wingman to promoted Hauptfeldwebel Helmut Goedert. Marseille's aircraft was severely damaged by a Hurricane pilot forcing him to crash-land at the French coast near Wissant. Bf 109 E-7 W.Nr. 5597 was 75% damaged. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed seven aerial victories for the loss of two in this engagement.
4	15 September 1940		Hurricane over the River Thames, England. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed four aerial victories in return for two losses.
5	18 September 1940		Spitfire over southern England.
6	27 September 1940		Hurricane over London. I.(J)/LG 2 claimed six aerial victories sustaining four losses including the Staffelkapitän Adolf Buhl. Oberleutnant Buhl was shot down and killed in action when his aircraft crashed into the sea.
7	28 September 1940		Spitfire over southern England.
– 1941 – I./JG 27
8	23 April 1941	12.50	Hurricane over Tobruk. The adversaries could have been Hurricanes from No. 73 Squadron RAF. This unit lost three aircraft in aerial combat with Bf 109 around noon. At least one further Hurricane was lost in combat by No. 6 Squadron RAF. I./JG 27 claimed seven Hurricanes in two engagements: four between 10.40 – 11.05 and three from 12.50 – 13.00. Marseille's Bf 109 E-7 (W.Nr. 5160) sustained 100% damage after combat and belly landing at Tobruk.
9	28 April 1941	09.25	Bristol Blenheim Mk IV over the sea north of Tobruk. The Blenheim was T2429, from No. 45 Squadron RAF, piloted by Pilot Officer B. C. de G. Allan. The crew and passengers were killed in the crash.^[h]
10 – 11	1 May 1941	09.15	Two Hurricanes south of Tobruk. His adversaries were No. 274 Squadron RAF and No. 6 Squadron RAF. I./JG 27 claimed four victories. Pilot Officer Stanley Godden, an ace with seven victories, was killed in action.
10 – 11	1 May 1941	09.25
12 – 13	17 June 1941	17.15	Two Hurricanes, the first northeast of Tobruk and the second east of Sidi Omar. Germans pilots claimed 13 Hurricanes in numerous engagements, the German authorities confirmed 11 claims, of which seven were credited to I./JG 27. The Allies lost at least 10 aircraft. Around noon, seven Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron SAAF engaged Bf 109 and lost four aircraft, one of which was lost to ground fire. In the afternoon No. 73 Squadron RAF lost one aircraft to flak, No. 229 Squadron RAF lost two Hurricanes in aerial combat with Bf 109s and No. 274 Squadron RAF also lost two aircraft to German fighters. No. 33 Squadron RAF lost one Hurricane to an Italian Fiat G.50 and a German Ju 87. The Italians claimed three aerial victories. However, Marseille’s victims most likely belonged to No. 229 Squadron RAF and/or No. 274 Squadron RAF.
12 – 13	17 June 1941	18.45
14	28 August 1941	18.00	Hurricane northwest of Sidi Barrani over the sea. Marseille’s adversaries were 12 Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron SAAF. Lieutenant V.F. Williams fighter crashed into the sea. Although injured he was rescued.
15 – 16	17 June 1941	17.12 17.18	Two Hurricanes southeast of Bardia.
17	13 September 1941	17.25	Hurricane south of Bardia.
18	14 September 1941	17.46	Hurricane southeast of Sofafi. Marseille’s opponents were Hurricanes from No. 33 Squadron RAF on an escort mission for Martin Marylands from No. 24 Squadron SAAF. Three Hurricanes were lost in combat with 12 Bf 109s and six Fiat G.50s. The Italians and Germans combined claims were three Hurricanes in this encounter.
19 – 23	24 September 1941	13.30 16.45 16.47 16.51 17.00	Four Hurricanes and a Martin Maryland of No. 203 Squadron RAF. Nine Hurricanes were from No. 1 Squadron SAAF and nine were from an unidentified unit. The South Africans lost a total of three Hurricanes. Captain C. A. van Vliet and 2nd Lieutenant J. MacRobert returned unhurt while Lieutenant B. E. Dold remains missing. I./JG 27 claimed six aerial victories in this engagement. It is possible that the unidentified aircraft were Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 112 Squadron RAF. This unit was bounced by a Bf 109, while returning from a shipping escort mission. Pilot Officer D. F. "Jerry" Westenra, a New Zealander and a future ace, bailed out.^[70] However, some sources state that Westenra was shot down the following day and/or by Gerhard Homuth.
24 – 25	12 October 1941	08.12 08.15	Two P-40s near Bir Sheferzan. JG 27 aircraft encountered 24 Mk IIB Tomahawks, belonging to No. 2 Squadron SAAF and No. 3 Squadron RAAF. The Australians lost three aircraft, while the South Africans reported one loss plus one severely damaged. I./JG 27 claimed four aerial victories in this engagement. Marseille's victims were likely Flying Officer H. G. "Robbie" Roberts and Sgt Derek Scott, both of 3 Sqn RAAF.^[71] Roberts made a forced landing inside Allied lines and his aircraft was later repaired. Scott crash landed his badly damaged aircraft at his base.
26	5 December 1941	15.25	Hurricane. The adversaries were 20 Hurricanes of No. 274 Squadron RAF and No. 1 Squadron SAAF. Both squadrons reported the loss of one aircraft. I./JG 27 reported two aerial victories in this engagement.
27 – 28	6 December 1941	12.10 12.25	Two Hurricanes south of El Adem. The adversaries were 24 Hurricanes from No. 229 Squadron RAF and No. 238 Squadron RAF. These units lost five Hurricanes in combat with Bf 109 in the vicinity of Bir el Gobi. Also involved in this aerial combat were Hurricanes from No. 274 Squadron RAF, but this unit did not report any losses. I./JG 27 and II./JG 27 claimed two Hurricanes each.
29	7 December 1941	09.30	Hurricane west of Sidi Omar. JG 27 fought Hurricanes from No. 274 Squadron RAF, which lost three fighters in combat with 15 Ju 87s, six Bf 109s, 12 MC 202s and MC 200s. The Italians and Germans claimed three aerial victories in this engagement.
30	8 December 1941	08.15	P-40 southeast of El Adem. Marseille’s opponents were misidentified Hurricanes of No. 274 Squadron RAF. This unit lost three fighers in aerial combat with 30 Bf 109s, MC 200s and MC 202s.
31	10 December 1941	08.50	"P-40" southeast of El Adem. The victory was over a Tomahawk IIB from No. 2 Squadron SAAF. The pilot, Lieutenant B. G. S. Enslin, bailed out uninjured.
32	11 December 1941	09.30	P-40 southeast of Tmimi. A Tomahawk IIB, AK457, of No. 250 Squadron RAF. The pilot, Flight Sergeant M. A. Canty, remains missing in action.
33 – 34	13 December 1941	16.00 16.10	Two P-40s northeast of Martuba and north east of Tmimi. One of his victories was a Tomahawk IIB, AM384 of No. 3 Squadron RAAF, piloted by Flying Officer Tommy Trimble, who was wounded and had to crash-land his aircraft.
35 – 36	17 December 1941	11.10 11.28	Two P-40s west-northwest of Martuba and southeast of Derna. Marseille’s opponents were eight misidentified Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron SAAF on an escort missions for eight Bristol Blenheim from No. 14 Squadron RAF and No. 84 Squadron RAF. The South Africans suffered heavy losses to 12 Bf 109s. Three Hurricanes were reported missing; a fourth was shot down, a fifth crash-landed and a sixth sustained heavy damage. I./JG 27 claimed five aerial victories in this engagement.
– 1942 –
37 – 40	8 February 1942	08.22 08.25	Four P-40s east-northeast of Martuba, north of Martuba, northwest of Bomba Bay and over the sea northeast of Bomba Bay. The first action took place directly over the airfield at Martuba. The first victory was a Flight Sergeant Hargreaves, who belly landed his fighter and was taken prisoner. It seems that Marseille's third victory was mistakenly identified as a P-40. The victim was most likely a Hurricane IIB, Z5312, of No. 73 Squadron RAF, piloted by Flight Sergeant Alwyn Sands (RAAF), who also crash-landed. Marseille's 40th claim was probably Sgt A. T. Tonkin of No. 112 Squadron, who was killed.
37 – 40	8 February 1942	14.20 14.30
41 – 44	12 February 1942	13.30 13.32 13.33 13.36	Three P-40s and a Hurricane northwest of Tobruk. The Hurricanes came from No. 274 Squadron RAF. This unit lost in aerial combat with four Bf 109 fighters in the vicinity of Tobruk: Sergeant R. W. Henderson crashed south of Tobruk and Sergeant Parbury bailed out with his parachute; both of them were uninjured. Pilot Officer S. E. van der Kuhle crashed his Hurricane IIA DG616 into the sea. Flight Lieutenant Smith (Hurricane IIB BD821) did not return from this mission and remains missing in action.
45 – 46	13 February 1942	09.20 09.25	Two Hurricanes southeast of Tobruk. Marseille's adversaries were seven Hurricanes from No. 1 Squadron SAAF and No. 274 Squadron RAF. These units lost in aerial combat with three Bf 109 fighters in the vicinity of Tobruk. I./JG 27 claimed three aerial victories in this engagement. Marseille's first victory was Lieutenant Le Roux; the South African crashed his burning Hurricane but escaped the wreck, although he was injured.
47 – 48	15 February 1942	13.00 13.03	Two P-40s southwest of Gambut Kittyhawk Is from No. 3 Squadron RAAF, near Gambut airfield. The Kittyhawks were bounced by two Bf 109s during takeoff. Marseille's first victory was Kittyhawk I AK594; Pilot Officer P. J. "Tommy" Briggs, bailed out at an altitude of 100 m and was injured. The second victory was Kittyhawk I AK605: Flight Sergeant F. B. (Frank) Reid was killed when it crashed.^[72]^[73]
49 – 50	21 February 1942	12.10 12.18	Two P-40s west of Fort Acroma. Marseille's opponents were 11 Kittyhawks I from No. 112 Squadron RAF, which lost three aircraft in aerial combat with six Bf 109s. I./JG 27 reported three aerial victories in this engagement.
51 – 52	27 February 1942	12.00 12.12	Two P-40s east-northeast of Fort Acroma. Probably Mk I Kittyhawks belonging to No. 3 Squadron RAAF: Sergeant Roger Jennings, in AK665 was killed while crash landing; Pilot Officer R. C. (Dick) Hart in AK689 bailed out and returned to his unit.^[74]^[75]
53 – 54	25 April 1942	10.06 10.09	Two P-40s north of the Italian airfield at Ain el Gazala and over the sea north of Ain el Gazala. Opponents were Kittyhawks I from No. 260 Squadron RAF and Tomahawks IIB from No. 2 Squadron SAAF and No. 4 Squadron SAAF. These units had the following losses in this engagement: three Tomahawks and one Kittyhawk missing (one pilot later returned wounded), two Kittyhawks and two Tomahawks crash landed after aerial combat, and one heavily damaged and one lightly damaged Kittyhawk. On the German side I.JG 27 reported five P-40s, II./JG 27 three P-40s shot down. The combat reports indicate that Marseille's opponents were Kittyhawks from No. 260 Squadron RAF.
55 – 56	10 May 1942	09.13 09.15	Two Mk I Hurricanes, southeast of Martuba airfield. The Hurricanes belonged to No. 40 Squadron SAAF and were on a patrol mission. Both pilots, Captain Cobbledick and Lieutenant Flesker, are missing in action. The first victory was a Hurricane I, serial number Z4377.
57 – 58	13 May 1942	10.10 10.15	Two P-40s: southeast of Ain el Gazala and over Gazala Bay. On this occasion, 12 Mk I Kittyhawks from No. 3 Squadron RAAF were bounced by two Bf 109s coming from the sun. Flying Officer H. G. (Graham) Pace, flying Kittyhawk I AL172, was killed by a bullet in the head.^[76] Sergeant Colin McDiarmid bailed out, injured from his Kittyhawk I AK855.^[77] Flying Officer Geoff Chinchen reported that he damaged a Messerchmitt and Marseille's aircraft was hit in the oil tank and propeller on this occasion.
59 – 60	16 May 1942	18.05 18.15	Two P-40s, east of Ain el Gazala and east of Fort Acroma. Following the first action, Sergeant E. V. Teede of No. 3 Squadron RAAF crash landed his burning Mk I Kittyhawk, AL120, west of El Adem and returned to his unit uninjured.^[78] The second combat involved four Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 450 Squadron RAAF. Pilot Officer Dudley Parker bailed out uninjured. His pilotless fighter, AK697, crashed into Kittyhawk AK604, flown by Sergeant W. J. Metherall.^[78] Both aircraft were lost in the crash and Metherall was killed in action. Marseille only observed Parker bailing out and therefore claimed only two victories.
61 – 62	19 May 1942	07.20	Two P-40s south and southwest of Fort Acroma. These were Kittyhawks from No. 450 Squadron RAAF. The Kittyhawk I AK842, piloted by Flight Sergeant Ivan Young, was hit in the engine. Young crash-landed without injury to himself; his fighter was destroyed by a resultant fire. Young managed to make it back to Allied lines.
61 – 62	19 May 1942	07.30
63 – 64	23 May 1942	11.05 11.06	Two Douglas Boston southeast of Tobruk harbour. These were really Mk I Martin Baltimores, of No. 223 Squadron RAF. Four Baltimores attacked the airport at Derna, without a fighter escort and three (AG703, AG708 and AG717) were shot down. The fourth bomber crash-landed on its return flight. I./JG 27 claimed four aerial victories that day.
65	30 May 1942	06.05	P-40 northwest of El Adem. Marseille’s adversaries were 20 Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 250 Squadron RAF and No. 450 Squadron RAAF, who were attacked by four Bf 109s between Tobruk and El Adem. The Kittyhawk I AK705 of No. 250 Squadron RAF started burning and crashed. Sergeant Graham Buckland (RAAF) bailed out, but his parachute failed to open.^[79]
66 – 68	31 May 1942	07.26 07.28 07.34	Three P-40s west of Bir-el Harmat and south-west of Fort Acroma, probably belonging to No. 5 Squadron SAAF; one of the pilots was Maj. Andrew Duncan (5.5 claims), who was killed.
69	1 June 1942	19.15	A P-40 southwest of Mteifel Chebir. Potentially the involved Allied adversaries were Kittyhawks I from No. 112 Squadron RAF. This unit lost Pilot Officer Collet on this day (exact time and location is unknown). I./JG 27 claimed two aerial victories on this evening mission.
70 – 75	3 June 1942	12.22 12.25 12.27 12.28 12.29 12.33	Credited with six kills in 11 minutes against nine Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF, which were engaged in aerial combat with Ju 87s and Bf 109s near Bir Hacheim. Among the South African losses were four shot down Tomahawks (Tomahawk IIB AK384, AK421, AM401 and AN262) and two heavily damaged Tomahawks. Robin Pare was killed in this action; Captain RL Morrison, Lieutenant VS Muir and 2nd Lieutenant CA Douglas Golding were wounded. 2nd Lieutenant M Martin crash landed in the fortress of Bir Hacheim and returned. Captain Louis C Botha made an emergency landing at Gambut. Three of Marseille's adversaries were SAAF aces: Douglas Golding, Robin Pare and Louis C Botha.
76 – 77	7 June 1942	16.10	Two P-40s southwest and northeast of El Adem. Marseille’s adversaries were two Kittyhawk Mk Is, from No. 2 Squadron SAAF. The two fighters (AK611 and AK628) were lost in combat. Lieutenant Frewen bailed out from his burning aircraft and was uninjured. Lieutenant Leonard James Peter Berrangé was killed in the action.
76 – 77	7 June 1942	16.13
78 – 81	10 June 1942	07.35 07.41 07.45 07.50	Four P-40s near Mteifel Chebir. Among the opponents were 24 Hurricanes from No. 73 Squadron RAF and No. 213 Squadron RAF. These two units lost four Hurricanes in aerial combat with Bf 109s in the vicinity of Bir Hacheim. Since II./JG 27 reported aerial combat with 40 to 50 P-40s, further Allied units are likely to have been involved. It seems certain that Marseille's fourth victory was Hurricane IIB BM966 from No. 213 Squadron RAF. Pilot Officer A. J. Hancock crash landed near El Gubbi, after he was chased for more than 30km. On the German side I./JG 27 reported the destruction of seven P-40s while II./JG 27 claimed one Hurricane.
82 – 83	11 June 1942	16.25	One P-40 southeast of Fort Acroma and one Hurricane northwest of El Adem. Both were from No. 112 Squadron RAF, which lost two Kittyhawks.
82 – 83	11 June 1942	16.35
84 – 87	13 June 1942	18.10 18.11 18.14 18.15	I./JG 27 claimed four P-40s and one "Hurricane" near El Adem/Gazala. Marseille claimed four and Leutnant Hans Remmer one.^[80] These were P-40s from No. 450 Squadron RAAF; no Hurricanes were involved and only four aircraft were lost but another South African aircraft sustained heavy damage and crash-landed at base. Flight Sergeant Bill Halliday (AL127) and Flt Sgt Roy Stone (RAF) in AK952 were both killed in action. Pilot Officer Osborne (AL106) crash landed and was picked up by the army.^[80]
88 – 91	15 June 1942	18.01 18.02 18.04 18.06	Marseille was credited with four kills in five minutes, including a P-40 near El Adem. The Allied unit remains unidentified. I./JG 27 claimed six aerial victories in combat with 12 P-40s. An indication for the veracity of this claim is No. 204 Group RAF "Intelligence Report" which reported the loss of four aircraft that day.
92 – 95	16 June 1942	18.02 18.10 18.11 18.13	Four claims accepted; all fighters. No. 5 Squadron SAAF lost two: Lt. R. C. Denham was killed and the highest-scoring member of an SAAF squadron during the war, Major John "Jack" Frost, remains missing in action.
96 – 101	17 June 1942	12.02 12.04 12.05 12.08 12.09	Marseille was credited with six kills in seven minutes over Gambut (becoming the 11th pilot to score 100 kills). His adversaries were Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 112 Squadron RAF and No. 250 Squadron RAF, as well as 12 Mk IIC Hurricanes of No. 73 Squadron RAF. The first two victories were misidentified Mk IIC Hurricanes (BN121 and BN157) of 73 Sqn. The pilots, Pilot Officer Stone and Flight Sergeant Goodwin, bailed out uninjured. The next two victories were Mk IIC Hurricanes (BN277 and BN456) also of 73 Sqn. Both pilots, Squadron Leader Derek Harland Ward.^[81] and Pilot Officer Woolley, were killed in action. Marseille's century which he identified as a Hurricane, appears to have been Flight Sergeant Roy Drew (RAAF) of 112 Sqn,^[82] in Kittyhawk I, AK586. Drew was separated from his flight and did not return. Marseille's final victory that day was a Spitfire Mk IV reconnaissance aircraft, BP916, flown by Pilot Officer Squires.
96 – 101	17 June 1942	12.12
102 – 104	31 August 1942	10.03 10.04	Two Hurricanes, south-south-east of El Alamein in the morning and one Spitfire east of Alam Halfa at 6:25 PM. It seems that one of Marseille's opponents was Pilot Officer L. E. Barnes. Barnes bailed out of his Hurricane IIC (BP451), but was severely wounded and died in a field hospital on 12 September 1942.
102 – 104	31 August 1942	18.25
105 – 121	1 September 1942	08.26 08.28 08.35 08.39 10.55 10.56 10.58 10.59 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.05 17.47 17.48 17.49 17.50 17.53	Marseille was credited with 17 kills in three separate sorties over El Taqua, Alam Halfa and Deir el Raghat. His adversaries on the early morning missions were Mk II Hurricanes (No. 1 Squadron SAAF and No. 238 Squadron RAF) and Mk V Spitfires (No. 92 Squadron RAF). One South African, Lieutenant Bailey, was injured in a crash landing, while Major P. R. C. Metelerkamp managed to fly his heavily damaged fighter back to his base. Flying Officer Matthews of 238 Sqn was posted as missing in action. Pilot Officer Bradley-Smith (92 Sqn) bailed out of his burning Spitfire VC BR474. Bradley-Smith was uninjured. Among Marseille’s adversaries during the midday combat were Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF and Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 2 Squadron SAAF, to which was attached pilots of the 57th Fighter Group USAAF.^[i] Lieutenant Stearns was wounded in the crash-landing of his P-40, Lieutenant Morrison (Kittyhawk I, ET575) remains missing in action, Lieutenant W. L. O. Moon bailed out of his Kittyhawk I, EV366 and was uninjured. Lieutenant G. B. Jack also remains missing in action. Marseille's evening opponents were Hurricanes from No. 213 Squadron RAF, of which Marseille claimed five shot down.^[83] Marseille's 117th official victory was over a Hurricane Mk IIB, BN273. The pilot, Sergeant A. Garrod, bailed out uninjured.
122 – 124	2 September 1942	09.16 09.18 09.24 15.18 15.21	Two P-40s and a Spitfire south of Imayid in the morning and two P-40s southeast of El Alamein in the afternoon. Marseille's adversaries on the early morning mission were Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 2 Squadron SAAF, including pilots from the US 57th Fighter Group and Mk II Hurricanes of No. 33 Squadron RAF. One of Marseille's victories was Lieutenant Mac M. McMarrell (USAAF) who crash-landed his fighter and was wounded in this engagement. Lieutenant Reyneke crash-landed his Kittyhawk I. It seems certain that one of Marseille's kills was over a misidentified Hurricane II, piloted by Pilot Officer G. R. Dibbs, who remains missing in action. Marseille's opponents in the afternoon combat were IIB Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF. Marseille also shot down Lieutenant E. H. O. Carman (Tomahawk IIB AM390) and Lieutenant J. Lindber (Tomahawk Mk IIB, AM349) who remain missing in action.
127 – 132	3 September 1942	07.20 07.23 07.28 15.08 15.10 15.42	Marseille claimed two Spitfires and a P-40 near El Hammam, early in the morning, two P-40s near El Imayid in the afternoon and one more P-40 south-southeast of El Alamein in the late afternoon. Marseille's adversaries in the early morning action were 24 Mk II Hurricanes, of No. 127 Squadron RAF and No. 274 Squadron RAF, 15 Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 260 Squadron RAF, No. 2 Squadron SAAF and No. 4 Squadron SAAF and eight Mk V Spitfires of No. 145 Squadron RAF. Pilots of the US 57th Fighter Group were attached to some of the above units. The pilot of the first aircraft destroyed by Marseille bailed out and appears to have been Sergeant M. Powers of 145 Sqn (Spitfire VB AB349), who was wounded in the engagement.
133 – 136	5 September 1942	10.48	Marseille was credited with four kills, despite a cannon malfunction, near Ruweisat and El Taqua. Flight Lieutenant Canham and Pilot Officer Bicksler of No. 145 Squadron RAF both bailed out of their Spitfire V. It seems that one of them was Marseille's first victory. Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 112 Squadron RAF and No. 450 Squadron RAAF were also involved in this engagement.
133 – 136	5 September 1942	10.49 10.51 11.00
137 – 140	6 September 1942	17.03 17.14 17.16 17.20	Three P-40s and a Spitfire south of El Alamein. Among Marseille's opponents were eight Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 260 Squadron RAF, Mk IIB Tomahawks of No. 5 Squadron SAAF to which was attached pilots of the US 57th Fighter Group. 260 Sqn lost one Kittyhawk and a second fighter was damaged. 5 Sqn SAAF reported three losses and a fourth Tomahawk was damaged beyond repair. No. 7 Squadron SAAF lost five Hurricanes. It is unknown whether the Americans reported losses I./JG 27 claimed five aerial victories in action against 20 P-40s; II./JG 27 reported aerial combat with 23 P-40s, claiming one victory. III./JG 53 claimed one P-40 in combat with 12 P-40s and six Spitfires.
141 – 142	7 September 1942	17.43	Two P-40s southeast of El Alamein and southwest of El Hammam. Marseille’s opponents were Mk I Kittyhawks of No. 4 Squadron SAAF and Mk IIB Tomahawks from No. 5 Squadron SAAF. The South Africans lost two Tomahawks and one Kittyhawk. Two further Tomahawks and one Kittyhawk sustained battle damage. I./JG 27 claimed four aerial victories in this engagement.
141 – 142	7 September 1942	17.45
143 – 144	11 September 1942	07.40 07.42	Two P-40s southeast of El Alamein and west-southwest of Imayid. Marseille's opponents were likely Hurricanes II from No. 33 Squadron RAF and No. 213 Squadron RAF. No. 213 Sqn RAF reported the loss of Hurricane IIC BP381. Flight Sergeant S.R. Fry was shot down. I./JG 27 reported combat with 20 fighter bombers, an indication which points more to Hurricanes rather than Spitfires V from No. 145 Squadron RAF and No. 601 Squadron RAF, these were engaged with Ju 87s and Bf 109s at the same time.
145 – 151	15 September 1942	16.51 16.53 16.54 16.57 16.59 17.01 17.02	Marseille was credited with seven kills against P-40s in 11 minutes. JG 27 reported combat with 36 Kittyhawks: 18 Bf 109s from I./JG 27 claimed 10 in this enagement, all of them over German-held territory; 15 Bf 109s from II./JG 27 claimed one victory and; 10 Bf 109s from III./JG 27 claimed eight P-40s and one Spitfire, four of them over German territory. However, the records of the individual Allied squadrons involved: No. 3 Squadron RAAF, No. 112 Squadron RAF, No. 250 Squadron RAF and No. 450 Squadron RAAF (comprising No. 239 Wing) show that their total losses to enemy action that day were only five P-40s.^[84]^[69] One of the P-40 pilots shot down was Sergeant Peter Ewing (450 Sqn), who bailed out, was captured and spent a day as a guest of I./JG 27. Sgt Gordon Scribner (3 Sqn Kiityhawk EV322 CV-I) was killed during this engagement.^[85] Further reported losses include: Jack Donald (No. 3 Sqn), whose Kittyhawk EV345 had its port aileron shot away and engine set on fire — he bailed out, landed on an Italian mess tent and became a POW; Sgt Cedric Young RNZAF (112 Sqn), who may have been shot down by AA fire and; pilots named Thorpe (250 Sqn) and Strong (450 Sqn), who both also became POWs. Sgt Ken Bee (3 Sqn) was wounded in action, but managed to get his damaged aircraft back to base, as did Pilot Officer Keith Kildey, with severe cannon damage to his tailplane.^[86]^[69]
152 – 158	26 September 1942	09.10 09.13 09.15 09.16	Seven kills near El Daba and south of El Hammam, including three Spitfires. Marseille's adversaries on an early morning mission were Mk II Hurricanes of No. 33 Squadron RAF and No. 213 Squadron RAF, plus eight Mk V Spitfires of No. 92 Squadron RAF. It seems certain that Marseille's first victory was over a misidentified Hurricane IIC, BN186, flown by Pilot Officer Luxton, who crash-landed his aircraft. Marseille's last victory was Pilot Officer Turvey, who bailed out of his Spitfire VC, BR494. Marseille's adversaries in his last aerial combat, that afternoon, included 11 Spitfires from No. 145 Squadron RAF and No. 601 Squadron RAF.
		15.56
		15.59 16.10

Marseille's 151 claims in North Africa included:^[87]

101 Curtiss P-40 Tomahawk/Kittyhawk fighters;
30 Hawker Hurricane fighters;
16 Supermarine Spitfire fighters;
Two Martin A-30 Baltimore bombers;
One Bristol Blenheim bomber; and
One Martin Maryland bomber.

The German National Archives still hold records for 109 of Marseille aerial victories.^[68] A further biographer of Marseille, Walter Wübbe, has made an attempt to link these records to Allied units, squadrons and when possible even to individual pilots, in order to verify the claims as much as possible.^[66]

Serious discrepancies between Allied squadron records and German claims have caused some historians and Allied veterans to question the accuracy of Marseille's official victories, in addition to those of JG 27 as a whole.^[69] Attention is often focussed on the 26 claims made by JG 27 on 1 September 1942, of which 17 were claimed by Marseille alone. Another biographer, Franz Kurowski, claims that the victories were verified through Allied records after the war.^[88] A USAF historian, Major Robert Tate states: "[f]or years, many British historians and militarists refused to admit that they had lost any aircraft that day in North Africa. Careful review of records however do show that the British [and South Africans] did lose more than 17 aircraft that day, and in the area that Marseille operated."^[89] British historian Stephen Bungay gives a figure of 20 Allied losses that day.^[90]

However, the claims for 15 September 1942 (see above) are in serious doubt, following the first detailed scrutiny of the records of individual Allied squadrons by Australian historian Russell Brown. Moreover, Brown lists several occasions on which Marseille could not have downed as many aircraft as claimed.^[69]

Stephan Bungay has pointed out the low military value of shooting down DAF fighters, rather than the bombers that, by mid-1942, were having a highly damaging effect on Axis ground units and convoy routes.^[90]^[j] Referring to 1 September 1942, Bungay points out that even if Marseille shot down 15 of the 17 he claimed that day, "the rest of the 100 or so German fighter pilots^[k] between them only got five. The British [sic] lost no bombers at all...^[90]During this period the British had lost a few bombers, but all fell to anti-aircraft defences and evidence shows that Rommel was forced onto the defensive because of the losses inflicted by DAF bombers.^[83]

Summary of career

Decorations

• 1 February 1940:	Flugzeugführerabzeichen (Pilots Badge)^[91]
• 9 September 1940:	Iron Cross Second Class for two air victories.^[91]
• 17 September 1940:	Iron Cross First Class for fourth air victory.^[91]
• 3 November 1941:	Honorary Cup of the Luftwaffe.^[91]
• 24 November 1941:	German Cross in Gold^[92] (the first German Pilot to receive this award in Africa.) for 25 victories. After returning from a combat mission having just claimed his 35th and 36th victory, the Award was presented to Marseille by Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring on 17 December 1941.^[27]
• 22 February 1942:	416th Knight's Cross of the Luftwaffe^[93] for reaching 46 kills.^[94] By the time the award was officially processed and handed out to him his score stood at 50 kills.^[95]^[96]^[20] Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring presented the Award to both Marseille and Oberfeldwebel Otto Schulz (4./JG 27). Unfortunately no picture of this presentation exists or has materialised until today.^[97] Also awarded near this date was the Italian Silver Medal for bravery (Medaglia d'Argento al Valor Militare).^[91]
• 1 May 1942:	Early promotion to Oberleutnant.
• 6 June 1942:	Becomes the 97th recipient of the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross^[93] for 75 kills. The Oak Leaves were never presented to Marseille because a few days later he was already honoured with the Swords and Oak Leaves.^[98]
• 18 June 1942:	12th recipient of Swords to the Knight's cross with Oak Leaves^[93] for 100 kills (presented by Hitler on 28 June 1942 in the Führerhauptquartier Wolfsschanze in Rastenburg).
• August 1942:	Awarded Combined Pilots-Observation Badge in Gold with Diamonds (presented by Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring).^[99]
• 6 August 1942:	Awarded highest Italian decoration for bravery, the Medaglia d'Oro, (presented by Benito Mussolini in Rome on 13 August).
• 2 September 1942:	Becomes only the fourth German serviceman to be awarded the Diamonds to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords.^[93] The Diamonds were to be made in a special, by Adolf Hitler defined, fashion. Hitler had decided to present them to Marseille personally some time later in the year. However, Marseille's death prevented this. It is unclear why the Diamonds were never handed out to Marseille's family after his demise, as foreseen by Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 1573 Article 7^[100] (German Law of 1939 enacting the Knight's Cross).^[101]
• 16 September 1942:	Early promotion to Hauptmann - Youngest Captain in the Luftwaffe.
• 7 June 1943:	Africa Cuffband (posthumously)^[102]
• 30 November 1962:	The Italian Minster of Defence Giulio Andreotti paid the relatives of Marseille (and relatives of Joachim Müncheberg) an honorary one-time pension of 1,500 DM.^[103]
• Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe in Gold with Pennant "300"^[99]
• Mentioned six times in the Wehrmachtbericht^[99]

References in the Wehrmachtbericht

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
Thursday, 4 June 1942	Hauptmann Müncheberg errang am 2. Juni seinen 80., Oberleutnant Marseille am 3. Juni in Nordafrika seinen 70. bis 75. Luftsieg.^[104]	Hauptmann Müncheberg recorded on 2 June, his 80th, Oberleutnant Marseille on 3 June in North Africa his 70th to 75th aerial victory.
Friday, 12 June 1942	Oberfeldwebel Steinbatz errang an der Ostfront seinen 95. Oberleutnant Marseille in Nordafrika seinen 78. bis 81. Luftsieg.^[105]	Oberfeldwebel Steinbatz recorded his 95th on the Eastern Front, Oberleutnant Marseille in North Africa his 78th to 81st aerial victory.
Thursday, 18 June 1942	Oberleutnant Marseille schoß in Nordafrika innerhalb vierundzwanzig Stunden zehn feindliche Flugzeuge ab und erhöhte damit die Zahl seiner Luftsiege auf 101.^[106]	Oberleutnant Marseille in North Africa within 24 hours shot down 10 enemy aircraft and increased his count of aerial victories to 101.
Friday, 4 September 1942	Oberleutnant Marseille, Staffelkapitän in einem Jagdgeschwader, errang am 2. September an der ägyptischen Front seinen 125. Luftsieg, nachdem er in Luftkämpfen des vorangegangenen Tages 16(17) britische Gegner bezwungen hatte.^[107]^[83]	Oberleutnant Marseille, Staffelkapitän in a fighter wing, recorded on 2 September on the Egyptian front his 125th aerial victory, after he defeated 16 (17)^[l] British [sic] adversaries the preceding day.
Wednesday, 16 September 1942	An der ägyptischen Front errang Oberleutnant Marseille seinen 145. bis 151. Luftsieg.^[108]	Oberleutnant Marseille recorded his 145th to 151st aerial victory on the Egyptian front.
Thursday, 1 October 1942	Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Marseille, Träger der höchsten deutschen Tapferkeitsauszeichnung, fand, unbesiegt vom Feind, auf dem nordafrikanischen Kriegsschauplatz den Fliegertod. Erfüllt von unbändigem Angriffsgeist, hat dieser junge Offizier in Luftkämpfen 158 britische Gegner bezwungen. Die Wehrmacht betrauert den Verlust eines wahrhaft heldenhaften Kämpfers.^[109]	Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Marseille, recipient of the highest German medal of bravery, found, undefeated by the enemy, at the North African theatre of war his flier's death. This young officer, fraught with aggressive spirit, had defeated 158 British [sic] adversaries. The Wehrmacht mourns at the loss of a truly heroic warrior.

Dates of rank

Hans-Joachim Marseille joined the military service in Wehrmacht on 7 November 1938. His first station was Quedlinburg in the Harz region where he received his military basic training as a Luftwaffe recruit.^[110]

7 November 1938:	Flieger
13 March 1939:	Fahnenjunker
1 May 1939:	Fahnenjunker-Gefreiter
1 July 1939:	Fahnenjunker-Unteroffizier
1 November 1939:	Fähnrich
1 March 1941:	Oberfähnrich
1 April 1941:	Leutnant (16 June 1941 effective as of:)
1 April 1942:	Oberleutnant (8 May 1942 effective as of:)
1 September 1942:	Hauptmann (19 September 1942 effective as of:)

Stations of operation

Hans-Joachim Marseille, after he had completed his training at the Jagdfliegerschule 5, was assigned to the Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg stationed at the airport in Merseburg-West.^[111]

Ergänzungsjagdgruppe Merseburg

18 July 1940

–

10 August 1940

Merseburg-West^[111]

I.(Jagd)/LG 2