| Maximilian Volke | |
|---|---|
Leutnant Ernst-Wilhelm Reinert (left) and Feldwebel Maximilian Volke standing next to Hans-Joachim Marseille's "Otto" Kübelwagen, April 1943[1] |
|
| Born | 1915 Munich |
| Died | 9 September 1944 Modena, Italy |
| Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
| Service/branch | Luftwaffe |
| Rank | Oberfeldwebel |
| Unit | JG 77 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | German Cross in Gold |
Oberfeldwebel (flight sergeant) Maximilian Volke (Munich, Germany, 1915 – Modena, Italy, 9 September 1944) was a German 37-victory fighter ace of the World War II Luftwaffe's Jagdgeschwader 77.
A veteran of the campaigns in Russia and Africa, he was shot down in his Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter over Emilia-Romagna in northern Italy, during the Gothic Line operations, on 9 September 1944, by a gunner in an American B-25 Mitchell bomber. Volke was 29 years and was decorated with the German Cross in Gold, received as Feldwebel in the II./JG 77 on July 12, 1943.[2]
Ofw. Volke's remains and parts of his aircraft were located and dug out of a farmer's field just north of Modena by an Italian amateur war history research team (the Romagna Air Finders) in July 2007, nearly 63 years after he was shot down.[3]