| Wilhelm Frickart | |
|---|---|
| Born | Unknown |
| Died | Unknown |
| Allegiance | Germany |
| Service/branch | Aviation |
| Rank | Leutnant |
| Unit | FA 24/FA 242, FA 20, Jasta 64, Jasta 65 |
| Commands held | Jasta 65 |
| Awards | Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Iron Cross, Silver and Bronze award of Austro-Hungarian Medal for Bravery |
Leutnant Wilhelm Frickart was a World War I flying ace credited with twelve aerial victories. He is the only known German observer to become an ace balloon buster.[1][2]
Frickart was originally assigned to duty as an observer/gunner on the Russian Front with FA 24 (later redubbed FA 242). He scored his first victory on 12 April, teaming with Leopold Anslinger to shoot down a Voisin. He followed up for a second one on 27 April. The latter half of June, from the 15th through the 28th, he shot down five Russian observation balloons.[3][4]
Frickart then went for pilot training, and was consequently assigned to FA 20 on the Western Front. He had three wins there, only one of which, scored on 17 March 1918, was confirmed.[5] From there, he progressed to flying fighters for Jasta 64 in mid-1918. He then moved to Jasta 65 on 19 August 1918 as deputy commander under fellow ace Otto Fitzner,[6] and intermittently commanded the squadron while scoring his last four wins between 30 August and 4 October 1918.[7]
Above the Lines: The Aces and Fighter Units of the German Air Service, Naval Air Service and Flanders Marine Corps 1914 - 1918 Norman L. R. Franks, et al. Grub Street, 1993. ISBN 0948817739, 9780948817731.