The Time a Stuka Shot Down a Soviet Ace - World War II Stories

[@Snake-ms7sj]

The Soviets put a bounty on Rudel's head because of the damage he caused their forces.

[@TheLateBird7]

Beautiful reenactment, storytelling, image capture and edit. Big praise!

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks so much!

[@ATC83]

Stunning depiction of those events I knew nothing about. Keep up the good work!

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks so much!

[@notafrog2040]

this channel has been fueling my re awakened need for historical content and I want to say, the voice acting, narration, even the war thunder with filters over it, is top notch, you guys deserve more views! A+

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thankyou so much!

[@fliegeroh]

An interesting fact: Rudel nearly washed out of Dive bombing training because he couldn't fly well in formation and had other problems. He was able to rally and become one of the greatest air warriors of all time.

[@finncarlbomholtsrensen1188]

I honestly don't think that Rudel was considered a fine pilot, but he was able to control his dive bomber enough to get his absurd number of ruined tanks!

[@АлександрШершнёв-р6с]

😂😂😂 чудес не бывает если нет данных ты не будешь хорошим летчиком. И Рудель вряд ли был таковым , но бумага все стерпит! Написать и приписать можно что угодно !

[@constantinbaghici7279]

An amazing story of air combat that I first learned about. I myself am from Chisinau - this is 20 km from Grigoriopol - the area that appears in your history. Out of curiosity, I checked the information from the Russian sites and everything completely coincides with your story. You have a very interesting approach to everything in the video rendering visualisation. You have a great team with which I congratulate you.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thankyou so much, really appreciate that!

[@constantinbaghici7279]

@@aviationdeepdive Thanks for your feedback. Let me know if your work continues, because I have materials of a similar air battle that I carefully collected. I could kindly provide and comment on them in case of your interest.

[@aviationdeepdive]

@@constantinbaghici7279 Oh I'd really be interested in hearing about that, I'm always on the lookout for more topics to cover. Please shoot me an email at [e-mail] and we can discuss it more there

[@joevanseeters2873]

Rudel was an unrepentant Nazi after WWII but was a respected pilot none the less by aviation experts and combat pilots from all nations involved in the war. He was very dedicated to and was a personal favorite of Adolf Hitler's, which caused him problems after WWII. He flew more combat missions than any other pilot in history (a record never beaten, even to this very day) and logged over 2,500 total combat sorties destroying over 500 tank victories, a soviet battleship, two cruisers, over 1000 vehicles, 70 artillery pieces, and countless troop formations. Some days he would fly mission after mission, returning to refuel and rearm his plane from sunrise to sunset and into the night, sometimes in the absolute worst possible flying conditions imaginable. He was selected as the first test pilot for the special Stuka tank buster model with two massive 37mm cannons mounted in pods under the wings which he nick named his "Cannon Bird". Rudel used his "Cannon Bird" to maximum effect single handedly destroying more tanks than any pilot in history. Although some historians question his total numbers, it is generally agreed upon that he was one of the most effective (if not THE MOST effective) combat pilot in history and it is highly doubtful that any pilot will ever fly that many missions or destroy that many targets again. He lost his lower leg in the final months of WWII after he was shot by an armor piercing round flying a Stuka, but was back in the air in six weeks against doctors orders and continued to fly combat missions until the last hours of WWII. Although famous for the Stuka he flew, he was also effective in the FW190 and flew several other aircraft during the war also including the BF109 (which he usually flew for transportation flights to and from Berlin or other locations around Germany on some occasions if not using his Stuka or the FW190). Due to his notoriety in the Luftwaffe (German Air Force), he had access to pretty much whatever plane he wanted to fly for whatever purpose he wanted it for, but primarily flew the JU-87 "Stuka" throughout the war, the plane he felt most comfortable flying, although was slow, heavy, and not as maneuverable as the BF109 or FW190. He achieved the rank of Colonel in his mid-twenties and surrendered to American forces who refused to turn him over to the Soviets who wanted to punish him badly for his combat prowess and successes against their armed forces. Stalin actually had a large ransom on his head for any pilot or soldier who could kill Rudel which ultimately convinced the American's NOT to turn him over to them, however the Americans did turn over German Pilot Erich Hartmann to the Soviets who had single handedly shot down over 300 Soviet aircraft. Colonel Rudel was the only German soldier/Pilot to ever receive the Golden Knights Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds (which would be the equivalent to five medals of honor). He was ordered to stop flying combat sorties on many occasions by Goering and the Luftwaffe High Command for propaganda reasons, even being banned from further flying by Hitler himself, but Rudel refused to stop flying combat missions every time. His disobedience to stop flying missions was overlooked by Hitler and the German High Command due to his effectiveness in the air and dedication to the protection of his homeland at any cost and his willingness to give up his life to defend Germany if necessary.. Towards the end of WWII he continued to fly missions (after being told not to do so many times) and score countless victories against the Soviet forces advancing in the east but gave the credit to his squadron rather than himself to avoid drawing additional attention to himself after being told not to fly for propaganda reasons as a national hero. He eventually went to Argentina in 1948 after his release from American captivity to help Argentina establish an effective Air Force (as many Nazi's flocked to Argentina after WWII who harbored, sheltered, and employed ex-Nazi's. He returned to Germany some years later trying (but ultimately failing) to enter politics of the new, now democratic Germany. He died in 1980 after a second stroke remaining loyal to German National Socialism and Adolf Hitler to his last dying day. Some of Rudel's uniforms and awards are on display at the War Birds Museum in Colorado Springs, Colorado (USA).

[@jimanast3593]

Hartmann's tally: 352!

[@joevanseeters2873]

@@jimanast3593 Hartmann was no doubt a great pilot and should have received his diamonds to his Knights Cross before the end of WWII. Rudel flew over 1,000 more sorties than Hartmann. Rudel endured far more during the war than Hartmann who was never shot down during WWII and his aircraft wasn't even hit by enemy fire. He didn't take chances and he only attacked if the odds were in his favor. Rudel on the other hand landed his plane on at least six known occasions to rescue downed pilots. He was himself shot down or forced to land no less than 24 times during the war. He escaped from partisans who shot him in the shoulder in his escape attempt, then ran more than 50 kilometers with a bullet wound back across to the safety of German lines. He had his lower leg destroyed and amputated but he continued to fly against Doctor's and Hitler's order. He truly earned his moniker, "The Eagle of the Eastern Front". While certainly Rudel doesn't have the kill count of almost every other German pilot, what he does have is the overall heroism that earned him the Golden Knights Cross of the Iron Cross, the only person to ever receive it. Supposedly five of the Golden Knights Cross' were made to be given at the conclusion of WWII to the five most gallant individuals who fought on behalf of Nazi Germany. Rudel was the only one actually awarded, which was presented to Rudel personally by Adolf Hitler. I believe it was their last meeting.

[@jameschenard1386]

This was sooo good. Love your style. I’m a jaded jerk that mouths off too much sometimes about the sanctity of history and what it means(you don’t want to see my comments on the various “Dark channels”. This was a joy that sewed my mouth shut.

[@anamiacdm]

I've always wondered if Rudel might have been the best pilot of the war. It's almost impossible to compare bomber pilots with fighter pilots, but Rudel definitely won this particular match.

[@Alte.Kameraden]

To be honest, the Ju87 was designed to produce a lot of lift at low speeds. It had huge wings for a mono plane. If you've ever saw a Ju87 sitting next to say a Bf109 the difference is staggering. This is actually a situation a Ju87's ability to fly at low speeds while still producing lift actually saved his life. The La-5 couldn't produce the same kind of lift at such low speeds. I know on War Thunder I used to use the Ju87's ability to generate Lift to shoot down fighters all the time. When you have altitude the Ju87B in particular is agile enough to dog fight. When you're low to the ground you abuse your low speed, and high lift capacity to trap fighters. If they don't crash into the ground, they will try to climb to keep the upper hand. With the Ju87 you'd then throttle to max nose up and pepper them in the belly. If they try to dive on you, you hug the ground just above the trees, and nose down when they open fire, avoiding the rounds, they normally pull up to use their speed gain their attitude back. Again, repeat, pull out of your short dive, throttle to max, and pepper them as they attempt to climb away. Ju87 can climb even at low speeds, and it's just great. As it gives you time to pepper before you stall. Climbing wise the Ju87 performs similar to a biplane, with a low stall speed. I had over a thousand sorties in the Ju87B, it's easily my favorite plane to fly in the game. I enjoy the Ju87D-3 for similar reasons. People underestimate it.

[@scriptsmith4081]

Eric "Winkle" Brown will always get my vote, but Rudel's autobiography Stuka Pilot is absolutely must reading, right up to the day he led his squadron to pancake their Stukaa in landing, in surrendering to the Americans, to render them unusable.

[@levski19]

Rudel is number 1 in my book. He became an ace in a obsolete aircraft like the Ju 87. That´s enough not counting the sheer number of sorties he made. Yes, he was shot down several times but still lived to tell the tale which is an accomplishment of its own.

[@williammorris584]

That’s Rudel. I think he could have got an air to air kill in a Bf108 armed with a pistol. Scrubbed off a Gold Star ace here with a Stuka. Who’s seen the YT videos of his marksmanship in the G model with the 37’s?

[@joeavent5554]

During WW2, the Luftwaffe pilots were Unteroffizer, (E-4), and above. The five grades of Fahnenjunker as WOs, which they were not, is a bit of a stretch. FJ NCOs were officer candidates.

[@jerryjeromehawkins1712]

That. Is. WILD!!! Fantastic video... Subscribed. 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾🇺🇸

[@aviationdeepdive]

Much appreciated

[@michaelmonfils2642]

I love your channel's format, presentation and narration, and I look forward to more of your productions. Statistically speaking, it would take a conflict the size and duration of the Second World War to produce exactly one Hans-Ulrich Rudel.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks a lot, yes - Rudel's piloting skills were seriously extraordinary.

[@esajuhanirintamaki965]

@@aviationdeepdive He had been in peace-time proper dive-bomber training. Best evidence of this was sinking a Soviet battleship Marat, just doing dive-bombing attack. And: how many countries nowadays could afford losing over 500 tanks to ONE MAN?

[@pilsonisx]

This channel is GOLD

[@aviationdeepdive]

Thanks so much!

[@micko7621]

this channel finna blow up soon ,quality of the content warrants WAY more views

[@aviationdeepdive]

Kind of you to say! :)

[@matthewrussell9417]

Subscribed after watching one video! Great job with the narration, top notch!

[@aviationdeepdive]

Really appreciate that!

[@Phalanx11]

Most decorated German of WW2 even surpassing Goering. Read his book 'Stuka Pilot'.

[@aviationdeepdive]

Yes, the book is excellent, it's where I found this story

[@ramakrishnasuresh4703]

RUDEL EARNED THE HIGHEST HONOUR THAT HIS COUNTRY COULD GIVE-- A KNIGHTS CROSS WITH GOLDEN OAKLEAVES SWORDS AND DIAMONDS-- THE ONLY WINNER AND THE BRAVEST OF THE BRAVE !!!

[@Ioann16105]

Awesome visuals 😊😮

[@franktreppiedi2208]

Schieze, I'm on fire! Lol.

[@arturorodriguez-martin1839]

Awesome video! I subscribed.

[@pissedoff-is1mt]

What the blokes below me said!

[@raymondyee2008]

Holy Cow....how was THIS not known?!

[@aviationdeepdive]

It's quite a story!

[@archimedesfromteamfortress2]

Maneuver kills are generally not as celebrated as shoot down kills

[@stevemeulders7999]

Love the aged images. And how did you get Xzibit to tell the story?

[@RB-bd5tz]

Great story and great realization - why ruin it with a misleading title?

[@arithadesilva4977]

Funny how the Ju87, is seen as a dead duck plane, and all other dive bomber, s in ww2 are so highly regarded in ww2 dive bombers? Wasn't this the 1st dive bomber designed to do its job🤔

[@mohabatkhanmalak1161]

That would have been real nerves of steel, shaking that Soviet fighter ace off his tail.

[@jmjimbo]

Rudel was to good for the soviets he was a true ace

[@guaporeturns9472]

Interesting graphics on this. What is this?

[@aviationdeepdive]

Footage is from war thunder

[@guaporeturns9472]

@@aviationdeepdive thanks

[@infolover_68]

How come that a German air dive bomber ace could outsmart a Soviet air fighter ace that flied a faster plane??

[@DarryllC]

Better change the video title. The story describes the Soviet ace being outflown - not "Shot Down".

[@13christbane]

get rid of the silly film grain effect. it's cool that you made all of this in war thunder but just make it clear instead of trying to make it look authentic footage. otherwise this is good stuff.

[@rainbo.8156]

is that dcs or warthunder? the filter makes it hard to tell

[@aviationdeepdive]

War Thunder

[@8thCavalry]

Glad to have closed captioning. I could not stand the voice of the narrator. Was that AI generated?

[@aviationdeepdive]

Nope

[@aviationdeepdive]

Feel free to join our Discord community! - discord.gg/WCevgcufwJ Consider supporting us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/AviationDeepDive

[@jsimpson7677]

This narrator can’t pronounce anything. Seriously.

[@fasold2164]

Judging from your voice and the way you speak you seem to be Afroamerican...

[@endi3386]

And what?..

[@АлександрШершнёв-р6с]

То что приписывают Руделю и Хартману однозначно как минимум очень сильно приукрашено а скорее всего просто наврано с три короба! Их подвиги не подтверждаются ни документами ни здравым смыслом ни статистикой.

[@CornelisWH4303]

Ты русский, да? Такую же реакцию мы слышим об Украине, где русские только «выигрывают»…

[@АлександрШершнёв-р6с]

@@CornelisWH4303 с такими вояками германия должна была уничтожить СССР если уж не за месяц то за год точно. Но Германия обделалась и проиграла войну. А что будет на Украине время покажет. Поменьше смотри пропаганду .

[@CornelisWH4303]

@@АлександрШершнёв-р6с Речь идет об одном немецком летчике, а не о всей немецкой армии. Что касается Украины, то пропаганда идет из России и она только «выигрывает». Трехдневная спецоперация продолжается уже полтора года, так что все идет «очень хорошо».

[@АлександрШершнёв-р6с]

​@@CornelisWH4303😂😂😂 таких одних как Рудель было половина Вермахта одни дартаньяны. Но при этом Германия проиграла с треском. По руделю ему приписывается уничтожение самолично 519 танков. При этом по советской статистике от авиаударов было потеряно 5000 танков за всю войну то есть один летчик уничтожил 10%всех танков а все остальные ВВС 4500 так не бывает. То же и про Хартмана разбирали его сказки ,не подтверждаются документально. При Яссах он себе записал 35 сбитых самолёта при том что гарантирована подтверждается только 1 победа и ещё несколько попадают в разряд возможных его подвиги можно смело делить на 5 как минимум а то и на 10. К стати то что было на Украине на на 24 февраля уже на 90 % уничтожено. И если бы не поддержка запада Украине уже давно нечем было бывоевать. Есть хорошая поговорка -циплят по осени считают. Посмотрим.

[@lufasumafalu5069]

rudel is one of the most boastful pilot in luftwaffe and this is one of the most famous fake story from his loud mouth

[@aviationdeepdive]

This story was confirmed to be true, cross-referencing it with Soviet records

[@RoChaiBo]

Another comment for the algorithm!

[@kurtman752]

RUDEL IS THE GREATEST AVIATOR OR ALL TIME ,AND HE SURVIVED THE WAR HE WAS UNSTOPPABLE

[@АлександрШершнёв-р6с]

😂😂😂. Нет. Он всего лиш второй сказочник после Хартмана!

[@esajuhanirintamaki965]

Despite being such a big and relatively slow plane, Ju-87 Stuka was fully normal when doing aerobatics. One pilot considered that 87 were slighly too stable longitudinally. And what is important to know: Soviets practically copied Ju-87 tank buster's role with their well constructed Ilyushin Il-2 Shturmovik. More: today's US Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a direct counterpart of Ju-87 G tank destroyer (in my opinion). What if Rudel have had 30 mm Vulcan cannon in his mount?

[@АлександрШершнёв-р6с]

Сколько глупостей вы наговорил!!!🤦🤦🤦

[@kurtman752]

More like henschel HS 129 equivalent ,now that was WW2 a 10

[@esajuhanirintamaki965]

@@kurtman752 Henschel had some problems with their French Gnome-Rhone engines (sabotage?). Ju-87 was in use to the WW2 end, Hs 129 was in restricted use with its megalomaniac 75 mm cannon. It didn't properly work, jamming when flying with harsh piloting. Strait and level flying in combat area was very dangerous.

[@billschmidt4192]

Rudel- Great Pilot on the Russian Front!

[@WW-sx5eq]

Das ist russische Technik und Mentale überschätzung des Piloten-Asses..!

[@jorgeyamane6655]

Rudel flew the FW 190 D, long nose and scored more kills

[@atilllathehun1212]

Rudel was an outstanding pilot. A shame he was on the wrong side.

[@airmanfpv964]

Rudel was not on the wrong side. He loved flying for the Fuhrer and was proud the be one of Hitlers top guys.

[@jamesburns2232]

German Hans Rudel was like American Gabby Gabreski. Both of them nearly washed out of pilot training. Both of them later became top pilots and "Aces", Gabreski in a P-47 and Rudel in a JU-87. With no war going on today, makes me wonder 🤔 if they would both have been wash-outs from UPT? 🤔🥲

[@atilllathehun1212]

@@airmanfpv964 On the wrong side from an Allied point of view.

[@guaporeturns9472]

@@atilllathehun1212 wrong side from a global point of view.

[@Dilley_G45]

The wrong side was the Soviets. Sadly America supported the wrong side. Rudely saved thousands of lives and women from being raped by destroying the inhuman hordes of soviet "soldiers", who in American trucks, pillaged and raped and killed their way through half of Europe. Rudely was NOT on the wrong side. Sadly he did like Hitler though.