Nickname(s) "Bazi" Years of service 1939–45 Service/branch Luftwaffe | Allegiance Nazi Germany Name Johann Schalanda Rank Hauptmann | |
Battles/wars World War II
Siege of Malta
Siege of Tobruk
Operation Barbarossa
Battle of Smolensk (1941)
Battle of Kiev (1941)
Battle of Moscow
Battle of the Caucasus
Battle of Kursk
Battle of Narva (1944)
Warsaw Uprising
Battle of the Oder-Neisse † Died March 26, 1945, Kostrzyn nad Odra, Poland Awards Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Unit Sturzkampfgeschwader 1, Schlachtgeschwader 1 | ||
Johann "Hans" Franz Schalanda (7 February 1921 – 26 March 1945) was a highly decorated Hauptmann in the Luftwaffe during World War II, and one of only 882 recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Johann Schalanda was killed on 26 March 1945 by Soviet anti-aircraft fire over Kustrin. Johann Schalanda was credited with flying 933 missions during the war.
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Career
Schalanda joined the Luftwaffe in October 1939. Following flight and specialized dive bomber training, he was posted to the III. Gruppe (3rd group) of Sturzkampfgeschwader 1 (StG 1—1st Dive Bomber Wing) where he was assigned to the 8. Staffel (8th squadron).
With this squadron, he flew his first combat missions in the Siege of Malta. In April–May 1941, he flew missions against the port of Tobruk, Libya, during the Siege of Tobruk and was credited with the destruction of 4,000 gross register tons (GRT) of Allied supply shipping.