Introduction
August Geiger (6 May 1920 – 29 September 1943) was a fighter pilot in the Luftwaffe of Nazi Germany during World War II and a night fighter ace. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves.
Career
Geiger was born on 6 May 1920 in Überlingen, near Lake Constance. Geiger joined the Luftwaffe in late 1939 and was posted in mid-1941 as Leutnant to 8./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 (NJG 1). Geiger claimed three aerial victories on the night 25/26 June 1942, a Vickers Wellington, a Armstrong Whitworth Whitley and a Stirling. By the start of 1943 Geiger had ten victories and been awarded the Iron Cross First Class. In early 1943 Geiger was promoted to Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) and transferred to a 7./NJG 1, becoming Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) in May 1943, with some 40 confirmed victories.
On 1 March 1943, Geiger shot down a Halifax bomber from No. 35 Squadron with an almost intact H2S ground scanning radar system. This allowed the Germans to analyze the radar which led to the development of the FuG 350 (FuG—Funkgerät) Naxos radar detector, which allowed the night fighters to home on to the H2S emitting signals.
On 29 September 1943 he was shot down by the Beaufighter VI of W/C Bob Braham of No. 141 Squadron RAF over the Zuiderzee, Netherlands. Geiger managed to bail out of his Messerschmitt Bf-110 G but was drowned when his parachute dragged him under. He was posthumously awarded the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross on 2 March 1944.
Aerial victory claims
Geiger was credited with 53 nocturnal aerial victories claimed in 328 combat missions.
| Chronicle of aerial victories | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victory | Date | Time | Type | Location | Serial No./Squadron No. |
| – III./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 – | |||||
| 1 | 9 July 1941 | 23:32 | Halifax | 10 km (6.2 mi) south of Nijmegen | |
| – 8./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 – | |||||
| 2 | 20 June 1942 | 02:22 | Stirling | 4 km (2.5 mi) southeast of Neuenhaus | |
| 3 | 26 June 1942 | 01:20 | Wellington | 20 km (12 mi) northeast of Rheine | |
| 4 | 26 June 1942 | 01:30 | Whitley | 10 km (6.2 mi) northwest of Lingen | |
| 5 | 26 June 1942 | 01:58 | Stirling | 6 km (3.7 mi) northwest of Nordhorn | |
| 6 | 28 June 1942 | 01:29 | Wellington | north-northeast of Lingen | |
| 7 | 3 July 1942 | 02:49 | Wellington | 6 km (3.7 mi) northwest of Lochem | |
| 8 | 29 July 1942 | 02:35 | Wellington | 5 km (3.1 mi) north-northwest of Neuenhaus | |
| 9 | 30 July 1942 | 00:58 | Whitley | 8 km (5.0 mi) west-northwest of Rijssen | Z9230/No. 138 Squadron |
| 10 | 6 August 1942 | 01:35 | Halifax | 15 km (9.3 mi) south of Zwolle | |
| 11 | 10 August 1942 | 04:34 | Wellington | 8 km (5.0 mi) south-southwest of Deventer | |
| 12 | 11 September 1942 | 00:02 | Wellington | 2 km (1.2 mi) east of Osterwieck | |
| – 7./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 – | |||||
| 13 | 1 March 1943 | 23:52 | Halifax | 2 km (1.2 mi) northwest of Zutphen | |
| 14 | 2 March 1943 | 00:37 | Halifax | 1 km (0.62 mi) west of Markelo | |
| 15 | 4 March 1943 | 11:33 | B-17 | ||
| 16 | 29 March 1943 | 22:52 | Wellington | 5 km (3.1 mi) southwest of Ahaus | HE182/431 (Iroquois) Squadron |
| 17 | 29 March 1943 | 23:15 | Wellington | west-northwest of Borculo | HE385/No. 196 Squadron |
| 18 | 30 March 1943 | 03:47 | Halifax | 10 km (6.2 mi) southeast of Zutphen | |
| 19 | 30 March 1943 | 04:27 | Lancaster | 7 km (4.3 mi) northeast of Deventer | |
| 20 | 30 March 1943 | 04:46 | Lancaster | 3 km (1.9 mi) northwest of Lieveide | |
| 21 | 30 March 1943 | 23:00 | Lancaster | 5 km (3.1 mi) north of Gemen | |
| 22 | 27 April 1943 | 03:11 | Wellington | Bornebroek | |
| 23 | 1 May 1943 | 03:21 | Halifax | northwest of Nijmegen | |
| 24 | 5 May 1943 | 02:09 | Halifax | west of Zwolle | |
| 25 | 13 May 1943 | 02:06 | Halifax | Vreden | No. 35 Squadron |
| 26 | 13 May 1943 | 02:06 | Wellington | southwest of Eldenzaal | HE321/428 Ghost Squadron |
| 27 | 13 May 1943 | 02:20 | Halifax | 12 km (7.5 mi) south of Hengelo | No. 77 Squadron |
| 28 | 24 May 1943 | 02:07 | Lancaster | 48 km (30 mi) east of Meppel | W4984/No. 460 Squadron |
| 29 | 24 May 1943 | 02:30 | Lancaster | 18 km (11 mi) east of Devemer | |
| 30 | 13 June 1943 | 02:37 | Lancaster | 7 km (4.3 mi) north-northeast of Raalte | ED584/No. 49 Squadron |
| 31 | 15 June 1943 | 01:44 | Lancaster | 7 km (4.3 mi) southeast of Terlet | |
| 32 | 23 June 1943 | 01:33 | Wellington | 9 km (5.6 mi) north of Wesel | |
| 33 | 23 June 1943 | 01:35 | Wellington | 3 km (1.9 mi) north of Rees | HZ312/429 (Bison) Squadron |
| 34 | 23 June 1943 | 01:26 | Stirling | Empe | |
| 35 | 23 June 1943 | 02:00 | Lancaster | 10 km (6.2 mi) southwest of Steenwijk | |
| 36 | 23 June 1943 | 02:00 | Lancaster | 25 km (16 mi) west of Volendam | |
| 37 | 10 July 1943 | 02:40 | Halifax | Eprave, southeast of Dinant | |
| 38 | 14 July 1943 | 02:10 | Lancaster | Forstes-Veneurs | |
| 39 | 24/25 July 1943 |
—
|
Lancaster | 10 km (6.2 mi) east of Cloppenburg | |
| 40 | 30 July 1943 | 01:25 | Lancaster | 2 km (1.2 mi) southeast of Ahrensfelde | |
| 41 | 18 August 1943 | 02:08 | Halifax | 15 km (9.3 mi) northwest of Greifswald | |
| 42 | 18 August 1943 | 02:08 | Lancaster | 2 km (1.2 mi) south of Reinberg | |
| 43 | 28 August 1943 | 02:20 | Stirling | Gerlachhausen | |
| 44 | 31 August 1943 | 23:28 | Stirling | 9 km (5.6 mi) south-southwest of Enschede | |
| 45 | 3 September 1943 | 23:50 | Stirling | 1 km (0.62 mi) southwest of Hanover | |
| 46 | 6 September 1943 | 00:24 | Lancaster | Oppen | |
| 47 | 6 September 1943 | 00:45 | Stirling | Rheinhausen | |
| 48 | 22 September 1943 | 22:35 | Stirling | Gestorf | |
| 49 | 27 September 1943 | 22:10 | Lancaster | Zuiderzee | |
| 50 | 27 September 1943 | 23:30 | Halifax | near Munich | |
| 51 | 28 September 1943 | 00:01 | Halifax | south Papenburg | |
Awards
- Aviator badge
- Front Flying Clasp of the Luftwaffe in Gold
- Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class
- Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe (Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe) on 19 October 1942 as Leutnant and pilot
- German Cross in Gold on 31 August 1943 as Hauptmann in the 1./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
- Knight's Cross on 22 May 1943 as Oberleutnant and Staffelkapitän of the 7./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1
- 416th Oak Leaves on 2 March 1944 as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur of the III./Nachtjagdgeschwader 1