PEEBLES PROFILES
EPISODE 187
Franz Büchner
YOUNG SOLDIER TURNED PILOT
Born on January 2, 1898 in the Saxon town of Leipzig, Franz Büchner was the son of a businessman. At the age of only sixteen, Franz volunteered for the German Army in September 1914. His elder brother Max was recently killed in action.
Büchner first served with the 106th (Seventh Royal Saxon) “King George” Regiment. After surviving a bout of typhoid fever, he fought the Russians on the Eastern Front in 1915. The young Büchner impressed his superiors with his valor in the field, so much so that they sent Franz back to school to finish his education.
Shortly after his eighteen birthday in early 1916, Büchner received a commission and served on the Western Front in France. In early April of that same year, he was wounded in combat. Upon recovery, Büchner transferred to the German Army Air Service (the Luftstreitkräfte), and was assigned as an observation pilot with Flieger Abteilung 270.
In March 1917, Büchner became a fighter pilot. He joining the Prussian Jagdstaffel 9, scoring his first and only victory with that unit on August 17th.
Upon his transfer to Jagdstaffel 13, Büchner found his niche under Rudolf Berthold, one of Germany’s most dedicated soldiers. But it was several months before Franz scored again: October 15, 1917.
With the introduction of the Fokker D.VII in 1918, Büchner came into his own. He flew at least three different machines during his career, scoring three victories that June. He also became commanding officer of the squadron on June 15th.
After his fifth victory Büchner landed his craft and announced to his colleagues that he now knew how to win in aerial combat. It was a prophetic statement. On July 2nd, Büchner shot down and killed “The Mad Major”, Joseph Callaghan. The Irishman, commander the Royal Air Force Squadron Number 87, was flying a Sopwith Dolphin in a solo attack on Jagdstaffel 13. Five days later, Büchner followed up with a victory over Lieutenant Merrill Taylor. The Canadian ace was killed in a Sopwith Camel with Royal Air Force Squadron Number 209.
On July 29th, Büchner fought an American Sopwith Camel and shot it down in flames with just fourteen rounds! Wingman Leutnant Werner Niethammer cited this combat as an illustration of Büchner’s skill as a marksman. In Niethammer’s account, Büchner had no sooner spotted the American than he had set the enemy aircraft on fire. It was the last of seven victories for Franz Büchner for the month of July. Around the same time, brother Felix joined Franz in Jagdstaffel 13.
On August 10th, Büchner’s career nearly came to an end. While attacking and shooting down a two-seater in bad weather, Büchner’s fuel tank was hit! Drenched in petrol, he landed in “no man’s land” and tagged along with two retreating machine gunners. The incident did not slow Büchner down, for it was the second of eight victories in August! By month’s end, his total number of triumphs stood at twenty.
September 1918 was truly the month of Franz Büchner. He scored SEVENTEEN victories! Twelve of those wins occurred over a six-day period; the last five over a two-day span.
On October 10th, Büchner cheated death yet again. He survived a mid-air collision with a squadron mate; both men parachuted to safety. Twelve days later, Büchner tallied his 40th victory. Then on October 25th, he was belatedly decorated with the prestigious Pour le Mérite, one of the last awards given before the Kaiser’s abdication two weeks later. By the time he was given the Blue Max, Büchner was in Berlin for trials of new fighter aircraft.
THE IMMEDIATE POSTWAR
By the spring of 1919, the Fokker D.VII of Franz Büchner was in the hands of the American 138th Aero Squadron. His machine had a golden lion’s head on its royal blue fuselage. The insignia was cut as a souvenir, but it was lost during the Second World War.
In the early years of Germany’s turbulent postwar period, the twenty-two-year old Büchner flew against communist revolutionaries. On March 18, 1920, he was soon shot down and killed by members of the Spartacus League during a reconnaissance flight near his hometown of Leipzig. Büchner’s death came three days after his mentor Rudolf Berthold was murdered in Harburg.
AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
Besides the Pour le Mérite, Büchner also received the highest military honor of his home state on October 7, 1918: Saxony’s Military Order of St. Henry. His other decorations included the Iron Cross of 1914 (both Second and First Class), the Knight’s Cross with Swords of Prussia’s Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, the Knight’s Cross with Swords of Saxony’s Merit Order, and the Knight’s Cross with Swords of Saxony’s Albert Order.