Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. Erich Alfred Hartmann was a German fighter pilot during World War II and the most successful fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He flew 1,404 combat missions and participated in aerial combat on 825 separate occasions. He was credited with shooting down a total of 352 Allied aircraft: 345 Soviet and seven American while serving with the Luftwaffe. During the course of his career, Hartmann was forced to crash-land his fighter 16 times due either to mechanical failure or damage received from parts of enemy aircraft he had shot down; he was never shot down by direct enemy action.

This is a great limited edition (167/500) print of a portrait of Hartmann, drawn with what looks to be charcoal in 1988 by artist J.G. Keck. Limited collector runs such as this have been popular for decades, as many German WWII flying aces survived the war, and became very popular on the air show and collector's tours. The artwork was commissioned, printed, and then signed by Hartmann and the Artist before being sold. The portrait shows Hartmann with his dog, replicating multiple wartime photographs of the pair. Behind them is the "Arrow through a bleeding heart" insignia of the Karaya Squadron, and in this case the heart has Ursel on it, his nickname for wife Ursula Paetsch, who he met at secondary school. Below the portrait is the following caption:

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
with Oakleaves, Swords and Diamonds
Recipient
Erich Hartmann
Major
Erich Hartmann

The print is in excellent condition, and contained in a quality frame measuring 22 1/8" x 28 1/8". Ready to display!

Hartmann, a pre-war glider pilot, joined the Luftwaffe in 1940 and completed his fighter pilot training in 1942. He was posted to the veteran Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52) on the Eastern Front and placed under the supervision of some of the Luftwaffe's most experienced fighter pilots. Under their guidance, Hartmann steadily developed his tactics.

On 29 October 1943, Hartmann was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for 148 enemy aircraft destroyed and the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross for 202 enemy aircraft on 2 March 1944. Exactly four months later, he received the Swords to the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves for 268 enemy aircraft shot down. Ultimately, Hartmann earned the coveted Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds on 25 August 1944 for 301 aerial victories. At the time of its presentation to Hartmann, this was Germany's highest military decoration.

Hartmann achieved his 352nd and last aerial victory at midday on 8 May 1945, hours before the German surrender. Along with the remainder of JG 52, he surrendered to United States Army forces and was turned over to the Red Army. In an attempt to pressure him into service with the Soviet-friendly East German National People's Army, he was tried on war crimes, charged and convicted. He was initially sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment, later increased to 25 years, and spent 10 years in Soviet prison camps and gulags until he was released in 1955. In 1997, the Russian Federation (posthumously) relieved him of all charges.

In 1956, Hartmann joined the newly established West German Air Force in the Bundeswehr, and became the first Geschwaderkommodore of Jagdgeschwader 71 "Richthofen". He retired in 1970, due to his opposition to the procurement of the F-104 Starfighter. In his later years, after his military career had ended, he became a civilian flight instructor. Hartmann died on 20 September 1993 at age 71.