Author Topic: reccomended book by the greatest pilot of WW2 (Read 2454 times)

udet · « **on:** November 17, 2003, 10:16:42 AM »

Stuka Pilot by Hans Ulrich Rudel
wow...he flew over 2000 operational sorties. That averages to more than one per day during the entire war!!!
Very gallant man, landed a bunch of times behind enemy lines to pick up downed airmen. A true hero IMO.

Wanker · « **Reply #1 on:** November 17, 2003, 10:23:17 AM »

Yeah, but he was also an ardent Nazi. They should've handed him and any other fanatical Nazi's to the Jews after the war and let them handle him.

Dowding · « **Reply #2 on:** November 17, 2003, 10:23:23 AM »

Yeah, for a committed Nazi he was a wonderful pilot I'm sure.

Similarly, Hitler may have a been a genocidal nutcase but he sure was handy with the moustache trimmers eh?! A true hero to admirers of facial hair everywhere.

Wanker · « **Reply #3 on:** November 17, 2003, 10:24:28 AM »

LOL! Great minds think alike, eh Dowding. Looks like we posted at the same time.

Dune · « **Reply #4 on:** November 17, 2003, 10:26:07 AM »

Rudel was both.

He was a great pilot. Did things in an obsolete plane (the Stuka) that perhaps no one else could have. Flew with serious injuries and even sank a Russain warship IIRC. Scored several air-to-air victories in a dive bomber and blew up Lord only knows how many tanks.

And an ardent, unrepentant Nazi. To the day he died he was a true believer in Hitler and the Third Reich.

I guess you have to admire his accomplishments without admiring the man.

GtoRA2 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 17, 2003, 12:08:24 PM »

He was a very odd duck, I only read the first few chapters. Wasn't he the one who broke his legs jumping off a roof?

udet · « **Reply #6 on:** November 17, 2003, 12:28:41 PM »

Quote

Originally posted by banana
Yeah, but he was also an ardent Nazi. They should've handed him and any other fanatical Nazi's to the Jews after the war and let them handle him.

yeah, without orders he divebombed the Warsaw Ghetto during the uprising for an entire month...

banana, Ron Jeremy's pennis is smarter than you

midnight Target · « **Reply #7 on:** November 17, 2003, 04:11:58 PM »

Gallant schmallant.

Kinda like saying that Osama was the greatest terrorist ever.. and recomending his book.

vorticon · « **Reply #8 on:** November 17, 2003, 04:16:45 PM »

read it a few months back...incredible the things he did...

as for him being a "ardent nazi" im pretty damn sure he said quite clearly in the book that he didnt care one way or the other about any of that...he just wanted to fly

Hooligan · « **Reply #9 on:** November 17, 2003, 04:48:38 PM »

I've read his book. To put it bluntly he seemed like an unrepentant Nazi and a psycho. I have no doubt that he was brave, but I am not too certain how much of what he wrote can be believed. He spent his post war years in Paraguay with other Nazis, part of it smuggling arms. Not my choice as an individual to admire.

Hooligan

udet · « **Reply #10 on:** November 17, 2003, 05:12:47 PM »

I just finished reading his book. He states clearly that he fought for Germany, and not for a political party. His views about the spread of communism have been proved by the next 50 years.
~~to Rudel.~~

vorticon · « **Reply #11 on:** November 17, 2003, 05:43:57 PM »

i find it hard to beleive you could make a surmise about a persons political status from a book that hardly says anything about the government or hell even his veiws on it

Hooligan · « **Reply #12 on:** November 17, 2003, 06:02:45 PM »

Rudel's book relates numerous personal meetings with Hitler in his book. The tremendous respect and affection he feels for "the furher" comes out quite clearly in his writing. Somehow I have difficulty reconciling this with his statements about being just an apolitical soldier doing his duty.

What do you suppose Rudel and Eichmann talked about over coffee in Argentina?

Here are some websites which touch upon his post war career.

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/GERrudel.htm

http://www.wssob.com/conclusion.html

http://www.mosquitonet.com/~prewett/bb175182.html

Hooligan

udet · « **Reply #13 on:** November 17, 2003, 06:10:58 PM »

sorry, I choose to believe his diary over your sources.
After all, history is written by winners, not losers.
Besides, Rudel's fight happened mainly against the Soviets, and being very succesful at that he holds a very special place in my heart, just like Erik Harman:)

Animal · « **Reply #14 on:** November 17, 2003, 06:23:14 PM »

I thought this would be a thread about Saburo Sakai or Adolf Galland...