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The Day the Red Baron Died: A Full Account of the Death of Baron Manfred von Richthofen, April 21, 1918
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 7, 2022
In the summer of 1980, when i was a teenager, I bought and read the book Who Killed the Red Baron? by P.J. Carisella and James W. Ryan which looked into the controversy surrounding the shoot down and death of World War I's top fighter ace, Rittmeister (Captain) Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen over the Somme River on April 21, 1918.
For decades, there had been a controversy as to whether von Richthofen was downed by ground fire or the guns of Sopwith Camel pilot Captain Roy Brown of 209 Squadron, Royal Air Force (RAF) who managed to making a fleeting, firing pass on von Richthofen's red Fokker Triplane fighter as von Richthofen was intent on downing Brown's squadron mate (Wilfred May), whose plane von Richthofen was firing several, well-aimed shots at in an attempt to shoot it down. I first became aware of this controversy when I was assembling a model kit of Brown's Sopwith Camel in the mid-1970s. Prior to reading Who Killed the Red Baron?, I was firmly in the camp which believed that Brown had shot down and killed von Richthofen in aerial combat. But after I read that book, I began to believe in the plausibility that von Richthofen may have been brought down behind Allied lines as a result of the gun fire from an Australian field artillery battery that had fired on his plane as he was pursuing May's plane over its sector of the Front.
In The Day the Red Baron Died, Dale Titler (himself a pilot with a longstanding interest in the von Richthofen controversy) carefully presents before the reader, a detailed analysis and retelling from various people (including one former pilot of 209 Squadron who witnessed Richthofen's shoot down --- whom Titler himself interviewed over 3 days in the gentleman's home in Las Vegas --- and 3 soldiers serving with the Australian field artillery unit that fired on von Richthofen's fighter as it came over their unit's battery) who were on the scene of von Richthofen's final combat on April 21, 1918.
At the time of this book's publication (1970), there were still lots of living World War I veterans. Thus Titler was in a position to talk directly with surviving members of von Richthofen's fighter group, Jagdgeschwader 1 (J.G. 1), aka 'The Flying Circus' because of the colorfully painted fighters they flew in combat over the Western Front. This for me, gave the book an immediacy that was refreshing. Indeed, I believe that Titler has made a strong, compelling case as to how Manfred von Richthofen was killed on April 21, 1918. As far as I'm concerned, the case has been solved.
For anyone with an interest in aviation and/or World War I stories, I highly recommend reading The Day the Red Baron Died.
For decades, there had been a controversy as to whether von Richthofen was downed by ground fire or the guns of Sopwith Camel pilot Captain Roy Brown of 209 Squadron, Royal Air Force (RAF) who managed to making a fleeting, firing pass on von Richthofen's red Fokker Triplane fighter as von Richthofen was intent on downing Brown's squadron mate (Wilfred May), whose plane von Richthofen was firing several, well-aimed shots at in an attempt to shoot it down. I first became aware of this controversy when I was assembling a model kit of Brown's Sopwith Camel in the mid-1970s. Prior to reading Who Killed the Red Baron?, I was firmly in the camp which believed that Brown had shot down and killed von Richthofen in aerial combat. But after I read that book, I began to believe in the plausibility that von Richthofen may have been brought down behind Allied lines as a result of the gun fire from an Australian field artillery battery that had fired on his plane as he was pursuing May's plane over its sector of the Front.
In The Day the Red Baron Died, Dale Titler (himself a pilot with a longstanding interest in the von Richthofen controversy) carefully presents before the reader, a detailed analysis and retelling from various people (including one former pilot of 209 Squadron who witnessed Richthofen's shoot down --- whom Titler himself interviewed over 3 days in the gentleman's home in Las Vegas --- and 3 soldiers serving with the Australian field artillery unit that fired on von Richthofen's fighter as it came over their unit's battery) who were on the scene of von Richthofen's final combat on April 21, 1918.
At the time of this book's publication (1970), there were still lots of living World War I veterans. Thus Titler was in a position to talk directly with surviving members of von Richthofen's fighter group, Jagdgeschwader 1 (J.G. 1), aka 'The Flying Circus' because of the colorfully painted fighters they flew in combat over the Western Front. This for me, gave the book an immediacy that was refreshing. Indeed, I believe that Titler has made a strong, compelling case as to how Manfred von Richthofen was killed on April 21, 1918. As far as I'm concerned, the case has been solved.
For anyone with an interest in aviation and/or World War I stories, I highly recommend reading The Day the Red Baron Died.
October 26, 2017
The subject was controversial on April 21, 1918 and still isn’t totally settled. It may have been karma from “Snoopy vs. the Red Baron,” because a few years after this 1966-67 hit, two books came out on the mystery. Both are actually the result of years, decades even, of hard work, correspondence, and research.
In 1969, P.J. Carisella, a Richtofen memorabilia collector, and James W. Ryan gave it a shot in Who Killed the Red Baron? From the acknowledgments, I believe Carisella did the investigating and Ryan did the writing. P.J. Carisella died in 1991 and an auction of Carisella’s collection was held March 14-16, 2005 (I suppose the heirs didn’t want it).
In 1970, out came The Day the Red Baron Died by Dale Titler who passed away in 2014. He wrote extensively on aeronautics and aeronautical engineering.
Each proposes a different candidate for the honor.
The author nominates his hero on the seventh page in, just before the title page.
The story begins with suppositional history, what the Baron is thinking, as well as a troop of infantry marching near the aerodrome. Just skip this fiction and head for the meat, the section labelled “The 21st of April” and beyond. There we have a play-by-play as reported by those at the scene. Later, the author gives us the reports, his recorded interviews, and letters from another pilot near the action, artillerymen at the scene and their commanding officers. He ends the book with what became of the family and other folks connected with Richtofen after the war. Of course, by now these veterans of WWI will no longer be alive.
It was difficult in both Carisella’s and Titler’s books to follow the exact flight paths and to picture the position of all firing candidates without pictures or some kind of step-by-step diagram of what was happening when aircraft were zooming about at eighty-plus m.p.h. Both authors are supporting their candidates (suspects?) based on what they believe to be the red triplane and the firer’s position at the time the fatal bullet went in.
Food for thought here. There are more than one bullet holes mentioned here as well, but much less investigation (to my puzzlement). Look for “The Death of Manfred von Richtofen: Who Fired the Fatal Shot?” by Dr. M. Geoffrey Miller online. I’m waiting for Norman Franks’ 2006 The Red Baron’s Last Flight, any day now.
In the end, as the author says, "To be perfectly candid, what happened on that crisp Spring morning in 1918 was a rather simple act of war. An experienced--and tired--fighter pilot violated his own tactical concept, and paid the price."
In 1969, P.J. Carisella, a Richtofen memorabilia collector, and James W. Ryan gave it a shot in Who Killed the Red Baron? From the acknowledgments, I believe Carisella did the investigating and Ryan did the writing. P.J. Carisella died in 1991 and an auction of Carisella’s collection was held March 14-16, 2005 (I suppose the heirs didn’t want it).
In 1970, out came The Day the Red Baron Died by Dale Titler who passed away in 2014. He wrote extensively on aeronautics and aeronautical engineering.
Each proposes a different candidate for the honor.
The author nominates his hero on the seventh page in, just before the title page.
The story begins with suppositional history, what the Baron is thinking, as well as a troop of infantry marching near the aerodrome. Just skip this fiction and head for the meat, the section labelled “The 21st of April” and beyond. There we have a play-by-play as reported by those at the scene. Later, the author gives us the reports, his recorded interviews, and letters from another pilot near the action, artillerymen at the scene and their commanding officers. He ends the book with what became of the family and other folks connected with Richtofen after the war. Of course, by now these veterans of WWI will no longer be alive.
It was difficult in both Carisella’s and Titler’s books to follow the exact flight paths and to picture the position of all firing candidates without pictures or some kind of step-by-step diagram of what was happening when aircraft were zooming about at eighty-plus m.p.h. Both authors are supporting their candidates (suspects?) based on what they believe to be the red triplane and the firer’s position at the time the fatal bullet went in.
Food for thought here. There are more than one bullet holes mentioned here as well, but much less investigation (to my puzzlement). Look for “The Death of Manfred von Richtofen: Who Fired the Fatal Shot?” by Dr. M. Geoffrey Miller online. I’m waiting for Norman Franks’ 2006 The Red Baron’s Last Flight, any day now.
In the end, as the author says, "To be perfectly candid, what happened on that crisp Spring morning in 1918 was a rather simple act of war. An experienced--and tired--fighter pilot violated his own tactical concept, and paid the price."
July 8, 2013
Excellent book slightly marred by a lack of inline footnotes and references. Nonetheless, a thorough investigation into the question of who shot Manfred von Richtofen down. An older title, does not obviously include more recent research, i.e. the revelation that brain injury may have played a part in Richtofen's decision making in the fateful dogfight. The book still remains an important documenting of basic historical facts, and is valuable for the interviews with eye-witnesses and participants in the combat action on 21 April 1918, in the air and on the ground. Good sketch maps and photographs included as well.
November 1, 2008
Very insightful book into the fall of one of the greatest fighter pilots; it moves along kind of slow however.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews