Horst Carganico (27 September 1917 – 27 May 1944) was a German Luftwaffe military aviator and fighter ace during World War II. He is credited with 60 aerial victories achieved in over 600 combat missions. This figure includes 54 aerial victories on the Eastern Front, and further six victories over the Western Allies. Born in Breslau, Carganico grew up in the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany. He joined the military service in the Luftwaffe in 1937. Following flight training, he was posted to Jagdgeschwader 1 (JG 1—1st Fighter Wing). In April 1940, he became Adjutant of II. Gruppe (2nd group) of Jagdgeschwader 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing), serving in Norway. He claimed his initial victory on 21 June 1940. Following his 27th aerial victory, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 25 September 1941. Carganico commanded the II. Gruppe of Jagdgeschwader 5 (JG 5—5th Fighter Wing) and later I. Gruppe of JG 5 fighting in Defense of the Reich. On 27 May 1944, he was killed in action when his aircraft hit high tension cables while attempting a forced landing. Career Carganico, the son of a Luftwaffe officer, was born on 27 September 1917 in Breslau in the Kingdom of Prussia of the German Empire, present-day Wrocław in western Poland. He joined the Luftwaffe in 1937 and attended pilot school at Berlin-Johannisthal. At the outbreak of World War II Carganico was Technical Officer with the staff of Jagdgeschwader 1 (JG 1—1st Fighter Wing). In April 1940, he served with II. Gruppe (2nd group) of Jagdgeschwader 77 (JG 77—77th Fighter Wing). During Operation Weserübung (9 April – 10 June 1940), the German assault on Denmark and Norway, Carganico served as adjutant to Hauptmann Karl Hentschel, the commanding officer of II. Gruppe. On 8 June, the German battleship was damaged in combat with the British aircraft carrier and the two escorting destroyers and . Scharnhorst was taken to Trondheim for temporary repairs. Preliminary repairs were completed by 20 June, which permitted the ship to return to Germany. The following day, the Royal Air Force (RAF) launched an aerial attack on Scharnhorst. In defense of attacks against Scharnhorst, II. Gruppe flew multiple escort missions from Stavanger-Sola. Between 16:00 and 18:00, the Gruppe engaged RAF bombers and torpedo bombers over the German ships. In this encounter, Carganico claimed the destruction of a Bristol Beaufort torpedo bomber, his first aerial victory.