Willi Nemitz (1 November 1910 – 11 April 1943) was a former Luftwaffe fighter ace and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Willi Nemitz was one of the oldest operational fighter pilots. His first known Soviet victory, was a LaGG-3 on 22 June 1942. Willi Nemitz was credited with 81 victories in about 500 missions. All his victories were recorded over the Eastern Front and includes at least 11 Il-2 Sturmoviks. Career Nemitz was born on 1 November 1910 in Greifenhagen in Pomerania, at the time in the Province of Pomerania, a province of the Kingdom of Prussia within the German Empire, present-day Gryfino in northwestern Poland. Following flight training, he was posted to 5. Staffel (5th squadron) of Jagdgeschwader 52 (JG 52—52nd Fighter Wing) in 1940. The Staffel was commanded by Oberleutnant August-Wilhelm Schumann and subordinated to II. Gruppe of JG 52 which was headed by Hauptmann Wilhelm Ensslen and fought in the Battle of Britain. On 2 November, Ensslen was killed in action and replaced by Hauptmann Erich Woitke. Operation Barbarossa In preparation of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, II. Gruppe of JG 52, without a period of replenishment in Germany, was ordered to airfields close to the German-Soviet demarcation line. While the Gruppenstab (group headquarters unit) and 4. Staffel were based at Suwałki in northeastern Poland, 5. and 6. Staffel were transferred to a forward airfield at Sobolewo. For the invasion, II. Gruppe of JG 52 was subordinated to the Geschwaderstab (headquarters unit) of Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG 27—27th Fighter Wing). The Geschwader was part of the VIII. Fliegerkorps commanded by Generaloberst Wolfram Freiherr von Richthofen which supported the northern wing of Army Group Centre. On 22 June, the German forces launched the attack on the Soviet Union which opened the Eastern Front. On 25 June, the Gruppe moved to an airfield at Varėna in Lithuania which had previously been occupied by the Soviet Air Forces (VVS—Voyenno-Vozdushnye Sily). Two days later, the Gruppe moved to Maladzyechna, supporting the advance Panzergruppe 3 near Barysaw. Flying from this airfield, Nemitz claimed his first aerial victories, two Ilyushin DB-3 bombers shot down on 3 July. The next day, II. Gruppe moved to Sloboda, east of Minsk, before moving to an airfield named