Luftmensch

In 1923 Wieprich left Straehle to join Junkers. He flew the Junkers F-13 (the first all-metal machine) for Junkers, opening routes through the USSR. Otto made ?Xs? to mark the spot where he appears in photos from a company book illustrating some of these exotic places in the East. Here he is in front of his F 13 in Turkestan In Tehran, standing next to the wing of the second plane, identified as a Russian built Junkers.

Thanks! I was worried Wieprich had bought himself a fake in the late 40s! Bear with me Rick, there is a lot more to come. Wieprich was shot down by Sopwith Camels on June 27, 1918 but landed unhurt. I have no further service details. A letter from the Bundesarchiv in Freiburg states that they have no service records for Wieprich. A letter from Dr. Dieter Groeschel says they were either destroyed during an air raid on Berlin, evacuated with other remnants to salt mines where the Soviets seized them, or burned on route to Bavaria. He recommended trying the State Archives in Halberstadt where the 27th Inf. was garrisoned, or the Saxon Archives in Dresden, as FA (A) 250 became a Saxon unit in November 1917. It appears from the file that the step-daughter wrote them without success. Wieprich?s postwar employer, Lufthansa, also lost records in the bombing of Berlin. After the war things are a little better documented. In 1921 he and his Jasta boss Paul Straehle flew the Luftpost route from Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt to Konstanz, and in 1922 formed the Luftverkehr Straehle, flying passengers from Stuttgart to Nuernberg, until bad economic times forced the airline to shut down in 1924. Here are some press photos from Wieprich?s scrapbook reporting their adventures. A photo of Reichspraesident Ebert being helped off the wing by Wieprich, taken in 1923.

But I'm not sure what Cmdr. Bob or Stogie would make of this shallow crown well...

Next badge, a text book Junckers. After reading Cmdr. Bob's articles on what baseline badges ought to look like, this is one of the few un@#$%& with groups I could refer to, after which I began warming to his "no crown" hypothesis, primarily because this group is a time capsule--in the family until 2004.

I know, Rick, I know---extreme close-ups back and front....I wonder how many duplicate flying badges the average Frontflieger owned? And I wonder if this salty cliche was the one Otto dogfighted with?

Here are his wartime decorations. I have stood next to several ?groups? at shows and seen dealers reach into an unrelated Riker and extract an EK here or a Turkish halfmoon there and--PRESTO!--add it to the group. It is nice to know no one has done that here. He had three pilot?s badges and, Stogie, NO crowns!!!

Here is his Ehrenbecher. I presume at this stage of the war he got it after his fourth and last victory. In February 1918 Wieprich transferred to Jasta 57 and scored three more victories: April 17, 1918 SE5A north of hazebrouck May 19, 1918 SE5A Moorslede August 29, 1918 DH9 west of Epinoy His step-daughter remembers at home during the 1940s and `50s her mother used the Becher as a vase for dried flowers! At other times she remembers her mother hiding it away--from prying eyes or rambunctious children? She doesn?t remember her father ever talking about it, or the war. He was more proud of his presentation cigarette case which I will show later. She did find a note after his death which expressed his feelings about killing someone, which I will post at the end.

I posted the Loibl group earlier. Here?s another group with a Russian connection. This one is my favorite because it comes straight from the step-daughter, and is UNTOUCHED BY DEALERS? HANDS!!! Otto ?Piple? Wieprich was born in 1896 and volunteered for the 27 Infantry Reg?t early in WW1. His step-daughter knows he got his nickname because of his small stature, but is not sure what ?Piple? means. Her best guess is that it is Schwabisch for a small doll! In May 1917 he transferred to FA (A) 250 as a pilot, where he served with actor Peter Ustinov?s father Jona, and his Uncle Peter, who was later KIA and after whom the father would name his famous son. On November 29 with his observer, Lt. Walter Reuschle, Gefreiter Wieprich shot down his first enemy, a DH5, near Dunkirk. Shortly after he was promoted to Vizefeldwebel. I believe this is Otto on the right, with Lt. Reuschle. No other wartime photo of Otto exists.

Stogie, what's your view on fretted out Bavarian crowns on flying badges in general. Seen many real ones? Are these usually done to sex up repros?

EXCELLENT points, Rick!--and effective use of emoticons. I think there is more inter-departmental than inter-national maneuvering in this group... Like I said. I just want a t-shirt with that badge on it.

Werther...well done, Rick. All my reference books are in storage temporarily. I should stick to Pez dispensers until I can rescue my references, but I think they're faking those, too. Given the dismal ratio of fake to real Zep badges, does anyone have an opinion on such a simple Zep document like this? All one needs is an ink stamp...

Yeah, it looks like a catch-up document. Wasn't everybody grounded in December 1918 or dismantling their airships to ship overseas? I'd even settle for a t-shirt with that Zep badge on it...

Der Ritt has listed the following document and stickpin for sale... http://www.derrittmeister.com/justin.htm I think he's confusing the signer's identity with the Zeppelin station Nordholz. Questions: 1. Does anyone know who signed this? 2. Did this individual replace Strasser as Fuhrer d.L. ? 3. These rough and ready Abschriften....is this a copy of a more official looking form or the original document done up cheap and quick? Are these typical of late-war documents? They are certainly easier to fake. Any opinions on the authenticity of this document? Nice stickpin. Would be nice to find a full-size this fancy. Rgds

Many thanks for the translations, Rick. I am hopeless with script. I have another German/Russian group with a twist which I shall post someday. Perhaps you can shed some light on what that pilot was doing there (he wasn't behind barbed wire!) Rgds John

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Which only leaves a relatively peaceful WW2 digging a few walls... and a happy retirement...we hope!

He picked up his EK1 Which he must have worn through WW2 so it's showing the worse for wear

Between the wars he got caught up in some paperwork. Here for his Black Wound Badge, "an 12.5.15 bei Carency an rechten Unterarm verwundet." His EK 1: and

And after he returned in 1920, his buddies gave him eine kleine tchotchke, to commemorate their stay in Russia:

There are a bunch of reports on Offiziersgefangenenlager Omsk published after the war, recording conditions in the camp and camp life from March to November 1917, all signed FRAU NEUMANN as if she were there, which I think is some sort of nom de guerre, but I don't get the reason for the sex change. There is also a programme for some camp theatrical production with scenes entitled: "Tartaren - Vorratszeltlager am kleinen Bazar." "Ankunft neuer Gaeste vor der Kanzlei. April 1916" "Feier in der Tuerkenbaracke zu Ehren Thronbesteigung Mehmed V" "Alte Herren-Faustball" A Lt. Nikolai was cast in a few parts, along with some Leutnants, Hauptmanns, U-Arzts, and Doktors. No drag acts, and no Lt. Loibl who looks way to serious to let his hair down. There is no evidence of mail home during this time, just a blank postcard: I did the shadow effect to simulate prison bars. You guys deserve the best in visual effects.

I think this fellow is taking down warm congratulations from the Czar, or Kerensky, or Lenin?

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Anyone ID the badges on these VIPs?

I don't know if these are camp officers, but they look important. I've copied the backs in case any one can decipher the captions...

For the next four years this was his new home: