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A Jagdstaffel (plural Jagdstaffeln, abbreviated to Jasta) was a fighter Staffel (squadron) of the German Imperial Luftstreitkräfte during World War I. Before April 1916, Die Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches, which had been established in 1912 as the aviation service of the Imperial German Army, was largely organised in small general purpose units (Feldfliegerabteilungen, FFA Field Flyer Detachments). The first specialist bombing and close support units began forming during 1915. The FFA were subordinate to the Army command to which they were attached. By the end of the spring of 1915, the first German fighter aircraft were being issued in small numbers to the FFA. At this period their function was seen almost entirely as "protection" for the reconnaissance missions which were the primary duty of the Fliegertruppe. Pilots like Kurt Wintgens, Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke pioneered the aggressive use of the early Fokker Eindecker fighters but it was to be almost a year before the first specialist fighter units joined the Luftstreitkräfte. In February 1916, the first step towards fighter-only units began, with the establishment by Inspektor-Major Friedrich Stempel of units described variously as Fokkerstaffeln or Kampfeinsitzer Kommando (KEK, single-seat battle unit) formations. Fighter aircraft already in service and their pilots were detached from the general-purpose FFA units and brought together in pairs and quartets at important locations. Such units were formed at Vaux, Avillers, Jametz, Cunel and other places along the Western Front as Luftwachtdienst (aerial guard service) units, consisting only of fighters. This process was by no means universally welcomed, nor did it bring immediate success. By April 1916, the air superiority established by the Eindecker pilots in the Fokker Scourge had long gone and the Eindeckers were giving way to the Fokker and Halberstadt D-series biplane fighters.

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Related concepts (8)

Jagdstaffel 2

Jasta 2 (Jagdstaffel Zwei in full and also known as Jasta Boelcke) was one of the best-known German Luftstreitkräfte Squadrons in World War I. Its first commanding officer was the great aerial tactician Oswald Boelcke, and it was the incubator of several notable aviation careers. As one of the first Jastas, Jasta 2 had no parent unit and there was therefore no mass transfer of personnel from existing Staffeln. Assigned to the German 1st Army, the unit was created with the intention that Hauptmann Oswald Boelcke would be its leader.

Flying ace

A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually considered to be five or more. The concept of the "ace" emerged in 1915 during World War I, at the same time as aerial dogfighting. It was a propaganda term intended to provide the home front with a cult of the hero in what was otherwise a war of attrition.

Manfred von Richthofen

Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (ˈmanfreːt fɔn ˈʁɪçthoːfn̩; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of the war, being officially credited with 80 air combat victories. Originally a cavalryman, Richthofen transferred to the Air Service in 1915, becoming one of the first members of fighter squadron Jagdstaffel 2 in 1916.