Walter Zellot

Walter Zellot (6 October 1920 – 10 September 1942) was a World War II fighter ace from Germany. He was born on 6 October 1920 in Spittal an der Drau in the Austrian state of Carinthia. Zellot is credited for shooting down 86 Allied aircraft in 296 different missions. Among these 83 were achieved over the Eastern Front.

World War II
Zellot was assigned to the Jagdgeschwader 53. He achieved his first victory on 22 June 1941 when he shot down a Soviet Polikarpov I-16 over the Eastern front. On 11 July 1941 he shot down three enemy aircraft. By early August 1941, he had a total of 12 victories.

In the autumn of 1941, I./JG 53 was shifted to the Mediterranean theatre and he operated from the bases in Sicily. Zellot shot down two Supermarine Spitfires of the Royal Air Force (RAF) over Malta in April 1942. This included the aircraft of British fighter ace and Squadron Leader John Bisdee (credited for destroying 9 aircraft) of the 601 Squadron who bailed out, landed in the sea and was rescued.

In May 1942, Zellot accompanied I./JG 51 back to the Soviet Union and within only three months achieved 69 victories. He was appointed Staffelkapitän of 2./JG 53 on 19 August 1942 replacing Hauptmann Klaus Quaet-Faslem. In August 1942, he shot down several Soviet aircraft including three victories on August 1, three on August 2, three on August 7, four on August 9, five on August 13, four on August 23 and three on August 28. Leutnant Zellot received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 3 September 1942 for a reported 84 victories (although his actual total kill on that date was 78). However, earlier on the same day of his appointment on 19 August 1942, his Bf.109G-2 WNr.14189 was shot-up by a Soviet fighter, probably the Yak-1 flown by future ace Boris M. Vasilyev (929 IAP).

Death
On 10 September 1942, Zellot was killed while engaged in a low-level attack on Soviet troops northwest of Stalingrad. His Messerschmitt Bf 109 "Gustav" was hit by anti-aircraft fire, which blew off the tail of the aircraft. Some sources claim that Zellot may have been victim of friendly fire. He bailed out at very low altitude. There was insufficient height for his parachute to open and he was killed.

Awards

 * Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe (24 August 1942)
 * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 3 September 1942 as Leutnant and pilot in the I./JG 53