Martin Drewes

Martin Drewes (20 October 1918 – 13 October 2013) was a night fighter ace in the German Luftwaffe during World War II. 52 victories were scored most against British four-engine bombers Handley Page Halifax and Avro Lancaster. Drewes flew variants of the Messerschmitt Bf 110.

Early life
Drewes was born on 20 October 1918 in Lobmachtersen-bei-Braunschweig, a small village near Hannover (northwestern Germany). He was the son of a local pharmacist. As the end of the 1930s, Drewes volunteered for the officer's school of the German Army and at the end of the course transferred to the Luftwaffe during 1939.

World War II
Drewes was first assigned to II./Zerstörergeschwader 76 flying the Messerschmitt Bf 110, operating defensive patrols over the North Sea. In May 1941 the Luftwaffe committed Flyer Command Iraq (Fliegerführer Irak), which comprised one squadron (staffel) of He 111s (4./KG 4), one staffel of Zerstörer (Bf 110s of 4./ZG 76), and 12 transports including a number of Junkers Ju 90s to support the Iraqi rebels during the Anglo-Iraqi War.

The ten-day stint in the Middle East included a victory (Gloster Gladiator) for Drewes. Allied air-opposition was light and the Luftwaffe force concentrated mainly on ground support duties. By 26 May, despite cannibalizing two machines damaged in an RAF raid on Mosul, no Bf 110 was left serviceable. Drewes and his unit were evacuated the following day. Soon after ZG 76 was converted to a night fighter unit and renamed Nachtgeschwader 3.

Drewes scored regular night victories over Germany, before being transferred to Nachtjagdgeschwader 1 where he would remain until the end of the war. In 1944 he became Gruppenkommandeur III./NJG 1. At the end of hostilities he had flown 252 operations, and claimed a total of 52 victories (including a Spitfire, a Gladiator, 7 American 4-engined bombers shot down in daylight operations, and 43 British night bombers), most of them achieved with his radio man Oberfeldwebel Georg "Schorsch" Petz. Drewes was decorated with Ritterkreuz and Eichenlaub. He was captured by British forces at the end of the war.

Postwar
In 1949, Drewes emigrated to Brazil, where he lived until his death. Martin Drewes built a career as an entrepreneur and married a brazilian woman. The long marriage ended only in 2010 by the death of his wife. He returned at least once each year on visits to Germany. He died on 13 October 2013 in Blumenau.

List of victories
235 missions
 * 1 Gloster Gladiator
 * 1 Supermarine Spitfire
 * 1 Short Stirling
 * 1 Consolidated B-24 Liberator
 * 6 Boeing B-17
 * 9 Handley Page Halifax
 * 33 Avro Lancaster

Awards

 * Iron Cross (1939)
 * 2nd Class (26 May 1941)
 * 1st Class (9 April 1943)
 * German Cross in Gold on 24 February 1944 as Oberleutnant in the 11./NJG 1
 * Ehrenpokal der Luftwaffe (31 March 1944)
 * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
 * Knight's Cross on 27 July 1944 as Hauptmann and Gruppenkommandeur of the III./NJG 1
 * 839th Oak Leaves on 17 April 1945 as Major and Gruppenkommandeur of the III./NJG 1