Gerhard Bassenge

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Gerhard Bassenge (18 November 1897 – 13 March 1977) was a German Luftwaffe general who served in World War II and earlier in World War I. He began his military career in the infantry in 1914, became a Leutnant in 1915, and switched to aviation in 1916. He flew with Jagdstaffel 5 and Jagdstaffel 2, earning seven aerial victories before the war ended; he was wounded in 1917 and returned to action in 1918. After the war, he studied engineering and worked at the Reich Air Ministry. In the 1930s he joined the Luftwaffe, helped train the first German paratroopers, and rose through the staff ranks. In 1940 he was Chief of Staff of Luftflotte 2 during the early Western campaigns, then Chief of Staff of Luftflotte 5 in Norway during the Battle of Britain. He later served on a Luftwaffe mission to Romania and then went to North Africa, where he was airfield area commandant and later commanding officer of the 19th Luftwaffe Field Division. He was promoted to Generalmajor in 1943 and took command of the Fortress Area Tunis–Bizerte. Bassenge was captured on 9 May 1943 and spent the rest of the war as a prisoner of war, being repatriated in 1947. While in captivity he engaged in discussions that questioned Hitler’s leadership. He died in Lübeck in 1977.