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Karena
von Richthofen aka Red Baroness:Born on July 3rd, 1899 to the illustrious Von Richthofen family, Karena is the illegitimate sister of Rittmeister Manfred "Red Baron" von Richthofen. She was left in the care of an elderly eccentric aunt by her natural father, Freiherr Albrecht von Richthofen, and was caught several times sneaking out to join her brothers on thier hunts. Karena, at the age of 14 and under a false name, began to take flying lessons and at the outbreak of the first World war, found herself snugly under the mentorship of (and some say in a serious relationship with) Oswald Boelcke alongside her brothers. She was wounded twice in the line of service and her second, more serious injury in 1916 the very same day Boelcke was killed revealed her gender; but a stroke of luck with Hoeppner guaranteed her place in Jasta 11. With Manfred's blessing as well, she is provisional commander of Jasta 11.
Karena
and Hauptmann Boelcke during training flights in September 1916.
Lothar von Richthofen:
Born on the 27th of September in 1894, Lothar is the younger of
the two flying Richthofen brothers, but nonetheless he considers himself
slightly more skilled than his illustrious brother. Manfred, however, thinks
he's just crazy. Having recently joined Jasta 11 after a small falling-out
with his brother over his tastes for flying solo "hunts" and risking his
neck in Entente territory, Lothar has settled rather nicely into his new
position in the Jasta. A loner by nature, he tends to keep to himself once
on the ground, but can be relied upon in the air to be there when you need
him and sometimes even when you don't. He is a daring pilot with none of
the caution his brother has about aerobatic maneuvers and pushes his plane
to the limits more often than not. Lothar's loyalty to his family of pilots
has never been brought to question; but he is a stickler for rules and
regulations when it comes to conduct around his little sister, Karena.
Lothar has been wounded once so far in the line of service and now walks
with a bit of a limp.
Lothar and Manfred in early 1917.
Rittmeister Freiherr Manfred von Richthofen:
Born on the 2nd of May in 1892, Manfred needs no true introduction.
Originally an Ulhan in the Prussian Cavalry, he joined Jasta 2 (Boelcke)
at the urging of his friend, Wilhelm Boelcke, whom he was serving with
in a small flight squadron on the Eastern Front. A quick learner and a
crack shot, Manfred advanced rapidly after the death of his mentor and
close friend, Oswald Boelcke in October of 1916, coming to head Jasta 11
in January of 1917. Currently on medical leave due to an injury,
Manfred has handed the command of the Jasta down to his beloved youngest
sister, Karena, whom he thinks more than capable of handling things while
he works on the paperwork of his new Geschwader, JG1; which encompasses
Jastas 10, 6, 4 and 11.
Lothar
and Manfred, March 1917
Kurt
Wolff
Born on 6 February 1895 in Griefswald, Pomerania and orphaned while
young, Wolff enlisted with the Eisenbahn Railway Regiment Number 4 in Schoesberg
in 1912 while aged 17. Receiving his commission in April 1915 he applied
for and received a transfer to the German Imperial Air Service three months
later. His early training was inauspicious: on his first instruction
flight his instructor was killed while Wolff himself escaped with a dislocated
shoulder, which plagues him on and off still today. Emerging from his period
of training with a pilot's certificate in December 1915, Wolff saw service
at Verdun in early 1916 with a KG unit and later that year during the closing
stages of the Battle of the Somme with Jasta 11. Known as 'tender little
flower' among his fellow pilots ('zarte Bluemlein') for his shy demeanour
Wolff was not initially a successful fighter pilot. It was only with
the arrival of Manfred von Richthofen to command of Jasta 11 that both
Wolff's and Jasta 11's performance picked up.
Manfred talking
to Wolff before a flight in his Fokker F.1. "Bring her back in one piece,
Wolffchen.."
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