Iré-le-Sec – Then and Now

Walter HÖHNDORF was born on November 10, 1892, as the son of village schoolmaster Otto Höhndorf in Kloster Lehnin (OT Prützke), Mark Brandenburg. Early on, he developed a passion for mechanical engineering. He studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, among other places, and took flying lessons there. In November 1913, he received the German pilot’s license.

Before the outbreak of the First World War, Höhndorf became known as an aerobatic stunt pilot. He also worked as an engineer at the Union-Flugzeugwerke in Teltow.

At the outbreak of war, Höhndorf volunteered for the air service. He initially served as a test pilot and acceptance pilot at Siemens-Schuckert-Werken in Berlin and Erlangen. He was particularly involved in the development of the R-type bomber.

In March 1915, Höhndorf was appointed Leutnant d.R. and assigned to FFA 12 at the end of 1915, where in January 1916 he defeated two opponents in just three days. During a tour of duty with Feldflieger-Abteilung (FFA) 67, he received the Iron Cross Second Class. In April 1916, he joined the Kampf-Einsitzer-Kommando (KEK) Vaux. Between April 10 and July 19, 1916, Höhndorf shot down 7 French aircraft and was awarded the Iron Cross First Class as well as the Knight’s Cross of the House Order of Hohenzollern. On July 20, 1916, he received the highest military award of the German Empire, the “Pour le Mérite” order. From August 23, 1916, he served in the newly formed Jagdstaffel (Jasta) 1, with which he achieved his twelfth and final aerial victory on September 17, 1916.