Luftwaffe personnel structure consisted of two broad categories, Wehrmachtangehörige or members of the armed forces, and Wehrmachtgefolge or auxiliaries of the armed forces.
The Wehrmachtangehörige consisted of Soldaten or military personnel in a limited sense (officers and enlisted), and Beamten or military officials, either belonging to the general category of Wehrmachtbeamte, or one of four Sondergruppen (special groups of officials): Engineers, Navigators, Aircraft Pilots or Flying Safety. In 1944 supply officers and judge-advocates were transferred from the Officials category, to the Soldiers category as officers of the Truppensonderdienst. As a war-time measure, Sonderführers were introduced, filling positions normally held by trained officers or non-commissioned officers without having the required military training. Beamte auf Kriegsdauer (war-time officials) were filling positions normally held by trained officials, without having the required civil service training.
The Wehrmachtgefolge consisted in peace-time of civilian salaried employees and workers of the Luftwaffe. During the war several new classes of full or par time duty personnel were added to the Wehrmachtgefolge, such as: Luftschutzwarndienst, the male personnel of the air raid warning service; Sicherheits- und Hilfsdienst, the barracked security and assistance service of the civil defense; Luftwaffenhelferinnen, the female Luftwaffe auxiliaries; Luftwaffenhelfer, underage male youth serving anti-aircraft batteries between school or work; Flakwehrmänner, male workers in reserved occupations serving anti-aircraft batteries during air-raids. The Wehrmachtgefolge also contained units from paramilitary organizations, as far as they were subordinated to the Luftwaffe during the war, such as: Reichsarbeitsdienst, National Socialist Motor Corps, and Organisation Todt.
Overview + Luftwaffe strength 1. Sept. 1943 Units Ration strength Luftwaffe in the area of the field army 990,000 Field units of the Luftwaffe in the home war zone, General Government, Ostland and Ukraine393,000 Luftwaffe replacement units 363,000 Luftwaffe Field Divisions 150,000Total 1,896,000Source:"Verpflegungsstärken der Kriegswehrmacht am 1.9.1943." Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung. 2025-05-11. Personnel structure of the Luftwaffe TM-E 30-451, pp. I-10-12.StatusWehrmachtangehörigeWehrmachtgefolgeMilitary lineMilitary non-line OfficialsLuftwaffe auxiliaries Regular and reserve Unrestricted line officers: Restricted line officers: Enlisted Special career officers: Special troop officers: Military officials: Civilian employees of the Luftwaffe War time reinforcement Sonderführer Beamte auf Kriegsdauer Detachments from paramilitary formations in the service of the Luftwaffe:
Military personnel Soldaten, or military personnel in a limited sense, consisted of officers, noncommissioned officers and airmen, belonging to the flying troops, fallschirmjäger, air defense artillery, air signal troops, construction units, and medical units, as well the Luftwaffe ground combat units, such as the Division "Hermann Goering" and the Luftwaffe field divisions. They also included the special career officers such as medical officers and directors of music, and the special troop officers such as supply officers and judge advocates.
Officers Corps The commissioned officers of the Luftwaffe could either be non-restricted or restricted line officers, or non-line officers. Non-restricted officers were Truppenoffiziere, troop officers, and Generalstabsoffiziere, general staff officers. Resttricted line officers were ordnance officers and engineering officers. Non-line officers were of two kinds, special career officers, Offiziere der Sonderlaufbahnen, contained medical officers and directors of music, while Truppensonderdienst, the special troop officers, were created in 1944 by the transfer of supply officers and judge advocates from the military officials class.TM-E 30-451, pp. I-10-11, I-31.Moll 1997, pp. 387-389.Richhardt 2002, pp. 154-157, 212-214.
Corps Meaning Generalstabsoffiziere General Staff Officers Truppenoffiziere Troop Officers Sanitätsoffiziere Medical OfficersIngenieuroffiziere des Flugwesens Air Force Engineer Officers Offiziere im waffentechnischem Dienst Ordnance Officers Musikinspizienten und Musikmeister Inspectors and Directors of MusicVerwaltungsdienst (TSD)Supply Officers Wehrmachtrichter (TSD)Judge Advocates Richhardt 2002, pp. 154-157, 240, 244-250. The Air force engineer officers were to replace the Air engineers of the military officials class, but only a very limited number of such officers were trained before the end of the war.Richhardt 2002, p. 245-247. The Air engineering officials were supposed to transfer to the engineering officer career, but that measure was postponed until the end of the war.Stumpf 2017, p. 104. No engineering officer reached higher rank than First Lieutenant at the end of the war. The highest rank of the Ordnance officer corps was Colonel.Stumpf 2017, p. 109. The corps was abolished in 1944, and its 193 members transferred to the troop officer corps.Boog 2021, p. 284.
Ranks of Luftwaffe officers General Staff Officers Troop Officers Air Force Engineer Officers Ordnance Officer Medical Officers Supply Officers 1944 Judge Advocates 1944 Music DirectorsInspectors - Leutnant Leutnant (Ing.)Leutnant (W) Assistenzarzt Zahlmeister - Musikmeister - Oberleutnant Oberleutnant (Ing.) Oberleutnant (W) Oberarzt Oberzahlmeister - Obermusikmeister Hauptmann i.G. Hauptmann - Hauptmann (W) Stabsarzt Stabsintendant Stabsrichter StabsmusikmeisterMajor i.G. Major - Major (W)Oberstabsarzt Oberstabsintendant Oberstabsrichter Musikinspizient Oberstleutnant i.G. Oberstleutnant - Oberstleutnant (W) Oberfeldarzt Oberfeldintendant Oberfeldrichter Obermusikinspizient Oberst i.G. Oberst - Oberst (W) Oberstarzt Oberstintendant Oberstrichter - Generalmajor - - Generalarzt Generalintendant Generalrichter -Generalleutnant - - Generalstabsarzt Generalstabsintendant Generalstabrichter-General der Luftwaffe - - -- - -Generaloberst - - -- - -Generalfeldmarschall - - -- - -Reichsmarschall - - -- - -
Commissions The officers of the several corps were listed in different seniority lists depending on their service conditions: Seniority list Category Service conditionsAaktive Offiziere Regular commissionB ErgänzungsoffiziereSupplementary commissionCOffiziere des BeurlaubtenstandesReserve commissionDKriegsoffiziere Temporary war commissionEOffiziere zur Verfügung Officers to disposalOffiziere zur DienstleistungOfficers to disposal in actual serviceOffiziere ausser DienstRetired officers Ergängzungsoffiziere were former officers born in 1882 or later, serving in staff and administrative positions. Offiziere der Beurlaubtenstandes were reserve officers; consisting of Reserveoffiziere (under 35 years of age), and Landwehroffiziere (35 years old and older) until 1940, when the two categories were merged. Kriegsoffiziere were officers promoted from the ranks and given temporary commissions for the duration of the war. Offiziere zur Verfügung were former officers subject to recall at mobilization. Such officers were called Offiziere zur Dienstleistung when recalled.TM-E 30-451, pp. I-10-11.Richhardt 2002, pp. 230-231.Henry L. deZeng IV. "A Brief Survey of Luftwaffe Officer Classifications." Luftwaffe Officer Career Summaries. 2017-11-20.
Enlisted Each branch of the Luftwaffe had a number of Dienstlaufbahngruppen (career groups) for non-commissioned officers and airmen, further subdivided into Dienstlaufbahnen (service careers).English terminology is as far as possible taken from TM 12-427.
Flying Troops The Flying Troops had three career croups, Air Crew, Aircraft Engineering, and General Service.
Air Crew Airplane Pílot, Aircraft Observer, Auxiliary Observer, Bombardier, Air Signaller (Aerial Gunner), Flight Engineer (Aerial Gunner), Aerial Gunner, and Paratrooper.Adler & Rückens 1941, pp. 36-37. Aircraft Engineering Aircraft Engineering Technician, Airframe Mechanic, Airplane Engine Mechanic, Airplane Electrical Mechanic, Airplane Precision Mechanic, Airplane Bomb Armorer, Airplane Weapons Armorer, Aerial Photography Technician, Airplane Signals Mechanic, and Parachute Rigger and Survival Equipmentman. General Service Ground Communications, Motor Transportation, Supply Clerk, Ammunition Technician, Hauptfeldwebel (First Sergeant), HQ Sergeant, Supply Technician (Automotive), Supply Technician (Aircraft), Supply Technician (Weapons/Gas Protection), Supply Technician (General), Clothing Clerk, Accountant, Subsistence NCO, Administrative Clerk, Small Boat Crew, Air Traffic Control, Musician, Medical Technician, and Military Official Candidate.
Air Defense Artillery The Air Defense Artillery had two careers groups, Artillery, and General Service.
Artillery Anti-aircraft Artillery Personnel, Motor Transportation Personnel, Communications.Adler & Rückens 1941, pp. 97-98.
General Service The same as the general service of the Flying Troops, with the addition of Supply Technician (Communications), and Supply Technician (Searchlight), and without Supply Technician (Aircraft).
Air Signal Troops The Air Signal Troops had two career groups, Signals, and General Service.
Signals General, Flight Radio Operator, Aircraft Radio, Radio Technical Sergeant, Telephone Technical Sergeant, Supply Technician (Communications), Armorer.Adler & Rückens 1941, pp. 105-106.
General Service The same as the general service of the Flying Troops, without Supply Technician (Aircraft).
Other branches In addition to the three major branches, flying troops, air defense artillery, and air signal troops, the Luftwaffe had several other branches. In existence at the beginning of the war was the medical troops (Sanitätstruppen), and the Reichsluftaufsicht or the National Flying Safety Service, which was staffed both by military personnel and a special group of Beamten (see below). During the war special Luftwaffe construction units (Luftwaffen-Bauverbände) were added. A special ground-combat unit General Göring existed since 1935, and airborne Fallschirmjäger units since 1938; during the war both expanded into army corps, with the same complement of ground-combat branches that existed in the army. In addition, the Luftwaffe in 1942 formed a number field divisions of excess personnel, that, however, after about a year was absorbed by the German Army. There were even veterinary units; the enlisted men belonging to the Luftwaffe, and the veterinary officers to the army.Henner & Böhler 2014, pp. 46, 54, 56, 62, 86, 88, 138.
Ranks of Luftwaffe non-commissioned officers and men Flying TroopsFallschirmjägerAir Signal TroopsFlying Safety ServiceConstruction UnitsOther branches of the Göring units and the field divisions Air Defense ArtilleryArtillery and Anti-aircraft artillery of the Göring units, the Fallschirmjäger, and the field divisions Medical troopsVeterinary unitsMannschaften Flieger, Fallschirmjäger, Funker, Bausoldat, Jäger, Grenadier, Füsilier, Panzerschütze, Pionier, Kraftfahrer, Feldgendarm KanonierPanzerjäger SanitätssoldatVeterinärsoldat Gefreiter SanitätsgefreiterVeterinärgefreiter Obergefreiter SanitätsobergefreiterVeterinärobergefreiter HauptgefreiterPromotion to this rank seized at the beginning of the war. The only holders were men promoted before the war. Those still holding this rank in 1944 were given the new rank of Stabsgefreiter. Absolon 1975, p. 207, note 938. SanitätshauptgefreiterVeterinärhauptgefreiterUnteroffiziere UnteroffizierOberjäger [Fallschirmjäger] Unteroffizier SanitätsunteroffizierVeterinärunteroffizier Unterfeldwebel Unterwachtmeister SanitätsunterfeldwebelVeterinärunterwachtmeister Feldwebel Wachtmeister SanitätsfeldwebelVeterinärwachtmeister Oberfeldwebel Oberwachtmeister SanitätsoberfeldwebelVeterinäroberwachtmeister Stabsfeldwebel Stabswachtmeister SanitätsstabsfeldwebelVeterinärstabswachtmeister
Sonderführer