Customer Reviews

THE FIRST JET PILOT: The Story of German Test Pilot Erich Warsitz

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Pacific Wings (NZ), April 2010, reviewed by Rob Neil

This book is nothing short of a gem for anyone interested in real aviation history.
I could end the review there, because in my opinion, that one sentence sums up everything about the book. However, readers will probably want to know why I thought it was so good--and the author and publisher might want me to say a bit more!
The book is--as the title suggests--the story of the world's very first jet pilot, the author's father, Erich Warsitz, who became a test pilot for the German Luftwaffe in the years immediately before World War Two.
Some readers might be reluctant to pick up a book that has been "translated", as the word almost invariably implies a disjointed and difficult-to-read text. Thankfully, nothing could be further from the truth. Not only has the translator, Geoffrey Brooks, done an excellent job of translating the author's words extremely readably, he also appears to have grasped all the subtleties of humour and personality intended by the author.
Making the work even more readable is the style chosen by Lutz Warsitz to present his father's story. It could easily have been a dry historical narrative compiled from information that Erich Warsitz provided his son. Instead, Lutz Warsitz has written the book as a pseudo "autobiography" as if it were written in the first person by Erich Warsitz himself.
I suggest this would have been rather difficult for anyone but Erich's son. For a volume about a subject of immense historical importance to aviation, such a style could easily have been a disaster. However, Lutz Warsitz has pulled it off beautifully and the book is truly fascinating from both historical and personal perspectives. It was far more "readable" than I expected.
The author says he spent a year "interviewing" his father when researching the book. Having privileged access to Erich Warsitz's priceless diaries and notes must have been an enormous help in his research. The result is a book that "is" Erich Warsitz telling his own story.
The First Jet Pilot corrects many commonly held misconceptions--for example, that the Heinkel 176 (the rocket-powered predecessor to the He-178) was "privately funded" and that it was developed out of sight (and without the approval) of the German authorities. However, he tells the amusing and fascinating stories about numerous other "secrets" that were kept from the bureaucrats and German administration.
Because the Allies won the war, it was Allied scientists, aircraft manufacturers and pilots who became famous--often by utilising the results of German research and testing efforts. Before corresponding with the author, I had not heard of Erich Warsitz. His name was there in the history books, but it was never highlighted adequately and was always overshadowed by names like Heinkel and von Braun. (In much the same way, while most aviation buffs know that the first British Jet was the Gloster Whittle E.28/39, many might not know its test pilot was Flt Lt Gerry Sayer.)
The First Jet Pilot goes some small way to correcting the historical imbalance of recognition and highlights the massive debt that everyone in aviation owes to pioneers like Erich Warsitz. These men (and women, like Hanna Reitsch) were incredibly brave to test new aircraft, untried engines and unknown aerodynamic hurdles. Many of them died--suddenly and frighteningly. Were it not for their efforts and sacrifices, we certainly would not be enjoying the ability to travel around the world with "effortless" ease in shirt- sleeved comfort as we do today.
Thankfully, Erich Warsitz survived his test-flying days. This was a major feat when flying some of the most deadly test aircraft ever to hazard the sky (and their pilots). It was even more impressive when one considers the pressure upon manufacturers and pilots under conditions of wartime urgency.
Having survived WWII as well as his hazardous test-flying career, Erich Warsitz--like many German survivors--suffered significantly at the hands of the Russians after the war. After kidnapping him with the intention of forcing him to cooperate with them in their jet and rocket research--which he refused to do--the Russians sent Erich Warsitz to Siberia.
The First Jet Pilot only gives a brief summary of Erich Warsitz's Russian ordeal and his life after the war. While the rest of the book made me want to know more, it isn't the book's purpose. (My only complaint about The First Jet Pilot is that is isn't longer!)
Instead, through Lutz Warsitz's words, readers share the emotions--apprehension, loyalty, fear, frustration and elation--of being part of some of aviation's most significant advances. Despite the difficulties in sourcing images (so many German images were either destroyed during the war or taken by one or another of the "victors" afterwards), the author has come up with a marvellous selection of pictures, many of which have never been published before.
The First Jet Pilot will remain a treasured addition to my bookshelf because of the way it brings (forgotten) history to life. Lutz Warsitz has done an excellent job and his effort would undoubtedly have made his father proud. A thoroughly recommended read.


Forecast International (US), August 2009

This is a fascinating first-hand account of a little known chapter in aviation history, which will be enjoyed by all aviation buffs and historians. The title of the book, "The First Jet Pilot" is modest, as Erich Warsitz was not only the world's first Jet Pilot; he was also the world's first Rocket Pilot!


Microlight Flying (UK), December 2009

This is the story of German test pilot Erich Warsitz. If he had been English or American, his flying would have become the stuff of legend. But history is written by the winners, and it's taken until now for Erich's story to be given the publicity it deserves. The book is written by Erich's son, based on interviews he did with his father. It includes fascinating photographs too, and is a spellbinding read.


Classic Wings (NZ), issue 72, 2009

As time passes it is getting rarer to read first-hand accounts from those who participated in World War II, especially those involved in significant events. Fortunately some have recorded their experiences and passed them on to family members who realize the significance of what their parents achieved. Lutz Warsitz fits into this category and has seen fit to put his father's into a book. Lutz has not only been able to draw on the conversations he had with his father, but access to his extensive notes and log books, diagrams and photographs mean that this book is a very historic, and very readable, document of a fascinating, dangerous and pioneering time in aviation history and upon putting it down one can only admire the courage of Warsitz and the men and women who followed in his footsteps.


Military Aircraft Monthly (UK), February 2010
A fascinating read and an invaluable insight in to the workings of pre- and wartime test flying under the Third Reich.


Model Airplane International (UK), May 2009
A fascinating story of a very important person in the history of aviation and one that is good to have in print at long last.


New Zealand Aviation News, December/January 2010

After all, it is not every day that you get to read a book of such historical significance. Perhaps this review should be censored as the book contains information that is both extraordinary and quite shocking as the reader realizes how close the world came to seeing a very different result in WW2. Little is known of this period in German aviation history as the project was shrouded in secrecy, which is what makes this book so exciting and fascinating to read. This book is the story of a remarkable pilot and the birth of jet flight as we know it today. An easy and informative page-turner!


Airforce Revue (CA), Fall 2009

This book, authored by the pilot's son, Lutz Warsitz, following years of research into his father's notes and diaries, provides the reader an accurate series of events both preceding and subsequent to the flight. As well, it gives the reader a sense of the general atmosphere existing in the Luftwaffe during the heady days of German aviation experimentation in the 1930s.


LISMS (US), June 2009

Not only is it very readable and enjoyable book but also a valuable contemporary histori¬cal document since it was written by people intimately involved in the first years of Ger¬many's efforts in jet propulsion, particularly in the case of Heinkel.


SA Flyer (ZA), January 2010

Erich Warsitz pioneered jet flight by piloting the truly frightening very first experimental jet aircraft. He pioneered the paradigm shift in aviation that jet engines brought about. On 27 August 1939, the then Flugkapitän Erich Warsitz became the first man to fly a jet aircraft, the Heinkel 178. This book is written by Erich Warsitz's son, with material taken from his father's copious notes. It vividly captures the halcyon days of German aviation history as it threw off its post WWI shackles and prepared once again for war. Little was known of this period because of the tight security that surrounded Germany's illicit aircraft development. This book includes many previously unpublished photographs and material. As such it is an essential work for anyone interested in the key period of aeronautical growth.


Airnews (ZA), October 2009

In terms of aviations pioneers, a few key names are always sure to get a mention. However, a sphere of aviation development often overlooked by the history books is that of the world's first jet engine by the Germans in the run-up to World War II. The First Jet Pilot written by the son of test pilot Erich Warsitz, rips the cloak off a chapter in aviation history that has remained shrouded in secrecy for nearly 80 years. What Lutz Warsitz manages to achieve with this book, is to portray the pioneers of the time, not as Nazi sympathizers, or Reich's men, but as young adventurous aviators and scientists, eager to get their new projects into the air. In fact, the book has very little to do with the war, focusing on the development team's strife with the Government of the day for funding, the incidents and accidents - that if they were not so serious, would be considered laughable by today's standards, and the gut-wrenching tension of developmental test flying in the days before modern test flight methodologies and simulations were available. Each day was a case of strapping yourself into/on to a machine that might, or might not, explode at any second, highlighting the extreme bravery found in those young pioneers. Having been translated from German by Geoffrey Brooks, The First Jet Pilot makes for extremely easy reading of a somewhat difficult subject, and the personal interludes and introspection add a great touch for being able to gauge the mental make-up of the test pilots of a bygone era. Including many previously unreleased photos, diagrams and drawings, Lutz Warsitz has managed to uncloak a period that was hidden in sinister secrecy, and managed to bring the reader out to the icy fields of Germany in the late 1930s to be an integral part of the flight test teams that paved the way for the future jet technologies that we all enjoy today. More than just a good read, The First Jet Pilot makes it as an historical document of inestimable value in the aviation pioneering field.

A fascinating book about the first Jet Pilot. Oh how close the Germans came, if only the upper levels of the Nazi Government pursued this new technology. The book takes a detailed look and timeline on the development of the Rocket powered aircraft and Jet aircraft. A highly recommended read.