Albert Kesselring was a German military officer and convicted war criminal who served in the Luftwaffe during World War II. In a career which spanned both world wars, Kesselring reached the rank of the Generalfeldmarschall and became one of Nazi Germany's most highly decorated commanders.
Kesselring wearing his Knight's Cross in 1940
Kesselring at the controls of a Siebel Fh 104 aircraft
Kesselring (left), with his chief of staff, Wilhelm Speidel (centre), and Hermann Göring (right) – 1940
Kesselring in 1940
The Luftwaffe was the aerial-warfare branch of the Wehrmacht before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the Luftstreitkräfte of the Imperial Army and the Marine-Fliegerabteilung of the Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles which banned Germany from having any air force.
Hermann Göring, the first Supreme Commander of the Luftwaffe (in office: 1935–1945)
Robert Ritter von Greim, the second and last Supreme Commander of the Luftwaffe (in office: April–May 1945)
Manfred von Richthofen with other members of Jasta 11, 1917 as part of the Luftstreitkräfte
Walther Wever, Chief of the Luftwaffe General Staff, 1933–1936
