Oswald Boelcke Marsch Guido Rennert

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Captain Oswald Boelcke's death, this march was composed in 2016 at the initiative of Tactical Air Force Wing 31 Boelcke.

Captain Oswald Boelcke is the namesake of this traditional wing based near Cologne.

Oswald Boelcke was born on May 19, 1891, in Giebichenstein an der Saale, the son of a schoolteacher. In 1914, he joined the flight school in Darmstadt as a lieutenant and earned his pilot's license after just six weeks of training. He went on to develop aerial combat tactics, which he documented in his Dicta Boelcke a foundational text that established him internationally as one of the pioneers of air combat.

Boelcke was not only a gifted pilot, mastering the fabric-covered wooden aircraft of the time with remarkable skill, but also a respected figure admired by both comrades and opponents. This is exemplified by a wreath and letter of condolence dropped by the British Royal Flying Corps during his funeral in Cambrai, after Boelcke died in a mid-air collision with his squadron mate Böhme on October 28, 1916.

The spirit of Oswald Boelcke lives on with pride in Tactical Air Force Wing 31 Boelcke.