Of the three branches of the German military services - army, navy, and air, the air service received the most awards to junior officers. The creation of aerial combat brought forth a new breed of warrior that seemed glamorous and daring. Their exploits were watched by thousands of soldiers down below in the trenches, so their battles were very publicized. In order for a pilot to be considered for the Pour le Mérite, he would have to obtain a certain amount of aerial victories. The first pilots to receive the award had to have 8 aerial victories. On January 12, 1916 Oswald Boelcke and Max Immelmann were the first to receive the Pour le Mérite. Here's a site to keep going back to ... some excellent photos and information about German flyers ! http://www.pourlemerite.org/wwi/air/air.html Annie
