World War II in Europe began on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces
invaded Poland. Hoffmann was assigned to 4.
Staffel of
Zerstörergeschwader 2 (ZG 2—2nd Destroyer Wing) in early 1940 and participated in the
Battle of France. He claimed his aerial first aerial victory, a
Royal Air Force (RAF)
Hawker Hurricane fighter over Dunkirk, on 24 May 1940. That day, he also shot down
Flying Officer Peter Cazenove in his
Supermarine Spitfire from
No. 92 Squadron. On 19 June, he hit by ground fire during a
ground attack mission on French troops but returned to his airfield. Hoffmann sustained injuries in his left elbow, requiring weeks of convalescence. In July 1940, Hoffmann was transferred to
Ergänzungs-Zerstörergruppe Værløse as an instructor with the rank of
Oberleutnant and appointed
Staffelkapitän (squadron leader). He remained with the unit until 3 August 1941, when the unit was disbanded. He then underwent conversion training as a night fighter pilot.
Night fighter career Following the 1939 aerial
Battle of the Heligoland Bight, RAF attacks shifted to the cover of darkness, initiating the
Defence of the Reich campaign. By mid-1940,
Generalmajor (Brigadier General)
Josef Kammhuber had established a night
air defense system dubbed the
Kammhuber Line. It consisted of a series of control sectors equipped with
radars and
searchlights and an associated night fighter. Each sector named a
Himmelbett (canopy bed) would direct the night fighter into visual range with target bombers. In 1941, the Luftwaffe started equipping night fighters with airborne radar such as the
Lichtenstein radar. This airborne radar did not come into general use until early 1942. Hoffmann was posted as
Staffelkapitän to 5.
Staffel of
Nachtjagdgeschwader 3 (NJG 3—3rd Night Fighter Wing) based at Schleswig. On the night of 25/26 June 1942, Hoffmann shot down two twin-engine bombers during the 1,000-bomber raid on
Bremen. Hoffmann was appointed
Staffelkapitän of 4.
Staffel of
Nachtjagdgeschwader 5 (NJG 5—5th Night Fighter Wing) on 11 February 1943.
Group commander Hoffmann then served with I./NJG 1, based at
Sint-Truiden, Saint-Trond in French pronunciation. On 4 July 1943, he was appointed
Gruppenkommandeur (group commander) of I.
Gruppe of NJG 5, succeeding
Hauptmann Siegfried Wandam in this capacity. On 15 November, Hoffmann was awarded the
German Cross in Gold () for 15 victories and by the end of 1943 had a victory total of 18. On 20 January 1944 Hoffmann had to bail out over Berlin when his aircraft was damaged by return fire from an RAF Lancaster. On the night of 28/29 January he shot down three Halifax bombers raiding Berlin and claimed two Lancaster bombers shot down the next night. Hoffmann was awarded the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross () for 31 victories on 4 May 1944. On 29 June, Hoffmann shot down a four-engine bomber but again bailed out when his aircraft received hits from defensive fire from the bomber. On the night of 7/8 July he shot down three RAF bombers. In late July 1944 I./NJG 5 was withdrawn to Stendal for re-equipment with the Ju 88 G-6. Deployed to East Prussia, Hoffmann claimed four victories over Soviet-flown aircraft around
Libau during December 1944. By early 1945 Hoffmann had 44 victories. Following the Soviet offensive on 12 January 1945, Major Hoffmann flew ground-attack operations against ground forces. Hoffmann claimed a further seven victories during 1945. On the night of 16/17 March 1945, Hoffmann claimed three aerial victories but was himself shot down. His first claim, a Lancaster bomber, was shot down southwest of Schwäbisch-Hall, a Halifax bomber was destroyed near Ansbach, and a Lancaster bomber was claimed east of Ansbach. Near Nuremberg, his Ju 88 G-6 came under attack from a
No. 239 Squadron De Havilland Mosquito night-fighter flown by
Squadron Leader Dennis Hughes and
Flight Lieutenant 'Dickie' Percks. His entire crew bailed out with Hoffmann suffered severe bruising to his chest. On 1 May 1945, Hoffmann joined 7./NJG 3, based at
Husum. Hoffmann was recommended for the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves (), a presentation was never made. ==Later life==