German inflation and army services

In the 1930's Hitler was doing an awful lot of stuff for the German people and started to make a lot of propaganda I believe.
But does anybody know how the army was guided trough these ages? Did training intensify? What was done in the airforce? Did pilots attend a lot of ceremonies?
Any kind of information is useful!

 

It can be a bit of a slog but if you want to know what he was doing "for" or "to" the German people I recommend reading Wages of Destruction. It won't address the detailed personnel issues you mention but does give a good account of the economics including those affecting the military. Training was a bit problematic at first especially as Germany was rather limited in what was allowed by the WWI treaty. A number of techniques were used to get around these for a time and eventually they were just ignored. Hopefully you'll get some more knowledgeable posters replying soon.

 

The airforce continued albeit under "auspices"...A large glider training program ran, teaching the youth to fly (what would later be Me109s). They even were included in air displays over seas, like Britain for example...sold aircraft to other countries also...The airforce was forced to wear the swastika, many vets protested (wanting just the traditional cross) but were quickly silenced...

 

The army was increased from 7 ID and 3 CD in 1933 to 39 ID,3 Mounted Divisions,4 Light Divisions and P PzD in 1939.

 

Luftwaffe in the summer of 1939 :

manpower : 373000

Combat aircraft :

bomber geschwader : 17

stukageschwader : 7

zerstörergeschwade : 7 (with twin-engine fighters,later fighter-bombers)

jagdgeschwader : 8

nachtjagdgeschwader : 5

total : 44

theoretically a geschwader had 112 aircraft, but not all were complete.

there were also 4 batallions of airborne troops

 

Why are you interested? What do you want to do with the information?

This might determine what sort of information to provide. There is a lot of information about the lead up to the Secodn World War and much that has been written about the expansion of the Army and the Luftwaffe.

I am a little worried by the phrase " doing an awful lot of stuff for the German people ." The accepted view is that Hitler was doing an awful lot of stuff "to" , rather than "for" the German people.

 

Sheldrake is correct the more specificity you can provide, the better we can assist.

 

I think the OP, and I am just throwing this at the wall, was referring to the false financial security he was giving to the German people. I am assuming the autobahn, national pride, "leveling" inflation, work programs, etc.

That's my two sense. Regardless, To is the proper word.

 

I am interested in this information for a book I'm writing. There is a character who was already a pilot for the airforce (who would later on become a pilot of a Junker Ju 88), but I need to know if he, for example, was home a lot, or was almost 24/7 on the base, ... So that I don't tell completely inaccurate stuff. (Like. "He had time off for a week", whereas they didn't have time off at all.)

 

It all depends what you call Inflation and the 30s. I'd put the inflation in the 20s for a start and until 1933 Hitler was not in Power so the Weimar Reichwehr is less relevant for you. However 1933 doesn't mean Hitler took his magic wand and created a huge army over the night. The Luftwaffe was created in 1935 for example.

 

I suggest you read some of the accounts by Luftwaffe veterans and some of the books about the development of the luftwaffe.

Try
Phoenix Triumphant, by ER Hooton for background. http://www.amazon.com/Phoenix-Triumphant-The-Rise-Luftwaffe/dp/1854093312

Broken swastika by Werner Baumbach for a personal account by a Ju88 ace who might have been a role model. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Broken-Swastika-Luftwaffe-Werner-Baumbach/dp/0880298243

Luftwaffe War Diaries: The German Air Force in World War 2 by Cais Bekker is based on lots of personal accounts

http://www.abebooks.co.uk/book-search/title/the-luftwaffe-war-diaries-the-german-air-force-in-world-war-ii/author/bekker-cajus/

If you are interested in night fighter pilots there are two biogra[phies by Peter Hinchliffe, of Helmut Lent and Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer.

 

Hitler expanded the army and they liked that. More officer billets and more promotion. Also new equipment and opportunities to exercise new doctrines. Most of the officer corps believed they did not lose The Great War and were itching to prove to the world they could win. As for national policy, the army had the ethic of serving the state. State policy was not their concern. Their job was to win.

Hitler had to get the army on his side and also to negate the power of the SA. The army felt threatened by the SA and after the Night of the Long Knives the army thought Hitler a good guy. Ultimately the army oath was personally to Adolph Hitler. That locked them into him.