WorldWar2.ro Forum [Powered by Invision Power Board]

Printable Version of Topic
Click here to view this topic in its original format

WorldWar2.ro Forum > Biographical Research > World War II's Youngest Fighter Ace

Posted by: Dénes May 22, 2005 03:19 am

Below is what I found on the 'net (a highly suspicious case, I might add):

Prince of Aces
The Story of the Tsar's Grandnephew, World War II's Youngest Fighter Ace
Colin D. Heaton
$18.95

Vivid account of courage in air-to-air combat over Europe
Amazing and dramatic true story of a prince in battle

Driven by intense hatred for the Soviet Union-Bolsheviks murdered his uncle in 1917 and the secret police later executed his father-Prince Leonidas Maximciuc, nephew of the Russian tsar, joined up with Romanian and Free Russian forces in 1942 at the age of sixteen. Already a budding fighter pilot, the young prince began a career in which he scored fifty-two aerial victories, destroyed twenty-seven Soviet tanks, and survived being shot down nine times-all in under three years. After the war, Maximciuc fought with Romanian anti-Communists and eventually served twenty years in the US Air Force.

Posted by: D13-th_Mytzu May 22, 2005 06:59 am

prince ... 52 kills ... lol

Is this guy just trying to sell a "book" or does he have something ?

Posted by: C-2 May 22, 2005 11:16 am

I think it's a SF book....
Does he say in what squad he served?
You should be able to know if those are bed time stories.

Posted by: Dénes May 22, 2005 01:28 pm

QUOTE (D13-th_Mytzu @ May 22 2005, 12:59 PM)

Is this guy just trying to sell a "book" or does he have something ?

Both. Yes, he tries to sell a book and yes he has something: imagination...

Gen. Dénes

Posted by: Dénes May 22, 2005 02:54 pm

Here's a small shot of the book's cover.

Gen. Dénes

user posted image

Posted by: C-2 May 22, 2005 05:12 pm

I see he got the RK....

Posted by: Dénes May 22, 2005 06:39 pm

No, that's an Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse on the cover, not the Ritterkreuz.

Gen. Dénes

Posted by: C-2 May 22, 2005 07:23 pm

Sorry,I didn't looked well at the cover photo...

Posted by: C-2 May 22, 2005 07:26 pm

Sorry,I didn't looked well at the cover photo...

Posted by: C-2 May 22, 2005 07:28 pm

QUOTE (D13-th_Mytzu @ May 22 2005, 06:59 AM)

prince ... 52 kills ... lol

Is this guy just trying to sell a "book" or does he have something ?

He made his kills on "Il-2".
Do you know the game?

Posted by: Iamandi May 23, 2005 05:38 am

QUOTE (C-2 @ May 22 2005, 07:28 PM)

QUOTE (D13-th_Mytzu @ May 22 2005, 06:59 AM)

prince ... 52 kills ... lol

Is this guy just trying to sell a "book" or does he have something ?

He made his kills on "Il-2".
Do you know the game?

I bet he doesn't know the game!

Posted by: C-2 May 23, 2005 08:55 pm

Maximciuc is an Ukrainian name.
He's suposed to be Russian aristocrat...

Posted by: D13-th_Mytzu May 23, 2005 10:08 pm

IL2 ? no.. what game is that ?

Anyone read the book yet ?

Posted by: Cantacuzino May 24, 2005 09:30 am

QUOTE

Below is what I found on the 'net (a highly suspicious case, I might add):

Prince of Aces
The Story of the Tsar's Grandnephew, World War II's Youngest Fighter Ace
Colin D. Heaton
$18.95

Vivid account of courage in air-to-air combat over Europe
Amazing and dramatic true story of a prince in battle

Driven by intense hatred for the Soviet Union-Bolsheviks murdered his uncle in 1917 and the secret police later executed his father-Prince Leonidas Maximciuc, nephew of the Russian tsar, joined up with Romanian and Free Russian forces in 1942 at the age of sixteen. Already a budding fighter pilot, the young prince began a career in which he scored fifty-two aerial victories, destroyed twenty-seven Soviet tanks, and survived being shot down nine times-all in under three years. After the war, Maximciuc fought with Romanian anti-Communists and eventually served twenty years in the US Air Force.

I think author use some true info from romanian WWII aviation facts. The Prince could be Cantacuzino ( with over 50 victories) who fought against bolshevics and after the war in Spain was against comunist rom. governement.
To make the book more interesting the author add russian prince origin and change the name with a fictive one and add the US serviced perioad. And because of that changes more people from all over ( Russia, U.S.A ) were supposed to buy the book.
It is the same as Dracula book of Stoker wich at the origin had true info about the life of Vlad Tepes.

Posted by: sid guttridge May 28, 2005 07:12 am

Hi Guys,

From its description, this book stinks. I wouldn't touch it if it was submerged in a bucket of Chanel No.5 for a year!

I would suggest that the writer, Colin D. Heaton, is either ignorant, deluded or dishonest.

Cheers,

Sid.

Posted by: D13-th_Mytzu May 28, 2005 08:09 am

He just wants money for his book

Would you call dishonest Alexandre Dumas for writing "The Three Musketeers" ? Denes is this suposed to be a historical book or just a novel ?

Posted by: sid guttridge May 28, 2005 08:21 am

Hi D13thMytzu,

According to Denes's original post it was meant to be a "dramatic true story".

I would avoid this book like the plague!

Cheers,

Sid.

Posted by: TK1 June 13, 2005 06:10 pm

Hello! I'm new here, but I was drawn in by the talk on this book Prince of Aces. So does this pilot Maximciuc even exist in records or is it just that his claims are overblown? What are the records like for the Free Russian forces that he claims to have flown with? I know claims of aerial victories can be dicey, but can anyone at least confirm if this guy did indeed fly etc?

Thanks,

Lyle aka (TK1)

Posted by: Victor June 14, 2005 03:46 am

There was no "Prince Maximciuc" in ARR (Romanian Royal Aeronautics) during WWII.

Posted by: Dénes June 22, 2005 03:45 pm

New info of "Prince Maximciuc" (this time from eBay)

QUOTE

Prince Leonidas Ivanovich Damianov Maximciuc joiined the Royal Romanian Air Force Adademy in 1942 at age 15. Upon graduation he attended fighter school in Austria and returned to join the Free Ukrainian Airforce in December 1942 and later transferred to the Luftwaffe. Two days before his 17th birthday he was credited with downing five Soviet Yak-1 fighters. He was given command of a squadron at age 18 and ended the war as a 19-year-old Lt. Colonel with 52 aerial kills and 27 T-34 tank kills in ground missions. He was the flight leader when, in 1944, Stuka pilot Hans Ulrich Rudel and his gunner were forced down. He strafed Soviet positions, allowing Rudel to escape. By the end of the war he had been awarded over 60 decorations. He flew over 800 missions, was shot down three times and parachuted once. After the war he came to the US and was drafted into the US Army. He later transferred to the USAF, where he retired as a Lt. Colonel after 30 years of service. Until his death in April 2001 he was flying F-15E's in a reserve status at age 75. (...) The very long signature reads "Kneaz (pronounced 'kaneaatz', or 'prince') Leonid (Leonidas was the nickname he was given which stuck) Ivanovich Damianov Maximciuc. What a name. (...)One of the letters included is one from Steinhoff where he mentions some unpublished information relating to Maximciuc and Rudel's being shot down.

Gen. Dénes

Posted by: sid guttridge June 23, 2005 09:13 am

Hi Denes,

Still sounds like a con trick to me.

Cheers,

Sid.

Posted by: Dénes June 23, 2005 12:40 pm

QUOTE (sid guttridge @ Jun 23 2005, 03:13 PM)

Still sounds like a con trick to me.

But of course...

Although it now appears he was a real guy, who indeed served in the USAAF. One cannot really fake 30 years of service in the US military. However, the rest is BS.

Gen. Dénes

Posted by: Victor January 28, 2006 06:14 am

Here is an interview with the guy: http://www.hotlinecy.com/Maximciuc.htm

Hold on to your chairs.

Posted by: C-2 January 28, 2006 04:54 pm

Posted by: SiG January 28, 2006 09:21 pm

QUOTE (C-2 @ Jan 28 2006, 04:54 PM)

My thoughts exactly!

Posted by: sid guttridge January 29, 2006 03:05 pm

Earth calling Planet Maximciuc....... Earth calling Planet Maximciuc......... Hello?....... Hello?.......... Is there anybody there?.........................

Posted by: Wings_of_wrath February 05, 2006 06:30 pm

As intresting as this kind of "alternate history" might be, I belive the writer bothed this one by trying to get as much adventure and excitement he could in his book...
In the end, it just strikes me as plain silly, even for a work of fiction (unless, of course, it was destined for teenagers).

Amazingly, Maximciuc seems to have been a real person after all, as this link testifies:
http://www.memorialscholarships.org/page2.html
This raises only one one question: If he's such a big ace, how come we only heard of him, although we spent years researching RAA archives?