Pilots

This passage talks about a famous German fighter pilot from World War I called the Red Baron.

Lexile Level: 800L

Categories: History People & Places

The Red Baron was a German fighter pilot in World War I. World War I was a large war that involved many countries. It lasted from 1914 to 1918. On one side of the war were the Central Powers and on the other side were the Allied Powers. Germany was part of the Central Powers. Britain, France, and Russia led the Allied Powers. In 1917, America entered the war on the side of the Allied Powers. World War I was the first war to use a large number of airplanes as fighters. The Red Baron's real name was Manfred von Richthofen. He was commander of a group of German Air Force pilots known as the Flying Circus. They were called this because many of the pilots painted their planes red. This is how Manfred von Richthofen received the name "The Red Baron." In World War I, he shot down 80 planes, the most of any pilot. The Red Baron was shot down and killed in 1918.