Erich &quot;Phonix&quot; Hillenberand

ERICH HILLENBERAND "Phonix"
AC0 - Schnee One

Hillenberand's BAF ID Card

Personal Information:
Age: 40
Date of Birth: ??/??/1955
Nationality: Belkan
Blood type: ?
Height: ?
Weight: ?
Eyes: ?
Hair: Grey
Rank: 2nd Lieutenant
Status: Shot Down (Survived Belkan War)

Biography:
Erich Hillenberand was born in 1955, and joined the Air Force in 1980. Although, or perhaps because, political power in Belka was always in flux, he never liked to belong to a specific group; he just loved to take to the skies, having no ambition for promotion in rank. This attitude gave him the nickname "The eternal second lieutenant". Even so, the men in his squadron had absolute trust in him.

The Air Force Academy he graduated from had the backing of numerous influential military blocs, but fortunately, he didn't belong to any of the factions. It was quite common for graduates from the academy to be backed up by the factions. Hillenberand, however, started his piloting career on his own, without any backup.

He was given command of the 22nd Air Division, 14th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Schnee, which consisted of four F-14Ds for long range attacks and one EA-6B for jamming enemy radar. Their tactics were to first confuse the enemy with jamming, and then shoot down the weakened enemies in the ensuing dogfight. When the Belkan War began, his squadron was one of the first to be sent to the front line, and they inflicted considerable damage to the Southern Independent States' forces. The silver wing tips on his plane showed the pride of a man who loved battle, but not war.

Erich Hillenberand's alias, "Mr. Can't Die", may be more famous than his TAC name "Phonix". He was an extraordinary pilot, scoring over 51 kills while being shot down 7 times in his career. The number of cuts and stitches on his body told how lucky he always was.

Hillenberand was known not only for his kill score, but also for coming back alive from many fierce battles. Although he was shot down several times, this by no means meant that he was a poor pilot; he shot down more than 50 planes throughout his long career. This is equal to the kill score of Dimitri Heinreich, who had marked the most kills in the Belkan Air Force after 1970. His affection for the sky was never overcome by the experience of getting shot down. Interestingly, whenever he got shot down and heavily wounded, he refused to be sent back to a hospital far behind the line of combat. He always wished to be sent to a hospital that's nearest his base. He always fought on the front line, and even though he was recommended for promotion several times, he always turned them down, saying all he wanted to do was fly fighter jets.

Right after the beginning of the Belkan War, he was assigned to Curado airbase, as he requested to be. The 22nd Air Division was led by Lieutenant General Rahner Mainz (who was once an ace pilot as well), and was known as a highly skilled division. The 4th Tactical Fighter Squadron led by Hillenberand achieved great results in March and April on the southeastern battlefront pressing toward Ustio, especially in an aerial battle above Monte Rosa on March 30th with Ustian fighters (believed to be two squadrons from the 4th Air Division) , where Hillenberand shot down 6 planes; an action that made a name for himself.

During the course of the 3 months of the Belkan War, he continued to shoot down enemy planes. On the other hand, he was also shot down three times during the conflict. During Operation Battle Axe, the Schnee Squadron was sent to quell the chaos and destroy the allied force's aircraft. While they were engaged, the Schnee Squadron was engaged by the 66th AFU Galm of the Ustian 6th Air Division and shot down.

No matter how many times he got shot down, he kept coming back to the sky, and finally survived the Belkan War. He was exempted from war crimes thanks to his indifference to promotion. He left the military afterward. He currently works as a flight instructor for civilian pilots in North Osea.

SOURCE:
Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War
Official Ace Combat Zero Website
Namco CH Ace Combat Zero Website

ACCREDITATION:
thanks to yellow26
Silber 6 for the image

*Original Article by Ribbon-Blue*