Who's Who: Hendrickson

Name: Franz Hendrickson
Born: 1898 - Salzburg, Austria
Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 205 lbs.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: White

The eldest Blackhawk, the walrus-mustached Austrian has seen the most combat of them all and is considered the wise old man of the group. At the age of 17 in 1915, Hendrickson enlisted in the Austro-Hungarian Army. After spending two years in the artillery and distinguishing himself in combat on the Russian and Italian fronts, he transferred to the air service. He was assigned to Flik 41J, the first true Austro-Hungarian fighter squadron, commanded by their top ace, Godwin Brumowski. Under Brumowski's tutelage, Hendrickson became a skilled and combat hardened pilot. He became an ace himself, downing nine enemy aircraft flying his Hansa-Brandenburg D.I.

After the war, he traveled around the world, fighting as a soldier of fortune in countless small wars and conflicts. He became an expert with all kinds of weapons and proved to be a superb marksmen. Eventually, he tired of the mercenary life and returned to Salzburg where he used his considerable accumulated wealth to attend university. He studied medicine with the idea that he would save life where he had once taken it.

There he met Violet Goldstaub and the two soon fell in love. Franz and Violet were married and lived happily for the next three years. Then Violet died, giving birth to their daughter, Elsa. Hendrickson left school to devote all his time to caring for his infant daughter. But peace was not to be his fate.

In 1938, the Anschluss made Austria part of the German Reich. With the German takeover, Austrian anti-Semitism erupted in full force. Jewish owned businesses were smashed and looted by the Nazis and the owners deported to concentration camps. Some of the Jews arrested and deported were Violet's family, Hendrickson's in-laws. He tried to save them but there was no reasoning with the Nazis. Fearing for his half-Jewish daughter, Hendrickson used his former mercenary contacts to get Elsa, his wealth, and himself to Switzerland.

After the German invasion of Poland, he left Elsa in the care of relatives and went to England to volunteer his services to fight the Nazis. But as a citizen of the Reich, he was not entirely trusted by the Brits, and his age counted against him, too, so instead he joined an independent air group called the Blackhawks.

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