Due to his father's work, the family lived in Teheran and in Colombia where he attended the German school.

Following his parents' divorce and return to Germany in 1934, he and his two younger brothers attended the Potsdam National Political Institutes of Education (Nationalpolitische Erziehungsanstalt—Napola) which was a secondary boarding school founded under the recently established Nazi state.

The goal of the Napola schools was to raise a new generation for the political, military and administrative leadership of Nazi Germany.

[2] World War II in Europe began on Friday 1 September 1939 when German forces invaded Poland.

Following various training courses, he attended blind flying school in January 1941 and passed his A/B pilot license at Prenzlau.

[Note 1] He then attended a Jagdfliegerschule (fighter pilot training school) based in Paris, France.

Gruppe had been placed under the overall command of Jagdgeschwader 53 (JG 53—53rd Fighter Wing) and was based at San Pietro Clarenza, Sicily, flying combat missions during the Siege of Malta.

Fliegerkorps, was placed on the left wing of Army Group South and ordered to relocate to an airfield at Chuguyev, first elements arriving on 19 May.

Gruppe moved to Shchigry, a forward airfield approximated 50 kilometers (31 miles) east of Kursk close to the front lines.

[8] He, himself, was shot down approximately 15 km (9.3 mi) north Voronezh on 10 July while destroying a Soviet-flown Douglas Boston bomber, his seventh claim in total.

He bailed out of his damaged Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-4 "White 1" (Werknummer 8383—factory number) behind Soviet lines, swam across the Don River and returned to his unit four days later.

During his return to German held territory, Ettel came under heavy rifle fire from Soviet infantry but escaped unharmed.

[13] That same night Ettel led a Wehrmacht patrol to his damaged aircraft to salvage important equipment.

Gruppe flew its first missions in support of the German ground forces southeast of Catania, Sicily on 15 July.

At around noon that day, he claimed two United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) B-24 Liberator bombers shot down.

In the vicinity of Lentini, the Gruppe lost five of ten dispatched fighters to anti-aircraft fire, among them Ettel who was shot down and killed in action.