Wolfgang Späte (8 September 1911 – 30 April 1997) was a German Luftwaffe fighter ace during World War II, with 99 victories claimed.

Späte was born on 8 September 1911 in Dresden, at the time in the Kingdom of Saxony of the German Empire.

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

[3] At the time, the Gruppe was based at Bonn-Hangelar Airfield at Sankt Augustin for a period of rest and replenishment following the losses sustained during the Battle of Britain.

[5] In this theater of operations, Späte claimed his first aerial victory, a Yugoslav Bristol Blenheim bomber near Pécs in Hungary, on 7 April 1941.

[7] The Wehrmacht launched Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union, on 22 June with II.

[9] His unit withdrew to the Reich at the end of the year for rest and refit, and Späte was promoted to Hauptmann on 1 January 1942.

Success continued upon returning to the north of the Eastern Front as the Soviets desperately tried to raise the siege of Leningrad.

[13] However, with the award, he was ordered back to the Reich to set up a top-secret unit: Erprobungskommando 16, (EKdo 16) to test-fly the revolutionary new rocket-fighter, the Messerschmitt Me 163 "Komet".

On 17 April 1943, Späte became the first Luftwaffe pilot to fly the Messerschmitt Me 262 (Werknummer 2620000002—factory number) jet fighter.

According to some sources, his Me 163 PK+QL was painted red, either in the factory or by ground crew, resembling Manfred von Richthofen's Fokker Dr.I.

Although he flew the mission (without success, twice unable to intercept the enemy when the rocket engine failed), Späte was not amused after seeing the plane and ordered it to be re-painted.

[18] His new unit was quickly recalled to Germany in June to cover the transfer of all the squadrons sent west following the D-day landings.

On 15 April, JG 7 was ordered to relocate to airfields at Saaz, present-day Žatec, Eger and the Prague–Ruzyně Airport where it continued to fly missions in defense of Berlin.

[22] Following World War II, Späte joined the German Air Force in 1956, at the time referred to as the Bundesluftwaffe of the Bundeswehr.

He retired in 1967 with the rank of Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel) Späte died on 30 April 1997 at the age of 85 in Edewecht, Germany.