Luftwaffe Dagger, Model 1935 (1st Model). [Stöcker & Co. SMF].

Officially established on 10 March 1935 concurrently with the creation of the German Air Force, this dagger was intended for Luftwaffe career personnel in accordance with the established uniform regulations and represented the first official edged weapon of the new branch of the armed forces. Notably, the dagger’s design was based on the earlier Deutscher Luftsportverband (DLV) dagger, the German Air Sports Association, which in the early 1930s effectively served as a cover organization for training future Luftwaffe personnel. For this reason, the early Luftwaffe dagger retained many features of the DLV dagger and is considered a transitional model in the development of German aviation edged weapons.

Manufactured by Stöcker & Co., a German metalworking company from Solingen that produced edged weapons for aviation organizations of the Third Reich. The company specialized in the production of daggers for the DLV, NSFK, and Luftwaffe, distinguished by the high quality of their blades and fittings. Items were marked with the “SMF” stamp; this specimen belongs to the first model of daggers produced by this manufacturer.