Erica Hartmann

Origin

1st Lieutenant Erican Hartmann is an ace Striker Unit fighter pilot from the Karsland Forces. After the invasion of the Neuroi to her homeland, she was tapped to be a member of the 501 Joint Fighter Wing Strike Witches. Carefree and playful on land, in the skies she's an ace with over 300 enemy kills.

Creation

Erica Hartmann design by Humikane Shimada

Erica Hartmann is one of the lead characters for the Strike Witches anime series, but is also a reoccurring character in the earlier Strike Witches light-novels and manga. All these series are based on the works of Humikane Shimada. A fanservice series of young witches in an alternate world history of Earth in the pre-WWII history. She is a soldier from the land of Karsland (real world Germany). As a young with with magical powers, she can pilot a specialized weapon called a Striker Unit, a specialized version of a broom used for combat. She is a petite, blond with her hair in a "bob" style. She's an ace pilot in combat, but on land she's lazy and cares little for medals and commendations. Unlike most of the other character in Strike Witches, she doesn't grow animal ears when she transforms, but the tips of her hair become black.

Her first appearance was in the second Strike Witches light-novel "Strike Witches: Otome no Kami". The first anime appearance is in the Strike Witches OVA. Her character in the Japanese series is voiced by Sakura Nogawa throughout the seasons, and the U.S. dub produced by FUNimation is done by Luci Christian. There have been two seasons of the anime and one anime movie.

Erica Hartmann was based upon the real life WWII pilot of the German Forces named Erich Alfred "Bubi" Hartmann (1922-1993). He was called "Bubi" by his fellow pilots, and the Soviet Army referred to him as "The Black Devil". Her Laftwaffe JG 52 Striker Units are adorned with a Black Tulip decal that could also be seen on the aircraft of her namesake. She has a twin sister named Ursula Hartmann.

Character Evolution

Erica Hartmann's insignia

Throughout the two seasons of the Strike Witches anime, Erica Hartmann didn't have much change in character development, and no deep tragedy was every told from her past, unlike with her two other Karsland kinsmen. Erica is undisciplined and at times mischievous. She does express a respect for her commanding officer Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke, due to Minna's desire to lead missions and protect lives. Erica's carefree and slovenly personality is in stark contrast to her partner and friend, Gertrud Barkhorn. The two served together when the Neuroi invaded and took over Karsland. On her time off, Erica will often stay in her room in a night shirt and panties.

Appearance:

Age: 16 (1944)

Hair: Blond

Eyes: Blue

Nationality: Karsland (Germany)

Strike Unit: Luftwaffe JG 52

Animal Form: Dachsund Erica has an identical twin sister named Ursula. The only way to separate the two is that Ursula wears glasses and it much more polite and proper in her behavior. She is in New Karsland developing new technologies for the Strike Witches against the Neuroi. In the second season, Erica's lighthearted personality was put to it's limits by fellow witch and Karslnad native, Hanna-Justina Marseille. Erica constantly refused to humor Hanna's drive for competition, but accepted the challenge after she was constantly disrespecting Barkhorn. Erica actually started to clean her room after this duel, but gave up after a few minutes.

Major Story Arcs

Powers and Abilities

Magic

Erica has a powerful magical attach called "Sturm". She performs a high-speed loop that creates an electrically charged typhoon that is highly effective when surrounded by a large number of enemies.

Other Media

Anime

• Strike Witches OVA (2007)
• Strike Witches (2008)
• Strike Witches 2 (2010)

Light Novels

• Strike Witches: Maidens' Volume (ストライクウィッチーズ：　乙女ノ巻 Sutoraiku Witchīzu: Otome no Maki)
• Strike Witches 2
• Strike Witches: Kaze ni Tanabiku
• Strike Witches: 500overs in Africa (2008)

Manga

• Strike Witches: Maidens of the Heavens (ストライクウィッチーズ 天空の乙女たち, Strike Witches Tenkū no Otome-tachi) - 2008
• Strike Witches: The Sky that Connects Us (ストライクウィッチーズ キミとつながる空 , Strike Witches Kimi to Tsunagaru Sora) - 2009
• Strike Witches: The Shape of Our Bond

Audio Dramas

• Himegoe Voice Albums
• Hime Uta Song Albums
• Himebana Drama Albums
• Strike Witches Gakuen
• Himegoe CD 2 Voice Albums
• Starlight Stream