Georg Dörffel joined the military service in Infanterie-Regiment 22 in 1933. In 1935 he transferred to the Luftwaffe holding the rank of Oberfähnrich. At first he served as an observer in a Kampfgeschwader before transferring as to the 5./Lehrgeschwader 2 flying the Henschel Hs 123ground attack aircraft. With this squadron as part of the II./LG 2 he flew as a Leutnant and pilot during the Invasion of Poland and Battle of France. The group was responsible of repelling a large enemy tank formation north of Cambrai on 17 May 1940 which threatened the flank of the German advance. Dörffel received the Iron Cross 2nd and 1st Class for this action on 21 May 1940. Dörffel was shot down twice during the campaign in the west, the first time on 14 May 1940 near Tirlemont, Belgium and in June 1940 near Dunkirk. He was wounded on both occasions. In October 1940 he was appointed Staffelkapitän of the 5./LG 2, which was re-designated 5./Schlachtgeschwader 1 in early 1942. In this role and position he flew in the Battle of Britain and from April 1941 in the Balkans Campaign. With the beginning of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, Dörffel was transferred to the Eastern Front, particularly in support of the central and southern sectors, providing air support to the German ground forces. Together with the squadron leader of the 2./LG 2, OberleutnantAlfred Druschel, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 21 August 1941 after over 200 combat missions. He was shot down near Skvorin at the Don River on 1 July 1942. Dörffel flew his 600th combat mission on 16 August 1942. He was appointed acting Gruppenkommandeur of the I./SG 1 on 2 March 1943 followed by his official appointment as group leader on 11 June 1943. Dörffel flew his 800th mission of the war in July 1943 followed by his 900th mission one month later. He was promoted to Major on 1 September 1943. In early October 1943 he flew 19 combat missions on one day against the attacking Red Army forces crossing the Dnieper River near Kiev. He flew his 1,000th combat mission of the war on 6 October 1943, claiming his 30th aerial victory on that flight. He was grounded one day later and transferred and appointed commander of the Schlachtfliegerschule at Prossnitz. In early May 1944 he took command of Schlachtgeschwader 4 stationed in Italy as Geschwaderkommodore. Georg Dörffel was killed in action on 26 May 1944 north-west of Rome, Italy. Dörffel was forced to bail out of his Focke-Wulf Fw 190 F-8 following an attack on a four-engined bomber formation. He probably struck his head on the tailplane; his parachute failed to open. He was buried in Pomezia, Italy, and posthumously promoted to Oberstleutnant.
