Fascinated with flight at an early age, after working briefly as an auto mechanic Kittel joined the Luftwaffe in 1939 at the age of 22. He began his training as a non-commissioned officer completing his training on 12 February 1941, Kittel was posted to JG 54 based at Jever, Germany. He was assigned to 2 "Staffel" (Squadron) JG 54 at the rank of "Unteroffizier". Kittel took time to perfect his marksmanship and air tactics were deplorable in the beginning. During his training and early career Hannes Trautloft and Hans Philipp became a role model and offered Kittel advice about his techniques.