Luftwaffe Color Series  

Aufklärer

Luftwaffe Reconnaissance Aircraft and Units
1942 – 1945

Volume Two

by David Wadman

Classic Publications

Reviewed by Steven "Modeldad" Eisenman

So important to the conduct of a successful military campaign, yet so over looked in books and monographs, are the reconnaissance aircraft of a nation’s military. For the World War Two period, only two publications quickly come to mind: “Eyes For the Phoenix”, by Geoffrey Thomas, which covers the South-East Asian Theatre of British operations, and Aufklärer, by David Wadman and John Bradley, which is long out of print.

But a good part of that gap in our knowledge is being filled in again by the publication of the second volume in David Wadman’s two volume Luftwaffe Colours’ “Aufklärer”.

As with most military operations where two branches of the military must cooperate, cooperation begins to break down at some point.   For German aerial reconnaissance support for the Heer (Army), that breakdown began with Operation Barbarossa.

That is where Volume Two picks up, with the realization by the Luftwaffe’s liaison to the Heer that it was unable to adequately meet the demands of the armies involved.  Consequently, responsibility for all aerial reconnaissance was to return to the Luftwaffe.

The author then goes on to describe the formation, function and operations of the newly formed Nauaufklärungsgruppen (Short-range reconnaissance groups) and Fernaufklärungsgruppen (Long-range reconnaissance groups).

Within these two groups there is a discussion of specialized units, such as night photographic reconnaissance, short-range reconnaissance and sea reconnaissance, among others.

There are also interesting presentations of aspects of reconnaissance of which most of us, including myself, have limited or no knowledge.  Ever wonder how aerial photography was accomplished at night?  The “flash bomb” and the photographic process that utilized it are nicely described.

There is also a fascinating discussion, with photographs, of the use of the Focke-Achgelis 330 and the Arado Ar 231 in conjunction with U-Boat operations.

As for the photographs themselves in this volume, they are quite extensive and of excellent quality.  Many of which I have not seen before.  The pictures actually form a book within a book.  The caption for each picture is quite extensive.  The 13 color profiles accompanying the pictures are well done also.

The monograph ends, for all practical purposes, on a personal note with the first hand account of two Luftwaffe airmen whose reconnaissance missions came to less than favorable conclusion.

While not “The Final” or most comprehensive coverage of Luftwaffe reconnaissance operations, we still await that undertaking; the two-volume “Aufklärer” by David Wadman is an excellent overview of the subject.  The photographs and profiles will, I am sure, be a source for modeling subjects. 

Highly Recommended.

Thanks to Simon at DLS Publishing for the review sample

Review Copyright © 2008 by Steven "Modeldad" Eisenman
This Page Created on 9 January, 2008
Last updated 9 January, 2008

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