Luftwaffe Recon Bombers

[oquaig]

Hi Guys,

A question about Luftwaffe long range recon aircraft : did they carry bombs and did they engage in bombing attacks against targets deep in the Soviet rear in the 1941 Campaign ? It occurs to me that many places like Bobruisk , Smolensk , Pskov and Kiev were bombed by small groups of bombers (2-3 aircraft) in the first days of the war. If they were long range recon aircraft, was this a regular practice ?

Thanks in advance
Oquaig

[Larry deZeng]

I see that your post is rapidly slipping away into oblivion, so I'll give you what I know. The Fernaufklärungsstaffeln did not normally carry bombs and bomb targets. It fact, for them to do so would have been a rarity. In writing the unit histories of all the Fern- and Nahaufkl.Stn., I believe I only came across a couple of instances of this. So I can only conclude that they were seldom pressed into service as auxiliary bombers.

L.

[oquaig]

Thanks. I thought as much...but coming from you it settles an argument with less informed people.

Thanks
Oquaig

[Richard Mills]

Originally Posted by Larry deZeng

In writing the unit histories of all the Fern- and Nahaufkl.Stn. L.

Sorry to jump on this thread howerver.....

Larry, I was very pleased to stumble on that line! Is your work on the Aufkl. units going to follow he format of your Bomber and Ground Attack books? I hope it will as there seems very little written of the day-to-day activities of these units.

Regards Richard.

[Larry deZeng]

Hi Richard,

Whether or not it sees the light of day will depend on a number of things, but if it does it will follow the same format as the others. We'll see how this all sorts out over the next year or two.

Thanks for asking!

Larry

[Jaap Woortman]

Larry,

Forn your information.
History 3.(F)122.
Mit dem 20‑10‑1940 beginnt in der Geschichte der Staffel ein neuer Abschnitt.
Die 3.(F)/122 bereitete sich fuer die bewaffnete Aufklaerung vor und Hptm.Neumann
warf an diesem Tage die ersten Zementbomben auf einem Uebungsplatz. Tag fuer Tag wurde nun das Bombenwerfen geuebt.


Bereits am 17‑11‑40 starteten die ersten 4 Flugzeuge mit je 4 mal 250 kg Sprengbomben gegen den Feind. Lt.Krafftschick konnte nach Rueckkehr die
Versenkung eines Minenlegers, Lt.Siegmund Treffer auf einem Frachtschiff melden. Ein Flugzeug(Lt.Thallmaier) kehrte nicht zurueck.

Jaap Woortman

[Laurent Rizzotti]

From what I have read from KG Units KTB in the East, it was not unusual at all for bomber units to send small group of aircraft.

On the other hand, German reconnaissance aircraft usually flew alone.

So any attack by 2-3 German aircraft will probably be from a KG unit.

[Larry deZeng]

Thanks, Jaap. John Foreman has some of this in his Forgotten Years (p.104). It looks like the Staffel aircrew didn't have enough to keep them busy so the bosses put them to work!

L.

[oquaig]

Hi guys,

Iwas just rereading Cajus Bekkers book. He mentions (pg.226) that Luftflotte 2 mounted one "strategic raid against an aircraft factory at Voronezh (Gaz #18 that produced IL-2s)- and that was carried out by a single long range reconnaissance plane"...so it seems there were excepts to the rule that recon bombers didn't carry bombs. More Opinions, observations ?

Oquaig

(P.S. I am looking forward to the tome on Aufkl. units as well. Good luck with that.)

[Larry deZeng]

The aircraft plant at Voronezh was bombed numerous times by many, many bombers between Sep 41 and Mar 42, so it is difficult to identify what attack you are talking about.

L.