FLIGHTS SECRETS

[Agustin Ruzafa]

Good evening, I picked up this article in a local newspaper, what do you think about this?
Greetings

La voz de Galicia 20/02/2011



FLIGHTS SECRETS OF HITLER'S ARMY
Manfred Schoffer among a group of German military aviators who lived hidden in Galicia and civilian aircraft flying in Spanish to locate then sank Allied ships submarines

By Miguel Cabana

It was discovered by chance, as the great inventions. For 60 years he spent hidden from historians and was one of the actors-and old-who revealed that Hitler's armies, with the collaboration of Franco, established in Galicia is a system to spy on American convoys or allied ships sailing the Atlantic during the Second World War. That witness is the protagonist and Schoffer Manfred, a German Pforzheim during the war lived in Lugo and went with a group of pilots of the Luftwaffe to spy the Atlantic from aircraft assigned for that purpose by the Administration of Franco. Its mission was to detect ships from all the allied fleets, especially those who came from America or weapons material subsistence. The planes were ready for them on the dance Lavacolla (Santiago)-then a humble without hangars, airfield and pilots transmitted information from the hotel Lugo Méndez Núñez, where they lived. Each time they discovered a convoy of ships transmitting the information to the head of Berlin, which then forwards it immediately to the German submarines were sinking.
The system was so simple that it went unnoticed until now. Historians already know almost everything about the German spy network in Galicia Sofindus during World War II submarine on entries in the Ria de Vigo even for repairs, supplies the Bessel tanker in the middle estuary, the German School and its activities, the transfer of tungsten ... But no scholar has been able to date until now systematic espionage flights from Galicia with pilots of the Luftwaffe camouflage and Spanish.
Confession
The serendipitous discovery occurred in Lugo. With nearly 90 years, Manfred Schoffer travels to the city of the Wall to attend the funeral of his friend, Francisco García-Bobadilla, Méndez Núñez hotel owner, who maintained a close relationship since he was his guest during the Second World War. Schoffer stays a few days with family, and one son, Paco, asking me to accompany them to show the old towers of the German Consol beacon which was then kept standing still in Arneiro, Cospeito. During the site visit, when asked about the reasons for their stay in the region during those difficult years of World War I, Manfred makes a frank admission that he had kept hidden for over 60 years.
Paco García-Bobadilla as a witness, Manfred Schoffer explains his interest in aviation at a young age and subsequent recruitment by the Luftwaffe. Remember the day he was shot down as it flew over Crimea and the months which survived as a prisoner in a Russian concentration camp. He left there by an exchange of prisoners. To recuperate from his injuries, the German command sent him to Galicia, where his father, an expert in metals, participating in the assembly of Arneiro Consol beacon. But not only sent him to rest. Manfred joined a secret group of Luftwaffe officers and civilians who were staying in Hotel Méndez Núñez de Lugo. Several times a week and couples formed by a pilot and an observer, traveled to Santiago, where planes took off in civilian use Junker officially belonged to the Franco administration. Still calculated on the sea routes in search of Allied ships, and as one kept the tide sighted to avoid suspicion. But about an hour ago, the Germans calculated a route back that would bear the switch back on enemy ships. Although it looked like a routine flight Spanish civil aircraft over the Atlantic, in fact Nazi pilots were taking the two marks of a convoy of boats with a time difference to calculate its exact speed and direction. Obtained this information, pilot and observer were flying at full speed toward Lavacolla where the plane landed and left to take Junker drove back to Lugo.

in a luxury hotel
In one of the luxurious rooms Méndez Núñez, the Germans had a radio with long wave transmitting the command headquarters in Berlin the number of ships that made up the convoy, its type, course, speed, escort and other details. Within minutes all of this information was relayed to key operating submarines in the Atlantic. Quickly those "wolf packs", as he liked to call the fleet, Admiral Doenitz, were the ships, torpedoes and sank, thanks to information that Manfred and his colleagues sent a secret from a hotel in Lugo. In early 1945, the old man now joined the final defense of Berlin, where he survived the last days of war and the capture of the city by the Allies.
Sixty years later, returning to Lugo, Manfred was surprised that the organization of camouflaged aircraft had not been discovered and thought it was time to do so. Because he was an errand, he said, and has nothing to hide. In addition, his life was much easier then flying a civilian aircraft course theoretically neutral country fighting in a German fighter to clean metrallazo behind enemy lines.
In private life he never lost vocation Manfred airline pilot and remained active until his license expired it in Germany. The renewed some time in Switzerland and continued to fly there with more than 80 years. Now, after 90, you can not. But he lives intensely his leisure hours, as all these people who survived the horror.

[RT]

Really ??

[Larry]

Some of this is lost in translation! I can only imagine the method of transmitting details of Allied convoys back to Berlin would have been done by Enigma code machines perhaps out of a German consular office or Embassy and these would have been picked up by Allied codebreakers.

I seem to remember reading that convoys avoided sailing in sight of Spain as they knew that there was always a risk of a spy simply observing their movements and reporting them.

So if flights were made how did they find the convoys out to sea? Did they fly standing patrols? And also how did they avoid being intercepted by Hurri-cats or carrier aircraft.

Are there reports in the FAA or USN archives that allied fighters were vectored on to such aircraft and then called off their attack once they saw the Spanish civi aircraft markings. Any aircraft that when too near a RN ship was usually fired on whether or not it was hostile

[peter.werry]

Did the Russians and Germans ever exchange prisoners during the war?. I know that in the West it happened, but I have never heard or even imagined that this took place in the East.
Regards
Peter

[brewerjerry]

Originally Posted by Agustin Ruzafa

Good evening, I picked up this article in a local newspaper, what do you think about this?
Greetings

Hi Augustin,
Many thanks for posting the information, It was interesting reading it.
Cheers
Jerry