First French Air Force Interrogations

[Steve Coates]

Over the years I've tried to get a picture of exactly what German documentation the French were able to accumulate as part of their advance through Germany. Given some of the places captured by the French, some interesting material should have passed through their hands. Thusfar, I've been spectacularly unsuccessful. I've always assumed that this material should have ended up at the SHAA (Château de Vincennes) but my various enquiries have come to naught. Is there anyone out there with better insight into this than myself? Does anyone have any information on any documentary material the French may have restituted to Germany?

Equally, does a set of French Air Force interrogations exist anywhere? This query has been sparked by my rereading various documents from the APWIU (Allied Prisoner of War Interrogation Unit), in aprticular a report on the defection of a Bf 108 (RC+YZ) of 7./EJG 1 on 21/3/45 (APWIU 26/45) which is apparently a translation of a report 'Compte Rendu No. 1' translated by the APWIU's French interrogator.

I'd love to hear from anyone who knows anything more.

[llemon]

Some french unit managed to capture one of the hidden hoards of documents from the Messerschmitt Obermaggau R&D center. Evidently they arrived to the place it was hidden (a barn?) before the US, some 20000 pages of documents were all hauled off to Paris, photographed, and then given to the US.

Le Fana has published quite a bit of Messerschmitt stuff over the years taken from some French archive, and it is possible that those documents are from the above haul.

[Steve Coates]

Yes, entirely possible. I know the French captured a chunk of Messerschmitt material as well as (from my point of view) a chunk of Focke Achgelis material as Moroccan troops were the first into Ochsenhausen.

I assume from your comments that the LeFana articles don't give any source.

[jschreiber]

Hello
At Vincennes (SHD Air), the reference for the captured documents file is 4D 53 (French technical and scientifical intelligence mission, MIST/A).
The original documents were sorted, copied, transferred to the US mission, and translated in French (about 30 000 pages), mainly for the aeronautical industry.
Regards
J Schreiber

[Steve Coates]

Thanks. Do any sorts of finding aids exist? Anything in a digital format?

[Rabe Anton]

Grüß Gott Steven!

I'm happy to report that the SHAA does in fact hold at least some interrogation reports for German aircrew captured during the Phoney War, that is, between 1939 and the beginning of the French Campaign in May 1940. I suppose I have a dozen or so of them, largely for JG 54 and its related units.

The documents are, of course, in French and appear to be in A4 format. The reports are typewritten and the legibility of my photocopies ranges from legible to good. They range from ca. two to perhaps five or six pages. The content is very much what you would expect, that is, material about the pilot, his unit, his mission, and the aircraft in which he flew. The aircraft information usually includes the Werknummer and Tr.KZ.

Peter Cornwell and others have made use of the above reports and without doubt they can tell you more about them.A Happy Easter and all the best for you.

Stay well.

Rabe Anton

[Steve Coates]

Rabe

May I reciprocate your greetings. This wasn't the thrust of my query but it's an equally interesting and valid point.

I hope you're safely bunkered away.

Steve

[Bertrand H]

Hi

To complete what J. Schreiber told I enclose a light summary

Bertrand

Attachment 19217

[Steve Coates]

Bertrand

Many thanks for this. Are you able to give any more detail to help determine if a personal visit is worthwhile (at a later date). From this summary, it seems to me using my schoolboy French that intermingled within this material are quite a number of ADI(K) Interrogation Reports?

Steve