The history of aerial photography of the area dates back to the 19th century. Developing, this young science increasingly demonstrated the magnitude of its potential. The first interesting idea was to place a camera on pigeons, proposed by a German pharmacist. This method of aerial photography was also used during the First World War. Technology continues to improve to this day. And it is amazing how differently the course of the same Great Patriotic War could have developed with modern, such perfect technology compared to the models of that era.
Aerial photography of World War II
In order to collect information during the Second World War, the Wehrmacht aviation units under the name of “Rovel Group” conducted aerial reconnaissance over the territory of the USSR. They included high-altitude bombers, which were modified to conduct aerial photography of the area.
Right before the invasion of the territory of the Soviet state, Wehrmacht aircraft flew over it. The height of the aerial photography was too large to be accessible to the Red Army Air Force fighters. A large number of photographs were taken of the strategically important objects of the Soviet Union. The images obtained as a result of aerial photography allowed the planning and implementation of targeted raids on the country's air forces. These actions led to the virtually non-combat readiness of the air forces of the Red Army in the early stages of hostilities.
Technics
The most massive in the process of conducting German aerial photography of World War II were Ju-88D aircraft. It was they who underwent continuous improvement. Their speed and range increased. So, German developers have achieved for them a speed of 700 km / h and a range of 2500 km.
How did the process go?
The main goal of aerial reconnaissance was to serve the interests of ground units. They received assignments before departure from the army leadership. Usually the headquarters of the air groups received an application for reconnaissance of the front lines and near rear of the enemy. Reconnaissance aircraft flew at an altitude of about 2 km and 6 km. In each departure, most often there were two reconnaissance aircraft - one carried out aerial photography of the area, and the other found enemy fighters, as well as anti-aircraft artillery located nearby.
The most important data obtained during this process was transmitted by radio. Sometimes there was a dump of text messages to the forefront of the ground unit. Such reports from the pilots along with the images were immediately transmitted to the army headquarters.
Role
Since the basis of the idea of the blitzkrieg was powerful attacks of tanks and other equipment, the speed of their movement should have been high. For this reason, they needed fresh intelligence data. The speed of delivering data obtained during military intelligence to the units themselves was very important. Therefore, often reconnaissance squadrons were subordinate to tank units. This allowed reconnaissance to sometimes actually transmit direct reporting from the scene to the troops.
Long-range intelligence
The situation with long-range reconnaissance was somewhat different. Long-range reconnaissance aircraft flew one at a time. The flight plan and the final route itself were made by the crew commander in the course of the situation. He received a series of instructions before this. For example, take photographs of a particular railway junction, locate ships in a specific section of a river, calculate the location of artillery in a given sector. Also, before departure, the necessary altitude was calculated for aerial photography of the area. Selected type of film, exposure time, aperture of the camera.
At first, the Second World War used the following tactics for such operations. The plane occupied a height of 3 to 6 km, headed for a given area. Finding objects, he flew over them at an altitude of 6-9 km, they usually covered themselves with air defense systems. With the course of the war, more and more aircraft flew at lower altitudes. This allowed to increase the chance of remaining undetected by radars. When approaching the object, the pilot gained the necessary 6-9 km of altitude. Immediately after photographing, the height decreased sharply, the plane followed to the base.
Despite all the security measures, the losses in the ranks of the Wehrmacht reconnaissance squadrons in the USSR were large.
Night aerial photography
Wehrmacht encountered problems shooting during the night after the failure of the blitzkrieg in the Soviet Union. The front lines were stretched over vast territories. In summer, air reconnaissance did not experience difficulties due to the length of daylight hours. And in the winter it began to get dark already at 16:00, which gave the Russians the opportunity to move in impenetrable darkness. They forced ponds, built bridges. Then in 1942 squadrons were created for night shooting. Then the possibilities of photography were significantly expanded and nothing escaped the eyes of the Luftwaffe. Images of the area obtained as a result of aerial photography were widely used in planning all kinds of operations.
Technologies
Aerial photography at night made it possible to observe night movements of detachments, fleets, and air defense. Identifications were subjected to anti-aircraft searchlights, batteries, which in the daytime were hidden by a disguise.
Over the territory of the USSR, shooting was carried out at an altitude of 1.2-1.8 km, sometimes from 3 km. To take pictures, bombs were dropped to illuminate the area. After that, the most primitive camera was enough, but the camera with a focus distance of 35 cm was most widely used. The main objectives of the images were airfields and places of river crossings. Usually Do-215, 17 and He-111 flew out on such missions on the Eastern Front.
Since there were much more air defense capabilities on the Western Front, there departures took place at an altitude of 4-9 km, with rare exceptions. The decrease in height occurred when observing ships and tracking the results of the bombing. Then it was necessary to conduct a survey at an altitude of 3-5 km.
It was important during flights to pass over objects in such a way that the presence of moonlight later helped to decipher aerial photographs. However, such actions were risky, since the same light could affect the detection of a scout by enemy fighters.
Lighting bombs
To facilitate night shooting, lighting bombs were widely used. They were developed by the Germans in 1943. They were dumped from different heights, but most often from 2.7 km. When triggered, they created light flashes of 40 million candles. It lasted only half a second. The intervals between the dropping of bombs and the exposure of the films were determined taking into account aircraft speeds and altitude.
This usually happened like this. Immediately after the discovery of the desired object by the pilot, such a bomb was dropped. The reconnaissance aircraft had 4-10 such charges on board. The troops below were shocked by the explosion of light, not understanding what was happening. The objects around looked much brighter than in daylight. The night ghost flew away with already captured photos, while people began to realize what it was.
Improvement of technology
Developers in Germany throughout the war perfected the technology necessary for the Wehrmacht air reconnaissance. Since 1944, unique NRB 40/25 cameras have been released. They placed metal plates that contributed to the protection of technology. They had improved optics, the work of night cameras was faster than day cameras.
Over time, night scouts began to equip the enemy squadron warning systems nearby. Special radars explored an area 4 km long and 3 km wide around the aircraft. This protected the scout from sudden night attacks. Radio altimeters and reflectors were used. So, flying over air defense systems, the aircraft scattered dipole reflectors. These were strips of foil, and they contributed to the disorientation of enemy radars. Their rockets hit the air, and the ghost could hardly be detected by radars, since radar screens filled in white spots.
Modern technologies
At this time, aerial photography is still in use. Only significantly stepped forward the technology of its implementation. Much cheaper process invented not so long ago, multicopter. They are able to shoot in almost any weather. If earlier there was only aerial photography, now there is the possibility of shooting on video, creating panoramic images. All this is often used in construction. Surveying allows you to provide the most important information about the nature of the landscape. During advertising campaigns related to real estate, high-quality quadrocopter aerial photographs are used everywhere. The same method for fixing mass events of a very different nature has become a running one. Modern aerial photography of the terrain by quadrocopter fully conveys the beauty and atmosphere of nature and the necessary objects.
It is noteworthy that unmanned shooting technology has not been used for many decades. The first aircraft with cameras without pilots were kites and balloons.
The most popular unmanned aerial vehicles for aerial photography acquired in the Vietnam War. Due to the massive use of air defense it was too risky to often use manned vehicles for reconnaissance. It was much easier to lose a small tool than an entire pilot with a fighter.
Unmanned aerial vehicles for modern aerial photography can operate at any height. This gives more opportunities in the process of creating maps. Aerial photography methods have changed dramatically. Modern devices are often endowed with the ability to conduct planned and prospective filming. Such devices are compact and economical compared to airplanes that were once used in the Second World War. They have become available to absolutely anyone, and people are actively acquiring unmanned aerial vehicles and drones around the world.