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N0KFQ > TODAY 27.08.13 16:36l 82 Lines 3414 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 3698_KB0WSA
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Subj: Today in History - Aug 27
Path: IZ3LSV<IW0QNL<ED1ZAC<VK2DOT<N0KFQ<KB0WSA
Sent: 130827/1409Z 3698@KB0WSA.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.55
Luftwaffe Over New York, a WW2 Secret
The Most Dangerous Photo-Recon Mission of World War II
On August 27th 1943, a German Luftwaffe long-range photo
reconnaissance bomber, a Junkers Ju-390 took off from its base in
Norway and flew out across the Atlantic Ocean. Among its four man
crew was a brave and daring woman Anna Kreisling, the `White Wolf
of the Luftwaffe'. A nickname she had acquired because of her
frost blonde hair and icy blue eyes. Anna was one of the top
pilots in Germany and even though she was only the co-pilot on
this mission, her flying ability was crucial to its success.
The Ju-390 was twice the size of the B-29 Superfortress. It was
powered by six 1,500 hp BMW radial engines and it had a range of
18,000 miles without refueling.
This was to be the longest photo-recon mission flown by an enemy
airplane in World War II. Nine hours later, the Junkers was over
Canada and swinging south at an altitude of 22,000 feet. In the
next few hours, it would photograph the heavy industrial plants
in Michigan that were vital to the United States.
By noon on August 28th the gigantic six engined bomber was over
New York City, where it finally was spotted by the US Army Air
Corp. but by then it was too late. The Junkers disappeared into
the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean, fourteen hours later, Anna
would bring the huge bomber in to land at a Luftwaffe base
outside of Paris.
Thoughts of this mission came to mind as I sat across the table
from Anna Kreisling at a recent Octoberfest in Los Angeles. She
is still quite beautiful with her icy blonde hair tied-back in a
pony-tail and her radiant blue eyes, which have seen events in
human history only a few of us could ever imagine.
She had flown Ju-52 Trimotors into the streets of Stalingrad when
it had been surrounded by the Red Army. Many times her plane had
been riddled with bullets so badly that she landed with only one
engine running while the other two were on fire.
In 1945 she was assigned to fly the jet fighters that Germany was
producing. One of these jet fighters was the Horten V9 flying
wing. It was powered by two Jumo turbo-jet engines, which enabled
it to fly at 600 mph. It was armed with two 30mm cannon and air
to air missiles.
Anna never scored any victories in the Horten. While taxing in
the snow an American Sherman tank crew captured her after she had
turned off the engine and pulling off her flight helmet they
thought she was a movie star!! For the next six months she poured
coffee for the US Army and did not spend one night in a POW camp.
Everyone thought she was part of Bob Hope's USO show!!
P.S. An article in Air Progress magazine in the Nov/Dec
issue 1965 also talked about the Junkers Ju-390 over-flying
Michigan and New York. This was held top secret throughout
World War II and the Cold War.
If you look in books they will say that only two Ju-390s
were built, when in fact there were around 11 built. Also
they were used in Odessa, Russia to fly to Japanese held
fields in China. Very secret jet engines and technology was
traded for raw materials.
At Area 51 in Nevada the United States Air Force it is
rumored has a Junkers Ju-390 it captured during Operation
Paperclip toward the end of World War II.
Klaus Bethge
DL8OL
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ KB0WSA.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
Using Outpost Ver 2.7.0 c21
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