Pre war 'Lufthansa' aerial photography flights

[Oracle]

I have several aerial photographs of Southampton dating from May 1939 to December 1940. I assume that the 3 September 1939 and later photos were taken by a Ju86P, and the pre-war ones by say Ju52 operated as a 'Lufthansa' civilian flight. However, am I right in suggesting that Luftwaffe crews operated the pre-war clandestine flights?

[Dackelstaffel]

Hi,

You mean spying flights like the russians did when they wanted that Aeroflot had some technical stops at Brest and Toulon ? not impossible.

So long.

[Oracle]

Deutsch Luft Hansa used to fly into Croydon, south of London, but the shot I have of May 1939 clearly shows that the aircraft was flying due north having come up from say Cherbourg unless it flew along the Channel and then turned north! The aircraft could have been heading officially for Eastleigh Aerodrome, now Southampton Airport, but it is a long way off course from Croydon! It could have been a Ju86P in clandestine mode or more likely a supposed civilian flight by the Luftwaffe. Abteilung ‘Fremde Luftwaffe’ of the OKL was a suggestion. The Abwehr [AST Hamburg] apparently had a specific interest in the UK's aircraft industry and Eastleigh had Cunliffe-Owen, with Vickers-Supermarine at Southampton.

As you know Sidney Cotton had a Lockheed twin and flew all over Germany in 1939 from his base at Heston aerodrome west London [from whence Chamberlain flew to Munich]. After war broke out Cotton's organisation became the first aerial element of the RAF's Photo-Recon establishment using Blenheims originally. However Cotton used his civilian-registered aircraft with a big camera pointing out of the side, just as presumably the Luftwaffe were doing in England.

[Dackelstaffel]

Hi,

Just for info, there were also Ju 86B in the Lufthansa ( and Swissair too).
But the Berlin-London flights were made by the Ju52.

So long.