Aerial reconnaissance

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Photo-reconnaissance Lockheed F-5 Lightning, circa June 1944. It is marked with invasion stripes to help Allied troops identify it as an Allied plane.



Early developments[edit]

After the French Revolution, the new rulers became interested in using the balloon to observe enemy manoeuvres and appointed scientist Charles Coutelle to conduct studies using the balloon L'Entreprenant, the first military reconnaissance aircraft. The balloon found its first use in the 1794 conflict with Austria,[citation needed] where in the Battle of Fleurus they gathered information. Moreover, the presence of the balloon had a demoralizing effect on the Austrian troops which improved the likelihood of victory for the French troops.

After the invention of photography, primitive aerial photographs were made of the ground from manned and unmanned balloons, starting in the 1860s, and from tethered kites from the 1880s onwards.[1] An example was Arthur Batut's kite-borne camera photographs of Labruguière starting from 1889.[2]

In the early 20th century, Julius Neubronner experimented with pigeon photography. The pigeons carried small cameras with timers.[3][4]

Ludwig Rahrmann in 1891 patented a means of attaching a camera to a large calibre artillery projectile or rocket, and this inspired Alfred Maul to develop his Maul Camera Rockets starting in 1903.[5] Alfred Nobel in 1896 had already built the first rocket carrying a camera, which took photographs of the Swedish landscape during its flights.[1][6] Maul improved his camera rockets and the Austrian Army even tested them in the Turkish-Bulgarian War in 1912 and 1913, but by then and from that time on camera-carrying aircraft were found to be superior.[7]

The first use of airplanes in combat missions was by the Italian Air Force during the Italo-Turkish War of 1911-1912. On 23 October 1911, an Italian pilot, Capt. Carlo Piazza, flew over the Turkish lines in Libya to conduct history's first aerial reconnaissance mission, and on 1 November 1911, the first ever aerial bomb was dropped on the Turkish troops in Libya.

The first reconnaissance flight in Europe took place in Greece, over Thessaly, on October the 5th over the Ottoman army.This was the first day of the Balkan wars, and during the same day a similar mission was flown by German mercenaries in Ottoman service in the Thrace front against the Bulgarians.The Greek and the Ottoman mission flown during the same day are the first military aviation combat missions in a conventional war.A few days later, on 16 October 1912 a Bulgarian Albatros aircraft was used to perform one of Europe's first reconnaissance flight in combat conditions,[citation needed] against the Turkish lines on the Balkan peninsula, during the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913.

Maturation during WWI[edit]


The use of aerial photography rapidly matured during the First World War, as aircraft used for reconnaissance purposes were outfitted with cameras to record enemy movements and defences. At the start of the conflict, the usefulness of aerial photography was not fully appreciated, with reconnaissance being accomplished with map sketching from the air.

Frederick Charles Victor Laws started experiments in aerial photography in 1912 with No. 1 Squadron RAF using the British dirigible Beta. He discovered that vertical photos taken with 60% overlap could be used to create a stereoscopic effect when viewed in a stereoscope, thus creating a perception of depth that could aid in cartography and in intelligence derived from aerial images. The dirigibles were eventually allocated to the Royal Navy, so Laws formed the first aerial reconnaissance unit of fixed-wing aircraft; this became No. 3 Squadron RAF.

Germany was one of the first countries to adopt the use of a camera for aerial reconnaissance, opting for a Görz, in 1913. French Military Aviation began the war with several squadrons of Bleriot observation planes, equipped with cameras for reconnaissance. The French Army developed procedures for getting prints into the hands of field commanders in record time.

A German observation plane, the Rumpler Taube.

The Royal Flying Corps recon pilots began to use cameras for recording their observations in 1914 and by the Battle of Neuve Chapelle in 1915 the entire system of German trenches was being photographed.[8] The first purpose-built and practical aerial camera was invented by Captain John Moore-Brabazon in 1915 with the help of the Thornton-Pickard company, greatly enhancing the efficiency of aerial photography. The camera was inserted into the floor of the aircraft and could be triggered by the pilot at intervals.

Moore-Brabazon also pioneered the incorporation of stereoscopic techniques into aerial photography, allowing the height of objects on the landscape to be discerned by comparing photographs taken at different angles.[9][10] In 1916, the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy made vertical camera axis aerial photos above Italy for map-making.

By the end of the war, aerial cameras had dramatically increased in size and focal power and were used increasingly frequently as they proved their pivotal military worth; by 1918 both sides were photographing the entire front twice a day and had taken over half a million photos since the beginning of the conflict.


World War II[edit]

High-speed reconnaissance aircraft[edit]


In 1928, the RAF developed an electric heating system for the aerial camera. This allowed reconnaissance aircraft to take pictures from very high altitudes without the camera parts freezing.[12] In 1939 Sidney Cotton and Flying Officer Maurice Longbottom of the RAF suggested that airborne reconnaissance may be a task better suited to fast, small aircraft which would use their speed and high service ceiling to avoid detection and interception. Although this seems obvious now, with modern reconnaissance tasks performed by fast, high flying aircraft, at the time it was radical thinking.[citation needed]

This Spitfire PR Mk XI (PL965) was a purpose-built long-range, high-altitude reconnaissance variant that was capable of flying from airfields in England and photographing as far afield as Berlin

They proposed the use of Spitfires with their armament and radios removed and replaced with extra fuel and cameras. This led to the development of the Spitfire PR variants. These planes had a maximum speed of 396 mph[13] at 30,000 feet with their armaments removed, and were used for photo-reconnaissance missions. The aircraft were fitted with five cameras which were heated to ensure good results (while the cockpit was not). Spitfires proved to be extremely successful in their reconnaissance role and there were many variants built specifically for that purpose. They served initially with what later became No. 1 Photographic Reconnaissance Unit (PRU).[14]


Other fighters were also adapted for photo-reconnaissance, including the British Mosquito and the American P-38 Lightning and P-51 Mustang. Such craft were stripped of weaponry, painted in sky camouflage colours to make them difficult to spot in the air, and often had engines modified for higher performance at very high altitudes (well over 40,000 feet).


However it was the RAF's Mosquito that excelled in the photo-reconnaissance role, the converted bomber being given three cameras installed in what had been the bomb bay. It had a cruising speed of 255 mph, maximum of 362 mph and a maximum altitude of 35,000 ft. The first converted PRU (Photo-Reconnaissance Unit) Mosquito was delivered to RAF Benson in July 1941 by Geoffrey de Havilland himself. Thereafter, the Mosquito was faster than most fighters above 40,000 ft,[citation needed] and could roam almost anywhere. Colonel Roy M. Stanley II, USAF (RET) wrote; "I consider the Mosquito the best photo reconnaissance aircraft of the war".[15] The US designation for the photo-reconnaissance Mosquito was F-8. Approximately 15,000 Fairchild K-20 aerial cameras were manufactured between 1941 and 1945.


Imagery analysis[edit]

Main article: Imagery intelligence
RAF Medmenham, where aerial reconnaissance intelligence was analysed.

The collection and interpretation of aerial reconnaissance intelligence became a considerable enterprise during the war. Beginning in 1941, RAF Medmenham was the main interpretation centre for photographic reconnaissance operations in the European and Mediterranean theatres.[16][17] The Central Interpretation Unit (CIU) was later amalgamated with the Bomber Command Damage Assessment Section and the Night Photographic Interpretation Section of No 3 Photographic Reconnaissance Unit, RAF Oakington, in 1942.[18]

During 1942 and 1943, the CIU gradually expanded and was involved in the planning stages of practically every operation of the war, and in every aspect of intelligence. In 1945, daily intake of material averaged 25,000 negatives and 60,000 prints. Thirty-six million prints were made during the war. By VE-day, the print library, which documented and stored worldwide cover, held 5,000,000 prints from which 40,000 reports had been produced.[18]

American personnel had for some time formed an increasing part of the CIU and on 1 May 1944 this was finally recognised by changing the title of the unit to the Allied Central Interpretation Unit (ACIU).[18] There were then over 1,700 personnel on the unit's strength. A large number of photographic interpreters were recruited from the Hollywood Film Studios including Xavier Atencio. Two renowned archaeologists also worked there as interpreters: Dorothy Garrod, the first woman to hold an Oxbridge Chair, and Glyn Daniel, who went on to gain popular acclaim as the host of the television game show Animal, Vegetable or Mineral?.[19]

Sidney Cotton's aerial photographs were far ahead of their time. Together with other members of his reconnaissance squadron, he pioneered the technique of high-altitude, high-speed photography that was instrumental in revealing the locations of many crucial military and intelligence targets. Cotton also worked on ideas such as a prototype specialist reconnaissance aircraft and further refinements of photographic equipment. At its peak, British reconnaissance flights yielded 50,000 images per day to interpret.

Of particular significance in the success of the work of Medmenham was the use of stereoscopic images, using a between plate overlap of exactly 60%. Despite initial scepticism about the possibility of German rocket development, stereoscopic analysis proved its existence and major operations, including the 1943 offensives against the V-2 rocket development plant at Peenemünde, where made possible by work carried out at Medmenham. Later offensives were also made against potential launch sites at Wizernes and 96 other launch sites in northern France.

Particularly important sites were measured, from the images, using Swiss stereoautograph machines made by Wild (Heerbrugg) and physical models made to facilitate understanding of what was there or what it was for.

It is claimed that Medmanham's greatest operational success was "Operation Crossbow" which, from 23 December 1943, destroyed the V-1 infrastructure in northern France.[19] According to R.V. Jones, photographs were used to establish the size and the characteristic launching mechanisms for both the V-1 flying bomb and the V-2 rocket.

Cold War[edit]


Soviet truck convoy deploying missiles near San Cristobal, Cuba, on Oct. 14, 1962 (taken by a U-2)




Modern technology[edit]

Drone planes[edit]

Miniature UAVs[edit]

Due to the low cost of miniature UAVs, this technology brings aerial reconnaissance into the hands of soldiers on the ground. The soldier on the ground can both control the UAV and see its output, yielding great benefit over a disconnected approach. With small systems being man packable, operators are now able to deploy air assets quickly and directly. The low cost and ease of operation of these miniature UAVs has enabled forces such as the Libyan Rebels to use miniature UAVs.[22]

Aeryon Scout VTOL UAV

Reconnaissance pods[edit]

Reconnaissance pods can be carried by fighter-bomber aircraft. Examples include the British DJRP; Chinese KZ900; UK RAPTOR; and the US Navy's F-14 Tomcat TARPS. Some aircraft made for non-military applications also have reconnaissance pods, i.e. the Qinetiq Mercator

See also[edit]


  1. ^ a b Nicholas M. Short, Sr. "History of Remote Sensing: In the Beginning; Launch Vehicles". Archived from the original on 30 January 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  2. ^ Podolski Consulting (2009). "History of Aerial Photography". Archived from the original on 6 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  3. ^ Nicholas M. Short, Sr. "Remote Sensing Tutorial Overview". Archived from the original on 26 February 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-13.  (photographs by Alfred Nobel's rocket and the Bavarian pigeon fleet)
  4. ^ "The History of Aerial Photography". Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  5. ^ Editors of German Wikipedia. [1] Retrieved 2009-03-13
  6. ^ "Cameras in Model Rockets: A Short History". 2007-01-08. Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  7. ^ Mark Wade. "Maul Camera Rocket". Archived from the original on 7 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-13.  (summary and photo)
  8. ^ "A Brief History of Aerial Photography". 
  9. ^ "Royal Flying Corps Founded". History Today. 
  11. ^ "Lieutenant Leonard T.E. Taplin, D.F.C". Retrieved 2013-01-24. [dead link]
  12. ^ "Photography Before Edgerton". 
  13. ^ Downing, Taylor (2011). Spies in the Sky. Little Brown Hardbacks (A & C). p. 42. ISBN 978-1-4087-0280-2. 
  14. ^ Cotton, Sidney (1969). Aviator Extraordinary: The Sidney Cotton Story. Chatto & Windus. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-7011-1334-6. 
  15. ^ V Weapons Hunt p. 35
  16. ^ Downing, Taylor (2011). Spies in the Sky. Little Brown Hardbacks (A & C). pp. 80–81. ISBN 978-1-4087-0280-2. 
  17. ^ Unlocking Buckinghamshire's Past
  18. ^ a b c Allied Central Interpretation Unit (ACIU)[dead link]
  19. ^ a b "Operation Crossbow", BBC2, broadcast 15 May 2011
  20. ^ Gasparre, Richard (January 25, 2008). "The U.S. and Unmanned Flight: Part 1". Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  21. ^ Fickes, Michael (October 1, 2004). "Automated Eye In The Sky". Retrieved 2009-03-13. 
  22. ^ "Aeryon Scout Micro UAV Helps Libyan Rebels in March to Tripoli". 

External links[edit]

Media related to Aerial cameras at Wikimedia Commons