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This is the story of the 1st Staffel of Luftwaffe Aufklärungsgruppe (F)/123 from the beginnings in 1935 up to the end of the war in Europe in May, 1945. The reader accompanies the soldiers of the Staffel on their first missions over France and during the Battle of Britain. They experience the tension of the crew during heavy flak fire over Liverpool as well as the dramatic moments during a photoreconnaissance flight over London in autumn 1940. Numerous of the Staffel´s missions have been preserved in original reports. In impressive personal accounts, the reader experiences a night photo-reconnaissance sortie, guiding the S-Boats against coastal convoys, reconnaissance over the British landing zones at Dieppe, Bf 109 sweeps over English harbours or even the dropping of a spy over England.
Based on German and British documents, the author managed to gain access to the war diary of this extraordinary Luftwaffe Staffel, and consequently provide first-hand information, like personal diaries and logbook records of airmen to illustrate the increasingly hopeless situation of the longrange reconnaissance Staffeln on the Channel front.
When the Staffel is relocated to Italy, the losses begin to rise dramatically in hazardous reconnaissance missions over North Africa, Malta and during the invasion of Sicily, and the Staffel is finally disbanded. In early 1945, the Staffel is reformed and the 1.(F)/123 flies long-range jet-reconnaissance with the legendary Ar 234 until the end of the Second World War in Europe.
This very well-researched volume is also based on reliable archive material, interviews, detailed mission reports and previously unreleased photographs. 380 B/W photographs,12 maps and 10 colour profiles of the aircraft types flown, the
complete loss list, award documents and the fate of selected soldiers of the Staffel complete this unique history of the 1.(F)/123 "Knullenkopfstaffel".

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Rabeder, Harald
Harald Rabeder, born in 1975, has been researching aerial photography and intelligence of Luftwaffe in Second World War for more than 20 years. After completion of his university studies of Computer Science and Economics his professional career began in the Austrian Army. Since then Military Intelligence and Reconnaissance also form his private focus of research. Today Harald Rabeder is working as an IT consultant in the international field of logistics. His passion for aerial reconnaissance in Second World war has grown over the years with numerous research trips and archive visits throughout Europe. The significant inventory of researched material eventually led to the founding of the "Luftwaffe Reconnaissance Association" to collect and provide information, photographs and documents for research and further publications. "The Knullenkopfstaffel" ist Haralds first military-historical publication available in English language, which has been preceded by several ye

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ars of research. Harald Rabeder lives with his wife Gabriela and his two sons, Marcus and Martin, near Wels in Upper Austria. www.fernaufklaerer.com Harald Rabeder, Jahrgang 1975, widmet sich seit mehr als zwanzig Jahren dem Luftbildwesen und der Feindaufklärung der deutschen Luftwaffe im Zweiten Weltkrieg. Nach dem Studium der Wirtschaftsinformatik begann seine berufliche Karriere beim Österreichischen Bundesheer. Die militärische Aufklärung und das Nachrichtenwesen bilden seither auch seinen privaten Forschungsschwerpunkt. Heute ist Harald Rabeder als IT-Berater im Logistikumfeld international erfolgreich tätig. Seine Leidenschaft für die Fernaufklärung wuchs über die Jahre mit zahlreichen Forschungsreisen und Archivbesuchen in ganz Europa. Der bedeutsame Bestand an recherchiertem Material führte schließlich zur Gründung der "Lehrsammlung für Fernaufklärung", um Informationen, Fotografien und Dokumente für Forschungen und Publikationen zu erhalten bzw. zur Verfügung zu stellen.

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"Die Knullenkopfstaffel" ist das erste militärgeschichtliche Werk von Harald Rabeder, dem eine sechsjährige Recherche vorausgegangen ist. Der Autor lebt mit seiner Frau Gabriela und seinen beiden Söhnen, Marcus und Martin, nahe Wels in Oberösterreich. www.fernaufklaerer.com

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