History
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It was also the official name for the Nazi air force founded in 1935. Led by Hermann Goering, it became the largest and most powerful in Europe by the start of World War Two.
Photo: The aircrew of a Heinkel 111 bomber look out on an accompanying plane, circa 1940. (Roger Viollet/Getty Images)
Features in:
The Battle of Britain
Introduction
Luftwaffe
Highlights from BBC programmes Video (20)
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Christmas in the local air-raid shelter
Eyewitness Joanna Roberts describes Christmas 1940 spent sheltering from the bombs.
Eyewitness Joanna Roberts describes Christmas 1940 spent sheltering from the bombs and the time spent thinking about relatives killed in the Blitz.
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How St. Paul's Cathedral was saved from the Blitz
Richard Holmes describes how St. Paul's Cathedral was saved from the bombing that was destroying the City of London.
Richard Holmes describes how St. Paul's Cathedral was saved from the bombing that was destroying the City of London on 29 December 1940.
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The Second Great Fire of London
Alan Bennett describes the devastating bombing raid on London on 29 December 1940.
Alan Bennett describes the devastating bombing raid on London on 29 December 1940 with eyewitness testimony from Joanna Roberts.
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Michael Foot's Christmas 1940 newspaper report
Alan Bennett recounts future MP Michael Foot's view of Christmas 1940.
Alan Bennett recounts future MP Michael Foot's view of Christmas 1940 in his editorial for the London Evening Standard.
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Aerial duels over Dunkirk
Wing Commander Robert Standford Tuck discusses aerial combat over Dunkirk.
Wing Commander Robert Standford Tuck, a highly decorated Spitfire and Hurricane pilot, is interviewed in 1979 by David Jacobs. They discuss the Wing Commander’s combat flights over Dunkirk and how a penny saved his life.
More information about: Luftwaffe
The Luftwaffe was the aerial warfare branch of the German Wehrmacht during World War II. After the German Empire's World War I-era army air force, the Luftstreitkräfte, and the Kaiserliche Marine naval air units had been disbanded under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, the Luftwaffe was reformed on February 26, 1935 and grew to become one of the strongest, most doctrinally advanced, and most battle-experienced air forces in the world when World War II started in Europe in September 1939. After the defeat of the Third Reich, the Luftwaffe was disbanded in 1946.
Luftwaffe is also the generic term in German speaking countries for any national military aviation service, and the names of air forces in other countries are usually translated into German as "Luftwaffe" (e.g. Royal Air Force is often translated as "britische Luftwaffe"). However, Luftstreitkräfte, or "air armed force", is also sometimes used as a translation of "air force". And because "Luft" means "air" and "Waffe" may be translated into English as either "weapon" or "arm", "Air Arm" may be considered the most literal English translation of Luftwaffe (cf. Fleet Air Arm).
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Events
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Sept 1939 -
Germany advances through Europe
May 1940 -
July 1940 -
Germany bombs British towns and cities
Aug 1940 -
11 July 1940 -
Germany bombs British coastal airfields
18 Aug 1940 -
24 Aug 1940 -
Germany attacks RAF Fighter Command
04 Sept 1940 -
07 Sept 1940 -
Germany bombs London
15 Sept 1940 -
15 Sept 1940
Battle of Britain Day
Who
People
Adolf Hitler What
Military Tactics
Dogfight Military Technology
Supermarine Spitfire 
Radar Military Organisations
RAF Fighter Command Where
Military airfields
RAF Biggin Hill Related programmes
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BROADCAST 2009
Radio 4: WW2 Evacuees
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BROADCAST 2010
Radio 4: Evacuation
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BROADCAST 1998
Radio 4: War in the C20th
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BROADCAST 2008
Radio 4: WW2 Defences
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BROADCAST 2000
Radio 4: Hitler in History
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play
1. The Last of the Free
Episode 1: A History of Scotland
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6. William Mudge's Ordnance Survey
Episode 6: Map Man
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Dornier 17: The Fall and Rise of a German Bomber
No radio programmes available
News
Bournemouth WWII bombing memorial to be unveiled
Bombing victims killed during a World War II...
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