Weather investigation relay
Weather reconnaissance squadrons ( Wekusta , sometimes Westa ) were flying units of the air force of the Wehrmacht in squadron strength . Their primary task was to collect weather data in areas that only airplanes could penetrate. These data flowed into the various weather reports of the Wehrmacht .
history
Weather forecast is a critical factor in planning and conducting military operations . For a weather report that is as accurate as possible, however, a large amount of international weather data is required, which was not available during the war. The Wehrmacht therefore created a worldwide network of weather stations , weather ships and weather planes. The Air Force combined the weather planes in special squadrons. Most of them were directly subordinate to the Commander in Chief of the Air Force or the Air Fleet Command. There were a total of eleven Wekustas with between three and twelve twin-engine aircraft in their ranks. Many military service meteorologists flew in them and collected weather data. More than 200 of them fell during the war.
units
| Association name | Association ID | Lineup | Insinuation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wekusta 1 (also Wekusta / Lfl.1) | B7 + .A, (T5) | July 1939 | Air fleet 1 |
| Wekusta 1 / Ob.dL | T5 + .U from July 1942: D7 + .H | July 1940 from Wekusta / Ob.dL | |
| Wekusta 2 / Ob.dL | T5 + .V, from July 1942: D7 + .K) | July 1940 from Wekusta 2 | |
| Wekusta Ob.dL | T5 + .U | June 1939 from Großraum-Wekusta, from July 1940 Wekusta 1 / Ob.dL | |
| Wekusta 3 | 4B | Planned in 1939, but not erected. January 1944 from the Stavanger weather chain | |
| Wekusta 5 (also Wekusta / Lfl. 5) | 1B + .H, from May 1942: D7 + .N | May 1940 from Wetterkette Nord | Air fleet 5 |
| Wekusta 6 | D7 + .P | July 1943 from Wekusta Banak | |
| Wekusta 7 | K4 + .A | November 1944 | |
| Wekusta 26 | 5M, from June 1944 C5 + .H | June 1939, later 6th / Enlightenment Gr. 122, June 1944 reorganization | Air fleet 2 |
| Wekusta 27 | Q5 | June 1943 from parts of Wekusta 26 | |
| Wekusta 51 | 4T + .H | June 1939 | Air fleet 3 |
| Wekusta 76 | 5Z + .A | December 1940 | Air fleet 4 |
Notes: B7 + .A means that according to the individual aircraft identification letters (A to Z) of the relay point was used "A"
Ob.dL: Luftwaffe
Lfl .: Luftflotte
Known people who served in weather reconnaissance teams
- Erich Etienne (1915–1942), geophysicist
- Hans Euler (1909–1941), physicist
- Leo Gburek (1910–1941), geophysicist
- Rupert Holzapfel (1905–1960), meteorologist and Arctic researcher
- Heinz Huth (1908–1996), two-time world champion in gliding
- Martin Teich (1911–2004), meteorologist at the German Weather Service and weather announcer at ZDF
Individual evidence
- ^ Wolfgang Dierich: The Air Force Associations 1935-1945 . Outlines and short chronicles, a documentation. Ed .: Wolfgang Dierich. Verlag Heinz Nickel , Zweibrücken 1993, ISBN 3-925480-15-3 , p. 185-189 (703 pages).