The Luftwaffe and the War at Sea is a collection of fascinating accounts written by German military officers – both Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe – about the naval war in the air in the North Atlantic and around Great Britain. Most of the documents were written immediately post-war as part of the Allied debriefing programme. However, some are wartime German originals produced for internal use by military staff, but all have the value of immediacy; they were written when memories were fresh and, in many cases, by those who were directly caught up in the action.

These men were personally involved in all aspects of the German attempts to control the seas through maritime power, from the use of Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers during the invasion of Norway to the missions of FW 200 Condors in cooperation with the U-boat campaign against Britain's Atlantic lifelines. The writers include such well-known names as Grossadmiral Karl Doenitz, Kontreadmiral Gerhard Wagner, General der Flieger, Ulrich O. E. Kessler and Vizeadmiral Eberhard Weichold.

The history recounted in these reports is unique and first-hand, allowing the reader a fresh perspective on those famous campaigns. Furthermore, much of that wartime experience was harnessed during the formation of the Bundersmarine's Marineflieger in the 1950s that then served throughout the Cold War. Today it still participates in the global war on terror with its Atlantic marine patrols.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• CONTENTS
• Introduction
• Glossary
• Contributors
• Sources of Maps and Illustrations
• I. Overview and Prewar Development
  • 1. German Naval Air 1933 to 1945: US Office of Naval Intelligence
  • 2. The German Naval Air Force 1933–September 1939: Oberst (i.G) Walter Gaul
• II. The Air War at Sea – Navy and Luftwaffe Views
  • 3. A Survey From the Naval Point of View on the Organization of the German Air Force for Operations over the Sea 1933–1945: Vizeadmiral Eberhard Weichold
  • 4. The Operational Use of the Luftwaffe in the War at Sea, 1939–43: 8th Abteilung, OKL
  • 5. German Army and Air Force Influence on the German Navy During World War II: Naval Historical Team
• III. 1939–40
  • 6. German Naval Air Operations in the First Six Months of the War: Oberst i.G. Walter Gaul
  • 7. The Role of the Luftwaffe and the Campaign in Norway: General der Flieger Ulrich O. E. Kessler
  • 8.German Naval Air Operations April–December 1940: Oberst i.G. Walter Gaul
• IV. The Battle of the Atlantic
  • 9. Cooperation of U-Boats and Luftwaffe in Attacks on Convoys: Korvetten Kapitan Otto Mejer
  • 10. Cooperation of the Luftwaffe with the German Navy during World War II: Kapitan zur See Hans-Jurgen Reinecke
  • 11. Examples of Luftwaffe Cooperation with U-boats from Wartime Reports: Kapitanleutnant Hans-Diedrich Freiherr von Tiesenhausen and others
  • 12. Principles Covering the Conduct of Operation by Fliegerfuehrer Atlantik and an Appreciation of the Types of Aircraft Available: Headquarters Staff, Fliegerfuehrer Atlantik
  • 13. The Role of the German Air Force in the Battle of the Atlantic: 8th Abteilung, OKL
• V. Conclusion
  • 14: Overview: The Atlantic War (and the Role of Air Cooperation): Grossadmiral Karl Doenitz and Kontreadmiral Gerhard Wagner
• Select Bibliography