The Heinkel 111 - Deliverer of Spies

HE 111 (painting) (From German Aircraft of WWII website) Between the summer of 1940 and the spring of 1941, the German Abwehr (Intelligence Service) attempted to insert a number of espionage agents into Great Britain. Some were sent by boat, others were sent by aircraft. There has been a fair bit of discussion about which German aircraft was used to drop the parachute agents. General consensus seems to have settled on the Heinkel 111 (HE 111), a versatile medium bomber designed by the Germans in 1934. Given the constrictions of the Versailles Treaty conditions, the Heinkel 111 was originally presented as a civilian aircraft and early models found service with Lufthansa. Soon enough, however, it's real potential as a bomber was exploited. There are several Heinkel 111's still in existence, as well as a Spanish version (Casa 2.111) that is virtually identical to the HE 111. In addition, there are many model-building kits of the HE 111 that provide helpful information.