The story of the Greek PZL P24 fighter aircraft, 1940-41
By Pierre Kosmidis The Royal Hellenic Air Force (EVA) is the only air force during WW2 to operate the PZL.24 as its main fighter type. Two subtypes, thirty P.24F and six P.24G, were ordered and delivered in 1937-38. They were split between three Mirae Dioxeos (Fighter Squadrons): the 21st at Trikala, 22nd at Thessaloniki and […]
Thursday 14 November 1940: The day the Greek counter-offensive against the Italians started
By Pierre Kosmidis On 14 November 1940, three hundred German bombers dropped 500 tons of explosives, 33,000 incendiary bombs and dozens of parachute mines on the industrial city of Coventry. During the raid, 507 civilians were killed and 420 seriously injured. Europe was under the nazi boot, with the exception of the neutral countries like […]
Bunker Archaeology: The German WW2 “Hohlgangsanlage” bunkers of Aegina island, Greece, by Konstantinos Kirimis
By Pierre Kosmidis Research and photos by Konstantinos Kirimis, submitted to www.ww2wrecks.com and used by permission Among the various bunkers and fortifications built by the German occupation forces all over Greece during World War 2, this specific “cave-shelter” (Hohlgangsanlage, according to the German technical terminology of the time) is located in the Northern Fortress of Aegina (see Note 1, […]
FOUND! “Votrys”, the first true sea-going ship with diesel propulsion worldwide, sunk in 1940
By Pierre Kosmidis Research and photos by George Karelas December 1940 was a month of glory for the Greek Army. The Italians were promptly ousted from Greece, after their failed invasion, which was initiated on October 28, 1940. This aggressive campaign of Mussolini’s army meant the start of World War 2 for Greece. Shortly after […]
The truth behind the myths: How many aircraft were shot down in 1940-41 during the Italian campaign against Greece
By Pierre Kosmidis Captioned photos by Lt. (GM) Nikolaos Christofilis HN, Author and Independent Researcher Wartime propaganda mechanisms are generally inflating the numbers of enemy aircraft shot down, while downgrading the numbers of their own losses. This general rule applies to every nation at war and as time goes by, many myths are shrouding the truth and […]
Postcards celebrating Greek victories against the Italians in 1940-41
By Pierre Kosmidis A series of postcards issued in 1945, celebrated the Greek victory against the fascist hordes of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. Each of these postcards marks a specific date, related to some of the events of the Greco-Italian war of 1940. The Italians initiated their offensive against the northern borders of Greece from […]
WW2 bunkers in Greece: Lt. Colonel (ret.) Ilias Kotridis and the “Metaxas line” that stopped the nazis in 1941
By Pierre Kosmidis Lt. Colonel (ret.) Ilias Kotridis has dedicated his life and efforts unearthing the lost secrets of the “Metaxas Line”, a complex of concrete bunkers and fortresses that withstood the German invasion. The Germans launched their attack on April 6, 1941 and the Greek army stationed at the bunkers caused a significant number […]
Why did Mussolini select October 28 1940, to start the offensive against Greece?
By Pierre Kosmidis The Greek dictator Ioannis Metaxas responded “alors c’est la guerre” (“So this means war”, which lived in the annals of History as “NO”) to the ultimatum of the Italian ambassador Emmanuele Grazzi at 3:00 in the morning of October 28, 1940 in one of the most brilliant pages of modern Greek history. […]
January 1941: A Greek soldier sends a letter from the front, using an Italian “cartolina” war booty
By Pierre Kosmidis War is not only the heroic images we see in the movies, the embellished narratives and the sterile depiction of historical reality. Wars are fought by everyday people, with feelings, thoughts, people that leave their peacetime occupation and immerse themselves in the atrocities of the battlefields, an experience from which if they […]
WW2 Greek Army 1940 Reenacting Team – Bringing History to life, 76 years after
By Pierre Kosmidis Text: Pierre Kosmidis Photos: WW2 Greek Army 1940 Reenacting Team & Akis Paraskevopoulos Story in Greek – ΣΤΑ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΑ ΚΑΝΤΕ “ΚΛΙΚ” ΕΔΩ: Λένε “ΟΧΙ” και φωνάζουν “ΑΕΡΑ!” 74 χρόνια μετά – Η Ομάδα Αναβίωσης ΕΣ 1940 The last soldiers who fought in the mountains of Greece and Albania against the fascist […]