Battlefield Archaeology: One of the last battles of WW2 in May 1945
By Pierre Kosmidis Photos: Panagiotis Brokos The war in Europe was almost over in Europe in late April, early May 1945. The Russians had conquered Berlin, the nazi leader Hitler had committed suicide and the western Allies were moving swiftly in the heartland of the 3rd Reich. It was just a matter of days, before […]
Mystery solved! The life and death of Xenophon Castrisos
By Pierre Kosmidis It all began with a black and white photograph of a soldier reading a Greek newspaper, “somewhere in the Pacific” during WW2. The newspaper is the “ΠΑΝΕΛΛΗΝΙΟΣ ΚΗΡΥΞ” or “Hellenic Herald” and according to the caption “Xenophon Castrisos (Castles), an aerial photographer with the Royal Australian Air Force, reads the Hellenic Herald, […]
Behind the scenes: Preserving and restoring rare warbirds from WW2 to present
By Pierre Kosmidis Photos: Yannis Mylonas & Pierre Kosmidis/www.ww2wrecks.com Additional resources: 1/ Hellenic Air Force Museum – The wings of history (click to read the story) 2/ The rare warbirds of the Hellenic Air Force Museum (click to read the story) Aviation enthusiasts all over the world are thrilled every time they see an aircraft from a bygone era […]
Kostas Kavvathias, the Greek master of Aviation Art
By Pierre Kosmidis Kostas Kavvathias is undoubtedly an artist whose works have established him as the Greek Aviation Art master worldwide. Kostas , the man who has linked his name with the artistic and historically documented aviation art for over two decades, modestly says that “I do not feel like I am someone special. But I am glad […]
The forgotten WW2 barracks and the… sexy lady
By Pierre Kosmidis Photos by Panagiotis Brokos Rodos island, Greece, was under Italian occupation from 1912 to 1943, when Italy capitulated. Following the failed Allied attempt to gain control of the island (click to read more) the Germans managed to keep the Dodecanese islands, including Rodos, up until the end of WW2 in Europe, in May 1945. […]
1941: The nazi invasion of Greece through the paintings of Hans Liska
By Pierre Kosmidis Hans Liska (1907-1984) is one of the most well-known and prolific WWII Axis illustrators, who served with the German Armed Forces during the war. In 1942 and 1943 German publishing house Carl Werner in Reichenbach, sponsored by Junkers Flugzeug und Motorenwerke AG, published 2 albums with Hans Liska’s sketches and color […]
Aviation Art: Γιώργος Μώρης, με το πενάκι του “ζωντανεύει” ιστορικά αεροσκάφη
By Pierre Kosmidis Ο Γιώργος Μώρης ξεκίνησε από νεαρή ηλικία να σχεδιάζει αεροσκάφη, αποδίδοντας, με το πέρασμα του χρόνου, μερικά εξαιρετικά έργα, τα οποία προβάλλουν με τον καλύτερο τρόπο στιγμές της Ιστορίας της Αεροπορίας και αναβιώνοντας με αυτό τον τρόπο πειστικές απεικονίσεις εποχών που χάνονται στην αχλύ του χρόνου. Πόση δουλειά όμως κρύβεται πίσω από […]
HMS Perseus: The story of the sole survivor of a British submarine sunk in 1941 off Kefalonia, Ionian Sea, Greece
By Pierre Kosmidis An incredible -yet true- story comes back to life through the book of Kostas Thoctarides and Rena Giatropoulou regarding the legendary submarine «HMS Perseus». The book, published by the Hellenic Maritime Museum, contains 150 photos, documents for the loss of the submarine, and digital photos of “Perseus” exactly as it is lying […]
“Y1: Silence of the Deep”: The underwater exploration of a Greek submarine lost during World war 2 and the unknown story
By Pierre Kosmidis All photos ©TeamFaos, submitted by Team Faos and used by permission CLICK TO READ ABOUT THE DISCOVERY OF THE WRECK FOUND! The WW2 Greek submarine Y1 “Katsonis”, sunk on September 14, 1943 On September 14, 1943, the Greek submarine Y1 “Katsonis”, named after the 18th-century Greek admiral Lambros Katsonis, was rammed and sunk by […]
“Y1: Στη Σιωπή του Βυθού”. Η άγνωστη ιστορία του ελληνικού υποβρυχίου που χάθηκε το 1943
By Pierre Kosmidis Οι φωτογραφίες δημοσιεύονται κατόπιν αδείας από την Team Faos Το υποβρύχιο Υ1 “Κατσώνης” βυθίστηκε στις 14 Σεπτεμβρίου του 1943, στη θαλάσσια περιοχή της Σκιάθου στις Σποράδες, όταν εμβολίστηκε μετά από ναυμαχία με το γερμανικό σκάφος UJ-2101, παρασέρνοντας σε βάθος 253 μέτρων 32 μέλη του πληρώματός του. 15 άνδρες περισυνελλέγησαν από το UJ-2101, […]