Hi All, The Critical Past site has some interesting German newsreels in its archive. I found this one which appears to be making the most of Allied armour losses in Normandy. One scene shows a Fallschirmjäger led tank hunting team in action, I would guess, in one of the two the American sectors by looking at the outlines of the passing Shermans. Can anyone tell me if German paratroopers were located in the British or Canadian Sectors? If the same location is being shown, I think there is a camera on both sides of the road: One side... ...and the other: The ambush scene is often shown in documentaries related to the Normandy Invasion, but I was wondering if any work has ever been done on finding the site? It might look staged, but I have a feeling it is real - look at these guys - their eyes says it all: The MG42 crew are also not out on a day's sightseeing - they mean business!: I have a feeling that what appears to be a 712th Tank Battalion wreck is not related to the ambush scenes...: ...However!!, if it is related, then it could put the ambush scene over on the Cotentin as the 712th TB was attached to the 90th Infantry Division and I think they also supported the 507th PIR at some point towards the end of June. Anyone any thoughts? Pat
Pat, German newsreels are even worse than the US equivalent. They are edited to tell a story. To do this they have no problem taking a mixture of shots from different periods (weeks apart) and locations. It often even includes training footage from Germany (especially when they show troops knocking out tanks or tank manouvres). To the best of my knowledge the original rolls of film do not exist any more (just the newsreels), so it is generally impossible to determine the exact dates and location. You need to find that in the footage itself. In this case I've spend many, many hours analyzing these shots. Basically the stills you've posted come from different sectors and may have been taken weeks apart, but some details can still be given about them when you dissect the newsreel. I've sent you a PM. Also you might enjoy this link: http://nsl-archiv.info/Filme/Deutsche-Wochenschauen/heil.php