Mediterranean Allied Photo Reconnaissance Wing (MAPRW)
- Reference:GB 551 NCAP/3
- Dates of Creation:1943-1945
- Name of Creator:
- Language of Material:English
- Physical Description:150 000 aerial images
Scope and Content
Royal Air Force (RAF) / South African Air Force (SAAF) / United States Army Air Force (USAAF) vertical and oblique aerial reconnaissance prints mostly covering locations in the Mediterranean region during the Second World War (1939-1945) and associated paper sortie plots.
Administrative / Biographical History
The Mediterranean Allied Photo Reconnaissance Wing (MAPRW) was the reconnaissance and intelligence arm of the Mediterranean Allied Air Forces (MAAF). These had previously been known as Northwest African Photographic Reconnaissance Wing (NAPRW) and Northwest African Air Forces (NAAF) respectively until renamed in December 1943.
Access Information
Closed. No finding aids available. Imagery can only currently be located with knowledge of exact sortie references - no searches for a geographical location currently possible. Related intelligence records with information on geographical areas covered / sortie references are held by The National Archives.
Other Finding Aids
None.
Physical Characteristics and/or Technical Requirements
Aerial prints. Prints are mostly 9.5 x 19 inches (236 x 474mm) / 9 x 9 inches (229 x 229mm).
Conditions Governing Use
Standard RCAHMS licence terms for use apply.
Custodial History
After the Second World War the imagery was transferred to the British School at Rome (BSR). At an unknown later date the collection was transferred to the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford University and then in the early 1980s to Keele University. In 2008 it was transferred under a joint initiative between the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS), The National Archives and Keele University to RCAHMS.
Related Material
Original MAPRW imagery is also held by:
- Italian National Archives (ICCD), Via di S.Michele 18, 00153, Roma, Italy.
Related intelligence records are held by:
- The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. T: 020 8876 3444
Subjects
Corporate Names
Genre/Form
Geographical Names
Functions