News & Articles

Find out about the latest news from NCAP and discover in-depth stories about NCAP collections, activities and projects.

A historic black and white vertical aerial photo of a ragged shoreline. A lake stretches along the bottom of the image, with the land rising to snowy peaks along the top.

Image Release Note 0013: NCAP Upload

This release brings together declassified aerial imagery from multiple archives. Reflecting both wartime reconnaissance and Cold War surveillance across a wide geographic scope, the imagery in this release offers extensive...

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A historic black and white vertical aerial photo of Hong Kong, with densely packed buildings covering a promontory surrounded by sea. Several vessels are on the water. The photo has been marked with black lines to show contours.

Image Release Note 0012: NCAP Upload

This release blends UK survey and MOD-declassified imagery with some NARA content, highlighting strategic coverage of Qatar and the Middle East, early aerial views of Hong Kong, and extensive UK...

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A historic colour vertical aerial photo of a shoreline. Along the bottom of the image is a blue sea. A wide beach interspersed with groynes runs along the sea, with the houses of a town inland from the beach.

Image Release Note 0011: NCAP Upload

This release features late 20th-century aerial imagery from UK agencies and private firms, offering extensive colour coverage across the UK and parts of Europe, with a strong focus on environmental...

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A historic colour vertical aerial photo of a coastline. The left two-thirds of the image are filled with a very blue sea. The shore to the right looks dry and arid.

Image Release Note 0010: NCAP Upload

This release blends UK and international aerial imagery, with strong Middle Eastern coverage digitised with the UAE National Library, and includes surveys across the UK, Europe, the Caribbean, Australia, and...

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A historic black and white vertical aerial photo of forested hills. To the left a small stretch of sea can be seen.

Image Release Note 0009: NARA & NCAP Upload

This release highlights Second World War aerial imagery primarily from NARA, with a strong focus on Central and Eastern Europe, including Luftwaffe sorties, and extends to global regions such as...

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A black and white historic photo of two men in uniform at a desk. There are stereoscope viewers, a lamp and model ships on the desk. The walls behind the men are covered in silhouettes of numerous naval vessels.

Recruitment to the Allied Central Interpretation Unit

At the heart of the National Collection of Aerial Photography is the Allied Central Interpretation Unit collection. Becoming a Photographic Interpreter required a unique set of skills – correspondence held...

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A historic black and white vertical aerial photo of a coastline. To the right is the sea, separated from a small town by a beach. Inland is a caravan park and a dark body of water.

Image Release Note 0008: NCAP Upload

This release features Cold War-era aerial imagery from UK and international sources, with a strong focus on the Gulf region—especially the UAE—alongside UK coastal and urban coverage, enriching coverage on...

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A historic black and white vertical aerial photo of agricultural land along a coastline. The sea is to the right of the image, and some hills are visible in the top left corner.

Image Release Note 0007: NARA Upload

Nearly 50,000 Second World War aerial images digitised through the NCAP and NARA partnership reveal the global scope of wartime reconnaissance, spanning strategic regions across Europe, Asia, the Pacific, and...

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