[3] On 12 March 1938, Do 17Es of KG 155 dropped pro-Nazi leaflets on Vienna, as a prelude to the city's occupation during the German Anschluss operation.

[8] However, more modern Soviet-supplied Republican aircraft were capable of intercepting the E and F variants, which prompted an upgrade of the Dornier's defensive armament.

On 6 January 1937, it was decided by Erhard Milch, Albert Kesselring and Ernst Udet that the Legion should have more modern aircraft.

[9] On 8 July 1937, the Dorniers flew multiple sorties to protect Nationalist forces now threatening the capital, Madrid.

These raids caused a huge number of Polish casualties, who by now had retreated to dense wooded areas, contributing to their vulnerability.

It operated from Lübeck Blankensee, in northern Germany until the occupation of Denmark, and was then based at Stavanger on 10 April 1940, after the Wehrmacht had secured southern Norway.

[18] The first German aircraft shot down over France during the war was a Dornier Do 17P of 2(F)123, brought down by Pilot Officer Mould's Hawker Hurricane of No.

4414, constructed at Blohm & Voss, crashed near Vassincourt, killing all three of its crew, Hauptmann Balduin von Norman, Oberleutnant Hermann Heisterberg and Feldwebel Friedrich Pfeuffer.

The design continued to be favoured by the Luftwaffe aircrews, as it was more maneuverable than the He 111 or Ju 88, and because of its ability to perform low-level strikes well.

[22] Only two weeks into the campaign, KG 2 and 3 suffered fuel shortages, keeping the Dorniers grounded and forcing some attacks to be aborted.

[23] By the beginning of June, the Dornier Geschwader were encountering less opposition and losses declined sharply, as the Armée de l'Air was no longer a sufficient threat.

[24] During the Polish campaign, the Do 17Z could use its 427 km/h (265 mph) maximum speed to stay away from most enemy fighters, and its light armament was effective.

It also fought with success during the Battle of France and losses were relatively light, although when facing modern fighters like the Hawker Hurricane, the bomber proved slow in comparison and more vulnerable.

Since the Fafnir was a low-altitude engine, the Luftwaffe responded by employing the Do 17 units in a number of terrain-following mass raids in an attempt to evade fighter opposition.

The Dornier was manoeuvrable in comparison to the Heinkel and the more robust nature of radial engines made it ideal for low-level attacks, with a number of units being fitted with 20 mm cannon.

Joachim Roth, flew at very low altitude to avoid being detected by British radar and followed part of the London to Brighton railway to find their target.

But it was discovered that it was a device that was triggered by one of the rear gunners to destroy a fighter pursuing the bomber from line astern.

[33] Dorniers had improvised armament of eight machine guns installed to increase defensive firepower, but still were unable to counter fighter attacks.

Even with the end of production, the Dornier saw action in notable numbers after the Battle of Britain, in the Balkan Campaign, Operation Barbarossa (the invasion of the Soviet Union), and with the other Axis air forces.

[38] Initially, Yugoslavia had been pro-German, and looked set to join the Axis Powers, but a military coup toppled the government and declared itself neutral.

These machines differed from the German Dorniers in that they were powered by French Gnome-Rhône Mistral Major engines, and had non-German weapons and instruments.

[44] After the successful conclusion of the Balkans campaign, the Luftwaffe prepared for Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union.

The commander of the Soviet Western Front, General Armii Dmitriy Pavlov attempted a counterattack against Hermann Hoth's Panzergruppe 3.

Surviving aircraft were used as test beds for new technologies and training schools, while many others were handed off to allied nations over the next two years.

[53] At the beginning of German invasion of Yugoslavia, the Yugoslav Royal Air Force (YRAF) possessed some 60 Dornier Do 17Ks that equipped the 3 vazduhoplovni puk (3rd Bomber Regiment).

[54] Between 14 and 15 April, seven Do 17Ks flew to Nikšić airport and took part in the evacuation of King Petar II and members of the Yugoslav government to Greece.

Croatian staffeln formed part of German Kampfgeschwader as well as their own independent units and it is uncertain how many, if any, of their aircraft they brought back upon their return to Croatia.

[71] By December 1943, the 1st and 2nd Croat Bomber Squadrons formed part of the Croatian Air Force Legion and were to expand to a full group in size in February 1944, but it is unclear if this was more than a redesignation on paper.

[76] On 15 April 1945, a force made up of a Dornier Do 17Z, escorted by two Messerschmitt Bf 109Gs destroyed two aircraft of the Yugoslav Partisans at their airfield at Sanski Most.

[78][79] In November 1941, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring decided to give 15 Dornier Do 17Z aircraft to the Finnish Air Force.