In 1936-37 during the Spanish Civil War German arms were supplied to the Spanish Republicans from Rheinmetall-Borsig, then controlled by Hermann Göring, even though German forces were fighting with the Spanish Nationalists. Arms shipped to Greece with a Greek end-user certificate were split by Bodosakis, with arms for the Republicans transferred to ships supposedly sailing to Mexico. But the Nationalists got the best and latest weapons while the Republicans got the oldest and least serviceable. This supply peaked in 1937-38, with shipments from Rheinmetall-Borsig worth up to 40 million Reichsmarks each. Nationalists identified 18 vessels sent to Republican ports from 3 January 1937 to 11 May 1938, and estimated that Goering received the equivalent of one pound sterling per rifle. In November 1937 Bodosakis travelled to Barcelona in a Soviet aircraft, and signed a contract to supply ammunition to the Republic for £2.1 million, in hard currency in advance. There have also been reports that the company assembled airplanes for the nationalist forces.