TERRIFIC ATTACKS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 60, Issue 295, 20 September 1940, Page 5

TERRIFIC ATTACKS.

PRESSED HOME BY THE R.A.F. STRONGEST FORCE YET ENGACED LONDON, September 19. Last night British bombers again pressed home terrific attacks on ports from Kiel to the Bay of Biscay. The raids began soon, after 9 p.m. and developed so furiously that many miles of the French coast seemed to be ablaze.

It was the strongest force yet used. Big fires broke out at Calais. The Germans put un. a strong barrage, and searchlights all along the coast swept tho sky many miles over the sea. Pilots who took part in the attack on the invasion ports describe the flying conditions as perfect. There was bright moonlight, with no cloud over the enemy’s coastline. The British pilots could clearly make out the docks and railways along the quaysides. One British pilot said: “We got hardly any opposition at all. There were a few searchlights hut nothing to worry about. It was just like bombing on practice raids. I should say there were dozens of fires burning at Ostend when we got there. It was as light as day. Wo ran inland, turned round and ran up on the railway sidings. Our first stick of bombs started seven or eight fires. , It looked as though we had hit an ammunition train, for explosions broke out —all sorts of colours, white, fed 1 , and yellow. Then as we turned to make a second run up there was a terrific upheaval. The stuff came up like ; a gigantic mushroom, thin at the bottom and spreading right out aft the top. We were flying at 5000 feet and the force of the explosion threw us up about 50 feet.

1 ‘ln some parts of the dock area one could not see anything. It was just a mass of flames obliterating the ground. Two of my crew Jive in South London, and they have had their homes destroyed. You can imagine they are feeling pretty happy about this shew of ours.” ( After the second attack, when more fires were started, this aircraft circled round for another five or six minutes to have a look.

“One thing struck me particularly,” the pilot remarked. “The town itself, ba'rring a few houses on the edge of the railway yard, appeared untouched. At any rate there were no fires or ainy other indication of it having been bombed. The fires were all on the dockside.”

Another officer in, the same squadron said: “We had seen explosions from the enemy’s coastline about five minutes after leaving our own coast, and they continued intermittently most of the way out. We: went straight into Ostend, from the sea. As we were running up, I could see fires' and explosions . still going on. Having got rid of my first lot of bombs, I Went out to sea- again and then calme back end did precisely the same thing all over again,.” Fires were . seen in the docks at Hamburg after.they had Been bombed early yesterday.. A German communique states: “On night of September 16 the Royal Air Force bombed Antwerp working class quarters, killing 45 persons, and damaging several farmhouses in other parts of Belgium. On the night of September 17 a, number of single British aeroplanes tried to> penetrate to Germany at a. great height. Ge.rman fighters attacked, bringing down, one and forcing the others to return.”