THE GERMAN DEFENCE

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 63, Issue 220, 28 June 1943, Page 4

THE GERMAN DEFENCE

MANY NIGHT-FIGHTERS USED. GREAT BOMBING ACHIEVEMENT. MORE THAN MOST OPTIMISTIC FORECASTS. (N.Z. Press Association —Copyright.a CRec. 1.20 p.m.) LONDON, June 27. “A considerable strengthening of the defences of Western Germany and the great evacuation of the same area show the severe effects of the Royal Air Force raids. The Germans are putting a night-fighter into the air for every bomber we are sending over the Ruhr— a standard of defence not' dreamt of six months ago” says the aviation correspondent of the British United Press. “Twelve major raids on the Ruhr and the Rhineland since May 23 add up to the most amazing bombing achievement.” says the correspondent. “It is estimated that more than 17,000 tons of bombs were dropped on targets where the population totals 5,000,000. - “Goering, to secure this effect, would have needed to bomb London 54 nights successively on the scale of his biggest raid —one in which 500 tons of bombs were dropped on 8,000,000 people. We lost 334 aircraft in 12 raids. This is a considerable loss, but the fact that we are able to employ such forces and suffer such losses, yet maintain bombing, indicates the great production of our factories.

“The losses are due mainly to the enormous concentration of fighter planes over the Ruhr.

Washington observers believe that the 1000 fighter planes which Mr Elmer Davis says Germany has assembled in the Ruhr ip. an effort to check the Royal Air Force’s blows comprise more than half the Germans’ total fighter strength. Observers consider that the Allies are well on the way to winning the battle of Europe. They say the weight of the Allied air blows is greater than the most optimistic forecasts of two months ago. Predictions of victory have-been revised sharply upward because of the devastating results of the Allies’ systematic and 5 scientific aerial bombardment.”