SUING GERMAN CONVOYS FROM AIR

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 180, 1 August 1941, Page 7

SUING GERMAN CONVOYS FROM AIR

SUPPLY SHIPS SUNK

Blenheims Swoop To Deck Level. KrixlsS Official WiroJrss. Rec. 1 p.m. PT'OTJY, Juiy 31. A daring and successful attack on enemy shipp»nc an>l harbour works at two north Scandinavian port* by naval aircraft, was announced in an Admiralty communique. •Naval aircraft yesterday delivered attacks on German shipping at the harbours of Kirkness and in northern Scandinavia." state? the comn.unique. "At Pet ;amo litile shipping was found in the port, and our attack was concentrated against the harbour works. Anti-aircraft tire and fighter opposition was encountered, 'but the jetties were hit. A warehouse and an oil tank were seen to be sot on nre. and generally ireai damage was dene to port 'acilities. At Kirkness. the fa>t German warship Bremse. of 14<X) tons, with armament of six :>.". anti-aircraft guns, which was formerly a gunnery training ship, was twice hit. Strong opposition from the enemy made it impossible to observe all the results, but it is believed that at least four supply ships were hit. Three "Messcrsclimin "Kfls and one .1 linkers 87 are known ;o have been .-hol down during the operation Our losses in these two attacks wore l<l naval aircraft. Flying between the masts and within a few fort of the muzzles of anti-aircraft guns. Blenheim aircraft of the Bomber Command yesterday afternoon attacked several enemy ships in the Heligoland Bight. During the raid many eneiny fighters were on patrol, but in spite of them and stiff anti-aircraft lire from the escort vessels, the pilots almost scraped the decks of ship after ship in the heavily-guarded convoy. Ship's Aerial Entangled In Tail One Blenheim came home with a ships aerial entangled round its tail wheel. The wire" now hangs as a trophy in the sergeants' mess. Another Blenheim, ignoring the menace of guns at point-blank range, was hit in one of the petrol tanks. The tank caught on fire, but the crew quickly mastered* the flames, and after a* successful attack came safely home. In the attack on the convoy of six ships a direct hit on a 1500-ton merchant ship sent her heeling to portShe was left sinking. A 1200-ton ship in the same convoy was hit aft of the funnel and blown up. The captain of the Blenheim which scored this success said that his formation had to fly through thick cloud and North Sea squalls before the clouds dispersed into thin stratus over the convoy.

'I watched my wing-commander," he said, "going in to attack another 1500-tonner. and saw tho ship blown up in a wild explosion of debris., flame, steam afsd smoke. We continued on a zig-zag course until we sighted another convoy heading north-east to cut off the bight. I decided to pick off the last ship in the convov. flew over the mast and bombed from 30 feet." A 500-ton ship was attacked by two bombers, one getting a direct hit amidships. There was so much smoke from the explosions that the crew of a second bomber could not distinguish the results of their own attack. The ship was left well alight. Seven British aircraft are missing from these dajiight operations. During last night aircraft of the Bomber Command, flying through severe thunderstorms "and extensive rain clouds, went to the west of Ger-

many and attacked industrial targets

in the Aachen and Cologne areas. The docks at Boulogne were also bombed. Three British planes are missing from these night operations.