MORE FREQUENT DAY RAIDS

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 64, 9 December 1940, Page 8

MORE FREQUENT DAY RAIDS

Week’s Work Of R.A.F. POOR CONDITIONS AT NIGHT (British Official Wireless.) (Received December 8, 7 p.m.) RUGBY, December 7. The Royal Air Force raids over enemy and occupied territories during the week ended at dawn today have been restricted by the weather. Indeed, on two nights all operations had to be cancelled. Widespread day-light raids were made during the week, and in all 20 attacks were carried out against ports and shipping, five against goods yards, etc., and 10 against factories, powerstations, etc., and a large number of aerodromes were also attacked. Only two aircraft were lost in these operations, one of them in the raid over Italy.

The operations included a persistent attack on the submarine base tit Eorient, which was bombed on four days. Outstanding among the weeks raids were the bombing of the Royal Arsenal at Turin at great length, and heavy attacks on Cologne. Dusseldorf, ami the naval shipbuilding yards nt Bremen. The attack on Dusseldorf lasted 12 hours.

TOTAL CESSATION

German Activity On Saturday Night R.A.F. STRIKES HARD LONDON, December 8.. Last night, for the first time in three months, not a single enemy plane crossed the coast of Britain. British bombers, however, successfully carried out raids against targets in Germany and on ports in enemy-occupied territory, I’or eight hours British bombers hit haru at German aerodromes from the plain of Orleans to Holland. The sudden cessation of night bombing of Britain followed a 24hotir period in which the German raids were light and sporadic.

CAUGHT NAPPING

Italian Fighters Attacked

Over Channel

SHARP ACTION DESCRIBED

(British Official Wireless.) LONDON. December 6. Details have been given in a broadcast talk of a light with Italian aeroplanes over the Channel by the. commanding officer of an auxiliary lighter squadron who was one of the. first pilots to open fire on enemy aircraft over Britain; and has led his squadron during the time it has destroyed 91 victims.

Explaining how he was forced to fly in the rear of the squadron because of engine trouble, tlie pilot said that this accident enabled him to see the details of the battle.

“We were on a southerly course approaching Dover.” he said, "when we were warned to look out for a formation of Italian aircraft. Every man was immediately on the alert. After a couple of minutes we saw enemy aircraft flying south-west down the Channel. They were still some distance awav. 1000 feet below us. T.hey were Italian fighters. CR42’s, and well over the sea. flying at about. 20.000 feet. When I first had a good look at them they gave me the impression of a party out on a quiet little jaunt. There were about 20 of them, flying along quite happily in good formation. “When our leader gave the order to attack and told us to sweep round and down on their tails, we were in a very advantageous position. “Our machines must be about 100 miles an hour faster than the Italian lighters, ami it was dead easy to overtake them and blaze away. They were flying in a wide, fan-like formation, and when we went to the attack each of our pilots selected a particular target. You can imagine how effective the first gunner’s bursts were when 1 tell you one pilot at one time saw six Italian fighters either on tire or spinning down toward the sea. "The Italians showed light in a way the Germans have never done with our squadron. It is true, though, that they seemed amateurish in their reactions. By that I mean they were slow to realize we were anywhere near them till it was too late.

“After a short while the Italians ■were dodging this way ami that to escape as best they could. One of them broke formation and turned toward Prance. 1 chased him, and fired at him several times. I believe I iiit him and could have finished him off if my engine had not begun to splutter again when I was halfway across the Channel. The whole tight lasted only 10 or 15 minutes."