FLIRTING WITH FLAK

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 21, 20 October 1941, Page 6

FLIRTING WITH FLAK

New Zealand Bomber Pilot’s

Experiences RAIDS OVER GERMANY Light-hearted comment on some of his experiences on raiding trips to Germany is made by Sergeant V. Sutherland, a son of Mr. and Mrs. C. V. Sutherland, Seatoun, Wellington, in letters which have recently been received. He is the pilot of a. bomber which has been to Hamburg, Kiel, Cologne and other places. "We hammered Hamburg the other night, and what a warm welcome they gave us,” he writes. “We escape! without any harm after plastering the target from above 15,000 feet, but, oh my, what a hot-bed. Searchlights covOJ. every inch of the ground all the waj from the coast. It is phenomenal and inconceivable. One can navigate across the Fatherland and round ‘Happy Valley’ purely by observing the defence system, which can be seen at night from 150 miles off. “All the main spots can easily be picked out because of the activity. Jerry’s lights act on a cone principle, and sometimes the lads count up to 40 or 50 lights in a cone. I have not time myself. Playing kiss-in-the-ring with flak Is my hobby. “We were all set to visit Rotterdam when a Jerry of the lowest order must have heard we were up to no good that night, as he scattered bombs and incendiaries at random round the ’drome. His mission was a complete failure, as far as damage was concerned, though our trip was scrubbed. “ Raid on Cologne. “A few nights later our tours took us to Cologne, as it seems there are still one or two houses standing there. We left a lovely blaze going near the railway siding, but on the way home a cone of 14 searchlights suddenly caught us at 11,000 feet, and, according to the navigator’s log-book, we were held solidly for 11 minutes, during which an MellO attacked us and we were forced down to 1000 feet before we got clear and took toll of the damage. “The aft part was on fire, and the turret and tail-plane in a shocking state, the old bus refusing to climb. The lads got the fire out with the extinguisher. Over the Dutch coast the Germans opened up again, and holed the port petrol tank and blew the starboard tyre to pieces, but we staggered home at nought feet with sufficient gall to fill a few cigarette lighters. Owing to the broken wheel, the machine finished on its nose, crushing the front turret properly. It was in all a shaky trip, not a gallant effort on jny part, but an extremely lucky oue. “A few nights back we puffed over to Kiel, taking a borrowed plane. A vicious thunderstorm over Denmark was in full swipg, but our machine sailed up to 18,000 feet with ease, and slid over the top of the storm. The 355-mile sea crossing home was rather dreary. “I saw the picture ‘New Zealand Has Wings’ at a theatre in York, and what a surprise I got. Saw myself and all the boys at Taieri and Wigram, and It was a great thrill. "Believe me, after this war there is going to be a colossal surge out toward our corner of the glo'be,” concludes Sergeant Sutherland.