RAIDS ON SHIPS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20622, 1 August 1941, Page 6

RAIDS ON SHIPS

BRITISH BOMBERS LOW-LEVEL ATTACKS AERIAL TAKEN HOME (Bloc. Tel Copyright—United Press Assn.) (British Offcinl Wireless.) deed. 1.40 p.m. RUGBY, July 31. Flying between the masts and within a few feet 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 enemy lighters were on patrol. In spite of them and the stiff anti-aircraft fire from escort vessels, the pilots almost scraped the decks of ship after ship in the heavily-guarded convoy. One •Blenheim came home with a ship’s aerial entangled round Lhe 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 fire, but the crew quickly mastered the flames and after a successful attack came safely home. In the attack on a convoy of six -.hips a direct hit on a 1500-ton merchant ship sent her heeling to port. >he was left sinking. A 1200-ton ship of the same convoy was hit aft of the funnel and blown ip. The captain of the Blenheim which scored this success said that his formation had to fly through thick -loud and North Sea squalls before the clouds dispersed into a thin -.trains over the convoy. “I watched my wing commander.” he said, “going in to attack another 1500-tonncr. I saw the ship blow up in a wild explosion of debris, flame, steam and smoke. “We continued on a zig-zag course mtil we sighted another convoy heading north-east to cut off the bight T decided to pick off the last ship in the convoy and flew over the mast and bombed' from 3011.” A 500-ton ship was ittaeked by twr 'mmbers. One got a direct hit r." dships. There was so much smere from the explosion that the crew of he second bomber ccald not distinguish the results of their own attack. The ship was left well aught.