LIBYA AND SICILY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20655, 8 September 1941, Page 5

LIBYA AND SICILY

SHIPS PORTS AND 'DROMES DESTROYER BLOWN UP (Elec. Tel. Copyright—United Presa Assn.) (British Official Wireless.) Reed. 10 a.m. RUGBY, Sept. 7. “On Thursday night heavy Royal Air Force bombers and aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm raided objectives in Cyrenaica and Tripolitania,” says a communique issued by Royal Air Force headquarters in the Middle East. “At Tripoli many direct hits were scored on motor transport depots. Several buildings collapsed and large flees were started among vehicles and in other buildings violent explosions occurred. “At Barce a strong force of heavy bombers attacked the railway sidings, workshops, barracks and the aerodrome. Direct hits caused fires among buildings in the target area. Lowlevel machine-gun attacks were made on tents, buildings and dispersed aircraft. The bombers machinegunned anti-aircraft gun positions and silenced two .guns. Fleet Air Arm machines made a dive-bombing and machine-gun attack on an enemy landing ground. Bombs fell all round the perimeter and incendiary bombs were seen to drop among dispersed aircraft. Further bombs fell among tents and stores, where fires broke out. Explosion in Ship “At Cotrone, in southern Italy, on Thursday Royal Air Force bombers attacked shipping which had taken A'efuge in the harbour after the successful British attack on a convoy on Tuesday. A large merchant ship was hit and an explosion occurred aboard. On Thursday night aircraft of the Royal Air Force dropped bombs on the Sicilian aerodromes of Gerbini and Catania, where explosions and fires were caused. “At Malta, Royal Air Force night fighters shot down a Cr. 20 into the sea. One wounded member of the crew was subsequently rescued from the water. One of our aircraft is missing from all operations.” Among the telling blows delivered on the enemy in Sicily and North Africa by the Fleet Air Arm on Wednesday night was the blowing up of a destroyer off Tripoli. How this was done has been related by the pilot. Torpedo Strikes Home “I was looking for a tanker,” he said. “Although it was as bright as daylight, I could see no sign of the principal objective. After looking round for three-quarters of an hour, I thought we might have a crack at a destroyer, although they are so short that they are difficult to hit. There were two destroyers and they could see us O.K. We let go from a short range, but a torpedo seems to take a long time, and I had got back to my ship when it blew up.” The pilot of another aircraft in the air at the same time, who saw the destroyer, did a good piece of work on his own account. The pilot sighted an enemy vessel outside the harbour and dropped two heavy bombs on it. At least one, but probably both, found their mark. A General Headquarters communique states that a raid occurred on Saturday night on Alexandria, Cairo, and the Suez Canal zone, resulting in three persons being killed in Alexandria and two killed and one injured in the canal zone, and slight damage to property. There was an “alert” in Cairo and the delta provinces. A communique from Nicosia, Cyprus, states that enemy aircraft crossed the island early on Friday morning and dropped bombs in open country. No damage or casualties are reported.