BATTERED PLANE

Grey River Argus, 29 July 1940, Page 7

BATTERED PLANE

Does its Job AND RETURNS FROM GERMANY (Received July 28, 7.30 p.m.) RUGBY, July 27. Their aircraft severely crippled by anti-aircraft fire over Germany, the crew of a night bomber recently succeeded in completing their mission and coming safely back to their base in England. The bombers’ oojectivtwas an important naval target m Germany, and on reaching Emden it was met with heavy fire from ground batteries. “We glided down to a thousand feet over th e Ems River," stated the captain in his report, ‘ anti once clear of Emden, met only Ugh; anti-aircraft fire, until we came to the oil depots at Fande, where we ran into anti-aircraft fire which can only be described as terrific. We reached the Jade River with a largehole in the port wing, where a shell had gone through, and turning south, came down to fifty feet ove; the Jade Basin to mak e certain oi locating the target. Within a few minutes we seemed to be the target for every anti-aircraft battery m north-west Germany. One shell went clean through the starboard wing. Another, which caught us close to K th e starboard engine, dented the starboard air screw, and peppered the fuselage with splinters. The tai’ wheel and both rudders were hit. The navigator was twice struck with shell splinters, though fortunately they lodged in his clothing. At this stage the captain decided to seek, safety in height, and .with great difficulty succeeded in climbing the damaged aircraft) to just over a thousand feet. He then called, up the rear gunner, and, getting no reply, sent the wireless operator aft to investigate. The operator came back to report that he tapped the rear-gunner on the back, and received the brief reply that there was hu ammunition left. Between them, tim two rear gunners had peppered military ground targets with thousands of rounds of machine-gun Arc With the mission still to fulfil, the pilot again descended, this time to 200 feet, and, after unloading bombs on the target, turned for home. Nursing the crippled machin e back over the North Sea, the pilot at last reached the base. A special emergency device had to be empjoy-d force down th e under-carriage, and as the pilot levelled out to land, he was grimly aware of nis smashed tail wheel, but the landing was brought off, and as the bomoer rolled to a standstill, obesrvers marvelled at the return of the aircraft, which was smashed and battered at almost every vital point, and yet succeeded in completing its task. No R.A.F. Attack on Rome LONDON, July 26. “The Times” states that the Italian and German press are creating a grert fuss about the civilians said to have been injured on the night of July 23, when the anti-aircraft defences went into action against aeroplanes over Rome.

Officials in London declare that no Royal Air Force machines have been over Rome since Italy entered the war. The Italians are merely repeating the Venice incident, when Italian batteries fired on their own bombers, two of which were brought down. (Received July 28, 7 p.m.) RUGBY, July 28.

A Cairo message enys: It was stated officially by th e R.A.F. headquarters that no R.A.F. aircraft or that command was in the vicinity either of Gaeta or Rome on th* night of July 24. This statement has reference co a curious occurrence in Rom e in which civilians are reported to have been injured by splinters from an anti-aircraft barrage put up by the Italians. Other reports mention an alarm from Gaeta navai station, 74 miles north-west of Naples, a s the cause of th e anti-air-craft gunfire. Th e German Official News Agency accounts of raids omitted mention of the fact that the casualties were due to anti-air-craft gun splinters, and not to bombs. Since no British aircraft were involved, th e “raid” is something of a mystery, and some commentators are inclined to explain it by a wish on the part of the Germans and Italians to provide stories of civilian casualties as an advance "justification” for large scale air attacks on the civil population ot Britain.