LUFTWAFFE ROCKETS

Grey River Argus, 17 December 1943, Page 5

LUFTWAFFE ROCKETS

U.S. Remedy Found

[Aust. & N.Z. Press AssnJ (Rec. 11.10.) NEW YORK, Dec. 16. Mr. weiiwood Beall, Vice-yresid-ent of the Boeing Aircraic Company, wno nas returned from England, said tne uimeu btates ri.gnth Air force is now eneccively .comoating the German rocket-equipped iignters, wiucn first constituted a terrine menace to tne riymg f ortresses. He said the German planes carried two or tnlockets under eacn wing, which were aimed like machine-guns, and uiscnarged by electric fuses. The rockets were luted witn warneads containing explosive equal to that of a fiveJndn siieil., z ’me trajectory >of /the rockets was high. and uncertain, but when they loooed from a thousand yards into a close formation of heavy oomoers, tney caused neavy damage. A Thunderbolt fighter pursuing a rocket-carrying Messerschmitt, accidentally discharged one of the enemy's rockets by machine-gun fire. The Thunderbolt’s camera aiso recorded the rocket’s flight. The nature of the new threat was tnus discovered, and counter-measures were immediately devised. The bomcer squadrons now heaved from side to side, offering poorer targets, while accompanying fighters, found they could overtake rocket-carriers, wh'.cn were from fifty to seventy miles an hour slower. The Luftwaffe wag being steadily reduced numerically, as a result of partial destruction of twothirds of the German fighter ’plane factories. On the (other nand, the German Ack-Ack was increasingly accurate. It was now deadly at 20,00 b feet. Mr Beall said that after the attack on Regensburg the Luftwaffe wirelessed General Eaker. congratulations on the accuracy of the American bombing, in which an hospital was left untouched, although a nearby aeroplane was destroyed. The Luftwafte’s message expressed an inability to understand how such accuracy was achieved.

ALLIED AIR ACTIVITY.

LONDON. Dec. 15.

A correspondent at Allied Headquarters says; The largest concentration of heavy bombers and fighters ever flown over the Balkans made a four-way attack near Athens. Over 300 ’planes participated. Twelve enemy ’nlanes were shot down, and two of ours are missing. The Eleusis, Kalamaki and Tatol airfields and the harbour at Piraeus were bombed. Enemy ..fighters were encountered and a number of air combats took place. Ponecorvo bridge was well covered by bomb strikes from medium bombers. Orte railway junction was also attacked. Lighter aircraft maintained co-operation with the ground troops. Motor vehicles were destroyed and others damaged during attacks on communications. Civitavecchia Harbour was bombed and damaged, and hits on shipping were reported. During these operations 15 enemy aircraft were destroyed, five of ours are missing, but the pilot of one is safe.”

The Jugoslav Liberation Army Headquarters announces that owing to action by Allied aircraft, the Germans have been compelled to evacuate the island of Uljan, opposite ala, Dalmatia. This is described as a heavy defeat in which the Germans suffered severely. Uljan is 13 miles long and three broad. It is 120 miles from the Allied right flank at Ortona and probably further from the nearest aerodrome.