BLITZ OF BERLIN

Grey River Argus, 2 February 1944, Page 5

BLITZ OF BERLIN

SUNDAY’S BIG BLAZE Enemy Censorship ( 33 ’PLANES MISSING. r I’Aus. & N.Z. Press Assn.] t (Rec. 7.30.) LONDON, Jan. 31. r Reuter’s Stockholm correspondent a says:. Germany is maintaining close p secrecy regarding a raid made on x Berlin on Sunday night by a very s istrong .British air force. Reports) f of the raid reaching, Malmoe, II must be treated with reserve, as no L eye-witnesses have arrived to con- I firm them. These reports say fires t were blazing all around Berlin, ana c that firemen, assisted the Army and t civilians were trying to extinguish I them before another attack would be made. A large area in the city < was without water, -and traffic m 1 many districts were paralysed. The i same reports • said that the Maine i factory, which formerly made preci- - sion machinery, was now. in ruins, and Berlin’s railway stations were 1 said to be crowded with people i whose only wish was to get out. ( Berlin radio admits the raiders were . able to evade defences, and carry out i an attack in a remarkably snort. < time. Defences were subjected to the whole weight and fury of the attack in a mere breathing space. The radio announced that mobile operating theatres were being used for the serious raid casualties. Vans. i equipped for surgery, were able to be used for amputations, and they ■ made comprehensive first aid pos- ' sible, while the raid was in progress. ■ “The Times’s” Stockholm correspondent says: The tone of Berlin newspaper comment on the raid made on Berlin on Saturday was more serious than ever. The “Voelkischer Beobachter” said it was one of the most severe ■terror [attacks Berlin had suffered, and the population has feverish hours behind it. The damage was great. A British United Press aeronautical correspondent says: “The air battle over Europe has .reached a great height as 3,500 Allied ’planes in eighty hours, dropped more than 7,500 tons of bombs on Berlin, Brunswick and Frankfurt. This does not take into account the Mediterranean operations or Liberator attacks on fhe Pas De C.alas area in France on Monday, or medium bomber sorties. This is a battle in the truest sense. Great forces of participating ’planes carried .nearly 35.000 members of the air crews! The missing airmen total more than twelve hundred. R.A.F. ’planes dropped more than five thousand tons on Berlin in the last three and a-half days, bringing the total dropped on Berlin to nearly 28,000 lons since at- [ tacks were started on August 3 last, after a summer lull. The British Air Ministry on Monday stated: On Sunday night a very strong force of aircraft of the Bomber Command attacked Berlin. The bombing was concentrated. Mosquito crews, who attacked after the main force had left, saw the glow of large conflagrations with smoke rising to a-great height. Other aircraft attacked objectives in central and western Germany, and mines were laid in enemy waters. Intruder aircraft on patrol destroyed two enemy aircraft. Thirty-three of our aircraft are missing.” On Sunday night the weather was slightly more favourable for defence than in the last two attacks. Although there was thick cloud to over 10,000 feet, visibility above was good and over Berlin there was bright moonlight. The city was completely ringed by fighter flares. There were encounters on the way out and on the way home, but mostly over the city. Some fighters flew alone and others in groups, but they failed to break up the bomber concentration, and a swift saturation attack was carried out, the bombing being over in 25 minutes It is believed that 1,500 tons were dropped on Berlin on Sunday night. The German News Agency stated: .“The British and Huns last night /carried out another, terror attack against large areas in Berlin, causing heavy damage . to . residential quarters and to public buildings. . Although telephone communication between Stockholm and Berlin was restored shortly after 11 a.m. ' on Monday, the strictest censorship ' is being enforced. The Swedish Aero Transport Company announced all air traffic between Sweden and Germany has been suspended. The reason officially given is bad weather over Stettin, but Swedish ’planes usually fly direct to (Berlin from Malmoe. The British United Press Stockholm correspondent says the real reason is believed to be that Templehof .aero- , drome in Berlin is at. least partially destroyed. 'lt is possible Dr. Goebbels may have banned air traffic to stop travellers taking out details oi the latest devastation. Monday’s German High Command communique over the Berlin radio was broadcast with a delay of over one hour. T’he announcer suddenly broke off. after the fourth sentence and apparently turning to someone, said- “What the Hell is the matter now’?” There followed an interruption of about a minute after which the announcer read the communique to the end. oUnnT. The leader of the German Labour Front (Ley) has admitted that because of the heavy damage caused bv the Allied bombing of ' German cities it has been found necessary to' withdraw workers from war industries to assist in rebuilding schemes.

U.S.A. Air Offensive

IMPRESSIVE RESULTS. 75 LOSSES. LONDON, ‘ Jan. 31. Lightnings and Mustangs escorted United States Army Air Force Flying Foreresses and Liberators which attacked Brunswick aircraft factories. The Germans sent up fighters which fired rockets in clusters ° r three and four, and fierce battles went on between the Allied anu German fighters en route to Brunswick. • . „ „ t American heavy bombers also a tacked Hanover. OPP° sltl r °” o nnd German fighters was very neice in the. numerous dogfi^ 3 9 ak . man aircraft were shot qow , ing a loss of nearly.2oo in la st two days. The American 20 heavy bombers. The oomue s were escorted by long-ia Actrahan ers and Canadian and SP^ri S ‘ C 0 war machinl during Frankfurt Brunswick and. Hanover. From the two days’ operations which nn Rundav alone involved over 1,700 Tlanes 54 of the U.S. bombers and 91 fighters .are missing. A total of 955 enemy aircraft were destroyed, Tai bv fighters and the remainder by hnmber crews. The number of enemy Xies destroyed on the ground m TtaTv was larger than the total number f)f bombers lost in both days’ operations. —