NEW PLANES ROUTED.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 239, 6 September 1940, Page 7

NEW PLANES ROUTED.

WEDNESDAY’S COMBATS,

(British Official Wireless.) RUGBY. Sept. 4

The most outstanding feature of Wednesday’s air battle over Britain is described by the Air Ministry News Service as the rout of the new Messersclimitt Jaguar fiighter-bombers. Over the borders of Surrey and Essex and above the quifet fields and copse country of Kent, the Jaguars circled, forming close protective rings against the fury of Spitfire and Hurricane. Twelve of them fell to the bullets of twelve Spitfires of one squadron, and another twelve were the victims of two Hurricane squadrons. The twelve Spitfires first sighted 15 Jaguars and ano.her 15 with. 30 Hornier 17 bombers further south. Three of the Spitfires tackled the first Jaguars and nine of them took on the other fornni'tiqn of /Fifty. They not only destroyed twelve, but helped the fighters from another squadron to bring down two more and a Dornier 17 as well. Not one of the twelve Spitfires avas hit.

Not all the Spitfires and Hurricanes met the enemy over the weald country. Some went south to challenge them on the coast. While tile rest of the squadron defended their Surrey aerodrome three Hurricane pilots were sending two Messcrschmitt 110’s into the sea 'iff Rye and Beaehy Head. The Spitfire squadron went even further south They broke up a formation of Domic: 17 bombers ten miles south of Beacliv Head, and sent one bomber and two protecting fighters down from 14,000 ft. into the sea. Earlier in vhe day a Spitfire squadron fought the. enemy the whole way from the Thames Estuary nearly to the French coast. .At least two of the enemy were destroyed. One of the pilots chased a Messcrschmitt 109 to within five miles of the hrciich coast, where it caught fire and crashed into the sen. A Hurricane squadron took on a large formation of Messersclnr.itts and shot down five. One pilot saw black smoke coming from a Messerschmitt 109 which he had attacked. Then I'iom a height of more than four miles the Messerschmitt plunged into the sea just over the coast of Kent.