HANOVER RAIDED

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXI, Issue 196, 21 July 1941, Page 5

HANOVER RAIDED

BIG FIRES STARTED.

INDUSTRIAL TARGETS. (United Press Association—Copyright) (Rec. 10 a.m.)RUGBY, July 20. An R.A.E. communique gives details of last night’s activity of the It.A. E. over Western Germany.

“During the night Bomber Command aircraft continued their offensive over Western Germany. Concentrating on the industrial areas ol Hanover, they started large fires which were visible lor many miles. “An enemy fighter which tried to intercept one 01 our bombers near the German coast was destroyed. Two ot our bombers are missing from night operations.”

In the course of operations over the Channel this morning British fighters destroyed an enemy fighter. An official communique states that very, few enemy aircrait flew inland last n.giit. ijo mbs were dropped at two points in tiie Alidlands, causing little damage and no casualties. Flying-Officer David Leather 'Prichard, ot Dunucvirkc, has been awarded the D.S.O. On a night in June he tarried out an attack against Cologne. While some distance irom the target, and on the edge of a dense belt of searchlights, through which lie had just flown his plane, the machine was attacked by a fighter, which fired from close range cannon which damaged his j engine, almost severing the air screw ! blade, while the rear-gun turret was completely put out. of action. Prichard.; although forced to fly at reduced speed with subsequent loss oi height, and with all his powers of defence gone. ! continued his mission, overcoming almost insuperable difficulties before finally dropping his bombs on the target | area.

Prichard, despite a harassing return journey, skilfully flew back lo his base where he successfully crash-landed his plane without injury to tho members of the crew.

On a previous occasion, returning from Brest, lie displayed great flying skill, enabling his crew to shoot down an enemy fighter which was attacking his plane. Throughout his numerous operational flights lie has displayed high courage, skill, and devotion to dutv. —Official Wireless.

TERRIFIC HAVOC.

BLASTED GERAJAN CITIES. RUGBY, July 19.

Many unofficial reports have reached England lately of very considerable damage in many of the great industrial centres of Western Germany as tho result of almost nightly raids by the Royal Air Force. Dusseidorf, according to several reports, is in ruins while Hamburg and Bremen have suffered immense damage.

Authoritative information concerning damage to two of Germany’s principal railway centres, which is contained in an Air Ministry bulletin, serves to illustrate the effect Royal Air Force bombing is having on industrial Germany. At least one-third of Munster and Aachen has been destroyed or seriously damaged. Aachen had been attacked previously, but the most important raid was made during the night of July 10, when terrific damage was done. Loads of high explosive bombs and 7000 incendiary bombs were dropped. Some of tho biggest bombs carried by the R.A.F. found their mark in the city in good weather when close observation was possible. Pilots’ reports have since been confirmed by .reconnaissance, and it is established that this particular raid was one of the most successful of the R.A.F. night attacks. Good navigation ensured that almost every bomb reached its .intended target and the town was thoroughly plastered. The damage was mostly in the centre, but no part of tho town escaped. Fire caused widespread havoc and many areas suffered heavily from blast. Craters in the roadways disroganised public services. IMMENSE TOLL. There arc three main areas of damage by' high-explosive bombs and fire in the centre of the town, in which there are important municipal and State buildings, commercial houses and warehouses, shopping centres and residential quarters. These three sections, which are close together, measure approximately 1100 yards by 700 yards and cover approximately 30 per cent, of the town proper. About 60 to j 70 per cent, of the buildings in each ! area have been destroyed and almost all tho remainder damaged. ; Munster tells the same tale. The . town was attacked in force on the nights of July 7 and 8, and three times since. Again a large tonnage of tho • biggest high-£xplosi\‘e bombs and thousands of incendiaries were dropped. Reconnaissance has shown that very heavy damage was done. Entire areas ! arc completely burnt out. including in- j dustrial and residential buildings. A j single heavy bomb devastated an area of more than 700 square yards and i another had a similar' effect, cover- j ing COO yards square. These two areas have been demolished and are sur- j rounded by much larger areas of lire ! [ and blast damaged buildings. > j I Among the districts almost eomplete|ly gutted by lire are Nord Strasse to! I Kemp Strass. parts of Lengen Strasse, i ! Wcrmelins Strasse, Garten Strasse. Sptcrkerhoff Tibus Strasse. Son non j I Strasse and Winkcl Strasse. Areas south-west of the main station, measuring 93,000 square yards, suffered equally. Other districts have neon heavily damaged, including 25 000 square yards between the railway and the Dortmund-Ems Canal. In this section major damage has been done to an area of at least 250,000 square yards. Aachen and Munster are but two of [ many industrial centres of Western Germany which have received the heaviest R.A.F. attacks during the past live weeks. A new method of quickly getting out of damaged Mcsserschmitts was reported by a wing commander who destroyed one and shared in the destruction of another during the attack on Dunkirk on Satin day.- He said: “After being hit one Mcssersclimitt pilot immediately threw back his hood and sprang out like a jack-in-the-box. Tt looked as though ho had been released by a spring and his parachute opened as soon as lie was out of the top of bis loop. A squadron-leader reports that he recently noticed similar springlike releases of Mcssersclimitt pilots on other occasions.—Official Wireless.

NEW ZEALANDER’S CAREER. (Press Assn.) DANNEVIRKE, July 21. Flying-Officer Prichard, who has been awarded the D. 5.0., is the only son of Mr and Mrs P. T. Prichard, ol Dannevirke. Twenty-four years of age, he arrived in England two days before the war was declared, having joined up with the R.A.F. under the four-year scheme. He received his preliminary training in New Zealand. He served with a dive-bomber squadron in France from Christmas, 1939, until alter the Dunkirk evacuation, and latterly has been attached to the New Zealand Bomber Squadron. Recently lit* was married and has been taken off operational flights.