Return Visit To Mainz

Northern Advocate, 14 August 1942, Page 3

Return Visit To Mainz

[British Official Wireless] (Rec. 11.30 a.m.) RUGBY, August 13. The Air Ministry states that Mainz was again attacked by a strong bomber force last night. A Berlin announcer admitted fires were started. Airfields in the Low Countries were also bombed. Five of our planes are missing.

It is now known that an enemy aircraft was destroyed over Britain early on the night of August 10-11. A single aircraft last night dropped bombs on the south-east of Scotland, causing little damage. A Berlin radio message announced that the Luftwaffe heavily bombed port installations and a town in the Firth of Forth, also an aerodrome in the south, and aircraft factories in a town in the west Midlands. Channel Guns

A Press Agency message reports that two night raiders over East Anglia bombed scattered points, including the Greater London area, in which seven persons were killed and three injured, A German fighter-bomber raided a south coastal town in daylight, injuring three people. Big guns on both sides of the Channel were in action last night, contributing to one of the noisiest nights the Straits of Dover has experienced. The Germans apparently are using more guns than usual and fired some six-gun salvoes. A farmer and four sons foiled a German attempt this morning to set fire to a wheat crop. They cut trenches through the wheat and flung soil on the incendiaries. Most of the crop was saved. Worse Than First Raid Fifes started at Mainz in Tuesday night’s raids were too much for 'the town’s fire-fighters, according to the Air Ministry News Service. When the attack was renewed last night, planes which arrived first had flown through thick cloud, and clouds lay over Mainz itself. Crew after crew had to descend below the cloud base to pick out landmarks and pinpoint their objectives. Again the attack was concentrated and was over in about an hour.

One pilot reported that the results were better even than those of Tuesday.