ITALIAN ARSENAL BOMBED

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXIII, 6 December 1940, Page 6

ITALIAN ARSENAL BOMBED

R.A.F. ATTACKS TURIN MANY LARGE FIRES STARTED OTHER FORCES RAID GERMANY [British Official Wireless j (Received 6th December. 12.30 p.m.) RUGBY. sth December. British bomber crews who raided Turin objectives last night had a better journey than those in the aircraft which bombed industrial and transport targets in the Dusseldorf district. The first news of the bombing of Turin’s Royal Arsenal was a message from a bomber who had just dropped his bombs, saying, “Raid successful, weather perfect.”

This formidable assault on the great armament works at Turin was an empressive feature of a double attack on Italy from bases in this country and the Mediterranean. The royal arsenal was once again the chief objective, and much was done to reduce the output of guns, carriages, shell cases and tanks. The raid began sometime after 9 p.m., and continued for about two hours. A considerable number of large fires was caused amongst the arsenal buildings, also at the Fiat works which were also attacked. One by one as they returned to their various stations pilots and crews confirmed one another’s accounts of the success of attacks.

The Dusseldorf raiders had little success with the weather on their journey to the target through thick cloud and rain. The raiders might have had to seek other objectives, but a lucky cloud gap enabled the first arrival to bomb railways yards in the Dusseldorf district. and the Rohrenwary armament v/orks. Quays and dockyards along the Rhine and Dusseldorf coal gas plants were all attacked during a raid which lasted nearly 12 hours. Goods-yards at Neusi and Dortmund were also bombed from other aircraft as well as docks and shipping at Antwerp, Ostend and Calais.