HEAVY CLOUD ENEMY FIGHTERS GROUNDED

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 79, 10 March 1944, Page 2

HEAVY CLOUD

ENEMY FIGHTERS GROUNDED

LATEST RAID ON BERLIN (Rcc. 12.30 p.m.) London, March 9 United States heavy bombers to-day converged on BerJin from several directions without encountering fighter opposition. This is believed to be because of heavy cloud which completely covered the Reich capital and grounded the enemy airforce. The centre of Berlin was to-day* target, raiders using overcast bombing technique. Thick clouds did not prevent enemy ground defences pumping up more flak than the Americans hav« yet encountered over Berlin. American losses, however are believed to hav* been comparatively slight. Some bombers flew backwards and forwards over Berlin before dropping their loads Crews of Fortresses and Liberators reported "360 degree runs.” indicating that they had circled Berlin as the bombs went down. Cloud rearh ed up to 20,000 feet, but crews reported the glow of fires visible through the cloud, also several columns of thick brown smoke rising above the cloud. To-da.vV raid, which was the third in the past four days, rounds off the period of the most intensive attack against Berlin since the R.A.F.’s heavV wh S ,° n thC nights of 27th January, .-Bth January and 30th January. This was the first time American bombers had actually crossed the centre of Berlin Mustang pilots protecting the bombers said cloud probably prevented the fighters reaching the raiders, and added that some German fighters may have penetrated cloud and attacked the bombers on the homeward journey, but this is considered unlikely. ,eader o{ one Mustang group said the clouds were so thick that they formed a roof four miles high over Eur°Pe. The only land we saw from the take-off until we returned to our base was a peak of mountains south of Berlin.” Another Mustang pilot said he saw only one Fortress drop, although flak was very heavy. The Nazis shot a lot of rockets against the bombers, but their aim was poor. Berlin radio admitted that weather conditions greatly handicapped Gcrmar anti-aircraft units. AMAZING SECRET DEVICES (Rec. 1.20 p.m.) London, March 9. The recent successes in the battlt of Berlin, said the Minister of Munitions, Mr Oliver Lyttelton, during the course of a statement on the British armaments programme, had been due not only to the growing strength of the bomber fleets but to amazing secret devices which enabled bombers to go out in all weathers and hit targets with precision.