SCURRIED TO PORT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24421, 5 October 1940, Page 11

SCURRIED TO PORT

ITALIAN NAVAL FORCE ENGAGEMENT AVOIDED KEEPING UP TRADITION (British Official Wireless! (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) RUGBY, Oct. 3. An Admiralty communique states: The Commander-in-Chief in the Mediterranean has reported that naval forces under his command carried out a sweep in the Eastern and Central Mediterranean from September 29 to October 2, in the course of which additional military forces were landed at Malta During the period a strong enemy naval force was sighted by our reconnaissance aircraft. This enemy force was then 100 miles away from our fleet, and was already steaming towards its base at high speed It was, therefore, not possible to bring the enemy to action. Our fleet was attacked by enemy aircraft on three occasions during these operations. No damage was sustained by our ships in any of these attacks, but losses were inflicted on the enemy. On the morning of September 29 an enemy aircraft was located shadowing our fleet. It was shot down by fighter aircraft. Later in the day a second enemy shadowing aircraft was shot down by Fleet fighters Soon afterwards air attacks had developed, in the course of which one enemy aircraft was shot down by anti-aircraft fire. A fourth aircraft was shot down by Fleet fighters on October 1. According to a message from Cairo, an R.A.F. communique states: " We damaged water storage tanks at Bug Bug and raised large columns of black smoke, and we sent down a fighter at Mai Adaga. One of our bombers crashed in flames.