AIR RAID ON AALBORG

Southland Times, Issue 24108, 23 April 1940, Page 5

AIR RAID ON AALBORG

GERMANS TAKEN BY SURPRISE AERODROME FULLY ILLUMINATED MACHINE-GUNNING OF TRANSPORT PLANE (British Official Wireless) (Rec. April 22, 6.30 p.m.) RUGBY, April 21. Details are now available of the raid of Royal Air Force aircraft against air fields in Denmark and Norway now in German hands. The attack on Aalborg appeared to take the enemy completely by surprise. The British aircraft appeared singly and the first to reach the target found the aerodrome plainly marked with full night flying illuminations. There was no time for the gun batteries to go into action and the only opposition at first came from one searchlight, which was quickly put out when the aircraft’s rear gunner sent a burst down the beam. A large German troop air transport coming in to land with navigation lights on found itself suddenly assailed by machine-gun fire from the British bomber and, opening up its engines, escaped into the clouds. Flying at a low altitude above the aerodrome, the British bomber then released a salvo of high explosive bombs, which damaged the main hangar. The following aircraft hampered the . ground defences. They were met, however, by heavy antiaircraft and machine-gun fire. Successive attacks were made on the aerodrome at varying heights and after attacks on the target from a low level three fires were seen to break out. A number of blue and yellow searchlights was seen over the aerodrome during the latter stages of the raid. FLARE PATH LAID The pilot of one aircraft in this raid said: “My aircraft was the first of the formation to reach the aerodrome, the navigation lights of which were on. There was also a flare path out. While looking for a suitable target we flew practically alongside a German transport aircraft. It was signalling, presumably asking permission to land. My rear gunner immediately gave him something else to think about and we managed to get in a good burst of fire before the German disappeared into the clouds. We were flying right at the base of the clouds at this time, so the pilot of the transport aeroplane only had to pull his stick back and up he went into the clouds.

“That little jaunt over, we decided to go on and bomb. We could see three hangars in a half-moon shape. We made our run over some billets and a wireless mast. The rear and front gunners were both strafing the aerodrome as we flew over and dropped our bombs. It must have been a shock for them. They were obviously not expecting us and we met no opposition of any kind. Most of the ground lights went out after the first explosion and a solitary searchlight came into action.” While the raid on Aalborg was in progress, other aircraft of the Bomber Command were carrying out successful attacks on two German air bases in occupied Norway. The aerodrome and seaplane base at Stavanger and the aerodrome at Christiansand were heavily attacked with high explosive and incendiary bombs and considerable damage was done to the bases and to aircraft on the ground. The raid on Stavanger began shortly before midnight and as on the previous occasions was carried out by a number of aircraft which attacked singly and in quick succession. Numerous direct hits were scored and bombs were seen to burst on the point of intersection of two runways and elsewhere on the aerodrome. The fall of one heavy bomb was followed within a few seconds by an explosion on the aerodrome. SEAPLANES BOMBED

Bombs were also dropped on three enemy seaplanes which by the light of the moon were seen moored in a cove off the Stavanger- seaplane base. Despite the anti-aircraft fire, which one pilot described as of moderate intensity, all the aircraft engaged in the raid returned safely to their bases. At Christiansand, a much used enemy air base on the southern tip of Norway, some 40 to 50 aircraft were drawn up on two sides of the aerodrome and one enemy machine was seen taking off along the runway as our aircraft approached. Large numbers of high explosive bombs _ were dropped, principally along the line of the runway. A strong fire was started by incendiary bombs on the south side of the aerodrome, close to where a number of aircraft was standing and the raid was successfully rounded off by two British aircraft which carried out a low machine-gun attack on the aerodrome, hangars and buildings. Anti-aircraft fire was encountered from light gun batteries around the aerodrome. Guns mounted on the hills surrounding the aerodrome also opened fire as the British aircraft came to deliver their attacks. Evasive action was successfully taken by the pilots and the only damage suffered by the aircraft was the loss of one trailing aerial.

AIR ACTIVITY NEAR THAMES CROWDS IN STREETS OF NEARBY TOWNS (British Official Wireless ) RUGBY, April 21. The air activity last night in the neighbourhood of the Thames estuary, which was the subject of an Air Ministry statement in the early hours of this morning, is reported to have drawn crowds into the streets of coast towns nearby, and many persons are stated to have taken refuge in public shelters, though no air raid warning was sounded. For several hours the drone of aircraft could be heard, but the activity appeared to onlookers to be out to sea. Antiaircraft gun fire was heard for some time. The Air Ministry statement said no attack on shipping had been reported,