LONDON BOMBED

Wairarapa Age, 15 August 1928, Page 5

LONDON BOMBED

SEVEN AEROPLANE RAIDS. MIMIC WARFARE. MANOEUVRES ON A LARGE SCALE (Received Tuesday, 5.5 p.m.) United Press Association. —By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. * LONDON, August 13. The air attacks on London are in full blast. The zero hour of the manoeuvres was six in the evening, but before then the enemy sent formations of bombers, which waiting for the declaration of a mimic war, were close to the three-mile limit- Directly afterwards they converged on London with lightning rapidity and were soon humming over their objectives, such as the Beckton petrol depot, Crystal Palace, the Air Ministry and Northweald Aerodrome. By 6.55 the umpires and Air Ministry announced that seven mimic raids were in progress and that all the enemy aeroplanes had crossed the coast in in 811-round attack. Six fighting squadrons were immediately in the air to - meet them. One was in contact with the raiders at Croydon but cloudy and freiny weather was assisting the enemy Jib conceal the direction of the attacks. yßy eleven o’clock the official opinion was that out of ten raids two were successful. Eight were intercepted, but it was emphasised that the umpires had not yet given their final decision. Antiaircraft gunners, subject to the umpires’ rulings, claimed that they had shot down eight bombers out of the seventy attacking. It was estimated that 250 machines of various types were engaged in the defence. Through* out th? evening, which became fine, a hundred thousand spectators watched red lights flashing from the invaders, indicating that they were dropping bombs. At one time forty planes were over Bromley and another thirty-six could be counted near Red Hill, engaging in a battle.—(Australian Press Association.)