SCAPA FLOW DEFENCES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 84, Issue 86, 13 April 1940, Page 8

SCAPA FLOW DEFENCES

HEAVIEST ANTI-AIRCRAFT FIRE IN THE WORLD NAZI PILOTS INCREASINGLY “GIN-SHI” 1 British Otlkial Wireless. J Received April 12. 6.5 p.m. RUGBY, April 11. Stating that the Home Meet had been resting or operating from Scapa Flow since about six weeks ago, Mr. Churchill, in his speech in the Commons, spoke of the air raids and the anti-aircraft defences. He reveared that there had been five raids, in the first of which a cruiser had been hit, necessitating several weeks’ repair, and he continued that there was an air raid this morning, ana up to tne time of speaking there had been no vessel hit or damaged in Scapa Flow and no object of the slightest miliary importance hit on short. The enemy had shown himself increasingly ‘ gunshy” in the attacks on Scapa. this was hardly to b? wondered al, since the batteries, especially when r:infoiced by the powerful batteries of tiie fleet, could deliver what was probably tne heaviest concentration of anti-aircraft fire in the world. It was a tremendous fire, and in the latest raid which took place last evening at dusk <?J aircraft attacked in successive waves without doing the slightest damage, although they themselves suffered the loss of no fewer than six aircraft. Credit for this was divided between the batteries and the fighter planes. "Shooting against high speed aircraft is better than any towed target we I can possibly supply,” said Mr. Churchill.