NAZI CRUISER

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 86, Issue 116, 20 May 1942, Page 5

NAZI CRUISER

PRINZ EUGEN ATTACKED OFF NORWAY THREE TIMES TORPEDOED K.A.F. PRESSES ATTACK HOME (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) London, May 18. The German cruiser Prinz Eugen, which was attacked off the Norwegian coast on Sunday by Beauforts, Hudsons, and Beaufighters, was definitely hit by two torpedoes. There was a third “probable.” The Hudsons attacked with bombs, and the Beaufighters dived and raked I escorting destroyers with cannon ; and machine-gun fire, after which s there was a considerable slackening off of the anti-aircraft barrage. a The Prinz Eugen was sighted in t Trondheim Fiord on Saturday by ree connaissance planes of the Coastal Command. A striking force of tore pedo-carrying Beauforts, Hudsons and Blenheims, with escorting fighters, J left Britain to intercept the cruiser, 5, which was found near the southern c tip of Norway, apparently making a r dash for Germany. She was escorted r by four destroyers and formations of fighters. There was a heavy engagement, in which many air combats 5. were fought. Five Messerschmitts a were shot down and several others n damaged. Nine R.A.F. aircraft are e missing. n It was still light when the British aircraft found the Prinz Eugen. Some evidence of the effectiveness of the attack has been given in eye-witness reports. II A New Zealand squadron-leader, a e Beaufort pilot of some experience, I said: “As I swung round to get away, I saw a column of smoke leap up from the stern of the Prinz Eugen. It was n a great column of dirty black smoke, • well up above the superstructure. Fifteen seconds later there was another loud explosion.” (N.B.—A , 8.8. C. broadcast credited this state- ’ ment to Squadron-Leader J. Tinsdale, of Te Kuiti.—Editor). His pilot, a former Fleet Street journalist, said: “After a few moments our rear gunner found only one gun in the turret working. He shouted through the intercommunication that three ME 109’s were on my tail. I opened up the throttle and the wireless operator managed the side gun. The ME’s opened fire and > bullets ripped into the Beaufort. The '. rear gunner began firing and we saw - one 109’ peel off on fire and crash into g the sea. The second ME attacked e and the Beaufort rocked as we were II hit by a burst from 100 yards. Then s our side gun opened up and the i- fighter went down in flames. The third was persistent, but after a few s bursts it dived away, smoke belching J from it. Then the rear-gunner came out of the turret. With the first burst from the ME he had been 0 wounded in the face, hands, legs and head, but did not say a word. The fight lasted 35 minutes, and for 20 minutes he had been wounded and s firing one serviceable gun. Our plane 1 had 32 holes in it and crash-landed e when it arrived at the base.” A sergeant-pilot who attacked almost immediately afterwards saw a j sheet of flame spring up from the cruiser. He said: “I got a glimpse of j other torpedoes running well towards i the ship after my own attack.” i Heavy Air Defence As the R.A.F. pilots went in one after the other to send their torpedoes skimming towards the cruiser, they were heavily engaged by enemy fighters. The 10,000-ton cruiser Prinz Eugen . is one of the five heavy cruisers of the Hipper class, and was launched in . August, 1938. She first came into the i news in May, 1941, when she accom--1 panied the Bismarck on the ill-fated 1 foray into the Atlantic to prey on British merchant ships. She escaped the fate of the Bismarck and put into Brest, where for nine months she lay immobilised under repeated bombing by the R.A.F. In February of this year she left Brest with the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, and a few days ago the British submarine Trident attacked her off the Norwegian coast and scored hits with torpedoes. Photographs showed ■ that her stern was badly damaged.