BRITISH AIRMEN

Waikato Times, Volume 125, Issue 20952, 3 November 1939, Page 6

BRITISH AIRMEN

FLIGHTS OVER GERMANY DROPPING OF LEAFLETS VALUABLE INFORMATION fOmclai Wireless) (Received Nov. 3, 3.15 p.m.) RUGBY, Nov. 2 Satisfaction is expressed in informal quarters regarding the activities of the Royal Air Force over Germany since the war began, and great importance is attached to the information obtained concerning the German airfields, guns, methods of camouflage and other matters. During the first three weeks many flights were carried out over various parts of Germany and nearly 20,000,000 pamphlets were dropped during these “pamphlet” raids. Only occasional resistance by German fighters was encountered. The purpose of these flights was not confined to dropping pamphlets. The reconnaissance of enemy positions was constantly undertaken and valuable experience was gained of night and day flying conditions over enemy territory. More recently the flights have been purely of a reconnaissance nature and in twenty such flights during the last two months it has been possible to acquire a very complete picture of the whole Siegfried Line and of enemy air bases and other valuable military and strategical objectives in North-west Germany. Twice the Royal Air Force has been over Berlin and a number of other large German cities has been flown over. No bombs have been dropped during these flights. In encounters with enemy aircraft several German machines have been shot down. The British aircraft losses, though no official total has been declared, are known to be small. German Losses During September and October the German aeroplane losses were 22 accounted for by the Royal Air Force, eight by the Navy, one by anti-air-craft gunfire, and two by other last two refer to German bombers which recently crashed in Danish territory after an attack on a British cruiser squadron was repulsed. These figures may be on the conservative side, as account is taken only of cases where full and complete proof of the destruction of Ger - man planes has been obtained. Other aircraft may well have been crippled after encountering British anti-air-craft or fighter gunfire and been forced to come down before reaching the German air bases.