HEAVY BLOWS STRUCK

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21242, 12 October 1940, Page 7

HEAVY BLOWS STRUCK

NAZI WAR MACHINE BOMBED EXTENSIVE BRITISH OPERATIONS NAVY COOPERATES AGAINST CHERBOURG (Official Wireless) (Received October 12, 12.10 p.m.) RUGBY, Oct. 11 Royal Air Force attacks last night upon military targets in enemy-occupied territory are described in an Air Ministry communique issued this afternoon which states: “ Strong forces of Royal Air Force bombers singled out oil targets in Germany for their main attack last night. “ At Hamburg storage tanks were blown up. Fires were started at Hanover, Reisholz, Gelsenkirchen, Cologne, Magdeburg and Leuna.

“In face of intense anti-aircraft fire and searchlight activity, warships were attacked at Wilhelmshaven and sticks of bombs fell across the harbour. At Kiel, Krupps’ shipyards were heavily bombed and fires were started in the docks. Shipping at Calais, Boulogne, Le Havre and Brest were attacked in force and at Cherbourg coastal batteries were bombed.

“ Other aircraft attacked shipping in the harbours of Flushing and Amsterdam as well as docks at Den Helder. The Fokker works at Amsterdam, factories at Bottrop, a blast furnace at Oberhausen were bombed and attacks were also made on railways at Soest, Hamm and Gelsenkirchen, aerodromes at De Kooy, Kloppenberg (South-west of Bremen) and Osthein in Bavaria and a seaplane base at Yordennev were also raided. All our bombers returned safely from these operations in the course of which two enemy aircraft were shot down.

Heavy and light forces of the Royal Navy, last night, carried out a bombardment of the port of Cherbourg, where concentrations of enemy shipping had been detected by air reconnaissance, says an Admiralty communique. The success of the bombardment was largely due to the excellent co-operation of the Royal Air Force, who assisted in reconnaissance and throughout the operation.

Our salvoes were seen bursting on the target and very large fires resulted. These were visible from our ships on the way home from a distance of 40 miles.

Our ships met no opposition either during the approach, or during the bombardment. While they were returning from bombarding these positions our main forces came under fire from the enemy shore batteries. No damage or casualties, however, were sustained. No naval opposition from the enemy was encountered, although it was known that the enemy had light forces at Cherbourg. A very good impression has been made in London by the news in the Admiralty communique that a concentration of shipping at Cherbourg suffered bombardment by the Royal Navy last night, in co-operation with the Royal Air Force. Enemy’s Small Chances The statement in the Admiralty communique that this concentration of enemy shipping had been detected by air reconnaissance is felt to reinforce the accumulated evidence provided by the changing distribution of the weight of the Royal Air Force attacks upon different sections of the enemy occupied coast, that the enemy has very little chance of effecting any concentration of barges or shipping without its coming to the immediate knowledge of the British authorities. The inevitable fate of such concentrations, once they have been reported, has been demonstrated with what, to the German High Command, must be heart-breaking regularity. “Worse Than Tornadoes” The bombardment of Cherbourg last night was described today by a Royal Air Force pilot, who was operating in the area at the same time. “It was like Hell,” he said. “I imagined at first that we must have been off our course but it was Cherbourg all right—about 100 miles away. Clouds, drifting across the scene were silhouetted against the white glow of the flares which were dropped incessantly over the target area from other aircraft, illuminating the whole place. As we neared it enemy ground defences completed the effect with searchlights, flaming onions and light and heavy antiaircraft fire. “We were over the target area when suddenly the Navy let fly. It was like 500 thunderstorms rolled into one. One of my crew said that even the tornadoes he had experienced in the Pacific islands came nowhere near it. The very clouds flamed a bright amber colour, and we could seen the bursts of the first salvo plumb in the docks. Complete Chaos Below “Until then the ground defences had been blazing away at us but this sudden blast from the sea foxed them absolutely. They didn't know what it was, Christmas or Easter. “The searchlights went quite drunk, waving aimlessly about the sky. The guns continued firing but goodness knows what at. There was complete chaos below.”