FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1940
1940 - 2631.PDF
SEPTEMBER ig, 1940 WAR IN THI AIR (CONTINUED) only two enemy machines were brought down. There was another busy day on Wednesday, September 11, when some 275 enemy machines crossed the coast, mostly head- ing towards London, though one formation made for Southampton. Again our fighters, including the Polish squadron, scored a great victory, and the enemy's losses for the day amounted to 89 machines. We lost 14 pilots and a total of 17 fighter machines. Changed Defence Tactics HTHAT night a complete change was made in the defence "*- tactics of London. Searchlights only showed occa- sionally, but everywhere the German raiders were met with a very heavy concentration of anti-aircraft fire. The din was loud, and went on spasmodically all through the night. It was evident that the German air crews did not relish this sudden change of affairs. No longer were they able to cruise about at their own sweet will, committing murder and spreading havoc without restraint and in perfect safety themselves. On all sides it was noticed that when the barrage broke forth, the sound of the German engines died away, as the pilots turned off their course to escape the hail of bursting shells. Bombs were dropped, of course, sometimes, it seemed, to lighten the bomber, but also in all probability to give the crew a good excuse for making off home. On the whole, the damage done in~Lon- don was camewhat less than on the four previous nights. Most certainly the sound of the guns had a heartening effect on the people in their shelters. They had proved that they couM endure, but they liked to hear British guns striking back at the night murderers. This new form of defence seemed to have a discouraging effect, and on the night of Thursday, Sept. 12, the raiders were far less numerous, and less destructive. The first came over at g. 1^5 p.m., ;and was promptly met with the same concentrated fife from the A.A. guns. Each district of the London area had periods of quiet, sometimes last- ing for half an hour or more, during which no engines could be heard overhead. The morning of Friday, Sept. 13, broke wet and dismal, with masses of low cloud and intermittent rain. The Germans apparently greeted these conditions as being more favourable for bombing than a clear night. During the fine spell their bombers had always been escorted by large numbers of fighters, and if the latter were of the Me 109 •type, their tankage limited the duration of the raid to an hour or an hour and a half. With clouds to give them cover, the German bombers saw more chance of eluding 'the British fighters, and during the morning indulged in a long raid which lasted from 9.45 a.m. to 1.55 p.m. There were frequent breaks in the cloud banks, and through these they dropped their bombs. One pilot dived through a gap and planted five bombs on or near Buckingham Palace. The Fighters' Glorious Day must hurry on to the notable day of Sunday, Sept. 15. Two heavy raids were launched in the daytime, one at about noon and the other about 2.15 p.m. Each lasted for the usual time of slightly over an hour. In the midday raid Buckingham Palace was bombed for the third time, but the damage was not serious and nobody there was hurt. Their Majesties were not in residence at the time. The fighter pilots, naturally savage at the cruelty* done to their homeland, and hipped at not having been able to do anything much during the night raids, asked for nothing better than to see masses of enemy machines before them in daylight. They fell on them with the cool fury which is more dangerous than any Hitlerian hysterics. Never before have our fighters taken such fell toll of raiders. During the day at least 187 German machines were shot down, and some of them fell in London streets, to the great delight of the onlookers. We lost 25 machines, but at least twelve of the pilots survived. Goring's air mastery of Britain receded still further into the distance. A Good Specimen seen Le : An Me. 109 shot down in the south-east. The two synchronised guns lying on top of the engine can be cieariyand the wing tip slots are also apparent. The conical box in the foreground is an ammunition container.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
