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Aviation History
1941
1941 - 0196.PDF
Cb JANUARY 23RD, 1941. WAR IN THE AIR (Continued) enemy machines were destroyed in the action and otherswere damaged. The convoy got through unharmed. On the night of January 12-13 the aerodrome at Catania inSicily was heavily raided by the bombers of the Middle East Command, and over 30 • machines, believed to bemostly of the Ju 87 type, were destroyed. The raid was repealed on January 15. The Balance Sheet '"THAT is a brief account of the action, compiled from the Admiralty account and from a very clear and balanced report written by a correspondent of the British United Press who was on board one of the warships. He was convinced that the German pilots who took part in the attack were picked men of high skill and courage. That makes the certain loss of twelve of them and the probable loss of more a blow to the German contingent in the Medi- terranean which is not negligible. There have been bomb- ing attacks on moving British warships before in this war, but none of them achieved any important results (one bomb on the deck of H.M.S. Rodney failed to pierce the deck armour), and for the most part the German pilots have wilted when faced by the terrific/fire poured up by the warships. On this occasion they"faced it and went through it, though a</&ny rate a Jew «jf them were hit during their dives. The number <£i bombs which scored hits were certainly a very small ^roportibn of the total discharged. It is not to be dlnied that tifee dafnage; to one of our carriers must be a\iandkatjr\D "MTmiril Sir Andrew In Albania, and more especially in Libya, the Regia Aeronautica is a beaten force, beaten even more completely than the Italian land forces have been beaten. The supremacy in the air which the R.A.F. has established in Libya is one of the most impressive happenings of the present war. Everybody has heard a great deal about the notable part played by the Luftwaffe in the conquest of;; Poland and in the Battle of France, but in neither of those ';_'•• cases was there any effective air opposition. The same., applies to the campaign in Norway. Any armed body-' which is not opposed by its appropriate counterpart will: make a great difference in winning a victory. The caste..- of Libya is quite different, for there the Italians were in strength. They started with a superiority in the air, both of bombers and of fighters, and they have been so beaten J that now it is rare for an Italian machine to be seen in the air. The advancing British troops have hardly been troubled at all by Italian aircraft, and they have captured over 100 damaged Italian machines on deserted aerodromes. It is quite an amazing air victory. It is doubtful whether it will be thought worth while • to send any of the German contingent to Libya. this contingent is under Italian orders, and the might like to send some of the Germans there ; but if Germany did not consent to that move she would no doubt have her way with her junior partner. So far as dive- bombers go, without strong fighter escorts they would be at the mercy of the Hurricanes in Libya, and would be of little use. The Germans would hardly be likely to send more useful and expensive classes of bombers to Libya in the forlorn hope of converting defeat into victory. Marshal Graziani's army is past praying for, and even efficient ; „ air help could not now put it in a ]''-• winning position. German machines may well appear in Albania. There is now at least a chance that the Italians will be able": to hold their defence lines round the*!"- ports, and air help would be very NO BYES ALLOWED : (Left) Pilotsof No. 601 County of London Squadron, A.A.F., indulge in a game of cricket onthe tarmac. WINDY CORNER : An open machine-gun port for broadside protection on an Italian bomber. Cunningham, for carriers have provedvery useful in the Mediterranean, and the loss of a cruiser i^ also a matterfor much regret. But the absence of these ships will not alter the posi-tion m the Mediterranean. It will not drive the Royal Navy out of thatsea or prevent it from carrying out its work there. The dive-bomlvr isa class with very limited utility, and the scene of the recent action is aboutthe only spot in the Mediterranean (apart from the Adriatic) where itcould have a chance of doing damago to British warships. Perhaps thisaction may cause our Admirals to take further precautions when they nexthave to pass through the narrows, rind that is probably the only effect whichit will have on future operations. It is interesting to speculate as towhat part the German air contingent will play in the two land campaignsin which Italian armies are engaged. \*
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