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Aviation History
1941
1941 - 1010.PDF
MAY IST, 1941. THE BATTLE OF BRIT AIN Continued THREE FIGHTERS : (Left) The twin-engine Me no which was employed as a fighter-bomber in the later stagesof the battle. Next, the Hawker Hurri- cane, which had already done suchexcellent work in France, and its eight- gun compatriot the Spitfire. All ofour fighters were equipped with Rolls- Royce Merlin engines. hundred and thirty-three, for the loss of fifteen pilots, a proportion of six and a half to one. Three days later, when thirty-two enemy aircraft were destroyed, the proportion rose to six- 'teen to one, and on October 5th only one pilot was lost though twenty-two of the enemy were shot down. From September 8th to October 5th inclusive, 3,291 day patrols of varying strengths were flown, and from Octo- Der 6th to the last day of that month 2,786, making a total for these fifty- five days of 6,077. Phase 4. October 6th to October 31st. These twenty-six days saw a .»-*-* gradual cessation of the battle, and represented in fact a face-saving acknowledgment of defeat by the enemy. From the out- come of the previous phase it is obvious that the increased ratio of fighters to bombers had not achieved its object. The Germans, therefore, fitted their fighters with external bomb racks and protected these fighter-bombers with even more fighters. The majority of the fighter-bombers were Me 109s and their escorts Me 110s. Their ordinary bombers were withdrawn from the day battle entirely and employed more and more for the night bombing of London, by which it was hoped to make up for the day failure. VARIETY : On the left at the bottom is the Defiant two-seater fighter which is now employed at night, and above this is the Messerschmitt Me 109. The Me compares veryunfavourably with the sleek lines of the Spitfire. The twin-engined bomber with diving brakes down is the Ju 88—one of the best machines the Germans have produced.
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