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Aviation History
1941
1941 - 1051.PDF
MAY 8TH, 1941. End of the Greek Campaign : The Evacuation Finishing in Abyssinia : The Bombing Business was to be expected, the Germans occupied Athens after forcing their way past the British and Australians at Lamos, near Thermopy- lae. It is strange how history repeats itself. In the Persian invasion of Greece in 480 B.C. the Spartan strategists de- cided that there were only two points on land at which a stand could be made, namely, Thermopylae and the Isthmus of Corinth. Athens and Attica were held to be indefensible, and were evacuated by the inhabi- tants. In 1941 the Germans evidently realised the possibilities of the Isth mus, and they hastened to drop parachute troops behind it in the Peloponese, a manoeuvre which was not within the powers of the Persian General Mardonius. But in the end Mardonius and the flower of his army were exterminated at the battle of Platasa, and we have no doubt that the final fate of the German invaders will not be very different. In their short campaign they have lost very heavily, and have learnt that to fight with men of the British Empire is a desperate business. Some correspondents have been writing that the superiority of the Germans in the air was the deter- mining factor in the campaign. These writers are not necessarily correct. 10 be vastly superior in one arm is J^jfrays a great advantage to any ^rmy, but it does not invariably mean victory by itself. The words of Gen. Sir Thomas Blarney, " We have learned how very inaccurate aerial bombing is," do not bear out the view that the Luftwaffe was the main instrument of German success. It is equally likely that the superiority of the invaders in tanks was the main reason for their rapid victory. The Greek Army of the Epirus is said to have been very shoit of anti-tank guns, and that, combined with the '. turning of its flank by a German •-' column, would be enough to account for its surrender. When the Allied •- left flank had thus been put out of •-*" action, the chances of holding the line became negligible. It is a matter for great thankfulness that such a large proportion of the Empire forces was successfully extri- cated, despite the efforts "of the in The SHIP OF THE DESERT : A Vickers Wellesley flying over the countryside nearKeren. The "floats" are bomb containers. It was the flight by three of these machines from Egypt to Australia which brought the world's long distance record to Britain. German bombers and the shortage of British fighters. Apart from our re- joicing that British lives (including those from the Dominions) were saved, these men were particularly valuable to the Allied war effort because of the experience they had amassed, and this applies particularly to the men of the armoured division. They had to leave their tanks, vehicles and guns behind, but they brought away with them their skill, and in time they will use it in other vehicles. General WavelJ will be very glad "to have all of them back, for it looks as if the IVlediter- ranean war will soon be developing on new lines. In North Africa THE capture of Dessie by the South -*• Africans and their Air Force was a great feat of arms, and is a consider- able set-off to the failure to save Greece. The Italians had hoped to hold the place for at least three months, but the South Africans took it in 10 days, and in it captured some 8,000 prisoners, of whom 5,500 were Italians. The victors set free some R.A.F. and S.A.A.F. pilots and crews who had fallen into the hands of the enemy. The aerodrome at Kom- boltcha, in the valley below the town, had been reduced to rubble by the S.A. bombers, and 22 skeletons of burnt Italian aircraft were found among the ruins. Only one Savoia bomber remained available, and in it the Duke of Aosta, the Viceroy of Italian Africa, flew off from Dessie in the direction of Amba Alagi. One may admire his tenacity, and his desire that the British shall not yet have the satisfaction of cap- turing a Viceroy of the King of Italy and (late) Emperor of Ethiopia, but one cannot set; what good he will do by escaping without any troops. Most probably an uncomfortable time lies before him, unless that Savoia can con- trive to get him away to his native land. If he falls into our hands, he will certainly be treated with all con- sideration and be made as comfortable as any prisoner of war could desire. His record as Viceroy has not been stained by any of the atrocities such as have made the name of Graziani . loathsome to all Africans. In the western desert the R.A.F. and the mobile columns have been busy in hampering the enemy at every opportunity. One day towards th« end of April a machine out on recon- naissance shot up seven Ju 52 troop- carriers on the ground. The Canadian officer who was captain of the machine gave the following account of the inci- dent : '' We had completed our recco and were coming back over Benina, when we were confronted by the sight of what looked like a hundred Ju 52's lined up wing tip to wing tip. It was too good to miss, but it is not our job
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