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Aviation History
1942
1942 - 2038.PDF
354 FLIC WAR IN THE AIR has stated that in the first" half of the present year Britain had exported to Russia, the Middle East and elsewhere well over three times as many aircraft as had been imported. That ought to give the Axis something on which to ponder. If we can bomb Germany as hard as we have been doing while that drain on our production is going on, they may well wonder what we shall do when Americarr production sur passes ours, as it soon will do, and puts the bomber strength in the United Kingdom in an overwhelming position. The Arctic Convoy PHE greatest convoy of supplies ever •*• despatched to Russia reached a port in the north of that country after a fierce sea and air battle which lasted for eight days. It was attacked by German U-boats and aircraft, the latter including both bombers and tor pedo-carriers. The Germans claimed that they had destroyed the greater part of the convoy, but their claims were more wildly exaggerated than usual. The convoy consisted of British, Russian and American ships, and some of them were lost, but the exact number of losses is not being made public at present. There was a strong escort which the Germans said included "one aircraft carrier, several battleships of the King George V class, and numerous cruisers and des troyers." Judging from a recent speech by Mr. Alexander, First Lord Of the Admiralty, it is possible that the new battleships K.M.S. Anson and Howe are now in commission. Cer- FLOATPLANE RECONNAISSANCE : A Curtiss S.O. 3C-1 Seagull taking off in rough water. The Seagull is a single-float mid-wing monoplane with a 520 h.p. Ranger V-770-6 12-cylinder inverted air-cooled engine. tainly there must have been a strong umbrella of fighters, and perhaps there was more than one carrier with the naval escort. At any rate none of the escort vessels was lost. The Commo dore of the convoy, Admiral E. K. Boddam-Whetham, who went on to Moscow after seeing his charge into port, said that the Axis must have lost between 50 and 60 aircraft in com bats with our lighters or from the A. A. fire of the ships. The majority of these Axis losses occurred during the early stages of the fight, and they had their effect, for the vehemence of the enemy's bombing decreased markedly in the later stages. As the convoy got near its goal Russian destroyers U.S. paratroops boarding Douglas C.47S (D.C.3S) on manoeuvres. Tha^ are several alternative loadings for a C.47 :—(1) 1 mortar, I machine ,gjm,jp;H "? men. (2) 1 75 mm. howitzer, 1 Jeep and 8 me^^^-rtffi^tank guns, arnrnun!? tion and 11 men. (4) 16-20 riflemen and-iRjuipment. (5) 4 bicycles^ind 12 men. 4 moto^ bicyctes, and Hurricanes came out to assist. The two fights for t*he Malta convoy and this Arctic convoy support the view which the Admiralty has always ' held, namely that the Royal Navy, provided it has its essential air com ponent, cannot be prevented from carrying out its work by enemy air action, even though that is supported by submarine attacks. But the tragedy of H.M.S. Prince of Wales and Repulse showed that the air com ponent is a sine qua non. Air War in the West The weather turned unusually un pleasant in the middle of September, and in consequence a large force of four-engined bombers which attacked Flensbiirg on the Baltic and other places in north-west Germany on the night of September 23rd had a very trying time with electric storms and icing conditions. Heavy bombs were dropped on the yards where U-boats are built, and it is hoped that this attack will reduce, the number of these pests in the Atlantic, even though the Germans have put up strong concrete shelters over the yards. The loss of ten bombers that night is a moderate price to pay for a result which may save the lives of hundreds of sailors and their invaluable ships and cargoes. Destroying these wasp nests is perhaps the most valuable contribution which Bomber Command can now make to wards the victory of the United Nations. While Fighter Command has been busily putting shells through the works of locomotive engines in northern France, special bombers have been very busy laying mines in enemy waters. The Germans gave us the tip about magnetic mines, and now we are ^treating them to a dose of their own le. They may sweep a channel durirjif^hs^day, but they never know during res 9
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