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Aviation History
1944
1944 - 1213.PDF
JUNE 15TH, 1944 FLIGHT WAR IN THE AIR is possible, and make it especially hazardous on days when it is not really possible, but still has to be done. Turning from the tactical to the strategic, Bangkok received its heaviest blow of the war (so far) when strong forces of heavy bombers of the Strategic Air Force of Eastern Air Command paid it a visit recently. Formations of Liberators converged on the place from several different direc tions (which must have put the Jap defences in a nice flap!) and showered a record tonnage of bombs on it from a considerable altitude with equally considerable accuracy. This was followed up by attacks by escorted medium bombers of the -^ U.S.A.A.F- on railways and other enemy targets, and by R.A.F. and I.A.F. fighter-bombers on enemy camps, motor transport and storage dumps in the Kohima and Imphal sec tors, on the Tiddim Road and in the Arakan. In North Burma U.S.A.A.F. units bombed enemy positions, rail way tracks, rolling stock and supply dumps, while in Central Burma long- range R.A.F. fighters inflicted con siderable damage on large numbers of enemy river craft. Only one Allied air craft failed to return from all these sorties. On Monday last the B.B.C. men tioned for the first time the Hamilcar glider and the Tempest fighter as among the latest types of aircraft being used by the R.A.F. Both have been familiar names for some con siderable time to most of Flight's readers, so this "release" would not come to them as news, exactly! The DAYLIGHT OPERATION: Hamilcar gliders make their touch-down on French soil. This photograph was taken by an Army photographer who accompanied the airborne troops. Hamilcar was officially described as having a wing span greater than that of a Lancaster and as having been used in the invasion of Europe to carry tanks #which emerged to dash straight into action the moment the giant gliders came to a standstill on land ing. Of the Tempest, all that was said was a guarded suggestion that it bears some relationship to the Hawker Typhoon, but there will be very few who could not greatly amplify this ultra-cautious description. Air Bases in France WHAT was an important item of news early this week, however, was that Allied air squadrons now established/on French greatly facilitating the work of the close support units by extending their duration over the enemy lines. Emer gency landing strips were actually in operation near the beach-heads very soon after the first landings—on "D Day-aiid-aTialf," to quote a popular phrase—but these were only intended for the use of any Allied aircraft which found itself in trouble and were not suitable for normal operation. Our preoccupation in Normandy and the vast numbers of aircraft in volved in this many-sided job did not, however, relieve the Hun from other aerial attention. As though to drive home the fact that we have plenty of -line aircraft to spare. Mosquito squadrons of Bomber Command paid a series of visits on consecutive alights to Berlin. These attacks were short and sharp, the first being all over in three minutes. But in that brief interval the Mosquitoes rained down more than thirty 4,000 lb. bombs. i^!ToNT>efrrs HURRICANES RETURN : In 1939 we had six squadrons of Hurricanes in France as air cover for the Advanced Air Striking Force. One of the first aircraft to land Via Normandy after the invasion was the Hurricane seen in the background of this photograph, which was taken in France last week. S NEW AIRPORT LONDON'S new post-war airport, which it is expected will be the biggest in the world, is to be between Hounslow and Staines, adjoining the Great West Road, and work on the site—mainly that of drainage at present —is already under way. The site, covering several hundreds of acres, takes in the Middlesex County Council's sewage works and a number of farms. The Air Ministry has, in fact, been buying up land in this area for months past. Huts arc now being erected to accommodate the hundreds of Irish workmen who are expected shortly to arrive there. The nearest railway station is Hounslow West Underground, and it is probable that the line will be extended from there to the airport, thus providing direct communication with the City and West End. It is also possible that com pletion of the scheme may call for the deviation of a section of the Great West Road.
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