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THE CHINA MAIL, MAY 9, 1941.
SHATTERING BLOWS BY R.A.F.
Luftwaffe Loses Thirty-Seven 'Planes In 24 Hours
Only One British Fighter Downed In Hectic Battles
A GERMAN BOMBER WAS SHOT DOWN BY R.A.F. FIGHTERS LAST EVENING AFTER 12 NAZI FIGHTERS HAD BEEN DISPOSED OF IN A SERIES OF THRILLING COMBATS OVER SOUTHERN ENG- LAND EARLIER IN THE DAY FOR THE LOSS OF A SINGLE BRI-
TISH 'PLANE.
These daylight successes followed the destruction of a record number of 24 German bombers in moonlight on Wednesday night.
SPEND WINTER
An Air Ministry communique issued last night stated there had been considerable air activity off the south and south-east coasts and over the east coast during the day.
Several combats took place between British and German fighters, in which 10 Nazi
IN BOATS fighters were shot down and one British
fighter is missing, though the pilot is safe. Many people at Kris-
Two more enemy fighters were destroyed by tiansund have had to anti-aircraft gunfire. No reports were received of spend the winter in fish-any bombs being dropped. Reuter's Air Correspondent ing boats because German writes that the German air force bombers destroyed their last 24 hombers in the moon
light 07 Wednesday night tu achieve "extensive" damage in several east and west coast areas, According to Berlin some six ports were raided.
homes last summer, says: the Norwegian telegraph agency.
The correspondent
the "Stockholm Takningen" described the damage by fire there as the most catastrophic known in all the Scandinavian countries.
A large number of houses were destroyed and damage estimated
at £5,000,000 done.
"{ will he appreciated that weather conditions on Wednesday night were very favourable for OUT fighter operations and this without doubt was the most in- portant factor in our success.
Gradual increase
R.A.F. night fighters, it is now learned, accounted for 20 "Although the total on Wed-
- three over Northern |nesday night is fur raiders
the highest France.
yet attained. main reason
consistent increase in
for
It was their most successful satisfaction lies in the gradual and night of the war.
casualties Three more fell ners and one
barrage.
to A.A. gun-inflicted on the enemy since the fouled a balloon early part of the year."
The Air
Ministry statement shows clearly the high cost Ger. many is facing in continuing the blitz raiding both in 'planes and trained personnel. It should not be presumed,
Wednesday however, that even
achieved night's record "bag," four nights before the full moon, represents even yet 10 per cent. of the raiding force.
Many More Damaged The agency also states that all members of the Norwegian Trust The Air Ministry, giving these Control Board, which limited the figures, adds "Many other enemy activities of monopolies and con-aircraft were seen to be damaged trolled prices, have been dismiss-and some were almost certainly ed by the Quisling Party.
They have been replaced by Quislings who now hold key posts m çohʻrol of staple commodities such as Bour and margarine. Iteuter.
Phone 27775
destroyed.
"No figure is given for these aircraft, in accordance with the usual practice of the Air Min Istry to make no claim unless the destruction of an
enemy aircraft is certain.
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Plots new to night fighting contributed to the night's suc cess, and the Luftwaffe lost at least 100 of its alrmen.
some of
The Anal flights of them were described by victorious
British airmen last night,
Mr. Churchill and Lt. Gentral A. G. L. McNaughton, Can. adian Corps Commander, absorbed in the study of a large scale military map at a Canadian Corps Headquarters "somewhere in England." (Copyright, Fox).
CONGRATULATIONS HITLER'S FEAR OF FUTURE
OF THE WAR CABINET
The Air Minister, Sir Archibald Sinclair, has sent the following telegram to Air Mar- shal Douglas, Com- mander-in-Chief the Fighter Com- mand:
of
"I am charged by the War Cabinet
to
convey to
you and your squadrons engaged in Wednes- day night's operations their congratulations on their outstanding success."--Reuter.
THUS. "HE SPIRALLED put paid to two of Germany's DOWN IN FLAMES AND nost formidable Atlantic sea EXPLODED ON HITTING THE❘ raiders for
time. some
while GROUND."
fighters al home were learning AIR more of how to beat German WAS blitz raiders.
"IT BURNED IN THE TILL THE FUSELAGE ONLY A SKELETON."
"AFTER MAKING A CAKE LANDING THE BOMBER SANK INTO THE SEA."
PAN-
Brest Onslaught Meanwhile, the weather in the north-west corner of France gave
aircraft of the R.A.F. Bomber Command an opportunity to make sure of doing effective damage to the battle-cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau at Brest, it was stated last night.
R.A.F. Losses
same
R.A.F. losses over the 24-hour period in which 37 Luft- waffe 'planes were destroyed and well over 100 airmen were killed, wounded or captured,
were two bombers and their crews and une Aghter, the pilot of which is safe and unhurt.
Three of the 12 Nazi Aghters destroyed yesterday fell within seven minutes to Hurricane pilots of a Polish squadron, while Bri- tish Spitfire pilots accounted for,
Reuter.
seven more.
The attack was made with dellberation and heavy armour plercing bombs were used which had to be dropped at a
Final Total May Be 61 height which would penetration of the specially (SPECIAL TO "CHINA MAIL") protected dooka,
ensure
Some pilots used an alternative AT LEAST 37 GERMAN RAID
method of diving rapidly on the ERS
AN- ARE OFFICIALLY
"Only one person fears
that
iş
the future, Hitler," declared the Netherlands Premier in a the Nether- message to lands through the Free Dutch newspaper "Vrij Nederland" in London.
The message, on the anniversary of the invasion of Holland on May 10, says, "Unless Hitler is abso- lutely blind, he will see that the occupation of the whole of Europe, from Narvik to Gibraltar, from Den Helder to Athens; is not only impossible but intolerable.
OUR
AND
"HITLER CAN PLUNDER THÉ NETHERLANDS, SEND PEOPLE TO GERMANY IGNORE NATIONAL LAWS, BUT HE CANNOT BREAK THE SPIRIT OF OUR PEOPLE.
Pro-
"He cannot hinder the testant churches from openly condemning the persecution of the Jews or the Roman Catholic Church Imposing a veto on Nazi idealogy.
"Let us go forward with united strength."-Reuter.
BIG BERTHAS BLAZE
(SPECIAL TO "CHINA MAIL")
German long-range guns on the French coast blazed forth before dawn lashing the Dover area
target so that the speed of the NOUNCED AS DOWNED OVER with high explosives in a aircraft added momentum to the BRITAIN SINCE DUSK ON resumption of the brief
bomb.
One
such dive was
WEDNESDAY, WITH SÀ “RE-
made CORD OF 24 DESTROYED IN A but vicious shelling of from over 10,000 feet and the SINGLE NIGHT, BUT INDICAT Wednesday dusk. whole orew of the aircraft are ING THAT THE TOTAL, MAY It was the first time during the confident the Gnelaenau Was REACH 61, THE UNDER SECRE- war that German guns were Other crews claimed direct hitsTARY FOR AIR, CAPT. HAR- thrown into action in the early OLD BALFOUR, TOLD THE morning hours, and the first shells on both vessels,
HOUSE OF COMMONS THAT caused a number of casualties, as THE FINAL CHECK-UP MIGHT streams of German planes return-
hit.
Lit Up Whole Ship
Ohe very heavy atmour pierc- ing bomb burst immediately for- ward of the funnel of the Gneisenau,
DOUBLE THE KNOWN, NIGHT ed to France after raiding expedi-
TOLL.
The King, while visiting night| fighter stations, kept a score-card. -No less than 105 German air-. draft have already been downed 6vór Britain this month.
**An";&qually heavy bomb was
sean to burst in the forepart of It is estimated that with the aid the Scharnhorst and a large and of American Douglas "Havocs," brillant ekplosión - which fol. the defences knocked out nearly
tions against British ports,
Exactly at midnight the Luft- waffe began pouring destruction across the English coast. By 2 a.m. they had struck at numar-
· oùs'areas" while concentrating' on |¤ ̈north-west-dity, -,"
For the seventh successive night raiders visited shipping and manu
"lowed allt up the whole ship... 10 per cent. of the attackers-In-facturing centres on Merseyside.---
Thus RAF, bombers evidently | ternational Nows-Sërvité,
International News Servicš,
I.