1941-05-23 — Page 6

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THE CHINA MAIL, MAY 23, 1941

England's Most Popular Best Seller, the Air Ministry's Account of the great days between August 8th and October 31st, 1940, tells the story of one of the greatest battles in history, the more dramatic as it was fought 'high'în 'the clouds over the Southern coast of England. Here is the fifth instalment of "THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN."

DROPPING EVERY FEW MILES

The Official Account

(CROWN COPYRIGHT RESERVED)

up by a

It must be borne in mind that, bombers were broken this great battle was made up of level quarter attack and this en- squadron attacks followed

by abled our intercepting squadron to numbers of personal combats, all pursue them relentlessly and shoot taking place mure or less at the down most of them. same time above this wide area. Squadrons, flying in pairs or wings of three units, went into action in famation against an enemy simi- larly disposed. After the first at- tark, delivered as often as possible out of the in, they broke up and individual duels took placr over the sky.

and strugg ing fight, British squa- Occasionally, in this confused

drons found themselves tem- porarily outnumbering the enemy. Thus, at 12.15 p.m. a mixed force of Hurricanes and Spithres, amounting to the greater part of

battlefield. In all that space, from the Thames from London to

Estuary to Dover, fights were soon

the Coast, dog- in furlous pro- gress. Squadrons were swiftly scattered, so that two which took off together from their base might, 15 minutes later, be fighting 50 miles apart.

enemy. all

Certain of the more striking in- edents may be brietly recorded, There were dive altacks carried out by one squadron of Spitfires which twice passed through an

of which the

squadrons, WILS over the South of the Thames, somewhere Hammersmith Here they el- coun: red an inferior number of enemy aircraft and execution.

did terrible

to

the

There was nothing haphazard about thin interception of

It was only possible, un such a scale and in so effective a manner, because every detail had fighting of the been planned and tested in the previous months. | So, as reports came through of

the German approach. able to despatch from correct tactical points, enough squadrons

we were

cheniy hamber formation, each But it was seldom that we had Ume delivering beam attacks as the advantage in numbers, The they did so. These tactics threw uenty, however, seemed unable to achieve complete interception the enemy into extreme

pront by his numerical and best results, without dissipat- fusion), Bombers flew on almost superiority. A single Hurricane,ing our forces. The general prin- blindly, aircraft dropping in Hames for example, encountered twelve ciple applied in coping with earlier 4 191 uncontrolled dives

Yellownosed Messerschmidts fy-

assaults having proved so success- with every few miles of the return

ing straight at it. The pilot dived ful, it was put into effect in this journey. From one such aircraft, under them but swooped upwards second great attack. Certain squa- cowling and cabin and shot down the rear aircraft drons were detailed to deal with top blew off, its crew baled out, all from directly underneath. As he the enemy screen of high flying except the rear-gunner, who was still had plenty of speed, the Brighters halfway between London seen to be hanging from the lower tish pilot half rolled off at the and the coast. This enabled others escape hatch until his

aircraft top of his loop and followed the to attack bomber formations and dived into a wood ten miles East enemy formation which had not their close escort, before they of Canterbury.

apparenty perceived the fate of reached the line of fighter aero- their comrade in the rear rank. dromes, East and South of Lon- Then there was a pilot who twice attacked un

Those of the enemy The British pilot accordingly des-don. Me 109 which each time strove to escape in an

another enemy trayed

aircraft succeeded in penetrating these from the

defences--some almost vertical dive. The first of second before

rear and damaged

70 'or these, from 20,000 ft., was success-

the Germans Le-tackled by squadrons of Hurri- ful for the German pilot straighting and he was forced, being still Groups who came into action over came aware of what was happen-canes, mostly from Nos. 10 and 12 ened out. but only to find that the British pilot had followed him down and was close upon him. "By

that time" said the British pilot.

"I was going faster tha the enemy aircraft and continted Aring until I had to pull away to the right to avoid a collision." His burst of fire had taken effect, for the German never recovered but plunged down until he entered a cloud about 6.000 ft. below, when the British pilot had to recover frun the dive as his aircraft was going at approximately 480 miles per hour. " then made my way through the cloud at a reasonable speed" he reported "and saw the wreckage of the enemy aircraft burning furiously

I sky climbed through the cloud and narrowly missed colliding with a Ju.88 which was on fire and being attacked by numerous canes."

crew

on

who

so-were

In numerical inferiority of nine, the Capital itself. They also pur- sued stragglers. As in the morn-

In one, to break off action.

two were quite alike, the gen- eral pattern was the same.

m. und, by that time the citizens combats took place and, although The fight was all over by 12.30 | ing's fighting, some 200 individual

or London and South East Eng- land were sitting down to their

in full flight Sunday dinner, the enemy were

Northern France.

to their bases in

citizens had special cause to re- One of those

The Prime Minister had spent the joice in the result of the fighting. morning in one of the Operations Rooms of No. 11 Group. It was observed that for once his cigar remained unlit as he followed the swift changes of battle depicted on the table map before him.

cordance

10

Some of the enemy had for a brief moment succeeded in pene- tal, but they dropped only few trating into the centre of the Capi- bombs. The fire was too hot, the Hurri-defence too strong. 70 of the Estimated 250 aircraft in the at- There was also the Dornier which

tack, equalling 28 per cent, were crashed just outside Victoria Station.

seen to crash that morning. Members of its lunded by parachute

more were considered probably to Kennington Oval, while the Hur-

have been destroyed and 28 were ricane pilot, who had shot it down action

observed by eur pilots to break off and whose aircraft had gone into These figures, compiled immedi- in a damaged condition, an uncontrollable spin when the ately after the fight and in ac- enemy blew up beneath him, land- ed safely in Chelsea,

with the very strict Neverthe-rules applied by less, the Yellownosed Squadrons, Force to pilot's reports, probably the Royal Air the elite of the German underestimate the casualties they Air Force, acquitted themselves

inflicted. Even so, bravely and showed greater skill lost slightly over 43 per cent of the Luftwaffe than their less well trained com- the aircraft used in this morning rades. It was observed that they attack. usually attacked in pairs, disposed in line astern some 75 yds, apart. Occasionally, fire at long range proved effective. Close range com- bat was the rule, but it is record- ed that a Hurricane pilot fired at enemy aircraft, moving faster than his own and about to get out of range, and hit This caused it to slow up and his it at 800 yds. second burst was fired from 600 yds. Eventually, he finished it off at 25 yds. Another Hurricane pilot who had broken off the fight because

the cooling system of the engine of his -aircraft

giving trouble and who was therefore returning to the base, encountered a lone Me.109 which he stalked out of

sighted a strong enemy aircraft"

"I engaged the enemy in for- mation causing them to scatter in all directions" ran the report of one pilot; "we

wrote another "and carried out a formation of

head on attack. The enemy scat- tered, jettisoned their bombs and turned for home. We encountered heavy cannon fire ports are laconie: "The whole of The-re-

including the pilot's cockpit, was

shot away. "Saw tracer flying

past my left wing and saw Me.109 attack

burst and the enemy aircraft spun "" saw his perspex

down

" "I did not consider

the nose,

me

it worthwhile to waste.ally more ammunition upon it...." "I then looked for more trouble and saw a He,111. I attacked and closed to about 10 ft.

"I gave him everything I had

"My fable. I aircraft became

uncontrol- baled out, coming down with my left arm paralysed (after- wards I learned it was dislocated)

►

As in the morning a single Eri- tish aircraft, in this case a Hurri- encountered a large formation of cane, piloted by a Group Captain, German aircraft, both fighters and bombers, and went into the attack alone.

battle that

Despite the sound and fury of citizens of London had their Sun- turn, "no other British fighters in sunny autumn day, "There were," he said on his re- day dinner in peace. A lull ensued sight, so I made a head-on attack for about 12 hours. Then, shortly on the first section of bombers. after 2 p.m., fresh enemy forces opening at 600 yds. and closing to returned to the attack in about the 200 yds." After describing how all same strength as had been em- alone he broke up the enemy for- craft crossed the coast near Dover "I made further attacks on the ployed that morning, German air- mation, the Group Captain adds: in two waves, first of 150, second retreating bombers, each attack of 100. These formations spread from climbing 'beam over Bouth East and South West Dornier left formation and lost Kent and over Mälustöne,

Before they could proceed fur-I could not finish it off. I last saw Pheight. With no ammunition left, ther, they were intercepted by the bomber at 3,000 ft. dropping fighters of the Royal Air Force. 21 slowly squadrons were sant into the air and 21 squadrons made contact his own swift decisions to make, So It appears that each pilot had with the enemy. This time the his own problenis to meet. He was the sun and shot down from 500 numbers on each side were fairly not found wanting. While the fight yds.

equal and the fighting superiority lasted, the Germans were destroy-

*

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11

one

At this stage in the fight, it be-of the British force was Immedi-ed at the rate of about two air- came clear that the enemy bomber ately established. Our fighters tore craft per minute, That afternoon's. pilot felt themselves to be no into the enemy's formations, rip- attack cost them 97 déstroyed. In match for the British. It wasping through them like a knife the entire day we lost 25 aircraft, generally observed that, as soon through calico. That was how it but 14 pilots were saved. us contact was established, they jettisoned their bombs, then broke formation and turned at once for their base, Thus twenty Dornier 210g were encountered above Lon- don Docks flying in diamond for mation escorted by Me.109s. "stepped up" to 22,000 It. The

termined was the British defence, so effective these tactics, that the German formations were again in stantly broken up. This was an opportunity for each pilot to single out an adversary, and, in a few, moments, the sky was again a

ing in a battle which lasted for Such, was a typical day's fight- nearly three months over the south of England,

s over to

TO BE CONTINUED. TO-MORROW.

11