Archive for August, 2010
303 Squadron’s first combat patrol
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010Day 53 – 31st August 1940
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010Weather: fair.
Fighter Command Serviceable Aircraft as at 0900 hours:
- Blenheim – 54
- Spitfire – 212
- Hurricane – 417
- Defiant – 13
- Gladiator – 4
- Total – 700
This day proved seriously expensive for the RAF. Airfields including North Weald, Duxford and Debden were attacked in the first wave. But this was followed by a second wave of enemy aircraft numbering roughly 100 and once again launched a very damaging attack on Biggin Hill and Croydon. The raid on Croydon caused a certain amount of damage to the hangars. The raid on Biggin Hill which was from high flying aircraft did further damage to this hard pressed RAF station. However, the Biggin Hill raiders were attacked, as they retreated, by 253 Squadron.
Another wave of raiders targeted Hornchurch. A group of 54 Squadron Spitfires were taking off just as the raiders started to release their bombs. Three of the Spitfires were caught by the blast just as they were leaving the ground. Two of the aircraft were tossed in the air and the third, which was being piloted by that eternal survivor, Alan Deere, skidded along upside down. By enormous luck, none of the three pilots were seriously hurt and were all flying the next day.
The last raid of the day was that afternoon and was targeted on Hornchurch and Biggin Hill which suffered more damage to hangars and telephone lines that were brought down. However, both Biggin Hill and Hornchurch were serviceable the next day.
This day proved seriously expensive for the RAF. The home team lost 37 aircraft as against 39 German shot down.
That night Liverpool suffered another heavy raid. A direct hit on a shelter killed 20 people.
Cyril Shoesmith Diary, Aged 14, Bexhill on Sea – Saturday 31 August
In 1st air raid, 8.50-9.30, I saw 11 planes. 9 of these were high up. Next air raid was from 5.40-7.30. Heard planes and explosions. Saw 3 planes, then 5 planes came over fighting. Heard machine gun fire, and later we found a bullet clip each. 3 of the planes were German and 2 were Hurricanes.
PO DH Wissler Diary – 31 August
We did four patrols today ending up with one on which we intersepted [sic] about 30 Do17s and 20-30 Me109s. I got onto a Me109s tail, after an ineffectual attack on the bombers, and got in several long bursts at about 300yds, however nothing was observed in the way of damage. Another got on my tail and I had to break away. I succeeded in throwing him off in a steep turn but not before he had put an explosive bullet through my wing. Sgt Stewart was shot down, but was safe. I burst another tail wheel today.
54 Squadron Operational Record Book – 31 August
A really amazing day. Hornchurch bombed; the miraculous escape of 3 of our pilots who were bombed out of their planes; the station bombed a second time. The squadron was ordered off just as the first bombs were beginning to fall and 8 of our machines safely cleared the ground; the remaining section, however, just became air borne as the bombs exploded. All 3 machines were wholly wrecked in the air. The survival of the pilots is a complete miracle.
56 Squadron Operational Record Book – 31 August
The Squadron went up to intercept enemy bombers approaching the aerodrome which they did near Colchester. They became involved with the fighter escort and F/Lt Weaver was shot down and killed. He had been given the DFC this very day and he was a great loss to the Squadron. F/O Westmacott and P/O Mounsdon were also injured but not seriously, their a/c being lost. Sgt Whitehead was shot down by an unseen a/c. He baled out and was unhurt. Weather cloudless, wind westerly 10 to 15mph.
Reported Casualties (RAF Campaign Diary 31st August 1940):
* Enemy: 85 confirmed, 34 probable, 33 damaged
* Own: 37 aircraft with 12 pilots killed or missing.
Todays’s theme: The Airfields – RAF Hornchurch
31.8.40
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010Air-raid warnings, of which there are now half a dozen or thereabouts every 24 hours, becoming a great bore. Opinion spreading rapidly that one ought simply to disregard the raids except when they are known to be big-scale ones and in one’s own area. Of the people strolling in Regent’s Park, I should say at least half pay no attention to a raid-warning . . . . . Last night just as we were going to bed, a pretty heavy explosion. Later in the night woken up by a tremendous crash, said to be caused by a bomb in Maida Vale[1]. E. and I merely remarked on the loudness and fell asleep again. Falling asleep, with a vague impression of anti-aircraft guns firing, found myself mentally back in the Spanish war, on one of those nights when you had a good straw to sleep on, dry feet, several hours rest ahead of you, and the sound of distant gunfire, which acts as a soporific provided it is distant.
[1] A suburb of London straddling NW8 and W9, about a mile from where Orwell was living in Chagford Street. Peter Davison
31st August 1940
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010
My day to go to Maidenhead. Awakened by sirens at 8 o’clock, so I rushed up to the Castle unwashed and unfed. While I was on the roof a big flock of planes came over from the W. at a great height, and I could hear machine gun fire, and suddenly in the midst of it the scream of falling bombs.
One bomb had fallen slap in the middle [of Roman Road] at the top end, near Castle Road, right outside the house where Councillor Cross lives. The next bomb fell on two old timber cottages in Land Lane, next to Maydays, and demolished them, though miraculously without injuring the occupants. A third bomb was in a yard at the back of Boast’s, the Coach builder, on East Hill, which damaged a house on East Hill and slightly injured a woman. [Later note]: (She died about a year later). A fourth bomb was in a field in Whitehall Road, and a fifth on the Sewage Works, where a pipe was broken.
Scores of incendiary bombs also fell, doing little damage, at the bottom of Brook St. Others were in Land Lane and Magdalene St. and Barrack St., all quite harmless.
As soon as we got an All Clear I went off to see the damage, and then went round to Rose’s to get some breakfast. Having heard of incendiary bombs near Paxman’s, I decided to go down to see if the stables were damaged, but no sooner had I got there then the sirens went again, so back to the Castle. ...
I decided to catch the 5.35 to London, but found it had been cancelled. The next was the 6.13, but at 6 o’clock there was another alarm, and all passengers were made to shelter in the new subways. Jack Geerneant was there going back from a fortnight’s leave from Stanmore Aerodrome. The London train came in, so we travelled together in company with a private in the Coldstream Guards and a very drunk Scottish engineer in the R.N.V.R. The train crawled along at 15 m.p.h. as far as Ingatestone, where an All-Clear was given, and finally got to Liverpool Street at 8.30. I went to have a drink with Jack, and got across to Paddington at 9.15, to find no train before 10.5, and that would not get to Maidenhead before 11. I tried to ring Aunt’s next door neighbour to explain this, but could not get through, and almost at once a dreadful amplifier arrangement in the roof announced another raid.
The train left sharp on time. At Taplow we could see searchlights wandering all over the sky, and leaving Maidenhead Station I heard with a sinking heart the familiar hum of a German plane. Even here there was no escape from them.
Events on 31st August 1940 marked the largest operation to date by the Luftwaffe in the course of the Battle of Britain. More details can be found on the Imperial War Museum's Battle of Britain website and at the RAF's Battle of Britain Campaign Diary. CP
One bomb had fallen slap in the middle [of Roman Road] at the top end, near Castle Road, right outside the house where Councillor Cross lives. The next bomb fell on two old timber cottages in Land Lane, next to Maydays, and demolished them, though miraculously without injuring the occupants. A third bomb was in a yard at the back of Boast’s, the Coach builder, on East Hill, which damaged a house on East Hill and slightly injured a woman. [Later note]: (She died about a year later). A fourth bomb was in a field in Whitehall Road, and a fifth on the Sewage Works, where a pipe was broken.
Scores of incendiary bombs also fell, doing little damage, at the bottom of Brook St. Others were in Land Lane and Magdalene St. and Barrack St., all quite harmless.
As soon as we got an All Clear I went off to see the damage, and then went round to Rose’s to get some breakfast. Having heard of incendiary bombs near Paxman’s, I decided to go down to see if the stables were damaged, but no sooner had I got there then the sirens went again, so back to the Castle. ...
I decided to catch the 5.35 to London, but found it had been cancelled. The next was the 6.13, but at 6 o’clock there was another alarm, and all passengers were made to shelter in the new subways. Jack Geerneant was there going back from a fortnight’s leave from Stanmore Aerodrome. The London train came in, so we travelled together in company with a private in the Coldstream Guards and a very drunk Scottish engineer in the R.N.V.R. The train crawled along at 15 m.p.h. as far as Ingatestone, where an All-Clear was given, and finally got to Liverpool Street at 8.30. I went to have a drink with Jack, and got across to Paddington at 9.15, to find no train before 10.5, and that would not get to Maidenhead before 11. I tried to ring Aunt’s next door neighbour to explain this, but could not get through, and almost at once a dreadful amplifier arrangement in the roof announced another raid.
The train left sharp on time. At Taplow we could see searchlights wandering all over the sky, and leaving Maidenhead Station I heard with a sinking heart the familiar hum of a German plane. Even here there was no escape from them.
Events on 31st August 1940 marked the largest operation to date by the Luftwaffe in the course of the Battle of Britain. More details can be found on the Imperial War Museum's Battle of Britain website and at the RAF's Battle of Britain Campaign Diary. CP
Day 366 August 31, 1940
Tuesday, August 31st, 2010
Battle of Britain Day 53. By heroic effort overnight, Biggin Hill is made operational. From 11 AM to 7 PM, Luftwaffe makes concentrated attacks on RAF airfields, repeating yesterday’s exercise of flying large formations up the Thames Estuary which then split up to target multiple airfields. Radar stations on the South coast are also hit. Yesterday’s hero Tom Gleave of 253 Squadron is shot down but survives with terrible burns. RAF loses 41 fighters & 9 pilots. RAF still has 613 Spitfires and Hurricanes but pilots are exhausted and many airfields are out of action or badly damaged, combining to limit severely operational effectiveness. Germans lose 56 fighters, 29 bombers. Their pilots too are disillusioned & exhausted. Overnight, Liverpool is heavily bombed for the fourth night and other cities in the Midlands are also targeted. http://www.raf.mod.uk/history/phase2ofthebattle.cfm
5 British destroyers leave England to lay mines off Texel Island on the Dutch coast. They are suddenly ordered to intercept German ships but blunder into a new German minefield. HMS Express hits a mine and is badly damaged (56 killed). HMS Esk goes to assist, hits a mine and sinks immediately (135 killed, 25 crew swim ashore and are taken prisoner). HMS Ivanhoe also goes to assist, hits a mine and is badly damaged (8 killed, 3 wounded, 23 taken prisoner). Ivanhoe will be scuttled the following day by HMS Kelvin. After this, most minelaying off the Dutch and German coast will be carried out by RAF aircraft.
Despite the threat of invasion by Germany, Free French troops under General De Gaulle and 8,000 British troops leave England escorted by British cruisers HMS Devonshire and Fiji plus 5 destroyers, for forward base in Freetown in Sierra Leone. They will be joined by more British warships including aircraft carriers from Gibraltar. Their final destination is the port of Dakar in French West Africa which is under Vichy French control. De Gaulle intends to land his Free French troops unopposed (but supported in force, if necessary, by British sea, air and land forces) to secure the colony for the Free French. Britain wants to prevent Germany basing U-boats there to threaten trade routes around the Cape of Good Hope. They also have an eye on ultramodern French battleship Richelieu which, although damaged by British attacks on July 7 and 8, could be repaired and brought into the Royal Navy.
100 miles North of Ireland, U-boats torpedo 3 ships from convoy OB-205. At midnight, Dutch passenger steamer Volendam (carrying 273 crew and 606 passengers, including many British children being evacuated to Canada) is hit by 2 torpedoes from U-60. She does not sink and everyone escapes to safety in the lifeboats, except 1 crewman who falls overboard. Volendam will be repaired, although an unexploded torpedo is found onboard, and returned to service as a troopship in July 1941. At 2.06 AM, U-59 sinks British SS Bibury (all 38 crew and 1 gunner killed). At 6.15 AM, U-38 sinks British SS Har Zion (33 lives lost). 1 survivor, Seaman Osman Adem, is picked up the next day by Polish destroyer ORP Blyskawica. http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/505.html
At 4 PM, U-46 sinks Belgian passenger steamer Ville de Hasselt 100 miles Northwest of Ireland. All 53 crew abandon ship in 4 lifeboats and are picked up by trawlers on 2 September.
5 British destroyers leave England to lay mines off Texel Island on the Dutch coast. They are suddenly ordered to intercept German ships but blunder into a new German minefield. HMS Express hits a mine and is badly damaged (56 killed). HMS Esk goes to assist, hits a mine and sinks immediately (135 killed, 25 crew swim ashore and are taken prisoner). HMS Ivanhoe also goes to assist, hits a mine and is badly damaged (8 killed, 3 wounded, 23 taken prisoner). Ivanhoe will be scuttled the following day by HMS Kelvin. After this, most minelaying off the Dutch and German coast will be carried out by RAF aircraft.
Despite the threat of invasion by Germany, Free French troops under General De Gaulle and 8,000 British troops leave England escorted by British cruisers HMS Devonshire and Fiji plus 5 destroyers, for forward base in Freetown in Sierra Leone. They will be joined by more British warships including aircraft carriers from Gibraltar. Their final destination is the port of Dakar in French West Africa which is under Vichy French control. De Gaulle intends to land his Free French troops unopposed (but supported in force, if necessary, by British sea, air and land forces) to secure the colony for the Free French. Britain wants to prevent Germany basing U-boats there to threaten trade routes around the Cape of Good Hope. They also have an eye on ultramodern French battleship Richelieu which, although damaged by British attacks on July 7 and 8, could be repaired and brought into the Royal Navy.
100 miles North of Ireland, U-boats torpedo 3 ships from convoy OB-205. At midnight, Dutch passenger steamer Volendam (carrying 273 crew and 606 passengers, including many British children being evacuated to Canada) is hit by 2 torpedoes from U-60. She does not sink and everyone escapes to safety in the lifeboats, except 1 crewman who falls overboard. Volendam will be repaired, although an unexploded torpedo is found onboard, and returned to service as a troopship in July 1941. At 2.06 AM, U-59 sinks British SS Bibury (all 38 crew and 1 gunner killed). At 6.15 AM, U-38 sinks British SS Har Zion (33 lives lost). 1 survivor, Seaman Osman Adem, is picked up the next day by Polish destroyer ORP Blyskawica. http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/505.html
At 4 PM, U-46 sinks Belgian passenger steamer Ville de Hasselt 100 miles Northwest of Ireland. All 53 crew abandon ship in 4 lifeboats and are picked up by trawlers on 2 September.
British fleet sails into the Mediterranean
Monday, August 30th, 2010
Day 52 – 30th August 1940
Monday, August 30th, 2010Weather: fair.
Fighter Command Serviceable Aircraft as at 0900 hours:
- Blenheim – 52
- Spitfire – 234
- Hurricane – 410
- Defiant – 14
- Gladiator – 7
- Total – 717
On this occasion, the Luftwaffe returned to attacking a convoy. In fact, it was a feint. The real effort was an attack picked up by radar of a large formation coming in from the Pas de Calais. The enemy target turned out to be airfields south of London. A group of bombers flying at 20 000 ft struck Biggin Hill, doing considerable damage to the area but not the aerodrome itself. A little later, a second group of aircraft attacked with a large segment aiming once again at Biggin Hill. To this was, however, added Shoreham and Tangmere. Later that afternoon, a third wave of attacks came over, including a third visitation for the day on Biggin Hill, together with a number of other airfields. The most damaging raid of the day was flown by a group of 10 Ju88s which, aiming at Biggin Hill, flew north of that airfield, then turned round and came in from that direction. The bombing was extremely accurate. It left the airfield a virtual wreck. It also left 39 dead and many of the buildings demolished. Detling and Kenley were also hit in this serious attack. Detling was out of action until the following day.
Finally another group got through to Luton where bombs hit the Vauxhall works and caused a large number of casualties.
At the end of a busy day, the RAF had lost 25 fighters compared with 36 German aircraft destroyed. However, 15 RAF pilots had survived. 1050 sorties had been flown by the RAF. This was to be the highest number of sorties flown in a day during the Battle.
That night Liverpool suffered a third episode of heavy bombing.
242 Squadron Operational Record Book – 30 August
Squadron ordered to proceed to Duxford. Operations from Duxford. Enemy planes shot down north of London without any loss to Squadron. 4 e/a attacked and probably shot down. Signal received from AOC 12 Group congratulating Squadron on its achievement. The above brings the Squadron’s total bag for month to 14 certainties and 5 probables. Signal received from AOC 12 Group read: ‘heartiest congratulations on a first class show. Well done 242”. Signal received from Chief of the Air Staff which read: “magnificent fighting. You are well on top of the enemy and obviously the fine Canadian traditions of the last war are safe in your hands”. Signal received from Under Secretary of State for Air congratulating Squadron.
253 Squadron Operational Record Book – 30 August
14 Hurricanes took off Kenley 10:50 hours followed by 5 more at 11:25 hours when an attack on Croydon and Kenley appeared likely. The Squadron was first ordered to patrol Maidstone, but the flights were separated and were ordered back to orbit base where they were joined by the other 5 aircraft. They were then vectored off to the south, where at 18,000 feet near Redhill they saw 3 formations of 9 bombers escorted by 30 fighters, Me110s and Me109s. B Flight at once attacked the bombers, which included He111, Do215 and possibly Ju88s, but observed no results with the exception of PO Nowak (Green 3) who probably destroyed a Do215 (this pilot maintained that this bomber was a Ju88) A Flight who were behind and below followed in to attack and Yellow 3 (PO Greenwood) fired all his ammunition into a Heinkel 111 which force landed, 4 of the crew being seen climbing out. A series of individual fights took place, chiefly with Me110s and Me109s which had come to the rescue of the bombers.
303 Squadron Operational Record Book – 30 August, Northolt
First operation. In the course of training interception with 6 Blenheims in the afternoon, B Flight contacted with some 60 German bombers, 60 fighters and British fighters having a running battle near Hatfield. FO Paszkiewicz brought down one Do 17 (destroyed) while the rest of the fighters escorted the Blenheims safely back to Northolt.
Reported Casualties (RAF Campaign Diary 30th August 1940):
* Enemy: 62 confirmed, 21 probable, 29 damaged
* Own: 25 aircraft (10 pilots killed or missing)
Todays’s theme: The Squadrons – 310 Squadron
30th August 1940
Monday, August 30th, 2010
Alarm today at 4.15pm when more than 200 people came into the Vaults. Hot day.
More detail on events in the Battle of Britain on 30th August 1940 can be found at the Imperial War Museum's Battle of Britain website and the RAF Battle of Britain Campaign Diary.
More detail on events in the Battle of Britain on 30th August 1940 can be found at the Imperial War Museum's Battle of Britain website and the RAF Battle of Britain Campaign Diary.