ENEMY BOMBERS FALL PREY TO R.A.F.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 229, 26 September 1940, Page 7

ENEMY BOMBERS FALL PREY TO R.A.F.

BIG AIR BATTLE. (Powerful Formations Break I Up Before Onslaught. British Official Wireless. (Reed. 2.30 p.m.) RUGBY, Sept. 25. Details given by the Air Ministry news service of the air battle taking place mainly over the west of England, show that the proportion of German bombers destroyed is as heavy as in the attacks earlier in the month over London. The news service states that large German bomber formations wero seen over England on Wednesday for the first time since the Luftwaffe's defeat of September 15. In that battle over London a very high proportion of bombers was destroyed and as was shown by rejMjfts, up to 7.30 to-night at least 15 of the German planes brought down were heavy bombers and three others were lighter bombers. Twenty enemy planes were shot down between Bristol and the English Channel by Spitfire and Hurricane pilots. Three were shot down by anti-aircraft guns. Four British lighters were lost or are missing, but three pilots are safe. Between 100 and 200 enemy bombers and lighters flew north-west in a variety of formations' just before noon. The tighter pilots saw two wedges of Junkers 88 bombers in tight arrowheads of three, about 40 in each wedge. Messerschmitt 109's were higher still, flying in steps. Heavy Dornier 17 and Heinkel 111 bombers kept the same close arrowhead formations. Spitfire pilots of one squadron shot down live enemy planes and probably destroyed several more. Pilots of other Spitfires of the Nizam of Hyderabad squadron, which also destroyed five German raiders, spoke of the defensive circles formed by Messerschmitt fighters when attacked. Bombers on the other hand kept to tight formations and the Spitfires, diving on thein out of the sun from 21,000 ft. had to stand heavy crossfire from German air gunners.

The pilots of a Hurricane squadron flying high above tiie clouds chased a great formation of Heinkel Ill's from the mouth of the Severn well out into the Channel. They kept diving in line astern from 22,000 ft, picking off one Heinkel after another until they had destroyed six and seriously damaged others.