VICHY FIGHTERS ATTACK BRITISH

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIII, Issue 126, 30 May 1942, Page 7

VICHY FIGHTERS ATTACK BRITISH

OFF ALGIERS COAST

Two Of Our Aircraft Forced Down At Sea

British Official Wireless Rec. noon. RUGBY, May 29. A full account of a clash with Vichy aircraft off Algeria on May 18 is given by the Admiralty and the Air Ministry. It states: '"A Catalina aircraft, carrying out reconnaissance ahead of our naval forces, turned to investigate small vessels, apparently in distress, 10 miles north of the Algerian coast. Two Vichy fighters appeared whereupon the Catalina at once turned back northward. The Vichy fighters nevertheless attacked the flying-boat and seriously wounded three of the crew. As a result the Catalina came down on the sea 20 miles north of the coast. A destroyer was dispatched to salve the aircraft and, in view of the possibility of further Vichy air attacks, was provided with a lighter cover by two naval aircraft. A Vichy fighter attempted to attack one of the naval aircraft but was shot down.

Three Vichy fighters circled the destroyer and attacked a Sunderland fiving-boat, which had arrived. They were, however, driven off by gunfire from the destroyer after the crew of the Catalina had been rescued bv the destroyer. Four more Vichy fighters appeared and these were engaged by gunfire from the destroyer, but they shot down one of our naval aircraft

All these incidents took place between 10 to 20 miles from the Algerian coast and the statement of the Vichy authorities, that thev occurred because our forces had entered territorial waters, is untrue.