HEAVY BOMBING ATTACKS

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 285, 31 August 1942, Page 6

HEAVY BOMBING ATTACKS

British Air Activity

NAZI STRONGHOLD RAIDED . (British Official Wireless.)

(Received August 30, 7.5 p.m.)

RUGBY, August. 29.

A strong force of Royal Air Force bombers last night attacked objectives in Nuremberg and Saarbrucken. Thirty of oui' bombers are missing.. Nuremberg, formerly a beautiful old city, has been turned by the Germans' into an important centre of the war industry. It is well known as a Nazi stronghold.

Nuremberg has a tank factory, large aluminium works making piston-rods and castings, and also a factory making*heavy electrical equipment. It is an important railway centre with great repair shops for locomotives and rolling-stock. " The weather was perfect for the attack with scarcely a trace of cloud for miles round the target and a brilliant moon. With fires springing up from the targets, the crews could see the buildings and streets almost as clearly as in daytime. One Lancaster pilot reported that there’were terrific fires raging when they arrived and they started more. The defence was very strong and the, crews saw many combats going on round them as night lighters attacked our bombers. At least one Messerschmitt 110 was destroyed. The attack on Saarbrucken was made by a force almost as strong as that at Nuremberg. There was some haze over the town, but many fires were reported. . It is officially stated that Tinted States Flying Fortresses, escorted by R.A.F. fighters, bombed a German aerodrome 'near Courtrai, Belgium, today. Many bursts were seen on the target. On the return trip the fortresses beat off attacks by enemy lighters several of which were severely damaged, .though their destruction could not be confirmed. During this operation diversionary sweeps in which United States fighters participated were made. : None of our aircraft are missing.’ . ■ ■ ■ ■ • Bostons of the Bomber Command, escorted by fighters, attacked the docks at Ostend this morning, while other bombers.attacked power stations in the Lille and Lens. area. Two enemy fighters were destroyed during diversionary sweeps by our fighters. Two bombers and one fighter are missing. Attack on Kassel. >

The R.A.F. on Thursday night attacked the Germans in France, Boland, and in Germany itself. ’ . The main target was the big industrial town of Kassel. Reports indicate that the attack was concentrated and effective. Many of the aircraft attacked from 5000 feet, and some from IuOO feet. The pilot of a. Wellington which came in near the end of the attack saw three fires, each about an acre in extent, and after he had dropped his bombs more fires were seen. . With the moon so bright, and visibility good, it was expected that Gdrban * night fighters would be out in strength, and there were many combats and many stories of how bombers drove the enemy off. At the present stage of the war Kassel, a town of 218,000 inhabitants, is of. great importance to Germany. It is an important ’manufacturing centre, the principal factories being the Henschel locomotive works —the largest in Europe— the Henschel aircraft engine works, which produce Daimler-Benz engines, and the Fieseler aircraft works which are producing Messerschmitt fighters.

Heavy bombers also attacked objectives in the .Baltic port of Gdynia. Many enemy lighters were encountered, at least one of which was destroyed, and others severely damaged. The bombers, which had a journey of nearly 1800 miles there and back, found clouds over the.port. They were persistent in their attack, one making 12 runs over the target before dropping its bombs. Tighter Command planes on intruder patrol attacked railway and other targets in occupied France. In tnese patrols one enemy aircraft was destroyed. Thirty bombers and two fighters are missing from Thursday night’s operations. Daylight Sweeps. Widespread daylight sweeps over northern France were announced yesterday by the headquarters of the European theatre of operations of the United States Army and by the. Air Ministry.,' “This afternoon,” it wasjinuounced, “Flying Fortresses (BlT’s) of the United States Army Air Force, escorted by Spitfire squadrons of the R.A.F. antfrDoininion and Allied forces, bombed an"airframe factory at Mean! to, near Albert. Many other squadrons of fighters, including Spitfires of the U.S.A.A.F., carried out sweeps over St. Omer and Etreat. All the Flying Fortresses returned safely. One fighter of the Royal Canadian Air Force is missing. One enemy fighter was destroyed.” In brilliant moqnlight early yesterday morning, Hurricane bombers . attacked enemy merchant shipping in a convoy south of Guernsey. Two ships were left on fire and seriously damaged, both listing. During the night intruder aircraft of the Fighter Command shot up goods trains in occupied France and damaged at least eight locomotives. Other intruders attacked an airfield, factory and huts in a camp area. Brussels radio says that nine Belgians were killed when a British plane attacked the Faris-Brussels express. A Foeke-WuJC 190 was destroyed by a New Zealand flight lieutenant who was with an auxiliary squadron forming part of the escort for Flying Fortresses which bombed the aircraft factory at Melinite, says the Air Ministry news service. The New Zealander, who was commanding a flight, went down with his section to attack five F.W.lOO’s, and after giving one short burst saw the pilot fall out. He started to rejoin his formation when another enemy aircraft appeared. Our pilots attacked it and it went down in a spin, but they were not able to see 1 The B Air Ministry states that Pilot Officer It. A. Peters, of New Zealand, participated in the Hurri-bomber attack against shipping in the Channel. A' communique states that Pilot Officer Peters and a Canadian sergeant, after flying together across the Channel in "brilliant moonlight, spotted three ships south of Guernsey. Teters said, “We attacked the leading two. Twice I made direct hits. The Canadian also scored a hit. I circled over the ships, and afterward saw both badly listing. One was sinking when we left.”

PROTEST FROM VICHY

(Received August 30, 10.30 p.m.) VICHY, August 29.

The Vichy Government has protested to Britain against an alleged B.A.F. bombing tittack yesterday on a passenger train at Menars, near Blois, in which 26 people were killed and 56 Injured.