NAZI BASES ATTACKED

Southland Times, Issue 24232, 16 September 1940, Page 5

NAZI BASES ATTACKED

STRONG BRITISH FORCES

GROUPS OF BARGES WRECKED DOCK INSTALLATIONS SET ON FIRE (British Official Wireless) (Rec. September 15, 6.30 p.m.) RUGBY, September 14. An Air Ministry communique says that strong forces of bombers attacked enemy shipping in harbours and docks on the French and Belgian coasts on Friday night. Concentrations of barges were wrecked and dock installations set on fire at Boulogne, Calais, Dunkirk, Ostend and Antwerp. A daylight attack was also made on a convoy of tankers off the mole at Zeebrugge in which one ship exploded after a direct hit. Two of our aircraft were lost. The invasion bases on the Dutch, Belgian and French coasts received the full force of Friday night’s operations by bomber squadrons of the Royal Air Force. Throughout the night from soon after 10 p.m. till shortly before dawn this morning a series of heavy attacks, launched by separate striking forces, was made on barges and shipping concentrations. Barges were repeatedly hit by high explosive and incendiary bombs and widespread damage was caused to docks and harbour installations.

Barges in the Boulogne harbour basins were bombed in a series of low level and shallow dive attacks. Hits were also scored on the adjoining wharves and jetties, and several large explosions, accompanied by brilliant red flashes, were observed. Intense opposition was encountered from the Boulogne ground defences and one Royal Air Force aircraft, which was held by at least six searchlights, was hit in several places by shells and splinters while making a low level run over the target. DIRECT HITS ON BARGES At Ostend, where the docks were subjected to an hour’s bombardment, barge concentrations in the basins were clearly seen in bright moonlight. Sticks of heavy calibre bombs fell across rows of barges. In one dive attack made across the outer port line bombs scored direct hits on barges lying along the east and west sides of the port and started two fires. Others from the same stick struck the dock railway station and exploded on the edge of the wharf, causing another fire. in an attack a few minutes later bombs straddled the harbour entrance from the west pier to concentration barges in the new outer harbour. Incendiary bombs, which were also dropped on barges and along the quayside, started a line of fire on one side of the outer harbour. A great fire on the edge of one basin was seen over an hour

later to be still raging and growing. The raid on Dunkirk began shortly after midnight and was pressed home despite strong opposition from ground batteries and searchlight posts arranged round the harbour. Repeated hits were obtained on tidal basins, on a railway yard inside the docks and large buildings on three sides of a commercial dock. Many heavy explosions were seen within the target area. One of several fires which broke out could be seen for 30 miles out to sea. Searchlights which interfered with observation were bombed and machine-gunned. DOCK BUILDINGS HIT At Calais, which was simultaneously attacked, barges moored to one side of Carnot basin and in the west basin were wrecked by direct hits. Bursts were seen in many parts of the tidal harbour on docks, dock buildings, railway sidings and junctions at the southern end of the harbour.

From before midnight until the early hours of the morning a strong force of raiders attacked docks and harbours at Antwerp, where a large number of barges were sighted in the middle of the river alongside the canal and ifc docks leading down to the river. Salvoes of high explosive and incendiary bombs were dropped on these targets, as well as on docks and quays.

The first four bombs of a stick which fell across the eastern section of the Austroweel dock burst on the quayside and the remainder across the docks. Other bombs scored direct hits on

barges and started fires on the quayside near the junction of the canal and the river and on the north side of the canal.

During the previous afternoon Royal Air Forces bomber forces successfully attacked a number of barges moored in the river at Ijesselmond, east of Rotterdam, and a convoy of six or seven tankers, each about 2000 tons, was sighted off the mole at Zeebrugge. Direct hits were scored on one vessel, which exploded in a mass of flames and a cloud of dense black smoke. The Vichy correspondent of the British United Press says it is reliably stated that the Royal Air Force, which is hammering German shipping concentrations and ports in the Channel and North Sea, Is now much more active than the Luftwaffe. The British Fleet and Air Force are reported to be keeping up a 24-hour attack on German shipping at the ports of Norway. Holland, Belgium and France. Tremendous destruction is reported, particularly at Dunkirk, Calais and Boulogne. Several supply ships were set on fire at Le Havre. Great fires are reported on the French coast between Boulogne and Dunkirk. British bombers also attacked convoys of small boats, pontoons and barges moving down the Channel, hugging the Belgian and French coasts. There is every indication that British air activity has doubled in intensity in the past 48 hours and is now enormously in excess of that of the Germans. NEW ZEALAND PILOT’S DARING ATTACK A New Zealand bomber pilot was responsible for a daring attack on Flushing dockyard. His plane, which dived to within a stone’s throw of the docks, was thrown up 600 feet by a tremendous explosion as a result of hits on buildings and an ammunition dump. The pilot said he met terrific anti-aircraft fire. It was not worth while dodging, so he dived down. The crew were thrown on their faces as the plane shot up. The machine was hit and was partly out of control, but they reached England without casualty.