HEAVY POUNDING

Taranaki Daily News, 17 September 1940, Page 7

HEAVY POUNDING

By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright.

British Official Wireless.

NAZI INVASION MACHINE

Received 5.5 p.m.' Rugby, September 15. LARGE forces of British bombers ranged on Saturday night over Germany, France, Belgium and Holland, systematically seeking out and breaking up the German High Command's invasion machine. Flying through appalling weather — aircraft were struck by lightning, radio aerials burnt off in a violent electric storm, and many machines iced up — the raiders struck heavily at the invasion's front line in the Channel ports of Holland; France and Belgium, and attacked the bases, railway junctions and transport centres in Germany whence comes its reserves and supplies.

One of the night's most devastating onslaughts was made on Antwerp. Havoc was caused in the vast network of docks, warehouses and petrol sheds on the banks of the Scheldt and on shipping lying in the stream as large forces of bombers dropped nearly 40 tons of high explosive bombs and over 1000 incendiaries in an attack that lasted Jrom 11 o'clock until 1.30 a.m. • The port, shipping, long-range guns, anti-aircraft batteries and searchlight concentrations at and around Calais were all bombed heavily from 8.30 p.m. until nearly 11 p.m. While some of the raiders attacked the harbour and shipping concentrations inside it ,others sought out big guns nearby and started fires in these target areas. A huge fire was begun after one aircraft had attacked barges in Calais harbour, and another pilot, flying through cloud into moonlight, clearly saw and bombed various basins. Bombs burst on wharf buildings, and barges in the No. 6 dock suffered particularly severe damage. One pilot reported that some minutes after he had dropped high explosives among the barges there was a big explosion from the middle of the dock and flames shot upwards. "I could actually see my bombs burst right on a concentration of targes on the east side of No. 6 dock," said another pilot. "The last two scored direct hits on a 5000-ton merchant .ship at the north

end of the dock, and clouds of dense smoke began to come out of iier. No. 6 ■ dock was filled with barges, and I estimate there were about 300 of them." I One aircraft was held in the blinding i glare of 10 searchlights. It was hit in j several places, and there was intense j tracer fire. All the same, the pilot made ! his attack and hit the north end of the ; Carnot basin. | Large numbers of barges were found in Ostend harbour, where the defences had been considerably strengthened during thc past week. Many barges were in the ; outer harbour, the main west dock and j basin No. 1, and these were all bombed. | The Air Ministry communique which j announced the raids stated: "Last night • strong forces of Royal Air Force bombers j made heavy and sustained attacks on ; shipping, barge concentrations, military j equipment and stores assembled in Channel ports, and on distribution centres and lines of communication uscd by the enemy for the movement of supplies. Thc ports of Antwerp. Flushing, Dunkirk. Calais and Boulogne were heavily bombed. Supply depols at Osnabruck, Mannheim, Aachen, Hamm, Krefeld and Brussels and rail communications at Rheine, Haus, Sundern. Husten and Westhofen were attacked. Our pilots and crews pressed home the attacks in spite of severe weather and heavy opposition from the ground defences. Much damage was done, particularly to the docks at Antwerp. Gun emplacements at Cap Gris Nez and several enemy aerodromes | were also bombed. One of our aircraft is ( missing."