AIR WARFARE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 July 1940, Page 5

AIR WARFARE

HEAVY BALANCE AGAINST ITALY LOSS OF SEVENTY PLANES IN THREE WEEKS. MANY OTHERS SERIOUSLY DAMAGED. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, July 4. In three weeks of warfare the R.A.F. has scored what may fairly be termed considerable success against the Italian air force and at relatively slight cost. Between June 10 and July 4, 70 Italian aircraft were brought down and their total loss confirmed, while a further 15 cases are awaiting that supporting evidence without which definite destruction of enemy aircraft is not claimed by the R.A.F. Sixteen more are known to have been so seriously damaged as to make it unlikely that they reached home. British losses for this period were 12 machines lost and one . damaged. Informed London circles state that there is reason to believe that Germany counts on Italian co-operation in attacking Britain in an endeavour to overcome the qualitative superiority of the R.A.F. by overwhelming numbers. Experiences of air warfare in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, i however, indicate that the value will' be limited. BRILLIANT VICTORY SEVEN ENEMY MACHINES. SHOT DOWN BY SIX BRITISH FIGHTERS. LONDON, July 5. A brilliant victory by British airmen is reported from Cairo. Six British fighters encountered nine Italian planes, shooting down seven. One British plane is missing, but the pilot is believed to have made a forced landing inside our frontier. The communique also reports that a formation of Blenheim bombers inflicted considerable damage on an Italian aerodrome in Abyssinia. Bombers of the South African Air Force were active over Italian Somaliland. As a result of another encounter with British fighters, one enemy machine crashed in flames aiid another made a forced landing.