HEAVY BLOWS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 April 1941, Page 5

HEAVY BLOWS

STRUCK BY ROYAL AIR FORCE IN AFRICA & ALBANIA. MEDITERRANEAN OPERATIONS. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 10.20 a.m.) RUGBY, April 4. A communique issued from R.A.F. headquarters in the Middle East states: “In Libya bomber aircraft of the R.A.F. made a heavy attack on enemy motor transport convoys in the Mersa Brega area, in Tripolitania, during the night of April 2. After dropping bombs, which were seen to burst among vehicles, setting a number on fire, our aircraft descended to a low altitude and halted several more vehicles by machine-gun fire. A successful bombing raid was also carried out on Tripoli. “In Italian East Africa ana in Abyssinia, in support of army operations, R.A.F. bombers attacked concentrations of enemy transports on the As-sab-Dessie road with bombs and ma-chine-gun fire. An enemy encampment on the Adawa-Gondar road and a bridge over the Takkazi River were also bombed. “A highly successful attack was made yesterday on military objectives .-ty at Berat, in Albania, by our bomber VthaJrcraft. Direct hits were observed Xa,u military buildings and depots on The east side of the town. “Italian 579 "bomber aircraft, escorted by CR42 fighters, attempted unsuccessfully to machine-gun an

R.A.F. launch forty miles off Malta yesterday. Later a formation of German JUB7 dive-bombers, escorted by ii number of Messerschmitt 109 fighters, dropped bombs in the vicinity of two mine-sweeping trawlers off Filfla, but obtained no hits. “From these operations all our aircraft returned safely.”