ENEMY AIRCRAFT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 3 June 1941, Page 6

ENEMY AIRCRAFT

OVER 2,200 DESTROYED IN MIDDLE EAST DURING FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF YEAR. ROYAL AIR FORCE REPORT. (British Ofl'icial Wireless.) (Received This Day, 12.20 p.m.) RUGBY, June 2. Commenting on the figure of 244 enemy aircraft destroyed during the month of May in the Middle East, a communique issued by the R.A.F. Middle East Headquarters states: "This brings the total for the first four months of this year to 2,243. It will be appreciated that this figure relates to enemy aircraft definitely known to have been destroyed and does not include numerous others badly damaged, which probably became writeoff's. The figures for the month have certain points of special interest. The East African front, which has been the most fruitful source of success for the Imperial air forces since the war began, dried up with the collapse of the Italians in Eritrea and Southern Abyssinia. Only two enemy aircraft have since been destroyed in East Africa. One was shot down by fighters and the other by anti-aircraft fire. "During 'the disturbances in Iraq, the rebel air force was wiped out in a week by our fighters. Towards the end of the month these included several German aircraft. "Over Malta, four enemy machines were shot down by anti-aircraft fire and four by fighters. "On other fronts, which include Crete, Syria and infrequent theatres of operations such as Suez and Sicily, 37 enemy aircraft were shot down by fighters and 27 by anti-aircraft fire and 72 were destroyed on the ground. The largest proportion of these were shot down in the Crete operations, where the enemy poured in aircraft and men without regard for loss of life or material. "The total of the month was 244 for the Middle East fronts, and against this the R.A.F. lost 65 aircraft, but the pilots of a number of these are safe. "An analysis of communiques issued during the month of May reveals the comparative aircraft losses in the various theatres of war to be: — "Over Britain and British coastal waters: British, 18; enemy, 205. "Over Germany and occupied territory: British, 67; enemy, 31. "At sea: British, 2; enemy, 25.”