R.A.F. DAY AND NIGHT OFFENSIVE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 28 June 1941, Page 5

R.A.F. DAY AND NIGHT OFFENSIVE

Destructive Attacks on Ships and Bases ENEMY FIGHTERS DECLINE CHALLENGE NIGHT BOMBERS START MANY FIRES IN KIEL LOX DON. June 28. An enemy supply ship left sinking’ in the Channel, another enemy ship dive-bombed and German aircraft attacked on the ground on aerodromes in Northern France, were incidents of today’s daylight sweeps by the R.A.F. over the English Channel and Northern France. British planes made three sweeps today, but no enemy fighters were sent up into the sky to meet them. In one sweep by a force of Blenheim bombers, escorted by fighters, one of the Blenheims dropped a bomb on the stern of a German supply ship in the Channel. When the pilots turned for home the stern was already under water and the sea was se t en washing over the decks. Another attack was made on a- convoy of three ships about 10 miles off the coast, The middle one, of 3,000 tons, was dive-bombed. Other aircraft attacked a line of Messerschmitt 109 s on an aerodrome in France and sent cannon shots right along the line. Polish airmen flew down to 20 feet above the ground and machine-gunned enemy aircraft on the ground. Three were destroyed and four others badly damaged. Further R.A.F. squadrons attacked an aerodrome 10 miles from the coast. One pilot machine-gunned troops in a military camp. During all these operations only three enemy aircraft were seen off the ground and these disappeared, apparently having engagements elsewhere. There was very little enemy air activity over Britain. A single enemy plane dropped bombs on the east coast of Scotland, causing some damage and a small number of casualties. Last night’s R.A.F. attack was directed mainly against Kiel and the Rhineland. The industrial areas of Dusseldorff and Cologne and the docks and shipyards of Kiel were heavily bombed. A terrific storm was again encountered. It is at the Kiel shipyards that German battleships and submarines are built and this naval base is also the headquarters of Germany’s Baltic coast defences. ' The German pocket-battleship Luetzow is said to be lying at Kiel, undergoing repairs after having been torpedoed by British aircraft off Norway about a fortnight ago. Since then Kiel has been raided five times. Many fires were again seen among the docks ’and shipyards after last night’s raid.