CHANNEL ACTION

Wairarapa Times-Age, 16 February 1942, Page 4

CHANNEL ACTION

AGAINST NAZI WARSHIPS DOMINION PILOTS TAKE FULL PART. CLOSE & DARING ATTACKS. (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) (Received This Day, 11-20 a.m.) LONDON, February 15. Australians and New Zealanders fully shared in the Beaufort torpedo attack against the German ships in the Channel action. Pilot Officer E. Birchley and Pilot Officer R. Archer, of Brisbane, flew on either side of Squadron Leader W. Cliff. Pilot Officer Archer said the Scharnhorst hit his Beaufort. The top of the cockpit was blown off and the rear-gunner, Pilot Officer A. Wells, of Wellington, was wounded. The navigator, Sergeant D. N. Keeling, also of Wellington, replaced the guner in the turret. Pilot Officer Birchley, after dropping a torpedo, put his head out of the cockpit window to try to see the result through the mist. He flew within a hundred yards of the Scharnhofst and his gunner machinegunned the decks. Both the Australians thought they would never get out of the anti-aircraft fire.

Squadron Leader J. S. Dinsdale, of Te Kai, also participated. Assuming that the German warships are not damaged, their future tasks, according to authoritative British naval opinion, may include, firstly, to invite a genertal fleet action in the North Atlantic; secondly, to increase surface raiding, making it necessary to escort convoys with battleships; thirdly, to attempt an assault in Kronstadt, Leningrad's fortress, from the sea; fourthly, to create a base on the Norwegian coast, possibly at Narvik and attack convoys going to Russia.

VETERAN AIRMAN KILLED IN ATTACK ON NAZI SHIPS. DISTINGUISHED SERVICE IN WAR & PEACE. (Received This Day, Noon.) LONDON, February 15. Lieutehant-Cornmander Esmonde. who led the attack of six Swordfish aircraft against the German battleships, was killed in action. He was recently awarded the D.S.O. and was previously with the Imperial Airways. He was one of the pioneer pilots of the Empire air routes and flew 500,000 miles in five years.