DEEP INTO GERMANY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 August 1943, Page 3

DEEP INTO GERMANY

FORTRESSES BOMB TARGETS IN BAVARIA MANY ENEMY FIGHTERS DESTROYED. ONE AMERICAN FORCE GOES ON TO AFRICA. LONDON, August 18. Flying Fortresses which attacked targets at Schweinfurt and Aegensburg, in Bavaria, yesterday, met the strongest fighter opposition ever experienced. They took a correspondingly large toll of the enemy fighters. Iln the Schweinfurt raid over 100 <iemy fighters were destroyed by the Fortresses and their escorting Thunderbolts.

The force which attacked Regensburg went on to Africa and their bag of enemy fighters, which is not yet known, will have to be added to the figure mentioned above. Strong formations flying deep into Southern Germany attacked an important industrial target at Schweinfurt and a plane factory at Regensburg, says the United States Eighth Air Force headquarters. Marauders, supported by R.A.F., Dominion and Allied Spitfires, hit German airfields at Bryassud and Poix in occupied France. The attack on Regensburg meant a round trip of nearly 1200 miles for the Fortresses, mainly over enemy territory. They fought fierce running battles at times with upward of 200 enemy fighters, some of which had Italian markings. Regensburg has been raided twice before, the last time being in January, 1941. Schweinfurt has not previously been attacked. It was the Fortresses’ biggest raid and also the deepest penetration into Germany and it celebrated the first anniversary of the American bombing of Europe.

Spitfires escorted them as far as Antwerp, where they also met them returning. This afternoon American Marauders attacked Axis airfields in Holland and near the French town of Lille. Spitfires shot down one enemy fighter. One Spitfire is missing.