ATTACKS ON CONTINENT

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21190, 13 August 1940, Page 5

ATTACKS ON CONTINENT

BOMBS AND EXPLOSIONS SUCCESSFUL AIR RAIDS (Official Wireless) (Received August 13, 11 a.m.) RUGBY, Aug. 12 An Air Ministry communique states: High-level bombing of enemy aerodromes was carried out throughout yesterday. The enemy-occupied airfields at Dinard and Caen were attacked, and the seaplane slipway at Brest was damaged. The Guernsey airport was again bombed. Coastal Command aircraft, while on reconnaissance duty off the French coast, shot down an enemy fighter into the sea.

Oil was again the main objective of our bombers last night. The synthetic oil plant at Dortmund blew up with a violent explosion and the plant at Castroprauxel was fired. Plants at Gelsenkirchen and Wanneeickel were also heavily bombed. Military objectives at Dusseldorf, Wanneeickel, Hattenigen and Dortmund were also attacked, and Hamm and Soest received their usual visit. A number of enemy aerodromes were also bombed. Three of our aircraft were lost in all these operations. Big Fires Started German aircraft moving along a flare path on the aerodrome near Cherbourg was bombed last night by a Blenheim of the Coastal Command. The Blenheim pilot saw many lights moving quickly along the flare path as he came in to attack. His bombs burst very close to them. Others of his squadron attacked oil tanks at Cherbourg, starting big fires. As they flew away the gunners and observers could see flames rising, punctuated by violent upheavals as other tanks caught fire. Another flight of Coastal Command Blenheims set out during the night to attack a German oil depot on the Dutch coast. The weather was bad and only one aircraft was able to find the target. The pilot dropped all bombs directly on the target. Violent Explosions Further details of Royal Air Force raids on Sunday night are contained in an Air Ministry bulletin. Aircraft .which attacked the synthetic oil plant at Dortmund reported that an explosion of exceptional violence followed the dropping of their bombs. Though flying at several thousand feet the crews could hear the sound of the explosion above the roar of their engines, which was very unusual. An oil plant at Castroprauxel was left burning briskly. Severe damage was also done to a plant at Wanneeickel. At Gelsenkirchen over 50 heavy bombs and many incendiary bombs were dropped on an oil plant. Here, again, the pilots saw fires and an explosion through the darkness as their bombs hit the plant. The Dortmund electricity power station was attacked by an aircraft, whose pilot saw four of his bombs hit the buildings. A few minutes afterwards came a vivid blue flash. Another electric power station was bombed at Hattingen.

Accurate bombing from high altitudes was a feature of Sunday’s daylight raids by medium bombers, when for the third day running the Le Bourg aerodrome in Guernsey was bombed.