GALLANT FLIERS

Waikato Times, Volume 127, Issue 21220, 17 September 1940, Page 6

GALLANT FLIERS

ATTACKS ON CONTINENT MILITARY CENTRES HIT APPALLING WEATHER (United Press Asn.—Elec. Tel. Copyright) LONDON, Sept. 16 Large forces of British bombers ranged on Saturday night over Germany, France, Belgium and Holland systematically seeking out and breaking up the German High Command’s invasion machine. Flying through appalling weather—aircraft were struck by lightning and radio aerials were burned off in a violent electric storm, and many machines were iced up—the raiders struck heavily at the invasion’s front line in the Channel ports of Holland, France and Belgium, and attacked bases, railway junctions and transport centres in Germany, whence come its reserves and supplies. One British machine was lost. One of the night's most devastating onslaughts was made on Antwerp. Havoc was caused in the vast network of docks, warehouses and petrol sheds on the banks of the Scheldt, and shipping lying in the stream, as large torces of bombers dropped nearly 40 tons of highexplosive bombs and over 1000 incendiary bombs, in an attack lasting from 11 p.m. until 1.30 a.m. on Sunday. The port of Calais, shipping, longrange guns, anti-aircraft batteries and searchlight concentrations were all bombed heavily from 8.30 p.m. until nearly 11 p.m. While some of the raiders attacked the harbour and shipping concentrations inside it, others sought out the big guns near by and started fires in these target areas. A huge fire was begun after one aircraft had attacked barges in Calais harbour, and another pilot flying through cloud into moonlight clearly saw and bombed the various basins. Bombs burst on the wharf buildings, and barges in No. 6 dock suffered particularly severe damage. One pilot reported that some minutes after he had dropped high-explosive bombs among the barges there was a big explosion from the middle of the dock and flames shot upward. Pilot’s Thrilling Story Another pilot said: “I could actually see my bombs burst right on the concentration of barges on the east side of No. 6 dock. The last two scored a direct hit on a 5000ton merchant ship at the north end of the dock, and clouds of dense smoke began to come out of her. No. 6 dock was filled with barges, and I estimate there were about 300 of them.” One aircraft was held in the blinding glare of 10 searchlights. It was hit in several places and there was intense tracer fire. All the same the pilot made his attack and hit the north end of Carnot Basin.

Large numbers of barges were found in Ostend harbour, where the defences have been considerably strengthened during the past week. Many barges were in the outer harbour, the main west dock and No. 1 basin, and these were all bombed. The Oslo correspondent of the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter says Germany has created a vast military zone on the south-west coast of Norway. A large section of this area has been reserved exclusively for German troops.