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Oberon · 06-21-10, 05:58 PM

Part One: Convoys.

10th July 1940

Luftwaffe target: Convoy 'Bread'

During the day the main effort was concentrated in two attacks on shipping. At approximately 1100 hours a convoy was attacked off Manston by 1 Dornier escorted by 10 Me109s but in consequence of timely action by two of our fighter squadrons, the enemy aircraft were driven off. They suffered losses of 1 Me109 confirmed and 4 Me109s probable. At 1325 hours a large force of about 120 enemy aircraft collected behind Calais and approached a convoy between Dover and Dungeness. Fighter interception by 5 squadrons resulted in 6 Me110s, 1 Me109, 1 Do17 and 1 Do215 being confirmed as having been shot down, and 2 Me110s, 5 Me109s and 4 Do215s as probable casualties.

Further enemy harassing raids took place along the West, South and East coasts. This was especially heavy in the West. Towards the evening, owing probably to bad weather, activity decreased. 1 Ju88 was shot down by AA fire. In the east, casual shipping was attacked and a few localities bombed including Raynham Aerodrome. During the course of these attacks 1 Do17 and 1 He111 were shot down and 1 Do17 and 1 He111 are probable casualties. No. 242 Squadron took part and accounted for one certain and one unconfirmed (included in the above). A few sporadic raids took place over the Scottish coast, none of these were intercepted.
Between 2130 and 0530 hours, 12 raids were plotted between Firth of Tay and Beachy Head. Owing to adverse weather, none of our fighters were up. Bombs were dropped on Guisborough, Canewdon, Hertford, Isle of Grain, Tobermory (Isle of Mull, West Coast of Scotland), Colchester, Welwyn and Ely.

Quotations:

".......for this victory, we must thank the radar in which placed us in readiness and allowed us to send our fighter squadrons out to meet them. I think that the way that these brave pilots stopped the convoy being attacked shows the maturity attained since France"
ACM Sir Hugh Dowding remarking on this encounter June 10th 1940

"It is difficult to describe my feelings during the next few days. We had just lost three pilots in thirty-six hours, all of them in fights in which we had been hopelessly out- numbered, and I felt that there was now nothing left to care about, because obviously from the law of probability, one could not expect to survive many more encounters of a similar nature....."
Pilot Officer D.M Crook 609 Squadron RAF

"The convoy had been sighted between Dover and Dungeness. Our briefing took only a few minutes and within half an hour of being airborne we had sighted the coast of Kent. The Channel was bathed in brilliant sunshine...A light haze hung over the English coast, and there far below us, was the convoy, like so many toy ships with wispy white wakes fanning out behind. As soon as we were observed, the ships of the convoy dispersed, the merchantmen maneuvering violently and the escorting warships moving out at full speed. Anti-aircraft shell peppered the sky. Our fighters now appeared. We made our first bomb run, and fountains leapt up around the ships....By now the fighter squadrons of the Royal Air Force had joined in, and the sky was a twisting, turning melee of fighters....My wing was in the air for three hours in all. We reported one heavy cruiser and four merchant ships sunk, one merchant ship damaged, and eleven British fighters shot down or damaged. We had lost two bombers, two twin engined fighters and three single engined fighters during the course of this engagement."
Werner Kreipe III KG 2 Luftwaffe.

"Day long sallies by waves of German bombers against coastal objectives in England, Wales,and Scotland reached a grand climax yesterday in the greatest and fiercest battle in ten and a half months of war when seventy-five Nazi bombers, escorted by forty-five or more fighters roared across the English Channel in two formations and showered bombs on a strongly defended convoy bringing vital food and other supplies to these besieged islands."
Writing for "The New York Times", Frank Kelley

CASUALTIES:

Enemy: Fighters - 8 confirmed, 11 unconfirmed; Bombers - 4 confirmed, 6 unconfirmed.

Own: 2 Hurricanes confirmed. 2 Hurricanes crashed on landing.

06-21-10, 05:58 PM	#1
Oberon Lucky Jack Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 25,976 Downloads: 61 Uploads: 20	Battle of Britain Part One: Convoys. 10th July 1940 Luftwaffe target: Convoy 'Bread' During the day the main effort was concentrated in two attacks on shipping. At approximately 1100 hours a convoy was attacked off Manston by 1 Dornier escorted by 10 Me109s but in consequence of timely action by two of our fighter squadrons, the enemy aircraft were driven off. They suffered losses of 1 Me109 confirmed and 4 Me109s probable. At 1325 hours a large force of about 120 enemy aircraft collected behind Calais and approached a convoy between Dover and Dungeness. Fighter interception by 5 squadrons resulted in 6 Me110s, 1 Me109, 1 Do17 and 1 Do215 being confirmed as having been shot down, and 2 Me110s, 5 Me109s and 4 Do215s as probable casualties. Further enemy harassing raids took place along the West, South and East coasts. This was especially heavy in the West. Towards the evening, owing probably to bad weather, activity decreased. 1 Ju88 was shot down by AA fire. In the east, casual shipping was attacked and a few localities bombed including Raynham Aerodrome. During the course of these attacks 1 Do17 and 1 He111 were shot down and 1 Do17 and 1 He111 are probable casualties. No. 242 Squadron took part and accounted for one certain and one unconfirmed (included in the above). A few sporadic raids took place over the Scottish coast, none of these were intercepted. Between 2130 and 0530 hours, 12 raids were plotted between Firth of Tay and Beachy Head. Owing to adverse weather, none of our fighters were up. Bombs were dropped on Guisborough, Canewdon, Hertford, Isle of Grain, Tobermory (Isle of Mull, West Coast of Scotland), Colchester, Welwyn and Ely. Quotations: ".......for this victory, we must thank the radar in which placed us in readiness and allowed us to send our fighter squadrons out to meet them. I think that the way that these brave pilots stopped the convoy being attacked shows the maturity attained since France" ACM Sir Hugh Dowding remarking on this encounter June 10th 1940 "It is difficult to describe my feelings during the next few days. We had just lost three pilots in thirty-six hours, all of them in fights in which we had been hopelessly out- numbered, and I felt that there was now nothing left to care about, because obviously from the law of probability, one could not expect to survive many more encounters of a similar nature....." Pilot Officer D.M Crook 609 Squadron RAF "The convoy had been sighted between Dover and Dungeness. Our briefing took only a few minutes and within half an hour of being airborne we had sighted the coast of Kent. The Channel was bathed in brilliant sunshine...A light haze hung over the English coast, and there far below us, was the convoy, like so many toy ships with wispy white wakes fanning out behind. As soon as we were observed, the ships of the convoy dispersed, the merchantmen maneuvering violently and the escorting warships moving out at full speed. Anti-aircraft shell peppered the sky. Our fighters now appeared. We made our first bomb run, and fountains leapt up around the ships....By now the fighter squadrons of the Royal Air Force had joined in, and the sky was a twisting, turning melee of fighters....My wing was in the air for three hours in all. We reported one heavy cruiser and four merchant ships sunk, one merchant ship damaged, and eleven British fighters shot down or damaged. We had lost two bombers, two twin engined fighters and three single engined fighters during the course of this engagement." Werner Kreipe III KG 2 Luftwaffe. "Day long sallies by waves of German bombers against coastal objectives in England, Wales,and Scotland reached a grand climax yesterday in the greatest and fiercest battle in ten and a half months of war when seventy-five Nazi bombers, escorted by forty-five or more fighters roared across the English Channel in two formations and showered bombs on a strongly defended convoy bringing vital food and other supplies to these besieged islands." Writing for "The New York Times", Frank Kelley CASUALTIES: Enemy: Fighters - 8 confirmed, 11 unconfirmed; Bombers - 4 confirmed, 6 unconfirmed. Own: 2 Hurricanes confirmed. 2 Hurricanes crashed on landing. Last edited by Oberon; 06-21-10 at 06:15 PM.