HOLA TIGRE
UN NUEVO COMPLEMENTO SOBRE LA BATALLA DE INGLATERRA
PÉRDIDAS DE LA LUFTWAFFE EN EL NORESTE
North-East Diary
1939-1945
Roy Ripley &
Brian Pears
© Copyright Brian Pears 1994-2009
Batalla de Inglaterra
Tuesday, 25th/Wednesday, 26th June 1940 N297
A Heinkel He 111 crashed into the sea off Hull at 00.17 after two separate combat attacks off Withernsea. The bodies of two of the crew were recovered by 'HMS Brazen' some days later and buried at sea.
Wednesday, 26th/Thursday, 27th June 1940 N298
A Heinkel 111 was lost at sea off Blyth, on a sortie to Middlesbrough..
Sunday, 30th June 1940 D302
A Heinkel 115 crashed into the sea thirty miles off Whitby due to engine failure during a minelaying sortie at 02.15. The crew were rescued from their dinghy, after 28 hours adrift and landed at Grimsby.
Sunday, 30th June/Monday, 1st July 1940 N302
A Heinkel He 111 crashed into the sea off Hull at 17.00, following the bombing of the oil tanks there. It was shot down by aircraft of No 616 Squadron. The crew took to their dinghy and were rescued by the destroyer 'HMS Black Swan' and landed at Harwich.
This is a summary of the German account of the above planes destruction that was given by Oberleutnant zur See Friedrich Koch who was the senior in rank but not pilot of the aircraft ... After a delay of two hours due to a fault found during the pre-take-off check, the Heinkel 111 set off for a high-level attack on the chemical works at Middlesbrough, with the secondary target, the oil tanks at Hull. On arrival at the Yorkshire coast, there was not enough cloud cover for an attack on Middlesbrough so Hull became the target. Unaware that we were using radar directed fighter control, and getting occasional glimpses of British fighters, the enemy aircraft dithered between the two target areas until the pilot's oxygen was down to 20 minutes in his emergency supply, which he was having to use because of a fault in the main oxygen system.
Time was running out, so the oil tanks at Hull were selected as the target, AA gunfire was being troublesome and during the final run-in, a shell fragment entered the cockpit and damaged the instrument panel. After releasing the load of 50kg bombs, which straddled the oil-tanks, the Heinkel headed for home. As soon as they were out of the AA fire zone the Spitfires pounced, first the instrument panel was shot to pieces, then one engine put out of action, next the landing gear became unlatched and fell down, the flaps came off, after the second engine was put out of action and the starboard ailerons shot away, all that was left for the pilot to do was to use his skill to make the best possible crash-landing.
The crash when it came, was made worse by the lowered landing-gear - the aircraft toppled over and started to sink rapidly - the rubber dinghy was eventually freed and inflated, the crew scrambled in. Lt zur See Koch, suffering from a knock on the head, the pilot was unhurt, the wireless operator had been shot through the eye, head, arm and chest and the mechanic had bullet wounds in his buttocks and leg. A Sunderland flying-boat spotted the flares and called up 'HMS Black Swan' after ditching their pistols and co-ordinating their stories ready for the interrogations to come, the Germans were rescued. They were taken aboard at 18.00 (German Summer Time) - 17.00 (British Summer Time), the injured got medical attention, the uninjured were separated and interrogated, then all were given a meal. During the night, Lt zur See Koch lay on a stretcher in a gangway guarded by a sailor with a fixed bayonet. About 10.00 the next day the German airmen were transferred to another vessel that put them ashore at Harwich about noon.
A Heinkel He 59 landed on the sea eight miles east of Sunderland after being badly damaged by Spitfires. The crew of four (one of whom was injured) were picked up in their dinghy by a cruiser's sea boat. The aircraft was beached and examined for armament. This was possibly the first British violation of a white painted, Red Cross marked aircraft which was on a genuine search and rescue mission. The aircraft's markings were clearly visible and seen by the RAF pilots concerned, who also commented on the fact that no return fire or armament were discernible. After this attack, the Germans camouflaged and re-armed the He 59s again, by the end of 1940, forty of their air/sea rescue planes had been lost, twenty-five of them shot down by the RAF.
A Heinkel He 115 crashed into the sea, 30 miles off Whitby, due to engine failure, during a minelaying sortie at 02.15. The crew of three were rescued from a rubber dinghy after 28 hours at sea and landed at Grimsby. The aircraft was lost.
Wednesday, 3rd July 1940 D305
Enemy aircraft on sorties of armed weather reconnaissance over the east coast.
Monday, 8th July 1940 D310
A Junkers Ju 88A shot down in flames during a sortie to Sunderland, crashed at Hornsea in Yorkshire at 11.42. Three of the crew were captured and one was killed.
Green section of B flight of 249 Squadron operating from Church Fenton in Yorkshire shot down a Junkers Ju 88 at 11.30. 15 miles N of Flamborough Head. They had only been operational for 24 hours at that airfield.
Friday, 19th/Saturday, 20th July 1940 N321
1/KG40 Focke-Wulf FW200C. Brought down by AA fire during a minelaying sortie and crashed into the North Sea between Hartlepool and Sunderland 23.55. Fw H. Kulken and Fw K. Nicolai both captured unhurt. Fw W. Meyer killed. Hptmn R. Stesszyn (Staffelkapitän), Gefr S. Zaunig and Gefr J. Perl all missing believed killed. Aircraft F8+EH lost. The body of Willy Meyer was later washed ashore on the Yorkshire coast and originally buried at Driffield. Undercarriage leg trawled ashore and now in the North-East Aircraft Museum.
Thursday, 1st August 1940 D334
Enemy aircraft minelaying in the Tyne and Humber areas.
A Spitfire from No 616 Squadron based at Leconfield airfield near Beverley, Yorkshire, was returning to base damaged in radio and engine bearer by return fire from a Junkers Ju 88 engaged at 13.05. Sgt M. Ridley was unhurt, the aircraft, repairable.
Friday, 2nd August 1940 D335
The Hull based 'SS Highlander' (1,000t) cargo vessel, steamed into port with a Heinkel He 115 seaplane draped across her stern. The ship had just survived a bombing attack and the aircraft had turned to rake her with machine-gun fire, while doing so, the enemy had come just a little bit too close and was hit by the ship's gunners, it crashed in flames into the sea about 100 yards astern of the 'Highlander'.
The gunners were celebrating this 'kill' when another enemy aircraft, the Heinkel He 115, suddenly turned up, after making several passes it attacked, dropping bombs which missed, it too was caught by machine-gun fire on the turn. Losing height its port wing hit the 'Highlander's' port lifeboat and swung the plane around on to the poop deck, it caught fire, the ship's crew put it out, a second victory. There were no survivors from either plane.
Tuesday, 6th August 1940 D339
The following three Spitfires from No 616 Squadron based, at Leconfield airfield near Beverley in Yorkshire, returned to base, damaged by return fire from the same Junkers Ju 88, engaged twenty miles NE of Flamborough Head at 17.00. One was piloted by Squadron Leader M. Robinson, the second by Sgt M. Ridley and the third by Flight Lieutenant R.O. Hellyer. The pilots were unhurt and the aircraft were repairable. An aircraft piloted by Sgt M. Ridley was also damaged on August 1st.
Friday, 9th August 1940 D342
South Shields.. One High Explosive bomb fell in a garden at the back of Lawe Road near Pearson Street. Four people in an Anderson Shelter 10 feet from the crater were uninjured. One Home Guard was killed by machine-gun fire. No casualties from the bomb.
11.40.. Sunderland.. Four people were killed and seventy-eight injured, when a shipyard (Laing's), a railway bridge, some residential property (in Bonners Field ?) and Monkwearmouth Station Hotel was hit when bombing took place at Sunderland at 11.40 by a Heinkel He 111H, dumping its bombs, it then fell into the sea off Whitburn at 11.52 after an RAF fighter attack. The crew were picked by a RN patrol boat, two of the crew were injured and two were unhurt.
A Heinkel He 111H was shot down by AA gunfire during operations near Flamborough Head. The aircraft and the crew, listed as missing.
Sunday, 11th/Monday, 12th August 1940 N344
A Junkers Ju 88 shot down during a reconnaissance sortie, crashed at Newton Moor near Whitby at 19.08. Three of the crew were taken prisoner, one was killed (Lt H. Meyer), he was interred at Acklam Road Cemetery, Thornaby.
1(F)/121 Junkers Ju 88A-1. Shot down by Green Section of No 41 Squadron (Flying Officer J.G. Boyle, Sergeant E.V. Darling and Pilot Officer R.W. Wallens) during reconnaissance sortie and crash-landed on Newton Moor, Whitby at 19.08. Fw O. Höfft, Oberlt H. Marzusch and Fw K-H. Hacker captured unhurt. Lt H. Meyer killed. Aircraft 7A+KH a write-off. The Bordmechaniker, Heinrich Meyer, was buried at Acklam Road Cemetery, Thornaby and has not been reinterred in the Soldatenfriedhof at Cannock Chase.
Tuesday, 13th August 1940 D346
Twelve Blenheim Bombers of No 82 Squadron, without fighter escort, were ordered to attack the airfield at Aalborg West in Jutland, where it was thought 50 Junkers Ju 88s were massing ready for Eagle Day, together with the troop carriers, Junkers Ju 52s. This was the limit of the Blenheims operational range, their loads were to be four x 250lb HE and eight x 25lb Splinter Bombs, to disable parked aircraft.
On route, one bomber had to turn back. What was not known to British Intelligence was that in addition to the planes already reported, there were also nine Messerschmitt Me 109Es. It was these German fighters that shot every single Blenheim out of the sky.
Two days later, on Thursday, 15th August, 50 Junkers Ju 88s of Bomber Geschwader 30 took off from Aalborg West airfield to raid North East England, proving that the airfield facilities were not crucially damaged by the sacrifice of the Blenheims. Yet the Luftwaffe too failed to provide a complete fighter escort for their bombers and suffered accordingly. Seven of the raiders were shot down and three more were to force land or crash on their return. These losses were from one small group of the raiding force and were unacceptable to the German High Command, it virtually ended the threat from Air Fleet No 5.
Thursday, 15th August 1940 D348
Today was probably the most significant day in the Battle of Britain as far as the north-east is concerned. That is why different versions of the same air battles have been given, each one telling slightly more of the story as it unfolded, there are also differing versions, one version appears to show only 13 Groups battle, the others take in 12 Group as well, but its as accurate as its possible to get, 50 years after the event.
This was the day the Luftwaffe attempted to saturate the British Defences. One of the many areas of attack was Luftflotte 5's flank attack on the east Coast, they met heavy opposition and suffered serious casualties, most of whom fell into the North Sea. Luftflotte 5 never attempted a flank attack again. The man to whom the North-East is indebted for the successful defence of this area has not had very much in the way of recognition, he was the Air Officer Commanding, 13 Group, Air Vice-Marshal Richard Ernest Saul, DFC.
Despite enthusiastic claims made by the RAF (182 shot down), the true total of German losses was still a crushing blow to them. Over the whole country, Seventy-five lost and a further fifteen returning to base damaged. They also lost a further three planes and damaged another five in accidents.
The majority of people living in the North-East on this August day did not really know much about the events of the day, they just knew about the happenings in their own little part of the world, Miss Flagg's diary gives a true account of the day as the man or in this case, woman in the street saw it. The "Battle of Tyneside", in a way the prototype for the "Battle of Britain", did not affect the town (South Shields); indeed, many people had very little idea how momentous an occasion it was. The roar of planes and heavy gun-fire were heard; there were occasional glimpses of aircraft attacking or taking evasive action but bombs were only dropped in the harbour, on the cliffs and at sea. Four High Explosive bombs fell at Salmon's Hall and Frenchman's Bay. A Coast guard on duty had a narrow escape, one bomb falling on each side of his cabin which was seriously damaged. No casualties.
The following is an account of the North-East's part in that day, as described in the book Narrow Margin by Derek Wood and Derek Dempster .... "Then followed an attack which was to be the most interesting of the whole day. Banking on tactical surprise and conveniently forgetting the radar chain, Luftflotte 5 launched two simultaneous thrusts in the north and the north-east. They expected little opposition and their reception came as a painful surprise."
"At 8 minutes past 12 radar began to plot a formation of twenty plus opposite the Firth of Forth at a range of over 90 miles. As the raid drew closer the estimates went up to thirty in three sections flying SW towards Tynemouth."
"At Watnall the approach of 13 Groups first daylight raid was watched on the operations table with particular interest. With an hours warning the controller was able to put squadrons in an excellent position to attack, with 72 Squadron Spitfires in the path of the enemy off the Farne Islands and 605 Squadron over Tyneside. Nos 79 and 607 were also put up, but while the latter was in the path of the raid, No 79 was too far north."
"No 72 Squadron from Acklington was the first to make contact and it came as a distinct shock when the thirty materialised as I and III/KG 26 with sixty-five Heinkel 111s, and the entire I/ZG 76 from Stavanger with thirty-four Me 110s. After a brief pause in which to survey the two massive groups flying in vic formation, Squadron-Leader E. Graham led No 72 straight in from the flank, one section attacking the fighters, and the rest the bombers."
"The Me 110s formed defensive circles, while the Heinkels split up. Some of them jettisoned their bombs and headed back to Norway, leaving several of their number in the sea. The separate parts of the formation finally reached the coast, one south of Sunderland and the other south of Acklington. No 79 intercepted the northern group over the water, while a flight from No 605 Squadron caught it over land. Most of the HEs fell harmlessly in the sea."
"The group off Sunderland found Nos 607 and 41 waiting for it and they too bombed to little effect, apart from wrecking houses. The raiders turned back to Norway, the Me 110s having already departed some minutes before. Of a total force of about 100, eight bombers and seven fighters were destroyed and several more damaged without British loss. The airfield targets such as Usworth, Linton on Ouse and Dishforth went unscathed. One Staffel of III/KG 26 lost five of its nine aircraft in the course of the fighting."
"Farther south, an unescorted formation of 50 Ju 88s from I, II and III/KG 30, based on Aalborg, was heading in to No 12 Group off Flamborough Head. This group were detailed to wipe Driffield out as a bomber base. Full radar warning was given and 73 Squadron Hurricanes, 264 Squadron Defiants and 616 Squadron Spitfires were sent to patrol the area, the force being supplemented later by Blenheims from 219 Squadron in 13 Group."
"Both 616 and a flight of No 73 engaged, but the enemy split into eight sections. Some turned north to bomb Bridlington where houses were hit and an ammunition dump blown up. The main force, however, flew to the No 4 Group Bomber Station at Driffield, Yorkshire, where 169 bombs of various calibres were dropped on the airfield, four hangars were damaged and many other buildings were either bombed or raked with cannon fire, twelve Whitleys were destroyed and seventeen personnel were killed. The damage to the airfield was such, that it was non-operational for the rest of the year.
Heavy anti-aircraft fire was directed against the bombers and one was brought down. Altogether, six of KG 30s Ju 88s were shot down, representing about 10% of the force sent over."
"In all, the northern attackers lost sixteen bombers out of a serviceable Luftflotte 5 force of one hundred and twenty-three, and seven fighters of the thirty-four available".
This account of the days events have been taken from the book 'Action Stations. Vol 7'. by David J. Smith, in the section that deals with Usworth airfield. "The airfield at Usworth near Boldon was a training station for most of its wartime career, despite this it was singled out for a major Luftwaffe attack during the Battle of Britain. On August 15th 1940, a large force of Heinkel He 111s of KG 26, inadequately escorted by Messerschmitt Bf 110s of ZG 76 were detected approaching the east coast. Spitfires of 72 Squadron, Acklington met them off the Farne Islands and although heavily outnumbered, claimed several destroyed.
The German formation then split into two, one portion making for Tyneside and the other turned south. The second Acklington Squadron, No 79, encountered the northern group just off the coast and a dogfight with the escort ensued. Reforming, the Hurricanes caught up with the bombers who were approaching Newcastle on their way to their primary target which appeared to be Usworth airfield.
Harried by the Tyne guns and more Hurricanes from Drem airfield near Edinburgh, the Heinkels made off scattering their bombs to little effect, leaving Usworth untouched. The southerly force, attacked by 14 and 607 Squadrons from Catterick and Usworth, jettisoned their bombs in the region of Seaham Harbour. The enemy lost eight bombers and seven fighters and since no military target was hit, it could be said to have been a highly successful action on the part of 13 Group and the AA guns".
In the same book, the section that deals with Acklington airfield describes it thus "On August ?16th? 1940, believing that all our fighter squadrons had been committed to the struggle in the south, the Luftwaffe sent about one hundred bombers with an escort of forty Messerschmitt Bf 110s against Tyneside. Unfortunately for them, several Hurricane and Spitfire squadrons had been withdrawn from the battle to rest in, and simultaneously guard the north."
"The pilots had protested that they were not at all tired and then this unexpected consolation came upon the scene. Nearly thirty enemy aircraft were shot down, many by Acklington based aircraft, for a British loss of two pilots injured. Never again was a daylight raid attempted, outside the range of the best fighter protection and henceforth everywhere north of the Wash was safe by day".
The New English Library edition of The Battle of Britain gives the following account of today's events ... Fine and warm anticyclonic weather. All three Luftflotten in maximum effort against airfields, radar stations and factories including heavy attack by KG 26 and ZG 76 (Luftflotte 5) in the Newcastle area. RAF air station at Driffield bombed and ten Whitley bombers destroyed on ground. Other attacks leave Dishforth, Linton on Ouse and Usworth undamaged. Bridlington ammunition dump blown up. ..... This day a turning point: its losses convince the Luftwaffe that air superiority is essential before all-out bombing can be successful. It also marks the virtual end of Luftflotte 5's offensive usefulness, so sparing the north such heavy attacks in future; and the beginning of the end of the Ju 87's usefulness as a dive-bomber and that of the Bf 110 as an escort fighter. Losses: Luftwaffe: seventy-five, Fighter Command: thirty-four. It must be pointed out that the final remarks and figures appertain to the whole country.
This account of the days happenings, are extracts that come from Basil Collier's book 'The Battle of Britain'. The book also gives an inkling of the flair and boldness of Air Vice-Marshal Saul's tactics, plus a little praise for the outcome which saved the North-East from a lot of attention in the days of war, yet to come.
"The main feature of the second days (August 15) programme was that, for the first time, fairly weighty attacks across the North Sea were to be made by General Stumpff's Luftflotte 5 in concert with further attacks in the south by Kesselring and Sperrle. This was an extremely risky innovation .... but he could scarcely refuse the part assigned to him. His orders were attack aerodromes near Newcastle and in Yorkshire, and he had roughly sixty-five Heinkel 111s, fifty Junkers 88s and thirty-five Messerschmitt 110s with which to do it. The 110s were far too few to escort a hundred and fifteen bombers, and had barely the endurance to cross the North Sea in both directions. Making the best of a bad job, he fitted them with supplementary fuel-tanks; ordered them to fly without rear-gunners to compensate for the added weight; sent them to Newcastle with the Heinkels; and ordered the faster and more modern Junkers 88s to fly to Yorkshire unescorted. It was a desperate gamble, but it might conceivably come off.
The RDF stations on the east coast picked up the Heinkels and their escort when they were still far out to sea. Their first estimate was that more than twenty aircraft were approaching, but later they raised the figure to more than thirty, and finally to more than fifty. The stations said, correctly, that the aircraft were flying in three distinct formations.
Air Vice-Marshal R.E. Saul DFC commanding No 13 Group, was less well known to the public than his colleagues to the south, whose forces were in the thick of the fighting through-out the battle. August 15 gave him his first chance of countering a big attack in daylight. In spite of the enormous area he had to cover, he made such good use of it that it also proved to be his last, for the Germans never repeated the experiment.
Saul's position at noon, when the Heinkels of Kampfgeschwader 26 and the Messerschmitt 110s of Zerstorergeschwader 76 were first detected miles away over the North Sea, was that he had three squadrons of Spitfires, one of Hurricanes and one of Blenheims in the two sectors which covered the north of England. Of the remaining eight squadrons which made up the resources of his group, four and a half were far away in Northern Ireland, Shetland and the north of Scotland. To supplement the five squadrons he had immediately at hand, he could count only on two and a half squadrons of Hurricanes near the Firth of Forth and a squadron of Defiants near the Clyde. The Blenheims were no match even for long-range fighters, while the Defiants had suffered crippling losses in their last encounter with the Germans and were at least a hundred miles from any objective which Stumpff was likely to attack.
Saul began by sending one of the four single-seater squadrons close at hand to meet the enemy well off the coast. At the same time he brought down a squadron of Hurricanes from the Firth of Forth to patrol the Tyneside - an almost unprecedented step. As the threat became more imminent he added the remaining three single-seater squadrons immediately available, keeping back only the Blenheims, the Defiants, and a squadron and a half of Hurricanes near the Forth. By this time correctly appreciating that he had the greater part of Stumpff's resources on his front, he nevertheless responded to a call for reinforcement from No 12 Group, on his southern flank, by parting with the Blenheims, his only uncommitted squadron within reach. Like Brand (Air Vice-Marshal Sir Q. Brand AOC of 10 Group) in face of Sperrle's threat on the 13th, at least he ran little risk of being caught by Stumpff with his aircraft on the ground.
Meanwhile, to seaward of the Farne Islands, the Spitfires of No 72 Squadron from Acklington were closing with Stumpff's escorted bombers at the rate of something like eight miles per minute. In the absence of a squadron-leader, they were led by Flight-Lieutenant Edward Graham, who thus stepped into the place of honour in one of the most spectacularly successful air combats of the war.
Thirty miles off the coast, the squadron sighted the enemy - a hundred aircraft to their eleven. As the RDF stations had predicted, the Germans were flying in three formations - the bombers ahead and the fighters in two waves stepped up to the rear. Misled by the supplementary fuel tanks slung below the fighters, which looked like bombs, Graham and his pilots took the nearer wave for Junkers 88s.
Stumpff's armada was so vast in comparison with Graham's little force that he hesitated for a moment, uncertain at what point and from what direction to attack it. Apparently unable to bear the suspense, one of his pilots asked whether he had seen the enemy. With a slight stutter which was habitual, he replied " Of course I've seen the b-b-b-bastards, I'm trying to w-w-w-work out what to do." The reply became famous through-out Fighter Command.
He did not hesitate for long, The Spitfires had had plenty of time to gain height during their long flight from the coast, and were about three thousand feet above the enemy's mean height. Making the most of his advantage and of what corresponded to the weather-gauge, he decided to lead the squadron in a diving attack from up-sun, leaving each pilot free to choose his own target. Two-thirds attacked bombers or supposed bombers, the remaining third the second wave of fighters, correctly identified as 110s.
The results were startling. Jettisoning their external tanks, some of the 110s formed the usual defensive circle, while others dived almost to sea level and were last seen heading east. The bombers, less an indeterminate number destroyed by Graham's squadron, then split into two formations, each accompanied by some of the remaining fighters. One formation headed for Tyneside, apparently with the intention of bombing Saul's sector station at Usworth; the rest turned south-east towards two aerodromes at Linton on Ouse and Dishforth which they had been ordered to attack.
The first formation, engaged successively by the remaining squadron from Acklington, the Tyne guns and some of the Hurricanes which had come south from Scotland, dropped most of their bombs in the sea. The second, engaged by a squadron of Spitfires from Catterick, a Hurricane squadron from Usworth and the Tees guns, dropped theirs almost as ineffectively near Sunderland and Seaham Harbour. From first to last Saul's fighters, backed by the guns of the 7th Anti-Aircraft Division under Major-General R.B. Pargiter, destroyed eight Heinkels and seven 110s without suffering a single casualty. It is known that in addition to the enemy losses reported in this diary during this period, many German aircraft got back to their bases with battle damage varying from a few bullet holes to a total write-off on crash landing.
While these excitements were at their height, the fifty Junkers 88s which made up the rest of Stumpff's bomber force were speeding across the North Sea towards their objective in South Yorkshire, a bomber aerodrome at Great Driffield. About a quarter of an hour before the first shot was fired off the Farne Islands, warning was received in the operations room of No 12 Group at Watnall that German aircraft were approaching the front of the group's Church Fenton sector, but were still a long way out to sea."
.... Here the direct quotes from the story end, but a resume of the rest of the action in the north, is that .... Air Vice-Marshal Saul was even able to lend No 12 Groups AOC - Air Vice-Marshal Leigh-Mallory - his squadron of Blenheims to help in the defence of the airfield at Driffield which was bombed, as was Bridlington. The Blenheims were lent even though Air Vice-Marshal Leigh-Mallory had squadrons nearer to him available to fight, than Air Vice-Marshal Saul had at the beginning of the action.
Luftflotte 5 was finished in the daylight battle, apart from reconnaissance, and most of its bomber strength and some of its fighters were transferred to Luftflotte 2, based in France, towards the end of August.
An extract from a German airman's account of the attack on Driffield airfield is given below, it is by Oberleutnant Rudolf Kratz flying a Junkers Ju 88 of Stab/KG 30 stationed at Aalborg in occupied Denmark and it is taken from the book 'The Lufwaffe in the Battle of Britain' by Armand van Ishoven. ...' "The coast. The initial point. No time left for thinking - there lay England, the lion's den. But the eagles were going to attack the lion in his lair and wound him grievously.
"Fighters to starboard..." Three specks overflew us, disappeared to the rear, and after a diving turn, hung behind us." "Your turn now". The words disappeared in the rattle of our machine guns. In short bursts the volleys flew towards the first fighter. He turned away and the second one took his place. This one's fire is ineffective as well and both passed below and were shot at by our ventral gunner. Like hornets they swooshed through our formation, the roundels on their fuselage looking like eyes.
"Five fighters to port above." reported the wireless operator calmly. "Dammit," the pilot said, but did not get agitated. We kept on flying towards our target. Staring before us we tried to locate the airfield amidst the ragged clouds.' "There, the field, below us." ......
"The target at last - the fighters were beginning to be a real nuisance. The time had come now. I did not give a single Pfennig for the life of those below - drop the HEs, away with the blessing! The aircraft went into a dive, speed rapidly building up, and the wind roared and howled around us. The hangars grew and grew. They were still standing. The AA guns were firing away at us, but they were too late.
'A jolt - the bombs were free, the steel bodies out whistling down. Below all hell was let loose. Like an inferno, steel hit steel, and stones. Bomb upon bomb exploded, destroying and tearing apart what they hit. Hangar walls and roofs crumpled like tin sheets, pieces flying through the air. Aircraft were shattered by a hail of splinters. Barracks tumbled down, enormous smoke and dust clouds rose like mushrooms. Here and there explosions and flames shot up. The airfield and the hangars were already badly hit but bombs kept falling from the bombers that followed us, kept raining down in a horrible shower. Fire from exploding ammunition burst upwards like torches. The English AA artillery had been eliminated, their firing positions turned into craters.
"The sun shone into our cabin. The enemy fighters had been got rid of. Below us lay the wide sea. How beautiful the Earth can be. Hands loosened their grip on the machine guns. What happened just a few minutes ago lay behind us and we relaxed. The engines were running evenly, we were flying home. The airfield didn't exist any more; that was the result." ...
Oberleutnant Kratz who wrote the above report (from which the extract is taken) had joined the Reichswehr in 1934 and had transferred to the Luftwaffe the following year. In 1937 he had been trained in blind flying, while on Lufthansa routes, as did so many Luftwaffe pilots at that time. It was a perfect camouflage. Thirty-nine years after writing the report, he had become a dentist in Bad Salzuflen and he remembered: 'I wrote the report for my own entertainment, but it got in front of Oblt Loebel who gave it to a Kriegsberichter. From there it found its way into the Jahrbuch of the Luftwaffe. Today I find it too emphatic and bombastic. But then those times were filled with heroism, the call of duty and big words.
Having read what I believe to be the whole report and in view of the heavy losses incurred by KG30 on this day, I find it surprising that no mention is made of German casualties in it whatsoever.
A Heinkel He 111H from 1/KG26, shot down during a sortie to attack Middlesbrough, crashed into the sea at 13.45 off Druridge Bay / Hemscott Hill, four German airmen brought ashore at Amble, part of enemy aircraft found near Clifton railway crossing. The aircraft was lost.
Five Heinkel He 111Hs from 8/KG26 were lost off the North-East coast during a sortie to Dishforth airfield. All of the crews were listed as killed or missing, and the aircraft lost. They were all presumed to have been shot down by RAF fighters.
A 6th Heinkel He 111H from 8/KG26 was also shot down by the RAF and crashed into the North Sea. One crewman was killed, the rest of the crew were rescued by a German Naval vessel including an injured man.
A 7th Heinkel He 111H from 8/KG26 was shot down by fighters on a sortie to bomb Dishforth aerodrome. It crashed into the sea, at 14.00, 30 miles off Middlesbrough. The crew was captured unhurt.
Two Junkers Ju 88Cs from I/KG30 failed to return from a mission to bomb Driffield aerodrome, one of them was intercepted and shot down at 13.30. Nothing is known about the attack on the other. The crews and aircraft listed as lost.
A Junkers Ju 88A from 3/KG30 was shot down whilst on a sortie over Flamborough Head , it crash-landed at 13.25 at Hamilton Hill Farm, Barmston, near Bridlington. The crew were captured unhurt. The aircraft a write-off.
A Junkers Ju 88 from 4/KG30 was shot down whilst on a sortie to bomb Driffield aerodrome, It crashed and burnt out at 13.30 at Hunmanby near Filey. The crew were all killed. The aircraft a write-off.
Of three Junkers Ju 88s of III/KG30, one was shot down and crashed into the sea, the four man NCO crew killed and the aircraft lost - the second crash landed in Holland with one crewman injured and the aircraft damaged but repairable - the third crashed on landing at Aalborg-West following operations over the east coast of England and an attack by RAF fighters. The crew were unhurt but the aircraft was 75% damaged.
A Junkers Ju 88 from 7/KG30 was shot down whilst on a mission to bomb Driffield aerodrome, it force landed near Hornby at 13.30. One crewman was killed, the other three were captured. The aircraft was a write-off.
Another Junkers Ju 88 from 7/KG30, briefed to attack the airfield at Driffield was shot down by RAF fighters. One of the crewmen listed as killed and the other three listed as missing. The aircraft was a write-off.
A Messerschmitt Bf 110C from Stab/ZG76, last seen in combat with RAF fighters, presumed shot down into the sea. The crew listed as missing and the aircraft lost.
A Messerschmitt 110D from Stab I/ZG76, failed to return from a sortie to the east coast of England off or near Newcastle. Both crew and aircraft lost.
Another Messerschmitt 110D from Stab I/ZG76 piloted by Hauptmann Restemeyer, the Gruppenkommandeur of 1/ZG76 was killed during combat with Spitfires of 72 Squadron, whilst on a sortie to the east coast of England, the aircraft crashed into the sea off the Durham coast. The other member of the crew, Hauptmann Hartwich was also lost. Hauptmann Restemeyer gained fame when together with two other Luftwaffe pilots, he had won first place in the International Alpine Rally for the formation flying of military aircraft at the Zurich/Dubendorf flying meet in 1937. The three of them were flying the then sensational new Messerschmitt Bf 109s.
A Messerschmitt Bf 110D from 1/ZG76 was shot down and crashed at Streatlam near Barnard Castle at 13.36. The aircraft was destroyed, the crew were captured unhurt.
13.36.. Steathlam.. Enemy plane crashed at Steathlam near to site of New Military Camp. Both occupants of plane conveyed to Barnard Castle Police Station. When plane crashed an explosion occurred and a workman on the site received slight injuries.
A Messerschmitt Bf 110D from Stab 2/ZG76 was shot down whilst on escort duty for bombers attacking East Coast airfields. It crashed into the sea off Northumberland at 13.00. One crewman was captured, the other was missing.
Another Messerschmitt Bf 110D from 2/ZG76 was severely damaged by fighters during the action over the North Sea, off the east coast, and crash landed at Esbjerg. One crew member killed and one wounded, the aircraft a write-off.
A Messerschmitt Bf 110D from 3/ZG76 was shot down into the sea during a sortie off the Northumberland coast. This is possibly the aircraft that at 13.00 crashed into the sea, three miles from Newbiggin, one mile east of Cambois. Both crew members and the aircraft were lost.
Another Messerschmitt Bf 110D from 3/ZG76 returned to base after an attack by RAF fighters off the English east coast. One crewman was wounded and the aircraft repairable.
A 3rd Messerschmitt Bf 110D from 3/ZG76 failed to return from an operational sortie to the English east coast, believed shot down into the sea. The crew listed as missing and the aircraft as lost.
Friday, 16th August 1940 D349
A Heinkel He 111H from 3/KG126 was shot down over Immingham Docks by AA defences during a sortie to Hull, the crew, listed as killed or missing and the aircraft as a write-off.
Friday, 16th/Saturday, 17th August 1940 N349
Night.. Minelaying off NE coast.
A Junkers Ju 88 from 224/NJG1, briefed to intrude over the Wash, strayed and was shot down into the sea off Spurn Head at 03.00 by a Blenheim night fighter, crewed by Pilot Officer Rhodes and Sergeant Gregory from No 29 Squadron. The Ju 88 was listed as lost together with its crew.
Tuesday, 20th/Wednesday, 21st August 1940 N353
A Junkers Ju 88 from 8/KG30, sortied to attack Thornaby aerodrome was shot down by a Hurricane of 302 Squadron. It crashed and burnt out at Patrington, near Hull at 19.10. One crewman was killed, one was injured but died of his wounds two days later and two were captured unhurt.
Wednesday, 21st August 1940 D354
A Hurricane from No 302 Squadron based at Leconfield airfield near Beverley in Yorkshire, force landed near its base with engine trouble following combat with Ju 88s off Bridlington at 16.30. The pilot, Sergeant S.J. Chalupa was unhurt, the aircraft damaged but repairable.
A Heinkel He 111H from II/KG53 is believed shot down into the sea ten miles E of Flamborough Head at 16.25 by Pilot Officer E.A. Shipman of No 41 Squadron. The Heinkel and its crew listed as missing.
Wednesday, 21st/Thursday, 22nd August 1940 N354
Enemy bombers off Humber Estuary and the Firth of Forth.
The engines on a Junkers Ju 88A from 9/KG30 overheated and caught fire, during a reconnaissance training flight to Edinburgh, it crashed into the sea in flames, 40 miles east of Berwick at 23.55. Two of the crew were killed and the other two were captured unhurt, after spending twelve hours in their rubber dinghy.
Thursday, 5th/Friday, 6th September 1940 N369
A Heinkel 111P was shot down by AA gunfire and crashed in flames on two houses in Suffolk Street, Sunderland at 23.18. The houses were both set on fire and one person was killed. The Heinkel's crew were all killed and are buried in Hylton Cemetery. This was the enemy aircraft referred to in the report on the state of morale in the North-East which stated - 'crowds in the streets and people standing in doorways cheered wildly when this bomber was brought down'.
23.18.. Sunderland.. 6/KG4 Heinkel He 111P (3065). Suffered a direct hit from AA fire during night bombing sortie and crashed in flames onto houses in Suffolk Street, 11.18 p.m. Oberlt H-W. Schröder, Uffz F. Reitz, Obergefr R. Marten and Gefr J. Wich killed. Aircraft 5J+JP a write-off. The remains of this crew were recovered from the wreckage of their aircraft and buried in Hylton Cemetery, Castletown where they remain to this day.
Sunderland.. Heinkel bomber shot down and crashed at Suffolk Street, Hendon. Two crew killed. A woman, 46, was killed, her husband was severely injured, and their 15-year-old daughter, was slightly injured.
When a German bomber was shot down by AA Batteries on Tyneside crowds of people all over the south-eastern part of the county watched the action and cheered wildly when the bomber was finally seen to be destroyed. There have been no signs of panic. [Confidential Police Report - Northumberland, dated September 15th].
Sunday, 8th September 1940 D372
Reconnaissance flights by enemy aircraft reported between Sunderland and The Wash.
Monday, 16th September 1940 D380
A Heinkel 115C Seaplane from Seenotflugkdo 3/506 was severely damaged by AA gunfire during a torpedo attack on a convoy, it force-landed on the sea 7 miles off Alnwick at 15.00. The crew took to their dinghy and tried to sink the plane by shooting at the floats, but were only partially successful.
The crew of four were rescued and the plane was taken in tow by a fishing boat and towed, upside down, to Eyemouth Harbour and beached. The fishing boat crew possibly expecting a reward, got nothing, except the petrol in the tanks and some parachute silk for their wives!!
Sunday, 13th October 1940 D407
Afternoon.. There were a number of reconnaissance raids in the Newcastle area.
Sunday, 27th October 1940 D421
Air attacks on the airfields at Driffield, Catfoss, Linton on Ouse and Dishforth between 16.30 and 19.00.
A Junkers Ju 88A from 7/KG4 was hit by ground defence fire during a low level attack on Driffield aerodrome at 18.00. It belly landed on Richmond Farm, Duggleby, Yorkshire. Three enemy aircrew members were captured unhurt, the other one died of his wounds on November 15th. A machine gun (an MG15) from the German aircraft is now in the trophy case at Driffield.
Friday, 1st November 1940 D426
06.54.. Hull.. Twelve small HEs dropped in the area bounded by Frodsham Street and Marfleet Avenue to the railway. Domestic damage was slight and there was a hit on railway. Casualties were one killed and seven seriously injured.
8/KG30 Junkers Ju 88A-1 (7089).. Flew into a hill in conditions of bad visibility during a sortie to Church Fenton. Crashed at Glaisdale Head, near Whitby, Yorkshire at 17.45. Fw W. Wowereit, Oberfw H. Schulte-Mäter, Uffz A. Rodermond, Uffz G. Pohling, all killed. Aircraft 4D+TS destroyed.
Sunday, 17th November 1940 D442
Co Durham.. A Junkers Ju 88A crashed into the sea off Whitburn near Sunderland at 08.45. It was shot down by the paddle driven minesweeper 'Southsea'. One of the enemy aircraft's crew is listed as missing and the other three were killed. See 16th February 1941.
Monday, 18th/Tuesday, 19th November 1940 N443
Minelaying carried out off coasts from the Tyne to the Thames Estuary.
Friday, 22nd/Saturday, 23rd November 1940 N447
Extensive minelaying off the East Coast from Norfolk to the Firth of Forth. HAA guns [Tyne battery] in action.
PERDIDAS DE LOS CONVOYES COSTEROS DURANTE LA BATALLA DE INGLATERRA
Thursday, 4th July 1940 D306
'SS Elmcrest' (5,032t) steamer, Hull to Wabana, Canada, was torpedoed by an E Boat and sank with the loss of sixteen of her crew.
Wednesday, 10th July 1940 D312
'SS Waterloo' (1,905t) steamer, London to the Tyne was sunk by enemy aircraft near Smith's Knoll Buoy.
The period between 10th July to 31st October 1940 is recognised as The Battle of Britain and as such, the details of the aircraft losses on both sides can be entered in great depth because of the publication of the 'After the Battle's' definitive work on the conflict 'The Battle of Britain - Then and Now'.
Sunday, 14th July 1940 D316
'SS Island Queen' (779t) cargo ship, Blyth to Cowes with coal was sunk by German aircraft off Dover.
Monday, 15th July 1940 D317
'SS Heworth' (2,855t) steamer, London to Sunderland was sunk by German aircraft near Aldeburgh Lightvessel.
Saturday, 20th July 1940 D322
'SS Pulborough' (960t) steamer, Tyne to Shoreham with a cargo of coal was attacked by Stuka dive-bombers off Dover and was sunk.
Thursday, 25th July 1940 D327
The following three ships were sunk by German Stuka dive-bombers off Dover:- 'SS Corhaven' (991t) Tyne to Portsmouth with a cargo of coal. 'SS Polgrange' (804t) Blyth to Cowes with a cargo of coal. 'SS Leo' (1,140t) Seaham to Portsmouth with a cargo of coal. and off Sandgate 'SS Portslade' (1,091t) Sunderland to Shoreham with coal was also sunk by German Stuka dive-bombers.
Friday, 26th July 1940 D328
German E Boats attacked shipping off Shoreham, sinking:- 'SS Lulonga' (821t) steamer, Humber to Shoreham. 'SS Broadhurst' (1,013t) cargo ship, travelling from Seaham to Shoreham. 'SS London Trader' (646t) steamer, sailing to Shoreham from the Tyne. 'SS Haytor' (1,189t) cargo ship, London to Blyth, sunk by a mine in North Sea.
Monday, 29th July 1940 D331
'SS Gronland' (1,264t) a former Danish steamer, Blyth to Plymouth was sunk by German aircraft in Dover Harbour.
'SS Clan Monro' (5,952t) steamer, Cochin, India to the Tees was sunk by a mine off Harwich.
'SS Moidart' (1,262t) steamer, London to Newcastle was also sunk by a mine off Harwich.
Saturday, 3rd August 1940 D336
'SS Wychwood' (2,794t) cargo ship, Blyth to London with a cargo of coal was sunk by a mine off Aldeburgh.
Thursday, 8th August 1940 D341
'SS Holme Force' (1,216t) steamer, Tyne to Devonport with a cargo of coal was sunk by E Boats off Beachy Head.
'SS Empire Crusader' (1,042t) steamer, Devonport from Seaham with a cargo of coal was sunk by German aircraft, W of the Isle of Wight.
Thursday, 8th/Friday, 9th August 1940 N341
Night.. Minelaying off the East coast and raids reported by enemy aircraft at Middlesbrough.
Thursday, 15th August 1940 D348
'SS Brixton' (1,557t) cargo ship, Sunderland to London with a cargo of coal was sunk by a mine off Aldeburgh.
Monday, 26th August 1940 D359
'SS Cape York' (5,027t) cargo ship, Vancouver to Hull with grain and timber was attacked by German torpedo bombers off Rattray Head. She sank in tow on the 27th August.
Wednesday, 4th September 1940 D368
Off Cromer, E Boats attacked a south-bound convoy, sinking:- 'SS New Lambton' (2,709t) steamer, from Hartlepool. 'SS Joseph Swan' (1,571t) steamer, from Blyth. 'SS Fulham V' (1,562t) steamer, from South Shields. 'SS Corbrook' (1,792t) steamer, from Seaham. All were carrying coal to London.
Friday, 6th September 1940 D370
'SS St Glen' (4,647t) cargo ship, Rosario and Buenos Aries to Hull, was sunk by German aircraft off the east coast of Scotland.
Monday, 9th September 1940 D373
The minesweeping trawler 'Dervish' was sunk by a mine off the Humber.
Thursday, 12th September 1940 D376
'SS Gothic' (2,444t) a tanker, from the Humber to Billingham was sunk by a mine off Spurn Point. She was carrying a cargo of creosote. Twelve crew were lost.
Sunday, 15th September 1940 D379
'SS Nailsea River' (5,548t) cargo ship, Buenos Aries to the Tyne with wheat, was sunk by German aircraft, E of Montrose.
'SS Halland' (1,264t) was sunk by German aircraft, 8 miles from Dunbar.
Tuesday, 24th September 1940 D388
'SS Continental Coaster' (555t) cargo ship, London to the Tyne was sunk off Great Yarmouth by an E Boat, with the loss of four of her crew.
Saturday, 28th September 1940 D392
'SS Dalveen' (5,193t) cargo ship, Montreal to Hull was sunk by German bombers off Rattray Head. Thirty-two of her crew were lost.
Sunday, 6th October 1940 D400
'SS British General' (6,989t) tanker, Tyne to Abadan, sunk by U 37, W of Ireland. All forty-seven of her crew were lost.
'SS Jersey Queen' (910t) cargo ship, Blyth to Plymouth with a cargo of coal was sunk by a mine. Two of her crew were killed.
Tuesday, 8th October 1940 D402
'SS Bellona II' (840t) an ex Danish cargo ship, Hull to Reykjavik with a cargo of ice was set on fire by German aircraft and drifted aground S of Stonehaven on the 9th of October.
Wednesday, 9th October 1940 D403
'SS Alderney Queen' (633t) cargo ship, Blyth to Plymouth with coal was sunk by German aircraft off Grassholm Island.
Sunday, 13th October 1940 D407
'HM Summer Rose' (96t) a minesweeping drifter was sunk by an enemy mine, off Sunderland at 54°55'40"N - 01°20'30"W and lies in 12 metres of water.
Thursday, 17th October 1940 D411
'SS Frankrig' (1,361t) an ex Danish cargo ship, Tyne to London with coal was sunk by a mine off Aldeburgh.
'SS Hauxley' (1,595t) steamer, London to Warkworth was torpedoed by an E Boat near Smith's Knoll and sank on the 18th of October.
Sunday, 27th October 1940 D421
'SS Suavity' (634t) en route from Sunderland to London with a cargo of wheat, hit a mine and sank off the north Yorkshire coast.
Monday, 28th October 1940 D422
'SS Sheaf Field' (2,719t) cargo ship, Tyne to London, sunk by a mine near the 'Sunk Lightvessel'.
'SS Sagacity' (490t) cargo ship, Kings Lynn to the Tyne with grain, sunk by a mine off Spurn Point.
Wednesday, 30th October 1940 D424
'HM Motor Launch ML 109' mined off the Humber.
Thursday, 31st October 1940 D425
'SS Hillfern' (1,535t) cargo ship, Sunderland to Cork with a cargo of coal sunk by German aircraft, NE of Kinnaird Head.
Friday, 1st November 1940 D426
During the day convoys and trawlers off the Yorkshire coast were attacked. Bombs were dropped on the East Coast..
'SS Letchworth' (1,317t) cargo ship, Blyth to London with a cargo of coal was sunk by German aircraft near the West Oaze Buoy.
Monday, 11th November 1940 D436
'SS Creemuir' (3,997t) cargo ship, Hull to Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, sunk by German bombers off Aberdeen.
Wednesday, 13th November 1940 D438
'SS Cape St Andrew' (5,094t), Tees to India sunk by U 137, W of Ireland.
'SS Empire Wind' (7,459t) cargo ship, Tyne to Vancouver sunk by Focke-Wulf Condor aircraft, 250 miles W of Ireland.
Wednesday, 13th/Thursday, 14th November 1940 N438
Coastal area raided. Parachute mines dropped over Tynemouth, but they were blown eastwards and fell into the sea.
Minelaying on a small scale off Blyth.
Friday, 15th November 1940 D440
'SS Blue Galleon' (712t) cargo ship, London to Sunderland sunk by German aircraft off Aldeburgh.
Saturday, 23rd November 1940 D448
'SS Tymeric' (5,228t) cargo ship, Hull to Buenos Aries with a cargo of coal was sunk by U 123, 600 miles W of Hebrides.
Saturday, 23rd/Sunday, 24th November 1940 N448
Minelaying off the Northumberland and Durham coastal areas, also at the mouth of the Humber. Tyne and Tees AA guns in action. Aircraft of IX Fliegerkorps laid mines off the coasts of Northumberland and Durham. Fighter Command flew patrols of night fighters from No 13 Group.
Sunday, 24th November 1940 D449
The harbour defence patrol craft 'Gael', was sunk by a mine off the Humber.
'SS Ryal' (367t) cargo ship, London to Middlesbrough, sunk by a mine in the Thames Estuary. Nine of her crew were killed. 2 'SS Thomas M' (310t) cargo ship, Blyth to Norwich with a cargo of coal, sunk by a mine off Great Yarmouth.
Sunday, 24th/Monday, 25th November 1940 N449
Minelaying between the Tyne and Flamborough Head. AA guns in action.
Monday, 25th November 1940 D450
'HM Motor Launch ML 111' mined off the Humber.
'Tees Hopper No 3' (700t) struck a mine on the way to the dumping grounds and sank just off Teesmouth in 15 metres of water.
Thursday, 28th November 1940 D453
Minesweeping trawler 'Manx Prince' was sunk by a mine off the Humber.
'SS St Elwyn' (4,940t) cargo ship, Hull to Santos, Brazil with a cargo of coal sunk by U 103, E of Bishop Rock.
Thursday, 28th/Friday, 29th November 1940 N453
Minelaying off the Humber.
Friday, 29th November 1940 D454
Minesweeping trawler 'Calverton' was sunk by a mine off the Humber.
Tuesday, 3rd December 1940 D458
'SS W. Hendrik' (4,360t) cargo ship, Parrsboro, Nova Scotia, Canada to the Tees and the Tyne with a cargo of timber was sunk by a Focke-Wulf Condor aircraft about 200 miles W of Ireland. Five of her crew were lost.
Thursday, 5th/Friday, 6th December 1940 N460
Enemy aircraft active with incidents reported at Driffield and minelaying reported off the mouths of the Tees and Humber and off Flamborough Head.
Friday, 6th December 1940 D461
'SS Supremity' (554t) cargo ship, Blyth to London with a cargo of coal was sunk by a mine in the Thames Estuary.
Sunday, 15th December 1940 D470
'SS N.C. Monberg' (2,301t) an ex Danish cargo ship, Tyne for London with coal was sunk by an E Boat off Aldeburgh. Twelve of her crew were lost.
Tuesday, 17th December 1940 D472
Ships of two coastal convoys ran into a minefield in the Thames Estuary off Southend. Five cargo ships were sunk, they were:- 'SS Inver' (1,543t) Blyth to Cowes with coal. Fourteen crew lost. 'SS Malrix' (703t) Hull to London with coal. Six crew lost. 'SS Beneficent' (2,944t) Sunderland to London with coal. Six crew lost. 'SS Aqueity' (370t) London to Sunderland. Two crew lost. 'SS Belvedere' (869t) London for the Tyne. Four crew lost.
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