World War II in real time

Day 406 of World War II, October 10th 1940

Battle of Britain

Heavy rains prevent the Luftwaffe from mounting a massive raid and instead sent frequent flights of high-flying Bf 109s to attack targets in England throughout the day. Reconnaissance raids were being plotted as early as 0600 hours and by 0700 hours a small group of He111s attacked and bombed Dover before returning to France without being intercepted. Within the hour a larger raid of 20+ Do17s and Bf109s were approaching the Sussex coastline and were met by the Spitfires of RAF No. 92 Squadron, scrambled from Biggin Hill to patrol the area, near Brighton. Three Spitfires were lost during the engagement.

At 1000 hours two raids of about 30 Bf109s crossed over Kent, of which one was intercepted by Spitfires of RAF No. 603 Squadron scrambled from Hornchurch. Maj. Adolf Galland of Stab/JG 26 claimed a Spitfire near Eastchurch for his 42nd victory. Hastings was attacked twice, at 0644 hours when 14 HE bombs fell in the residential area demolishing four houses, and at 1215 hours when further civil damage was done. Brighton, Eastbourne and Bexhill were also attacked, but only superficial damage resulted.

Just after 1200 hours a raid was plotted approaching the Dorset coast. 100+ German aircraft including Bf 109s from JG 53 penetrated slightly inland at Lulworth. Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 52, 56, 145, 213, 238 and 607 Squadrons and Spitfires of RAF No. 152 and 609 Squadrons were scrambled to intercept. During the battles Hurricanes of RAF No. 56 and 238 Squadrons suffered losses to the Bf109s over Wareham and Corfe areas. Spitfires were claimed by Hptm. Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke of Stab III./JG 53, Lt. Erich Schmidt of 9./JG 53 and Oblt. Gerhard Michalski of Stab II./JG 53.

The last main attack of the day consisting of 65+ aircraft, crossed the Kent coast just after 1500 hours and headed for London. Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 73, 229, 249, 253, 257, 303 and 615 Squadrons along with Spitfires of RAF Nos. 41, 66, 72, 92 and 602 Squadrons were scrambled to intercept the raid. Although both Hurricanes and Spitfires were dispatched, only the Spitfires were able to reach the altitude of the Messerschmitts and even then were are at a disadvantage with the German fighters still above them. One formation of German bombers split into two sections with one heading to London and the other to the South-west. The second wave of over 80 came inland over Deal and Dover at 1525 hours. Few contacts were made, targets were not found and slight damage was reported. No 12 Group despatched three Squadrons to assist in meeting this attack.

Sgt. Otto Hanzlicek, of RAF No 312 (Czech) Sqdrn, took off from the RAF station at Speke airport, Liverpool in Hurricane I 'L1547' along with P/O Dvorak on practice against enemy aircraft attacks in the Liverpool area. At 1415 hours the engine of his aircraft caught fire and he was forced to abandon his aircraft near Oglett. Unfortunately the wind blew him out over the River Mersey, and he bailied out too low and he fell down into the River Mersey, some 300 - 400 yards from the edge of the river and drowned. He was seen to fall into the water on the North side of the river by a farmer near Oglett, but when the farmer arrived at the river bank 10 minutes later there was nothing to be seen. Sgt. Hanzlicek's aircraft came down into the River off the end of runway 08 and had been seen to be emitting smoke over the river just opposite to the airfield by personnel at the station.

During the night the bombing continued on London with further raids on Liverpool, South Wales, the Midlands, East Anglia, Gloucester area and to the airfields of Debden and Duxford. At 0345 hours a single He 111 of III./KG 55 took off from Villacoublay airfield to attack the Bristol Aeroplane Company at Filton but soon aborted the mission and returned to base. Four people were killed in a bombing incident centred around the Potter Lane area, Yorkshire. Four HEs fell in the market garden, Preston Road, two HEs landed in the river area near the harbour entrance and four delayed HE were dropped at High Flatworth Farm. Apart from slight activity in Northern England, raids had practically ceased by 0400 hours. London and its approaches were clear by 0452 hours and at 0530 hours, apart from an isolated raid over Bristol, there were no enemy aircraft over the country. Few districts in Greater London escaped bombing, but the reports indicated that little real damage was done, beyond some further dislocation of railway communications and utility services. Mullards Radio Valve Co Suffered damage to the machine shop at Mitcham Works. At Wembley a large trunk water main was damaged near the GEC factory. HE bombs were dropped on the GWR Line - Greenford Loop, and both lines were reported destroyed.

Carew Cheriton was attacked at 1958 hours by a low-flying enemy aircraft, which dropped 6 HE bombs. A petrol pump was set on fire, but this was quickly extinguished, and other damage was negligible. An attack was made on General Aircraft Ltd, Hanworth, at 1940 hours, and the main hangar was set on fire by incendiary bombs. The fire was under control by 2340 hours.

2 HEs fell and exploded in the river 50' astern of the block-ship 'Melba' lying at the Groyne Quay, South Shields. There were no casualties. Mines were dropped in the Bristol Channel, Thames Estuary, off Harwich and the Northeast coast.

Photo: Soldiers collecting for the Spitfire Fund use the fuselage of a Heinkel He 111H-3 bomber (W.Nr 3233 V4+KL) of 3./KG 1 as a focus of interest for locals outside the Half Moon Pub in Hildenborough, Kent. The aircraft crash-landed in a field near the village on 11 September after being hit by anti-aircraft fire over London and attacked by three Hawker Hurricanes.



Air War over Europe

Before daylight, RAF Bomber Command attacks Brest. The bombers damage destroyers Eckholdt, Loy and Riedel. The RAF loses an Albacore bomber, the crew becoming POWs.

During the night, the RAF bombers hit ports up and down the coast, including Hamburg, Hannover, Wilhelmshaven, Kiel, Amsterdam, Calais, Den Helder, Boulogne, Le Havre and Brest. The Fokker factory in Amsterdam and oil installations at Hamburg receive special attention. At Wilhelmshaven, the RAF has 14 bombers attack the Tirpitz (under construction), without success.

Battle of the Atlantic

After dark, in a rare sortie by a capital ship, British battleship HMS Revenge departs from Plymouth and bombards the Cherbourg docks from long range. This is Operation Medium. The Revenge is accompanied by six destroyers and seven motor anti-submarine boats, along with a separate cruiser force to the west. The bombardment lasts from 03:33 to 03:51, including 120 15-inch and 801 4.7 inch shells. The objective is to disrupt invasion preparations, and several transports are hit. The Germans put E-boats to sea from Cherbourg, but accomplish nothing.

Further up the coast, Royal Navy motorboats MTB 22, 31 and 32 attack German trawlers Brandenburg and 234 ton Nordenham near Calais. They torpedo and sink both trawlers. The crew survive and 34 Kriegsmarine sailors are made prisoners. The British force returns to base unscathed.

Photo: One of the 4.7 inch guns on board HMS Jupitier firing on the night of the, when heavy and light forces of the Royal Navy carried out a bombardment of the enemy occupied port of Cherbourg, where a concentration of enemy shipping had been detected.



The British also lose a trawler when 23 ton Royal Navy patrol boat HMT Girl Mary hits a mine and blows up in the Firth of Forth about 7.4 km off Inchcolm. Two crewmen die, another is wounded.

U-123 (Kptlt. Karl-Heinz Moehle) finishes 3697 ton British freighter Graigwen, which had been badly damaged on the 9th by U-103 (Viktor Schütze).

British 367 ton freighter Till hits a mine and is damaged in the English Channel.

British submarine HMS H28, an old World War I sub, is in the Bay of Biscay when it spots a smallish 1000 ton freighter. It fires a torpedo, but misses.

Royal Navy destroyer HMS Jersey returns to service after repairs from a mine strike, exiting the Humber.

Convoys OA 227 and FS 305 depart from Methil, Convoy FN 305 departs from Southend.

Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Australia arrives at Gibraltar and is temporarily assigned to Force H.

Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Indomitable is completed and prepares for trials.

Battle of the Mediterranean

The RAF attacks Benghazi and Assab, Eritrea.

At Malta, it is a quiet day. There is a lot of aerial reconnaissance due to a convoy coming from Alexandria, but there is little activity by the Italian fleet at Taranto. The Air Chief of Staff at Whitehall believes that, with winter fast approaching, fighters can be transferred from England to Malta in order to do more good there. Another dozen Hurricanes will soon be on their way.

Battle of the Pacific

German raider Orion meets up with supply ship Regensburg in the Marshall Islands.

German occupied Luxembourg

Somewhat hopefully, the German occupation government decides to conduct an honest plebiscite in Luxembourg (now incorporated into the Reich). The question is: are you happy with the occupation? In a result that surprises nobody except apparently the Nazis, 97% of the responses are in the negative. It is the only such plebiscite held.

China

Communist Chinese New 4th Army and 8th New Army link up at Baiju Village, Dongtai County, Jiangsu Province. The former has been engaged recently with the Nationalist Chinese.

Separately, the Japanese launch an air attack against Kunming.

German Homefront

Adolf Hitler begins the new Führer-Sofortprogramm (Leader's Emergency Programme). This is an effort to build bunkers for civilians and other essential personnel. The initial goal is to build 6000 bunkers in 92 cities across the Reich. This program will be a massive undertaking, with deliveries of concrete for the bunkers and other supplies requiring alteration of railroad timetables across German. It is the largest public works program ever, and is a major success of the Nazi regime, saving countless lives. It includes the construction of the massive flak towers in places like Berlin and Vienna that have such extraordinary structural integrity that they could not feasibly be destroyed after the war and remain in situ to this day (though some were buried). It also is an early acknowledgement that the war is going to last a lot longer, and involve a lot more effort and hardship, than originally thought. The results of this programme are visible across Europe.

British Homefront: Pianist Myra Hess gives a dramatic concert at the National Gallery in London. It commemorates the anniversary of her first ceremony a year earlier. The windows are blacked out and the sound of bombing can be heard in the distance. This and similar contributions to morale eventually earn her the honor of being named Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1941.

Day 407 of World War II, October 11th 1940

Battle of Britain

Many of the raids made on this Friday consisted of bomb carrying Bf109s, which saw the first combat of the day involving Spitfires of RAF No: 72 Squadron, scrambled from Biggin Hill to protect a convoy, at about 0800 hours off Deal. Six bomb carrying Bf 109s crossed the Channel and caused little damage. Fighters and fighter-bombers continued to use stream tactics, generally at 30,000 to 35,000 ft where they were difficult to counter. Hptm. Heinz Bretnütz and Oblt. Gerhard Michalski from Stab II./JG 53 each claimed a Spitfire at 0855 hours.

Over the next few hours many reconnaissance raids were made over southern England until about 1030 hours when four separate waves of Bf109 bombers and fighters crossed the Kent coast for nearly 1 hour and made for targets around Kent and London. Many unsuccessful attempts were made to penetrate to the London areas, but only succeeded in dropping a few bombs on the Southern outskirts of the Capital. Bombs were dropped on Ashford, Canterbury, Maidstone, Folkestone, Whitstable and the Thames Estuary areas. Many Fighter Command squadrons were scrambled to intercept, but only the Spitfires of RAF Nos. 66 and 72 Squadrons and Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 73 and 253 Squadrons managed to engage the raiders. P/O J.H.T.Pickering of RAF No. 66 Sqdrn was injured when his Spitfire I (X4052) was shot down by Oberst W. Mölders of JG 51 in a Bf 109 over Canterbury at 1115 hours.

The pattern continued into the afternoon from 1400 hours as waves of Bf109s crossed the coast at Hastings and Dungeness where they split for targets near Portland, London and Hornchurch. Another raid crossed the Essex coast and made for North Weald and then Biggin Hill areas. No 11 Group detailed 13 Squadrons to meet this attack and No 12 Group patrolled from Eastchurch to Canterbury with 3 Squadrons. The dogfights involving Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 73, 249 and 253 Squadrons and Spitfires of RAF No. 41 Squadron lasted until nearly 1700 hours. The Spitfires of RAF No. 41 Squadron from Hornchurch and RAF No. 66 Squadron from Gravesend had suffered during the combat with Bf109s, each losing three aircraft. F/O D.H.O'Niell of RAF No 41 Squadron died when his parachute failed to open after bailing out of his Spitfire I (X4052) when he collided with Sgt L.R.Carter in another Spitfire I (X4554) whilst climbing to engage some Bf 109s at 1625 hours. O'Niel's aircraft crashed near West Kingsdown, Kent.

JG 26 provided escort for the jabos throughout the day. Late in the afternoon, Maj. Adolf Galland from Stab/JG 26 claimed a Spitfire and a Hurricane to reach 44 victories while Hptm. Walter Adolph of Stab II./JG 26 brought his score to eleven with a pair of Spitfires. C.A.H.Ayling was KIA while flying with No 421 flight, shot down in his Spitfire Mk II (P7303) at 1600 hours over Newchurch, Kent.

As the evening arrived a raid by Do17s was made on targets in the Midlands and Merseyside between 1800 hours and 1930 hours. The Hurricanes of RAF No. 312 (Czech) Squadron were scrambled from Speke to intercept, as did the Spitfires of RAF No. 611 Squadron, from Ternhill. Three of the Do17s were successfully shot down with the loss of one aircraft to each squadron. Little or slight damage was caused by the raiders but one Dornier Do17Z-3 from 2./Kflgp 606 was shot down by the RAF off the Irish coast at Meath. Only two bodies were recovered and buried in Glencree.

Night raids commenced at 1835 hours, and between that time and 2100 hours approximately 55 raids from Cherbourg, Le Havre, Dieppe and Belgian and Dutch Coasts crossed the Coast towards London, which was again the main objective. Wimbledon was bombed when a ‘stick’ of five 500-pound bombs straddled the club grounds. The first bomb demolished the club tool house. The second bomb of the ‘stick’ fell on the roof of Centre Court. The third bomb fell in Church Road at the club N.E. entrance and the last two produced two bunkers in the Wimbledon Park Golf Club. The damage to the Centre Court meant a loss of 1,200 seats. The Lever factory at Port Sunlight was also hit. HE bombs fell at the City of London Electric Light Co, Bankside Power Station, causing some damage to feeders. The SR service at Heston was interrupted owing to an unexploded bomb on the line between Syon Lane and Isleworth Station.

Other raids appeared over Liverpool during the period and attacks on this area were maintained. Enemy aircraft were also plotted over Aberdeen and the Firth of Forth. There was continued operation towards Liverpool up to 2330 hours, after which time the Country was clear except in the London area and its approaches from the South-west. Other districts visited during the night included Southampton, Portsmouth, towns in Dorset, Berkshire, Surrey, Kent and Norfolk, and parts of Scotland, but damage was all of a minor category. Mines were dropped off the east coast of Scotland and the Thames Estuary.

Photo: Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (“White 10”) of 1./JG 2 Richthofen taxis out to take off, October 1940.



Air War over Europe

RAF Bomber Command concentrates on the invasion ports, and also sends some planes to attack targets in Germany. An attack during the night on the Tirpitz by 4 Hampden bombers produces no result.

The first production Handley Page Halifax I (L 9485) bomber makes its maiden flight.

Battle of the Atlantic

German E-boat attacks can be short, sharp and extremely destructive. Such is the case today.

Very late in the day, Kriegsmarine E-boats Falke, Greif, Kondor, Wolf and Seeadler, operating out of Cherbourg, cruise to within 25 miles SW of St. Catherine Point off the Isle of Wight. They sink two Free French anti-submarine ships, including 778 ton HMT L'Istrac (12 men lost) and 445 ton HMT Warwick Deeping. The first is sunk by torpedo, the second by gunfire. There are no deaths on the Warwick Deeping, but 25 men are wounded. Both ships are part of the 17th Anti-submarine Group, and both trawlers are now popular wrecks for diving.

Just past midnight on the 12th - at 00:07 - the same German torpedo boats also sink Free French submarine chasers CH.6 and CH.7. There are 8-9 deaths on the CH.6, with 12 men taken prisoner; 12 deaths on CH.7, nine men taken prisoner. After these attacks, seven Royal Navy destroyers sortie from Plymouth and Portsmouth and chase away the German attackers without any more damage to either side.

The British get some revenge for this action, with their motor torpedo boats sinking two two German trawlers.

Weather is rough in the North Atlantic, with heavy swells and fierce gales. This causes the crews of ships hit by torpedoes extra problems as they scramble to survive in lifeboats.

U-38 (Kptlt. Heinrich Liebe), on her seventh patrol and first out of Lorient, stalks Convoy SL 41. It torpedoes and sinks straggler 4966 ton freighter Llanfair West of Ireland and south of Iceland. There are 29 survivors and 3 crew perish.

U-48 (Kptl. Heinrich Bleichrodt), on her second patrol out of Kiel, stalks convoy HX 77 west of Ireland and south of Iceland. It torpedoes and sinks 4624 ton Norwegian freighter Brandanger, carrying lumber and metal. The ship takes only 20 minutes to sink. There are 24 survivors and 6 crew perish.

U-48 also torpedoes and sinks 8390 ton British refrigerated freighter Port Gisborne in the same Convoy HX 77. There are 38 survivors and 26 crew perish. Some of the deaths result when a lifeboat capsizes in the rough weather.

Royal Navy 117 ton yacht HMY Aisha, on patrol in the Thames, hits a mine and sinks in the Thames Estuary near the Isle of Sheppey, Kent. Everybody aboard survives.

In Operation Medium, battleship HMS Revenge departs from Plymouth on the 10th and shells Cherbourg in company with destroyers (Javelin, Jaguar, Jupiter, Kashmir, Kelvin and Kipling) and anti-submarine vessels in the early hours (03:33-03:51) of the 11th. The port is lit by flares at the proper time in a well-coordinated effort, and the confused German defenders don't even realize at first that it is a naval, and not air, assault. Eventually, the Germans catch on and shell the Royal Navy ships with large (13-15 inch) coastal guns. The shells all miss as the range is an extreme 36,000 yards, but the misses are so close that they impress the Royal Navy officers, who guess that they are perhaps guided by some new radar detection equipment (they aren't - it is just good gunnery). The flotilla remains at sea with enemy boats in the vicinity as the day ends. The Cherbourg/Channel Islands area is becoming a hot spot for German E-boats and a problem for the Royal Navy.

Destroyer HMS Jersey, which just completed repairs from a previous mine explosion, is departing from the Humber off East Knob Buoy when it hits another mine and suffers minor damage. The Jersey makes her way to London for more repairs.

At 09:20, destroyer HMS Zulu is sailing in the Firth of Forth when it detonates a mine about 40 feet off the starboard beam. This causes leaks to spring and other internal damage, so the Zulu heads to Rosyth for repairs. The damage turns out to be more serious than the initial incident might suggest, and the ship requires lengthy time in drydock. No casualties.

The Luftwaffe attacks ships off Peterhead, causing minor damage to anti-aircraft ship Alynbank but otherwise accomplishing little.

The Luftwaffe also attacks freighter Thyra II in the Thames Estuary, damaging it.

The Luftwaffe damages freighter Bannthorn in Rathlin O'Birne Sound, Eire.

The Luftwaffe damages freighters Clan MacTaggart, Clan Cumming and Highland Chieftan and tanker Virgilia at Liverpool Harbor.

Destroyer HMS Bedouin hits a rock or other submerged object off the south coast and proceeds to Southampton for repairs.

The German coastal guns at "Hellfire Corner" damage freighter Inver near Dover.

Convoy FN 306 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 306 departs from Methil, convoy OG 44 (36 ships) departs from Liverpool, Convoy BS 6A departs from Port Sudan bound for Aden.

Royal Navy submarine HMS Usk (N 65, Lt. Commander Peter R. Ward) is commissioned.

Battle of the Mediterranean

Convoy MF 3 (four merchant ships: Clan Ferguson, Clan Macauley, Lanarkshire and Memnon) arrives at Malta's Grand Harbour at 16:00 without incident. The ships are quickly unloaded, loaded with whatever Malta has to send back to Alexandria, and leave before the end of the day as Convoy MF 4.

The British Mediterranean Fleet is sailing about 100 miles southeast of Malta, and an Italian plane spots it. There are large Italian forces both to the east and west of Malta. The escorting Royal Navy ships (four battleships) begin to head back to Alexandria late in the day after the Malta convoy makes port, is unloaded, and returns to sea. Some Italian naval units set out in pursuit, but the British have a large head start.

While it might seem trivial, the convoy makes a big impression on the British troops on Malta for a specific reason: it brings the first mail in some time. It is quite old, the voyage around Africa having taken weeks, but greatly treasured by men who have had no word of the safety of their families and friends back home in the Blitz.

Royal Navy cruiser HMS Ajax is sailing south of Sicily in support of a Malta convoy when 7 Italian torpedo boats attack. The Ajax fights them off, sinking two and damaging a third. Cruiser HMS York sinks the third torpedo boat.

Destroyer HMS Imperial hits a mine about 15 miles south of Dellmara near Malta at 11:05. One crewman perishes and the ship must be towed to Malta.

British sloop HMS Auckland, part of Convoy BS 6, is damaged by Italian bombers in the Red Sea about 50 miles south of Italian-held Eritrea.

The RAF bombs Italian positions in Benghazi and Tobruk. It also attacks Asmara, Eritrea and Gura, Abyssinia.

Finnish/Soviet Relations

The two governments sign a convention that demilitarizes the Aaland Islands. The ostensible purpose is "… desiring to strengthen their security and foundations of peace in the Baltic Sea.”

German Government

The issue of propaganda can be very tricky sometimes. The Luftwaffe objects to the use of the term "air pirates" for the lone raiders which are trained to use cloud cover on days of poor weather. However, Hitler specifically wants specially trained raiders to be described thus by the (state-controlled) media. Dr. Goebbels Goebbels tells the OKW, which has communicated this concern to Goebbels to buzz off and see the Fuhrer about it. In the meantime, he will continue calling them "air pirates."

Goebbels does throw the Luftwaffe a bone by agreeing to issue formal denials to British claims that military targets have been hit which in fact have not - unless doing so would blow the cover of a massive deception being launched in which fake "military" sites are created to draw off the RAF bombers.

German Military

Generalleutnant Arnold Christian Rüdiger Joseph Maria Freiherr von Biegeleben (16 April 1883 – 11 October 1940) perishes of a heart attack. A Knight's Cross recipient, he is commander of the 6th Infantry Division. He is replaced by Generalleutnant Helge Auleb.

Japan

There are annual naval reviews in Tokyo Bay and Yokohama Bay.

French Homefront

Philippe Pétain, who fancies himself somewhere between a satrap and a dictator, addresses the nation by radio broadcast. He urges the people of France to drop their ancient antagonism to Germany and instead focus on the real enemy: Great Britain. Pétain announces that Vichy France henceforth will collaborate with Nazi Germany.

General Charles Hunziger - who signed the Armistice agreements with Germany and Italy - presents the Order of Merit and the Croix de Guerre medals to the American Hospital in Paris, France.

Day 409 of World War II, October 13th 1940

Battle of Britain

Though the Invasion of England is officially postponed, the Luftwaffe continued with missions in an effort to harass the RAF. With fog covering most of the country and Channel areas throughout the morning air activity was restricted to occasional reconnaissance raids. One developed off the east coast where a convoy was attacked.

As conditions improved by early afternoon, the Luftwaffe launched the now familiar pattern of high altitude raids over Kent and London. The first was plotted after 1300 hours when some 50 to 60 Bf 109s which included the whole of III./JG 3 as escort, flew up the Thames and dropped their loads on Woolwich and the railway at Dalston and Hackney causing destruction. Most of the interceptions were made by Spitfires of RAF Nos. 46, 66 and 92 Squadrons. The German formation was flying at about 27,000 ft when it was attacked by Spitfires from RAF No. 92 Sqdrn. A Bf109E-4 "White 7", flown by Gefr. Hubert Rungen of 7./JG 3 became slightly seperated and went to attack two Spitfires. Meanwhile, a third Spitfire climbed from underneath and shot through Rungen's radiator. Chased by this third Spitfire, Rungen made for the coast but made a forced landing at Cukold Coombe near Ashford. Gefr. Rungen was captured.

Just after 1400 hours a large wave of raids, mainly Bf109s with Ju88s, was crossing the Kent coast and heading for London, causing slight damage to the city. This raid split, one part towards Hornchurch and the other via Dartford to Central London. Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 73, 229, 249, 253, 257, 303 (Polish), 605 and 615 Squadrons along with Spitfires of RAF Nos. 41, 46, 66, 72, 92 and 602 Squadrons were scrambled to intercept and tangled with the Bf109s of JG 54 and JG 27. Oblt. Hans Philipp from 4./JG 54 claimed 3 Hurricanes and Ofw. Karl Hier and Gefr. Leo Masterer, also from 4./JG 54, claimed two Hurricanes apiece. Oblt. Hans-Ekkehard Bob of 7./JG 54 commented;

"During all of our operations the radio communications traffic of the British fighter pilots were being intercepted. On one occasion an interesting conversation took place between ground control and a British fighter formation when ground control said: 'Attack the German bomber formations!' The English formation leader shouted back: 'There are no bomber formations here!' Ground control: 'But bombs have been dropped!' Formation leader: 'I see only Me 109s but they can't drop bombs!' Word quickly got around, though, that the bombs were being dropped by the Me 109 units with the result that air combat was resumed."

As the main battles over Kent were dying off, another raid of 25 Bf109s crossed over Dover at about 1530 hours and was met by the Spitfires of RAF No. 66 Squadron, still weary from the last engagements. The Bf 109s got to the centre of London in spite of the spirited opposition.

One of the tragedies of aerial warfare was realised, at 1800 hours, by two Blenheim crews of RAF No. 29 Squadron, from Ternhill. At 1735 hours, two Blenheims, L7135 (P/O Humphreys and Sgt Bell) and L6637 (Sgt Stevens, Sgt Sly and AC Jackson) took off to patrol Point of Air. At about 1820 hours, in a position about 10 miles North Weald of Liverpool, Blenheim L7135 was attacked from above by a Hurricane. The pilot at once fired two Very lights and warned Blenheim L6637. L7135, although hit by the Hurricane fire, received no serious damage and the crew escaped uninjured, but L6637 was shot down into the sea. They were mistaken for Luftwaffe bombers by Hurricanes of RAF No. 312 (Czech) Squadron. One of the crews was killed.

Combat report RAF No. 29 Squadron:

"At 1950 hours a Blenheim (crew Sgt Roberts and Sgt Mallett) ordered on searchlight co-operation by vectors. Bombs observed in Grantham area. At 2030 hours and enemy aircraft was sighted at 13,000 feet. Pilot followed him down to 3,000 feet and engaged him at about 500 yards range. Blenheim experienced inaccurate return fire. After firing 2.368 rounds, the enemy aircraft's starboard engine appeared to pack up and he disappeared in cloud layer. There was considerable AA activity and searchlight co-operation but it was of no assistance. The weather was extremely good. Unfortunately the enemy aircraft has not been confirmed and must therefore rank as damaged."

Not to be outdone by No. 312 Squadron, P/O J.K.Ross of RAF No. 17 Squadron was shot down and wounded by British A.A. fire over the Chatham area. He baled out of his stricken Hurricane I (P3536) at 1350 hours.

During the night London was bombed along with Liverpool, the Midlands and East Anglia. Mines were dropped in the Thames Estuary, the Humber, the Irish Sea, off Harwich and Flamburgh Head. In the evening Stanmore Underground Station is bombed, very close to RAF Fighter Command. 154 people were killed in a shelter in Stoke Newington in a night bombing raid. Wembley Park station was hit by two High Explosive (HE) bombs at 1947 hours, damaging telephone wires and signals. At 2115 hours a bomb from a lone enemy aircraft demolished two houses directly above the east end of the westbound platform tunnel of Bounds Green Piccadilly line station. Approximately 6-to-8 segments of tunnel collapsed on the scores of people on the platform sheltering from the air raid.

There was a considerable amount of air activity over Newcastle and Middlesbrough. A 250kg bomb demolished a communal air raid shelter and a fish-shop. Altogether twenty-one people were killed, and fatalities occurred in Marsh Road (shelter), Argyle Street, Farrer Street (shelter), Hardman Street, Benjamin Street and Hatherley Street (shelter). Four small HEs were dropped in the Stoneferry and Kathleen Roads, Maxwell and Woodhall Street areas. Domestic and industrial buildings were slightly damaged. Two people were killed and eight seriously injured.

YouTube (Newsreel footage of No. 139 Squadron RAF based at Horsham St. Faith)



Air War over Europe

RAF Bomber Command focus on the German-held ports, including the Mole at Zeebrugge, Domburg Harbour, Kiel and Wilhelmshaven. Other targets include the Krupps factory at Essen and oil installations at Duisberg and Gelsenkirchen. A total of 125 bombers are in action.

The Tirpitz, well along in its construction, remains a sort of tar baby for the RAF (as it will be throughout the war). Once again, RAF Bomber Command sends a group of bombers to attack it. Only four Hampden bombers actually attack due to poor weather. If one calculates the sum total of British attempts to sink the Tirpitz and balances that against the effort to build her, the scale likely would tilt decisively in the German battleship's favor.

Battle of the Atlantic

Operation DN begins. Captain Philip Louis Vian in destroyer HMS Cossack, HMS Ashanti, HMS Maori and HMS Sikh depart the Firth of Forth. They intercept a small German convoy off Egerö light and sink 1949 ton German netlayer Genua in shallow water. The Cossack takes a shell which damages the rudder and injures a stoker. Vian, a legendary, swashbuckling Royal Navy veteran of World War I and the Altmark incident from earlier in the year, is awarded a bar to his DSO for this action. This action is blown out of all proportion in the press, as the destroyer captains claim much greater success (at least two ships) than they actually achieve (one small ship that is later salved). Many later accounts also recite more victories in this action than actually occurred. No matter: it further cements Vian's reputation.

U-103 (Viktor Schütze) continues a successful maiden cruise, patrolling west of the Outer Hebrides. At 08:46, it torpedoes and badly damages 1186 ton Estonian timber freighter Nora. The lifeboats are destroyed in the attack, so Schütze deviates from standing orders and radios a distress call giving the survivors' position. The ship remains afloat long enough for the survivors to be picked up by sloop HMS Leith on the 18th.

U=37 (Kptlt. Victor Oehrn) torpedoes and sinks 5804 ton British freighter Stangrant in the Atlantic west of the Outer Hebrides at 19:57. Stangrant is a straggler from Convoy HX 77. There are 30 survivors and 8 crew perish.A Sunderland flying boat of 10 Squadron RAAF rescues the survivors. This is Captain Oehrn's final U-boat victory, as he transfers to a shore-side staff position after this. He has sunk 23 ships totalling 103,821 tons.

U-138 (Oberleutnant zur See Wolfgang Lüth) damages 4562 ton Norwegian freighter Dagrun in Convoy HX 77 in the western Atlantic. After this voyage, Lüth receives the Iron Cross.

Royal Navy 98 ton converted fish trawler/patrol drifter HMT Summer Rose (PD594) hits a mine and sinks in the North Sea near Sunderland in County Durham. There are two deaths.

Royal Navy 234 ton rescue tug HMS Danube III hits a mine and sinks in the Thames Estuary northeast of sheerness, Kent. Eleven men perish.

British 1130 ton barge Cargo Fleet No. 2 hits a mine just west of Datum Buoy off Tees. The barge is taken in tow, but breaks the line and drifts ashore and is destroyed. No casualties.

German auxiliary minesweepers Gnom 7, Kobold 1 and Kobold 3 sweep the wrong minefield, hit mines and sink in the North Sea.

The Royal Navy completes an extensive sweep of Scapa Flow (except for a small part northeast of Barrel of Butter), which has been securely sealed since the embarrassing Royal Oak incident of 1939. This permits anti-submarine exercises to begin.

Convoys OL 7 and OB 228 depart from Liverpool, Convoy FN 307 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 308 departs from Methil.

Battle of the Mediterranean

Italian submarines Zoea and Foca lay mines off Palestine. The Foca is lost off Haifa while doing so in some kind of mishap, while the Zoea completes the mission off Jaffa.

Royal Navy gunboat Ladybird assaults Italian positions at Sidi Barrani.

The South African Air Force makes its fifth raid against Neghelli in southern Abyssinia. The British send a patrol across the Abyssinia border and cause some casualties on Italians southeast of Kassala.

Italian destroyer Artigliere, under tow after heavy damage at the Battle of Cape Passero, is sunk by British cruiser HMS York using torpedoes. The British ships, which include HMS Ajax (the victor in the night action) and several destroyer, drop rafts for the survivors and allow the Italians to rescue them later.

Royal Navy aircraft carriers HMS Eagle and Illustrious launch raids against Italian-held Leros island as they continue their withdrawal from their escort duties of the recent (successful) Malta convoy.

Romanian dictator Ion Antonescu is concerned about Allied air attacks (none of which have happened to Romania yet). He requests some Luftwaffe assistance. Hitler accedes and sends the Luftwaffe's night intruder force to the Mediterranean area.

The First Lord of the Admiralty issues a memorandum to the War Cabinet. It urges a concentrated effort against Italy:

I feel that what we must aim at is to knock Italy out of the Axis as soon as possible and at the same time avoid, if we can, the full entry of France into the Axis. If we are to achieve the first of these, it is vital that we should strengthen Malta, reinforce the Eastern Mediterranean Fleet and the forces under the command of the General Officer Commanding Middle East. The bulk of our efforts must be applied in this direction, until at any rate we have carried out our special operation for putting through reinforcements through the Mediterranean to Malta and the Middle East.

In an unrelated but coincidental event (see below), the British Secretary of State visits Malta today by RAAF Sunderland flying boat. It lands at Kalafrana in the dark in poor weather. After touring the island, he prepares to leave in the morning.

German/Soviet Relations: The term "New World Order" has been thrown about by many different people for numerous different purposes throughout the years. The first known use of the phrase was by Nicholas Murray Butler in his 1917 book "A World in Ferment." It also was the title of "The New World Order" by Frederick C Hicks. The same title was used in 1940 by H.G. Wells. The phrase continues to be a catchphrase in the 21st Century among those suspicious about globalization.

The New World Order is like the weather: everyone talks about it, but very few people ever do anything about it. Today, 13 October 1940, however, someone actually tries to do something concrete about it.

Hitler and Ribbentrop, along with others in the German high command such as Admiral Raeder, have been trying to figure out a way to avoid a war with the Soviet Union. Their latest theory is that the world should be divided up into spheres of influence, with Germany taking Europe, Soviet Union dominating central Asia down through India, and the Japanese taking the Asian coastal regions. Italy would have control over Africa.

In pursuit of this somewhat hopeful theory, Ribbentrop sends the German embassy in Moscow a long letter for Stalin which basically recites the course of the war to date with a rather defensive attitude. It then goes on to suggest some ideas of cooperation for the future. The letter makes numerous points, including:

- Germany essentially had been forced to continue the war through British and French "games".

- Great Britain essentially is finished.

- Germany has no military intentions regarding the Soviet Union.

- He explains away recent events in Scandinavia as purely defensive.

- Germany desired a long-term agreement with the USSR, Italy and Japan regarding respective spheres of influence "which would last for centuries".

- Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov should come to Berlin to discuss this further, with discussions to continue at Moscow.

The letter, like many of Ribbentrop's literary efforts, is tedious, overly complicated and full of random excursions into completely extraneous issues. The is delighted to reach the first three words in the following paragraph, even though - yes - that is not the end of the lecture either:

In summing up, I should like to state that, in the opinion of the Führer, also, it appears to be the historical mission of the Four Powers—the Soviet Union, Italy, Japan, and Germany—to adopt a long-range policy and to direct the future development of their peoples into the right channels by delimitation of their interests on a world-wide scale.

In fairness to Ribbentrop, these types of eternally long essays are fairly common in diplomatic efforts of the day. The letter is sent today to the German embassy in Moscow for translation, which literally takes several days.

Vichy France

Consolidating centralized control, the Vichy government abolishes local departmental councils.

China

The Japanese have been bombing the Nationalist capital of Chungking steadily for months, and the Chinese fighters have been unable to stop them. Recently, the appearance of the new Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters has made that task even more difficult. However, there are many ways to skin a cat, and today the Nationalists show how crafty they can be. In great secrecy, they have smuggled artillery pieces through Japanese lines to within range of Ichang airfield, the forward staging base close to Chinese lines which they captured on 12 June. Ichang is of great importance because it is within 400 miles of Chungking and thus a fairly easy trip for bombers.

Elsewhere, the Chinese attack Japanese positions at Lungchin during the continuing Battle of South Kwangsi.

British Homefront

Princess Elizabeth, 14, makes her first public speech. It is a radio address to the children of the British Commonwealth. Princess Margaret, 10, joins in. Elizabeth says that England's children cheerful and courageous.

Photo: Future Queen Elizabeth, right, and Princess Margaret make their radio address

Day 411 of World War II, October 15th 1940

Battle of Britain

The day opened with new instructions from the AOC of 11 Group. It was in response to the new tactics being employed by the Luftwaffe in which twin-engined bombers had been more or less eliminated from their battle order. They were being replaced by strong forces of Me109s and 110s. Secondly they were flying at much higher altitude than before. Sometimes as high as 30,000 feet. All this meant that German aircraft were arriving over London between 17 and 20 minutes after the radar stations had given the first warning. As they might be flying as high as 30,000 feet, RAF fighters were often unable to intercept, as it took them at least 15 minutes to achieve the requisite altitude. The answer was to have squadrons patrolling at 20,000 feet or thereabouts, enabling them to intercept the enemy. The result was that, throughout October, the number of enemy aircraft shot down by the RAF fell in relation to the losses suffered by Fighter Command. It had become a battle of fighter versus fighter.

The daylight German nuisance raids by bomb-carrying Messerschmitt fighters and single bombers continued. The Bristol Aeroplane Company at Filton was targeted by a single He 111 of III./KG 55 at 0610 hours. At 0700 hours twenty Do 17s attacked the city of Birmingham and destroyed the airfield at Ternhill. Several RAF aircraft were destroyed on the ground including two Blenheim bombers.

Jafu 2 maintained pressure on Fighter Command and fighter-bombers from JG 2, JG 3, JG 26, JG 51, JG 52 and JG 54, as well as II(Schlacht)./LG 2 again carried out missions with fighter escort to London. All units flew a total of two missions during the day and made several well-executed attacks on London which resulted in a serious disruption of the capital's rail service.

At 0800 hours, bomb-carrying Bf 109s crossed the Channel in a raid on the south of England. British fighter squadrons from Biggin Hill and Hornchurch were scrambled to intercept them, but not before the damage had been done. Although most of the Messerschmitts were turned away by the RAF, the initial flight of Bf 109s got through to London and about twenty fighter-bombers managed to damage the King George V Dock in West Ham, Waterloo Station and suburbs in South London. More than sixty Bf 109s crossed the Channel at 0945 hours but were turned away by RAF fighters who were able to scramble early and gained the advantage of attacking out of the sun. RAF No. 149 Sqd, who had recently come down from Dyce, got caught up in combat over the Channel and one of their Hurricanes managed to get a Bf 109. But several pilots of JG 51 claimed victories including Maj. Werner Mölders of Stab/JG 51 who reached a score of 47 with a Hurricane downed over London and Hptm. Walter Oesau of Stab III./JG 51 who also destroyed a Hurricane to reach 37 kills.

About noon, close to sixty Bf 109s - including those of JG 27 - and Bf 110s crossed the coast near Folkestone and headed to London. Six RAF fighter squadrons engaged the Bf 109s and caused them to drop their bombs early in order to take on the British Hurricanes and Spitfires. The Luftwaffe Zerstörers climbed for the clouds and disappeared while a formation of Bf 109s came down on the Spitfires. RAF No. 609 Sqd also made for the safety of cloud cover and a hasty retreat back to Warmwell. Slight damage was caused to the districts of Ashford, Maidstone and Gravesend by the German fighter-bombers. Oblt. Erbo Graf von Kageneck of 9./JG 27 claimed a Spitfire over Maidstone for his 12th victory.

At about the same time, a flight of fifty bombers were bounced by Spitfires of RAF No. 145 Sqd over the Isle of Wight. For once, RAF fighters bounced the high-flying Bf 109s out of the sun, shooting down 4. As more Spitfires from RAF No. 609 Sqd climbed to join in the battle, they were bounced by more Bf 109s creating two separate dogfights over the island and the Solent. Having a much larger force of fighters engaged than the RAF allowed several Bf 109s to break off and continue to the target at Southampton but they caused little damage. Josef Priller from 6./JG 51 claimed two Hurricanes about this time over Dover. The last daylight raid by the Luftwaffe was conducted at 1550 hours over Ashford and Maidstone.

During the afternoon, I./JG 26 and II./JG 26 encountered a number of Hurricanes east of London and downed four without loss. Maj. Adolf Galland of Stab/JG 26 got a Spitfire near Rochester for his 45th victory while Uffz. Erhardt Scheidt of 1./JG 26 claimed a Spitfire and a Hurricane.

The daytime Pirate attacks also resumed on the 15th, when Oblt. Speck von Sternburg of III./KG 55 made an abortive attempt against Filton, to be followed by three more unsuccessful efforts later in the month by the same crew. The RAF launched 41 fighters but only shot down one Heinkel bomber.

The fighters of JG 2 lost several more pilots and planes including Fw. Horst Hellriegel of I./JG 2, who was listed as Missing in Action when he failed to return from the mission. Gefr. Alois Pollach of II./JG 2 also failed to return from a sortie and he, too, went missing in action. Another Messerschmitt from II./JG 2 crashed at Beaumont-le-Roger when the pilot tried to land his damaged Bf 109 after combat with the British fighters. The pilot was unhurt but the plane was written off as 75 % damaged. But Hptm. Helmut Wick from Stab I./JG 2 downed a Spitfire over Portsmouth to reach 42 victories. Ofw. Siegfried Schnell from 4./JG 2 claimed two Spitfires over Southampton.

By nightfall, yet another raid was made on London. At 2100 hours local, 30 aircraft head for Hornchurch and central London and hit Waterloo Station and block all but 2 of the rail lines. Clear skies and brilliant moonlight allowed the Luftwaffe to return to London in force. Five main railway stations were damaged and the air raid shelter at Balham Underground Station suffered a direct hit, killing over 100 people. The Royal Docks were also hit and numerous wharves along the Thames erupted into flames. Beckton Gasworks, Battersea Power Station and the Handley Page aircraft factory suffered serious damage to their buildings. Several bombers from KG 55 attacked Yeovil and lost one He 111 that crashed near Cherbourg, France on the return flight.

The BBC lost 7 people killed when a bomb hit BBC Broadcasting House during the BBC's 2100 hours local news program whilst Bruce Belfrage read the 9 o’clock news. Despite being covered in plaster and debris, Belfrage continued with his broadcast. In London, train service was stopped at the 5 main stations and traffic for other stations were cut by more than two-thirds. The Underground (subway) was severed at 5 places and roads were blocked throughout the city and a reservoir, 3 gasworks, 2 power stations and 3 important docks were hit. There were 900 fires in London during the night and there were over 1,200 casualties including 400 killed including 64 people sheltering in Balham Underground station. Bombs destroyed the main artery of London's water supply, the 46 million Imperial gallon-a-day (55.2 million U.S. gallons or 209.1 million liters) pipeline at Enfield.

Birmingham and Bristol were attacked, as London suffered its heaviest assault of the war so far: 400 bombers and a continuous raid that lasted six hours. At 2145 hours eight Do 17s of KGr 606 along with a single He 111 of III./KG 55 dropped bombs in the Bristol area. Another 50 aircraft attacked London and at 2320 hours, attacks began in Kent and the Thames Estuary.

Still the RAF had no answer to the night raids of the Luftwaffe. They had a few Blenheims and Beaufighters that were equipped for night duties, but these were only good for attacking an odd recon plane or observation aircraft, they were not strong enough to take on a whole formation of heavy bombers. Losses for the day’s actions included fourteen aircraft lost by the Luftwaffe and fifteen lost by the RAF. Among the Kanalfront Jagdgeschwader's losses for the day was Lt. Ludwig Lenz of I.(J)/LG 2, who failed to return from a sortie in his Bf 109 and was listed as missing in action.

Section Cdr George Walter Inwood (b. 1906), Home Guard, saved two men unconscious from gas in the cellar of a bombed house; he died from gas on a third rescue. (George Cross)

Lieutenant (Acting Captain) Eric Charles Twelves Wilson of the East Surrey Regiment, reported killed and awarded a VC posthumously last Saturday, was alive and a prisoner of war. The War Office informed his parents, the Reverend Cyril and Mrs Wilson of Hunsdon Rectory near Ware, Hertfordshire. Wilson was awarded his VC, the 12th of the war, for outstanding bravery while attached to the Somaliland Camel Corps. Between 11 and 15 August he kept a machine-gun post on Observation Hill in action despite being wounded and suffering from malaria. His mother said tonight that she had never given up hope.

Photo: Posed portrait of a soldier with rifle and bayonet standing watch behind beach defences ‘somewhere in Southern Command’, England



Air War over Europe 

RAF Bomber Command concentrates on the German-held ports tonight. This includes Kiel, Hamburg, Boulogne, Flushing, Lorient, Brest and Terneuzen. The Fleet Air Arm chips in with attacks on Dunkirk.

Battle of the Atlantic

It is a good day for the U-boats, and a bad one for the convoys. As usual, it is a lottery for the merchant marine sailors: sometimes the crew all live, sometimes most or all of them perish. There's no way to predict what will happen, the variables include the weather, the ship's cargo (ships with heavy and dense cargos tend to sink faster), the distance from shore, the presence of other ships nearby, the type of ship you are on (tankers are much harder to sink), any assistance offered by the U-boat itself, and whether you even survive the initial explosion intact. Even if you make it to the lifeboats, they may get swamped or spring a leak or you may die of starvation before you make land or are found. Many lifeboats, seen by the U-boat to depart intact, are never seen again. Serving on the North Atlantic trade routes is so disliked that some crews transfer to the navy, which in some ways can be safer.

U-138 (Oblt.z.S. Wolfgang Lüth) stalks Convoy OB 228 northwest of the Butt of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides (about 80 km northwest of Rockall). At 05:10 Lüth fires a torpedo at the Bonheur, and at 05:15 another at the British Glory.

U-138 also torpedoes and sinks 5327 ton British freighter Bonheur. All 39 crew survive, taken off by HMT Sphene.

U-138 then torpedoes and damages 6993 ton British Glory. The torpedo hits in the aft section engine room, killing three men there and disabling the ship. The ship is towed to Kames Bay, then to the Clyde for repairs.

U-103 (Kptl. Viktor Schütze), toward the end of her first patrol, also stalks Convoy OB 228. It torpedoes and sinks 4747 ton British freighter Thistlegarth. There are 9 survivors and 30 crew perish. After this, U-103 heads to its new base at Lorient.

U-93 (Kptlt. Claus Korth) stalks Convoy OB 227 northwest of the Outer Hebrides. Just after midnight, it torpedoes and sinks 9331 ton British cargo freighter Hurunui. There are 73 survivors and 2 crew perish.

Italian submarine Comandante Alfredo Cappelini, operating off the Azores, uses its deck gun to sinks Belgian freighter Kabalo. There are 42 survivors and one man perishes.

Royal Navy patrol boat HMT Mistletoe hits a mine and blows up in the Humber Estuary near Spurn Point, Yorkshire. There are two survivors and six men perish. Several ships have been succumbing to this minefield.

British drifter Apple Tree (19 tons) gets the worst of a collision with RAF Pinnace No. 50 in Oban Harbour and sinks.

British 477 ton collier Bellavale runs aground in a storm at St. John's Point, Rossglass, County Down. It is a total loss.

Royal Navy submarine L 27 (Lt R. E. Campbell) reports attacking a German convoy off Cape Barfleur and scoring three hits on a 7000 ton freighter. However, in one of those mysteries of the sea, the German records make no mention of any such incident.

U-65 (Kptlt. Joachim Hoppe) reports being attacked by a Royal Navy submarine while transiting through the Bay of Biscay from its base at Lorient. However, it is undamaged and continues out to the Atlantic.

Operation D.H.U. is set in motion. Royal Navy battlecruiser HMS Hood departs from Scapa Flow as part of a force to attack Tromso, Norway in a few days. Several destroyers also depart and will conduct exercises in the interim.

Minelayer HMS Teviotbank and destroyer HMS Intrepid lay minefield BS 41 in the North Sea.

Convoy OB 229 departs from Liverpool, Convoy FN 309 departs from Southend, Convoy 310 departs from Methil, Convoy SC 8 departs from St John, Nova Scotia.

Battle of the Mediterranean

In a rare gunbattle between submarines, Italian submarine Enrico Toti sinks Royal Navy submarine HMS Triad (Lt.Cdr. G.S. Salt) off Calabria (50 miles south of Cape Collonne in Otranto Strait). Encountering each other on the surface at 01:00, the Triad fires first but misses, and also fires a torpedo that misses. Using its machine gun, the Toti then forces the Triad gunners to seek shelter and closes at full speed. The Toti then sinks the Triad with a torpedo as the British submarine attempts to dive. The submarine pops out of the water vertically stern first, then sinks straight down. There are no survivors of the 50-man crew. The Triad is often mistaken for HMS Rainbow, which sank on 4 October in a collision.

At Malta, a French Loire 130 reconnaissance aircraft with three aboard unexpectedly lands (after being shadowed by three Hurricanes) at Kalfrana from Bizerta. It is a crew of Vichy airmen switching sides. The pilot has never flown a Loire before, but he brings the plane down in a manner described as "a bit shaky" by ground observers. The men provide valuable intelligence about aircraft at Bizerta. It is a solid victory for the propaganda service, as the men are carrying a leaflet dropped by the RAF.

German/Soviet Relations

The German embassy in Moscow is still translating Ribbentrop's massive mission to Stalin about a New World Order. It will take a few more days.

Italian/Bulgarian Relations

Italy asks Bulgaria to assist the projected invasion of Greece. This would require the Greeks o defend two fronts rather than one.

Italian Military

Benito Mussolini, after much thought and consultation, decides to use the Italian occupation of Albania to invade Greece. Mussolini obtains permission from the Italian War Council (Ciano, Badoglio, Jacomoni, Visconti-Prasca, Roatta, Cavagnari, and Pricolo), which is a mere formality (despite misgivings they almost all privately have). He does not tell German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop, who complains around this time that there is a strange "inability" of Germans to learn the Italian plans. Marshal Badoglio, no fan military adventures with a weak army, succeeds only in gaining a postponement of two days for the start of the invasion, which will have to go through the mountains in northern Greece.

The planned attack date of the invasion is October 26th. The Commando Supremo projects a quick two-week operation to defeat the Greeks. This is a decision of far-reaching ramifications - some say it directly affects the outcome of World War II itself by a direct chain of events - that will not become fully apparent for some time.

US Military

The US Marine Corps mobilizes its reserve battalions. They are to be assigned to active duty by November 9th 1940.

Japanese Military

Captain Sadayoshi Yamada becomes commanding officer of aircraft carrier “Kaga.” Captain Matsuji Ijuin becomes commanding officer of “Naka.”

British Government

Prime Minister Winston Churchill sends a message to all ambassadors via the Foreign Office that "nothing can compare with the importance of the British Empire and the United States being co-belligerent." This, of course, is not the official policy of the United States - at least openly.

American Homefront

The government announces that, pursuant to the new peacetime draft, 16 million already have registered for the peacetime draft.

Day 413 of World War II, October 17th 1940

Battle of Britain

Perhaps for no one did the Battle of Britain have a more unexpected end than for Dowding himself. As the battle continued throughout the rest of September, and the German aircraft ranged farther north over London, instead of concentrating their attacks against No. 11 Group’s airfields south of the capital, Leigh-Mallory’s No. 12 Group was drawn increasingly into the fighting, rather than being used merely when Park called for fighter protection over his Sector airfields. A consequence of this change in the balance of British forces was that Douglas Bader’s “Big Wing” began to play a larger role in the battle, despite Park’s doubts about its wisdom and his preferences for “squadron strength” attacks, which had in any case hitherto been accepted dogma for fighter operations. Bader did not hide his anger at Park’s reluctance to use his big wing as he saw fit, and one of his pilots, who happened to be a member of Parliament, passed this growing dispute about Fighter Command tactics on to the Undersecretary of State for Air and, more disturbingly, to the prime minister. The fat was now in the fire, and with a politician’s natural sense of self-preservation when faced with a sharp difference of opinion between senior officers of any service in wartime, Churchill urged the Chief of the Air Staff to arrange for a meeting of the interested parties and discuss “Major Day Tactics in the Fighter Force.” Since Churchill was more than capable of intervening directly in service matters when he wanted to, he was clearly throwing a hot potato back to the air force. That there was no urgency to the matter in his mind is proved by the fact that it did not take place until October 17, more than a month after the greatest and most successful day of the battle. It may be that Dowding was simply too tired by October 1940 to perceive that he was walking into a trap, or that he put too much reliance on Churchill’s promises of support (though given his long experience with politicians that seems unlikely); or perhaps he had simply had enough of repeatedly being given new dates for his retirement. Certainly, he can have had no illusions about the meeting; nor can Park — it was a grim, hanging jury of his peers that he was facing, barely disguised as an impartial inquiry into the facts. His old rival Newall, the Chief of the Air Staff, was too ill to attend, and this ought to have been a warning, since he was replaced at the meeting by Sholto Douglas, now the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, with whom Dowding had clashed many times before. Douglas was younger than Dowding, sleeker, an altogether jollier and more outgoing personality, at least on the surface, a decorated war hero, happily married, and a good mixer, and he had set his eyes long since on Dowding’s job. The presence of Leigh-Mallory cannot have surprised Dowding—the whole purpose of the meeting was ostensibly to thrash out the differences between Park and Leigh-Mallory—but it must have come as a shock to realize that Leigh-Mallory had brought Bader along to represent the views of the fighter pilots. That Sholto Douglas had allowed Leigh-Mallory to introduce into the meeting a mere squadron leader (the equivalent of a major), however highly decorated and celebrated, to dispute the views of the Air Officer Commanding-in- Chief, Fighter Command, and of Air Vice-Marshal Park, who commanded No. 11 Group, would have been enough to tell Dowding that his neck was on the block. Nothing of this is reflected in the minutes of the meeting — it took place in England, after all. Everybody gave his point of view politely, making full allowance for the other fellow’s point of view. Park conceded that there was something to be said for the big wing, Leigh- Mallory admitted that there were occasions when an attack by one or two squadrons might be called for, and even Bader was restrained in front of his superiors. Sholto Douglas gave an impartial summing up, and Dowding promised to increase cooperation between the two groups, though he did not suggest how he hoped to achieve this. It was all very polite and English, but there is no question that his failure to get his two principal subordinate commanders to cooperate with each other was being criticized, with some reason. The upshot was that Dowding was retired. Park was removed from his post and sent to command a Group in Training Command. The Air Ministry produced a slim pamphlet giving an account of the Battle which failed to mention Dowding or, indeed, Park. Churchill remarked that it was like an account of Trafalgar without any mention of Nelson. Air Vice Marshal Sholto Douglas then took over the command of Fighter Command. Trafford Leigh Mallory took over from Park at 11 Group. Bader was to get further promotion to Wing Commander and took over command of a wing at Tangmere.

On the battle-front bomb-carrying Bf109s made renewed raids on London and targets in the southeast. The first crossed the coast at about 0830 hours and was followed by a larger raid just after 0900 hours, which also included Do17s crossing over East Anglia. 90 Bf 109s and Bf 110s attacked Margate, Broadstairs and Stanmore. Many squadrons were scrambled to intercept these raids but poor visibility made this task difficult. Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 46, 242 and 302 (Polish) Squadrons and Spitfires of RAF No. 266 Squadron succeeded in finding and engaging the enemy.

Just after 1300 hours another raid was plotted approaching Gravesend with a second wave of four raids just before 1500 hours. The largest raid of about 80 aircraft was met over East London, Kenley and Biggin Hill by 14 RAF squadrons, which shoot down 4 Bf109s. Over the next two to three hours' dogfights raged high over Kent and southeast England involving Hurricanes of RAF Nos. 46, 229, 242, 249, 253, 302 (Polish), 303 (Polish), 501 and 605 Squadrons and Spitfires of RAF Nos. 41, 66, 72, 92, 222 and 603 Squadrons. Bombs were dropped on central London and the airfield at Kenley.

At 1700 hours a raid of Bf109s swept across Kent and Sussex. Interceptions were made by the Tangmere Hurricanes of RAF No. 213 Squadron and Spitfires of RAF Nos. 603 and 609 Squadrons.

During the night raids were made on London, Liverpool, Birmingham, the Midlands and East Anglia. Mines were dropped off the Suffolk coast and the Thames Estuary. German bombing has killed 1,567 people in the week up to today, much of the air raid damage due to new German land mines. In London, a bomb destroyed automatic signalling equipment at Waterloo Station however, people using flags kept the trains rolling.

Sub-Lt Jack Maynard Cholmondeley Easton (b. 1906), RNVR, and AB Bennett Southwall (b. 1913), RN, tackled a mine dangling six inches from the floor of a house. It slipped and both men ran for cover, but the huge blast killed AB Southwell and badly injured Sub-Lt Easton. (George Crosses)

2nd Lt Alexander Fraser Campbell (b. 1898 ), 9 Bomb Disposal Coy Royal Engineers, lay alongside a bomb in case it began ticking as it was taken from a factory. He defused it but died the next day along with six men of the Royal Engineers when another bomb exploded while he was trying to defuse it. (George Cross).

Photo: Groundcrew refuelling a Messerschmitt Bf 110 “Zerstörer” of ZG 26 “Horst Wessel” in France, October 1940



Air War over Europe

RAF Bomber Command has no operations due to the foul weather. Coastal Command makes a daylight attack on Brest.

Battle of the Atlantic

U-boat have infested the major sea lanes, and today all the hard work to change bases from Germany to forward bases in Norway and France pays off.

Several convoys get hit in running battles that last several days. In addition, four German destroyers (Hans Lody, Karl Galster, Friedrich Ihn, and Erich Steinbrinck) with six torpedo boats are sighted off Brest, forcing the Admiralty to re-route Convoys OG 44, SL 50 and HG 45 to the west. The Admiralty despatches Two light cruisers (HMS Newcastle and Emerald) and destroyers from Plymouth to confront the German ships, and the British cruisers chase the German ships from 16:00 to 18:00 before the faster Kriegsmarine ships get away as the light fades.

Convoy SC 7 is entering the Western Approaches from Canada and only has as escorts three ships: destroyer HMS Scarborough, sloop HMS Fowey and corvette HMS Bluebell. This is one of those early-war situations where the number of U-boats watching actually is greater than the number of escorts. There is air cover by Coastal Command, but it can only do so much. This is only the beginning of the torture of Convoy SC 7.

U-38 (Kptlt. Heinrich Liebe), on her seventh patrol out of Lorient, is shadowing Convoy SC 7 about 150 km northeast of Rockall when it spots 3554 ton Greek freighter Aenos. The freighter is a straggler from the convoy. U-38 fires a torpedo at 09:57, but misses. The U-boat then surfaces and uses its 105 mm deck gun on the ship, sinking it at 10:52. There are 25 survivors and 4 crew perish. Canadian freighter Eaglescliffe Hall rescues the crew and takes them to Scotland.

U-38 is not the only U-boat stalking Convoy SC 7; in fact, half a dozen submarines have their eyes on the large convoy. U-48 (Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Bleichrodt) sets up and fires three torpedoes into the convoy. All three hit.

U-48 (Kptl. Heinrich Bleichrodt) torpedoes and badly damages 9512 ton British tanker Languedoc in Convoy SC 7. After all 41 crew survive and are taken off on other ships, the tanker is deemed irrecoverable. Royal Navy corvette HMS Bluebell scuttles it.

U-48 also torpedoes and sinks 3843 ton British freighter Scoresby (Master Lawrence Zebedee Weatherill) in Convoy SC 7. The entire crew survives when also picked up by HMS Bluebell.

U-48 torpedoes and damages 4678 ton British freighter Haspenden. The ship makes it to port.

After U-48 attacks, it is chased by the Scarborough. This forces the U-boat to go deep, putting it out of action as far as Convoy SC 7 is concerned. However, this incident also takes the Scarborough, one of only three escorts, out of the picture as well. From this point, the Convoy SC 7 only has two escorts - and more than double that number of U-boats are watching and waiting for opportunities to attack.

U-93 (Kptlt. Claus Korth), on her first patrol out of Kristiansand, Norway, is tracking Convoy OB 228 south of Iceland. At 03:39, he torpedoes and badly damages 2715 ton British tanker Uskbridge (Master Wilfred Breckon Smith). Tankers are very difficult to sink. After waiting for it to sink, Korth finally puts another torpedo into it at 13:36, splitting it in two. There are 27 survivors and six crew perish.

After being spotted by the British escorts of Convoy OB 228, U-93 is attacked twice with ships and once by a flying boat. After surviving these attacks, Korth gets down to business again. He torpedoes and sinks 1168 ton Norwegian freighter Dokka. There are seven survivors and ten crew perish. He questions the survivors, then proceeds on his way after being spotted by the convoy escorts again.

E-boat attacks off the East Anglia coast are so common that the area has become known as "E-boat Alley." Today, a major E-boat attack cements that nickname.

E-boat S-27 attacks Convoy FN 11. It torpedoes and badly damage British collier Gasfire about 11 km northeast of Smith's Knoll at Great Yarmouth. There are 11 deaths. Having lost her stern, the collier is towed to Spurn Head at the mouth of the Humber and beached, where it will be repaired after being towed to the River Wear.

E-boat S-18 (Christiansen) torpedoes and and badly damages 1595 ton coaster Hauxley in Convoy FN 11. HMS Worcester takes her in tow, but she sinks on the 18th. There is one death.

E-boat S-24 torpedoes and sinks 3754 ton French ship P.L.M. 14 in Convoy FN 11.

British freighter Brian claims to have sunk one of the E-boats that attacked Convoy FN 11, but there is no record of that in the German archives. In addition, British long-range coastal guns at Dover shell the E-boats, but the distance is too great and the boats too fast for any hope except a very lucky hit.

British 1361 ton freighter Frankrig hits a mine and sinks off Orford Ness, Suffolk. All 19 crew survive, taken on board HMS Holderness.

Royal Navy trawler HMT Kingston Cairngorm hits a mine south of the Isle of Portland, Dorset. Taken in tow, it sinks on the 18th.

Royal Navy minesweeper HMS Dundalk hits a mine off Harwich, Essex and suffers extensive damage. Fellow minesweeper HMS Sutton takes it in tow, but the Dundalk sinks. There are four deaths.

Faroe Islands 65 ton fishing trawler Cheerful hits a mine and explodes off the Faroe Islands.

British 15 ton fishing boat Albatross hits a mine and blows up off Grimsby, Lincolnshire. All five on board perish, including skipper J.A. Ward. The crew are listed on Tower Hill Memorial in London.

Sailing ship Janna A (unknown flag) hits a mine and sinks in the Oosterschelde, Zeeland. It lies just offshore and becomes a fairly popular diving wreck, with lots of lobsters.

British 936 ton freighter Ethylene hits a mine just northeast of East Oaze Light Buoy, but makes it back to port.

British 1570 ton freighter George Balfour hits a mine just off Aldeburgh Light Vessel. The ship makes it back to port.

Convoy OB 230 departs from Liverpool, Convoy FN 311 departs from Southend, Convoy FS 312 departs from Methil.

Vice-Admiral J. C. Tovey replaces Admiral of the Fleet Sir Charles M. Forbes as Commander-In-Chief of the Home Fleet.

Battle of the Mediterranean

Royal Navy control of the Straits of Gibraltar continues to be somewhat shaky, at least as far as the French Navy is concerned. Previously, some French cruisers had reinforced Dakar by passing through the Strait, causing the British commander there to be sacked. Today, French torpedo boat La Batailleuse escorts submarines Pegase, Monge, Espoir and Vengeur westbound to Casablanca. Why the British are allowing these transits is a mystery, because they have enough ships to at least attempt interceptions. It may simply be that the French vessels simply sneak through without being spotted - which also raises questions about the British operations on Gibraltar.

The South African Air Force bombs Italian transports at Neghelli, Abyssinia.

Orde Wingate arrives in Cairo.

The Chief of Imperial General Staff in London informs Governor Dobbie on Malta that it will be sending some tanks and artillery to Malta. In addition, a battalion will be shifted from Egypt to Malta. This is completely inadequate to repel a serious invasion, but does mitigate the military's weakness on Malta. The General Staff somewhat puckishly suggests that building dummy tanks might convince the Italians to stay away from the island.

German/Soviet Relations

German Foreign Minister Joachim Ribbentrop's lengthy letter to Soviet Premier Josef Stalin is finally fully translated (after several days) and delivered to Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov. Among the ideas in the far-reaching letter is the institution of a New World Order led by Germany, Italy, Japan and the Soviet Union. Ribbentrop is furious at the delay in delivering the letter and feels it should have been hand-delivered to Stalin himself, but the embassy staff knows what it is doing and handles things properly.

Molotov is somewhat nonplussed by the letter - he virtually directs Soviet Foreign policy, with of course the required approval of Stalin, and the letter does not address concerns he has about recent German activities in Finland - but decides to accept Ribbentrop's invitation for a visit in November. Molotov begins preparing a response to be signed by Stalin.

German occupied Netherlands 

Consistent with other changes in occupied Europe, Holland now institutes a requirement that Jews carry special documents with them.

Japan

There is a general amnesty which releases Buddhist priest Inoue Shirō (Inoue Nissho ) of the infamous League of Blood incident of 1932 (assassinations of several liberal political figures). Inoue is an ultra-nationalist hero to some, and it is possible to interpret this gesture as an increasing nationalism and imperialism within the Japanese government.

China

Following through on its recent vow, Great Britain reopens the Burma Road from Burma to China after it has been closed for three months.

British Homefront

The London bus system has taken a beating during the Blitz. Today, the London Transport requests provincial bus systems to send replacement buses to keep the London transport system running.