17 JULY, 2010
Day 8 - Battle of Britain
On the first day of the second week of the Battle of Britain, the air war is not really registering as a continuous event. The Daily Express and other newspapers are getting worried about new administrative courts, with no juries - yet they have the power to hand down death sentences. In a complaint which would be recognisable today, the Daily Mirror laments:Many MPs, appointed as guardians of the people's liberties, did not bother to attend the House when this measure, gravely affecting the liberty of the subject, was debated. Until the debate was ending, there were never more than fifty or sixty members in the Chamber. At times, even when vital points were being discussed, the number fell to barely thirty.
This apart, in the previous night's London Gazette, a small piece of naval history was recorded, with the appointment of the first women doctor to the Royal Navy.
The Germans, meantime, are getting excited about something else, with a press release this day, and a photograph. Its caption reads: "The British even shot at the Red Cross! The Red Crosses at the fuselage and wings can be seen from a large distance. Despite this the British again shot a German rescue seaplane while trying to rescue British crewmembers who made an emergency landing at (sic) high seas."
Herein lies a long story, even if it stemmed more immediately from events on 11 July when there had been a vicious little fight off the coast at Deal when one of these aircraft, a Heinkel 59, escorted by a dozen or so Me 109s had been intercepted on its way to pick up a downed Me 109 pilot. On that occasion, the He 59 had been forced down and captured.
The presence of these aircraft was viewed with the deepest suspicion by the British government, not least because it was convinced that, as well as their air-sea rescue role, they were being used to report the movements of shipping convoys, and were equipped with long-range radios for that purpose. Thus, despite their Red Crosses, from 14 July, British pilots were ordered to shoot them down when they were encountered.
Needless to say, the Germans attempted to make propaganda capital out of the situation, hence the press release. However, even then it was operating some of the aircraft in war camouflage, with Luftwaffe call-signs and, very shortly afterwards, the He 59s in white garb disappeared.
The broader issue here was the early recognition by the Germans of the value of effective rescue services, in recovering downed pilots and returning them to the battle. To that effect, some 30 rescue seaplanes were operated in the Channel zone. Luftwaffe crews were issued with inflatable dinghies as well as their life jackets, and had fluorescent dye to stain the water and make them more visible.
In those early days, the British were by no means as well organised. Fighter crews had neither dinghies nor dye, and nor was there any dedicated air-sea rescue service. A Directorate was not set up until February 1941, well after the Battle of Britain had ended.
Oddly enough, the RAF had pre-empted the need, developing its 200 Class Seaplane Tender, a 37½ foot vessel capable of 27 knots, into the 100 Class high speed rescue launch (HSL) - pictured below right. Deliveries had commenced in 1932 and the RAF began to organise its ASR services in May 1940, these launches being based around flying boat bases and at a number of overseas locations.
Bizarrely, however – given the premium on aircrew and the shortage of experienced pilots - RAF planners believed that the amount of cross-Channel traffic meant that there was no need for a rescue service to cover this very busy stretch of water. This was an omission which undoubtedly contributed to the loss of over 200 airmen killed or missing in the seas around England during the Battle, not a few of their deaths completely avoidable. By contrast, through the Battle of Britain, He 59s recovered over 400 German aircrew, and some British, albeit with the loss of 31 aircraft. Another seven were badly damaged.
Park, as AOC 11 Group, was forced to make ad-hoc arrangements, relying on the Royal Navy the RNLI and others, plus Army Co-operation Lysanders, and later Walrus amphibians, plus other aircraft. As the service developed, the fleet of launches eventually expanded to over 600, including those located overseas.
Back on 17 July, however, when the Germans were seeking their propaganda advantage, it was again relatively quiet. With dull weather and occasional rain, the focus again was primarily on shipping. In the early afternoon, 20 aircraft, including Me 110s and Do 17s took part in an attack on shipping off Portland.
A mixed formation of Ju 87s and Me 109s attacked Dover Harbour and a convoy running south of Dover in the early evening, followed shortly afterwards by an engagement between No 56 Sqn Hurricanes and a mixed force of six Ju 87s and 12 Me 110s about 15 miles off Dover.
The early morning had seen two raids approach the Isle of Wight, crossing the Hampshire and Dorset coasts, eight raids off the East Coast, two of which attacked convoys, and raiders bombing Dundee and Warmwell, four miles NE of Lulworth Cove.
There was little enemy activity that night, although minelaying was suspected in the Thames Estuary and between Middlesbrough and The Wash. The Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary is mined by Heinkel 111s of I/KG 4, based at Soesterberg, in Holland.
On the day, Fighter Command flies 253 sorties, losing one Spitfire. The Luftwaffe loses two He 111s and two Ju 88As. But aircraft from Fighter Command were not the only RAF aircraft out and about. Since 5 July, there had been an active programme by Bomber Command to disrupt the Nazi invasion preparations. This day, amongst other sorties, six Blenheim IVs of No. 53 Sqn and 4 of No. 59 Sqn made an attack on oil and petrol storage tanks on the Ghent-Selzaette Canal. Six fail to find a target and four bomb targets of opportunity. One No. 59 Sqn Blenheim is lost, with all crew killed.
That is part of the less well told story of the battle. Although the Fighter Command "few" receive the accolades, Bomber Command is throwing aircraft into the fight as well, with a considerable number of sorties aimed directly at anti-invasion work. And it loses more men than Dowding's command.
Sunday 31 October 2010
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