Posted on 08/07/2010 6:48:21 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/aug40/f07aug40.htm
Channel shipping under attack
Wednesday, August 7, 1940 www.onwar.com
In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.
In East Africa... The last reinforcements (the 2nd Battalion of the Black Watch) reach British Somaliland
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/07.htm
August 7th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM: RAF Fighter Command: Weather, cloudy. Luftwaffe attacks a convoy off the east coast.
Heavy raids on Poole, Dorset and bombs fall for the first time on Exeter.
Losses: Luftwaffe, 2. RAF 0.
Barnes Wallis in a meeting with the Deputy Director of Operational Requirements (RAF) proposes a 4,000lb bomb to be carried in a Wellington.
GERMANY: Daily Keynote from the Reich Press Chief:
In the matter of air leaflet propaganda, the Minister [of Propaganda, Göbbels] states that he does not expect much to come out of a German air-leaflet propaganda campaign in England, because the amount of effort that would go into it would be out of all proportion to the results ... The Minister admits that the most recent leaflets dropped by the British, are somewhat more dangerous than the earlier ones. He wishes to be informed at once of the exact wording of every new enemy leaflet that appears.
U-140 commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
U.S.S.R.: Soviet submarine K-22 commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
CANADA: Corvette HMCS Kamloops launched Victoria British Columbia. (Dave Shirlaw)
U.S.A.: Destroyer USS Grayson launched. (Dave Shirlaw)
ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-38 sank SS Mohamed Ali El-Kebir. (Dave Shirlaw)
Is this high water mark of Italian arms during the war (that is before Hitler sent help).
Rommel won’t set foot in Africa until February, 1941.
its a book of poetry by a hippie from the late 1960s...just making an obscure reference for the sake of making obscure references.....
....think MST3K (yet another obscure reference, google it) when asked, they would say that the ‘right’ people will ‘get it’.
Date: 7 August 1940
Enemy action by day
There was very little enemy activity during the day. A few raids reconnoitred convoys and one convoy was bombed. One raid approached to within 30 miles of Aberdeen but fighters were unable to intercept.
In many cases enemy aircraft turned back on sighting our fighters.
South and West
In the morning, two raids were plotted in the Isle of Wight area. Raids were also plotted over Start Point and the Lizard and an isolated raid was picked up inland north of Bournemouth whence it was tracked over Gloucestershire and the Oxford and Reading districts before fading out to sea over the Isle of Wight.
In the evening, a raid of 9+ aircraft approached the Isle of Wight but turned south before a squadron from Tangmere and a flight from Middle Wallop which were waiting to intercept, could make contact.
Later, two further raids - one of 6+ and one of 3+ aircraft - were some miles off Beachy Head and the Isle of Wight respectively but again turned south before fighters could contact.
East
At 0635 hours, Hurricanes of No 46 Squadron saw bombs bursting around a convoy off Cromer but interception by fighters from Coltishall was frustrated by thick cloud from 5,000 to 10,000 feet.
Scotland
At 1040 hours, a raid of 11 aircraft approached to within 30 miles of Aberdeen where the track was lost.
Later, one aircraft was plotted 90 miles east of St Abb's Head. Fighters were despatched to both raids but no interception resulted.
France
In the afternoon, continuous enemy patrols were in evidence in the Dunkirk-Calais-Gris Nez area, of an average strength of about 3 aircraft each. Some of our fighters on patrol in the Dover Straits approached the Calais district where they were fired on and damaged by AA, but no casualties have been reported.
By night
Enemy raids during the night were over a widespread area extending from the Thames Estuary up to Aberdeen on the East Coast and from Poole to Land's End up to Liverpool.
Four raids, which were plotted intermittently off the Norfolk coast between Cromer and Southwold, were not picked up until close to the Coast and are thought to have been fighters trying to intercept our outgoing bombers.
Eight raids were plotted approaching 13 Group area from the south-east; three raids on westerly courses down the Channel; two raids approached Portland from Jersey and five or more raids approached Harwich where they were obviously involved in minelaying. Minelaying also appears to have been in progress between the Forth and the Humber. Several raids were tracked inland in the Yorkshire area.
________________________________________
Statistics
Fighter Command Serviceable Aircraft as at 0900 hours, 7 August 1940
Casualties:
Patrols:
Balloons:
Aerodromes:
Organisation:
Air Intelligence Reports
Home Security Reports
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 342 August 7, 1940
Battle of Britain Day 29. At 2.45 AM, D.S. Smith of 616 Squadron is killed when his Spitfire crashes during a night flying exercise. It is another fine day but very little Luftwaffe activity allows RAF to rest men and make repairs to aircraft & airstrips. 1 convoy is bombed. Overnight, there is bombing & minelaying all along the East coast of Britain & on the West from Land’s End to Liverpool.
East Africa. Indian troops from Aden (1st Battalion, 2nd Punjab Regiment) reinforce British forces in British Somaliland.
At 9.40 PM, 150 miles off Ireland, British troopship Mohamed Ali El Kebir, carrying 631 troops, 66 naval personnel & 165 crew from England to Gibraltar, is hit with 1 torpedo from U-38. Escort destroyer HMS Griffin depth charges U-38 for 2 hours while Mohamed Ali El Kebir sinks (10 crew members, 86 troops & naval personnel killed). HMS Griffin rescues 155 crew, 611 troops & naval personnel from various lifeboats, rafts and out of the water. http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/454.html
http://mohamed.ali.el-kebir.freewebspace.com/
Not for two more years he won’t.
read #10
Worth noting again that in those days the "Solid South" was solidly Democrat.
The South's influence helped keep the Democrats focused on national security and even recognize some constitutional limitations on Federal powers.
After the 1960s, the Dems lost the "Solid South," and almost immediately floated off into the la-la land of anti-American, anti-Constitution, pro-redistribution and unlimited Federal power to impose whatever it wishes on the country.
Of course, the Dems loss was our gain, and if we can help the South control its urge to seceed, and stay loyal to the Union despite our flaws... well, I think we have a winning combination -- if not in 1940 or even fully in 2010, then 2012 is looking goooood. ;-)
Southerners were FDR's strongest foreign policy supporters.
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