Posted on 09/09/2010 5:00:26 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
Plus a special guest map from Michael Korda’s, “With Wings Like Eagles,” showing the air defenses of England and Wales, August 1940.
William L. Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour
Michael Korda, With Wings Like Eagles: The Untold Story of the Battle of Britain
* There is a line or two of missing text towards the bottom of column 2 here, after “. . . babies and pillows, clutching . . .”. Sorry.
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/sep40/f09sep40.htm
RAF intercepts blitz bombers
Monday, September 9, 1940 www.onwar.com
Over Britain... The Germans send about 200 bombers, well escorted, to bomb London. They are intercepted by strong RAF forces and many are compelled to drop their bombs before reaching their targets. The air battle is very fierce. The British lose 19 planes and the Germans 28.
In Washington... A new $5,500,000,000 appropriations bill becomes law in the United States. Contracts are placed for 210 vessels for the navy, including seven battleships and 12 carriers.
In French West Africa... Six French warships leave Toulon bound for Dakar. They are reported to the British too late, and reach Dakar despite the efforts of the squadrons now en route to Dakar to attack on behalf of the Free French.
In the United States... The first of the 50 old destroyers given to Britain is taken over by a Royal Navy crew.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/09.htm
September 9th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM:
Battle of Britain:
RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group. 78 Sqn. 1 aircraft crashed on landing at Linton-on-Ouse. Crew safe. 51 Sqn. 1 aircraft ditched 120 miles off Firth of Forth on return from Bremen. 1 crew member killed, over 5 safe.
Bombing - Bremen shipyards - industrial targets at Berlin.
51 Sqn. Nine aircraft to Bremen. One returned early, six bombed primary. One badly damaged and ditched on return, four rescued, one drowned.
58 Sqn. Four aircraft. Three bombed primary, one bombed Wesermunde.
78 Sqn. Four aircraft to Berlin. Two bombed primary, two bombed alternatives. Three aircraft to Bremen, all bombed successfully.
2 Group: 101 Sqn. Invasion barges at Antwerp. 1 aircraft FTR. Two crew saved.
RAF Fighter Command: Thames Estuary and Southampton are attacked. Major attack with some 200 bombers on London frustrated by 11 and 12 Groups, jettisoned bombs damaging suburbs widely.
Losses: Luftwaffe, 28; RAF, 19.
Destroyers HMS Clare, Churchill, Chesterfield, Chelsea, Castleton, Campbeltown, Cameron and Caldwell commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
NORTH SEA: Cruiser HMS Galatea is damaged by an acoustic mine in the Thames Estuary.
FRANCE: Six French warships leave Toulon for Dakar, West Africa. They reach Dakar safely.
GERMANY:
Berlin: Hitler postpones the invasion of England until 24 September.
The Luftwaffe General Staff announces that the demise of Fighter Command is near, and issues new instructions for the systematic destruction of London. Luftlotte 2 will undertake daylight raids against key military and commercial targets in Greater London, while Luftlotte 3 would bomb the areas of government and docks.
The Germans warn that all ships in the war zones defined by the Axis powers are subject to attack. (Jack McKillop)
PALESTINE: Italian planes bomb Tel Aviv.
INDIA: In Pondicherry, French Governor Bonvin proclaims the French Settlements in India’s adhesion to Free France. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.A.: A Naval Appropriations bill becomes law in the US. This 5.5 billion dollar authorization will provide 210 new ships including 7 battleships and 12 carriers.
The first 8 overageUSNdestroyers in the destroyers-for-bases deal, are transferred to the RN at Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. (Jack McKillop)
USS Aaron Ward (DD-132), commissioned as HMS Castleton (I-23), USS Buchanan (DD-131), commissioned as HMS Campbeltown (I-42), USS Abel P. Upshur (DD-193), commissioned as HMS Clare (I-14), USS Welles (DD-257), commissioned as HMS Cameron (I-05), USS Welborn C. Wood (DD-195), commissioned as HMS Chesterfield (I-28), and USS Hale (DD-133), commissioned as HMS Caldwell (I-20), part of the destroyers-for-bases deal.
USS Crowninshield (DD-134), is commissioned as HMS Chelsea (I-35), and USS Herndon (DD-198), is commissioned as HMS Churchill (I-45). In 1944 Chelsea as Dzerki and Churchill as Dyatelnyi will be transferred to Russia as Dzerki and returned to the Royal Navy in 1949. Churchill will be the last war loss of the class and the only one of the destroyers transferred to Russia to be lost. (Ron Babuka)
Don McNeill and Alice Marble win the national tennis titles at Forrest Hills, New York. (Jack McKillop)
ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-28 sank SS Mardinian in Convoy SC-2.
U-47 sank SS Possidon in Convoy SC-2. (Dave Shirlaw)
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 375 September 9, 1940
Battle of Britain Day 62. Göring believes the RAF is beaten due to their lack of resistance to the first daylight bombing of London on September 7 (in reality, RAF was confused by the new Luftwaffe tactic). Today, RAF is ready when a large raid crosses the Channel at 5 PM towards London. In addition to Keith Park’s No. 11 Group patrolling the approaches to London, Douglas Bader’s “big wing” (a formations of 3 squadrons from No. 12 Group) swoops in from the West with the sun behind them and mauls the German bombers (29 shot down plus 21 Bf109 fighters). Very few of the German aircraft get through to bomb London but RAF loses 20 fighters and 6 pilots killed. London is, however, heavily bombed again during the night, as RAF has no effective deterrent for this.
http://www.raf.mod.uk/history/phase3ofthebattle.cfm
After weeks of preparation and prevarication, Marshal Rudolfo Graziani (who is under threat of replacement by Mussolini) orders Italian forces to advance on Egypt. Italian 10th Army moves towards British positions just inside Libya, as Italian Royal Air Force bombers soften up British defenses. RAF bombs Tobruk, troop concentrations and supply depots. Italian Royal Air Force Fiat fighters engage in dogfights with RAF Gladiators.
Vichy France has caught wind of De Gaulle’s plot to land Free French forces at Dakar. French cruisers Georges Leygues, Montcalm and Gloire, escorted by 3 destroyers, depart Toulon for Dakar.
Battle of the Atlantic. Convoy SC-2 is attacked again, 70 miles North of Ireland. At 00.24, Günther Prien in U-47 sinks Greek SS Possidon carrying 5410 tons of sulphur phosphate from USA (17 dead). At 4.47 AM, U-28 sinks British SS Mardinian carrying 3500 tons of pitch from Trinidad (6 crew lost, 22 survivors picked up by anti-submarine trawler HMS St. Apollo and armed merchant cruiser HMS Aurania or make land in a lifeboat). Italian submarine Comandante Faà di Bruno damages but does not sink British tanker MV Auris in the Atlantic, 750 miles West of Gibraltar. The first 8 US Navy destroyers are transferred to the Royal Navy at Halifax, in the deal giving US access to bases in British territories. Blackburn Skuas of 801 Squadron fly from Royal Naval Air Station Hatston, Orkney, Scotland, to attack German shipping off Bergen, Norway. 1 Skuas does not return (2 airmen killed).
German armed merchant cruiser Atlantis sinks British tanker MV Athelking (in ballast) in the Indian Ocean, 1200 miles East of Madagascar (6 killed, 40 crew taken prisoner).
>>”injured in the first massive-scale attempt by Chancellor Hitler... to raze the cities of the island, which has ...
tried his patience by refusing... to bow to his mighty army and air force.”<<
Back in the days when England had bollocks and was run by Men of Action and Principle.
Today, Hitler would have wandered in and taken the world over in a cakewalk. The first capitulator would have been 0-bama who would have handed the USA over on a silver platter and been happy to have added Chamberlain as an admirer. After that, the weak EEU would have happily put their collective heads on the block while singing “We are The World.”
The only official resistance would be from China. The only unofficial resistance would have been USA “flyover country” ala the movie “Wolverines.”
Date: 9th September 1940
Enemy action by day
One main attack was made in the afternoon by some 300 aircraft in direction of Thames Estuary/South London and Biggin Hill but only a section penetrated to Central London. During the resulting engagements our fighters destroyed 50 enemy aircraft (plus 9 probable and 13 damaged) and Anti-Aircraft fire accounted for 2 destroyed and 2 probable. Our casualties amounted to 20 aircraft of which 5 pilots killed or missing.
There were also a number of enemy reconnaissances, mostly over Convoys on East Coast.
East
One raid is reported to have made an early morning attack on a Trawler, 25 miles East of Lowestoft. Four raids made a reconnaissance of convoys off East Anglian Coast, of which one also penetrated to Bury St Edmunds. Two raids crossed Lincolnshire Coast. Interception was made by without success.
South East
One early raid to Clacton and another from Beachy Head to Central London and back over Hastings. Later in the morning a raid of three aircraft approached the Kent coast. Fighters unsuccessfully attempted interception. Apart from patrols in Calais/Boulogne area, there was little enemy activity until 1605 hours when formations began to mass in Calais/Boulogne area. From 1655 hours an attack in force on the South East crossed the Coast between North Foreland and Cover. Enemy strength is estimated at some 300 aircraft amongst which there are reported to have been 6 four-engined aircraft with strong fighter escort. Up to 1730 hours the main trend was towards the Estuary and South London, though one raid of about 35 aircraft penetrated to Central London.
A general drift Westwards then developed, and small raids were plotted as far West as Salisbury. The enemy withdrew in small groups and during this period Dover was shelled. 24 Squadrons of fighters were detailed to this attack, inflicting heavy casualties, and an intercepted instruction from Gruppe Headquarters read "Break off task if fighter opposition is too strong". Later it was reported that shipping off Dover was attacked by enemy seaplanes with fighter escort.
By night
The usual stream of raids started to come out of Cherbourg and the Somme about 2000 hours, crossing the coast between Isle of Wight and Dungeness, all proceeding to the London area, where again four to five raids were maintained for most of the period.
From about 0230 hours the method of approach changed and activity increased. Raids had by this time practically ceased to come out of French Coast and were replaced by a larger series of raids from the Dutch Islands via the Thames Estuary into the London area, homing over Dungeness.
Soon after 0430 hours the last raids were leaving the London Area and by 0455 hours the country was clear of enemy raids.
There were a few raids before midnight in South Wales, Bristol, Midlands and one to Liverpool, and later raids spread up the East Coast with a few penetrations inland. Minelaying was suspected between Newcastle and Middlesborough.
Dover was reported to have been shelled several times during the night.
________________________________________
Statistics
Fighter Command Serviceable Aircraft as at 0900 hours, 9th September 1940
Casualties:
| Enemy Losses | ||
| By Fighters | ||
| Destroyed | Probable | Damaged |
| 21 Me109 | 5 Me109 | 7 Me109 |
| 8 Me110 | 3 Me110 | 1 Me110 |
| 4 Do17 | ||
| 4 Do215 | 1 Do215 | |
| 5 Ju88 | 1 Ju88 | |
| 8 He111 | 1 He111 | 3 He111 |
| 50 | 9 | 13 |
| By Anti-Aircraft | ||
| 1 Do17 | 2 E/A | |
| 1 E/A | ||
| 2 | 2 |
Patrols:
Balloons:
Aerodromes:
Organisation:
Air Intelligence Reports:
Home Security Reports
Had to delete my registry key for Word to get this done (I have no idea what Microsoft did last night) but there is the daily BoB post.
Great thread...great post...
Click cover to read.
The German Measles attacking the Kiwis!!! It’s biological warfare!!
Good stuff in Life — especially the pages on TAMU.
No mention of her race - wonder if she was ‘passing’.
Forty years later, Carol Bruce would be “Mama Carlson,” the station owner on “WKRP in Cincinnati.”
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0115433/
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