Posted on 09/18/2010 4:57:07 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.
Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/sep40/f18sep40.htm0
Italian advance into Egypt stops
Wednesday, September 18, 1940 www.onwar.com
In North Africa... The advance of the Italian 10th Army comes to a halt, officially because of supply difficulties. They occupy themselves building various fortified camps and make little effort to keep in touch with the British forces which have pulled back before their superior strength.
Over Britain... During the day there is a German attack by 50 bombers on targets in London. There is heavy fighting in which the RAF loses 12 planes and the Luftwaffe 19.
September 18th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM:
Major raids on Clydeside badly damage heavy cruiser HMS Sussex as she refits.
SUSSEX was so heavily damaged she settled on the bottom and was partly capsized. Due to priority need to repair destroyers, etc. SUSSEX was a low repair priority for a while she was not back in service until August 1942
Battle of Britain:
The Luftwaffe returned to London in daylight today but, even after two days rest following its defeat last Sunday, it could put only 70 heavily escorted bombers into the air, in three waves, and they achieved little.
However the bombs continue to rain down on the capital at night, with the drone of some 230 bombers making every night hideous. Unable to pinpoint their targets, they drop their bombs at random, causing terrible damage and casualties in the streets and among civilians.
Some of London’s most famous landmarks have been destroyed or damaged. Eight City churches have been hit. One bomb, weighing a ton, lies, unexploded, outside the West door of St. Paul’s Cathedral, where Royal Engineers bomb disposal experts are working on it.
The West End, Downing Street, the Law Courts, and the House of Lords have all been hit by either high explosives or incendiaries. But it is the ordinary people who are taking the brunt of the attack.
Sheltering in the Underground, they still raise the Union Jack over the rubble of their homes or declare “Business as usual” on hand-written signs nailed to the wreckage of their shops and businesses.
The King and Queen, who have been bombed twice in Buckingham Palace, have made several visits to the East End where they have been greeted sympathetically as fellow sufferers from German bombing. When Churchill, cigar clenched in his teeth, visited the bombed-out areas he got a clear message from the people: “Give it ‘em back.”
Thornton Heath, Surrey: Mr Roy Thomas Harris (1903-73), ARP, dismantled several unexploded bombs at a local school. (George Cross)
RAF Fighter Command: Nine Ju88s of III/KG 77 attacking oil targets in the Thames Estuary are shot down in 3 minutes. At night London and Merseyside are bombed.
Losses: Luftwaffe, 19; RAF, 22.
RAF Bomber Command:
4 Group. 58 Sqn. Whitley P5008:M missing from Hamm. Crashed at Groenlo, Holland. Plt Off E. Ford and Sgts A.E.E. Crossland, C.F. Marshall, R.E. Salisbury and W.D. Austen killed. 77 Sqn. P4992:T missing from Antwerp. Plt Offs R.P. Brayne and W.M. Douglas and Sgts J.A. Raper, J. Baguley and D.V. Hughes all killed. 77 Sqn. N1425:E missing from Soest. Plt Off P.E. Eldridge, Sub Lt Williams and Sgts V.C. Cowley, F. Crawford and R.C. Dawson all killed.
Bombing - invasion fleet at Zeebrugge and Antwerp - marshalling yards at Krefeld, Mannheim, Soest and Hamm.
58 Sqn. Eight aircraft to Zeebrugge. All bombed. Three aircraft to Krefeld. Two bombed. Three aircraft to Hamm. Two bombed, one FTR.
77 Sqn. Thirteen aircraft to Antwerp, Mannheim and Soest. Eleven bombed successfully. One FTR from Antwerp and one FTR from Mannheim.
Corvette HMS Begonia launched.
Light cruiser HMS Sirius launched.
Destroyer HMS Cleveland commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
NORTH AFRICA: Italian forces come to a halt and start fortifying their position. The Italian 10th Army halts, officially because of supply difficulties. They begin building fortified camps and do not stay in contact with British forces.
GERMANY:
Daily Keynote from the Reich Press Chief:
1. The Navy has again reported damage to the British aircraft carrier Ark Royal. The Minister has ordered the greatest caution to be taken in the treatment of this case so that we are not caught out again. [making false damage reports about the Ark Royal.]
2. By order of the Fuhrer, enemy air raids on Germany should be played up on a large scale in future, even when relatively little damage has occurred. Attention should also be paid to treating raids on other [German] cities as of equal importance to attacks on the capital.
U-143 commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-48 sinks the SS Marina in convoy OB-213 and SS Magdalena in convoy SC-3. (Dave Shirlaw)
CANADA: The second group of “overage” USN destroyers to be transferred to the RN in exchange for bases in the Western Hemisphere arrive at Halifax, Nova Scotia. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.A.: The motion picture “The Westerner” is released. Directed by William Wyler, this western stars Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan, Forrest Tucker (his film debut), Chill Wills and Dana Andrews. The plot involves a range war between cattlemen and homesteaders with Cooper being accused of horse thievery and being tried by Judge Roy Bean (Brennan) who adores Lily Langtry. The film was nominated for three Academy Award and won a Best Supporting Actor award for Walter Brennan. (Jack McKillop)
Corvette USS Impulse launched.
Destroyer USS Mayo commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 384 September 18, 1940
Battle of Britain Day 71. Luftwaffe sends 2 more big raids during the day. 70 Ju88 bombers escorted by 100 Bf109 fighters fly over English Channel at noon and are intercepted by AVM Park’s No. 11 group, with about 60 bombers reaching London. At 4 PM, 200 bombers in several waves (with fighter escorts) attack targets in Kent. In addition to squadrons from No.11 group, a Big Wing from No. 12 group joins in (repeating its success of September 7). 23 German bombers and 10 Messerschmitt fighters are shot down, while RAF loses 12 fighters (3 pilots killed). Overnight, London is bombed repeatedly and Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol and the North East Coast between Humber and Newcastle are also attacked.
At 1 minute past midnight, U-48 fires another torpedo at British liner SS City of Benares. The torpedo hits City of Benares in the stern and she lists heavily (preventing many of the lifeboats from being launched) and sinks within 30 minutes (121 crew and 134 passengers are lost, including 77 of the 90 children being evacuated from Britain to Canada). Destroyer HMS Hurricane arrives 24 hours later and rescues 105 survivors. 1 lifeboat with 42 survivors including 6 British children is missed. They will be spotted 8 days later by an Australian Sunderland flying boat and rescued by destroyer HMS Anthony. At 00.07, U-48 sinks British steamer Marina carrying 5700 tons of general cargo (2 killed, 17 crew and 3 gunners picked up by HMS Hurricane next day, another 17 crew members picked up after 8 days by 8 British merchant vessel Carlingford). At 6.49 PM, U-48 sinks British SS Magdalena carrying 4600 tons of iron ore (all 31 hands lost).
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/timewatch/diary_codv_01.shtml
Near Porto, Portugal, Italian submarine Bagnolini sinks Spanish steamer Cabo Tortosa (Spanish steamer Monte Ayala rescues the entire crew).
Graziani has taken Sidi Barrani [plus 60 miles 0f desert]! Time to stop and build a monument to the acme of Italian arms! [Sarcasm off]
Paging Erwin Rommel! Paging Erwin Rommel! Please come to the desperation phone.
Date: 18th September 1940
East Coast
3+ enemy aircraft appeared off Dover and after approaching Yarmouth, flew in and out along the coast line to Clacton finally escaping eastwards. At 1640 hours one section of Fighters was despatched to a convoy of Orfordness.
South-East Coast
Between 0700 and 0800 hours one aircraft entered by Shoreham and flew over London. Between 0800 and 0900 hours one aircraft, first noticed over Kent flew over London and returned out to sea by Dungeness.
First Major Attack
At 0900 hours 150 enemy aircraft were plotted concentrating in the Calais area. At 0927 hours 50+ aircraft crossed the coast near Hythe followed by another 50+. A further 50+ crossed the coast at North Foreland and entered Thames Estuary. One raid split and made North West across Kent, was driven back North East towards East Kent except for one portion which entered the London area. Another raid remained mostly in Kent with a split over Herne Bay going to Essex. The third raid split behind North Foreland, part being intercepted and driven back and part going across the Estuary to Hornchurch.
Second Major Attack
At 1215 hours enemy aircraft were again concentrating in the Calais area. At 1237 a raid of 100+ crossed the coast North of Dover and penetrated to Maidstone.
Another raid of 50+ followed, then further raids crossed the coast at Deal and also proceeded to Maidstone. These three movements constituted the first wave. At 1245 hours the second wave consisting of three raids of 54 aircraft crossed the coast near Dover leaving 12+ aircraft circling in the Straits. At 1300 hours, two raids totalling approximately 60+ aircraft were already in the London area with another 120+ distributed from Rye to the Mouth of the Thames. At 1300 hours enemy aircraft started to return home and by 1345 hours, the majority had left.
Third Major Attack
This attack started with about 100 enemy aircraft entering East Kent. At 1545 hours one half passed via the Thames Estuary and Shoreham to Detling, the other half went East to Maidstone leaving the coast at 1630 hours. By 1640 hours about 100 enemy aircraft crossed the coast in the Dover/Deal area and by 1700 hours seven more raids totalling about 200+ had followed, covering the Sheppey mid-Kent and Medway areas. These were rapidly repulsed by our fighters and driven back to the South-east coast by 1730 hours.
South and West
One enemy raid of 1+ aircraft left Cherbourg at 0900 hours and entering East of Portland flew to Bristol and left by the Needles. A convoy off Selsey Bill asked for help at 1711 hours and at 1735 hours the raid was intercepted and one enemy aircraft was destroyed.
By night
At 1955 hours London Central was given a "red" warning. Approximately 200 aircraft were plotted approaching Dungeness. This is the first time that such formations of aircraft have been plotted at night. Two raids came from the Dutch coast and proceeded to the North East Coast where they split three raids entering between Humber and Newcastle and two raids continuing to the East Coast towards Scotland. From 2100 hours onwards a steady flow of enemy aircraft were mainly concentrated on the London area. Enemy aircraft were plotted from many directions and not only from the usual areas. It is estimated that a greater number than usual were operative. The Liverpool area and the North East Coast had a number of raids, the Bristol area fewer than usual. Minelaying was suspected off the Norfolk Coast to the Wash and Spurn Head to St Abbs. At 0307 hours the London district was clear of enemy aircraft but at 0325 hours a fresh stream of enemy aircraft were approaching London from the Le Havre/Dieppe area.
At 0434 hours a further phase developed in the Thames Estuary from the Ostend area and at 0530 London received the "all clear". The rest of the country was also free of raids at this same time.
________________________________________
Statistics
Fighter Command Serviceable Aircraft as at 0900 hours, 18th September 1940
Casualties:
| Enemy Losses | ||
| Destroyed | Probable | Damaged |
| 9 Me109 | 11 Me109 | 12 Me109 |
| 1 Me110 | ||
| 6 Do215 | 2 Do215 | |
| 14 Do17 | 2 Do17 | 1 Do17 |
| 11 Ju88 | 2 Ju88 | 1 Ju88 |
| 5 He111 | 1 He111 | 3 He111 |
| 33 | 16 | 19 |
Patrols:
Balloons:
Aerodromes:
Organisation:
Home Security Reports
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