GREEKS AT GATES OF KORITZA AFTER TAKING NEAR-BY PEAKS; R. A. F. AGAIN POUNDS NAZIS (11/18/40)

Microfilm-New York Times archives, Monterey Public Library | 11/18/40 | C.L. Sulzberger, David Anderson, Raymond Daniell, James B. Reston, Lansing Warren

[Homer_J_Simpson]

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[Homer_J_Simpson]

Free Republic University, Department of History presents World War II Plus 70 Years: Seminar and Discussion Forum
First session: September 1, 2009. Last date to add: September 2, 2015.
Reading assignment: New York Times articles delivered daily to students on the 70th anniversary of original publication date. (Previously posted articles can be found by searching on keyword “realtime” Or view Homer’s posting history .)
To add this class to or drop it from your schedule notify Admissions and Records (Attn: Homer_J_Simpson) by freepmail. Those on the Realtime +/- 70 Years ping list are automatically enrolled. Course description, prerequisites and tuition information is available at the bottom of Homer’s profile. Also visit our general discussion thread

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Winston S. Churchill, Their Finest Hour

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Italians Rush Aid – 2
Pope May Keep Names of Cardinals Secret – 2
Hamburg Bombing Kept up by British – 3
Netherlands Meets Fiscal Obligations – 3
The International Situation – 4
R.A.F. Unit Formed to Act with Army – 5
Our Best Bomber Going to Britain – 5-6
Nazi Formations Smashed by R.A.F. – 6
Convoy Survivors Tell of Nazi Raid – 6-7
Gamelin, Blum and Daladier Moved to Riom; Early Trial is Presaged by Formal Arrest – 7
Boy and Dog ‘Treated Swell’ in New York; Return from Cross-Continent Adventures * – 8
The Texts of the Day’s War Communiques – 9-10
Best Sellers of the Week Here and Elsewhere ** – 11

* Trixie Part IV: Trixie Goes Home.
10/25, Part I: Trixie Takes a Train Ride (see image #10)
11/7, Part II: Trixie Gets a Stinky Shirt . (See image #14.)
11/17, Part III: Trixie Takes a Plane Ride (see image #5.)

Next – Trixie on Dancing with the Stars.

** Quarterly feature to follow evolution of American reading habits. Here are the earlier lists. They are near the end of the post in each case.

8/19/40 Thread
5/13/40 Thread
2/19/40 Thread
10/23/39 Thread

“For Whom the Bell Tolls” and “Mrs. Miniver” are 1-2 this quarter.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1940/nov40/f18nov40.htm

Airborne radar detects submarine

Monday, November 18, 1940 www.onwar.com

In the North Atlantic... In an Atlantic operation a U-boat approaching a convoy is detected by a Sutherland flying boat fitted with an Air to Surface Vessel (ASV1) radar set. This is the first time such a location has been achieved by airborne radar in operational conditions.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/18.htm

November 18th, 1940

UNITED KINGDOM: Churchill berates the First Lord of the Admiralty about the number of destroyers available for service in the North-western Approaches. Out of 151 destroyers available only 84 are serviceable, and of these only 33 are marked for use in the area. What has happened to the American destroyers, are repairs and construction falling behind?
GERMANY: Chancellor Adolf Hitler meets with Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano over Italian Premier Benito Mussolini’s disastrous invasion of Greece. Hitler, had been caught off guard, especially since Mussolini had led Hitler to believe he had no such intention. Even Mussolini’s own chief of army staff found out about the invasion only after the fact! At their meeting in Obersalzberg, Hitler excoriates Ciano for opening an opportunity for the British to enter Greece and establish an airbase in Athens, putting the British within striking distance of valuable oil reserves in Romania, which Hitler relies upon for his war machine. It also meant that Hitler will have to divert forces from North Africa, a high strategic priority, to Greece in order to bail Mussolini out. Hitler considers leaving the Italians to fight their own way out of this debacle-possibly even making peace with the Greeks as a way of forestalling an Allied intervention. But Germany will eventually invade, in April 1941, adding Greece to its list of conquests. (Jack McKillop)

Hitler orders that all confiscated works of art be brought to Germany and placed at his personal disposal. (Peter Kilduff)

ITALY: Rome: Mussolini says that he had to invade Greece because it had given the Allies use of important air and sea bases.

ALBANIA: Dimitry Statharos’ unit is lobbing artillery shells on the Italians in Koritsa which he will capture around the 22nd. (Steve Stathros)

EAST AFRICA: The cruiser HMS Dorsetshire bombards Zante in Italian Somaliland.

CANADA: HMC MTB 1 commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)

U.S.A.: Washington: Telegram from Roosevelt to Churchill:

When he was informed by the American Charge d’Affaires in Vichy of my offer with regard to the battleships Petain replied:

The most solemn assurances have been given by me that the French fleet, shall never fall into the hands of Germany. .... These ships will be used to defend the possessions and territories of France. ... I cannot sell those ships ... under the terms of the armistice. ... France is under Germany’s heel and impotent.

Three Texas National Guard cavalry units are inducted into Federal Service, the 56th Cavalry Brigade and the 112th and 124th Cavalry Regiments (Horse). (Jack McKillop)

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-65 sank SS Congonian. (Dave Shirlaw)

[Homer_J_Simpson]

http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/

Day 445 November 18, 1940

Overnight, RAF bombers raid Gelsenkirchen in the Ruhr, bombing the Scholven/Buer hydrogenation plant, making aviation base gasoline, and Gelsenberg-Benzin-AG plant, converting bituminous coal to synthetic oil.

U-65 continues raiding shipping off the West coast of Africa, sinking British tanker Congonian 125 miles West of Freetown, Sierra Leone, at 6.02 PM (1 killed, 35 crew picked up by cruiser HMS Devonshire and landed at Freetown on November 29). 250 miles Northwest of Ireland, Italian submarine Baracca sinks British SS Lilian Moller (all hands lost).

British cruiser HMS York departs Port Said, Egypt, with a battalion of troops for Suda Bay, Crete, and anti-aircraft guns for Piraeus, mainland Greece.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

ASW alert.

In an Atlantic operation a U-boat approaching a convoy is detected by a Sutherland flying boat fitted with an Air to Surface Vessel (ASV1) radar set. This is the first time such a location has been achieved by airborne radar in operational conditions.

[jtonn]

I found an interesting description of the directional system in use by KG-100 that Churchill mentioned in his note.

http://www.ausairpower.net/DT-MS-0207.pdf

[henkster]

I see we are sending the Brits some B-24s. Very handy since the B-24 has good range; it will make an excellent maritime anti-submarine craft. I can’t remember right now what the Brits named it, though. Anyone?

[CougarGA7]

The only thing that comes to mind is the “Commando” but I think that is just the name of Churchill’s private B-24.