The Wilmington morning star., 1940-09-01
BRITISH BATTLE
MASSIVE RAIDS
CONTINUED from Page One)

Bombs blasted Gown on the AoI-
don area at many points.
In one of the Saturday night raids,
London's elaborate subway system
was interrupted, but transport Of
ficials said it was restored early to-
day.
The British reported GO German
planes were destroyed and % British
were missing in Saturdays fighting.
CThe Germans said 124 British and
% Nazi planes were iost.3
The air ministry news service said
the heaviest fighting of Saturday &C.
Cured about 6 p. m. when 800 Ger
man bombers and fighters were hurl-
ed against southeast England, in
lcluding the London area. Mass
flights of SO or 60 German planes
were frequent.
Among the many fighter squad
rons which fought off the attack was
a Polish squadron which on Friday
scored its first success against the
enemy, and a squadron of Canadians,
the news service said.
Apparently the nazi fliers' goal was
to smash the Royal Air Force, their
chief nemesis and one of the main
obstacles to any direct invasion OF
this country, by hammering repeat
edly at British airdromes.
The six alarms in the London dis
trict was a record number for the
metropolitan area. They followed
four Friday, including n which
lasted from shortly after 9 p. m. to
almost 4 a.. m. today and gave the
capital it's worst night of the a
While the sixth London area warn
ing continued, enemy planes also
were reported over a notheast town
and over the northwest. They had
been reported earlier rel the mid
lands.
Little Activity
Watchers in London noted little
activity during the fifth alarm, which
lasted 81 minutes from 9.49 p. m. to
1910 p. m. (3:49 to 4:10 p. M, E. S. IT,
but searchlights could be seen finger
ing the skies and airplanes motors
could be heard distinctly during the
36-minute sixth alarm between 1l:24
p. m. and midnight (5:24 p. m. to 6
p. m, E. S. t..
Although the British acknowledged
that successive waves of German
planes charging against Britain's de-
lenses had reached some detectives
and taken an undisclosed toll of civil
ians killed and injured, a commune
~..~ Iao1o-al than vxyoro 6dicnorSa6
without any serious damage being
done to Raj airdromes, which again
appear to have been the detectives of
the attacks"
Earlier, however. the metropoli.
tan area got a strafng and, in the
southeast, evening raiders spray
ed fire bombs in several localities.
In at least two instances, low
flying German planes dropped to
within machine-gun range Of sub
urban London and opened fire, on
the crowded streets. A number OF
bombs were dropped and several
houses demolished in the London
area during tonight's fourth raid
of the day.
Besides London, harried by the
long series Of Saturday alarms aft
er a Friday night raid, Royal Air
Force airdromes were the chief
targets of the Nazi fliers. Two adj
mittedly were hit, one in East An
glia and another along the Thames
Estuary, but the air ministry said
British fighters broke up both at
tacks before serious damage was
done.
Wave After Wave
So far, then, there vas nc indi-
cation that the raids, delivered by
wave after wave of bomber and
fighter squadrons ignoring heavy
opposition, we're worth the price.
Authoritative figures late tonight
placed German plane losses for
the day at So up to $3.50 p. m. $3.50
p. m. E. S. to and admitted %
British planes had been lost. How
ever, the pilots of II of the British
planes escaped to fight again, these
sources said.
Although the British acknoW-
lodged damage to some air bases,
chiefly in the southeast, ana some
casualties, a communique declar-
ed that mo reports Of any serious
damage to airdromes so far have
been received"
The fourth air attack, which
kept the capitals populace under
groundground for one hour and 26
minutes, apparently repeated the
formula the Germans have adopt
ed for their hit-and-run attacks.
Watchers in the London area said
they saw about so German raid
ers sweep in from the coast and
fan out into small groups as soon
as British fighter planes charged
into their formation.
One column Of 16 German planes,
stretched out Indian flle-the Naz-
is favorite bomb attack formation
could be seen high in the north
west with aircraft shells dotting
the sky around them.
Intricate Patterns
The planes Unanswered in intri-
cate patterns, apparently picking
out targets and lodging British
fighters. another clump of planes
appeared further to the south and
a third was seen over an unidenti-
fed greyhound racing track in the
London area.
But the raids, which angered the