Evening star., 1942-07-14
Raj Fighter-Bomber
Deals Destruction 10
Axis Desert Trucks
New Type PIone Answer
To Dispersal as Effective
Defense for Columns
By JAMES ALDRIDGE,
War Correspondent of The Star and

North American Newspaper Alliance.
WITH A FIGHTER SQUADRON
IN EGYPT. July 14.-The Royal Air
Forces incredible new weapon,
fighter bomber" is just about de-
stroying the Axis transport system
in Libya.
The "Hurrybombers" Hurricane
fighters used as bombers) and Kit
tvbomberS" converted KlttyhaWks)
combine with land factors in attack
ing from the British front lines in
the Ell Alamein sector. They are
more significant in the present
battle than any other single arm. II
the 9Th Army wins this scrap the
credit should go principally to the
fighter -bombers.
All DAY uney come and go in
swarms from this airport. Those
going out pass others coming back.
They swap information about tar
gets, the principal ones being dis
persed Axis motor transports and
columns.
Individual Trucks Picked OFF.
The fighter bomber is the one
jubiant answer to dispersal which
thus far has been an effective de-
fense because the desert is so wide
that the trucks have plenty of room.
But now the fighter bomber has
neutralized this advantage. They
are picking off individual trucks,
straflng small groups with light
bombs and larger groups with heav-
ier bombs. The Hurrybombers and
Kittybombers should go down in
history with big letters. They are
the accidental answer to the Stuka
and more effective than the Nazi
dive bombers against land targets.
In addition they are dual-purpose
because they can fight as well as
bomb. They are the answer to the
prayer for an all-service plane.
The fighter -bombers are fast
enough to mix it with any fighter
built. even with their bombs on. and
as bombers they are not nearly as
vulnerable as Stukas. Their bomb
ing technique is not "Stukaish.' y
They glide at an angle of about so
degrees and sight the bombs with
the normal sights for guns, then re-
lease the bomb at whatever altitude
they select. Also, if they feel like
it. they can add few rounds Of
machine-gun fire to the target
The effect of. these slick planes
diving on you is as bad as any
Stuka. These planes sometimes are
involved in dog fights with their
bombs still on. An Australian pilot
told me that the first show he was
in was like that.
Forgot About Bombs.
"I had never bombed before in
my life" he said I'VE were flying
to bomb some targets and I was
feeling excited about it when a
swarm of Messerschmitts came on
us. I forgot about the bombs un-
derneath me and I think everybody
in the flight did, too, because there
was a regular old miXup. The
bombs certainly did not make any
difference in the planes perform
ance. 1 got one Messerschmitt. AL
together we got 2 out of 10 with
no loss to ourselves and then went
on and did our bombing"
It is incredible to think that the
whole development Of the fighter
bomber is not the result of deliberate
design but entirely due to the pilots
themselves. 1t is probably the only
weapon actually made by the mer
who are using it. The Hurrybombel
was developed in Britain and there
were few out here. But one day
Squadron Leader Give killer
Caldwell, the Australian ace
thought he would try cut the Kitty.
hawk as Kittybomber. The bomb
racks were screwed on a Kittyhawl
at a front line flying field and he
raided Matruba airport.
This happened last March anc
gradually was more and more
adapted until the present plane
emerged. Caldwell left this nev
weapon as a sort of legacy for thu
Middle East. He was the squadron
leader of the famous "Sharkmouth
Tomahawk squadron with 81 plane
to his credit. Now this tall Aus
tralian is on his way home to shoy
the Japs what the inside of sharl
looks like.