The Wilmington morning star., 1943-05-27
Nearly 900 Planes Raid
Axis Cities With Tons
OF Bombs
NEW BLOWS ARE NEAR
Latest Attacks Only Fore-
taste OF Things To
Come For Foe

LOlNDO1N, Ndy LO.-tH -
The Raj Dashed the German
arms center of Dusseldorf
with nearly 1000 tons of ex-
plosives last night while an
American-led armada gave
another "get-out-of- -the-war"
warning to Italy in a paralyz-
ing attack eliciting cries of
pain and anger from the
weaker Axis partner.
A total of nearly 100 planes
based in Britain and Africa
struck the Axis in a violent
general aerial offensive which
authoritative sources said
was just a foretaste of great
er blows aimed at tearing out
by the roots the enemy's war;
making capacities.
Carpet of Flames Let
Perhaps 500 British bombers.
most of them four-engined giants
packing tWo-ton blockbusters, left
carpet of flames to eat through
cratered Dusseldorf in a satura-
ton raid almost equalling Sunday
nights record of destruction heap
ed on Dortmund, so miles away.
The rolling sky barrage contin-
ued today as stltsas force of Al
lied planes sped across the Eng
lish channel toward the invasion
coast.
In the Mediterranean nearly 400
Allied aircraft, spearheaded by U.
S. Flying Fortresses and Liber-
ators, rocked Italy's invasion out
posts of Sicily, Sardinia, and Pan
telleria in what was officially de-
scribed as a''terrific hammering."
Messina, Sicilian ferry terminus
only a few miles from the Italian
mainland, was particular target.
This onslaught on the softer I'M
derside of Europe extended as far
eastward as the Aegean sea be-
tween Greece and Turkey as the
African shores al
lowed Allied airmen to stretch their
wings across the entire Mediter-
ranean.
Twenty-three Axis planes were
shot down over Sicily yesterday
out of total bag of rs enemy
aircraft. This sent the Allied Afri-
can commands record spiralling
to 355 planes destroyed in week
at cost of 33 planes-better than
10-to-1 score.
More than five two-ton block
buster bombs per minute hurtled
down on Dusseldorf, the British
Air Ministry said, in the biggest
attack yet carried out under un-
favorable weather conditions.
Thousands Of incendiaries also
plummeted upon the Ruhr city,
the resulting fires casting a red
glare on the cloud layers through
which the British attacked "in very
great strength same official
phrase used to describe the de-
struction showered on Dortmund.
"One huge explosion came up
in red mass and penetrated right
through the Clouds" said return
ing airmen. There we're several
other good explosions which sens
up bright orange flashes.
Twenty seven British bombers
failed to return from this erasure
attack which was regarded as
quick step toward realization OF the
long term strategy of pounding the
Axis behind it's fortified walls until
the enemy's war plants faater IN
their efforts to supply Axis armies
which must face fully-equipped AL
lied land invaders.
Two German night fighters were
shot down by the RAF force, which
included Halifaxes, Strings and
Lancasters.
It was the Sind attack on Dues.
seldorf, Germany's third largest
inland port equipped with iron and
steel works comparable to tn g
great Krupp plants which once ex-
isted at Essen. An RAF attack
December 2 was said to have LEFT
1870 900 homeless at Dusseldorf.
The German high command
communicate today announced
closes among the population as
tContinued on Page Two; Col. ~