Evening star., 1943-10-21
RAF Makes First Great Assault Germans Begin
On Leipzig, Nozi War Center; Mass Retreat
Fifth Army Scores S|iqht Gains From Crimea
II Bombers Are Lost;
Night Raiders Hit
Berlin and London
p the Associated Press.

p the Associated Press.
LONDON, Oct. 21.-A great
fleet of Raj heavy night bomb
ers, out for the eighth time this
month, smashed at the Germans
second line Of industrial defense
last night, hitting the big city of
Leipzig, where many of the
Ruhr's bombed-out industries
have moved.
Mosquito bombers attacked Berlin
for the third time this week, while
other bombers ranged over wide
spread areas of the Reich.
The RAF lost II bombers. the
same number as in the last big raid
on Hanover Monday. Eight bomb
ers were lost in yesterdays raid bv
Flying Fortresses on the metal plants
at Dueren. These losses indicated
the Nazi destruction of 60 Fortresses
over Schweinfurt week ago may
have been only break of luck for
the German defenders.
The big attack on Leipzig, which
had not been bombed since its sixth
raid Of the war, November %, 1910,
came while the Germans, in sharp
contrast, sent a small force of bomb
ers over England to give London its
ffth successive night alert and kill
at least Il persons with a handful
of scattered bombs.
Large Rail Terminal.
Leipzig, Gcrmany's sixth indus
trial city, is situated in the middle
of the couatry, 100 miles southwest
of Berlin and almost on the Czecho-
slovak border.
Leipzig has one OF the worlc, s
largest railroad terminals OF lines
linking it with other important in
dustrial centerS like Berlin, Regens-
burg and KaSsel, also recently blast
ed by Britain-based Allied bombers
1t was the first big attack of the
war on the city and represented a
round-trip flight of more than 1000
miles for the raiders.
With A population of more than
100000. the city manufactures
planes, munitions. chemicals. tex
tiles, rubber products and ma
chinery.
RCAF Lancaster souadrons par
ticipatcd in the attack.
Largest Fighter Escort.
The American daylight assault on
Dueren and the collateral bombing
of Gilze-Rijen air base in Holland
which LED the Leipzig attack yester-
day IN a Tound-tle-clock double
blow at Germany, brought out the
largest escort Of American fighters
ever put up and was supplemented
by Raj SpitfYes.
The powerful guard took the
starch out of the Germans deten-
sive attacks, returning flyers said
in an enthusiastic report of the re-
suits Of the bombing The Dueren
metal works were described as non
ferrous with the implication that
they were making important light
metal airplane parts.
Leipzig's big railroad yard is one
Of the prime functions for traffic to
the Nazis' dire pressed Russian
front.
It's airplane plants include engine
end assembly factories for the
JunkcrS-66, which is believed to be
one of the chief types engaged in re-
cent London night bombing. and
MeSserschmitt lO9s. which. with the
Focke-WulfS, have constituted the
Fortesses' main opposition.
Leipzig was a huge. peacetime
manufacturing center of consumer
goods, including one Of the world S
major book publishing centers
When the RAF started bombing out
the western war industries. the city
afforded a good refuge to which they
could be transplanted.
20 Nazi Fighters Downed.
Last nights Raj activity came as
climax to day throughout which
Allied bonberS and fighters kept up
intensive attacks across the Chan
mel and shot down at least 20 Ger
man fighters
American Thunderbolts and Raj
SpitfireS formed virtual hornets
nest around Yesterdays Flying For
tres5 formations and the enemy had
little opportunity to repeat the tac-
tics which knocked the record num-
ber Of 60 bombers from the fleet
sent against SChWClnfurt.
The Allied fighters escorted the
Fortres sses to and from both Dueren
and Glize-Rilen. The big bomberS
were credited with destroying two
enemy aircraft the ThundeNolts SIX
and Spltfires three.
Col Maurice A. Preston of Tulare
Calf, who commanded one large
force of bonlbers, said that although
weather conditions made accurate
rhsprv2 *jrDS difficult 7 believe We