Posted on 08/02/2010 5:03:25 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
British send fighters for Malta
Friday, August 2, 1940 www.onwar.com
HMS Argus, left, carrying Hurricanes for Malta. They will take off and fly 400 miles to the island.
In the Mediterranean... The carrier Ark Royal with Force H attacks the Italian base on Sardinia at Cagliari. The old carrier Argus which is also based on Gibraltar, is at sea to fly off a cargo of Hurricane fighter aircraft to Malta.
In the English Channel... There are German attacks on shipping.
In London... Lord Beaverbrook, Minister of Aircraft Production is taken into the inner circle of Churchill’s War Cabinet.
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andrew.etherington/month/thismonth/02.htm
August 2nd, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM: Battle of Britain:
RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - oil refinery at Salzbergen.
10 Sqn. Seven aircraft. Two returned early, five bombed primary. Weather bad, opposition severe.
51 Sqn. Eight aircraft. Seven bombed primary. Weather bad, opposition severe.
RAF Fighter Command: Weather, fine, drizzle over sea. Luftwaffe attacks shipping off south-east coast. At night South Wales and the Midlands are attacked.
Luftwaffe bombs Dundee for the first time, Swansea suffers a heavy raid. Off Harwich Me110s of Erpro 210 sink HM Trawler Cape Finisterre with a direct hit. Gunners aboard the SS Highlander in a convoy off Scotland shoot down one of two He-111s of KG76 which are attacking it. The Heinkel crashes onto the deck to provide a trophy!
Southern England: German bombers drop leaflets detailing Hitler’s August peace proposals.
Losses: Luftwaffe, 4; RAF 0.
At 0427, the Alexia in Convoy OB-191 was torpedoed by U-99 in position 55°30N/15°30W and fell out of convoy, where she was shelled by the same U-boat but did not sink.
At 0345, the Lucerna in Convoy OB-191 was torpedoed by U-99 and later shelled, but the damaged tanker reached port and was repaired.
U-99 damaged motor tanker Strinda at 55.10N, 17.16W.
Corvette HMS Peony commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
London: Lord Beaverbrook joined the war cabinet today. The Prime Minister brought Beaverbrook into the government in May, and he has been one of its outstanding successes. Since he became Minister of Aircraft Production - a new post - in May, he has boosted output of fighters for the RAF. In February there was a shortfall: 141 planes produced against a planned 171. In May, however, this had been turned around with 261 planes planned and 325 built. This month’s planned output of 282 is expected to be exceeded by up to 200 machines.
The Canadian-born press baron’s success has been achieved through force of personality. He has been aggressively cutting through Whitehall red tape and treading on ministerial toes in purloining all accessible supplies for aircraft factories.
River class submarine HMS Thames is believed to have been sunk in a minefield whilst on her homeward passage. All crew of 61 are lost. In conforming with her navigational instructions, HMS Thames would have passed through four minefields. Currently believed to lie around 56 45N 03 26E. (Alex Gordon)(108)
FRANCE: VICHY FRANCE: The government sentences General de Gaulle to death in his absence.
GERMANY: Hitler issues war directive number 17 -
“1. To destroy the RAF and the British aircraft industry,
2. to disrupt the British food supply, and
3. to inflict extensive damage on the British merchant and war navy. The intensified air offensive should be launched by August 5.”
Thence the Luftwaffe assembles 14 bomber wings, 8 fighter wings, 4 Stuka dive-bomber wings and 3 Me110 fighter-destroyer wings, nearly 1700 aircraft (600 bombers, 700 fighters, 200 Stukas, 200 fighter-destroyers).
MALTA: Operation Hurry: The first delivery of 12 Hurricanes of 261 Squadron flies off the carrier HMS Argus. All aircraft arrive on the island. They are the first Hurricanes to operate in the Mediterranean theatre.
(Mark Horan) In in effort to curb further attacks on the 2nd, HMS Ark Royal lays plans for a dawn attack on the Italian bomber bases in Sardinia.
“Operation Hurry” concludes. After recognizing the need to close significantly closer to Malta to successfully launch the Hurricane Is of 418 Flight on their transit flight from HMS Argus, Force H opts to launch a pre-dawn strike on Regia Aeronautica’s airfield at Cagliari, Sardinia by aircraft from HMS Ark Royal. The plan calls for 9 Swordfish of 810, 188, and 820 squadrons to go after the airfield while simultaneously, 3 additional 820 Squadron Swordfish will lay mines in Cagliari harbour. The 0230 takeoff is marred when one Swordfish of 810 Squadron crashes. Most unfortunately for those involved, the strike planes had difficulty finding their targets until after dawn. Although the harbour is successfully mined and the bombing destroyed 4 Italian aircraft and several hangers, one aircraft is downed by a defending fighter. Back with the fleet, dawn’s early light sees the 12 Hurricanes and their 2 Skua II guides depart HMS Argus and, ultimately, arrive safely at Malta. Covered by Ark Royal’s Skua II fighters of 800 and 803 Squadrons, the entire force sails past the rock en-route to the UK, where Force H will stay for most of the month. (Mark Horan)
CANADA: Norwegian whalers commissioned as minesweepers (former names retained) HMCS Star VXI, Suderoy IV, Suderoy V and Suderoy VI. (Dave Shirlaw)
U.S.A.: President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his cabinet have a long discussion in a cabinet meeting concerning “ways and means to sell directly or indirectly” 50 to 60 overage destroyers to the British. Everyone agrees “that the survival of the British Isles under German attack might very possibly depend on their (the British) getting these destroyers.” Everyone also agrees that legislation to permit the sale of these ships is necessary. (Jack McKillop)
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 337 August 2, 1940
Battle of Britain Day 24. Overnight, steamer Highlander in convoy FN.239 is attacked by 2 He115 torpedo bombers, 20 miles south of Aberdeen, Scotland. 1 He115 is shot down by escort sloop HMS Weston. The other clips Highlanders mast while strafing her, crash landing onto Highlanders poop deck. Clouds again restrict flying during the day. Germans bomb convoys in the English Channel and along the East coast, sinking anti-submarine trawler HMT Cape Finesterre off Harwich (1 sailor killed). 2 Spitfires crash on take off at Hornchurch and 1 Hurricane crashes on landing (1 pilot killed). http://www.battleofbritain1940.net/0023.html
Overnight, British submarine HMS Thames hits a mine and sinks Southwest of Stavanger, Norway (all 62 crew lost). U-60 has another lucky escape, suffering no damage when bombed in error off Hagesund, Norway, by Stukas flying from Stavanger. U-99 torpedoes 3 empty tankers in convoy OB-191 (British MV Alexia and MV Lucerna, Norwegian MV Strinda). All 3 are damaged but none sink and no lives are lost. http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/445.html
French military court sentences General Charles de Gaulle to death in absentia for leading the Free French movement in London.
Operation Hurry. At 4.45 AM, 12 Hurricanes launch from aircraft carrier HMS Argus Southwest of Sardinia and fly about 300 miles to Malta, forming new 261 Squadron. Admiral Somervilles Force H returns safely to Gibraltar (arriving August 4) or to England (arriving August 10). Meanwhile, to prevent Italian air attacks on the carrier group, 8 Swordfish torpedo bombers from aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal (escorted by battlecruiser HMS Hood, cruiser HMS Enterprise and 4 destroyers) attack an Italian airfield at Cagliari on the South coast of Sardinia, destroying several Italian aircraft and laying mines in the harbour.
I see that on the front page that the Dems made long time Bronx party leader Flynn the National Dem Chairman. My Irish grandmother, who has been gone for about forty years now, was a party worker for ‘Boss’ Flynn, back in the 20’s and 30’s. He also held the antique sounding title of ‘Chamberlain of the City of New York’, which no longer exists. He was succeeded as Bronx Boss by Charles A. Buckley, who was the party leader into the 1960’s.
Churchill finally manages to get the Duke of Windsor to sail for Bermuda. German agents have been trying to keep the Nazi sympathetic Windsors in Europe.
You would not know it from this particular article, but two of the three anti-draft senators were Democrats, one a Republican.
The one Republican was the highly notable North Dakota Senator Gerald Nye:
"In 1934 Senator Nye headed an investigation of the munitions industry.
He created headlines by drawing connections between the wartime profits of the banking and munitions industries to America's involvement in World War I."Many Americans felt betrayed: perhaps the war hadn't been an epic battle between the forces of good (democracy) and evil (autocracy).
"This investigation of these "merchants of death" helped to bolster sentiments for isolationism.1
A leading member of the Nye Committee staff was Alger Hiss..."...Nye was instrumental in the development and adoption of the Neutrality Acts passed between 1935 and 1937.
To mobilize antiwar sentiments, he helped establish the America First Committee."Upon the bombing of Pearl Harbor on the evening of December 7, 1941, Nye addressed an America First meeting in Pittsburgh, and was quoted as saying, "this was just what Britain had planned for us" and that "we have been maneuvered into this by the President."
"However, the next day Nye joined the rest of the Senate in voting for a unanimous declaration of war.[3]
"Nye was a Freemason and attended Grace Lutheran Church in Washington, DC.
He gained further prominence in 1941 when he accused Hollywood of attempting to drug the reason of the American people, and rouse war fever.
He was particularly hostile to Warner Brothers."
Intersting that for the second time in two days, Churchill is fixated on BISMARCK and TIRPITZ.
Date: 2 August 1940
Unfortunately, the first part of this report is missing, the surviving information is as follows:
South and South-East
Until 1630 hours only three tracks were plotted, of which one approached to within 5 miles of Dover. At 1630 hours two raids amalgamated and flew towards Clacton and over a convoy which was well out of its area 10 miles north of Herne Bay. The convoy was bombed but seems not to have been damaged. A fighter squadron did not intercept. Between 1827 and 1853 hours, seven raids concentrated in the Calais - Boulogne area and flew various courses in the Straits of Dover. Four squadrons were detailed but did not make contact.
East
In the Humber, a convoy was reported on by enemy aircraft, but no attack developed. Two sections of our fighters failed to contact.
In a raid off Haisborough a section of Spitfires armed with cannon attacked, but lost the enemy aircraft in cloud. This raid ineffectually bombed shipping off Yarmouth.
Three raids were made in the early evening off the East Anglian coast but soon faded.
North East
There was no activity in this area.
France
Between 0700 and 0900 hours enemy patrols were very active in the Gris Nez area. This activity was renewed at about 1200 hours and continued spasmodically throughout the day.
By night
Activity has not been heavy, although attacks have been widespread.
The usual visits were paid to South Wales, coming in over the Weymouth area, and some of these raids penetrated up as far as Sealand, Liverpool and Lancashire. One continued across to Hartlepool, turned back and flew home via Liverpool, Wales and the south coast to Cherbourg, but originated from Baie Seine and Cherbourg itself.
Several raids crossed in over East Anglia, (searchlight post north of Bury St Edmunds was reported machine-gunned) and penetrated to the Midlands generally.
Bombs were reported at Ternhill but the nearest fell 4 miles away from the aerodrome.
A raid which crossed in near Beachy Head came north to North Weald and circled the London Artillery Zone. This was later joined by a further raid which came in near the North Foreland, up the Estuary and also circled in the London Artillery Zone.
Minelaying is suspected in the Thames Estuary, off East Anglia, Tees to St Abb's Head, Aberdeen and North East coasts.
Some raids which flew in over Edinburgh passed over to Glasgow, turned south over Cumberland and flew out east.
Several raids of some strength were plotted towards the Orkneys and Shetlands at about 2200 hours.
Addendum to August 1st report
A report has been received from SS Highlander that she was attacked by two enemy aircraft at about 2345 hours on 1st August, 6 miles south of Stonehaven. She claims that one He115 was brought down by a Holman projector and crashed on the poop deck, and that the other aircraft crashed into the sea in flames due to Lewis gun fire. Both aircraft are stated to have made aerial torpedo and low machine gunning attacks.
________________________________________
Statistics
Fighter Command Serviceable Aircraft as at 0900 hours, 2 August 1940
Casualties:
Patrols:
Balloons:
Aerodromes:
Organisation:
Air Intelligence Reports
Home Security Reports
Swansea was bombed at 2330 hours on 2nd August when house property and motor vehicles sustained considerable damage. There were five casualties. Battle of Britain
Today starts the last big push towards finishing my masters thesis and degree. I’m starting a 16 week seminar that is designed to help you finish out this last major paper. Because of this I may not be as active on these threads as usual since things will be very busy.
I will however continue the Battle of Britain postings that I am committed to and have prepared a couple items for August and will also have one ready for September. I also had something planned for mid-October, but I’m not sure if I’ll get to it. I may with Homer’s permission post a thread sometime this week asking the students of this class if they can help me with finding some sources. Particularly, I’m looking for anyone who knows a WWII vet that was a mechanic in the U.S. Army or U.S. Navy that would be willing to be interviewed. I’m working on a question list now for these interviews and have one vet in Arizona lined up already.
As always I will look forward to these postings as my morning routine, though I’m betting I wont be able to read them end to end like I had been doing for a while.
Ol’ Senator Wheeler of Montana (a democrat by the way) is deeply embroiled in the isolationist movement isn’t he. His crowning achievement I think would have possibly even ended FDR’s political career had not other events overshadowed it.
The way things are going, the Germans will probably be in London by then.
I sure hope the Brits can hold out.
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