September 18th, 1940
UNITED KINGDOM:
Major raids on Clydeside badly damage heavy cruiser HMS Sussex as she refits.
SUSSEX was so heavily damaged she settled on the bottom and was partly capsized. Due to priority need to repair destroyers, etc. SUSSEX was a low repair priority for a while she was not back in service until August 1942
Battle of Britain:
The Luftwaffe returned to London in daylight today but, even after two days rest following its defeat last Sunday, it could put only 70 heavily escorted bombers into the air, in three waves, and they achieved little.
However the bombs continue to rain down on the capital at night, with the drone of some 230 bombers making every night hideous. Unable to pinpoint their targets, they drop their bombs at random, causing terrible damage and casualties in the streets and among civilians.
Some of London’s most famous landmarks have been destroyed or damaged. Eight City churches have been hit. One bomb, weighing a ton, lies, unexploded, outside the West door of St. Paul’s Cathedral, where Royal Engineers bomb disposal experts are working on it.
The West End, Downing Street, the Law Courts, and the House of Lords have all been hit by either high explosives or incendiaries. But it is the ordinary people who are taking the brunt of the attack.
Sheltering in the Underground, they still raise the Union Jack over the rubble of their homes or declare “Business as usual” on hand-written signs nailed to the wreckage of their shops and businesses.
The King and Queen, who have been bombed twice in Buckingham Palace, have made several visits to the East End where they have been greeted sympathetically as fellow sufferers from German bombing. When Churchill, cigar clenched in his teeth, visited the bombed-out areas he got a clear message from the people: “Give it ‘em back.”
Thornton Heath, Surrey: Mr Roy Thomas Harris (1903-73), ARP, dismantled several unexploded bombs at a local school. (George Cross)
RAF Fighter Command: Nine Ju88s of III/KG 77 attacking oil targets in the Thames Estuary are shot down in 3 minutes. At night London and Merseyside are bombed.
Losses: Luftwaffe, 19; RAF, 22.
RAF Bomber Command:
4 Group. 58 Sqn. Whitley P5008:M missing from Hamm. Crashed at Groenlo, Holland. Plt Off E. Ford and Sgts A.E.E. Crossland, C.F. Marshall, R.E. Salisbury and W.D. Austen killed. 77 Sqn. P4992:T missing from Antwerp. Plt Offs R.P. Brayne and W.M. Douglas and Sgts J.A. Raper, J. Baguley and D.V. Hughes all killed. 77 Sqn. N1425:E missing from Soest. Plt Off P.E. Eldridge, Sub Lt Williams and Sgts V.C. Cowley, F. Crawford and R.C. Dawson all killed.
Bombing - invasion fleet at Zeebrugge and Antwerp - marshalling yards at Krefeld, Mannheim, Soest and Hamm.
58 Sqn. Eight aircraft to Zeebrugge. All bombed. Three aircraft to Krefeld. Two bombed. Three aircraft to Hamm. Two bombed, one FTR.
77 Sqn. Thirteen aircraft to Antwerp, Mannheim and Soest. Eleven bombed successfully. One FTR from Antwerp and one FTR from Mannheim.
Corvette HMS Begonia launched.
Light cruiser HMS Sirius launched.
Destroyer HMS Cleveland commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
NORTH AFRICA: Italian forces come to a halt and start fortifying their position. The Italian 10th Army halts, officially because of supply difficulties. They begin building fortified camps and do not stay in contact with British forces.
GERMANY:
Daily Keynote from the Reich Press Chief:
1. The Navy has again reported damage to the British aircraft carrier Ark Royal. The Minister has ordered the greatest caution to be taken in the treatment of this case so that we are not caught out again. [making false damage reports about the Ark Royal.]
2. By order of the Fuhrer, enemy air raids on Germany should be played up on a large scale in future, even when relatively little damage has occurred. Attention should also be paid to treating raids on other [German] cities as of equal importance to attacks on the capital.
U-143 commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-48 sinks the SS Marina in convoy OB-213 and SS Magdalena in convoy SC-3. (Dave Shirlaw)
CANADA: The second group of “overage” USN destroyers to be transferred to the RN in exchange for bases in the Western Hemisphere arrive at Halifax, Nova Scotia. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.A.: The motion picture “The Westerner” is released. Directed by William Wyler, this western stars Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan, Forrest Tucker (his film debut), Chill Wills and Dana Andrews. The plot involves a range war between cattlemen and homesteaders with Cooper being accused of horse thievery and being tried by Judge Roy Bean (Brennan) who adores Lily Langtry. The film was nominated for three Academy Award and won a Best Supporting Actor award for Walter Brennan. (Jack McKillop)
Corvette USS Impulse launched.
Destroyer USS Mayo commissioned. (Dave Shirlaw)
http://worldwar2daybyday.blogspot.com/
Day 384 September 18, 1940
Battle of Britain Day 71. Luftwaffe sends 2 more big raids during the day. 70 Ju88 bombers escorted by 100 Bf109 fighters fly over English Channel at noon and are intercepted by AVM Park’s No. 11 group, with about 60 bombers reaching London. At 4 PM, 200 bombers in several waves (with fighter escorts) attack targets in Kent. In addition to squadrons from No.11 group, a Big Wing from No. 12 group joins in (repeating its success of September 7). 23 German bombers and 10 Messerschmitt fighters are shot down, while RAF loses 12 fighters (3 pilots killed). Overnight, London is bombed repeatedly and Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol and the North East Coast between Humber and Newcastle are also attacked.
At 1 minute past midnight, U-48 fires another torpedo at British liner SS City of Benares. The torpedo hits City of Benares in the stern and she lists heavily (preventing many of the lifeboats from being launched) and sinks within 30 minutes (121 crew and 134 passengers are lost, including 77 of the 90 children being evacuated from Britain to Canada). Destroyer HMS Hurricane arrives 24 hours later and rescues 105 survivors. 1 lifeboat with 42 survivors including 6 British children is missed. They will be spotted 8 days later by an Australian Sunderland flying boat and rescued by destroyer HMS Anthony. At 00.07, U-48 sinks British steamer Marina carrying 5700 tons of general cargo (2 killed, 17 crew and 3 gunners picked up by HMS Hurricane next day, another 17 crew members picked up after 8 days by 8 British merchant vessel Carlingford). At 6.49 PM, U-48 sinks British SS Magdalena carrying 4600 tons of iron ore (all 31 hands lost).
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/timewatch/diary_codv_01.shtml
Near Porto, Portugal, Italian submarine Bagnolini sinks Spanish steamer Cabo Tortosa (Spanish steamer Monte Ayala rescues the entire crew).