![]() ![]() This should in theory counterbalance crosswind error. The counter to this is to establish the wind direction on the ground, then to bomb directly into it, or directly against it. Given a crosswind of 30mph (48kph), the bomb will drift a considerable distance to the downwind side of the target. Given that it is correctly sighted, and in still air conditions, a lapse of one-tenth of a second from an altitude which gives a falling time of 30 seconds and a forward speed of 180mph (290kph) will give an error of 792ft (241m). If released in straight and level flight, it accelerates downwards at the rate of 32ft/sec² while retaining to a degree the forward speed of the releasing aircraft. When one considers it, this was an extremely primitive weapon. Nor would German difficulties have been extreme: Iraq, in particular, was to a degree anti-British. The loss of oil-the life blood of war-would have been critical to the Empire. Had Rommel been successful in this undertaking, the Wehrmacht would have been free to advance to the oilfields of the Middle East. The raid described was recorded as having destroyed eight Wellington bombers and severely damaged another seven, thus helping to secure the supply lines to North Africa, where the Deutsches Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel, combined with the Italian Army, battled with the British Empire for control of Egypt and the Suez Canal. Malta was just beginning to win her reputation as ‘the unsinkable aircraft carrier’-a reputation which would be justified by future events. Leading the raid was Joachim Helbig, at this time Kommandeur I/LG 1 (Ju 88), who already held the Ritterkreuz with Eichenlaub, and who, a little more than one month earlier, had led attacks on the British aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious in the Mediterranean which had all but sunk her, putting her out of the war for eighteen months. Malta was at this time defended by anti-aircraft guns and a handful of RAF Hurricanes, and was not yet the hornet’s nest it later became. A holder of the Ritterkreuz, he was now Kommandeur III/KG 30, and was destined to go on to still greater things. A Junkers Ju 88 pilot, he had flown the He 111 against Poland and Norway with KG 4, then the Ju 88 against France and England. This was the first sortie by Hans-Joachim (Hajo) Herrmann against Malta in February 1941. ![]() I could see my target clearly … I pressed the bomb release. The alarm klaxon blared out: that meant that I was 800 metres above the ground. Our turn now! I held my aim down to the smallest ring of light in my sight. ![]() Almost as if they were rocket-propelled, the staff aircraft, pulling out of their dive, swept out from the target, so that in a flash I could see the imperial crosses on the upper surfaces of their wings. Press on! …Īt last! Ahead and below me there was movement in the formation. The Staff Flight aircraft were racing down ahead of me but seemed to be poised, motionless, over the target area, their wings like narrow lines, as if on an aerial photograph. I was right behind Helbig in the vic of the Staff Flight. Out of the comer of my eye I watched my wing men. No waverers! A second later I lowered my dive brakes, put the nose down, and throttled right back. The light blue underbellies of all the aircraft showed simultaneously. We were not going to make it! Then Helbig’s aircraft tilted down, and the entire Staff Flight went with him. Through the glass of the cockpit I could see the airfield at Luqa steep below me. Flashes appeared from all over the island. There were hundreds of guns firing at us, as if they’d been brought here from the entire Empire to guard the artery of world power. He outlines the Luftwaffe's revolutionary tactics, first tested during the Spanish Civil War, and highlights individual techniques and methods used against specific types of target.Biographical sketches of the leading bombers many of whom were awarded the Knight's Cross allow an insight into the diverse career and backgrounds of Luftwaffe personnel and outline just what it took to be a successful bomber pilot.First-hand accounts add gripping drama to the narrative, and give an unsurpassed appreciation of just what it was like to dive-bomb, come under attack by fighters or brave a barrage of anti-aircraft guns. Whether flying in support of panzer columns during the invasion of Poland and the destruction of France, deployed against British airfields and cities, sent against Soviet tanks, or thrown into the defence of the Reich, Germany's bomber and dive-bomber pilots wrought havoc across the face of Europe during the Second World War.Mike Spike, author of a number of acclaimed books on fighter pilots, now turns his attention to outstanding ground-attack pilots. The Luftwaffe excelled at ground attack and in doing so helped revolutionised modern warfare.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |