[Rainer]

The destroyer shadowed by this Do 18 could not have been the Polish destroyer ORP GROM as she was at Plymouth on this day, involved in this incident was the British destroyer HMS JUNO.

The entries in the Admiralty War Diary on 17 October 1939 concerning enemy air activity reads:
Attack on HMS IRON DUKE at Scapa Flow: Air attacks carried out at 1033 by four bombers. Dive attacks. Bombs released from about 1500 feet. Ship had two near misses port side. Took heavy list, now beached in Ore Bay and list considerably reduced. One rating killed. One aircraft shot down in flames [claimed by HMS ESKIMO], another possibly damaged. Wick aircraft did not get in touch.

German aircraft visited many parts of the East coast between the Thames and Scapa. p.m. there was a further attack on Scapa by a formation of 6 and another of 4. High level attacks at intervals from 1240 to 1430. No casualties or hits [near miss of HMS ASHANTI but no damage]. One Heinkel brought down.

At 1130 HMS JUNO attacked a/c's shadowing her SE of the Farne Island. Aircraft came to her assistance. A Dornier flying boat was brought down off the Tyne by 607 Sqn RAF.
47 Sqn RAF brought down one aircraft off Whitby a.m.
At 1600 a trawler reported he encountered a German aircraft in the sea 50 miles east of Dundee. No crew seen. Salvage attempts failed.
At 1530 a German seaplane machine gunned three unarmed trawler-minesweepers 2 miles off Spurn Point. No result.
At 1600 a German seaplane alighted on the water 25 miles NE of Tyne and remained 2 hours.