[Steve49]

Obviously the main problem is what consitutes an aerial claim. It is clear that six French D520's encountered three USAAC C47's flying over the Sebkra d'Oran and all of the transports were forced down.

In Rick Atkinson's 'An Army at Dawn' there is quite a good (if short) description of Operation VILLAIN (the plan being use Paratroopers of the 2-509 PIR to seize Tafaraoui and La Senia airfields). Carried aboard 39 C47's the formation was soon scattered by poor weather and never able to reform. One aircraft landed at Gibraltar, four were interned in Spanish Morocco, two landed at Fez in French Morocco and three are reported as flying over Le Senia and being driven off by AAA. The book says that 'more than a dozen C-47's clustered on the western fringe of the Sebkra d'Oran' and another ten transports dropped their parachutisits in this area before landing at the eastern edge of the Sebkra (where they were taken prisoner). Despite being attacked by French Forces a party of Para's (led by Maj Yarborough) tried to march around the Sebkra and seize Tafaraoui airfield (despite it being some 20 miles away). The going was found to be very hard so after some struggling the party dug in and it commander radioed for some of the C-47's to come and transport them. After siphoning fuel from other transports, three C-47's were launched and loaded the stranded Parachutists, but as the book says 'no sooner had the planes taken off with Yarborough's group aboard for the short hop to Tafaraoui than cannon fire from six French Dewoitine fighters fighters riddled the fuselages. The American pilots spun around lowered their wheels, and crash-landed onto the Sebkra at 130miles per hour. The Dewoitines made three more stafing passes, killing five soldiers and wounding fifteen.'

Obviously this is just extracted from a book and like all history it is only as reliable as its sources (mostly offical ones from the American side, but ones which hardly ignore the total failure of the operation). If it is believed that three C-47's were encountered, then it is clear that the French fighters were successful in intercepting at low level the transports and preventing them and the reinforcements they carried from reaching the airfield. The French pilots might have overclaimed and all of the aircraft may have crash-landed before being shotdown, but claims should be recognised as more than just strafing aircraft abandoned on the ground. The three transports were nolonger available to the invaders, which wouldn't have been the case if the interception hadn't taken part.

Regards

Steve Pegge