Re: I.D. for Wildcat flown by Digby Cosh, 881 Sqn, April 1944 against Tirpitz?
Chris
Hope you don't mind me asking, but I've found the following information online at a number of websites, but would be interested if it can be verified:
On 12 February Convoy OS-67/KMS-41, protected by 881 Squadron (Lieut. Comdr. DRB Cosh, RCNVR) and 896 Squadron (Lieut. Comdr. LA Hordern, DSC, RNVR), HMS Pursuer, was attacked by seven He-177s from II.KG-40 carrying the Henshel Hs-293 guided missile. Defending F4Fs shot down an He-177, a snooping FW-200 and drove off the remaining He-177s.
This brings up a few questions:
Did they attack FW-200s and/or He-177s in the evening's encounter? Reading the combat report from Cosh, he wasn't actually sure what he was attacking in the darkness. And am I correct in thinking there were no actual German losses in the action?
Were both 881 and 896 Sqn Wildcats involved?
I also read that the Wildcats' return to land back on H.M.S. Pursuer were one of the first night time landings on a carrier, or is that apocryphal?
Regards
Simon
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