615 Squadron - 18 July 1940

[ajcrou]

Hello,

On 18 July 1940, the ORB of No.615 Squadron mentions that : "In the evening the Squadron (12 aircraft) left for Hawkinge whence they acted as escort together with 111 Squadron for 18 Blenheim on a bombing raid to Boulogne. All our aircraft returned safely and the bombing raid was hightly successful".

Curiously the From 541 lists only 6 Hurricane (B Flight) : 18h25 - 19h25 (Bomber Escort). The other 6 aircraft of the A Flight are reported between 17h10 and 18h30 : "as ordered by Sector Controller".


The ORB of 111 Squadron does not seem to indicate more details on this escort from Blenheim with only the names of the twelve pilots concerned. Again, the ORB mentions the escort, with 615 Squadron, of 18 Blenheim on Boulogne (18h15 - 19h15) : the bombing is a success and no enemy aircraft are seen.


Brian Cull (Battle for the Channel: The First Month of the Battle of Britain) writes that : "At 19h30, nine more 2 Group Blenheim escorted by 20 fighters attacked Boulogne under cover of low clouds, five being claimed by flak, as was a Spitfire (according to German records). A Bf 109 of 9./JG54 carried out an emergency landing nearby with engine damage, possibly a result of friendly fire, though Leutnant Waldemar Wübke was unhurt".

According to a French document during the evening of 18 July 1940 : bombardment renders the ferry terminal unusable and destroys 3000 m² of sheds in the port".


Would anyone have more details on this mission and the Blenheim involved (Squadron ?)

Thanks,
Alexis

[Col Bruggy]

Hello,

18 July 1940.

In the late afternoon of the 18th three sections of XV Squadron and three sections of 40 Squadron with a fighter escort were detailed to attack enemy shipping in Boulougne harbour. Attacks were made on harbour installations and factories and warehouses were set alight. During the attack 110 photographs were taken. 40 Squadron was led by Flt Lt Stevenson and crew in L9326. In spite of intense accurate flak, considerable damage was done to the harbour and its installations, all our aircraft returned safely, although some of them had a few shrapnel holes. Flt Lt George* of XV Squadron:

"I led a large formation of two squadrons of Blenheims (XV and 40) with a fighter escort in a high level attack on the harbour at Boulougne, where there was said to be a concentration of shipping, though when we got there this turned out to be duff gen. We plastered the dock installations instead and scored direct hits on a factory. This raid was notable for the fact that I did a lot of no good to a pair of Do 18s which were moored close to one another, by dropping a 250lb bomb between them, having reserved it on the run in for that purpose. This caused much merriment on the way home. This was a daylight raid of three hours including one hour in cloud."

* 40106 F/L William Hubert GEORGE RAF, later DFC, LG:22/10/1940 - XV Sqn.

See:
Attack! Blenheim Operations - June-October 1940.
Bingham,Victor.
Hailsham:J&KH Publishing,2002.
p.33.

Col.

[MW Giles]

15 and 40 Squadrons both contributed 9 a/c each for a raid on Boulogne. All claimed to have bombed without losses

Martin

[Laurent Rizzotti]

You seem to search this action from all angles. I have nothing more on the Blenheim (I checked the book The other few for no result) but a little more on the French side:

Three French civilians (Mme Galant, a 33-years old widow (no first name given), and her sons André (12) and Pierre (11)) were killed during the air raid of 18 July 1940, around 20 h (local time). It targetted the port but several bombs fell on "quartier Saint-Pierre", killing the 3 Galant and wounding 15 other people.
Source: http://www.memorialgenweb.org/memori...=bp&id=1895781

[ajcrou]

Thank you for the details about the Blenheim's Squadron.

Yes regarding the French side, I found some information on a document from CNRD : http://quidnovi62.free.fr/cnrd_2018/calque_martyre.htm
"Mais l’imprécision des tirs provoque des dégâts matériels collatéraux: ainsi le 18 juillet 1940, les bombardements rendent la gare maritime définitivement inutilisable et détruisent 3000 m² de hangars sur le port. Et surtout, ils font de nombreuses victimes civiles."

Thanks, I also note these sad details about civilian casualties.

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Originally Posted by ajcrou

"Mais l’imprécision des tirs provoque des dégâts matériels collatéraux: ainsi le 18 juillet 1940, les bombardements rendent la gare maritime définitivement inutilisable et détruisent 3000 m² de hangars sur le port. Et surtout, ils font de nombreuses victimes civiles."

Strange text: the full version says that the main goal of Allied bombings was to make the Germans believe the Allied will land in Pas-de-Calais and to destroy V-weapons sites. True in 1943 and 1944, but not in 1940, where the port was the main target. And so the French text seems to say that the damage on the port on 18 July 1940 were due to bad aiming, while the port was the true target.
The last phrase about the civilian casualties is not for this precise date but for the whole period, listing specific cases then from February 1941 to September 1940, but not the 3 dead and 15 wounded suffered on 18 July 1940.

PS: by the way, I love your AOI website.

[ajcrou]

Originally Posted by Laurent Rizzotti

Strange text: the full version says that the main goal of Allied bombings was to make the Germans believe the Allied will land in Pas-de-Calais and to destroy V-weapons sites.

Yes indeed, the text seems to be a little confused and to mix several events. But the sentence relating to the damage to the port seems more or less in line with the details of the bombing, in particular by the Blenheimes.
Ideally, I should consult the local archives to see if there are any details on this event.

Originally Posted by Laurent Rizzotti

PS: by the way, I love your AOI website.

Thanks.

[Darius]

Lageberichte West (06.07.-04.08.1940):

18.07.1940

[...] Um 1930 Uhr griffen 9 Bristol-Blenheim in Begleitung von 20 Jägern Boulogne im Schutz tiefhängender Wolken an. Der Feind drehte infolge des starken Flakfeuers sofort ab, und warf die Mehrzahl der Bomben ins Wasser. Im Hafen von Boulogne wurden einige Öltanks leicht beschädigt. 1 Bristol-Blenheim wurde durch Flak abgeschossen, während die feindl. Jäger ausserhalb der Reichweite der schweren Flak blieben.[...]

Anlage 2b:
[...] 1935 Uhr, Boulogne (Frankreich), Anzahl der Bomben: 21,

Wirkung: Angriff von 9 Bombenflugzeugen im Begleitchutz von 20 Jagdflugzeugen in 1500-2000m Höhe aus Nordw. auf den Hafen Boulogne. 12 Einschläge auf Le Pastel, 2 Einschläge auf Ortsunterkunft Le Outreau.
2 Einschläge in Nähe Öltanks. 1 Einschlag sdw. Bassin Loubée. 4 Einschläge in Bassin Loubée. Einige Öltanks leicht beschädigt. Getötet: 1 Soldat, 1 Kind, Verletzt: 11 Soldaten (davon 4 durch 2 cm Flaksplitter), 3 Zivilisten.[...]

19.07.1040:

Anlage 2b:
[...] 1935 Uhr [18.07.1940], Boulogne, Anzahl der Bomben: 21,

Wirkung: Angriff von 41 Bomben- und Jagdfliegern in 1500-2000m Höhe aus Nordw. auf den Hafen Boulogne. 12 Einschläge auf Le Pastel, 2 Einschläge auf Ortsunterkunft Le Outreau.2 Einschläge in Nähe Öltanks. 1 Einschlag sdw. Bassin Loubée. 4 Einschläge in Bassin Loubée. Einige Öltanks leicht beschädigt. Getötet: 3 Zivilisten, Verletzt: 4 Soldaten (durch 2 cm Flaksplitter), 12 Zivilisten.[...]

Regards

Darius

[Darius]

KTB des Marinebefehlshaber Nordfrankreich:

18.07.1940
Abends Angriff von etwa 30 Flugzeugen auf Hafen Boulogne, Abwurf von etwa 30 Bomben auf Hafen und Stadt, Beschädigung an 1 Öltank, 3 Verwundete bei Heeresflak. Einfeindl. Flugzeug vermutlich abgeschossen.

Regards


Darius

[ajcrou]

Thanks for the information from German sources.