He 111 lost 8th August 1942 near Isle of Wight

[Larry]

Can anyone trace a He 111 lost 8th August 1942 near Isle of Wight, as I have a report that an aircraft, said to be an He 111 was shot down by LAA fire on this date. Apparently bits fell off the aircraft when it flew over Christchurch at 14.30 hrs so the gunners knew it had been hit. However they were later told that the crew bailed out over the IOW (or in the sea nearby) and were credited with the kill.

But would a lone He 111 be flying around in daylight at this stage in the war or perhaps it flew over land by accident on it's way home.

It there a record of Luftwaffe POWs to check to see who was made a POW that day?

[G.R.Morrison]

Larry,

The closest I have is:

He 111H-6, WNr.7492, Heitmeyer, Uffz. Horst (FF), 7./KG 53, A1+CR (weiße C), 9-Aug-1942, KIA with crew due to Flak., Lfl.3/Kanal, Reference: Gen.Qu.6.Abt. (mfm #6)-Vol.10; The Blitz, Then & Now, III, p.165; location: Worthing, crew: B Gefr. Günther Grüssner, Bf Ogefr. Wolf Richter, Bm Ogefr. Ferdinand Dolezal & Bs Gefr. Albin Wiedmann

I have not investigated the possibility that it was a Ju 88A, however (aircraft recognition being what it is / was)

GRM

[Brian Bines]

A1+CR crashed into a house in Lyndhurst Rd Worthing after being hit by AA. Examination of wreckage showed it was equipped with a glider towing device, and it was reported as dropping its HE and IB bombload before crashing. The house it crashed into was being used to billet men of the 3rd. Anti Tank Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery and three soldiers in the house were killed. Mission bombing raid to Birmingham.

[Larry]

It was definately on 8th August 1942 at 14.30 hrs in daylight that the LAA gunners shot at the aircraft - though I have to agree that the type of aircraft could have been something other than an He 111.

The crew members were said to have bailed out and been captured but it's possible that the pilot and another crew member stayed on board and flew on back to base. Such things happened in the RAF. And of course the POW's would also believe their aircraft was lost, otherwise they would not have bailed out themselves, thus allowing the Army to claim a 'kill'.

Incidentally bombs were dropped on New Milton that day, as 2 were UXB's.

Does anyone have details of an He 111 that returned with LAA damage that afternoon?

[Chris Goss]

A He 111 by itself in daylight in 1942 would have been a very risky mission

[Larry]

Dear Chris,

I wonder if the aircraft was from a Maritime unit and did not intend to stray over land but did so due to bad weather. I know that there was a fair bit of cloud that day.

Could the aircraft have been an He 111 from III/KG26 as I know the unit was active in this area at the time.

Perhaps the aircraft was from a Reconnaissance unit, though I'm not sure if the He 111 was used for such missions.

[Chris Goss]

No maritime unit operated the He 111 operationally at this time;III/KG 26 did not operate over land or the Channel; only A few weather recce units operated the He 111 but never in the Channel

[Larry]

Dear Chris,

In Luftwaffe Aerial Torpedo Aircraft and Operations in WW2 by Harold Thiele - Hikoki Publications I came across this entry on Page 42:

3/4 August 1942 - ENGLISH CHANNEL

The III./KG 26 mounted its first torpedo operation from Rennes when 11 aircraft attacked a small convoy to the south-west of the Scilly Isles. The crews claimed to have sunk or damaged six ships totalling 20,000 GRT and on 4 August the OKW reported that three merchant ships had been hit. In fact, the British freighter El Ciervo (5,800 GR1) was struck by a torpedo about 13 km off Start Point, but the ship did not sink and it is not clear whether this was due to the same Luftwaffe action. All German aircraft returned to base and III./KG 26 transferred to Banak soon afterwards.

Incidentally Start Point if they mean the one near the Isle of Wight is not too far from Christchurch. So could this unit be a contender?

[Chris Goss]

Flying Ju 88s not He 111 I believe? I reiterate they did not operate over this part of the Channel & even then by night

[Larry]

Obviously the LAA gunners could be wrong about the type of German aircraft but with UXB's in the area something must have dropped them though these could have been from the previous night.

However this begs the question - just what kind of air activity was there by the Luftwaffe in daylight over the UK in Aug 1942? None it would seem not even a Recce flight!