This day in the war in Europe 65 years ago

[syscom3]

U.S.S.R.: The Soviet Navy records 1 submarine loss during the month that is not listed by day: Shch-401 Northern Fleet off Fulei Island (sunk by German craft in Tana Fjord, former Shch-313)

[Njaco]

May 1, 1942

EASTERN FRONT: The German seige of the Crimean fortress of Sevastopol by 11. Armee (von Manstein) continued with a ceaseless bombardment by batteries of heavy guns (up to 800mm "Big Dora") and hundreds of bombers (up to 1,000 sorties a day) of Luftflotte 7 (von Richtofen). Heavy fighting also continued on the front around beseiged Leningrad whose inhabitants were suffering from bombing, disease and starvation. 4(F)/122 was now to be found at Saki/Crimea under VIII Fliegerkorps and supported the recapture of eastern Crimea and the seige of Sevastopol while maintaining close surveillance of enemy forces in North Crimea and the Black Sea.
At Kholm and Demyansk another large Russian attack was launched. The pocket, which had now shrunk to less than 1km square in size, was almost overrun as Russian forces came within 100m of the eastern bank of the Lovat River. Again German companies swung into action and halted the Russian assault.

[syscom3]

ATLANTIC: Force "Distaff," the combined US Navy and Royal Navy force that is protecting convoy PQ-15 enroute to Murmansk, is off Iceland when the
RN battleship HMS King George V collides with and sinks the destroyer
HMS Punjabi. The US battleship USS Washington (BB-56) is unable to
maneuver around the wreckage and must sail through it and the depth charges in HMS Punjabi explode underwater damaging the Washington's fire control systems.

[syscom3]

ATLANTIC: In the Caribbean, two U.S. ships are torpedoed by German submarines.
An unarmed freighter is sunk while an armed tanker is abandoned but is later reboarded and towed to port.

UK: The North American Mustang Mk. I enters combat for the first time today flying with the RAF's No. 26 Squadron from Gatwick, Surrey, England.
The Mustang has excellent low-altitude performance but unsatisfactory high altitude and the RAF has equipped the aircraft with cameras to fly low-level tactical reconnaissance missions.

[Lucky13]

Today 62 years ago....


V-E DAY!

[Njaco]

May 8, 1942

EASTERN FRONT: Rested and refitted, the Gruppen of SchG 1 arrived at Itshki-Grammatikovo in the Crimea for duty with IV Fliegerkorps of Luftflotte 4 for support of 11 Armee's reconquest of the Kerch penisula (Operation Trappenjagd). Outfitted with Bf 109E-7s, I./SchG 1 arrived and was immediately put into action as was the II Gruppe with 5. and 6. staffeln equipped with Hs 129B-1s and 7./SchG 1 with Hs 123As. After arrival operations started almost immediately with ground attack missions in the eastern Crimea until 15 May and then switching to the Izyum salient southeast of Kharkov at the end of the month. Attacks were carried out against Soviet positions along the front and on troop and supply columns immediately behind the front with such a concentrated effect that the German infrantry assault units were able to break through the forward defenses on the first day of the attack. Over the next several days, 4./SchG 1 attacked various ground targets, shot down an I-16 fighter and destroyed an estimated forty other aircraft during a low-level strafing attack on an enemy airfield in eastern Crimea. Major Siegfried Freytag of Stab II./JG 77 scored his 40th victory.

[syscom3]

Originally Posted by Lucky13

Today 62 years ago....


V-E DAY!

This thread is for "65" years, not "62" years.

[Njaco]

May 9, 1942

MEDITERRANEAN: "Operation Bowery" - US Navy Carrier "Wasp" and Royal Navy carrier HMS "Eagle" delivered 64 Spitfires to Malta, four of which failed to make it. The mistakes of Operation "Calendar" were ironed out in this operation. Prior to leaving Gibraltar, experienced pilots were flown in by a Hudson (piloted by F/O Matthews) from Malta to train the new pilots in what operations were like over the island and to instruct them in new procedures where each aircraft, on landing, would be met by groundcrew carrying a numbered sign which they would follow to a safety pen, re-fueled and re-armed as fast as possible and get back in the air to meet the Axis aircraft sent over to destroy the new aircraft on the ground. HMS "Eagle" returned to Gibraltar and, loaded with another shipment of 16 Spitfires, returned to Malta as Operation "LB".

EASTERN FRONT: The Red Army launched a counter-offensive against Kharkov. An Hs 129B-1 belonging to II./SchG 1 was shot down by Soviet AA fire, possibly over the eastern Crimea. The pilot, Hptm. Max Eck, was listed as missing.

[Njaco]

May 10, 1942

MEDITERRANEAN: The Luftwaffe ended its air assault on Malta and German air units began to relocate from Sicily to the Western Desert in support of the Afrika Korps or to the Russian Front. As a consequence, although German air raids continued on the island, their intensity was considerably reduced and the RAF was able to regain air superiority over Malta. Moreover, during May, the RAF was able to resume its air offensive against enemy shipping, which led to a sharp drop in Axis supplies reaching North Africa.

[syscom3]

AFRICA: USS Ranger on a transatlantic ferry trip, reached a position off the African Gold Coast and launched 60 P-40 Warhawks of the Army Air Force to Accra, from which point they were flown in a series of hops to Karachi, India, for operations with the 10th AAF. This was the first of four ferry trips made by the Ranger to deliver AAF fighters across the Atlantic, the subsequent launches being accomplished on 19 July 1942, 19 January 1943, and 24 February 1943.

[Njaco]

May 11, 1942

EASTERN FRONT: Two Bf 109E-7s belonging to I./SchG 1 were lost over the eastern tip of the Crimea peninsula, both probably shot down by AA fire.

MEDITERRANEAN: The British destroyers "Jackal", "Jervis", "Kipling" and "Lively" left Alexandria to search for reported Axis shipping bound for Benghazi. There was no fighter cover. On being sighted they turned back, but north of Sidi Barrani they were attacked by a specially trained anti-shipping group of German Ju 88s. "Kipling" and "Lively" were sent to the bottom that evening and "Jackal" was scuttled on the 12th May. Only "Jervis" with 630 survivors reached Alexandria.
....Hptm. Heinz Baer was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of I./JG 77.

[syscom3]

RUSSIA: Russian attacks near Kharkov begin. They are attempting to trap German forces against the Sea of Azov.

POLAND: The first mass-killing of Jews in Auschwitz Birkenau. The victims are some 1500 Polish Jews.

GULF OF MEXICO: German submarines sink two U.S. merchant tankers, the first off Louisiana and the second east of Barbados.

U.S.S.R.: The Soviet Navy lists submarine K-23 Northern Fleet off Nordkinn Cape (lost off Oske Fjord)

[Njaco]

May 12, 1942

EASTERN FRONT: Lt. Max-Hellmuth Ostermann of 7./JG 54 became the 7th pilot in history to reach 100 victories.

ENGLAND: The first aircraft of the US VIII AF arrived in Britain.

MEDITERRANEAN: A formation of fourteen Ju 52s from III./KGzbV 1, escorted by 2 Bf 110s, departed Maleme/Crete for Derna/Cyrenaica, each loaded with some 20 soldiers. The formation was intercepted 80km off the North African coast by 14 RAF Beaufighters and Kittyhawks and in the running battle, nine of the Junkers were shot down and another 2 had to make forced landings on the shore. All 9 Junkers were from 11. Staffel.

[syscom3]

ATLANTIC: German submarine U-506 attacks three U.S. merchant vessels off the coast of Louisiana sinking a tanker and a freighter; a second tanker is damaged.
In the Atlantic, a U.S. freighter is sunk by U-69.

[Glider]

Originally Posted by Njaco

May 10, 1942

MEDITERRANEAN: The Luftwaffe ended its air assault on Malta and German air units began to relocate from Sicily to the Western Desert in support of the Afrika Korps or to the Russian Front. As a consequence, although German air raids continued on the island, their intensity was considerably reduced and the RAF was able to regain air superiority over Malta. Moreover, during May, the RAF was able to resume its air offensive against enemy shipping, which led to a sharp drop in Axis supplies reaching North Africa.

Sorry but May 10th was a busy day on Malta as the Germans/Italians tried to destroy the newly arrived Spitfires and HMS Manxman which had arrived with spares for the Spifires.

The first raid consisted of 20 Ju87 and 10 Ju88 plus heavy escort.
The second raid was 10 Ju88 escorted by approx 35 109's
The third raid was all Italian with Z1007's escorted by 20 MC202 and 10 Re2001
The fourth raid was 20 Ju87 plus heavy 109 escort.

The importance of May 10th was that it was the turning point in the air battle over Malta. It was the first time that the defenders had enough fighters to put up a strong defence and never again, did they send up penny packets in the face of overwhelming odds,

The defenders were able to put up the following aircraft

First raid - 32 Spits
Second Raid - 20 Spits and 6 Hurricanes
Third Raid / fourth Raid - 42 Spits and 4 Hurricanes (some Spits landed and were replaced by others). These raids were close enougth that some Spits sent up against the Italians, were still on patrol and able to make the initial attacks on the Germans on the fourth raid.

Its interesting to compare the reponse to the 3rd May when there were only three raids.

Raid 1, 7 x Ju88 and 36 x Me109 faced 5 x Spits

Raid 2 5 x Z1007 and Heavy escort faced Nothing

Raid 3 approx 24 Ju87, plus 12 x Ju88 plus Bomb carrying Me109 plus escort including 16 x MC202 faced 5 x Spits.