British Military Aviation in 1943 - Part 2

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16-17 May
A force of 19 specially modified Avro Lancasters of No.617 Squadron, RAF Bomber Command, led by the squadron commander Wing Commander Guy Gibson, attack a series of dams in the Ruhr Valley using Upkeep rotating mines designed by Barnes Wallis. Only twelve Lancasters reach the target area. One is forced to return after flying so low that it strikes the sea, which tears away the Upkeep bomb. Five are shot down by enemy Flak (anti-aircraft fire) and one is so badly damaged by Flak that it is forced to turn back.

Five of the twelve surviving Lancasters, led by Wing Commander Gibson, attack and breach the Möhne Dam and a further three attack the Eder Dam, which is also breached. Of the remaining aircraft, three attacked the Sorpe Dam and one the Schwelme Dam, neither of which are breached, and one fails to find its target in misty conditions and returns without releasing its bomb. Three further Lancasters are lost after they release their weapons. 53 aircrew are killed and three captured.

The raid is a significant success, creating widespread flooding. Wing Commander Gibson is subsequently awarded the Victoria Cross, having delivered his attack with great accuracy and afterwards circling very low for half an hour, drawing the enemy fire to his aircraft to clear the way for the attacks that follow. 34 other aircrew from the squadron are also decorated.

23-24 May
During a heavy raid on Dortmund, the total weight of bombs dropped by Bomber Command on Germany reaches 100,000 tons. To mark the occasion, the Air Officer Commanding in Chief, RAF Bomber Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Harris, sends this message, "In 1939, Göring promised that not a single enemy bomb would reach the Ruhr. Congratulations on having delivered the first 100,000 tons of bombs on Germany to refute him".

1 June
Army Co-operation Command is disbanded and the Tactical Air Force is formed in the United Kingdom under command of Air Marshal J.H. D'Albiac.

2 June
A Short Sunderland of No.464 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force is attacked over the Bay of Biscay by eight Junkers Ju88s. The ensuing combat last for 45 minutes and sees the Sunderland shoot down three of the attacking Ju88s. The Sunderland is badly damaged, with one of its crew killed and three wounded. Nevertheless, the pilot, Flight Lieutenant C.B. Walker brings the aircraft safely back and is subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Order.

The combat indicated the seriousness with which the Germans viewed the Allied air threat to their U-boats transiting the Bay of Biscay from their French coastal ports. The Germans deployed long range Junkers Ju88s of Kampfgeschwader 40 and shorter ranged Focke Wulf Fw190 fighters to try to combat the threat of Allied aircraft. In response the Royal Air Force (RAF) deployed Bristol Beaufighter and later de Havilland Mosquito squadrons to try to counter the threat of German interceptors. The patrols became known as Instep operations. The RAF lost 15 aircraft in patrols over the Bay of Biscay during June 1943. 4 Junkers Ju88s were claimed as destroyed by Instep patrols.

6-10 June
Pantelleria Island is heavily attacked by Allied Forces. The island subsequently surrenders on the following day.

15 June
The Royal Air Force 's first Autogiro Squadron, No.529 Squadron, is formed at Halton from No.1448 Flight.

28 June
Royal Air Force (RAF) photographic reconnaissance reveals that rockets with an estimated range of up to 130 miles are being developed at the German research facility at Peenemunde on the Baltic coast.

30 June
Serrate operations - fighter interception by homing on to enemy transmissions; combined with airborne interception radar to give range indications - begin against German nightfighters.

4 July
The first glider (sailplane) is towed across the Atlantic, from Dorval in Canada to Prestwick in Scotland, by a Dakota of RAF Transport Command.

9 July
Duncan Sandys reports to a Parliamentary committee, established to investigate German weapon development, that there is evidence that the Germans might use pilotless aircraft (the V1 'flying bomb') and long range guns, as well as rockets (V2) for attacks on Britain.

9-10 July
The invasion of Sicily (Operation Husky) opens with an airborne assault mounted from airfields in North Africa. United States Army Air Force (USAAF) and Royal Air Force transport aircraft tow in the gliders (sailplanes) of the 1st British Airborne Division and drop the paratroops of the US 82nd Airborne Division.

Poor weather, combined with the inexperience of many of the USAAF transport aircraft crews that participate in the operation, results in only 250 of the 3,000 US paratroops reaching designated drop zones.

The 1st Airborne Division's air landing fare even worse, as 69 out of the 137 gliders released land in the rough seas, drowning large numbers of men. Only twelve gliders, all towed by RAF aircraft with crews better versed in night operations, reach the correct landing zones. Fortunately the sea-borne landing fared rather better.

12-13 July
Acting Wing Commander J.D. Nettleton VC is declared missing in action while serving with No.44 Squadron, RAF Bomber Command, when the Avro Lancaster I he was piloting (ED331) fails to return from a raid on Torino. He and his crew have no known graves and are commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial.

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