Three-phase attack on airfields in Kent, Essex and Suffolk. Night: First major attack on Liverpool (150 bombers). Further harassing attacks over London, the Midlands and north-east coast. Weather: Fine and fair but cold. Cloud in Dover Straits. Enemy Action by Day The day dawned fine and fair across southern England, though temperatures remained cold and […]
1940
29
Aug
Thursday 29 August 1940
Quiet in the morning, airfield attacks in the south and south-east later in the day. Night: Further attack on Liverpool with diversionary raids in the Midlands. Weather: Showers and bright intervals. Cloud in the Channel and Straits. Enemy Action by Day The weather on 29 August was unsettled, with showers and bright intervals across much […]
30
Aug
Friday 30 August 1940
Dummy raids on shipping then heavy attacks on south-eastern airfields. Luton attacked. Night: Third raid on Liverpool. Single raids over wide area. Weather: Fair. Enemy Action by Day The day began under fair weather conditions, ideal for flying. In the early hours, radar detected a lone enemy aircraft conducting reconnaissance over Leicester before crossing the […]
31
Aug
Saturday 31 August 1940
Fighter Command suffers its heaviest losses. Airfields in the south and south-east raided. Night: Liverpool once again the main target with lesser attacks covering the north-east coast to Plymouth. Weather: Mainly fair with haze over the Thames Estuary and Dover Straits. Enemy Action by Day The weather on 31 August remained mainly fair, though haze […]
01
Sep
Sunday 1 September 1940
Heavy damage to Fighter Command airfields following four major attacks. Night: Liverpool attacked again. Smaller raids in the Midlands and South Wales. Weather: Fair with cloudy patches during the morning, clearing during the afternoon. Enemy Action by Day The “Bad Weekend” entered its third day on 1 September. Following the heavy raids of 30 and […]
02
Sep
Monday 2 September 1940
Once again four main phases of airfield attacks. Night: Scattered raids on Liverpool, the Midlands and South Wales. Weather: Continuing fine and warm. Early-morning mist and fog patches. Enemy Action by Day The day began with fine and warm weather, accompanied by early-morning mist and fog patches across southern England. As the sun rose, the […]
03
Sep
Tuesday 3 September 1940
Further heavy airfield attacks. Night: Liverpool bombed once again. Harassing raids on South Wales and the south-west coast. Weather: Fine and warm. Some cloud and drizzle in the north, haze in the Channel and Straits. Enemy Action by Day At approximately 08:30 hours, a high-flying German reconnaissance aircraft was observed over Kent, flying at 22,000 […]
04
Sep
Wednesday 4 September 1940
Two major attacks on airfields. Serious damage to the Vickers Works at Brooklands. Night: Further raid on Liverpool. Weather: Fine and warm with haze in the Channel and Straits. Occasional rain and strong winds in the north. Enemy Action by Day By 4 September 1940, the Luftwaffe’s focus was beginning to evolve. While airfields remained […]
05
Sep
Thursday 5 September 1940
Airfield attacks in two phases. Park (CinC No 11 Group) orders special cover for fighter factories. Night: Continuous activity over southern England. Weather: Continuing fine and warm with cloud developing later. Enemy Action by Day The day began with fine flying weather, ideal for both sides but unwelcome for Fighter Command, which had been hoping […]
06
Sep
Friday 6 September 1940
Three main attacks, largely broken up. Night: Harassing raids. Weather: Fine, but cooler. Haze in the Straits and Thames Estuary. Enemy Action by Day Fine, but cooler, weather prevailed, with haze in the Straits and Thames Estuary. After Bomber Command’s recent raid on Berlin, RAF commanders anticipated retaliatory strikes. Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park, mindful of […]