London and suburbs are again the main targets.

Night: Generally quiet, but some damage to the National Gallery.

Weather: Widespread mist and fog during the day, clearing later.

Enemy Action by Day

Saturday, 12 October 1940, began under widespread mist and fog across southern England, which persisted into the early afternoon. As visibility gradually improved, a renewed series of attacks unfolded, targeting London and the Home Counties. The Luftwaffe mounted repeated raids involving large formations of fighter-bombers—principally high-flying Messerschmitt Bf 109s carrying light bomb loads—with heavier bomber support at intervals. While the morning’s poor weather hampered visibility, it also made interception difficult. Nevertheless, throughout the day and into the evening, RAF Fighter Command responded vigorously.

Early Fighter-Bomber Incursions and RAF Engagements

By 09:00 hours, waves of Bf 109s began crossing the Channel. The first raid, comprising over 20 aircraft, entered via Dungeness and was followed shortly after by a separate group of nine aircraft crossing at Lympne. These raids advanced inland as far as Biggin Hill. Within the hour, two larger formations totalling over 80 aircraft crossed the coast again at Dungeness, with another group of 20-plus crossing at Lympne. These formations pressed toward central London.

A significant engagement took place around 10:00 hours over North Kent. Hurricanes from Nos. 249 and 257 Squadrons, scrambled from North Weald, intercepted a large raid. Nos. 72 and 92 Squadrons from Biggin Hill were also involved, engaging Bf 109s from LG 2, JG 77, and JG 54. Flight Lieutenant Georges Perrin of No. 249 Squadron, a Free French pilot, was wounded after baling out of Hurricane I V7313 near Ewhurst following combat with a Bf 109. Two Bf 109s from JG 54 were lost, including that of Leutnant Bernhard Malischewski of Stab II./JG 54, who was captured.

Meanwhile, Hurricanes of No. 145 Squadron, operating from Tangmere, engaged further Bf 109s from LG 2 over Hastings and surrounding areas. During this engagement, Major Werner Mölders, Kommodore of JG 51, claimed three Hurricanes from No. 145 Squadron, raising his personal tally to 45. Squadron Leader Paul Watling Rabone of No. 145 Squadron shot down a Bf 109 but was forced to land Hurricane I V7521 due to battle damage. He emerged unhurt. Hauptmann Walter Oesau of Stab III./JG 51 also claimed a Hurricane, bringing his score to 36.

Lunchtime and Afternoon Raids

At 10:55 hours, a further 64 aircraft passed over Lympne, advancing toward Biggin Hill, Hornchurch, and London. Eighteen of these aircraft reached central London. At 12:04 hours, another 80-plus aircraft crossed at Hastings, some penetrating the Inner Artillery Zone.

Shortly before 13:00 hours, Hurricane pilots from No. 605 Squadron, scrambled from Croydon, intercepted enemy formations over Maidstone. Sergeant P.R.C. McIntosh of No. 605 Squadron, aged 20, was killed during a dogfight over Romney Marsh when his Hurricane I P3022 was shot down and crashed near Littlestone Golf Course. He is buried at St John’s, Shirley, Croydon.

At 12:55 hours, a raid of 30-plus aircraft split over Deal, with 20 heading northwest over Kenley and Biggin Hill before reaching Hatfield. These aircraft returned by the same route. At 14:00 hours, another formation of approximately 100 aircraft penetrated southern London from the Kent coast.

Climax of the Day: Heavy Mid-Afternoon Engagements

At 16:15 hours, a massive raid involving approximately 150 aircraft approached from near Dover. Around 50 aircraft turned north toward the Isle of Sheppey, then followed the Thames Estuary to Gravesend before withdrawing eastward. The remaining force advanced toward Biggin Hill and skirted the southern edge of the Inner Artillery Zone before turning back by 16:30 hours. A second wave of 50 aircraft reached South London by 16:40 hours, then turned south and exited the coastline at Beachy Head by 16:55 hours.

During this phase, multiple small raids—totalling around 100 aircraft—remained active over southeast Kent, particularly in the Dover to Dungeness sector, until about 17:15 hours. Around 15:30 hours, formations of Ju 88s and Bf 109s from JG 53 and JG 54 crossed the Channel. Spitfires of No. 602 Squadron from Westhampnett intercepted Ju 88s off Beachy Head, while Hurricanes from Nos. 257 and 615 Squadrons and Spitfires from Nos. 41 and 92 Squadrons engaged the fighter escort. Oberleutnant Roloff von Aspern of 5./JG 54 shot down a Hurricane, bringing his tally to 15 victories. Feldwebel Wolfgang Patho of 4./JG 53 claimed his first victory, downing a Spitfire.

Reconnaissance Activity and Final Engagements

Reconnaissance flights were frequent from early morning. At 06:50 hours, one aircraft from Antwerp reconnoitred the Thames Estuary and Isle of Sheppey. Five other aircraft were active over the Straits, with three conducting passes over Channel convoys. Between 07:00 and 09:00 hours, further reconnaissances extended from Cherbourg to Selsey Bill, Southwold, Sheerness, and the Norfolk coast. One Ju 88 was intercepted by fighters from RAF Coltishall.

At 17:10 hours, an Arado Ar 196 maritime reconnaissance aircraft flew parallel to the southern coast, 10 miles offshore from Dungeness to the Thames Estuary. It was intercepted and destroyed by Hurricanes of No. 145 Squadron approximately 12 miles south of St Catherine’s Point at 17:25 hours. That same afternoon, Oberleutnant Günther Büsgen of 1./JG 52 was shot down and captured over England. Büsgen had six victories and became a prisoner of war.

RAF and Luftwaffe Losses

Fighter Command reported the destruction of 10 enemy aircraft, with 11 more listed as probable and 7 damaged. Anti-aircraft guns accounted for one additional kill. British losses amounted to 11 aircraft and four pilots killed. Luftwaffe records indicate at least 13 aircraft lost during the day.

Enemy Action by Night

Enemy activity resumed shortly before 19:00 hours, with aircraft departing from the Dutch islands and from the Dieppe area. From 20:30 hours, a strong force of bombers from Cherbourg advanced toward the Midlands, dispersing over Bristol before attacking targets in Birmingham and Coventry. Between 20:37 and 21:50 hours, Coventry was heavily bombed. Fires broke out across industrial sites, with confirmed damage to the Sterling Metal Co., the Cornercroft factory, a gas works, and telephone infrastructure.

London came under sustained night attack from 19:20 hours. A high explosive bomb struck near King Charles’ Statue at Trafalgar Square at 20:45 hours, penetrating to the lower hall of the Underground station and killing seven civilians and injuring thirty. Despite this, pianist Myra Hess continued her National Gallery lunchtime concerts, held amid the bomb-damaged galleries with artwork removed to safe storage.

Further night raids extended across East Anglia, the Northeast, and coastal areas from the Humber to Farne Island. By 22:45 hours, London and most of the country were momentarily free of enemy aircraft. Light bombing resumed over the capital after midnight, with small numbers of bombers maintaining intermittent pressure until around 01:30 hours. By 02:22 hours, the night’s activity had ceased.

Damage Assessments and Civilian Impact

Biggin Hill airfield was struck by five high-explosive bombs dropped by a high-altitude Bf 109, but no significant damage was inflicted. Thirty incendiary bombs fell near RAF Throckmorton at 21:30 hours, all landing harmlessly in fields.

At Hastings, bombing raids at 10:10 and 13:50 hours caused considerable damage. The second attack ignited a large fire at the local gas works and destroyed seven houses. Southall and Uxbridge Road stations sustained damage, with rail lines disrupted. A goods train was hit at Barnes Station, tearing up track. Coventry suffered extensive industrial damage and fires, though the situation was later brought under control.

A tragic incident involving a new type of explosive-incendiary bomb occurred when a civilian was killed attempting to extinguish the device with sand. In the transport network, an unrelated accident at Wembley LMS Station derailed a Rugby-to-London express train, causing multiple casualties.

Strategic Developments

In Germany, General Wilhelm Keitel issued a directive under Hitler’s orders confirming that Operation Seelöwe (Sealion) was indefinitely postponed, with preparation to continue only as a means of political and military pressure. Simultaneously, aircraft manufacturers Messerschmitt and Junkers were tasked with developing new troop-carrying gliders under project “Warschau-Süd.” While Junkers’ Ju 322 Mammut ultimately proved disastrous, Messerschmitt’s design evolved into the Me 321 Gigant, which would later see limited operational service in Russia.

German Losses:
Airmen: 7 | Aircraft: 13

British Losses:
Airmen: 5 | Aircraft: 11

Spitfire P9338, No. 72 Squadron
P/O H.R. Case killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Case.htm

Spitfire X4591, No. 92 Squadron
F/O A.J.S. Pattinson killed. Shot down and killed by Bf 109s over Hawkinge.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Pattinson.htm

Hurricane V7426, No. 145 Squadron
Sgt. J.V. Wadham killed. Shot down and killed by Bf 109s over Hastings.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Wadham.htm

Blenheim L1113, No. 219 Squadron
P/O R.V. Baron killed. Baled out of aircraft but parachute failed to open.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Baron.htm

Hurricane P3022, No. 605 Squadron
Sgt. P.R.C. McIntosh killed. Shot down in action against Bf 109s over the Channel off Dungeness.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/McIntosh.htm

Photo Descriptions:

1. Soldiers camouflage Leutnant Bernhard Malischewski’s Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 of Stab II./JG 54 to prevent its possible destruction by the Luftwaffe. The aircraft was shot down by Flt Lt “Bob” Stanford Tuck on 12 October 1940 during a combat over Tenterden in Kent. Malischewski was captured at Chapel Holdings, Small Hythe.
2. Leutnant Malischewski’s Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 of Stab II./JG 54 on display.
3. Sgt. Cyril Babbage’s Supermarine Spitfire Mk.I of No. 602 Squadron lies in a field after crashing during a wheels-down emergency landing at Iford Hill near Lewes, East Sussex on 12 October 1940. Having run through a hedge, the aircraft flipped onto its back after the wheels hit a small ditch. Although quite badly damaged, the aircraft was repairable.