Slight activity in the morning, main raids by Luftflotte 3 in the south-west during the afternoon.
Night: Continued widespread attacks with the main concentration in the Midlands.
Weather: Early morning fair but remainder of day cloudy.
Enemy Action by Day:
Many RAF pilots in 10 and 11 Groups spent the early hours in the warm late-summer sunshine, convinced that the Luftwaffe might be resting or shifting its focus elsewhere. Dowding and Park speculated whether London was about to become the primary target after the previous night’s accidental bombing of the capital, still unaware that the raid had been a navigational error.
The lull did not last. By the afternoon, Ventnor radar reported heavy build-ups across the Channel. Luftflotte 3, operating from Cherbourg and the Channel Islands, was preparing one of its largest combined raids of the battle to date. For the first time, the new German tactic of massed, tightly coordinated bomber streams under close fighter escort was executed with full strength.
Morning Raids and Reconnaissance
The early hours saw little beyond reconnaissance. Two enemy flights were plotted off the Scottish coast, with several more over East Anglia. In the south, light raids passed over Portsmouth, Portland Bill, and Start Point, while others circled over Lyme Bay and inland near Yeovil. Off Cornwall, formations were detected between the Lizard Peninsula and Land’s End, and several reconnaissance sorties pressed toward Milford Haven, where merchant ships were attacked near St David’s Head.
On the Scilly Isles, high-explosive and incendiary bombs fell on a wireless station, causing minor damage but no disruption of operations. RAF responses were limited, and no major combats occurred before mid-afternoon.
South-Western Mass Raids
At 16:00 hours, radar picked up more than one hundred aircraft crossing from Cherbourg toward Weymouth. Within the hour, three additional waves followed from the Channel Islands, bringing the total assault force to over 200 aircraft.
The German attack was spearheaded by Ju 88s of II./KG 51 and II./KG 54, split into groups aimed at Weymouth, Portland, and Warmwell. They were protected by Bf 110s of I./ZG 2 and ZG 76, and a formidable Bf 109 escort from JG 2, JG 26, JG 53, and JG 54.
Fighter Command threw in everything available. From 10 Group, Spitfires of Nos. 152 and 609 Squadrons, based at Warmwell, along with Hurricanes of Nos. 87 and 213 Squadrons, based at Exeter, were scrambled to intercept. From 11 Group, Hurricanes of No. 17 Squadron, based at Debden, and Spitfires of No. 616 Squadron, based at Kenley, were vectored south.
The clash unfolded over Weymouth and Portland. No. 87 Squadron attacked Ju 88s bound for Portland while No. 609 Squadron engaged the Bf 110s. The Spitfires were soon engaged by the escorting Bf 109s of JG 53 and JG 26, while No. 17 Squadron’s Hurricanes were unable to penetrate the dense fighter screen protecting the bombers. Despite their efforts, several Ju 88s broke through and bombed Warmwell, damaging two hangars, burning out the sick quarters and temporarily disabling the telephone exchange. One Battle and one Wellington, both on the ground, sustained slight damage, but the airfield remained serviceable.
Losses were heavy on both sides. The RAF lost sixteen fighters during the action. Among those killed was Squadron Leader Cedric Williams, commander of No. 17 Squadron, whose Hurricane was destroyed by cannon fire from a Bf 110. Another pilot from his squadron baled out and survived. Sergeant P. T. Wareing of No. 616 Squadron was shot down over Calais by Oberleutnant Kurt Ruppert of 3./JG 26 and taken prisoner; he would later escape captivity in 1942 and return to service.
Count Manfred Czernin, a Czech pilot with No. 17 Squadron, downed three Bf 110s in the span of one minute through a combination of head-on and rear-quarter attacks, disrupting the cohesion of ZG 76. By the time the battle ended, Luftwaffe losses totaled at least twenty aircraft, many of them Bf 110s.
Fighting Over Kent and the Estuary
At 18:00 hours, a major formation assembled over Calais and crossed the Kent coast near Dover and Hawkinge. The raid was composed of Dornier Do 17s from KG 2, escorted by Bf 109s from JG 26 and JG 51. Around fifty aircraft penetrated British airspace, with thirty pressing on toward the Isle of Sheppey and the Thames Estuary. As the bombers passed Eastchurch, the formation split, one stream continuing along the north side of the Estuary and the other along the south. Additional groups followed soon afterwards, though by 19:40 hours the raids in this sector had dispersed.
Fighter Command scrambled several squadrons to intercept as the raid crossed into Kent. Hurricanes of No. 32 Squadron from Hawkinge were the first to engage the Do 17s, but were quickly drawn into combat with the Bf 109 escort from JG 26 and JG 51. Spitfires of Nos. 54 and 65 Squadrons from Hornchurch, together with Hurricanes of No. 151 Squadron from North Weald and elements of No. 501 Squadron, joined the action as the raid pressed inland, yet the strength of the German fighter screen made it difficult to reach the bombers. In the running battle one Hurricane of No. 32 Squadron was lost, its pilot, Pilot Officer K.R. Gillman, failing to return and posted missing. Even so, British fighters and anti-aircraft fire accounted for an estimated five enemy aircraft destroyed.
Further south, Spitfires of No. 54 Squadron, led by the New Zealander Al Deere, joined the combat over Dover. Among the pilots was P/O M.M. Shand, also from New Zealand, who had joined the squadron only the previous day with barely twenty hours’ experience on Spitfires and no exposure to combat. Flying as Deere’s No. 2, Shand was attacked by a Bf 109 at 19:20 hours. His aircraft, Spitfire R6969, was badly damaged and he was wounded, but he managed to force-land and survived his first day of action.
Elsewhere over Dover, a Staffel of Bf 110s attempted to bomb the harbour and docks. They were intercepted by fighters from Biggin Hill and Gravesend and forced to turn back across the Channel without inflicting serious damage.
Over the Isle of Wight, further fighting developed when III./JG 2 was engaged by RAF fighters. Three Bf 109s from the Gruppe were destroyed, their pilots surviving though seriously wounded. Despite these losses, JG 2 marked a milestone: the unit achieved its 250th aerial victory of the war that evening, with Oberleutnant Helmut Wick claiming his nineteenth and twentieth confirmed kills, cementing his growing reputation among the Luftwaffe’s leading Experten.
Enemy Action by Night
After dusk, Luftflotte 3 extended its offensive. Heavy raids swept across the Midlands, South Wales, and the West Country. He 111s of KG 55 attacked Bristol, with one bomber of 9./KG 55 shot down into the sea off Sussex by Hurricanes of No. 615 Squadron. At 23:00 hours, He 111s of III./KG 27 bombed Birmingham, while other elements attacked Avonmouth docks. Coventry was hit at 22:05 hours, where a theatre and nearby industrial works, including the Rootes Securities engine factory at Ryton-on-Dunsmore, was damaged by fire. Plymouth dockyard sustained minor bomb damage, while Newcastle suffered an explosion at Swan Hunter’s shipyard from an unexploded bomb.
Minelaying was reported from the Isle of Wight eastward to Flamborough Head and northward to Montrose. In total, 84 civilians were killed and 233 injured in overnight bombing.
The First Raid on Berlin
On the night of 25/26 August, Churchill ordered Bomber Command to strike Berlin in retaliation for the previous night’s bombing of London. The force included Wellingtons of Nos. 99 and 149 Squadrons, Hampdens of Nos. 61 and 144 Squadrons, and Whitleys of Nos. 51 and 78 Squadrons. Their assigned targets included the Siemens and Halske electrical works at Siemensstadt, the Klingenberg power station, the Henschel and Bücker aircraft factories, Tempelhof aerodrome, and the Tegel gasworks.
Although the physical damage to Berlin was slight, the raid was a psychological shock. It demonstrated to the German people that their capital was not invulnerable, and it infuriated Hitler, who ordered retaliatory raids against London. The reprisal marked the beginning of the shift to the sustained bombing of the capital—the Blitz.
Summary
Sunday, 25 August 1940 demonstrated the Luftwaffe’s evolving tactics: large, massed bomber streams with heavy, close escort designed to draw RAF fighters into costly combat while still pushing bombers through to their targets. The raids inflicted damage at Warmwell, Bristol, Birmingham, and Coventry, but losses to German aircraft and crews were significant.
For Fighter Command, the day was a reminder of its precarious position. Squadrons engaged in ferocious combat, losing eighteen aircraft but claiming twenty enemy machines destroyed. The death of thirteen pilots showed the attrition Fighter Command faced.
At the same time, the RAF’s strike on Berlin irrevocably altered the course of the battle. The Luftwaffe’s daylight raids were now accompanied by a campaign of night bombing aimed at Britain’s cities, marking the first step in the broader terror offensive that would become the Blitz.
German Losses:
Airmen: 20 | Aircraft: 23
British Losses:
Airmen: 13 | Aircraft: 18
Spitfire R6810, No. 152 Squadron
P/O R.M. Hogg listed as missing. Shot down by Bf 109s over Channel and crashed into sea.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/HoggRM.htm
Spitfire R6994, No. 152 Squadron
P/O T.S. Wildblood listed as missing. Shot down by Bf 109s over Channel and crashed into sea.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Wildblood.htm
Hurricane V7226, No. 213 Squadron
P/O J.A.L. Phillipart killed. Shot down by Bf 109 over Channel. Body washed ashore two days later.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Philippart.htm
Hurricane R4199, No. 17 Squadron
S/L C.W. Williams listed as missing. Aircraft broke in two after combat with Bf 110. Crashed into sea.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/WilliamsCW.htm
Hurricane P3200, No. 213 Squadron
P/O H.D. Atkinson listed as missing. Last seen in combat over Warmwell. Failed to return to base.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/AtkinsonHD.htm
Hurricane V7250, No. 87 Squadron
Sgt. S.R.E Wakeling killed. Shot down by Bf 109 and burst into flames and crashed near Dorchester.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Wakeling.htm
Hurricane N2433, No. 32 Squadron
P/O K.R. Gillman listed as missing. Failed to return to base after combat over the Channel.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Gillman.htm
Spitfire R6966, No. 616 Squadron
Sgt. T.E. Westmoreland listed as missing. Failed to return to base.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Westmoreland.htm
Spitfire K9819, No. 616 Squadron
Sgt. P.T. Wareing taken prisoner. Crashed nr Calais after combat with Bf 109. Managed to escape after POW.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Wareing.htm
Blenheim L1330, No. 29 Squadron
P/O R.A. Rhodes listed as missing.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Rhodes.htm
AC1 N. Jacobson listed as missing.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Jacobson.htm
Believed shot down and crashed into sea during night combat.
Blenheim L6782, No. 604 Squadron
Sgt. C. Haigh killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Haigh.htm
Sgt. J.G.B. Fletcher killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/FletcherJGB.htm
LAC A.L. Austin died next day.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/AustinAL.htm
Crashed during night operation. No known reason.
Photo Descriptions
- A Junkers Ju 88 A-1 bomber and crew of I./KG 51 “Edelweiss“, Channel Islands, 1940. Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-402-0265-03A / Pilz / CC-BY-SA 3.0.
- Two Hawker Hurricane Mk Is of No. 32 Squadron coming in to land for refueling and rearming at Biggin Hill, watched by an airman standing with a signalling flag in the foreground, August 1940. © IWM (HU 54519A)
- Groundcrew in steel helmets refueling a Hawker Hurricane Mk I of No. 32 Squadron, as the pilot climbs out of the cockpit, Biggin Hill, August 1940. © IWM (HU 54513)
- Groundcrew refueling a Hawker Hurricane Mk I of No. 32 Squadron from a refuelling truck whilst the pilot waits in the cockpit, Biggin Hill, August 1940. © IWM (HU 57450)
- Ground staff in steel helmets refuelling and rearming a Hawker Hurricane Mark I of No. 32 Squadron, at a dispersal at Biggin Hill, August 1940. © IWM (HU 54515)
- Ground staff re-arm a Hawker Hurricane Mk I of No. 32 Squadron at Biggin Hill, August 1940. © IWM (HU 104487)