Shipping reconnaissance and attacks on two Channel convoys.
Night: Increased activity particularly in the Midlands, north and west. Some minelaying.
Weather: Cloudy and squally.
Enemy Action by Day
The morning of 22 August opened with the merchant convoy Totem attempting to navigate the storm-lashed Straits of Dover under Royal Navy escort. As the convoy pushed forward in turbulent seas, it came under sustained shellfire from long-range German coastal batteries stationed between Boulogne and Calais. These 14-inch guns – recently installed as part of the wider German invasion plan – targeted both the convoy and Dover itself in an artillery duel that stretched through much of the day. Though water spouts rose nearly 100 feet around the convoy, the bombardment caused no direct hits. Royal Navy escorts laid down smokescreens to obscure the convoy, which ultimately reached safe anchorage by nightfall with its cargo of 50,000 tons of food and materiel intact.
At 12:30, RAF radar stations detected a formation of thirty German aircraft heading across the Channel toward Totem. Three RAF squadrons were scrambled in response: No. 54 and No. 610 Squadrons (Spitfires) and No. 615 Squadron (Hurricanes). These fighters engaged the inbound formation, which included Ju 88 bombers and Bf 109 escorts. In the ensuing combat, the bombers were forced to retreat, though losses were incurred. No. 54 Squadron lost a Spitfire – pilot Sgt. G.R. Collett was killed when his aircraft crashed into the Channel off Deal. One Ju 88 was damaged and later crash-landed in France. In a case of mistaken identity, a Hurricane from No. 615 Squadron was shot down by another from the same unit, though the pilot survived with only minor injuries.
Later, at 18:30, another formation of thirty German aircraft crossed the coast near Deal. This incursion appeared to be a freie Jagd – a fighter sweep rather than a bombing mission. Nonetheless, it was accompanied by Bf 110s from Erprobungsgruppe 210 and Bf 109s of JG 26, with Manston airfield as the target. No. 616 Squadron was dispatched and engaged in a series of dogfights. In the combat that followed, Sgt. M. Keymer of No. 65 Squadron was shot down and killed over Dover at 19:35 by a Bf 109. F/O Hugh “Cocky” Dundas was wounded after bailing out of his Spitfire following a duel with a Bf 109 at 19:30. ErprGr 210 managed to drop around thirty bombs on Manston, destroying two Blenheim aircraft, damaging hangars and other buildings, and rendering the airfield temporarily inoperable.
RAF No. 302 (Polish) Squadron, in its second recorded engagement, claimed two Ju 88 bombers downed – one at sea and another four miles off the coast at 12,000 feet – though neither kill could be confirmed.
In a separate action at sea, the Canadian merchant vessel SS Thorold (1,689 GRT) was attacked by Do 17 bombers in the Irish Sea and sunk. Of the 23 crew members, ten were lost.
Enemy Action by Night
With most of the Luftwaffe grounded during the day due to adverse weather, night operations intensified. Beginning around 21:00, German bombers launched widespread attacks across Britain, with targets including Aberdeen, Pontefract, Hampshire, Bristol, South Wales, and coastal convoys. Minelaying was suspected in the Thames Estuary, with additional activity noted as far north as Flamborough Head and off the Firth of Forth.
At 23:00, He 111 bombers of Kampfgruppe 100 – equipped with the advanced X-Verfahren guidance system – conducted a precision raid on the aircraft works at Filton, Bristol. More than sixteen tons of high explosives were dropped by twenty-three Heinkels flying from Vannes, Brittany. Though all aircraft returned safely, two factory buildings at the Bristol Aeroplane Company were damaged and four people were injured. Production was significantly disrupted.
Meanwhile, Ju 88 bombers struck Manston again. London’s central air defense received two “purple” alerts during the night and a “red” warning at 03:25, when four or more enemy aircraft were plotted over the capital. The township of Harrow – though technically part of Middlesex at the time – was bombed along with adjoining Wealdstone. Despite the geographical ambiguity, Civil Defence classified this as a London-area raid, marking what is believed to be the first bombing of Greater London during the Blitz.
German Losses:
Airmen: 9 | Aircraft: 4
British Losses:
Airmen: 2 | Aircraft: 2
Spitfire R6708, No. 54 Squadron
Sgt G.R. Collett killed. Shot down into the sea. Body was washed up on beach on Dutch coast.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Collett.htm
Spitfire K9909, No. 65 Squadron
Sgt M. Keymer killed. Shot down by Bf 109 into Channel. Buried at Bazinghem, France.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Keymer.htm
Photo Descriptions
- Damage to the steamer Sir John Hawkins at Millbay Docks, Plymouth caused by bombs dropped by enemy aircraft during the early hours of 22 August 1940. © IWM (A 254)
- Damage to the landing stage at Millbay Docks, Plymouth caused by bombs dropped by enemy aircraft during the early hours of 22 August 1940. © IWM (A 255)
- A motor car wrecked whilst parked outside the Military Police Office at Docks Gate, Plymouth on 22 August 1940. An incendiary bomb of “oil” type caused the fire which burnt the car out. © IWM (A 261)