East coast shipping raided.
Night: Minelaying from Dover to the Tyne and Forth Estuary.
Weather: Slight haze in the Straits of Dover. Cloudy with occasional rain in other districts.
Enemy Action by Day
Enemy air activity was notably reduced compared with earlier in the month. In line with Air Chief Marshal Dowding’s recommendation to route convoys via the East Coast and northwards around Scotland, the Channel was largely cleared of shipping traffic. This strategic adjustment forced the Luftwaffe to undertake longer-range missions without fighter escort, reducing the frequency and intensity of attacks.
Nevertheless, reconnaissance and bombing raids persisted against coastal shipping and inland targets.
05:22–08:09 Hours: Fighting off the East Coast
At 05:22 hours, Flight Lieutenant G.F. Powell-Shedden of No. 242 Squadron, flying Hurricane P3485, intercepted a Ju 88 east of Lowestoft and claimed it damaged. The German aircraft was probably a reconnaissance Ju 88 of 4.(F)/122, flown by Unteroffizier Hans Motejus, which failed to return and was subsequently reported lost in the Dover area. Motejus, Leutnant Martin Forster, Unteroffizier Walter Eichler and Flieger Hans Krautschick were killed.
At 08:09 hours, a ‘help’ signal was received from a convoy situated off Lowestoft, but only a single bomb was observed falling from high altitude, causing no damage.
A separate inland raid penetrated deep into southern England, reaching as far as Kenley, but the formation turned back upon the approach of RAF fighters. No bombs were reported dropped over sensitive installations.
11:20–15:30 Hours: Attacks on Shipping
At 11:20 hours, six Luftwaffe aircraft bombed a group of British trawlers operating off North Foreland. Two RAF fighter squadrons were vectored to intercept, but no contact was made and the enemy formation withdrew unscathed.
Later in the afternoon, at approximately 15:30 hours, nine German aircraft, which had evaded RDF tracking, bombed a Royal Navy vessel some fifty miles east of Harwich. No RAF fighters were on station to engage, and the outcome of the naval attack remains unknown.
15:40 Hours: Engagement off North-East Scotland
At 15:40 hours, three Spitfires of No. 603 Squadron’s Blue Section intercepted a Dornier Do 17 off the north-east coast of Scotland. The Spitfires attacked the bomber approximately seventy-five miles east of Aberdeen and believed that it had crashed into the sea. Two of the British fighters were struck by the Dornier’s defensive fire but returned safely.
The German aircraft was probably a Do 17 of 3./KG 3, which ditched in the North Sea with slight injuries to two members of its four-man crew. Leutnant Bruno Kahlfuss, Feldwebel Strecker, Unteroffizier Josef Kellmann and Obergefreiter Herbert Reinhardt spent approximately twenty-four hours in their dinghy before being rescued by a German He 59 seaplane.
16:40 Hours: Bombing of Pulham Market
At 16:40 hours, another raid approached inland from the coast near Yarmouth and released bombs over Pulham Market. RAF fighters attempted to intercept, but the German bomber evaded pursuit by climbing into dense cloud. Air Ministry property at Pulham, Norfolk, suffered structural damage from the sixteen high-explosive bombs dropped, but no casualties were reported.
Fighting off Portland
During a Coastal Command patrol approximately twenty miles south-west of Portland, Pilot Officer D.G.S. Cotes-Preddy of No. 236 Squadron encountered a formation of Ju 87 dive-bombers. Flying Blenheim L8684, Cotes-Preddy attacked the German aircraft and claimed two damaged.
Elsewhere, an aircraft of No. 53 Squadron returned damaged after being attacked by German fighters.
18:45–20:40 Hours: Hudsons Engage German Flying Boats
At 18:45 hours, three Hudsons of No. 269 Squadron departed Wick to investigate German air activity over the North Sea. Pilot Officer C.R. Tufford, flying Hudson P5132, encountered a Dornier Do 18 flying boat and was soon engaged by two more. During a combat lasting approximately forty minutes, Tufford severely damaged one of the German aircraft before the remaining flying boats broke away.
Sergeant H.N. Phillips, flying Hudson T9275, subsequently encountered the damaged Do 18 and forced it to alight on the sea after a brief engagement. The German crew signalled that one man aboard was wounded and attempted unsuccessfully to launch their dinghy. At 21:50 hours, the crew transmitted a radio message reporting that the dinghy was unserviceable.
An RAF launch reached the area at approximately 04:00 hours but could not locate the flying boat or its crew. The launch was attacked twice by German aircraft during the search and drove off both attacks with machine-gun fire.
The German aircraft was Do 18 K6+FH of 1./Küstenfliegergruppe 406. Oberfeldwebel Karl Moritz, Oberleutnant zur See Dieter Neumerkel, Feldwebel Fritz Rogge and Feldwebel Gerhard Schultz were lost, apparently after the flying boat sank. Both Hudsons sustained slight damage during the fighting.
Activity over France
Hostile tracks were plotted along the French coast throughout the day, particularly between Calais and Dunkirk. Several enemy aircraft flew into mid-Channel but failed to cross into British airspace, suggesting reconnaissance activity rather than offensive operations.
Loss of The Lady Mostyn
The 305-ton coaster The Lady Mostyn struck an aerial mine in Liverpool Bay and sank with the loss of all seven members of her crew. The mine had probably been laid by an aircraft of 9.Flieger-Division during an earlier minelaying sortie.
Operational Accidents
At 04:15 hours, Hudson P5152 of No. 269 Squadron collided during take-off at Wick with Hurricane P2862 of No. 3 Squadron, which was on the ground. The Hudson’s bomb load exploded, destroying both aircraft and killing Flight Lieutenant C.D.W. Price, Pilot Officers J.T.T. Fleming and W. Appleby, and Sergeant L. Land.
Pilot Officer D.L. Bisgood, who was in the Hurricane, survived with serious injuries. A veteran of the fighting in France, Bisgood was subsequently admitted to hospital.
Hurricane P2861 of No. 232 Squadron was also lost after ditching in the sea off the Shetland Islands. Sergeant Alan Butterick was rescued.
A German aircraft of 4./KG 3 was abandoned over eastern Belgium after becoming lost during a navigational training flight and exhausting its fuel. The crew successfully left the aircraft by parachute.
Enemy Action by Night
Luftwaffe night operations, while less intense than earlier in the month, were widespread and focused largely on minelaying along the East Coast between Dover and the Forth Estuary. Raids extended as far north as Kinnaird’s Head, with reduced activity in the Thames Estuary and along the South Coast.
At 00:40 hours, a Spitfire pilot reported shooting down a Heinkel He 111 near Dunbar. No corresponding German loss has been identified, and the claim cannot be regarded as a confirmed victory. Around the same time, Montrose Aerodrome reported a single high-explosive bomb at 00:43 hours, which failed to cause damage or casualties.
A notable feature of the night’s activity was the deployment of smoke screens. At 00:43 hours, the Observer Corps reported sighting a 100-yard-long smoke screen approximately thirty feet high off Dover, likely linked to minelaying activity.
By 01:00 hours, several raids were tracked moving north off the Welsh coast. These aircraft were later detected over Liverpool, where anti-aircraft batteries engaged and claimed one unconfirmed kill. In total, about eight raids were tracked towards Falmouth, Plymouth and Bristol, though no significant damage was reported.
A formation of bombers crossed into England over Middlesbrough and continued south of Catterick, while another penetrated over Cornwall and South Wales. Despite the wide range of incursions, only one confirmed report of bomb damage was received—from the Hartlepool area.
British Night Operations
At 23:45 hours, six torpedo-armed Swordfish of No. 823 Squadron, led by Lieutenant Commander Donald Elles, departed Hatston to attack a German force operating approximately ninety miles east of Aberdeen. The enemy formation comprised six minelayers protected by six E-boats and two minesweepers, which were laying a minefield in the North Sea.
At 02:51 hours, the Swordfish sighted five vessels and attacked in sections. The observer in the leading aircraft heard a loud explosion and saw black smoke rising from the rearmost ship, believed to be a minesweeper, but no hit could be confirmed. The German ships opened heavy anti-aircraft fire after the first torpedo was released.
One observer was slightly wounded by a splinter, while his Swordfish sustained damage to its port lower wing, wings and fuselage. Nine Skuas led by Lieutenant Commander Hugh Bramwell were also dispatched but failed to locate the German force.
Bomber Command dispatched eighty-five aircraft during the night, but low cloud and fog prevented many crews from locating or successfully attacking their assigned targets.
Blenheim R3748 of No. 110 Squadron failed to return from an attack against an airfield near Bernburg. The aircraft was intercepted and shot down by Unteroffizier Hans Busch of 8./JG 51 before crashing into the sea off Haamstede. Sergeant C.C. Heyward, Sergeant L.A.N. Walker and Sergeant I. Winberg were killed.
Wellington T2459 of No. 149 Squadron was attacked and damaged by Bf 110 night fighters while operating over Germany. The navigator, Pilot Officer R.C. Sterling, was killed. Air gunner Sergeant L.H. Kay claimed one Bf 110 destroyed and another damaged during the engagement, although no corresponding German loss has been identified.
Whitleys and Hampdens were also active during the night, and all returned safely.
Civilian and Ground Damage Reports
At 08:38 hours, bombs landed on the beach and inland at Worthing, followed by the release of “whistling bombs” in a field at Itchingfield near Horsham at 09:35 hours. No injuries or structural damage occurred.
At 16:48 hours, structural damage was confirmed at Pulham following the German raid earlier in the afternoon.
Home Security Reports for the night of 23/24 July noted scattered damage across several counties.
In East Yorkshire at 01:22 hours, six houses in Willerby were severely damaged by high-explosive bombs. A railway signal arm was destroyed, though the track remained intact. Four minor casualties were reported.
Further bombing was recorded at Yarmouth and Brighstone on the Isle of Wight at 00:45 hours, causing minor damage to one house. Eleven high-explosive bombs fell near Ternhill Aerodrome at 01:33 hours, partially blocking a nearby road. No casualties were reported.
Bombs were also reported to have fallen in Norfolk, Kent and West Sussex, but damage in those areas was negligible.
German Losses:
Airmen: 10 | Aircraft: 6
British Losses:
Airmen: 0 | Aircraft: 2
Photo Descriptions
- A Dornier Do 17Z (5K+EA) of Stab/KG 3 in France, 1940. Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-345-0784-14A / Gentsch / CC-BY-SA 3.0.
- Hawker Hurricane Mark Is of No 17 Squadron taxiing at Debden, July 1940. The foreground aircraft with fuselage codes YB-C is that of the CO, Squadron Leader Harold ‘Birdy’ Bird-Wilson, who was shot down on 24 September flying P3878 YB-W. © IWM (HU 54517)