Convoy raids off North Foreland and Dover.

Night: The east coast, home counties and western Scotland attacked.

Weather: Showery in south-east England and Channel. Continuous rain elsewhere.

Enemy Action by Day

Wednesday, 10 July 1940, dawned under a leaden sky, typical of a British summer, with a persistent, driving rain from the northwest. This uninviting weather, known to fighter pilots as Harry clampers, did little to deter the unfolding drama. This day would mark the true beginning of the Battle of Britain, as the Luftwaffe launched its first major offensive, primarily targeting vital Channel convoys.

The early hours were characterised by routine German weather and reconnaissance flights. Dornier 17s, Dornier 215s, and Junkers 88s, often utilising cloud cover to evade detection, crisscrossed the skies, photographing previous targets, scouting future ones, and reporting on meteorological conditions. These missions frequently escalated into direct attacks on convoys when opportunities arose. London, remarkably, remained untouched during this initial phase. The convoys, laden with indispensable coal, raw materials, machinery, and foodstuffs, were critical lifelines for Britain’s very existence. Germany’s strategy was clear: by sinking these merchant vessels, they aimed to cripple the British war effort and starve its populace.

Beyond the immediate destruction, the Luftwaffe harboured a secondary, more strategic objective: to draw out the Royal Air Force’s fighter squadrons. This tactic, it was hoped, would allow German command to assess the RAF’s strength and determine the speed and efficiency with which its squadrons could be deployed. General Lörzer’s II. Fliegerkorps and General von Richthofen’s VIII. Fliegerkorps were tasked with securing air superiority over the Channel. A dedicated shipping strike force, led by Oberst Johannes Fink, known as the Kanalkampfführer, was assembled, though it was not yet at full operational strength, thus limiting initial targets to Channel convoys.

05:15–05:57 Hours: Early Morning Aerodrome Raids

In the early morning, a series of Luftwaffe raids targeted RAF aerodromes across East Anglia. At 05:15 hours, seventeen high-explosive bombs fell on or around Martlesham Aerodrome, though no damage was reported. Two minutes later, at 05:17 hours, Honington Aerodrome was struck by two bombs. At 05:44 hours, West Raynham Aerodrome was hit by seventeen bombs, which caused minor damage to station infrastructure and ignited a hangar. Three Ansons and a Gladiator (N5580) were destroyed in the fire, while three Battles and one Tutor sustained superficial damage. Finally, at 05:57 hours, fourteen bombs fell into a cornfield approximately 300 yards north-east of Marham Aerodrome, severing nearby utility lines but leaving the station itself unscathed.

The RAF’s first fighter casualty of the battle occurred at dawn off the Humber, when Sgt Ian C. C. Clenshaw of No. 253 Squadron crashed into the sea in poor weather while on patrol.

06:15 Hours: Morning Interception

The first recorded engagement of the day took place at approximately 06:15 hours, when a lone Dornier Do 17Z of II./KG 3, flying a reconnaissance mission at 10,000 feet, was intercepted by Spitfires from No. 66 Squadron. The section, led by Pilot Officer Charles Cooke, caught the bomber off the East Coast between Yarmouth and Harwich. During the attack, Cooke’s Spitfire sustained a hit in the windscreen, though he was uninjured.

The Dornier, piloted by Oberleutnant Bott, immediately began a series of evasive manoeuvres—weaving and banking in a determined attempt to escape—while its three gunners returned fire with sustained bursts. One Spitfire pressed in and raked the cockpit and nose with all eight machine guns, killing the pilot, Oberleutnant Bott, and his observer, Leutnant Schroeder. Trailing smoke, the crippled aircraft entered a shallow glide before crashing into the sea between Great Yarmouth and Harwich. There were no survivors, and the bodies of Bott and Schroeder were recovered the following day after washing ashore.

Elsewhere off the East Anglian coast, a Hurricane of No. 242 Squadron flown by Sub-Lieutenant Richard “Dicky” Gardner intercepted a Heinkel He 111 of 7./KG 53 attacking shipping near Lowestoft. Gardner pursued the bomber towards the Dutch coast and shot it down into the North Sea. There were no survivors from its crew.

11:00 Hours: Convoy Bread Sighted off Manston

At 10:00 hours, Convoy CW.3, codenamed Bread, rounded North Foreland, having departed the Thames Estuary earlier that morning. The convoy consisted of twenty-five small coastal steamers, all in ballast, bound south-east through the Dover Strait under naval escort.

A lone Dornier reconnaissance aircraft, escorted by Bf 109s of II. and III./JG 51, located the convoy and transmitted its position, size and course to Kanalfront headquarters. Spitfires of Nos. 74 and 610 Squadrons were scrambled and intercepted the formation off Margate. When the Spitfires attempted to attack the Dornier, the escorting Messerschmitts intervened and a dogfight developed. No. 74 Squadron claimed two Bf 109s destroyed, one probably destroyed and four damaged, while No. 610 Squadron claimed two probably destroyed. JG 51 claimed six Spitfires, although none was lost; three were damaged and force-landed safely. One Bf 109 of 5./JG 51 was destroyed, killing its pilot, Feldwebel Wolfgang Stocker. The reconnaissance Dornier escaped.

13:50 Hours: Attack on Convoy Bread

At approximately 13:50 hours, British radar stations detected a substantial German formation crossing the French coast west of Calais, heading toward Folkestone. It was the largest concentration of enemy aircraft yet observed over the Channel. The main formation consisted of twenty-seven Dornier Do 17s of I. and III./KG 2, escorted by Bf 110s of III./ZG 26 and covered by Bf 109s of I./JG 3 and III./JG 51. The resulting engagement eventually involved more than one hundred aircraft.

In response, Fighter Command scrambled Hurricanes from Nos. 32, 56, and 111 Squadrons, along with Spitfires from No. 74 Squadron. Later in the engagement, Kenley despatched six Spitfires from No. 64 Squadron to reinforce the action. Meanwhile, as a diversionary measure, a single Ju 88 of II./LG 1 was sent toward Bristol but aborted the mission shortly after take-off.

As the British fighters climbed to intercept, the Dorniers turned toward the convoy between Dover and Dungeness. Spitfires of No. 74 Squadron and Hurricanes from Nos. 32 and 56 Squadrons engaged the escorting Bf 109s and Bf 110s, while Hurricanes of No. 111 Squadron went directly for the Dorniers. The Bf 110s quickly adopted a defensive circle formation, leaving the Bf 109s of III./JG 51 to protect the bombers. Reinforcements from II./JG 51 soon joined the fray, bringing the total to around seventy German aircraft battling thirty RAF fighters. The skies off Folkestone soon became a chaotic maze of snaking vapour trails.

It was a fierce and confused dogfight, with neither side gaining the upper hand. Hauptmann Hannes Trautloft of III./JG 51 later recalled:

“Suddenly the sky was full of British fighters. Today we were going to be in for a rough time.”

Leutnant Bechtle of 3./KG 2 described the spectacle as:

“a magnificent dogfight. From a distance, the aircraft looked like bunches of grapes…!”

Werner Kreipe, serving as Gruppenkommandeur of III./KG 2, later provided a vivid account of the engagement:

“The Channel was bathed in brilliant sunshine. A light haze hung over the English coast, and there, far below us, was the convoy—like so many toy ships with wispy wakes. As soon as we were observed, the merchantmen scattered, and the warships increased speed. AA shells peppered the sky. The RAF arrived, and the sky turned into a twisting, turning melee of fighters.”

As the aerial combat raged, the Dornier formation began to break apart under the relentless harassment of the British fighters. Flying Officer Peter Higgs of No. 111 Squadron became the first RAF fighter pilot to be killed in combat during the Battle of Britain. While flying Hurricane P3671, Higgs engaged a Dornier Do 17Z (U5+FL) of 3./KG 2 at approximately 6,000 feet. As he closed in for the attack, he was momentarily distracted by the appearance of a Bf 109E from 7./JG 51, flown by Oberleutnant Walter Oesau. While attempting to take evasive action, Higgs’s Hurricane collided with the bomber, tearing off one of his own aircraft’s wings. Both the Hurricane and the Dornier spun out of control and crashed into the sea near the Dungeness Buoy. A rescue launch quickly arrived, recovering the Dornier’s pilot and one crew member, but there was no sign of the remaining bomber crew or F/O Higgs.

At approximately the same time, a Bf 110C-2 (3U+GS) of 8./ZG 26 was shot down by Sub-Lieutenant F. D. Paul of No. 64 Squadron three miles east of Folkestone Gate Light. Oberfeldwebel W. Meyer was wounded, while Gefreiter W. Rohde was missing, believed killed.

Luftwaffe crews claimed heavy RAF losses and significant damage to British shipping, reporting one cruiser and four merchant vessels sunk, another damaged, and eleven RAF fighters destroyed or damaged. In reality, the convoy’s only confirmed loss was the 466-ton Dutch steamer Bill S, whose crew were rescued. On the RAF side, one Hurricane was lost following a mid-air collision, while three Hurricanes and four Spitfires sustained varying degrees of damage.

German losses were more substantial than reported. Three Dornier Do 17s were confirmed destroyed, with a fourth crash-landing heavily damaged. In addition, three Bf 110s were shot down, and three Bf 109s were either destroyed or forced to crash-land upon returning to France. Despite the Luftwaffe’s inflated claims, the convoy continued its passage with minimal disruption.

15:30 Hours: Luftflotte 3 Bombs Swansea and Falmouth

Later in the afternoon, at approximately 15:30 hours, Ju 88 bombers of Luftflotte 3 were dispatched against targets in South Wales and the West Country, including Swansea and Falmouth. No. 10 Group, which had become operational only two days earlier on 8 July, was responsible for the defence of south-west England. Spitfires of No. 92 Squadron, based at Pembrey, was scrambled in response but arrived too late to intercept the incoming bombers.

The raids inflicted notable damage. In Swansea, a major ammunition factory was hit, halting production and destroying nearby housing. At Falmouth, Ju 88s struck the harbour and set several vessels ablaze. The 6,499-ton tanker Tascalusa was sunk, while the 7,085-ton British Chancellor was left burning, with five members of her crew killed. The Dutch salvage tug Zwarte Zee was damaged but not sunk. The 5,840-ton Greek steamer Marie Chandris was also bombed, setting her cargo of raw cotton alight. She was subsequently towed to a bay near St Mawes and sunk by gunfire before later being refloated. Civilian casualties reached thirty dead, with many more injured.

By the end of the day, the RAF had lost two fighters—one during the convoy engagements and another earlier in the morning under poor visibility conditions. Several additional aircraft were damaged, primarily in the course of intercepting attacks on Channel shipping. Among those claiming victories during the day’s operations were experienced Luftwaffe pilots, including Oberleutnant Walter Oesau, Staffelkapitän of 7./JG 51, as well as Lt. Erich Hohagen, Lt. Heinz Tornow, and Uffz. Otto Tange (all of 4./JG 51), Hauptmann Horst Tietzen and Lt. Hans-Otto Lessing (5./JG 51), and Oblt. Josef Priller of 6./JG 51. While Luftwaffe crews filed numerous combat claims—many significantly overstated—the German losses were considerable: at least fourteen aircraft were confirmed destroyed.

Enemy Action by Night

Between 21:30 hours and 05:30 hours, twelve enemy raids were plotted along the coast from the Firth of Tay to Beachy Head. Due to adverse weather conditions, British fighters were unable to scramble for interception. Bombs were reported to have fallen on Guisborough, Canewdon, Hertford, the Isle of Grain, Tobermory (Isle of Mull, Western Scotland), Colchester, Welwyn, and Ely.

German Losses:
Airmen: 29 | Aircraft: 14

British Losses:
Airmen: 2 | Aircraft: 2

Hurricane P3359, No. 253 Squadron. Aircraft destroyed.
Sgt I.C.C. Clenshaw killed. Lost control in bad visibility.
https://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Clenshaw.htm

Hurricane P3671, No. 111 Squadron. Aircraft destroyed.
F/O T.P.K. Higgs killed. Collided with Do 17 off coast near Folkestone.
https://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Higgs.htm

Photo Descriptions

1. Do 17Z-2s over France, Summer 1940. Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-341-0456-04 / Folkerts / CC-BY-SA 3.0
2. Supermarine Spitfire Mk Is of No. 610 Squadron on patrol during the Battle of Britain.
3. Concertina wire defences along the sea front at Sandgate, near Folkestone in Kent, 10 July 1940. © IWM (H 2187)